This is what Shawn Morton would look like if he had been made of LEGO sMoRTy71.com -- the personal website of Shawn Morton
UPDATE: This blog has been retired as of August 2011. See this post for more information or connect with me on Twitter.
Wednesday, November 30, 2005
Upgraded my DirecTV HD box
DirecTV is offering a $200 rebate on their H10 and H20 HD boxes (which retail for $199), so I figured it was a great time to upgrade my 2 year old Hughes HIRD-E86 receiver.

I was able to get a DirecTV H20 which will decode both MPEG-2 (DirecTV's current standard) and MPEG-4 (DirecTV's future standard). It also has an HDMI output which I will connect to my TV's DVI port.

The Hughes I have now is not a great HD box. It has problems with overheating. Plus, it only supports component out, so I'm not getting the best possible HD picture. I purchased it before I got a TV that supports DVI, so it's overdue for the upgrade. I haven't decided if I will hook it up to the HDTV in my bedroom or just retire it altogether.

Both the H20 box, which I ordered from Circuit City, and the HDMI-to-DVI cable are scheduled to arrive on Friday. I should have a review of the new box by early next week.

About Shawn Morton

Married father of 6; VP of Social Media at JPMorgan Chase; gluten-free; gadget enthusiast; hair metal aficionado; #Movember man View more on LinkedIn.