# Why bother with a DVR? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 2, 2013, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444 "2013-07-02T14:35:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2013, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/21 "2013-07-02T18:08:11Z")
I am a curling fan and there is a lot of it on TV here. But… a lot of comes in tournaments that involve 22 matches over a nine day period and I really don’t like to watch more than one a day. Also some of the tournaments come during my 3 week winter vacation. So I got the largest DVR my cable company offers and programmed it to record the entire tournaments. This is not entirely easy since you cannot schedule a recording more than 2 weeks in advance. On the other hand, you can schedule a recording from anywhere in the world you can get an internet connection. The result of this is that I am now watching the final playoffs of the Men’s World Championship that took place in April while I was in Hawaii. Next week sometime, I will watch the season’s last event, a Grand Slam tournament. And I get to FF through the commercial. There is one commercial (for Ford) that has what must be the most irritating voice I have ever heard and would deter me from buying their product even it I were so inclined. There is one commercial, I don’t even know what it is for that airs 12 times during every match (beginning, end of every end, and an extra one during the fifth end break) that would drive me nuts if I listened to it. There must be a point at which constant repetition becomes counter-productive. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2013, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/22 "2013-07-02T18:12:46Z")
If you ever find yourself rushing home to catch a TV show, buy a DVR. Otherwise you’re probably fine although a DVR does allow me to maximize my OTA programming by recording programs 24/7 whenever they’re on. ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2013, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/23 "2013-07-02T18:21:30Z")
> [@The Great Sun Jester](#): > > In an age where we have Netflix, Hulu and other websites that let you stream movies, why do cable/dish providers even bother with DVR machines? Seems like all that stuff, especially the recently-shown programming, should be in the company’s memory and available for streaming–that’s basically how you watch TV anyway isn’t it? To some extent it already is available for streaming with ‘On-Demand.’ Instantly rewinding a few seconds to catch a bit of dialog? Pause a show while cooking or answering the phone? Fast forwarding through commercials? All without have to pay Hulu or Netflix or watch their ads. ---
**Author:** ![tullsterx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@tullsterx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tullsterx)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2013, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/24 "2013-07-02T19:24:07Z")
A sense of control. And some actual control. Yeah, maybe DVRs are on the way out but I like to be in control of what I’m recording without hoping that it’s available somewhere else whenever I want it. ---
**Author:** ![anson2995](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c77e96/32.png) [@anson2995](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anson2995)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2013, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/25 "2013-07-03T14:03:33Z")
> [@awldune](#): > > This, DVR is very useful for sports and other live broadcasts that will never be available for streaming or download. But even that;s changing. If you sign up for MLB At Bat, for example, you can stream every game back to 2010. You can turn the TV on at 8:30 and watch a game that started at 7:05 from the beginning. Not all broadcast shows are available for streaming. Hulu doesn’t have any CBS shows, for example, and I think the Simpsons aren’t available for streaming either. ---
**Author:** ![Moonlitherial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Moonlitherial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonlitherial)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2013, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/26 "2013-07-03T17:55:50Z")
Also there is the non tech generation. A DVR is similar enough in operation to a VCR that I can handle (with a couple drinks) tech support for my inlaws. If I had to talk them through downloading or streaming I think I might need a case. Of vodka. ---
**Author:** ![thicksantorum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@thicksantorum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thicksantorum)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2013, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/27 "2013-07-03T18:15:28Z")
DVRs aren’t meant for tech-literate people. Hell, TV service isn’t really meant for tech-literate people. ---
**Author:** ![Motorgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2013, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/28 "2013-07-03T18:22:07Z")
Bandwidth might be a reason. If the OP’s vision is that the cable company would store the programs centrally for us to stream on demand from them whenever we wanted, I suspect right now at least they don’t have the bandwidth for all their users to be streaming something (or multiple somethings) from their servers AND also sending out the “live” signal. Right now they send the “live” signal once and rely on their customers to store it locally and watch it locally later. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2013, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/29 "2013-07-05T15:33:38Z")
I have hulu, netflix, amazon prime, and in-demand from my cable company. And not a single one of those will allow me to watch CSI, The Big Bang Theory, or How I Met Your Mother (for free) if I miss them when they air because CBS is evil. Likewise, if I miss Design Star on Sunday and don’t DVR it, I’m not seeing it. If all networks granted equal access to their content through other methods, I’d see the OP’s point. ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2013, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/30 "2013-07-05T16:47:39Z")
> [@thicksantorum](#): > > DVRs aren’t meant for tech-literate people. Hell, TV service isn’t really meant for tech-literate people. Oh come on. I’m very tech literate, I work as a software engineer. I also have a TV, cable service, and a Tivo. Yeah, I can download/stream stuff, but if I want to watch something on the 55" in the living room, the Tivo is the easiest solution. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2013, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/31 "2013-07-05T18:25:52Z")
> [@thicksantorum](#): > > DVRs aren’t meant for tech-literate people. Hell, TV service isn’t really meant for tech-literate people. People who watch television on anything lesser than a 50" high-def screen are not eyeball-literate. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2013, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/32 "2013-07-05T21:14:36Z")
I recently did the one month Netflix streaming free trial. It sucked _Big Time_. I like to FF, rewind, etc. Huge pauses and such. Can’t even really watch a show clearly in FF mode. (You get a small, jerky subwindow.) And I won’t even go into the incredibly lousy selection of movies. I used to do on-demand with our cable company when it was new. Kind of worked okay-ish. But soon others started using it and the bandwidth available dropped. I can’t imagine how bad it is now. Again, any sort of non-play-nonstop function was really bad. Even an incredible lag to pause! Don’t even have it as an option now, the M-card in my DVR doesn’t support it. No cable box. (I even get a $2.50 a month credit for user supplied equipment. I’m rolling in the green now!) Going pure streaming now is for people with very mainstream tastes and limited interest in the full control of their programming. Downloading (esp. during the night) to a DVR for later viewing would be nice. Good luck getting any of the companies involved to go for that. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/33 "2013-07-06T03:36:37Z")
> [@thicksantorum](#): > > DVRs aren’t meant for tech-literate people. Hell, TV service isn’t really meant for tech-literate people. What does that have to do with anything? ---
**Author:** ![theinscrutabledoctorknow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e68b1a/32.png) [@theinscrutabledoctorknow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/theinscrutabledoctorknow)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/34 "2013-07-06T05:09:07Z")
I use my PC as a PVR, I tell the PC what shows I want to record, and watch them later, that way I can skip commercials and if I want to I can edit out the commercials and keep the shows archived. ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/35 "2013-07-06T12:01:00Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > I recently did the one month Netflix streaming free trial. > > It sucked _Big Time_. I like to FF, rewind, etc. Huge pauses and such. Can’t even really watch a show clearly in FF mode. (You get a small, jerky subwindow.) And I won’t even go into the incredibly lousy selection of movies. The quality of Netflix streaming varies considerably depending on what device you’re using to Stream. All of what you describe (except the selection of movies) may be better with a different device. ---
**Author:** ![Steophan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steophan/32/9595_2.png) [@Steophan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steophan)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/36 "2013-07-06T14:25:50Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > People who watch television on anything lesser than a 50" high-def screen are not eyeball-literate. It’s pretty easy to plug a fairly modern computer into a TV with an HDMI cable, and use it as a second screen. If I want to stream something, or watch a downloaded video on my TV, I simply move the window across to that screen. Use a wireless mouse if you want to control it from the sofa. It may not be quite the same as using a TV remote, but it’s no harder IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/37 "2013-07-06T16:48:37Z")
> [@anson2995](#): > > But even that;s changing. If you sign up for MLB At Bat, for example, you can stream every game back to 2010. You can turn the TV on at 8:30 and watch a game that started at 7:05 from the beginning. Nope. You can \*maybe \*do that with an out of market game if you also have a [MLB.TV](http://MLB.TV) subscription. MLB at Bat will not let me start watching the home team an hour late- I’ll have to wait until the game is over to watch an in-market game from the archive. That won’t change regarding in-market games- teams make too much money from the broadcast deals (and in some cases own the station). Many people are only interested in in-market games- it’s wonderful that I can get an MLB TV subscription and start watching the 7:05 Red Sox game at 8:30 ,except I’m a Met fan and couldn’t care less about the Red Sox. I will need the DVR to start watching the Mets from the beginning an hour after game time. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/38 "2013-07-06T19:52:07Z")
DVR still works when the cable/Internet/satellite/whatever is out. That alone is worth something. Plus, it’s really good for sports, which tend to not be available through streaming to the degree that shows and movies are. ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2013, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444/39 "2013-07-06T20:25:44Z")
My cable company has several options, each with advantages and disadvantages: Regular DVR - records on the box in your house. Can record two things at the same time. Can pause live TV and some other options not available through streaming. Can only play back on one TV. But you don’t have to fight over recordings with other housemates. Also they can’t snoop on what you are recording. DVR plus - records on the computers at the cable company and streams to your box, but functions basically like if your box just had a reallllly long cable to your TV lol. Can record four shows at once, but can’t pause live TV, and has some other options missing like skip to end. Can play on all TVs but then you have to strategize with other housemates. Free on demand - has several weeks of latest episodes of most new shows on most channels, but not all are available (also on demand premium for HBO etc), and you can’t fast forward. Internet - usual Internet options I have all of the above, to take advantage of all the options. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-bother-with-a-dvr/662444.md?page=1)