Suggestions to Sage re: HD-200

[wayner]

I have bought three of these and while I generally like them I would like to provide a few suggestions to Sage on how they can be improved:

1. Allow us to get from Extender mode back to the setup menu/standalone without a power off.
2. Give an option to shut off the flashing green light - I find it distracting.
3. If you want to save a few dollars don't include analog/s-video cables - the cables that I needed are optical and component and they aren't included (although I guess I could use the yellow/white/red cable for component).
4. Improve the startup time for standalone/setup mode - it is annoying to have to wait for graphics and fonts to load.
5. If you implement #1 then change the SageTV sever autoconnect wait time to 0 or give the user an option to adjust this variable (maybe this option exists now but I haven't seen it).
6. Consider the option of an external IR receiver that plugs into the unit. This would allow you to totally hide the unit away and would make point #2 irrelevant.

[Brent]

All great suggestions. I doubt they'd save much money by not including the cable though - possibly a dollar?

I'm with you on all of the other ones though.

[festus]

I just installed my HD-200 yesterday. I used a mini hole punch and some electrical tape to make a black dot to put over the green light. Now it only looks like it has a red light that works like my old SD extender.

Otherwise, it's working great.

I suppose I am one of the few that got this for SD use. I wanted to be able to view all of the channels I can get via QAM Cable and ATSC antenna, and prove out my system for a future TV purpose. However, I didn't use the cables either because I was simply taking out an SD extender.

[TwistedMelon]

Originally Posted by wayner

[*]Allow us to get from Extender mode back to the setup menu/standalone without a power off.

Seconded. However, I'd also like to see some of the standalone features accessible without having to go into a unique standalone mode. Such as being able to browse a locally attached USB device directly (without having to go to the network share).

[*]If you want to save a few dollars don't include analog/s-video cables - the cables that I needed are optical and component and they aren't included (although I guess I could use the yellow/white/red cable for component).

An optical cable would have been a good add-in. There's not much saving by omitting the others unless it also drastically reduces the box size.

From an environmental point of view, I'd advocate not including batteries and telling people they should be using rechargeables. This would have been easier had the remote been using AA instead of AAA (which the majority of people might not already have in NiMH flavor).

[*]Improve the startup time for standalone/setup mode - it is annoying to have to wait for graphics and fonts to load.

You can skip the loading by pressing play. However, if that's the case, couldn't that whole sequence simply be hidden in the background so users would see the main menu come up a lot sooner?

[*]Consider the option of an external IR receiver that plugs into the unit. This would allow you to totally hide the unit away

That would be a useful feature, however the same can be said for so many other devices. IMO, the best solution for this is to use a third-party IR repeating solution. That will allow you to hide away the Sage HD Theater and/or anything else you might want.

One might also make an argument for an IR blaster port on the Theater. That would allow it to control an amplifier and/or TV. However, this is easily solved by a universal remote with macro capabilities (even if those macros are mostly hidden from you, like with the Harmony products).

[tedson]

Awesome festus I did exactly the same thing. But I must admit this isn't the first device I own with little electrical tape dots over the flashing lights. Why does every device I own think it needs to have flashing lights, most of them even when the units are off. I flipped the light off in the den one night and it looked light Christmas, which is when I started my electrical tape rampage.

The worst is the Rovio. If you put it on the charger it has super bright blue LEDs all the way around it that pulse as its charging. So if you want it to be autonomous and roam around on a schedule you have to put up with the whole room flashing blue all night.