Technology
With Digital Video Recording, Prime Time Can Be Any Time
By
Sep 9, 2005, 14:09

(NAPSI)-It's Thursday night and you have to work late. But wait, "C.S.I." is on! And because you didn't know you were going to get hung up at the office, you didn't set your VCR.

It's a common problem these days, with ever-changing schedules and networks that bounce programs around, often without warning. So what's a TV fan to do? Digital Video Recording (DVR), courtesy of your cable company, can help. It changes the way you watch television-giving you new realms of convenience and control over what you watch and when you watch it.

DVR allows you to decide what's on TV and when. DVR can automatically record your favorite shows so you can play them back when you're ready. You can also control live TV. So when life interrupts, you can pause and resume watching when the emergency's over. You can even rewind to create your own instant replays.

For example, let's say you're watching "Desperate Housewives" and the doorbell rings. With DVR, you hit the pause button on your remote control and the show freezes-as if you were watching a DVD. When you resume watching, simply hit Play and the show picks up right where you paused it! Or suppose you want to see every episode of "Six Feet Under," but never make it home in time to watch it. You can set your DVR to record it every week so you never have to miss any action.

What if two of your favorite programs were on at the same time? Many cable DVR services allow you to record two separate programs simultaneously. Want even more? If you have high-definition television, you can even record HD programming with some DVR services (Cox Communications, for example). So you get three great services-digital cable, high-definition and DVR-all in one box from one company.

Just to recap. With cable DVR service, customers can:

• Pause and rewind live TV: DVR customers can stop live action TV and pick it up later, at their convenience, without missing a scene.

• Easily record programs any time: Recording capacity varies by service provider, but with Cox you can capture up to 50 hours of television. That means you can record a week's worth of your favorite shows without having to worry about switching tapes or recording over another program.

• Record high-definition programming: With some cable DVR services, you can record your favorite high definition programs

• Watch a recorded program while simultaneously recording two live programs on different channels: With two tuners, cable customers can enjoy their favorite shows, even if they're on at the same time.

• One receiver and no need for a phone line: DVR devices and services sold at retail may require a phone line for updating the program guide and schedule for recording purposes. With a cable DVR service, there is only one set-top box and the schedule information is updated continuously via the cable connection, without a phone line.

If you are already a digital cable subscriber, adding DVR service is typically only costs a little more than your current subscription, covering the lease of the DVR receiver with a hard drive (a bit more expensive than a regular digital set-top box) and the monthly fee for the service.

Most customers fall in love with their DVR service right away and wonder how they ever lived without it. They report that they enjoy their digital cable subscription much more because they watch more shows in less time, and best of all-when it is convenient for them.

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