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Aside from
the obvious, there are a number of advantages and disadvantages to the
various features in the DishPlayer an Dish5000 receivers.
Below is a comparison of the various features of
I didn't
try to create one of those generic Matrices of features, instead I tried
to focus on the differences that matter to most people. If there is no difference between the various displayers, I
refer the them as DP. If you see something I left out, send mail
to dishfaq@jakepratt.com
The GUIDE
Dish 5000 - What can I say, it is ugly, but FAST. It
can be
sorted in ascending or descending order. There is no sound or
picture while using the guide.
DP (All) - A little
slower than the 5000, but very pretty and you can see and hear the
signal. It can only be sorted in ascending order. You can also see
the information about each program as you select it in the guide.
Changing
Channels
Dish 5000 - Not only does the 5000 change channels very quickly,
but it has a very elegant Browse Banner that allows you to scroll
through the channels with out leaving the channel you are watching.
DP (All) - No browse banner and channel changing is very slow.
I sure hope they will add the browse banner feature in a future
release. Luckily the Guide is so good that the lack of a browse
banner feature isn't missed to much after a while.
Digital
Sound
Dish 5000 - Supports Digital PCM and Dolby Digital Sound Output
only via a add on box.
DP (All) Winner - Supports Digital PCM and Dolby Digital Sound Output
via a Optical Output.
Local
Channels
Dish 5000 - Big winner here. This receivers integrates
your local channels into the Dish Network Guide. It also can
run an external source (VCR) as channel 0. As a side note,
this feature makes it very useful for high end complex systems because
it converts Composite (RCA) to S-Video. These signals are
also routed out the COAX connection in MTS stereo which makes it
a great receiver for running your whole house..
DP (All) - No Built in support for Local Channels. If you
subscribe to local channels through Dish, this is not a problem.
Support
For Recording
Dish 5000 - Supports recording to a VCR by using a IR Blaster.
This mechanism is very unreliable, but workable. Timers
are somewhat more useful than those on DP.
DP 7100 - With the latest Software release, there is nothing that
compares to PTV services.
The 7100 can record around 4-5 hour of shows on it's standard hard
drive. PTV costs 9.95 a month.
DP 7200 - Also with PTV Services at a cost of 9.95 per month.
The 7100 can record around 8 hours of TV on it's standard hard drive.
DP 7100 Upgraded - Also with PTV The 7100 recording
time is only limited by the size hard dive you put in. For example,
the 20.5 I put in gets around 10-12 hours of time. This upgrade
however will void your warranty.
The
Remote Control
Dish 5000 - Comes with a very functional (non-learning) Universal
remote that can control your VCR, TV an another source.
DP 7100/Upgraded - Comes with a good universal remote that can control
all of the satellite functions. Only drawback is that it can
only control a TV. If you subscribe to PTV Dish will send
you the remote from the 7200.
DP 7200 Winner - Can control a TV and VCR, and now includes
buttons for direct access to PTV, Record, forward, backward,
picture in picture, stop, play, jump back and go live. All
of these number buttons add to the size of the remote but it is
still a very nice remote. Here
is a link to the picture of the two remotes side by side
CallerID
Dish 5000 Winner - Will display the name/number of anyone calling
so you can ignore, I mean jump up and answer the phone.
DP (All) - No current support for CallerID. All
of the equipment should be there, so hopefully in a future release.
The
Prices
Dish 5000 Winner - $100 after rebate, normally $399/349, however
Rebates are often available.
DP 7100 - $199 - Rebates not available. Includes Keyboard.
- Discontinued
DP 7200 - $349 - It looks like rebates are finally going to
be available for new users. Price doesn't include a keyboard
($50) for the WebTV feature.
DP 7100/Upgrade - $199 + Cost of Drive ($150-$300) - Discontinued
HDTV
Dish 5000 Winner - Echostar had created an adaptor to receive
HDTV signals.
DP ALL - Support for HDTV signals has not been announced
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