Rogers new Nextbox 4K and lack of features

[Annayya]

Rogers sent me an email recently talking about its useless recent improvements to my products and services.

http://ebm.email.rogers.com/c/tag/hBYSFw6B7ga6EB9V9v5NstRvXDV/

I have been tired of lack of features with the Rogers Nextbox 3.0 (PVR) and the HD Terminal and surprised that not many people are complaining about the poor software and the very minimal use of what the hardware is actually capable of. I mean what is the purpose of the USB slot behind the HD terminal when it cannot be used for anything.

If Rogers prices its rental of Nextbox 3.0 at $24.95 and HD Terminal at $12.95 one would think it has better services and features than Bell Fibe TV which charges a rental of $15 for PVR and $7 for each additional receiver. I should also remind that Bell never charges extra outlet fees of $7.50 per month like Rogers.

Anyway, I created this thread as I am looking for a reasoning of why the software engineers are not capable of taking full advantage of the features capable by the receivers. In hope of expecting better features from the 4K receiver, I recently upgraded my rental to 4K box (although I don't need 4K) and the only notable difference I see is that I am able to navigate, pause, play, forward at a more reasonable speed vs my old HD terminal. Still it's nowhere as fast as Bell Fibe TV receivers.

List of important features missing on Nextbox 3.0 and Nextbox 4K

• Pause Live TV on the HD terminals/receivers other than PVR
• 30 seconds skip forward and 10 sec skip backward (The fast forward feature is ridiculous due to slow response time on the receivers, including 4K receiver. It is better on the PVRs but not good enough)
• Ability to go back on the guide and play whatever show I want that I missed within the past 48 hours even though I did not record it. (Bell has this feature for up to 30 hours)
• Restart a current show on any channel
• Last channel. When I click last, it takes me to the last channel but in general I watch only about 5 channels so when I click last I would like the last five channels to be displayed at the top like Bell where I can simply select the channel I want to go to. This is a very simple feature but very time saving.
• Where the heck is Netflix ? - Rogers gave me a free 3 month Netflix package but the Nextbox 3.0 and 4k do not support Netflix. I am sure the hardware is capable of playing Netflix.
• Wireless receiver (not a must have, but it would be nice) - I would assume you thought of this option when purchasing the new 4K receivers although they don't have this feature currently. Perhaps a software upgrade can make it happen if they are capable.
• Improvements in the guide display are required. When I scroll through the channels list in the guide I can't tell what channels they are based on the inconsistent and limited characters abbreviations. Use a display format similar to Bell, where there is enough room that displays the logo of the channel clearly. Your guide already has enough empty space beside the channel number and name to display the logo. Also I want to be able to see HD channels only in the list, I couldn't find a simple way to hide SD channels in the guide. It is also important to note that your naming convention where you identify HD channels is not consistent. Your naming makes it hard to identify HD channels when scrolling quickly in the guide. You use HD or H at the end or beginning of the abbreviation of the channel. That's four inconsistent ways ... keep it simple and organized. Best way to identify this is using a different colour for HD channels in the guide which Bell does perfectly, also says HD on the side.
• Increase the guide info going back 48 hours rather than the 2 hours you currently have.
• Why is the PVR so slow when deleting shows. It's even slower if I try to do this task from a receiver/HD terminal.
• The harddrive on my Nextbox 3.0 is so noisy that I think I should get this unit replaced. Let me know if this is common. I never had a PVR that makes so much noise especially when the TV is off.

I spoke to my friends who are with Rogers and a lot of them said that the main reason why they are with Rogers is the sports channel options which is better than Bell. I recently subscribed to Rogers as Bell is not available in the new house I moved into. I don't watch sports but I always subscribed to TV for over 15 years for convenience. If I have to stay with a TV with such poor features I rather take the time to set up KODI + Android TV and cut the cord. It's all about convenience that I expect when I pay over $80 per month for TV. If you can't advance fast enough in the tech world people will choose other options and you will be out of business usually before you realize that you are losing market share significantly. Reversing things, such as bringing back people once they move to other options is much harder than retaining existing customers by giving them what they want, whether it is through discounts or innovating to provide the necessary features to stay competitive in the market.

 ***Added Labels***

[Meowmix]

Hello @Annayya

Some of those features are needed on the 4K boxes which i agree but if this is for the 4K boxes as per your title says, let's keep that only for the 4K boxes as there are other threads about the NextBox 3.0.

As per the list u gave above. The 4K box and HD box only get those features ( live pause and forward and such) if it's connected to Whole Home PVR. That's why they created that service. To connect them together to the PVR u have.

As for the the rest, yes I agree they need to bring them but a those are things we asked in other threads as well. Slowly they are bringing them out.

I do not have any issues with the 4K PVR box. Actually I had the 4K box the day they announced it would be available given that date. To me this is a cable box and not a computer ( my own opinion so do not attack me for it.). There needs to be some improvements with the software yes that is correct but Bell isn't any better to be honest. My uncle has Bell Fibe and the new 4K PVRfrom them and nothing but troubles. They all have different issues with software and hardware.

From what i noticed is the issues people are having with the NB3.0 are not on the 4K PVR unless they are but i am not really paying attention to them as to me they aren't a huge issue.

The list is helpful though!

[Annayya]

You could change the title to "Rogers Nextbox Improvements Required" to make it more appropriate.

As someone who does not watch 4K content yet, mainly because I don't watch sports which is all there is currently in 4K I think for now, the topic is not entirely about the 4K box. I got the 4K box thinking that it is a whole lot better and has significantly improved features than my current HD terminal but instead I found out that there is absolutely no difference other than the fact that it can play 4K channels.

While the list of features I asked above sounds exhaustive, in summary all of these features exist in the Bell Fibe TV receivers. If I expect the Rogers box to be like the Nvidia Shield TV box then I would be hoping for the impossible.

I had Bell Fibe TV (PVR + 2 extra receivers, but I can't afford 2 with Rogers pricing so only got PVR + 1 extra receiver) for a few years and had no significant problems with it (I transitioned from their satellite receivers to Fibe TV so the advancements in features were huge which is what I expected from Nextbox 4K/4.0). Some of the features I mentioned above were not there immediately from Bell Fibe TV and were developed over a year or so. However, with Nextbox 3.0 being older at about 4 years old, you would expect if anything the features available to be superior to Bell. I am not aware of the issues with Bell Fibe TV 4K as I never had it but I am sure they will fix things sooner than Rogers from past experiences (I was a Rogers customer over 10 years ago).

Are you saying I could pause live TV on the 4K box now, because I can't do that now. I am connected to the whole home PVR ?

[Meowmix]

Hello @Annayya

The same update that the current NextBox 3.0 has is installed on the 4K PVR and 4K box. The only difference is the 4K box doesn't have a HDD and can't record unless connected to a PVR ( Nextbox 3.0 or 4K PVR). There are some smaller minor differences in the software ( 4K viewing).

Mainly they are starting to being 4K more but like Bell they can not get much 4K unless the broadcaster and channel owner switching the channel to 4K. Do remember Bell owns CP24 YET they do not have 4K on that channel or most of their channels. Both are using 4K on specific sports like Raptors and Maple leafs and Jay's. That's all for now. So many that don't need or want sports, no need for the 4K box or 4K PVR box until they release more channels in 4K. I enjoy the 4K channel (999) as it had some amazing shows. That's me though lol.

Not everyone will have the same issues as you or anyone else. Again i don't have issue's that others are reporting on the NB3.0 and even if they are there, it's not a huge deal to me as I don't care a out. I have read many issues on Rogers and Bell with their PVR systems and software ( Facebook comments, Twitter, other forums which includes digital forums and such). Again everyone is different. They won't get the same issues or see the issues others are complaining about or warning others about.

The list you gave above I agree need to.be featured on the boxes! There are many on here including my self have said for a few features on the NB3.0 Should have gotten and now the 4K boxes but again they are taking their time doing everything. I guess they want us to test them out and give them more information. Who knows.

[Annayya]

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@Meowmix wrote:
Hello @Annayya
The list you gave above I agree need to.be featured on the boxes! There are many on here including my self have said for a few features on the NB3.0 Should have gotten and now the 4K boxes but again they are taking their time doing everything. I guess they want us to test them out and give them more information. Who knows.

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@Meowmix

Thanks for your insight and I will continue waiting with the hope that the updates they roll out will be at a faster pace than what it is currently. I have the NextBox 3.0 PVR and NextBox 4K receiver with whole home PVR feature activated. The most important feature from the list for me is to be able to pause live tv on the additional receivers.

If the software is the same on both NextBox 3.0 and 4K then there was no need for me to upgrade as I assume the next software upgrade will get the features to both versions equally. I must admit that the processor is definitely faster in 4K than my old receiver though as navigating seems faster. Since the rent price is the same, I will keep the 4K receiver.

[57]

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@Annayya wrote:

List of important features missing on Nextbox 3.0 and Nextbox 4K

• Pause Live TV on the HD terminals/receivers other than PVR
• 30 seconds skip forward and 10 sec skip backward (The fast forward feature is ridiculous due to slow response time on the receivers, including 4K receiver. It is better on the PVRs but not good enough)
• Ability to go back on the guide and play whatever show I want that I missed within the past 48 hours even though I did not record it. (Bell has this feature for up to 30 hours)
• Restart a current show on any channel
• Last channel. When I click last, it takes me to the last channel but in general I watch only about 5 channels so when I click last I would like the last five channels to be displayed at the top like Bell where I can simply select the channel I want to go to. This is a very simple feature but very time saving.
• Increase the guide info going back 48 hours rather than the 2 hours you currently have.
• Why is the PVR so slow when deleting shows. It's even slower if I try to do this task from a receiver/HD terminal.
• The harddrive on my Nextbox 3.0 is so noisy that I think I should get this unit replaced. Let me know if this is common. I never had a PVR that makes so much noise especially when the TV is off.

---

Let me address the issues you raise, without defending Rogers.

1. I believe you can pause a live programme on the STBs, provided you set a recording, instead of simply "pausing".  I don't have WHPVR, but I believe I read this elsewhere.  It's also advisable to set a recording because some people pause, then wander away and then lose the programme if they are away too long.

2. There have been quite a few comments about the slowness of the STBs on WHPVR. Not much to be done at this point as the STBs are underpowered. This will probably be cured when Rogers rolls out IPTV. The current equipment is not really designed for WHPVR.  If you want fast, Put the PVR(s) in the locations that you'll watch most.

3. Although Bell has the Restart feature, it's not really that useful since the number of channels are limited and you have to watch the commercials.  Simply set recordings for any programming that you want to watch.  Pretty soon you'll have more than enough programming to watch and no need for Restart.

4. Frankly, I see no advantage to having the guide go back 48 hours. It would just waste memory/resources for 99.9% of users.

5. As stated above, the STBs are underpowered and not designed for WHPVR in mind. Do your deleting from the PVR.  This should be different once Rogers has IPTV.

6. There should be a soft whooshing sound from the HDD.  It should not be noisy. Perhaps you have a poor specimen. 

[Lurker]

"The most important feature from the list for me is to be able to pause live tv on the additional receivers."

Asking for this fundimentally misunderstands how Traditional cable is different from IPTV.

For the current Rogers setup,  each box gets its own TV signal (hence the need for a coax connection to each box.). The PVR can pause Live TV because it has a hard drive and the signal is 'buffered' on the hard drive.  The terminals have no hard drive...therefore, no place to buffer the signal.

When (if) Rogers ever launches IPTV, you may get your wish.

[Annayya]

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@Lurker wrote:

"The most important feature from the list for me is to be able to pause live tv on the additional receivers."

Asking for this fundimentally misunderstands how Traditional cable is different from IPTV.

For the current Rogers setup,  each box gets its own TV signal (hence the need for a coax connection to each box.). The PVR can pause Live TV because it has a hard drive and the signal is 'buffered' on the hard drive.  The terminals have no hard drive...therefore, no place to buffer the signal.

When (if) Rogers ever launches IPTV, you may get your wish.

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I understand each box gets its own TV signal but each box also has an option to add an external hard drive.  I remember adding an external harddrive to a satellite TV box many many years ago even before the Nextbox 3.0 was invented. I can't believe things haven't changed in all these years with Rogers boxes. There is a USB slot behind the Rogers boxes which are currently useless because Rogers again is not taking full advantage of the features the box is capable of.

I agree that there are definitely limitations vs IPTV, but there are ways to get over most of the limitations if enough effort is put in to improve the software on these boxes. If communication between the boxes "wirelessly" is a known limitation in the Nextbox 3.0 then this should have been considered when ordering the new 4K boxes where the hardware could've been improved as well. I believe most of my requests are software related, but if there's any limitation due to hardware, that should be taken into consideration when any hardware upgrades are approved by the company such as Nextbox 3.0 to Nextbox 4K.

[Annayya]

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@57 wrote:

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@Annayya wrote:

List of important features missing on Nextbox 3.0 and Nextbox 4K

• Pause Live TV on the HD terminals/receivers other than PVR
• 30 seconds skip forward and 10 sec skip backward (The fast forward feature is ridiculous due to slow response time on the receivers, including 4K receiver. It is better on the PVRs but not good enough)
• Ability to go back on the guide and play whatever show I want that I missed within the past 48 hours even though I did not record it. (Bell has this feature for up to 30 hours)
• Restart a current show on any channel
• Last channel. When I click last, it takes me to the last channel but in general I watch only about 5 channels so when I click last I would like the last five channels to be displayed at the top like Bell where I can simply select the channel I want to go to. This is a very simple feature but very time saving.
• Increase the guide info going back 48 hours rather than the 2 hours you currently have.
• Why is the PVR so slow when deleting shows. It's even slower if I try to do this task from a receiver/HD terminal.
• The harddrive on my Nextbox 3.0 is so noisy that I think I should get this unit replaced. Let me know if this is common. I never had a PVR that makes so much noise especially when the TV is off.

---

Let me address the issues you raise, without defending Rogers.

1. I believe you can pause a live programme on the STBs, provided you set a recording, instead of simply "pausing".  I don't have WHPVR, but I believe I read this elsewhere.  It's also advisable to set a recording because some people pause, then wander away and then lose the programme if they are away too long.

2. There have been quite a few comments about the slowness of the STBs on WHPVR. Not much to be done at this point as the STBs are underpowered. This will probably be cured when Rogers rolls out IPTV. The current equipment is not really designed for WHPVR.  If you want fast, Put the PVR(s) in the locations that you'll watch most.

3. Although Bell has the Restart feature, it's not really that useful since the number of channels are limited and you have to watch the commercials.  Simply set recordings for any programming that you want to watch.  Pretty soon you'll have more than enough programming to watch and no need for Restart.

4. Frankly, I see no advantage to having the guide go back 48 hours. It would just waste memory/resources for 99.9% of users.

5. As stated above, the STBs are underpowered and not designed for WHPVR in mind. Do your deleting from the PVR.  This should be different once Rogers has IPTV.

6. There should be a soft whooshing sound from the HDD.  It should not be noisy. Perhaps you have a poor specimen. 

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1. I don't need work arounds and adjustments.  A simple example of the issue is when I get a phone call I would like to pause the TV and then play in a few minutes. Recording the show means it will take space and I have to then go and erase it later. Simple solution to this issue would be to allow users to add an external harddrive to the additional boxes to allow the pause live tv feature. This would be a very quick fix.

2.3.4.5 - Looking forward to Rogers IPTV soon. I see that at this point it would be a huge factor that would convince me to stop cutting the cord.

6. I guess I got an unlucky used/refurbished unit. I will exchange over the weekend.

[Gdkitty]

Unfortunately the cisco STB's have never allowed this.  yes they have USB ports, etc.. but this was for other features which were never enabled on these boxes (doing DLNA/local playback off a drive).

Plugging in a drive would isnt really an option.

(thats a more CISCO issue than Rogers)

Really in the end, if some specfic features are overly necessary, YES, bell may be the better choice.  I fully agree.

And as stated, until rogers switches over to IPTV, most of those limiations will remain.

(apparently they are in the testing for this next generation of boxes.. IPTV, etc.  Their regular STBs are suposed to be wireless, etc.)