FEATURE REQUEST: “Mark Unwatched” on DIRECTV

It’s just such a little thing… and I’ve been hoping for it for a decade. DIRECTV’s DVRs don’t have a “Mark Unwatched” setting. To be fair, I don’t think any pay-TV DVRs do. So, if you accidentally start watching something before you meant to, its name turns grey in the playlist. I suppose that’s not the most worrisome thing in the world but it can be a little annoying, especially if you have to explain to your spouse why you started watching something without them.

It seems to me a “Mark Unwatched” flag would be something really easy to put in, probably wouldn’t take a lot of time, and it would be just another of the many features that make life easier for users of DIRECTV’s DVRs. When you think of those little features like two-button series recording, or the fact that all the local channels are at the top of the guide, it makes you realize that a lot of effort has been put into making DIRECTV’s DVRs really friendly to regular folks. If anything the problem today is that there are so many little shortcuts that it’s practically impossible to find them all without a web site like this. Oh well, it keeps me in business.

DIRECTV does allow you to start a recording over from the beginning — just press {SELECT} on the playlist and you’ll see a set of options including “Start Over.” That’s a nice thing if you have actually been watching when you shouldn’t, but it still gives the recording that grey appearance and that’s not going to fly in some cases.

There are some rumors that DIRECTV is working on a new user experience for its Genie DVRs… maybe they’ll consider granting my wish.

Do you agree this would be a good addition? Leave a comment below and let’s talk about it.

About the Author

Stuart Sweet
Stuart Sweet is the editor-in-chief of The Solid Signal Blog and a "master plumber" at Signal Group, LLC. He is the author of over 10,000 articles and longform tutorials including many posted here. Reach him by clicking on "Contact the Editor" at the bottom of this page.