How can you look at future times and dates on a DIRECTV DVR?

Once upon a time, we all got printed TV Guides in the mail. It was our key to understanding what we wanted to see that week. Those were different days, when live TV was all you had. Today you’re more likely to set something up to record instead of planning your life around it. But, you still need to know what’s on. If you know the name of a show, you can search for it. But what if you’re just interested in seeing what’s on so you can record new shows?

It’s very easy actually. If you’re looking for something to record, you might know when it’s on and what channel it’s on. If that’s the case, you can go straight to that time in the guide and find it quickly.

Non-Genie receivers and DVRs

Start by pressing GUIDE on your remote, then press either the DASH button to the left of the zero, or the yellow button if your remote has one. (Both work the same.) You’ll get a popup menu like the one you see above. Arrow down to “Jump to a date & time.” When you press SELECT you can choose first the date, and then the time you want to look at. Once you get there, you can navigate around the guide just as you always have and find the program you want. Of course, you can press the RECORD button on the remote if you have a DVR to record any program you see. Press the RECORD button twice to record an entire series.

Genie systems

The process for Genie DVRs is very much the same, but the button presses are different. Start by pressing GUIDE on your remote. Then, press the ZERO (0) button to get the popup options menu. From there it’s the same. Arrow down to “Jump to a Date & Time,” then press SELECT. From there you are free to browse, set recordings, or get more information just as you would with the live guide in real time.

How far in the future can you go?

DIRECTV’s Advanced Program Guide generally has between 10 and 14 days of data, meaning that you’re not likely to find a whole lot interesting more than two weeks out. You’ll see a lot of listings that say “Title not available.” That’s normal and you’ll get more information as the time gets closer. DIRECTV DVRs actually pull guide data from the satellite all the time and they update the most current listings very often, so if a show is pre-empted at the last minute they can change whether or not it gets recorded.

If you get far enough, you’ll start seeing “Title not available” on more and more channels. This is normal, and there’s nothing that you can do but wait for more guide data to be loaded.

If you’re looking to upgrade your DIRECTV system or just need additional help, call us! You can shop at SolidSignal.com for the best consumer electronics, or call our offices during East Coast business hours. The number is 888-233-7563!

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.