
Teacher
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14 Messages
Default to Favorites when pressing Guide button?
Is there a way to default to the user Favorites when pressing the Guide button instead of showing the gazillion channels in the lineup?
The Enter(Zoom) button is a good shortcut alternative to pressing the Menu button and then browsing to the Favorites, but the browser to go to whichever was last selected and used. If I can't make it default to the Favorites then it should at least go to the Favorites if that is what I used last so the next time I press the Guide button it should go to the Favorites.
Maybe the Hide Channels is another way to do this, but then I have to go through the gazillion channels in the lineup (which lists everything, not just my subscription channels) and click to remove them. So in essence through Hide Channels the Guide mirrors my Favorites?
aviewer
Expert
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10.1K Messages
9 years ago
Access to Favorites guide is accomplished manually - Menu - 2 down arrow - OK. Four button pushes.
These four pushes can be built as a sequence and assigned to any button on the Harmony. When you push that button it sends the four IR signals.
The question is how reliable is the remote control now? Do 99.9% of the requests work? Or, is it less? If you have poor IR response now, the four commands may not all complete. At least you can finish the sequence manually.
If you have a problem, you can experiment with adding delay to make it work.
I have had problems with the model 700 sending all those IRs successfully. But, the Smart Control is almost 100% perfect. Also, with he hand held remote, you need to aim the remote while it sends all those IRs. with the Smart Control aiming is not required.
The smart control also has a short press/long press for each button. So, the favorites can be the GUIDE button short press and the regular guide the long press.
I just got an e-mail from logitech. They are having a three day 30% off sale.
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FormerWillyb
Mentor
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89 Messages
9 years ago
Amazing. This thread is three years old? I guess no one is listening. Well, I have to add and keep this thread alive.
Dish Network has THE BEST guide system. Six guides: "All Channels", "All Subscribed", plus four more custom guides, which you could create and name. When you press the Guide button, it initially brings up the last guide you used. Press again and again, and it cycles through the other guides. We had one we called "Regular", which excluded the scores of channels we would never watch. One called "Movies" for all the channels that have movies. One for "News" channels. One for "Music". When we moved to U-Verse...what a disappointment. Four years later, nothing has improved.
And good grief, guys, what's the point of the ABC buttons that do nothing and have never done anything. Perfect for custom buttons!
The only guide system worse is Comcast/Time Warner. But Comcast has the best Internet service (here at least). When my last discount period expired, I considered moving to Comcast for Internet and Dish Network for TV. The retainage person at AT&T, though, talked me into another "deal" for 12 months. Also, the agony of changing persuaded me to take the deal. Next year, though, I'll be retired and have time to mess with it, so if we still have this lame guide system, I'm going to optimize our home Internet/TV setup.
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bgaineshunter
Voyager
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2 Messages
9 years ago
I just went through extreme frustration while trying to delete a "favorites" menu. The problem is that when using the S10-S4 remote, the "enter" button is not obvious. It is not the same as the "selection" or "OK" button. As a matter of fact, it looks like it is labeled "zoom". It is the lowest right hand button on the S10-S4 remote, right above where the remote is labled "zoom" the button itself is labeled "enter". Click that botton and your options to delete or rename your favorites menu will appear after you've selected the menu. Hope that helps.
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bryanjj
Tutor
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6 Messages
9 years ago
Hit the menu today and the Favorites option is now #2 on the list! Thanks UVerse team for changing this. It will probably save me a couple percious seconds every day! 🙂
Bryan
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cjkatx
Tutor
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3 Messages
9 years ago
I was a Dish customer for 14 years and have been with ATT for 2 years. I switched to ATT because custormer service was abismal and contract negotiations took my favorite channels off the air. Only two complaints with ATT: (1) The remote / receiver interaction is very finicky, especially for entering 4 digit codes. (2) The ability to default the Favorites List as the Channel List is sadly missing.
I subscribe for the great selection of College Football Channels. On a Saturday, I want my default guide to be about 12 channels (ABC, FOX, CBS, ESPN, ESP2, FSN1, PAC12, SEC, etc.) Then when one game goes to commerical, I just press the up or down button and the next channel loads. It's a one click method to cycle through just the 12 channels. See Dish Network for a great example on how this technology has been around since the 1990's.
I hope ATT can get this implemented. Thank you for listening.
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aviewer
Expert
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10.1K Messages
9 years ago
U-verse not processing all four channel digits can be problematic. Something that may help this is to cover the IR receiver with this tape - http://www.homedepot.com/p/Commercial-Electric-2-in-x-150-ft-Vinyl-Electrical-Bundling-Tape-Silver-30002664/202741845#specifications
It is barely transparent.
Another item that can improve the solidity of the IR response is a Logitech Harmony smart control. Instead of the hand held remote transmiiting IR , it transmits wi-fi to a hub or min-blaster which is much more powerful and pervasive. Also, the hand held does not have to hold aim during the time it takes to send so many signals.
It, also, has a unique feature for programming the buttons where they apply different IR for a short press or a long press.
I use this feature to program my favorites guide on a short press & the full guide on a long press.
Also, each number button can be programmed as a favorite channel to send the four digits required on a long press.
These are two ways you can jump your channels - the first would take three clicks to jump up or down one favorite on the favorites guide & the second one click, but you have to keep track of where you are on the list & move over one button. This last method could work for 12 channels. The first one has no limit.
Of course, you can do both & discover which you gravitate to.
My experience is here for you to get some ideas what else may be a feature that makes it worth while, which it definitely is - https://forums.att.com/t5/Using-your-U-verse-TV/Logitech-Harmony-Smart-Control-Remote/m-p/4028946#M2963
This is the least expensive model of three hub systems.I beieve the other two have the abillity to store a list of favorite channels that appear on the LCD screen on the hand held remote. Of course, it sends four digits to the STB for each channel change, but it is a third method for selecting - from a list on an LCD screen. I do not care for ths because you have to scroll the screen, but if you are just going one channel, it may be OK.
As a reminder, the first suggestion selects the channel from a U-verse favorites guide on the TV screen & the second suggestion selects from the push button number pad on the hand held remote.
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cjkatx
Tutor
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3 Messages
9 years ago
I'm sorry but I don't agree with the suggestions. If I am paying $150/mo for phone, internet, and tv then I shouldn't have to buy additional tape or remotes. ATT should be able to provide technology that works better. Dish was doing this as far back as 1999.
I also agree with all the other posters that indicated how difficult it to access the favorite channels. Like Dish, tt also sounds like Direct has much better technology.
Like I said before, I hope ATT resolves these short comings.
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aviewer
Expert
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10.1K Messages
9 years ago
Thats fine. Thanks for letting me know.
It is probably the most frequent longest lasting complaint that gets zero response from att.
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FormerWillyb
Mentor
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89 Messages
9 years ago
Vid30Jk. Actually it is not Microsoft's fault that we have a garbage guide system. MS made a junk product; AT&T bought it. And continues to use it. That makes it AT&S's fault. MS produced a bad product for cars, too, called SYNC, and Ford bought it. Difference, though, is that Ford listened to its customers, and is replacing the Microsoft product with another in its new model year.
I believe the OS in the STB's is the old Windows CE, a late 1990's system used in some phones and other devices until it was outclassed by pretty much everyone, and not even Microsoft continued using it.
Seems like a patch could be programmed to assign custom guides to the A B C buttons. Say, make the default Guide button be all subscribed channels. Then A could be all channels, and B & C could be user-defined favorite guides. Or something along those lines.
I see there has been an update to the system, though. Now when the STB is off, you get pretty pictures on the screen. Wonderful. Is there also a hidden message imbedded in the pictures? "Upgrade to more channels" "Pay your bill on time" "Get AT&T mobile phone"...you know, like in the movie "They Live".
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Pete7874
Teacher
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16 Messages
8 years ago
This is probably old news, but I just got U-verse TV today and it appears the "A" button on the remote takes you directly into your Favorites.
What is still missing is the ability to surf through your favorite channels just by using the channel up/down buttons.
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