Set Top Box Features
blegs38552
Contributor - Level 1

I have 2 set top boxes Modesl: QIP6416. Both have front and rear panelA/V inputs, neither of which seem to work. I would like to plug my DVD player into the rear inputs, and a game controller nto the front ones, but at this time, nether option seems to work. Are there any plans to enable these hardware features?

Also, when I had Optimum on-line (Cablevision), I had an option to record DVR recordings to DVD in the background (so that I could watch a live broadcast while transferring the recording). This seemed to be a feature of the Picture-In-Picture capabilty which is apparently built into the FIOS box, but not enabled by FIOS. Is there any plan to enable Pictire-In-Picture in FIOS, and to give us the background recording capability?

Lastly, any plans to activate the USB and/or SATA connections?

It seems that the hardware offered by FIOS has many more capabilities then are given to the subscribers, 

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Re: Set Top Box Features
CharlesH
Specialist - Level 1
This has been anwsered many times.  Please do a search or check the FAQ's in the top of the forums.
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Re: Set Top Box Features
KenAF
Specialist - Level 2

@blegs38552 wrote:

I have 2 set top boxes Modesl: QIP6416. Both have front and rear panelA/V inputs, neither of which seem to work. I would like to plug my DVD player into the rear inputs, and a game controller nto the front ones, but at this time, nether option seems to work. Are there any plans to enable these hardware features?


The A/V inputs aren't active and that is not going to change -- the box doesn't have the hardware inside to use them.  Motorola only has a few case options, which they produce in bulk for all of their customers.  Motorola charges much more if a cable company wants its own custom case design; that's why virtually every Motorola cable DVR (regardless of provider) looks the same.


@blegs38552 wrote:

Also, when I had Optimum on-line (Cablevision), I had an option to record DVR recordings to DVD in the background (so that I could watch a live broadcast while transferring the recording). This seemed to be a feature of the Picture-In-Picture capabilty which is apparently built into the FIOS box, but not enabled by FIOS. Is there any plan to enable Pictire-In-Picture in FIOS, and to give us the background recording capability?


No.  The Motorola QIP6416 series has too little memory for PIP and the DVR CPU in the newer QIP7216 cannot support any form of PIP,


In theory, one could implement PIP on the QIP6416, but creating sufficient memory to do so would require that FiOS eliminate the fancy UI and some popular DVR features.


@blegs38552 wrote:

Lastly, any plans to activate the USB and/or SATA connections?

It seems that the hardware offered by FIOS has many more capabilities then are given to the subscribers, 


As soon as Motorola can make eSATA work reliably on their hardware, FiOS intends to support that feature.  There are no plans to use the USB ports; the USB ports are good for charging your iPod, but not much else.

The problem with adding / enabling features is that these DVRs are based on rather slow processors with limited memory and limited bus / memory bandwidth.  This limits what Verizon can do with their DVR at any given time.  The FiOS DVR can record two different HD programs, while you watch a third, previously recorded show...while it streams a fourth HDTV MPEG-2 recording to a HDTV STB elsewhere in your home.  That consumes most of the available resources on the Motorola platform, which makes it very tricky (if not impossible) to support other features.

Your old Cablevision DVR (based on a different DVR CPU) supported eSATA and PIP, but it used a very basic UI with a lower memory footprint.  That UI lacked graphics and genre highlighting; it lacked the ability to browse the guide by favorites; and it lacked the ability to stream a recording from one room to another.

Before you go blaming Motorola and FiOS for using low-performance CPUs, you should be aware that higher-performance DVR CPUs only recently became available, and are still too new to be found in any shipping DVR.  The good news is that Dish Network, DirecTV, and Motorola are designing products around on these chips for release late this year and next.  With new DVRs based on these chips, cable and satellite companies will have more freedom in the features / functionality they support; they won't have to trade off one feature for another as they do today.

Message Edited by KenAF on 03-09-2009 03:35 PM
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Re: Set Top Box Features
blegs38552
Contributor - Level 1
A clear and complete response.
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