Gennie 2 pros and cons

get a HS-17 --D*tv is only sending mini replacements for def. 2 tuners DVR's.

The Hs-17 Genie will do everything you need

The HS17 is very reliable now, despite early issues. It does not use your home WiFi to connect with wireless Mini Client boxes. It uses its own WiFi network for that. Internet is only used if you want to stream OnDemand content. 

so why do you want to switch? 4K?

Yes partly 4k and also wireless setup. That’s why I am asking for input to see if it would be vastly better or just maybe a little better. If not a big upgrade might not be worth it.

Hey, @ddrow

We are here to help you by taking a look at your options to upgrade your equipment. Please reply our Direct Message, so we can get started.

Thanks.

Rafael, DIRECTV Community Specialist

The Genie-2 (HS17) is certainly working better than when first launched. But because of a restrictive design, it depends on your setup which way is better.

Genie (HR44 is the 2nd generation) has 5 tuners and 500GB recording space.

Genie-2 (HS17 is only model so far) ahs 7 tuners and 1TB recording space.

At 1st glance it seems the HS17 has more capability. However, it forbids regular receivers/HDDVRs. A Genie and 2 HDDVRs is more capable than the Genie-2, has Picture in Picture (PiP), and if main box goes down the others still work whereas the Genie-2 only allows Clients which cannot work by themselves.

A more powerful and flexible system vs a simpler through restrictive setup is really the choice.

3rd generation Genie (HR54) also supports the 4K Client (C61K). The 4K only goes through the Client connection and there is no wireless 4K at this time. If you only have a single TV then the Genie-2 would be better so you don't pay as if you had a 2nd TV when you really only have one.

 If I am understanding correctly the only advantage to HS17 is more recording capacity and 4K. If I go HR54 I can get 4K but only through a wired client. I currently have a 3 tv setup. Main living room tv is only 4K and if I go HR54 I would like to keep my main tv directly wired to a receiver because of the response lag time of the clients. Wired clients to the 2 other tvs. Because my main tv is wall mounted in my living room it is hard to view from our kitchen. I have a smaller tv in the kitchen which is also connected to HR44 but through av output in sd. If switched to HS17 this would not be an option. It looks like it might not be that beneficial for me to upgrade at this time. Thank you all for your comments and insight to how the HS17 works.

There is no wireless client for 4K, the C61K is the only 4K client and it is wired only, whethere for the HR54 or the HS17. 

@ddrow 

The Genie-2 has the advantage for 1 - 2 TV setup by having more capability built-in. But with the regular Genie line you are allowed HDDVRs on your other TVs which allows to further increase capability when at 3 or more TVs.

Regular Genie (3rd generation HR54) only supports a single TV using 4K at a time, but the Genie-2 manages two at once. Also the HR54 must use Client connection (4K requirements updated before launch), meaning if you only have a single TV then you pay as if you had two. So at a single TV, the Genie-2 is the preferred method if you care about 4K.

There is no wireless 4K. The 4K Client (C61K) is wired.

I have a smaller tv in the kitchen which is also connected to HR44 but through av output in sd. If switched to HS17 this would not be an option.

The HS17 doesn't connect to a TV itself, so only uses Clients. The Clients have an A/V port. It is a 10-pin dongle on the Client side with the red/white/yellow plugs on the TV side. So yes your old SD-only TV is still an option.

As you have 3 TVs, with a 4K TV in the mix, you have essentially 3 options.

1. Do a 4K upgrade, keeping the regular Genie. The HR44 would be swapped to the HR54 to be compatible. The C61K goes on the 4K TV, the HR54 goes to another TV, and you keep the Client on the kitchen TV.

2. Upgrade to the Genie-2 with 4K. This replaces your HR44. The HS17 goes to a good centralized spot as has the wireless video bridge (WVB) built-in for your wireless clients, though you can still use your external WVB if needed. The C61K goes on the 4K TV itself (again wired).

3. Keep the HR54 as well as the Client on the kitchen TV. Upgrade the other one to a regular HDDVR. Gain 2 tuners, 500GB recording space, don't deal with wireless lag, plug is not dependent on the main box to work so is more reliable. Like the other options, recordings are still shared via Whole Home DVR.

Option 1 and 2 since they require replacing the HR54, you want to be caught up on recordings first. As there is limited 4K content, and those choice lose your existing recordings, I personally suggest option 3 especially since it is a more reliable setup. The concern is it has been much harder to get a regular HDDVR (last model HR24) as they have been pushing strongly for the Genie-2 (HS17) setup.

Yes alternatively you could leave the setup as-is and wait to see if the new co-owner of DirecTV starts making strides with the equipment again.