Unraveling the Mysteries Behind 'Unlimited' – What Are the Real Limits of Unlimited DVR Services?

Unraveling the Mysteries Behind ‘Unlimited’ – What Are the Real Limits of Unlimited DVR Services?

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Do you want to record every movie airing next week on every channel? No problem! No, really. Some live TV streaming services give you unlimited DVR storage. That means you can record a marathon of your favorite show without stressing about gigabytes. But is unlimited DVR totally unlimited? Kinda.

Which Platforms Have Unlimited DVR?

If you switch from a traditional cable provider to a live TV streaming provider, there’s a good chance you’ll get the promise of unlimited DVR. Even providers like Fubo, which limited DVR hours in the past, are now expanding their DVR storage to meet the standards of competitors.

The following live TV streaming services include unlimited DVR with your plan:

Hulu + Live TV ($76.99)
YouTube TV ($72.99)
DIRECTV STREAM ($79.99)
Fubo ($79.99)
Philo ($28)

How Are Platforms Able to Promise Unlimited DVR?

Most cable providers, like Cox, provide a physical DVR box for recording content. Because your shows and movies are saved to the box’s hard drive, there is finite storage space. Think of a traditional DVR box like a smartphone or laptop. If your device reaches capacity, you’ll need to start deleting older files to make room for new ones.

Meanwhile, unlimited DVR is possible because your recordings are saved in the cloud . Think of saving your recordings to cloud DVR like adding a file to Google Drive. While the owner of the cloud storage can implement limitations, you won’t experience the same restrictions you would with a hard drive.

Common Unlimited DVR Limitations

Time Limits for Recordings

Many platforms that offer unlimited DVR space only let you keep the recordings for a certain amount of time. Most commonly, the time limit is nine months. Providers, including Hulu + Live TV, Fubo, and YouTube TV, fall into this category. However, Philo lets people keep recordings for up to one year.

Unfortunately, there is no way to upgrade and keep your recordings for longer–even if you’re willing to pay. If you have a physical DVR, you can keep recordings indefinitely (until it fills up, of course.

Auto-Deleting

Programs are usually auto-deleted when you get to the end of the time limit. You can’t choose which recordings are deleted first; your provider will delete them in the order in which they were recorded. And it usually happens without a reminder.

DIRECTV STREAM is the only live TV streamer who says they will send you an alert to remind you that a recording is about to be deleted.

Episode Maximums

You may also be limited to the number of episodes you can record for the same series. This limitation is rare, but it might make it hard to record multiple seasons of the same show.

DIRECTV STREAM only lets you keep a maximum of 30 episodes of the same show. The platform is tentatively going to remove the restriction, having rolled out a beta change to some customers already as of Summer 2024.

Pause Account Deletions

In some cases, if your account gets paused, you will lose your DVR recordings. For instance, if your Hulu + Live TV account gets paused due to non-payment, the provider warns that you will likely lose your DVR content when you get your account reactivated.

By comparison, a physical DVR can’t be wiped by your cable provider. If you pause your account and then start it up again using the same DVR box, all of your recordings will still be intact.

Getting unlimited DVR with your live TV streaming service opens up the opportunity to record as many programs as you want, but only for the short term. If you like to have your favorite movies available on your DVR for more than one year–unlimited DVR may not be your cup of tea. Thankfully, with so many titles on demand, it’s possible to find most shows and movies on an app somewhere.

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