Shaw HD TV

[jar_e]

Thinking of getting a Shad HD terminal and maybe the PVR. Just curious if anyone has experience and could answer a few questions for me.

How hard is it to set it up? Is it pretty much plug and play? I take it if you can buy the box from Future Shop/Best Buy you could do it yourself?

In regards to programming, I see that the HDTV Package includes TSN/TSN2/Sportsnet all in HD...are any other sports channels worth getting? Any other HD channels in general you'd recommend?

[ricosuave]

yes, its simple to hookup, you can buy the box from shaw, or keep an eye out and buy a used box

the hd is great, but i understand that bell expressview has more

i recommend hdnet and the discovery hd and national geographic hd and the public broadcasting hd station out of all the ones in the package.

all in with the hd and regular channels, phone and the internet, i pay shaw about 185 a month

[MrMastodonFarm]

The PVR will be easy to set up, plug the power in, and either run HD component cords to you're TV, or one HDMI cord. That's it.

Personally I have all the HD channels, Shaw has about 30 right now, and they've just added the Big10 college sports network, and the Golf Network in HD. So plenty of sports in HD. I love HDnet as well, if you're into MMA, it's a must. National Geographic, and Discovery HD are fantastic as well.

If you're buying the terminal just to start getting HD channels I bet you could get them on a free preview as well.

http://www.shaw.ca/en-ca/ProductsSer...dates/#Save100
Be sure to get that offer, no matter where you buy it from, might have to go to the Shaw store.

[The Ditch]

A word of advice, remember to write down your box serial number before you set it up, mine is under and beside a lot of stuff, and when I phoned to get it activated first question was "What is the serial number of the box?" Had to take everything out was a pain.

[ken0042]

Originally Posted by jar_e

maybe the PVR

IMHO there is no "maybe." Get the HDPVR, don't waste your money on the non-PVR box.

The number one arguement I hear is "well, I never use the VCR." But that's just it- a PVR is nothing like a VCR. It completely changes the way you watch TV. Comparing it to a VCR is like comparing a laptop to a calculator.

The only downside is I often find myself wanting to skip backwards 10 seconds on the car radio because I want to hear something again.

[metallicat]

I agree with Ken, I wasted my money on a non-PVR when I first went with Shaw. I bought my PVR maybe a year after that, but I shouldn't have waited nearly as long. The only downside to the PVR, and it isn't really a downside, is I record crap I would never watch normally, and it just sits there.

[ken0042]

Yeah, the people who write software for the PVRs need to enable a setting that you can select when recording that says "delete after 1 week." The problem with just doing that manually of course is it moves off the first page of recorded shows, you forget about it, then months later you are trying to remember why you recorded that show.

[RW99]

I echo the remarks above. If your going to be buying a HD box, then I'm assuming you like TV. I never worry about being home a certain night for a show or if it conflicts with a Flames game. And when I do watch it, no commercials to sit through.

Even if you like to watch stuff live, having the pause button is great. Sometimes I'll do something for the first 20 minutes of an hour show before I start watching it and by the time the hour is up, I've caught up.

And I like going through the guide looking for good movies to record. I always have 5+ movies waiting on my box.

Can I marry my PVR?

[JerzeeGirl]

Definitely get the box with the PVR!

I picked up my Shaw HD box w/o a PVR because I didn't like the idea that I couldn't record to an outside source with a PVR (you know if you tape a movie, you might want to lend to a friend or something) and that was a total mistake. The PVR is simply one of the greatest TV inventions ever - no more commercials, no more missed shows and no fuss - it's easier to use than a VHS!

[FireInTheHole]

nm

[MrMastodonFarm]

Gotta agree with everyone who says just get the PVR. I was on the fence when I got mine a year ago, didn't think I'd need it... but it's fantastic. Just set up a series recording for your favorite show and watch them when you like.

[jar_e]

Thanks guys. I think I'll pick up the PVR one sometime this month...maybe earlier if the weather keeps up like this

[ericschand]

A friend showed me the following, I don't know how well known it is.
It's great for watching 2 sports events at one time.

On the Shaw remote, at the bottom is a button labeled "Swap".
This is like picture-in-picture on the Shaw PVR.

The PVR has 2 tuners, and you can flip between them using this
button. It takes a few seconds, but works. You can change
channels on either tuner, hit pause, then swap to the other,
go back again, and unpause your show.

It's more useful than your TV's PIP.

If a goal is scored in one of the games, you can rewind it to see
it.

Tuner 2 is always used as the recorder function, so you cannot
record and watch 2 shows at once.

You essentially have two PVR on the go, and the swap button is
used to flip between them.

Also, I saw that Shaw will give you $250 credit for your non-PVR
HDTV receiver. If you want to upgrade, you can claim the credit,
and buy the PVR one.

ers

[MrMastodonFarm]

Ers, the two TV tuners is what allows the PVR to record one show, while you watch another show. I'd suggest if you want to do what you're doing just record both shows, and then watch as you like. Much easier then swapping back and fourth between tuners.