DIRECTV HR21 (DIRECTV Plus HD DVR)
Manufacturer: Hughes Network Systems Part number: DVR HR21
- CNET Editor rating: Not yet rated
- Average user rating: 2.0 stars out of 40 reviews
- More product information:
- Editors' take
- User reviews
- Specifications
- Product series
- Manufacturer info
- Bottom Line:
- CNET did not review the DirecTV HR21 but we did review the HR20, which is very similar.
Read more
Where to buy
| store | customer rating | inventory | tax & shipping | price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon.com Marketplace |  | See Site | Enter zip code to get total price: Price +Tax +Shipping =Total price | as of 12/02/2009 |
CNET editors' take
DIRECTV HR21 (DIRECTV Plus HD DVR) price range: $167.50
- Reviewed by: CNET staff
- Reviewed on: 03/18/2008
The bottom line: CNET did not review the DirecTV HR21 but we did review the HR20, which is very similar.
Although CNET did not review the DirecTV HR21, we did review the HR20. The two DirecTV satellite DVRs are basically identical aside from coloration (the HR21 is black while the HR20 is silver) and the fact that the HR21 lacks a built-in ATSC tuner, so it cannot receive or record over-the-air HDTV channels. The HR21 lacks such a tuner, although many local HD channels--typically ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC--are available via satellite in most areas of the country (more info).
The HR20 and the HR21 share the same capacity for recorded shows, the same remote control, and the same features otherwise. For more information, refer to our full review of the DirecTV HR20.
User reviews
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This DVR Sucks
by robeerski on March 25, 2008
Pros: Screen Saver
Cons: Lockups, Software Problems, Crappy Guide, Very slow Menus, Only one live TV buffer and many others
Summary: I have had TIVO for years and now DirecTV has shoved this inferior DVR down my throat saying that my old HD recorder would stop functioning and I had to ...
Summary: I have had TIVO for years and now DirecTV has shoved this inferior DVR down my throat saying that my old HD recorder would stop functioning and I had to upgrade (Ha Ha) to this new DVR provided by DirecTV.
When compared to the TIVO unit this unit is missing many features. It only has one live TV buffer where TIVO 2. It doesn't do suggestions. It only has one guide option where the TIVO has 2. It has no over the air tuner and I'm sure there are other missing features but these are the most obvious for me.
Many of the programs in the guide do not fit in the space provided. This makes it hard to use the guide to see what is coming up. You almost have to highlight each program to find out what it is. With the slowness of the guide this whole process becomes long and laborious.
Navigating the menus is very sluggish paging up or down or changing or channels in the guide take almost a second to refresh after each button press. It also seems to take a long time to respond to any button press anywhere. This is almost like it is either lacking in system memory or it needs a faster processor.
The 30 second skip is not really a 30 second skip but a 30 second fast forward. If I wanted fast forward, I would press fast forward.
The most frustrating problem I have experienced so far was last night. I was watching a show on live TV delayed by about 30 minutes. The DVR asked me if it could change channels to record a scheduled program. I assumed it would allow me to finish the last half hour on my current show while it started recording the newly scheduled one. WRONG, it changed channels and I lost the last half hour of the show I was watching.
Since it has only one live TV buffer, you cannot bounce back & forth between 2 live channels and expect to be able to pause. Sometimes I like to watch 2 live sporting events. I will pause one the watch the other for a bit then pause it and come back to the first. With one live TV buffer, this is impossible. When the channel gets changed it is always back to live.
I don't think the menu's or setup procedures are very easy to use or user friendly.
Now that I have described what I don't like about this box, there are a couple of things I do like. I like the 4 colored buttons on the remote that do different things in different areas like a soft button on a cell phone. I like the fact that it has a screen saver that engages whenever you pause the program for a long time. I think the favorites section with multiple levels of favorites is also nice.
I don't recommend this box to anyone. I guess it is OK if you have never had a good DVR and don't know what you are missing. I wish more people would voice their disgust at this horrible DVR and maybe DirecTV would release a better product or do what they used to do and just partner back up with TIVO who already knows how to build a great DVR. I hate this DVR so much in fact that I am thinking of changing TV providers to see if I can get something better elsewhere.10 out of 11 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Horrific! Guaranteed to frustrate anyone with minimal expectations
by byronicboom on July 18, 2008
Pros: Recording Capacity Meter; Able to program while still listening to programming & watching p.i.p.
Cons: Tons of Bugs or as DTV calls them "Known Issues"; Constantly being tested; Using paying customers as guinea pigs (no joke)
Summary: On paper this is a great unit, however after roughly 4 years as a DTV Tivo user, I decided to take DTV up on their offer to upgrade to the ...
Summary: On paper this is a great unit, however after roughly 4 years as a DTV Tivo user, I decided to take DTV up on their offer to upgrade to the HR21 series. Wow, what a huge mistake!
This machine was so horrific, I honestly don't know where to begin. In theory outside of it's inability to perform wishlist autorecords (only tivo users know what I'm talking about), it should be a slight improvement to the sd tivo units, however it doesn't do what a DVR is supposed to do. What am I referring to?
1) Scheduled recordings were frequently blank. Yes, the program is in the "now playing" list, but there is nothing behind door # 1. You have no idea how much this disrupted our "Tivo spoiled" household.
2) We worked with DTV to the fullest, and after 7 units, we finally gave up and hooked up the old Tivo again. We were eventually told by DTV that we were far from alone.
3) The unit locked up constantly, and resets take 10 minutes or more to recover.
4) DVR's allow one to fast forward and rewind or even pause programming right? Well, not these.... DTV had a known issue for literally months while we had these units. During playback, we'd often fast forward through a commercial, only to lose control of it. Yes, it took over on its own, and didn't allow us to resume play. We'd sit there for minutes waiting for the fast forward wheels to stop rolling, look at one another and try to decide if we should throw it out the window, wait, or reset it.
4) Don't fall for the On Demand hype. Granted it's in Beta, but holy moly it's far from complete, and the install alone was a near logistical nightmare. Nobody in our area was even remotely familiar how to install the connection for this feature.
***I could go on and on, but my guess is you likely get the point.***
In all, I convinced my family for multiple months it would be worth it to tough it out while DTV worked out the known issues, and continued to update their software. Well, a few months later, I've got the proverbial egg on my face, and would like to help prevent anyone out there from making the same mistake.
For what it's worth, we were assured by the DTV sales folks that all the "known issues" were worked out and fully resolved prior to signing up, so we felt even more misled after going through what we experienced.
In a nutshell, don't do it!7 out of 7 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Excellent, Better than Direct TV's "old" TIVO
by dgolden on April 29, 2008
Pros: full features including one touch recording, sort features, mutliple ways to search/record programs
Cons: no dual buffer, remote is over designed
Summary: I upgraded from Direct TV's "standard" definition service to HD, with the HR21 dvr. I am very pleased with both picture quality and DVR functionality. Previously I had one ...
Summary: I upgraded from Direct TV's "standard" definition service to HD, with the HR21 dvr. I am very pleased with both picture quality and DVR functionality. Previously I had one of the TIVO dvrs provided by Direct TV, and am at a loss to explain the negative reviews. The new DVR has most of the features the old TIVO had, and many features that the old TIVO unit did not have, as follows: (Note, I'm not comparing the new TIVO units that you can buy seperately. Those maybe more full featured, but they don't work with direct tv and are expensive.) These include:
* one touch record from guide
* one touch to get to guide sorted by subject
* recent searches automatically saved
* ability to record a series or upcoming episode from list of previously recorded functions
* list of last 5 channels
* ability to scroll through the guide 12 hours at a time
* 30 second advance
* set your own bookmarts to recorded shows
* ability to jump back and forward to pre-set book marks (TIVO you could only go forward).
* set up shows to record on-line.
*show pictures and play music from computer to the DVR
* several hot keys that change function depending on what your doing (watching live vs. recorded shows).
Overall, I'm very happy and don't miss my old unit at all. With over two weeks of use (at the heart of NBA playoffs), I've recorded many shows without a hitch. There are some features that are missing.
* no dual buffer (you can solve this by recording the show you'r watching but it is clunky)
* remote, while full featured, is a litte over-designed (too many clicks and options)
* no "live tv" button5 out of 7 users found this user opinion helpful.
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The reason I left DIRECTV after 13 years
by ekuburk on August 16, 2009
Pros: Nice picture and sound (when it works)
Cons: Very very slow menu/operating system
Sometimes sound doesn't match picture (3 or 4 second delay)
Begins deleting oldest recorded programs when 80% capacity is reached
Eventually crashes; losing all recorded programsSummary: I had a Sony DIRECTV receiver for 11 years with no problems. 2 years ago, I decided to get a plasma TV and go HD. By then, DIRECTV had broken ...
Summary: I had a Sony DIRECTV receiver for 11 years with no problems. 2 years ago, I decided to get a plasma TV and go HD. By then, DIRECTV had broken ties with proven manufacturers (Sony, RCA, TIVO, etc) in an attempt to "make a buck" by manufacturing it's own equipment and adopting the "cheap cable box" strategy (lease and refurbish). Having no choice, I bought an HR20. The first thing I noticed was the slow menu system. I figured it was a small price to pay for DIRECTV programming and HD. 8 months later it crashed in the middle of the night during one of DIRECTVs over-the-air updates; I lost a lot of valuable recorded programs that I had not yet burned to DVD. The replacement they sent me was a refurbished HR22 (same as HR21, but black and without over-the-air antenna hook-up). About a week ago it happened again. This time after pausing intermittently when I was rewinding a program. That did it for me. After 13 years and 10K in business, the relationship ends. The bottom-line: DIRECTV's cheap unreliable equipment makes their great satellite programming a dismal experience.
2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Much worse than previous HD TIVO (HR 250)
by sierracamper on September 2, 2008
Pros: Supports all 5 Satellites
Cons: Slow, Illogical Menus, Slow and Jerky FF, worthless 30 second skip. Unreliable recording.
Summary: Like many others, I was forced to deploy the HR21 in order to "retain all of my HD programming". I was somewhat pleased that DirecTV did not force me to ...
Summary: Like many others, I was forced to deploy the HR21 in order to "retain all of my HD programming". I was somewhat pleased that DirecTV did not force me to turn in my HR250's, so I reluctantly agreed to let the installer come in and install 2 HR21's at no charge. I kept the HR250's activated, but for the last 6 months, I had tried to get acclimated to the HR21's and left the HR250's offl line. I had many problems with resets, shutdowns, and lost recordings on the HR21's, but over time (and numerous automatic firmware upgrades) the HR21's both seem to be stable. However, last week I hooked up one of the HR250's and what a huge difference! It really illustrates how bad the HR21 is. My biggest beef with the HR21 is that when watching NFL games, the 30 second skip search skips ahead 40 seconds, flashes the image, then rewinds back to the 30 second spot.. This is unacceptable, especially when you see a snapshot of the outcome of the play, then it goes back to where it should have stopped in the first place. All DVR functions are dog slow and jerky. The HR 250 playback and skip functions are fast and smooth. I hope DirecTV addresses these issues or offers a different unit that uses the same architecture as the HR250 with support of all 5 satellites.
2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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WOW, What a peice of Junk
by damondlt on September 2, 2008
Pros: ZERO ZERO ZERO
Cons: THE entire thing. Slow, NO OTA,still reboots, Slow,and more slow
Summary: This is worse then the HR-20 at least the HR 20 had the OTA option. Directv need help building a receiver.
Summary: This is worse then the HR-20 at least the HR 20 had the OTA option. Directv need help building a receiver.
2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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I am all for automation, but ...
by apoind1 on September 1, 2008
Pros: Live TV - works great. Beautiful picture on my Samsung 63" Plasma. One touch record, two touch series record is great. Hit the blue button, and you can continue to watch your program while scrolling through the guide at the bottom of the screen.
Cons: Try to watch a recorded show, or dare to press pause on your DVR, and you may get a picture, you may not. This is my 6th box....different prob each time. Sometimes no recording, sometimes audio/video out of sync. Problems, problems, problems!
Summary: I am all for automation, but ...I would prefer to be the one to decide when and for how long my show/movid is on pause. The picture just FREEZES ...
Summary: I am all for automation, but ...I would prefer to be the one to decide when and for how long my show/movid is on pause. The picture just FREEZES whenever it wants. It starts back whenever it wants...and then will pause, again,..... whenever it wants. I'm all for automation, but this is rediculous. This is one product that I'm sure the Quality Assurance team is saying "I told you so" to the management team that pushed this through. This Directv customer of many, many, many years is not willing to put up with any more of it......this box is makiing me switch! .
2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Misleading Commercials
by spacecityguy on September 1, 2008
Pros: Almost none. The only thing I can think of is its finish.
Cons: Horrible response time b/w remote & receiver. Takes 10 mins to restart if you've to reset or lose signal to weather. Ridiculous channel line-up - same channel appears up to 5 times. Takes very long to go up/down channel. Doesn't work with Olevia TV!
Summary: I've switched back-and-forth b/w cable and sat. tv several times over the years. I switched from Comcast to Driectv after being with Time Warner/Comcast for the past ...
Summary: I've switched back-and-forth b/w cable and sat. tv several times over the years. I switched from Comcast to Driectv after being with Time Warner/Comcast for the past 5 years. Every time I switched to sat. tv was because I thought it was cheaper. I would say it depends on the personal preferences of the channels. What I can say confidently is sat. tv's signal reliability and receiver responsiveness do not match up to cable tv's. I often have wait for a couple seconds before my sat tv goes up or down one channel. This makes channel surfing impossible - I've to bring up the guide and surf by the program title! To make customer experience worse, Directv has its channels all over the place, and most channels show up in the line up more than twice (some up to 4 or 5 times easily). It has the HD and non-HD version of the same channel one after the other, which means you've to suffer twice the program up/down delay to go from one to another. In comparison, Timer Warner/Comcast had their HD and non-HD versions of the same program in different blocks... this makes channel browsing more enjoyable. For some reason, my Directv remote doesn't work with my Olevia tv in my bedroom... so I've to use my Olevia control to turn on/off my tv and adjust the volume while my Directv contol to change channels.
If I could do over, I would look at a phone/tv/internet combo from one of the phone/cable companies. It probably would have offset any pricing advantage sat tv has. I definitely will not recommend anyone to sign a 2-year contract. I can't speak for Dish Network but I would think it's technology is similar to Directv's. And as far as Directv goes, I would say it's sub-par. Good luck with it.2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Every fifteen minutes - making a loud buzz for a second
by otheraustinguy on August 31, 2008
Pros: It hasn't caught fire yet.
Cons: Not as stright forward as was my old HD Tivo.
The aforementioned glitch every 15 minutes or so (with annoying buzz).
Menu system is poorly thought out.Summary: I didn't want to give up my Tivo, but DirecTV forced the issue. As for the OnDemand bit and more HD channels, maybe those are a small plus, but ...
Summary: I didn't want to give up my Tivo, but DirecTV forced the issue. As for the OnDemand bit and more HD channels, maybe those are a small plus, but for all of its other shortcomings, give me back my old Tivo! I was happier before the forced swap.
2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Didn't work for me, tried 5
by The Real Newtboy on May 12, 2008
Pros: lots of HD, if it works
Cons: Doesn't work, no dual tuner, bad HDMI, lost recording,..........
Summary: Don't let yourself get talked into the 2 year contract that comes with these unuseable units. They still have lots of problems, and don't work at all for ...
Summary: Don't let yourself get talked into the 2 year contract that comes with these unuseable units. They still have lots of problems, and don't work at all for many people. There's no dual buffer, HDMI has problems, freezing issues, lost recordings, lack of picture, problems with many HD channels (directv blames the channel, not their equipment), etc, etc, etc.... Wait until the next series at least, these are plagued with problems and "keep hard resetting" and "wait for the next software update" (which often causes more problems) is the best advice customer service has to offer you. Look for help on the DTV forum board and you'll be attacked by "fanboys" for not loving these broken recievers. DIRECTV will give these to you for free. Don't accept it, you'll probably regret it if you do.
Updated
These units are plagued with problems, still, on 5-12-08. HDMI has horrible problems, their best suggestion is just use componant. (you don't need digital signal anyway?) recordings may be missed, or erased with no warning. Freezing continues to be an issue. Constant "hard reset" is the best solution customer service has for these issues, or wait for the next software update and hope it works then (but keep paying your bill). There's no dual buffer. In short, these units are NOT ready for release, now nearly 2 years after release. Don't accept them, or be ready for big problems and a 2 year contract.2 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.
Specifications
- Manufacturer: Hughes Network Systems
- Part number: DVR HR21
- Description: With its astounding variety of channels and choices, crisp digital-quality picture and sound and one-of-a-kind sports and events... DIRECTV service offers everything you'd want in your television experience. With DIRECTV Plus you can expect more than ever before, with access to over 225 channels, including over 30 premium movie channels, with all the convenience of DIRECTV Plus Receiver service. DIRECTV Pay Per View offers a handy choice in recent hit movies, plus exciting live sports, concerts and specials. There are exclusive sports subscriptions for every taste and team. Even access to 36 commercial-free music channels! To deliver this unique programming and enhance your entertainment experience, the DIRECTV System has been designed to be simple and user-friendly. You'll find that most features are self-explanatory, with onscreen directions to lead you through them. So, welcome to the family. The DIRECTV Plus Receiver lets you record up to 100 hours of your favorite programs, and use pause and other video controls on live TV. You can select a specific program and set it to record once or every time it's on, or you can create a "find" to search for and record your favorite shows with your desired name, title or keywords. You can even record two shows at once.
General
- Product Type HD DVR
- Width 15.0 in
- Depth 11.8 in
- Height 3.0 in
DVR
- Max Recording Capacity 200 hour(s)
- Storage Capacity 320 GB
- Instant Replay Yes
- Pause Live TV Yes
- Simultaneous Record And Playback Yes
- One Touch Recording Yes
- Sound Output Mode Stereo
- Compatible Audio Encoding System(s) Dolby Digital
Personal TV Service Features
- On-Screen Program Guide Yes
TV System
- Satellite TV Type DIRECTV
- Tuner Qty 2
Remote Control
- Type Remote control
Connections
- Connector Type 1 x Component video output ( RCA phono x 3 ) - Rear, 2 x Composite video output ( RCA phono ) - Rear, 2 x Audio line-out ( RCA phono x 2 ) - Rear, 2 x Satellite antenna ( F connector ) - Rear, 1 x S-Video output ( 4 pin mini-DIN ) - Rear, 1 x HDMI output ( 19 pin HDMI Type A ) - Rear, 1 x SPDIF output - Rear, 1 x SPDIF output ( RCA phono ) - Rear, 2 x ( RJ-45 ) - Rear
Slot(s)
- Type Access Card
Miscellaneous
- Cables Included Video / audio cable, Component video cable, Phone line cable, HDMI cable
Manufacturer Warranty
- Service & Support Details Limited warranty - Parts and labor - 90 days
Product series
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DirecTV HR20 (DirecTV Plus HD DVR)
Manufacturer: Hughes Network Systems
Specs: HD DVR, 15.1 in x 12.2 in x 2.8 in, 200 hour(s), 4, Remote control
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DIRECTV HR21 (DIRECTV Plus HD DVR)
Manufacturer: Hughes Network Systems
Specs: HD DVR, 15.0 in x 11.8 in x 3.0 in, 200 hour(s), 2, Remote control
Manufacturer info
- Hughes Network Systems
- Manufacturer profile
- Browse Hughes Network Systems products on Shopper.com
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