Hey Comcast,
Let me tell you why we, your customers, are upset. Being a software developer, I can understand that this update was mandatory in order to bring all the customers to the same playing field however I can assure you, that's all I, and others, really understand. It was a bad and costly decision to upgrade the remaining customers to software that is much more limited than what we already had with the SARA software. In otherwords, you did not upgrade us, you downgraded us.
Why was this guide, similar to what Motorola subscribers were using long before Cisco/SA customers, not polished, refined, & tested?! Why, do the 20% of subscribers that have been downgraded to this guide have to use such limited software and discover the many flaws of this old guide? I've been using a SA 8300HD w/ SARA for 4 years meaning Comcast has had years to perfect the software. From the brief searches I have done regarding this downgrade, I have read the following words to describe this downgrade:
Hate, regret, dislike, rediculous, stupid, horrible, atari-like, incomplete
That is just a few. Why does Comcast continue to ignore their customers regarding this guide? Do you understand that some of your customers pay upwards of $200.00 a month, which boils down to being $2400 a year? With 100 customers paying close to those rates, that's $240,000. Comcast should use that money and hire better programmers/developers to design a guide that has better UI, functionality and STOP dropping the ball when it comes to the guide software. We deserve better from Comcast!
Here are juse some of the issues with this old guide that has me thinking about switching:
PIP: Why would Comcast make a decision to remove PIP instead of ADDING it? PIP was something that was used by many customers, and instead of Comcast PAYING to ADD it to the Motorola boxes, Comcast decides to remove it. Now don't tell me the Motorola DVR boxes can't support it, they have dual tuners and it's all software based at that point. Removing PIP from the Cisco/SA boxes prevents anyone that enjoys using PIP from being able to use a similar feature on their TVs because now that Comcast requires DTAs to decrypt their signal, you can't just use the TV's built-in PIP. So thanks Comcast for forcing us into something so limited. And no, the Pause/Swap/Play work-around is not a substitute. It's rediculous that Comcast would even suggest it is. Even the remotes being handed out with the DVRs have a PIP button dedicated to it's use. Add this feature back in.
Guide experience: It's a joke. Here's my list as to why:
- Manual Recording settings not editable: Once the recording is created it's not possible to edit the recording. Only the Start/End times are editable.
- Deleting Series Recordings: Can only be deleted from the Priority Screen
- Viewinf of Schedule Recording: Instead of a list, you have to advance to each day to see what is scheduled to record for that day.
- Record a recurring tv program: To do this, you need to schedule a Manual Recording instead of having the recording settings available when selecting the program from the guide. Otherwise, you need to set up a Series recording
- Remote directional buttons: Instead of acting like DVR controls (Remote has Dedicated buttons for this) they should trigger the mini guide to display
- The HD-Setup Wizard: DOES NOT WORK. Using the wizard (Press HDZoom on remote while power is off) by choosing the advanced menu, and going through the choices, the box because of the software, ends up being stuck on 480i, which is the last format tested in the wizard. Only way to go back to 1080i is to use the Wizard, and choose Basic, which forces all programs to 1080i with a 480p override. How come it has not been fixed? You have had years! Why would this issue still exist?
Bottom line, this guide is unfinished. Features that are missing should have prevented this guide's rollout. Telling us that there are several phases planned and only being on Phase 1. How long did Phase 1 take? How long until Phase 2, Phase 3, etc. You cannot tell me, a 16x9 guide interface could not have been added in a reasonable amount of time but instead needs to be added in a Phase. You cannot tell me that features like 'This day, This time slot' could not have been added instead of making it another 'Phase.' How long will we have to wait and use such a limited guide before we can see updates? Cisco/SA customers were the last to get the downgraded guide. Will we be the last again to get the 'updates'?
Comcast, answer some of these questions. We are watching and waiting for you to do so.
