Directv DVR

I recently upgraded the satellite box in our bedroom with a Directv DVR. This is now our second DVR in the house and once the 2nd cable line gets put in (there is a month wait to have an installer come out) we will be able to record up to 4 shows at a time. The upstairs box will be a flow over kind of thing especially on a very busy TV Tuesday. We watch way too much TV. :)

Anyway, the other DVR we have has the Tivo software on it and we love everything about it. The new DVR we got has Directv's own software. Apparently the contract that Directv had with Tivo ended and they moved on. Erin and I HATE everything about the Directv DVR.

• The guide and list are impossible to read from far away, the fonts are just way too small. This is a huge thing. You can barely read it without being close to the TV.

• The remote is awkward and top heavy. Considering that all the DVR options are at the top of the remote you have to hold it in the middle in order to use it and you almost have to use your other hand to press the buttons.

• They have options that mirror what Tivo does but they are a lot harder to figure out and the instruction manual is only a page front and back.

I shouldn't complain about it too much cause I got the box for free. It does store up to 100 hours of programming but we are a watch and delete kind of family. So we will never store up close to 100 hours worth of shows. I'd gladly take only 30 hours of storage to be able to actually read the guide.