Can the buffer be recorded on the FIOS DVR (QIP-6416)?
spta97
Enthusiast - Level 3

I posted this in another forum but was hoping someone had a more definitive answer.  With my old Tivo, if I pressed the record button it would record the whole buffer from the beginning of the show up to 1/2 hour (the size of the buffer).

When I tried to record a show that I was previously watching (via the buffer) it gave me an error message saying I could not record past shows.  When I do press record during live TV, it will only record from that point on despite the fact that the beginning of the show is already recorded on the hard drive.

This is my first major issue with having a non-Tivo DVR and what's worse is the functionality is little more than a software update.

Can anyone shed some light on this?

Thanks..

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Re: Can the buffer be recorded on the FIOS DVR (QIP-6416)?
spta97
Enthusiast - Level 3

Justin,

I tried recording the two channels and the buffer record is working!  Thanks so much for the advice as I never would have thought to try that.

I am however dissapointed with the Verizon FIOS support rep who told me (after having me on hold for 10 minutes to find the answer) that it was not possible to record the buffer.

Are there any other tricks you have that resolve other issues?  I would love to see a sticky here for things like this that Verizon seems unable to resolve despite that it is their own product.

View solution in original post

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Re: Can the buffer be recorded on the FIOS DVR (QIP-6416)?
matcarl
Master - Level 1
The buffer is 60 minutes. If you are watching a station from 8:40 to 9:15 and you press record, it should record from 8:40 if it was the same show. If a different show came on at 9:00, it would only record from 9:00.
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Re: Can the buffer be recorded on the FIOS DVR (QIP-6416)?
matcarl
Master - Level 1
Also, just make sure that the buffer is working. Can you rewind live TV? Sometimes the box loses the buffer and it needs to be reset by unplugging it for 30 seconds.
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Re: Can the buffer be recorded on the FIOS DVR (QIP-6416)?
spta97
Enthusiast - Level 3

That is how I would expect it to work, but it does not.  For example my wife was watching Triple X the other day which started around 8 PM.  I come home around 10 PM and she informs me not to change the channel because she did not see the last 15 minutes.

Thinking I was doing the right thing I pressed record and not only did it not record the whole buffer, it would no longer allow me to rewind the show!  So basically I was only allowed to rewind to 9:50 PM.

I called Verizon tech support and the woman (after trying to find the answer for 10 minutes) said you cannot record the buffer.

Should I call back and try to speak to someone else?  I looked through all the settings and there is not mention of this (that I saw).

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Re: Can the buffer be recorded on the FIOS DVR (QIP-6416)?
Justin46
Legend

1) I don't how you could ever record past shows once they have ended. The recording is done based on the guide data that the DVR has. When a show ends, if you have not told it to record during the show, whatever was there is gone. That is the way it works (and FWIW, it seems completely reasonable to me).

2) Now to recording what you are currently watching. You absolutely should be able to begin recording the show you are currently watching, long after the program started, and the DVR include in that recording the previous material from that show, from the time you last started watching that show to the present, but it only goes back so far, some amount of time, maimum of 1/2 hour or one hour or something like that. When you are watching a show live, if you press either the FiOS TV button or the OK button, the dark area on the time line will show you how far back the show is in the buffer (ie, how much you will keep).

 

One thing that occassionally happens, however, is that the DVR gets into a state where it won't record any past stuff (ie, the dark line never grows). When this happens, I have found that if I begin recording on one channel (any), then switch to another and begin recording (again, any channel), then stop recording both of the channels, the DVR will now start keeping the stuff in the buffer again and it will be available for paging backwards or recording. You can delete the temporary recordings you made to get the process corrected.

I don't know if the problem you are experiencing is related to the above or not, check the dark line to see if it grows while you watch a program. And I hope this helps....

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Re: Can the buffer be recorded on the FIOS DVR (QIP-6416)?
spta97
Enthusiast - Level 3

Justin,

I think that is exactly my problem.  The dark bar only grows once you press the record button.  I am however able to rewind to see the past show, but once I hit the record it no longer allows me to.

I will try the fix that you stated tonight and report back.  Unfortunately, Verizon tech support told me that you can never record the buffer Robot Mad

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Re: Can the buffer be recorded on the FIOS DVR (QIP-6416)?
spta97
Enthusiast - Level 3

Justin,

I tried recording the two channels and the buffer record is working!  Thanks so much for the advice as I never would have thought to try that.

I am however dissapointed with the Verizon FIOS support rep who told me (after having me on hold for 10 minutes to find the answer) that it was not possible to record the buffer.

Are there any other tricks you have that resolve other issues?  I would love to see a sticky here for things like this that Verizon seems unable to resolve despite that it is their own product.

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Re: Can the buffer be recorded on the FIOS DVR (QIP-6416)?
Justin46
Legend

spta97,

 

You are welcome. But I cannot take responsibility for that fix, I saw it somewhere else, then when the problem happened to me I just remembered it. But its a good one to know...

 

Other tricks? Probably some, but I don't know what they are, I have had FiOS TV for almost three years now and have really had very few problems. But I do subscribe to several different forums that have FiOS areas, and I try to keep up with what other people are experiencing. It is just amazing to me that some others seem to have so many problems yet I have so few - I have FiOS TV, Internet, and phone, I have the "awful" Actiontec router and it works great, much better than the Belkin I used before it, my DVR records everything I have scheduled, really everything just "works." Unlike Charter Cable, which I had before FiOS.

 

Yes, I have experienced some problems in the past, like the Favorites having channels get deleted or appear without me doing anything, my DVR has locked up 2 or 3 times and I had to pull the plug to get it back working, I had a couple of recordings that were corrupted, one of my SD STBs failed and had to be replaced (the next day, can't ask for much better service than that). All of those problems are in the past, nothing in the last 3-4 months.

 

Regarding the technical support issue, I agree, at times it isn't really good. But I  think that perhaps is due more to the rapid expansion of FiOS more than to anything else. They have had to train so many people on FiOS, in such a short period of time, it is just mind-boggling. They certainly have their bad apples, just like every other company, but at least for me, my experiences with technical support and billing has really been pretty good.

 

Anyway, if you have more problems, post them, perhaps one of us can help you out.

 

And yes, to answer your question at HiDef forum, I am the Justin on this forum and there. I am also justin9876 on dslreports.com.

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Re: Can the buffer be recorded on the FIOS DVR (QIP-6416)?
spta97
Enthusiast - Level 3

Justin,

I have been a FIOS TV customer for only a few weeks now and I do not have many complaints but have a few.  In addition to the above I have also had old shows recorded when only new were selected - not a huge issue but with the limited hard drive space it can be a serious problem.  Regarding the lack of hard drive space - the fall season has not even really started and last night my DVR was 96% full!  Since the capability exists to have an external drive it is amazing that Verizon has not enabled it.  This is the number one complaint that I hear from people and it is so easily solved.  Even one FIOS tech I spoke with said he was waiting for this as well.

Has anyone tried to upgrade the internal hard drive in the DVR?  DirecTV is so far in advance with hard drive capacity I can't imagine that Verizon does not see this as a serious problem.

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Re: Can the buffer be recorded on the FIOS DVR (QIP-6416)?
Justin46
Legend

spta97,

 

Unfortunately, no "tricks" for the issues in your latest post.

 

1) Old shows recorded when only new were selected: I think that is caused by bad Guide data. Ihave seen lots of complaints about the lack of accuracy and completeness of that data, causing things like failure to record at all, recording both old and new even though new was selected, etc. While the Guide has the TV Guide logo on it, my understanding is that the data acutally comes from some other company, and that Verizon has a contract with that company through then end of 2008 (all of this is hearsay, so I could be way off base). But if this is true, I expect (hope!) we will see an improvement in the Guide content next year.

 

2) Lack of hard drive space: I know that a number of people have looked into expanding the drive space, and have reported back that it can't be done as of now. Some have wanted to replace the drive inside the DVR, others to attach an external drive. I am sure Verizon is well aware of this issue, and again I hope they deliver some capability soon. For now, I have learned to just keep my drive below 50% so I can record something on a whim, and at least for me I have gotten pretty comfortable with doing that.

 

One thing I wish Verizon would do is create and publicize a forum, email address, whatever, exclusively for requests for product enhancements/new function. They may have one, but if they do it is hard to find, I sure haven't been able to. I guess they haven't because it would quickly be flooded with complaints, not requests. They do offer a "Products Trial" location where you can sign up to participate in trials of new stuff, but unfortunately right now there are none available, at least in my area. I would happily sign up for a trial related to the DVR and the guide, I think I could suggest lots of improvements.

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