Sept 2020 Fios DVR and Guide Update

[Scott804]

This week Fios pushed out interface updates for their TV services. After nearly 3 hours in chats, I was finally told that there is no way to roll back updates once loaded and they base new update options based on posts in the forum. Below are my complaints that they will only fix with enough support on here, if you have the same issues, please mark the post. 

1. They removed the chapter function for recorded programs on the dvr (the up arrow that would allow you to move to any 10 min marker in a program).

2. The new Now and Next function causes latency when switching channels. Even after setting it to 0 seconds. 

3. They removed the ability to view a single channel lineup in the tv guide. In the past I would just hit guide a second time to see the next 5-10 shows on a single channel. 

4. Finally, I just find the prettier guide view harder to actually read and process. Not sure if it is the number of channels,  dark screen, or just that it is too busy.  Turning off the background video helped a little, but not much. 

[javajay]

Any thoughts/feedback on the response of the guide? (taking seconds to respond to every button pressed on the remote, sometimes having to press a button multiple times)?

[bristollucy]

Here's my thought. Verizon doesn't care a fig whether we like the Guide in it s present state. The company doesn't care if there are over a thousand complaints.  Most of their customers just suffer in silence and continue to pay their bills.

[Miconsult]

Let me pile on too. I gave the patch some time and am happy to see the picture in guide return. However, any action using channel change or last watched rail are excruciatingly slow. Pressing ok when watching a channel used to provide the current time. I now have to press the up arrow. I have the VMS4100 on a Samsung QLED QR65Q7DRAFXZA 4K TV so I shouldn't need a box upgrade or a TV upgrade. To me, this upgrade was poorly thought out and designed. While it's natural to resist change, this change has been a disaster from day one in Sept. and while improvements have been made, the code is so very slow, that it's a rather painful experience. Why is there ANY delay when using the remote?!?! 

[Aerostation]

I can’t find any redeeming qualities in this firmware update.

The response times to buttons is abysmal, the functional flow of operations is very broken (eg. info button used to sequence back to the original display, especially troublesome in the middle of the guide).

The displays are cluttered and difficult to read, adding too much unnecessary info.

Hopefully Verizon undoes the damage before too many people find a better alternative.

[JR441]

There’s only one way to make them listen:

tv.youtube.com

[Latestdowngrade]

Shameful. 

First I pay for an “upgrade” to Bluetooth remotes (that don’t work).  But it’s okay,  I don’t mind donating more of my hard-earned money to help Verizon on their quest toward 21st-century technology.  Clearly, they need our funding to catch up with the times.   I mean, do they even make a remote that turns a device on and off yet?  

Seems curious that you can’t set a favorites guide preference and actually have it be there when you regrettably return to it the next day.  Hmmm.  Wonder what they’re up to there.  

Once I tried  to sign on thinking I could get the time!  I did manage to sign on, but I think the clock feature was extra, so I reminded myself that times are tough--especially for a little company like Verizon, and sometimes you have to cut corners.  

Heh, heh, heh!  They do keep me laughing, though.   They have a ”feature” now that EVERYBODY is raving about-- yep!  -- A guide background video!  Just in case you want to watch shadows of your favorite TV show along the outside edges of the visually prohibitive guide.  This is amazing!  

There are not enough characters in Review Box Land to come close to listing what is wrong with this pathetic situation that for some reason I kept paying for.   But

”Garbage” seems like enough.  

Fire Mr. Fix-it and hire a software engineer.  

[Kjsmile]

This new update to the guide is really hurting my eyes and very hard to read and navigate, and it’s slow. Is there any way to revert back to the old one?

[ReginaS1]

Here we are over a month since this update and they still haven’t fixed the last rail. I don’t get why it seems so hard to fix..it’s often there in the morning and gone in the afternoon. Sometimes it only shows what you watched on dvr and not what you watched on tv. I’ve had multiple chats and have been promised a fix..me and 1000 others...why is this so hard to fix. Please do not tell me to reboot the box..been there done that....just fix it 

[bob550]

Since this update launched, tuning to an HBO channel results in a banner notification of the availability of On Demand that obliterates the bottom quarter of the screen for around 9 seconds. This banner will display only after the information overlay has disappeared. While pressing the exit button will remove the banner, this is just another aggravation with this update. I don't know if this is generated by HBO or Verizon, but like so many aspects of this update, this could have been much better designed. It would have been far more agreeable, for example, if the background was transparent. Is there a way to disable this in the menu, or is this yet another pain to have to live with?

[bristollucy]

My son and I are in Southeastern PA. We each have the same version and build as see below. And yet, while I still suffer the column that reads, "TV",  he has all the channel icons. What the heck!

[RG6251]

I'm in Monmouth County in NJ with the same hardware and firmware versions as you and my channel icons are MISSING as well.

AND... when you change channels, the info bar not only does NOT display channel icons, but the NAME OF THE CHANNEL/NETWORK HAS THE SMALLEST text in the info bar AND with most channels, those names are abbreviated beyond recognition. THIS IS COMPLETE NOVICE.  VERY poor design..... and PAINFULLY SLOW.

If the channel/network icons were present in a LEGIBLE, LARGE, and CLEAR way (use common sense), then I wouldn't care so much about the POOR text display of channel/network names. But right now, channel names are all we have.

[JR441]

Still no channel icons just “TV.”

Unbelievable.

[bristollucy]

Absolutely UNBELIEVABLE! 

[RG6251]

Verizon can still save money by firing the software team and....

...JUST ROLL IT BACK!  (And make everyone happy..)

TWO BASIC BUSINESS ETHICS:

-Customers always come first.
-Customers are always right.

[Newguideconcern]

And even if you don’t think the customers are right, you need to remember that they are the customers and pay your salaries! It still galls me that VZ used my money to ruin a great guide. Where’s the COLORS? Why can’t we get an answer to that question in well over 1,000 complaints!

[DVU]

I love that you restore chapters, however there are no reason to show me information about this "almost every time" I press DVR button.

Deleting watched recorded shows is an adventure.  Before it return me to list of recorded shows - now I need to esc from whatever garbage you put on my screen and press dvr again. The same problem when you try to set multiple shows to record - after setting 1st before upgrade you just press button back - now you forced to exit from guide and start your search again.  And every click has a 2-3 sec lag...

Just get OLD UI back.  You did not add anything, only made people aggravated.

[Nate110]

I am about to take my cable boxes beat them with baseball bat, drive to New York walk into the headquarters and throw them in the main hallway.

The lag, change of guide colors, font, I can not filter out stations to ones that I subscribe to, and I am to the point of canceling my TV just keep my internet and go from there.

[G-S]

Tremendous lag.  So so so frustrating.

Please roll it back.  

[bigrec222]

I can put up with the new menu, but the lag times are unacceptable, it may as well be DSL, it's not uncommon for it to take 30 seconds to a couple of minutes to respond to a command, sometimes just to change the channel, it's very frustrating. I don't know how much longer I can put up with it.

I've been a Verizon customer for many years, but lately, I've been looking for alternatives.

[Newguideconcern]

I am somewhat ashamed by telling how I “fixed” the lag problem. I gave VZ even MORE money and upgraded to Fios One! The delays are virtually gone. The other horrible changes are still there, but at least the crap shows up faster!

[F_PK]

"gave VZ even MORE money and upgraded to Fios One! The delays are virtually gone"

THERE IT IS!!!!!  Verizon's marketing strategy exposed.