I have owned a T1050 for a week now. A really impressive box, especially at the price. I got my one for under $400 retail, including a 2-year replacement warranty. It came with firmware version 1.8. It's now running version 1.9 after an ugrade.
This is the terrestrial recorder. DishTV also has an equivalent satellite box but I don't know anything much about it or how it compares with the T1050.
I have my T1050 connected to a Panasonic TV model THL32X202 HDTV via HDMI cable. There are a few problems however:
1. Power off instead of stand-by. When I turn off the TV (to stand-by) the T1050 powers off instead of going on stand-by. In this mode the T1050 won't record booked programs, so I have to manually power it back on and leave it on. The power on and reboot takes about a minute. The only way I have yet found to work around this problem is to use analogue cables (component or composite) instead of HDMI. I suspect the problem is due to the VIERA link on the Panasonic TV, but I can't be sure until I test it on another make of TV. The T1050 has a stand-by mode, but I cannot invoke it for some obscure reason.
2. A program that is currently recording cannot be stopped or cancelled. So I have to wait until the program has finished recording.
3. Accessing the Booked Programs schedule (those programs booked for later recording) is hidden away and requires 7 button actions to access it. A single button depression on the remote control is sorely needed.
I could return my T1050 for a refund, but I won't. It's too good otherwise, with a nice big 500 GB hard disk, HD picture quality and easy to use features.