Where to find a cheap DVR for DirecTV?

Hughes Directv DVR and Vonage?

• I have a Series 2 Hughes Directv DVR (SD-DVR80) and I also recently got a Vonage account. I discovered after I set up my vonage account and dumped my old telephone company that my DVR is having lots of trouble making its weekly call using my local dial in number, unlike before I got Vonage. I am trying every dial prefix and call waiting prefix I can find on the internet without any success so far. I was just wondering if anyone else out there has had the same problem with this model and if you ever found a solution without hacking. I'd rather not do that.

• Answer:

  You do not have to have a phone connection to use your DVR, even though DirecTV insists that you have one. You need the phone for initial setup; after that just ignore the nuisance messages that appear. You won't be able to do on-screen ordering of PPV movies or receive software upgrades (of which there aren't any more), but there are ways around that, too. My TiVo hasn't been connected to a phone line for 535 days (according to the last message).