Feature requests(s)

http://www36.verizon.com/fiostv/web/Unprotected/Newfeatures.aspx

To supplement item (6) above, Media Manager ought to be able to play ALL varieties of MUSIC files as well, including Wav, M4a, and many other common file types. Additionally, why is there a restriction on DRM-protected files? These are being played from their authorized computer and are being used on a home network of the authorized user. There is no copyright violation in such fair use. PLEASE allow Media Manager to be as great a tool as it could be, and not some watered-down hamstrung version that cannot play all of my legally-obtained (created or purchased) files.

Thank you

Cokeman

@CapnTrips wrote:
(6) In Home Media DVR functionality, please add the capability to stream PC VIDEO content through tthe Home Media DVR rather than just static pictures and audio streaming. If INTERNET video streaming is a bridge too far, at least permit playback of video already resident on the PC. Also when doing this, PLEASE do not limit the video formats that will stream (MPEG, AVI, DIVX, WMV, MOV, etc should ALL be available)

Just found this:

Media Manager: My Videos*Media Manager currently allows photos and music stored on your PC to be viewed from your Advanced Set-Top Box. The newest version of Media Manager now adds support for personal videos stored on your PC, allowing Media Manager subscribers to watch their (non-DRM) digital home video files (e.g., .AVI and .WMV) on their Advanced Set-Top Boxes.
*To access this feature, customers must use an ASTB (Advanced Set Top Box): High Def STB, High Def DVR or Standard Def DVR

http://www22.verizon.com/ResidentialHelp/FiOSTV/General+Support/Top+Questions/QuestionsOne/98764.htm

That is certainly interesting reading, and I hope it's being rolled out, but how does one get it? I have the latest Home Media HD-DVR software (1.6), as well as the latest version of Media Manager (7.2.58) which tells me that it is the latest, and there is no My Videos capability. If anybody can point me to a link where I can download this software, please do. Plus, I still don't see any rational reason for restricting DRM-protected files. I am using them IN MY HOME, ON MY OWN EQUIPMENT, and not for profit. This is clearly fair use within the current law.

Message Edited by CapnTrips on 09-14-2008 09:48 PM

garyski

I would also LOVE to see ability to use external USB hard drive or record to LAN / PC storage since there is such extremely small space on the DVR. This would be a huge plus.

I'd like to see sound volume leveling across the channels. They are all different volumes, which gets anoying when you surf.

CapnTrips,

I think that function is still in beta testing, probably will be some time before it comes out for all to use.

Justin
Verizon FiOS TV, Internet, and phone
IMG 1.5.0
Keller, TX

Additional items:

(8) When playing back a recorded program on the DVR, allow direct entry of a time to skip to (rather than having to tediously fast-forward through the first 115 minutes of a basketball game to see the last 5 minutes when all of the action is). Sky TV in Europe offers this on their DVR's. In addtion to "Play" there is a "Play From..." option and then you type in the number of minutes into the program you want the playback to begin.

(9) In Home Media DVR capability, allow HD recordings to be played back in SD on SD boxes to SD TVs.

MDBERUBE

New TV Season - New HD Channels - I need more space on my DVR!

We need to complain to Verizon so they see the urgency of this request.

Forget the IMG enhancements! This has got to be the primary feature that Verizon must deal with.

20+ hours isn't going to be enough storage for the typical family!

FIOS Customers unite for e-SATA!

WE NEED MORE DVR STORAGE!

Charlotte,

As you apparently monitor these fora, I'd ask that you forward the requests in this thread to the appropriate persons at Verizon and try to have them provide an answer. There really is no apparent mechanism for providing feedback directly to Verizon, suggesting fixes, improvements, etc. I would like to think that Verizon is indeed interested in customer service and if these requests are politely, calmly, and intelligently laid out, they would warrant consideration (at a minimum) and incorporation (in a perfect world).

Thank you

nascar

@CapnTrips wrote:
Charlotte,
As you apparently monitor these fora, I'd ask that you forward the requests in this thread to the appropriate persons at Verizon and try to have them provide an answer. There really is no apparent mechanism for providing feedback directly to Verizon, suggesting fixes, improvements, etc. I would like to think that Verizon is indeed interested in customer service and if these requests are politely, calmly, and intelligently laid out, they would warrant consideration (at a minimum) and incorporation (in a perfect world).
Thank you

I second this. It would be great to directly communicate to the IMG Development Team as well as other FiOS teams.

sargepepper

We just switched to FiOS TV after using the Dish Network for a few years. For now, I'd have to say that the FiOS STBs and DVR are the biggest issues for us. A number of problems have already been addressed (e.g. drive size) but I'd like to add a few I have not seen mentioned, and WERE available with the Dish DVR:

1. In a multi-room setup, I could *fully* control the DVR from another room - I could set recordings, set priorities, view and delete shows from the 'remote' rooms. With fiOS I can only view the recorded shows.

2. Because the dish DVR was a 2-tuner device, I could record 2 different shows at the same time, one on each tuner.

3. All shows were viewable on every STB, regardless of resolution (HD or SD).

4. When viewing the listings for recorded shows, the DVR does not display the original air date. This was a great help when watching various shows, so that we could watch them in sequence, regardless of when they were recorded.

I would also like to add my voice to those asking for the media manager to allow for more video and audio types to be played, as well as DRM-protected files. Why should I not be able to access MY media on MY system - I can't "broadcast" any of this to my neighbors so it's all "in-house" and legal. Please remove this restriction.

Thanks for 'listening'. I hope this goes somewhere.

sargepepper,

One comment on your list:

2) The HD-DVR from Verizon is a two tuner DVR, you can a) record two channels at once (and watch something previously recorded if you want, or either of the two channels being recorded), or b) record one channel and watch another while recording the first.

Justin
Verizon FiOS TV, Internet, and phone
IMG 1.5.0
Keller, TX

sargepepper

Justin - you are correct. i got that wrong. thanks for the heads up.

I did recall another item I wanted to mention as a potential improvement. Again, we had this with the dish Network DVR and liked it. When I pressed the 'Guide" button on eht remote once, the guide would display all channels. Pressing "guide" again would then display ONLY HD channels. This made it very easy to find whatever program on the HD channel, rather than having to brtowse for it or remember what the NBC HD channel number was.

@sargepepper wrote:
I did recall another item I wanted to mention as a potential improvement. Again, we had this with the dish Network DVR and liked it. When I pressed the 'Guide" button on eht remote once, the guide would display all channels. Pressing "guide" again would then display ONLY HD channels. This made it very easy to find whatever program on the HD channel, rather than having to brtowse for it or remember what the NBC HD channel number was.

I am not aware of any equivalent function in the FiOS DVR, but here are a couple of thoughts:

1) If you have the 1.6 level of the IMG, I understand that you can set up two Favorites. One thing you could do is set up one of those to be HD channels only. Not a great solution, but might help.

2) If you hit the big FiOS TV button or the OK button on the remote, then hit the Up Arrow above the OK button, you get the Guide displayed on the right side of the screen. If you then type in the lowest HD channel number (still 801 for me at 1.5 IMG), I get the first HD channel and can go up from there. If you hit the Down Arrow button instead of the Up button, you get the current channel guide entry overlaying the channel information, and you can then type in the lowest HD channel number and that entry displayed.

3) If you hit the Menu button, then TV Listings, then Right Arrow, then HD Channels, you get the HD channels only (yeah, I know, lots of button pressing, but it works...)

4) If you buy a programmable remote, I imagine you could program individual buttons to do any of the above so that it would work the way you want (extra money, but money is no object, right? Just kidding...).

Keep in mind I am not on the latest IMG level yet, so what I have put above may not be correct for 1.6.

There are probably more "undocumented" techniques to do more with the guide, maybe some others here will chime in and give us more ways to do good things.

Justin
Verizon FiOS TV, Internet, and phone
IMG 1.5.0
Keller, TX

CherylPDX

Thank you CapnTrips for starting this thread. It's nice to be able to put forth ideas in a civilized manner and have someone actually listen to them! The customer service people I've spoken to can't/don't know everything there is to know about this service, so maybe by posting here, we can get our feedback to the powers that be - feedback from people (us) who care enough about the service to take the time to actually post their thoughts and concerns here instead of just cancelling it out of frustration. We are the end users of Verizon products and services, so our opinions are valid and important, and should be taken seriously. We want this to work just as badly as you do Verizon.

I'm in the Portland, Oregon area, and have had Fios TV, with an HD/DVR box, (along with phone/internet) since they brought it to our area earlier this year. Overall, I'm happy with the service (so far), but I have a comment/suggestion relating to the guide that I wanted to put forth. I haven't yet found anything relating to this in the forums. It may not be as important to others as more HD space (I'm another yea vote for this one!) or some other concerns, but it would make surfing the guide a bit more convenient for those of us wanting to quickly identify new programs.

The current way the guide uses to identify a show that's "new" (meaning first-run) is by placing a red star icon with the word "new" inside, on that show's description page, along with any other pertinant icons (CC, HD, rating etc.). But in order to see if a show is "new," you have to actually choose that program from the guide and hit "ok" to then display that program's description page. If the show isn't new, you have to page back and continue scrolling, selecting and viewing descriptions. Plus, many programs repeat several episodes during the day, and you can't tell which of them is the "new" one without going into each description, one at a time. This is very tedious and time consuming.

My suggestion is to place the "new" red star icon on the first page of the guide for each show that is running a new episode. There is plenty of room under the small description on the first page where the time bar and other icons are. This way, when we're scrolling down the channels, we can see instantly if a show is new or not. The icons underneath the small description are the same icons that are displayed on the second, main description page. Since they are already programmed on the description page, just use that same code to display the icons on the front page of the guide, including the "new" icon.

Although I don't know programming, it seems like this would be a fairly easy fix to make, and would make surfing channels to see what's new sooooooo much quicker and easier. Anyone else out there think this would be nice?

Just my two cents from a newbie.

Oh...by the way, does anyone know what the red/white, downward-pointing triangle icon means that shows up on some on-demand movies descriptions? I can't figure it out to save me. It seems to be on just a few movies, but doesn't follow any rhyme or reason as to what it's supposed to be telling us. It must be there for a reason. Anyone know why?

@CherylPDX wrote:
Thank you CapnTrips for starting this thread. It's nice to be able to put forth ideas in a civilized manner and have someone actually listen to them!

Then please click on the "Kudos!" icon on that first post! Smiley Wink It can only seerve to increase this thread's visibility!

Additional features requested (some previously mentioned but not numbered):

(10) Allow Multi-room DVR to be controlled from any STB (set up recordings, delete, etc.)

(11) in the Guide, display "new" in the short listing rather than only the expanded listing

(12) Guide accuracy has been often bemoaned in these fora. Guide CURRENCY is an equal problem. Particularly Sports listings, which are subject to changes. PLEASE PLEASE get a better guide provider! (PLEASE!)

(13) The DVR settings allow you to select how many shows in a series to save (1, 2, 5, 10, ...), but it will only save the FIRST 1, 2, 5, or 10 shows in the selected series and then will record no more shows until you delete some. I have been disappointed when I expected to be able to watch the most recent Daily Show only to see that it was not recorded because of an older one still being saved. It would be very useful if one could SELECT whether to save the oldest shows, or alternatively to save the MOST RECENT shows in the series (i.e. when you have reached your threshold of 1, 3, 5, or 10, it will delete the oldest program as it records the most recent one).

(14) Allow an option for the guide to be displayed using the full 16:9 aspect ratio of HDTVs, thereby allowing more than 90 minutes - perhaps 120, 150 or even 210 minutes of guide data on the screen at once.

Thanks again for listening.

Message Edited by CapnTrips on 10-02-2008 09:00 AM

nascar

@CapnTrips wrote:
Additional features requested (some previously mentioned but not numbered):
(10) Allow Multi-room DVR to be controlled from any STB (set up recordings, delete, etc.)
(11) in the Guide, display "new" in the short listing rather than only the expanded listing
(12) Guide accuracy has been often bemoaned in these fora. Guide CURRENCY is an equal problem. Particularly Sports listings, which are subject to changes. PLEASE PLEASE get a better guide provider! (PLEASE!)
(13) The DVR settings allow you to select how many shows in a series to save (1, 2, 5, 10, ...), but it will only save the FIRST 1, 2, 5, or 10 shows in the selected series and then will record no more shows until you delete some. I have been disappointed when I expected to be able to watch the most recent Daily Show only to see that it was not recorded because of an older one still being saved. It would be very useful if one could SELECT whether to save the oldest shows, or alternatively to save the MOST RECENT shows in the series (i.e. when you have reached your threshold of 1, 3, 5, or 10, it will delete the oldest program as it records the most recent one).
(14) Allow an option for the guide to be displayed using the full 16:9 aspect ratio of HDTVs, thereby allowing more than 90 minutes - perhaps 120, 150 or even 210 minutes of guide data on the screen at once.
Thanks again for listening.
Message Edited by CapnTrips on 10-02-2008 09:00 AM

Regarding 13... My DVR will continually record episodes overwriting those that are already there. How do I change it to not do that? This is what I am used to with Comcast and miss that feature.

A choice to keep old recordings or overwrite with new would be very welcomed.

Number 10 would be terrific. At least allow me to delete a recording from a remote STB.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

nascar wrote: Regarding 13... My DVR will continually record episodes overwriting those that are already there. How do I change it to not do that? This is what I am used to with Comcast and miss that feature. A choice to keep old recordings or overwrite with new would be very welcomed.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Not sure what you mean. As I understand it, mine would only do that if the DVR is full and needs to make room for a new recording. Then it will delete the oldest unprotected recording of ANY kind - not one from that particular series. (At least that's what I presume. I haven't actually filled up the DVR yet, as I try to manage my recordings to prevent that.)

Regardless, there is a setting in Series Manager where you can select when to delete the recording, and although I forget the exact words, there is an option "Only when I tell you to" which will "Protect" that recording indefinitely.

All of this discussion simply reinforces feature request Number:

(2) MORE RECORDING CAPACITY! Up to 100 hours would be about right. 160 Gb HD is ridiculously small these days. Your average laptop has twice that. 1 Terabyte Hard Drives are pretty readily available these days. Either via Hard Drive upgrade or an external hard drive (eSata, USB, Home Media/Media Manager PC link). We really need this!

slothrob

The Comcast DVR had a nice feature. If you hit the guide button while looking at a scheduled DVR recording, it would go to the place in the guide where that show was listed. This was a great shortcut for editing the "to record" list or checking show info instead of having to click through days and hours with the arrow buttons. I'd use this a lot when I need to change from an HD recording scheduled to an SD in order not to over fill the drive.

Also, the favorites guide clicks back to the original channel if you check the info on a program. This is very annoying if you are scanning through the list to see if there is anything good on.

jim55

I just returned from 4 months at my summer cabin with Direct Tv the only service available. I am now reacquainting my self with FIOS and the two biggest downers with FIOS are the program guide and the small Hard drive.

The Direct TV guide is so far superior that there is no comparison. It has so much more and better information it make the Fios guide look like a pale imitation. The sad thing is that Verizon could probably get better guide information simply by spending a little more money.

The second feature where Direct TV shines is the size of their hard drive. I sure wish Verizon would offer a DVR with a larger hard drive or open the USB port to allow users to add a large external Hard drive.

My biggest complaint about Direct TV was they did not offer any PBS channels in HD. Verizon gives me two to chose from so kudos for that.

Jim55

CSimpson

@CapnTrips wrote:
(13) The DVR settings allow you to select how many shows in a series to save (1, 2, 5, 10, ...), but it will only save the FIRST 1, 2, 5, or 10 shows in the selected series and then will record no more shows until you delete some. I have been disappointed when I expected to be able to watch the most recent Daily Show only to see that it was not recorded because of an older one still being saved. It would be very useful if one could SELECT whether to save the oldest shows, or alternatively to save the MOST RECENT shows in the series (i.e. when you have reached your threshold of 1, 3, 5, or 10, it will delete the oldest program as it records the most recent one).

I can definitely confirm that a series of shows will overwrite each other when necessary. For example, I have a series recording set up for South Park (on Comedy Central) to record up to FIVE episodes. If there are FIVE episodes currently in my list, the oldest one will get deleted automatically when an upcoming episode is about the record. I see this happen all the time when there is a South Park marathon. This occurs regardless of how full the DVR is (I usually keep mine around 50-80% full). I also want to add that this behavior occurred with versions 1.5 and 1.6 IMG.

braigo64

Haven't been able to find any information on if this is a future feature, but it is something I would really like. All the DVRs are 2-tuner. You can record a total of 2 shows at any given time. With the fall tv season back under way there are many shows I would like to record, which also all air at the same time. I originally had a Home Media DVR for my HDTV in the living room and an SD STB in the bedroom. I swapped out the SD STB for an HD DVR. Now I can record 4 shows at a time. Here is the problem: The Home Media DVR does not share its recordings with the HD DVR, nor vice versa. There are many shows in HD that air at the same time that I would like to record and watch. I would also like to watch them wherever I want in the house. If I have 1 HDTV and 2 HD DVRs I should be able to watch any HD recording from any of my HD DVRs in the location of my HDTV. If I get a 2nd HDTV for the bedroom, I should be able to watch anything I recorded in the living room up in the bedroom while I go to sleep. I don't think this is much to ask for.

The boxes are already networked. So the feature I would like is total DVR streaming/sharing amongst all DVR boxes in the house. This would also help solve some of the problems with not enough storage space. With 2 DVRs in a house I can set up recordings wherever I want and still be able to access them from anywhere else in the house. Recording shows and viewing recorded shows should be transparent, meaning I should be able to setup a recording from any DVR and specify whichever DVR I want it recorded on. When trying to view the list of recorded shows, it should just be a list of all recorded shows in all the boxes withouth worrying about trying to find where my recordings are.

Again, I don't think this is that hard to implement and I would be a very happy customer if I was able to use such features.

peecee

The requests I'd like to add to the queue:

1. A sleep timer. I'm able to configure the a/c outlet to be switched or not, and it would be nice to only have to set the STB to go to sleep, rather than set my TV to go to sleep and leave the STB on. I don't know how much power it draws when off (probably little difference from when on), it would just be convenient.

2. Enable the IR port. Right now I have to use an external receiver and a stick on emitter, but it would be so much nicer to be able to just plug a remote ir receiver into the back of the device. Much more clean, and I wouldn't need the extra wiring for the emitter stuck to the face of the STB.

3. Ability to record HD and SD versions of the same show, or at least be able to downconvert an HD recording to SD on the fly.

I would also echo the sentiment of being able to schedule recordings from any STB. I can't believe I have to be at the DVR machine to schedule a recording. It must be a simple oversight or a legal/copyright issue (although I can't imagine why).

For the moderators, for ease of tracking, here is a periodic summary of the features requested in this thread to date. Highlighted are the TOP priorities:

(1) MORE RECORDING CAPACITY! Either via Hard Drive upgrade or an external hard drive (eSata, USB, Home Media/Media Manager PC link). We really need this!;

(2) IMPROVE the program guide. There are many threads detailing problems. Chief amongst them are:

(a) “New” program flagging frequently wrong (and should display on compact listing);

(b) Insufficient useful info (generic program descriptions rather than specific episode description, INCORRECT info on recurring shows (Sports teams, guests etc from YEARS ago frequently listed!), team names on Sports, Actors on movies, etc.);

(c) Not updated with dynamically changing schedules (like playoff games in sporting events, or games and awards shows running long);

(d) use the full 16:9 aspect ratio of HDTVs, thereby allowing more than 90 minutes - perhaps 120, 150 or even 210 minutes of guide data;

(3) IMPROVE Home Media (Multi Room) DVR functionality:

(a) stream ALL standard formats of audio AND VIDEO. Allow streaming of DRM-protected files (this is, after all, PERSONAL USE and perfectly legal!);

(b) Allow multiple DVRs in one house to be Multi-Room DVRs and to communicate and share recordings with one another;

(c) Allow all STBs (HD and SD) in the house to schedule recordings on the MRDVRs;

(d) When playing back a recorded program on the DVR, allow direct entry of a time to skip to (rather than having to tediously fast-forward);

(e) Allow direct control of each tuner in the DVRs rather than “automatically” swapping tuners whenever a channel is changed.

(f) if a program is Paused when a channel is changed, upon return to that channel, have it remain at the paused time, rather than “resetting” to the live feed;

(g) Have the DVR extend recording as necessary for programming that runs over its scheduled time. (I’m not certain whether this is a DVR or Program Guide issue);

(h) Fix the glitches with playback of recorded programming. Documented in other threads;

(i) In Home Media DVR capability, allow HD recordings to be played back in SD on SD boxes to SD TVs;

(j) Allow the user to select whether to save the “most recent” or “oldest” shows when selecting the number of episodes of a recurring series to save.

(4) Activate (or program) the PIP capability in the DVR.

(5) Allow display of selected channel video when streaming MUSIC via Home Media DVR (Allow the user to toggle from viewing the music playback screen to the background TV picture).

(6) Provide sound volume leveling across the channels. Many channels come in at varying volumes.

(7) Add a sleep timer;

(8) Enable the IR port;

(9) Downconvert HD recordings to SD for SDTVs.

Hopefully, the moderators will provide some feedback regarding any of the suggested improvements.

Message Edited by CapnTrips on 10-22-2008 04:12 PM

Message Edited by CapnTrips on 10-22-2008 04:15 PM

I don't know if Kathleen reads this or not any more but I have some I posted in my own thread, so I wanted to post them here, and hope they get passed on too.

TimSykes wrote:
Three things I would love to see. Not sure where to post this, or if there is a place to send in feature suggestions.
1) When you record a series if there is a conflict, that it will take one of the shows and find the next date that the sown is available and set that to record. My Vista media center does it and that is one feature I truly miss.
2) I have a home media DVR, and a HD receive. So it would be nice to be able to delete my DVR content from my back room HD receiver (non DVR).
Oh and
3) I would like to be able to set recordings to start say 2 min early and end 2 min later. And it to be smart enough to not kill another recording. Again another feature that Vista Media center does great.

[Deleted User]

Hi Tim,

We are still listening. 🙂

thats good to know. thanks!

One other thing I would like to see done.

On my sons TV I set it to the "Kids" preset stations. But that gets reset all the time. Its way to easy to go back to all channels by hitting the c button. I would like to see that as part of the parental control locks.

kb1esx

I was spoiled w/cable & didn't know it!!

I could add external storage,
Picture-in-Picture,
a guide that worked,
front A/V input jacks that worked!
Easily edit recoding settings to get around conflicts for 61 minute shows!

I've had FiOS TV for 3 days & I want my cable TV back. 😞

David

MeatChicken1

* I would like to be able to set recordings from the remote STB's to the home media DVR, be able to browse the guide on a remote (bedroom) TV & select future recordings.

BigPete82

I love all the ideas in this thread so far, keep up the great work!

My biggest priorities are:

2a, b, and c. Specifically "2a" with the "new" icon idea that Cheryl had. It needs to be IN THE GUIDE!

3c, g, h, and i. 3h is a big one and these playback glitches should be fixed as soon as possible!

Also, to elaborate on the first request that Tim made in post 38, DISH implements a very nice version of this feature that would be worth looking at. Say, for example, that you want to record a series like Top Chef on Bravo that airs several reruns per week, and often several each day. The DISH DVR schedule list would show every scheduled recording as highlighted and every rerun or repeat in gray. This way, you could go to the list of scheduled recordings, cancel the scheduled recording, and the next rerun of that same show would automatically highlight as it would now be scheduled to record. You could look at the entire list of the show and decide which one you wanted to record, select it, and the DVR would cancel the rest and turn them gray. This was also very helpful if you wanted to know why a particular show did not record. You could go back several days and look to see why it didn't record because it was either canceled or a rerun. It was very helpful for resolving conflicts because if you knew a scheduled show was going to have a rerun a few hours later or the next day you could easily postpone recording it.

Message Edited by BigPete82 on 12-10-2008 10:41 AM

Message Edited by BigPete82 on 12-10-2008 10:43 AM

Carl

This is more programming, but start talking with DirecTV (nudge them to talk to the NFL as well!!!) about sharing the "exclusivity" of Sunday ticket for the 2011 season. It may be corporate collusion, but there are a number of people, who like me, rent and do not have exclusive areas of access to place a dish, and the property manager doesn't want all those dishes up on the roofs.

Now I am totally dreaming, but hey..

All these suggestions/requests are great. The two most important ones are MORE HARD DISK SPACE (internal and/or external) and a better program guide. This one can be pretty useless at times - No or limited cast info, no original air date, frequently no movie release date, frequently no "New Episode" flag, frequently gives "No program info available" descriptions, etc. (I could go on but it's been pretty well covered here and in other threads.)

Another feature it would be nice to have is the ability to enter a Channel number in the Favorites Guide and then go to it. This can be done in the FIOS Main Guide and is a feature available with the Dish and DirecTV Favorites guides (I've used both). Now you have to scroll through the channels, which can be pretty annoying when you want to get back to a specific channel right away to start a recording.

Oh, and in case no one has mentioned it yet - MORE HARD DISK SPACE!

vinnyv07

I would love if they made the usb port active so I could rush out and buy a 1 tb hard drive to save some of my shows. Right now I find 160 gig is way too small if we are talking about recording a lot of hd shows.

I really don't want anything extra as far as features are concerned. I want all of the nags fixed. Unable to locate hub nag and fast fowarding and it suddenly skips to the beginning of the program drives me crazy. Fix the nags ....add on later.

Just remembered some other very useful features I had in DirecTV that aren't available in FIOS -

When you put a program on hold in DirecTV, it pretty much stays on hold (don't remember if Dish did this, but I'm pretty sure it did). Thus, if you change to another channel, when you come back to the original on hold channel, its still on hold at the same spot as you left (there are some time constraints). With FIOS, as soon as you change the channel, the on hold channel is released. Then, when you come back, you have to rewind the program back to where you left the channel. So, please add a "permanent" hold feature.

In DirecTV, you could FF or RW by 1/4 of the recorded program with a click of the "Jump ahead or back" buttons. A great time saver! And would be very useful with FIOS not letting you pause a program, change the channel and come back to the paused spot. So, please add a rapid (1/4 chunk at a time) Rewind/Fast Forward feature.

Thanks!

MikeyB

I am, of course, interested in all the features other folks desire. However, I would be interested in hearing from VZ which of those features is affected by copyrights. Dish (I just left them late Nov) recently lost an appeal of a major lawsuit verdict in TiVo's favor because Dish DVR infringes on TiVo technology. I believe it was in the hundreds of millions, so I would not be surprised to see Dish DVRs changing before long. I am guessing that at least some of the features we desire may not be deliverable by VZ for this reason unless VZ makes a deal with TiVo. DirectTV recently signed a contract with TiVo, so their DVR features can include TiVo technology (as a non-HD TiVo owner, I know how good TiVo is). I just can't see dropping $600 for hi capacity HD Tivo box along with the added monthly subscription costs and not having multi-room features without buying other TiVo boxes for the other sets (and more subscription fees).

I guess the good news is that there must be a happy medium out there somewhere. Comcast DVRs (l left them in 2005 for Dish) have better guide and recording features than FIOS without getting successfully sued by TiVo!!

markw

Cheryl:

Like you, I tried to determine what the red inverted triangle means before calling FIOS support. I have called them at least 5 different times and no one can tell me or direct me to someone who may know. Have you ever figured this one out?

speedo123 wrote:
Another feature it would be nice to have is the ability to enter a Channel number in the Favorites Guide and then go to it. This can be done in the FIOS Main Guide and is a feature available with the Dish and DirecTV Favorites guides (I've used both). Now you have to scroll through the channels, which can be pretty annoying when you want to get back to a specific channel right away to start a recording.

Oh, and in case no one has mentioned it yet - MORE HARD DISK SPACE!

I now have this feature! Tech support had to do a reset on both of my DVRs because they all of a sudden stopped recording anything. When they came back up, both now allow me to enter a channel number when in a favorites guide and go to it directly. Previously I had to scroll to any channel I wanted to go to. Don't know if this ability was added with this reset or had been added sometime in the near past as I hadn't tried it in awhile. Don't know it others are experiencing this feature lack but, if so it might be worth calling Verizon for a reset!

Gtbiss

From Northern Jersey:

Parental Controls: Time-of-day blocking. FIOS-Internet has this capability

Parental Controls: Individual Show Blocking (American Dad, Family Guy, Most of Adult Swim) Most of these are TV14 but completely inappropriate (at least for my kids)

Parental Controls: Add Content Descriptor Filtering: violence [V], fantasy violence [FV], sexual situations [S], coarse language [L] and suggestive dialogue [D].

STB - Enable the USB port

CherylPDX

Cheryl:

-----------------------------------------

To markw - and everyone else:

I still have not found an "official" answer to what the inverted red triangle is on some premium channel movie listings. However, one tech I just spoke with had a thought, which may be the answer.

He said the icon may be a notification that the movie is due to end its showing time. So I went in and checked, and surprise! All the movies that had that icon (on any of the premium channels) were due to end within a few days or so!

We just may have our answer!!

But I'm still bugged that Verizon is using on-screen icons which are supposed to tell us something, but then don't give us a legend ANYWHERE to decipher them!

Here's a bright idea! Just add another option under the settings option in the main menu (and maybe online as well) and put the legend there, with a picture of each icon and what it means. What a simple fix!

But if the icon means something else, please Verizon, let us know what it is!

And please, please, please...get the red "new" star on the main guide page so we know at a glance which shows are new without having to open each show to find out.

Cheryl,

At least some of the icons are documented. When you are looking at the Guide, you can hit the Options key and it will display a small popup. If you scroll down a couple of entries in that popup, you will see a Guide Legend selection. Click on that, and you will see at least some of the icons.Not all of them for sure, but the function is there, Verizon just needs to add all of the icons.

OK Verizon, this should be an easy fix, define all of the icons for us.

__________________________________
Justin
Verizon FiOS TV, Internet, and phone
IMG 1.6.0, Build 06.89
Keller, TX

markw

I got off the phone with technical support a little while ago with a different issue and asked about the "inverted triangle". The tech (who was helpful and very pleasant), did not know the answer. She checked with two other techs (gurus, in her opinion), who both confidently agreed that it indicated that the program was available in Spanish as an SAP if you select Spanish as the preferred language in the Settings menu. I told her that I was tempted to accept her answer without checking this out as I finally got an answer. She said I should post the answer on this Forum. Of course, after we hung up, I I tried it out. It did not work for me, even when I selected Spanish as the primary language as well.

So it seems to me that this mystery is still unsolved.

michelliot

Hi All,

Don't know if it was mentioned before, but it would be helpful if there was a star rating attached to the movies. I realize that there's no accounting for taste, but it's amazing how many boring, uninspiring 2 star movies are out there. A star rating would at least be a starting point on what one could expect when making the commitment for the next couple of hours.

I agree, just progamming what these DTV boxes are already capable of doing, would be all that's necessary to keep Verizon customers on board as long as it's a quality product. I'm sure that it would cost the company more to do so and it would be great if all the features were standard. Why not, if physically possible, make certain accessories an option for the clients who really want them, at least for the time being.

Oh, and one more suggestion, I'll bet MSG (HD) would be appreciated by many.

Have a healthy new year,

elliot

Message Edited by michelliot on 01-09-2009 09:52 AM

@michelliot wrote:
Oh, and one more suggestion, I'll bet MSG (HD) would be appreciated by many.

Is that what is in Chinese food?

TheSanchez

@michelliot wrote:
Hi All,
Don't know if it was mentioned before, but it would be helpful if there was a star rating attached to the movies. I realize that there's no accounting for taste, but it's amazing how many boring, uninspiring 2 star movies are out there. A star rating would at least be a starting point on what one could expect when making the commitment for the next couple of hours.
I agree, just progamming what these DTV boxes are already capable of doing, would be all that's necessary to keep Verizon customers on board as long as it's a quality product. I'm sure that it would cost the company more to do so and it would be great if all the features were standard. Why not, if physically possible, make certain accessories an option for the clients who really want them, at least for the time being.
Oh, and one more suggestion, I'll bet MSG (HD) would be appreciated by many.
Have a healthy new year,
elliot
Message Edited by michelliot on 01-09-2009 09:52 AM

If a star rating for movies was to be implemented where should the ratings come from? I have personally found movies that I liked that critics and public opnion rated very poorly. IMDB seems to be a pretty popular source of public opinion for movies. So I suppose the real problem with a star rating system is that everyone will always have a different opinion and some people might miss out on movies they would actually like. However, it's a very good idea that I will pass along to development.

IngredientX

For my first forum post, I'd like to repeat two points.

1. More storage space. Even if it's just allowing a USB drive to be connected to the STB. 1 TB drives are pretty cheap these days.

2. Picture in picture. I came from Cablevision in Northern NJ, and their Scientific Atlanta boxes supported PiP. I'm a big sports fan, so watching two channels at once was something I always wanted. I really miss it.

cprgolds

I agree with everything previously stated in this topic... Particularly DVR drive space.

One thing that I haven't seen mentioned is ability to slo-mo dvr playback. I have trouble viewing the credits at the end of programs. When I pause them, the info window covers the style of credits that NBC is currently using at the bottom of the screen, and I have to wait for the box to clear.

Maybe this functionality is there, but I sure haven't found it.

cprgolds wrote:
I agree with everything previously stated in this topic... Particularly DVR drive space.

One thing that I haven't seen mentioned is ability to slo-mo dvr playback. I have trouble viewing the credits at the end of programs. When I pause them, the info window covers the style of credits that NBC is currently using at the bottom of the screen, and I have to wait for the box to clear.

Maybe this functionality is there, but I sure haven't found it.

It is there, but I haven't seen it documented anywhere (I probably missed that page!). If you hit the Pause button first, then hit the Fast Forward button, the program will advance in slo-mo. If you hit the arrow (Jump Ahead button) before you hit the FF button, the program will advance one frame and one more frame each time you hit it. This sequence also works for slo-mo in reverse by using the RR and JB buttons.

Hope that helps!

cprgolds

@speedo123 wrote:
It is there, but I haven't seen it documented anywhere (I probably missed that page!). If you hit the Pause button first, then hit the Fast Forward button, the program will advance in slo-mo. If you hit the arrow (Jump Ahead button) before you hit the FF button, the program will advance one frame and one more frame each time you hit it. This sequence also works for slo-mo in reverse by using the RR and JB buttons.
Hope that helps!

That helps immensely! I haven't seen that documented anywhere. Kudos to you speedo123!

cprgolds wrote:
I agree with everything previously stated in this topic... Particularly DVR drive space.

One thing that I haven't seen mentioned is ability to slo-mo dvr playback. I have trouble viewing the credits at the end of programs. When I pause them, the info window covers the style of credits that NBC is currently using at the bottom of the screen, and I have to wait for the box to clear.

Maybe this functionality is there, but I sure haven't found it.

Another feature you might not be aware of is that if you hit the "Exit" button on the left side of the remote it will immediately clear the info window so you can read/see what's under it without having to wait for it to clear itself.

Message Edited by speedo123 on 01-11-2009 10:18 AM

Quasar

I would like to see the Home MEdia DVR support the uPNP AV protocol (A standard to steam media from devices) so I could access files without using the MEdia Manager Applications and always having my PC turned on...

Also Media manager should support files on remote shares?

CSimpson

The DVR already supports SLO-MO and FRAME ADVANCE. I use it all the time. Just pause your recorded show, then press the FF or REW button for slo-mo, or press the SKIP button for frame advance.

ElGuapo

In addition to ALL previous requests, I'd like to ask if this could be done

1-) In the search functionality, can we search for a specific type of movies for instance? I keep getting ALL movies, I can't filter the list by type say..only suspense movies

2-) I have the Spanish package and sometimes I'd like to switch between English and Spanish for movies that have both audio tracks with the push of a button. I have been told that this feature already existed previously but it was disable. DirectTV has this feature and it was very useful.

3-) Under search when using a keyword search, can we limit the list to a specific area? just like Tivo or DirectTV have them?

michelliot

Hey guys,

After reading through this thread, I found that several users suggested that VZ boxes should have an option to allow a virgin signal to pass directly to the TV monitor. Couldn't figure what the advantage would be even though I'm an audiophile who stresses that the most direct route to the speakers brings out the most detail in the music. Last night, I wanted to make a test because I was having issues with my 6416. I plugged the cable from the wall directly into the monitor's RF input. This can only be done if the TV as certain digtal tuners in it. I actually received 173 channel in NYC (a lot of music channels though). Well, the HD channels came in as beautiful as ever. The main difference was that the standard def channels were vastly superior when viewed directly than through the box. Like night and day. I guess the "path with the least resistance" works to bring out the detail videologically as well. Isn't physics wonderful?

be well,

elliot

tsk

@michelliot wrote:
plugged the cable from the wall directly into the monitor's RF input. This can only be done if the TV as certain digtal tuners in it. I actually received 173 channel in NYC (a lot of music channels though). Well, the HD channels came in as beautiful as ever. The main difference was that the standard def channels were vastly superior when viewed directly than through the box. Like night and day. I guess the "path with the least resistance" works to bring out the detail videologically as well. Isn't physics wonderful?

I'm not sure what you are implying here. Are you supporting the request that the digital signal be allowed to pass through the DVR or STB unprocessed, or are you offering an alternative?

If the latter - yes that is an option and is what some of us do. In fact I have a cablecard in my display so I can receive the full suite of channels and not just those "in the clear".

The problem with doing that is:

No DVR functionality. If you want to use the DVR, you're back to a processed signal.
No program guide. OK, my TV uses TVGuide, but the data provided is not complete (at least not currently).

I did find the the QIP-6416-2, at least, does pass an unprocessed signal via firewire. This is not surprising and would be expected. It doesn't help much unless you happen to have one of the very rare displays that actually accepts firewire (Some Mitsubishis and possibly Sonys were among those)

Another feature it would be nice to have is having Pause hold when you change channels. I had it with DirecTV and Dish. You could put one program on Pause, go to another channel, watch that program. You could then put the second program on hold, go back to the first and view from where you paused. Put it on pause again, go back to the second program and view it from where it was paused. This was great for sports when two games were on at the same time. Unfortunately, Verizon's version of Pause releases the pause if you change channels. To me, that pretty much defeats the purpose of Pause. Hopefully this will be "corrected" in Ver 1.7 when it's released???? Smiley Very Happy I'm assuming this is probably too much to expect for 1.6.1 which I'm told won't be available in my area until March sometime.

Change the "Last" button to go back to the recorded program you were watching instead of another channel. Right now, if you are watching a recorded program and hit the Last button, it will take you to the last channel you were watching before you started watching the recorded program. However, if you hit Last again, instead of back to the recorded program, it will take you to another channel you had been watching . This is "wrong" conceptually as well as actually in that the recorded program IS the last thing you were watching, not the channel before the last channel. Now, to get back to the recording, it requires 5 to 7 button pushes instead of one. A real hassle.

JNR

I was use to this with Comcast and really liked that feature.
@speedo123 wrote:
Change the "Last" button to go back to the recorded program you were watching instead of another channel. Right now, if you are watching a recorded program and hit the Last button, it will take you to the last channel you were watching before you started watching the recorded program. However, if you hit Last again, instead of back to the recorded program, it will take you to another channel you had been watching . This is "wrong" conceptually as well as actually in that the recorded program IS the last thing you were watching, not the channel before the last channel. Now, to get back to the recording, it requires 5 to 7 button pushes instead of one. A real hassle.

jackcarp

I agree 20 hours of HD programing is a joke. I just came from Dish Network and am use to a quality DVR, I was very dispointed when I got back from vacation and found half of my programs didn't record because I ran out of room. The picture quality is great but lets get more HD record time. The picture quality dosn't matter if you don't get to see it.

nascar

We need to have the USB port enabled. I would grab a 500 Gig HD and connect immediately!

Shabbis

TiVo has an external HD option, so why can't the Moto boxes?

They must have figured out the DRM and connectivity issues.

sparkey222

I just changed from dishnet to fios and was hesitant to change mainly because dishnet let you use external hard drives up too 1terabyte so i dont see why this is an issue if others can do it. if the problem is with the esata then use the usb untill the problem is resolved. 160 gig drives is old school! if vod would be consistent with the programs that they record i would not have to record them on my drive to save space. Like a few others, i was spoiled with the original air date of the program in the guide, very helpfull when scrolling through the shows.

Wubbzy

Ditto that. It was a nice feature.

Other recommendations I have (I know one of these has already been posted, but I didn't sit here and read through ALL of the posts, so sorry if they are repeated):

- Date stamping shows with at least the year so you know if something aired in 2006 or 2009. Better dating overall would also prevent the DVR from recording mutliple repeat shows when the settings are set to record new shows only.

- A time stamp that indicates the current position when rewinding live TV. Currently you can see the start and end times of the show and where you are relative to those times (if you rewind it), but there is nothing that shows you that you are at 4:23pm of a show that runs from 4pm - 5pm.

- Everything about the DVR is a bit strange to me. I liked Comcast's configuration better. I am still very uncomfortable with my series recordings, as I am afraid some will be missed with the uptightness of the DVR. I purchased a sporting event on PPV and set it to record, and I checked on it a half-hour into it and it didn't start recording until I changed the channel to the event channel......what's up with that?! Verizon should clone Comcast's DVR settings. It's way better.

vinnyv07

The DVR needs to have more drive space. If Verizon cna't get it done then they must buy new DVR's to furnish to their customers with at least double the drive space. 320 gig would be a lot better.

zooky

@Justin wrote:
CapnTrips,
I think that function is still in beta testing, probably will be some time before it comes out for all to use.
Justin
Verizon FiOS TV, Internet, and phone
IMG 1.5.0
Keller, TX

Further, I'd love it if Verizon allowed FIOS TV users to join in on the "beta testing", thus becoming beta testers with the usual caveat that it's betw and may very well be broke. If it's bad, we could always rollback to the latest released verion. We had that capability on Direct TV. Sometimes I got bit, but most times it was great. Of course, we always had to provide them with input as to how the beta release worked for them and ABOVE ALL - DON'T YELL AT THEM IF IT CAUSES PROBLEMS!!!!!

Eric

Ditto on the time stamp of the current position. It would be nice to know when rewinding and watching a game how much longer you have before you catch up to "live".

HookEm2

I also have Home Media HD-DVR software (1.6), as well as the latest version of Media Manager (7.2.58), yet Media Manager does not give the option to play video that resides on my pc. If this isn't available until a future release, it would save subscibers a lot of time and aggravation if the the Media Manager didn't read "Press OK to access your videos, photos and music."

vinnyv07

The main issue for Verizon is to provide more drive space to the customers that want it. 160 gig is way too small when you are trying to record HD.

I currently use my Xbox 360 to stream video from my computer to my Tv upstaires. There is nothing like it in the world. If they would add that to their media center it would be great. Let's get this going!

Oh....yea....please fix the HUB error.

fiostvman

Does anyone with inside knowledge of Verizon know if Verizon is considering any of these suggestions seriously.?

All great suggestions.

Biggest issue for me right now is

1. Poor SD pic quality on HDTV

2. Small hard drive space on DVR.

Other issues I can live with for now.