I’m with Telus and still have the legacy 4K boxes and I am holding onto to them as long as possible. If you check out the Telus forums there are a lot of unhappy people with the nextgen boxes, recording issues, issues with navigation etc. with an older person I would recommend staying with legacy.

Forums

Bring your questions, comments, and learn something new about TELUS products and services. Join the conversation!

forum.telus.com

 

Thanks for you insight @buckycat . I spent a few hours looking up manuals, specs., etc., on the boxes in her Telus System.

The (2017 manufactured) Actiontec T3200M Modem / Router has a terrible reputation, especially when it comes to it's wireless connectivity. I guess that's why Telus put a (2013 manufactured) Cisco VEN501-TU box next to it. (3 inches away!) It's is a “Video Bridge Solution” which is designed to connect video devices wirelessly. Which is what I assume it does for the Kitchen & Bedroom TVs. It is hard wired to the Router.

Main Samsung TV => The Telus Technicolor UIW8001 allows for Internet Protocol Television (IPTV). The UIW8001 is an Ultra High-Definition Set-Top Box, with a 1TB HDD for DVR Digital Video Recorder (DVR). It's the newest box in the system(2022) and hard wired to the Router.

Kitchen and Bedroom TVs => These two Cisco M/N 1694318 Boxes are the same and have a 2013 date of manufacture.

I didn't realize the age of these boxes when I originally posted, as I thought Telus had upgraded them when my Mom complained over the years. I guess that they just replaced in kind, except say for the PVR.

I think that all of these must be more than one generation old and of suspect reliability when they are over 10 years old. I'm concerned that signing up to keep them for another two year may really be pushing it.

But the comments I found on the Telus Optic site (some just posted yesterday) are scary too.

Perhaps other will chime in with their experience with Telus Optic TV.

Thanks for the assist.

 

One of the main reasons I switched from Shaw to Telus is that Shaw wanted me to buy a PVR for about $300 while Telus supplied it for free. (rental at no charge) from what I remember.

Telus upgraded it to a 4k for free.

From what I understand - the newer ones record unlimited shows to the cloud which get deleted in 90 days. I had to check the website to know there was such a thing.

My PVR can hold 404 hours of HD shows which is all I need. I have some recording that are a year old. My Panasonic Plasma is 1080p and I'm not going to replace it unless it dies.

I will keep what I have for the time being.

 

I'm finally done with this saga (I hope!). I started out on the Telus Website after signing in (as My Mom). After 10 minutes or so with the Bot I decided I needed an Agent, as I was getting nowhere. They had a call back feature and it did work. I was called back within 15 minutes.

I was on the phone with Telus for ages =>2:25+ => OMG! They ping ponged me back and forth between CSRs (Customer Service Reps =>not) and Technical Support (a useless move). The first CSR said he'd straighten out all the account issues (which he didn't do) but had to turn me over to Technical Support for them to approve any new Gear. The lady at Technical Support was only interested in trying to troubleshoot this antiquated gear with me doing the leg work - even though I told them a few times that I wasn't co-located anywhere near the Gear. I said I was 45 minute to an Hour away by Car - more than one time. She wanted me to go and push a reset on the Modem! Duh!

It was round and round with folks in the Philippines who seem to just be following a check list, but I think I’ve finally got it sorted, after asking to connect to a manager at the next level.

I’ve got all new Gear Coming in 3-5 Business Days. Their newest 6e Modem and 3 new set top boxes with the new voice capable Bluetooth Remotes. I’ll need to come over and install them, as they agreed it would be weeks before we'd see a Telus Tech. We have to ship back the old gear & supply the box, packing material, etc., even after the last CSR said they'd supply it.

From an email they sent after the fact (only to my Mom):

To return your equipment, please follow these steps:
1 Securely pack all of the equipment listed below in a sturdy, appropriately sized box of your choice by October 28, 2024.
2 Include the first page of your TELUS home services bill in the box, or provide the following information:
• First and last name of the account holder
• Address of the account holder
• Telephone number associated with the account
• Full account number
3 Drop the package off at a Canada Post outlet of your choice by October 28, 2024 and quote the return number XXXXXXXX. To find a convenient Canada Post outlet near you, visit canadapost.ca.

If you have already returned your equipment, we sincerely appreciate your cooperation! Please disregard this message

I’ve also corrected the address Telus had for the Cabin phone at Paul Lake. They've had it wrong for a couple of decades or so.

I’m finally in control of all my Mom's Telus Accounts instead of just the Cell Phone

I’ve committed her to a 2 year agreement. She gets 25% off the Telus Services in her Condo, with a further $10 off a month when I got them to include that discount for the Cell Phone. The Cabin phone will be $20 /month on top of the Condo costs. So her total cost for two "Home Phones, the Internet, and 65 TV Channels and all the new gear should be (according to the last CSR) $145 /month + taxes.

She is on the 250 Mbps Internet Plan and all the current 65 TV Channels remain. We can add Theme Packs as desired (for an additional cost) anytime.


The last CSR said she'd be sending a summary mail of the above deal's details in an email to my Mom. I haven't see it yet. Time to call my Mom again...

 

Well I lied, or at least Telus lied, and made my post above incorrect.

Yesterday, after having my Mom check her email numerous times for the summary (which never arrived) I again signed into her account, and used their Bot to have an agent call me. with "Maria" I had to go through all of the details again and arrived at the same place: that she would send emails confirming the contract and gear changes, and call me back after they were sent. We waited and checked numerous times over a couple of hours but no emails nor call.

At 2:10 PM PDT I got a call from "Oscar" a Technical Service Representative (TSR) who said he was directed to call me, and troubleshoot the system! He asked me if the system was copper or fiber! (Wouldn't they know this?) After squaring him up on the situation, and explaining we were just waiting for the confirmation emails and didn't need / want any troubleshooting assistance, he said he'd put into the system for another (OMG!) CSR to call me. He said their system limits his options, and the CSR would call me between 2:45 & 3:00 PM PDT if that was okay with me. They never called.

Today I used their Bot to have another agent call me. "Aloria" called me and this call lasted over 1:06. At first she wanted me to agree to pay extra for the Set top boxes in the Kitchen and Bedroom; but of course I resisted, as they had already agreed to the all in discounted price of $125 (plus taxes). She actually seemed to make changes that I could see. Even though all the previous CRS had said they couldn't email me the notifications that were supposed to be going to my Mom, this one had no issue sending them to me at my Hotmail Account. Amazing.

Aloria sent me the long promised breakdown below:

Hi Jim,

Here's the breakdown of your Service agreement from August 29, 2024 to August 26, 2024. Plan: Pure Fibre Internet 250 Promotional Price: $75 Regular Price: $110 + $20 (unlimited data) Plan: Essentials TV Promotional Price: $30 Regular Price: $60 Plan: Home Phone Promotional Price: $20 Regular Price: $40 Total Promotional Price: $125 + Tax Total Regular Price: $230 + Tax

Sincerely, Your TELUS team

She also sent the tracking number for the gear that she said was going to be there by Thursday, which I assumed was for Canada Post, as that's how we are to ship back the old stuff. Of course that was wrong as I figured it out the tracking number was for UPS, and they are delivering the package today between 10:30 and 2:30 PM.

She was also able to correct the lack of some info on my Mom's sign in on the Telus Site like seeing all the recent contract agreements (Your Critical Information Summary). The previous CSRs had not made the changes correctly, and the latest version of August 29th (I was able to download it as a PDF) didn't jive with the agreed to summary I posted above. It says:

Total Monthly Regular Price (after all promotions expire) $250.00
Total Monthly Promotional Price (when all promotions effective) $180.00

She said she's corrected all of that, but it would take 24 hours for their system to update it so I could see it on my Mom's Account. The current version is 27 pages long!

The simple house number correction still seems to baffle them, but she said she'd stay on it and contact me when it was finished.

Telus seems to promise Customer Service but has no idea as to what that means, nor implements the proper system to deliver it. It should never take a Customer 5 calls overseas and over 6 hours of their time to deal with TV, Internet, and a Home Phone.

But this is for my Mom who has no other choice as her Strata Council signed a Partnering Agreement with Telus making them the exclusive provider. So I'll continue to battle on as long as it takes.

I hope it goes better for you!

 

Just a quick update as Telus Strikes Again!

I didn't pick up on it but the email the last CSR sent to us with the UPS Tracking Number had the new Gear going to 2349 52 St, TSAWWASSEN, BC . I had only glanced at the form, but when the package didn't arrive my Mom looked again at it, and saw that address is far away from her place.

Mom made me aware of the latest Telus faux pas, and I tried to get hold of UPS to advise them of the Telus Error. I tried to set up an account but the UPS website didn't allow it, and said my password was not correct (even though I just made it up). I tried a password reset, but even though they said it would send me a temporary password, nothing ever came. So in desperation I used their Bot to get me a call back from an Agent.

When the call came in I dutifully pressed one to acknowledge I still wanted to talk to an agent, only to be advised that they are now closed and I should call back during their business hours Monday to Friday. OMG these fools are taking lessons from Telus on Customer Service!

At about 7:00 PM someone from UPS called my Mom (I guess Telus gave them her phone number) and she squared them up with the correct address. They are now supposed to deliver the goods tomorrow.

 

Just a quick update as UPS Strikes Again!

Of course UPS did not deliver the gear as promised. Now it's Labour Day with none of their offices open, and their web based updater just says:

On the Way
Rescheduled Delivery

Delta, BC, Canada

08/31/2024, 18:53

It doesn't say "Out for Delivery", nor when they will attempt to deliver the 9 pound package.

I decided to try (again) the Telus chat box / CSR return call which was amazingly quick. This CSR (#6?) "Namb" was supposed to be putting me on hold, while she looked up the details, but she hung up on me. Thankfully (I guess) she had asked for my phone number in case we got disconnected just before she put me on hold. I'm typing this post while I'm on hold waiting for her...

It's now 35 minutes and counting on hold...the music loop gets irritating...

"Namb" finally came back after 38 minutes and said they are very busy and she has to wait for feedback from Telus (?) for what is going on. She had no explanation as to why the gear was shipped to the wrong address, as they have the correct address in the system on their end. She said she's requesting to call me back after she gets it sorted, or has an explanation as to what's going on.

No wonder all the Kids are abandoning TV and heading to streaming in droves.

 

Another quick update as Telus Strikes Again!
Telus called my Mom at 10:11 am yesterday and asked for Jim. I guess "Namb" lost it? Mom gave her my Cell number. No call or voice mail so far!

This has got to rank up there as the worst Customer Service on the planet.

 

Yesterday was more pain with Telus. I did the Telus chat box / CSR return call and "Maurice" the 7th CSR called me back after 10 minutes or so. I advised him the the Service Agreement was not as agreed, but after going through it all again (another 30 minutes OMG!) he said the best he could do was $132.50+ Taxes /month and not the agreed to $125+ Taxes /month. In frustration I asked to be connected to a manager.

The 8th CSR was actually a "Loyalty Manager" named "Martin" who was the most professional of all the Telus contacts to date. Even though I had to review it all again with him, he got it sorted in 15 minutes (which seems to be lightning speed when dealing with Telus Customer Support.) I did not want to bog the discussion down with the missing Gear as I figured we'd get some finality with UPS by day's end. I was happy to be finished with the Service Agreement with a final documented cost of $124.09+ Taxes /month (plus the extra $20.00+ Taxes /month for the phone at the Cabin.)

I had earlier called UPS and asked them to deliver the goods a bit later in the day (after 2:00 pm) as my Mom wasn't going to be home earlier when the Tracking info said it was coming. They said they'd call me back when "Dispatch" confirmed or denied the change. No call ever came.

The package was received at 3:20 PM (I had set it up to be notified when it was delivered.) I got on a Facetime session with my Mom at 3:30 so I could see her unbox the gear. To our shock, and my dismay, Telus sent replacement TV boxes and not the agreed to new ones. They didn't even include a new Modem / Router. I had my Mom flip over the PVR and it was 3 years older that the one she has now! By now I'm just boiling...

I held it together long enough, and advised Mom not to bother with the second unopened Set Top Box as it was just a duplicate. I said I'd get back onto Telus and advise them of this error and try to get them to correct it.

I did the Telus chat box / CSR return call and "John" (or Sean his English wasn't very clear at times) the 9th CSR called me back after 10 minutes or so. Of course he needed to go through all of it over again but after 15 minutes of getting nowhere I asked to speak to a manager. He put me on hold while he went off to get one on the line. He mistakenly cut himself off the line (I was still on hold listening to their music loop -over and over...) as he called me back on my cell and I had to dump the music and get on hold (again) while he chased down a manager. After another 20 minutes on hold John came back to check if I was still there (I swear they must be used to folks just hanging up and going away rather than waiting them out). I said I was but could he just call me back when he had the Manager on the line? He agreed so I went up to start dinner with my headphones on to receive the call.

The “Escalation Manager” as she called herself - I didn't catch her name called me about 30 minutes later.

The Escalation Manager originally wouldn’t do anything but push me to agree to the old equipment being replaced with more old equipment but I held firm. She then agreed to the new gear but said she’d change the TV package, but again I pushed back and said Telus had agreed to the same TV and Phone packages with all new gear 6 days ago back on August 29th +(for $125+ taxes per month). She put me on hold (I’ve never been on hold so much as in the last week with Telus.).

She came back and said she’s got the 3 TV Boxes set to ship to my Mom via Canada Post. I said you mean UPS, as that’s how the gear that came today was shipped. I said my Mom is having trouble with the system, like the TV going Black for half an hour, and we need this ASAP. She said she’d send a tracking number but I still haven’t seen it, and neither has my Mom. I then asked about the new Modem, which she had obviously forgotten, and she said hold on for a minute and she’ll get that going; but it’s probably going to be in a separate shipment.

She said the new gear will be there in 3-5 days and they’d be calling me (?) on the day of delivery. She said she’d call me back after 5 days to make sure everything is there as agreed.

After dinner I went to my computer and got an email with another Service Agreement. Even though I didn’t agree to any changes she went ahead and boosted the price up $20. Grrr... here we go again! I think her mistake was she put in the new digital boxes but left in the old (Technicolor) boxes as well. Why are these people so incompetent?

You can plainly see the three 4K Technicolor Boxes are still there and the three Digital Boxes have been inserted below them. I called my Mom and advised her that I was too worn out to call them yet again to try to get this sorted. But I would do that in the morning.

I'll post that in the next reply as this is long and windy. (Sorry.)

 

As promised to my Mom, I did the Telus chat box / CSR return call and "Anna" the 11th CSR (assuming the "Escalation Manager" was #10) called me back about 15 minutes later. I tried to stay cordial but to the point and focus on the mistake in the Customer Service Agreement. After a few times on hold (of course) she agreed they were in error but the entry would be removed from the agreement as soon as their system received the Boxes back. I countered that they made the mistake in shipping the wrong gear as we never agreed to it and they never should never have appeared in the agreement in the first place. She put me on hold again.

After a while she came back and said wasn't empowered to correct the mistake, as it had to go "to the Back Room" to be resolved and that would take 48 Hours. But she said they would remove it and I'd see the results in a revised agreement within 24 hours.

I asked her to send us the return instructions / labeling for the incorrect gear received yesterday. She said she would. She said it could take 3-5 minutes for their system to email outside. It's an hour later and still nothing. I'll check with my Mom after I finish this post.

In regards to the Tracking info on the correct gear, she said their system generates that within 24-48 hours so she can't send us that until she's got it. So maybe by sometime tomorrow?

Oh Joy!

 

This morning, I was checking with my Mom if she got anything new from Telus (she hadn't) when I got a call from "Naomi" the Escalation Manager (CSR#10) at Telus. She was calling to advise me of the tracking number for the new Digital Boxes, and was surprised when I read it to her from an email we got yesterday. I asked her if she had the tracking number for the new Modem, and she said she didn't have it yet. (OMG! What do these folks do all day. She "shipped" it two days ago.) She said she'd get that to me soon, but had no concrete timeline for it.

I asked if she could get the Loyalty Manager "Martin" to call me as there are still mistakes on the recently posted Services Agreement, with the incorrect Technicolor Boxes still listed with the incorrect total ($144.09) as a result. Obviously "Anna" the 11th CSR didn't get this sorted as she said she'd do in the Back Room, yesterday. Naomi (who had made the change and boosted the price) said that the Technicolor Boxes will only be removed from the agreement when my Mom ships the old boxes back and they are received by Telus.

Naomi also said the price she put there wouldn't change, and I said that I have a price of $125+taxes per month in writing twice from Telus, and I'm not letting go of it. (It's not my error that they - Alejandro initially CSR#1 - had agreed to the newest Gear but somehow put in replacement gear into their system.) I gave Naomi the reference number (1028175111) that Martin gave me in case things fell off the rails. Naomi said she'd get back to me, but as usual, gave no timeline as to when, when I asked.

I called my almost 90 year old Mom and walked her through returning the "new" old boxes she received Tuesday afternoon. (Remember she lives 45 minutes to an hour away from me.) I thought perhaps it's better just to try to get some of the gear back to Telus, and maybe that will initiate removal of the old gear from the agreement. Of course we won't know how fast this change will be, as no one at Telus will give you any timeline for anything. As long as they don't invoice my Mom for them...

As I was talking to my Mom about shipping the boxes, I got an email with return shipping instructions for

Equipment Model​

Advanced WiFi Modem​

which makes no sense. It does have the same return number PR142924 for Canada Post. I think that number just gets the Canada Post person to print a label back to wherever Telus wants the old gear, and pre-pays the postage. But I'm just guessing here.

Right after the email, there was another Service Agreement posted. I don't see any changes at first glance - the old boxes are still listed and the price is still wrong.

We'll have to see what tomorrow will bring.

 

Today the correct 3 new Digital TV Boxes and remotes were delivered by UPS. But of course there's nothing I can do to install them until the new Wi-Fi Hub Modem gets there.

Telus just sent the UPS Tracking info to me a few minutes ago, but UPS says it's not yet in their system. So much for Naomi, the Escalation Manager, agreeing to send it ASAP. Sounds like she forgot to put it in the system until after I talked to her yesterday about the Tracking number email!

So more hurry up and wait from Telus.

 

UPS says it's not yet in their system.

That's normal for UPS. The shipment doesn't show up in their system until the shipping label is scanned by UPS when it is actually picked up. It could be sitting on the loading dock waiting for the truck to arrive. It's usually the same day but not always.

 

I just tried Tracking again. UPS says "Label created".
Estimated delivery =>
"UPS doesn’t have possession of the package yet. Estimated delivery date will be available as soon as we get the package."

Good old Telus doing what they said they'd so. For sure!

 

Monday morning and the saga continues...

UPS Tracking for the Modem says:

Estimated delivery (From Calgary!)
Tuesday, September 10 between 14:15 - 17:15

Their September 5th version of the Service Agreement is still wrong:

Mom shipped the new old gear back to Telus on Thursday. (It goes to Richmond, BC) So far that's done nothing to trigger them to remove any Technicolor TV Boxes from the Account and correct the total in the "agreement" back to the agreed to values.

My plan is to wait until the Modem arrives and I can get over there and set up the new system. Then we will send the old old gear back to Telus. Probably in Roger's Boxes that I need to recycle from their forced change of my system to Ignite TV.

More later this week....

 

The modem arrived last night via USP but you won't believe it => they shipped a 2017 Actiontec T3200M Modem / Router. So much for it being their most recent offering.

They said they'd ship their newest Wi-Fi Hub but they obviously don't do what they say. And they've done that every time.

I decided to at least see if I could connect the new Digital Set top TV boxes to the existing Modem while leaving the old TV Boxes connected (to a different HDMI input). That way my Mom could watch anything she had recorded on the PVR. After a couple of re-boots, on the new Living Room Box, I ended up connecting it via an ethernet cable, as it just wouldn't connect via Wi-Fi, even though it was next to the old Actiontec T3200M Modem.

The setting up for the Kitchen & Bedroom boxes was routine via Wi-Fi, and both said they had a "Strong" signal.

One Strange Thing I noticed was I couldn't find the "Mic" button on the voice controlled remote, and there was no indication where it was from the meager instructions supplied. I finally started mashing on an unlabeled button (see below) in the middle of the remote as that about where Rogers has their Mic Button while talking to it. And it worked.

Am I the only one on the planet who doesn't know that 4 different sized coloured dots on a Button mean it's a Mic? Weird.

I left Tsawwasen with my mission incomplete so I did the Telus chat box / CSR return call and "Heidi" my 12th CSR in Calgary no less, called me back. She had no trace of an accent and quickly scanned the pages and pages of notes and was very empathetic. She was just back from vacation, and said before she went away she had authorization Codes that would have allowed her to correct the invoice to the agreed to numbers and remove the "old boxes" (see above) from the agreement. But upon her return, those codes aren't available and as there's a "klitch" in their system. (She's reported it to her management and is awaiting a solution). She documented (again) the outstanding issues:

1- Supply the agreed to Telus Wi-Fi Hub Modem ASAP.

2- Correct invoice total to $125+Taxes per month.

3- Correct the House Number / Address on the Cabin at Paul Lake.

She said an Escalation Manager would have to call me back to make these changes. I asked if she could just get Naomi, the Escalation Manager's Boss to call me as Naomi was the one who messed up the invoice after Martin (The Loyalty Manager) had it fixed. She said she couldn't do that but I could ask Naomi if she was the Escalation Manager who calls me back.

Well it's 5 hours later, and nobody has called....

I'm going Fishing early tomorrow...

 

it just wouldn't connect via Wi-Fi, even though it was next to the old Actiontec T3200M Modem.

It might be too close.

That's quite an experience. I've seen similar issues with Telus support. Their services seem to work great most of the time but getting billing issues corrected can be difficult.

 

Well Fishing was a bit of a challenge as the wind made the seas off Steveston a bit lumpy (5 foot waves) for our 20 Foot Lund. Both of my Fishing Buddies got violently seasick even though they had taken Meds as a precaution the night before, and again earlier that day. But they wouldn't quit so we soldiered on until we limited out on Springs and each had a nice Coho to take home as well.

I too will not quit but soldier on today with Telus, as no one called me yesterday either. OMG!

 

It seems Telus decided today was a good day not to have their Chat Bot functional. I tried numerous times during the day and go nowhere. Finally it looked like I got in only to be told before 4:00 PM PDT:

"We are currently closed. Thank you for choosing TELUS Chat. We will be open on September 16, 2024 - 08:00:00 Eastern time

Jim XXXXXXXXXX has left the chat.

The conversation has ended."

What a great service!

I dug up an old Telus Helpless Line - 1-888-811-2323 which has an automated response. I'm now on hold for an Agent (7 Minutes and counting).

I am leaving in 22 minutes to go to the Lions Game, so at least I know they won't have me on hold today any longer than that.

One of my fishing buddies suggested I email ceo@telus.com

I just sent him (really?) this:

"Hi Darren,

Unfortunately I’m at my wit’s end. The issues are with My 89 year old Mom’s Account:

XXXX XXXXXXX : Account number: XXXXXXXXX

Address Details

I won’t bore you with the long story, but it started (for me) with Telus on August 29th when I was advised by a Customer Service Representative - CSR (Alejandro?) that the aged equipment (from when Mom first moved in 11 years ago which is causing major issues) would be replaced with your latest offering (Wi-Fi Hub Modem and Telus Digital TV Boxes). With that understanding then I agreed to a 2 year agreement for $125+Taxes for the services in Delta. (Mom also pays for a phone line at the Family Cabin at Paul Lake which is extra.)

Since that call (which took two and half hours to conclude) there has been no resolution to the issue even though I’ve patiently had calls with 12 CSRs, one Loyalty Manager, and a couple with an Escalation Manager. In the meantime Telus has done silly things like send set top boxes to a Farmer’s Field and not my Mom’s condo.

I am an administrator on both her Mobile & Home Accounts, and would appreciate you not bother her with these issues by rather email / phone me.

Regards,

Jim XXXXXXX

604-XXX-XXXX



PS: I’ve been on hold at 1-888-811-2323 for 29 minutes while I type this."

Now off to the Lions Game! Go Lions!

 

It's Sunday and I'm now once again waiting for Telus to call me. There was no action from my email to the Telus CEO.

Yesterday my Mom advised me the recording function doesn't work, and she gets an error message like => You are not subscribed to do recording.

So there's a 4th thing to add to the list:

1- Supply the agreed to Telus Wi-Fi Hub Modem ASAP.

2- Correct invoice total to $125+Taxes per month.

3- Correct the House Number / Address on the Cabin at Paul Lake.

4- Enable Recording Functions on the Set top boxes.

After about 15 minutes of waiting, my 13th (Lucky?) CSR is Isa who called me from South Africa.

I'm trying to get Isa to focus on #1 & #4 as they are impacting my Mom daily, but after reviewing the account notes (at my suggestion) she came back and said she couldn't adjust #2, but did request the correct modem be sent out. She's now (after about 15 minutes with me) has transferred me to a Loyalty Manager so they can do #2 & #4.

After another 35 minute wait on HOLD (OMG!) my second Loyalty Manager (Eric in the Philippines) says he can "solve all these issues in one go and give us a 1 Gig plan for a better price". Of course he says he'll have to put me on hold while he works things out.

This time back, after confirming the address for the Wi-Fi Hub Modem shipment, he says he'll have to transfer me to Technical Support to enable the recording functionality. I advised I'm an hour away by car from her location. He said if he moves to the 1 Gig plan that'll change the Service Agreement. I said my Mom really doesn't need 1 Gig up & down, but if that allows him to get the agreed to price to $125+Taxes per month with the right gear, I'm fine with that. Now I'm put on Hold again (1 hour & 10 minutes on this call already).

At 1 hour & 20 minutes Eric transferred me to Technical Support Rep (TSR) "Anwell". He said it's not a technical issue but rather an account issue. He said they need to charge me an additional $10 /per month per Set Top Box ($30 more!) to enable this function. I disagreed, and said pricing has already agreed to $125+Taxes per month with all the right gear functioning -including the ability to record - just as it did before. He started to explain to me the difference between the cloud based recording and the old way she was doing it -but I had to cut him off and try to get him to stay on task to enable the recording function on the new set top boxes. He then said he'd transfer me back to the Accounts Team to get that sorted. I asked to be transferred back to Eric so I wouldn't have to start all over. He said he's transferring me back to that team. Now 1 hour & 43 minutes and counting....

While waiting I went into my Mom's account and there was a new Service Agreement posted with a Total Monthly Promotional Price (when all promotions effective) of $125.17. I noticed he did bump up the speed to 500 - not quite the 1 Gig he was talking about, but it'll do. So it appears Eric did that part. Hopefully the right Modem will ship.

At about 1 hour & 48 minutes the 14th & latest CSR "Tee" comes on the line. (I asked if she was a Loyalty Manager and she said she was a CSR). I explain the situation and ask her to correct the Account setting to enable recording on the boxes, and said I'm not will to increase the costs above the recently posted Service Agreement Eric posted. She advised she'll put me on hold and go see what she can do. At 1 hour & 52 minutes the line went dead.

Grrrrr....

 

I went off to have a shower and grab a quick bite after getting cut off. My Mom called to advise Tee (in the Philippines) had left a message on her Home Phone apologizing for cutting me off, and said if I still had any issues to call back. Of course she knows I'll never reconnect with her.

But I don't give up so again I initialize a call back from Telus. "Sergio" in Guatemala - CSR #15 calls me. I quickly explain the situation, and say I really only want him to do one thing - enable recording on the boxes. I also advise I've been on hold too much, so please don't put me on hold, just call me back. He takes my phone number. At 4+minutes into the call he puts me on hold.

At 11 minutes he comes back and said it's done. I review that and have him confirm no other changes have been made including the Service Agreement. The call was over at 12 minutes.

By now I'm jaded, so I'll wait until I see the results.

 

Recording is only available with certain package with the android boxes. That’s why I’m staying with the superior 4K boxes.

 

As I'm not interested in checking the older generations of Telus TV Systems, their current Telus TV Digital Box is 4K capable (not that my Mom has a 4K TV). I've read that it required a minimum 50 Mbps Internet Plan in the past iterations. I suspect Telus may not offer that slow a connection anymore in most areas.

At the bottom of the page I linked above, under the usually hidden "View Terms and Conditions" button it says:

1. Google Assistant is a trademark of Google LLC
2. Available only with select Optik TV packaging. Requires an active Google account and compatible Android TV enabled TELUS TV digital set top box.
3. You can pause and rewind just like live TV, but there are some channel provider restrictions on fast-forward and skip ahead. Record is disabled for all restarted programs. For a full list of channels that support the Restart feature visit Optik TV Restart channels list
4. Requires recording plan. A recording plan is included with 2 Theme Packs + 1 Premium, 4 Theme Packs + 1 Premium, 7 Theme Packs + 1 Premium and 11 Theme Packs + 2 Premiums plans. For Basics, Core and Core + 1 Premium plans, recording can be added for regular pricing, currently $10/mo and subject to change without notice. Recordings are available to watch on your TELUS TV Digital Box or on the TELUS TV+ app on compatible devices. Recordings are only available to watch in Canada. If streaming recordings on a mobile network, regular data charges apply.
5. For multi-year term contracts, rental of one (1) box is included at no additional cost. Any additional box rentals are $10.00 each per month.
6. 4K HDR compatible television required to watch 4K HDR content. TELUS TV Digital Box and Internet 50 or above required to watch 4K HDR on Optik. Subscription to corresponding channels required; not available with all channels. Minimum system requirements apply. Final eligibility for the services will be determined by a TELUS representative.
7. Powered by Google Assistant

Today is the first time I've seen the conditions outlined in #4 - about a Recording Plan. None of the 18 Telus contacts mentioned this in any of my too numerous Calls and Chats.

I quickly walked my Mom though how to record on one of these Telus TV Digital Boxes last night. She did a couple shows at random, and today she said it worked perfectly.

So now I'm just going to have to wait the 3-5 Business Days for the Modem to arrive at her Condo.

I'll keep my fingers crossed that the project finally gets completed this week.

 

So, I wonder with the new Android box and the "terms and conditions", such as " there are some channel provider restrictions on fast-forward and skip ahead. " Does that mean that one cannot skip ahead through commercials?

What does "Record is disabled for all restarted programs " actually mean? What is a restarted program?

Additionally, is there a 'buffer ahead' feature? ie: am watching in real time and can choose to jump back and/or hit record?

As an FYI: I am currently on Shaw Direct or whatever it is now called, where, with my PVR, I don't seem to have the restrictions noted above.

Appreciate any update.

 

New Digital TV Box & Cloud PVR - Optik TV Hardware | TELUS

Watch and record TV with the TELUS TV digital box. Get access to 1000+ apps, cloud recording, voice control, and universal search. Optik TV has evolved.

www.telus.com

skifan the footnotes refer to specific features in the link above. The Restart feature on Optik TV allows you to watch programs already in progress or previously aired from the very beginning, even if you forget to set up your PVR. Optik TV subscribers will be able to use the Restart feature on select programs that aired up to 30 hours ago.

Shaw Direct doesn't have the Restart feature.

You can record programs and skip commercials with Optik TV.

 

You can record programs and skip commercials with Optik TV.

Thank you Dr.Dave for the link and clarification of what they mean by a restarted program.

As a follow up though, on the terms and conditions for "there are some channel provider restrictions on fast-forward and skip ahead ". Do you have any insight on what those restrictions might be? I am concerned that providers can now (or in the future) opt out of fast forward or skip ahead which would necessitate watching unwanted content such as commercials.

Edit by Dr.Dave: fixed quote syntax.

 

As a follow up though, on the terms and conditions for "there are some channel provider restrictions on fast-forward and skip ahead ". Do you have any insight on what those restrictions might be? I am concerned that providers can now (or in the future) opt out of fast forward or skip ahead which would necessitate watching unwanted content such as commercials.

If you look at the link I provided, footnote 3 applies specifically to the restart feature.

"You can even restart a show that’s already started.3"

There's also a link there that explains the restart feature in detail.

Bell introduced the restart feature almost 10 years ago and Telus not too long after. I believe it works by recording the channel at the head-end. This would be a copyright violation, so Telus or Bell has to get permission from the copyright holder of each program on the channel. The channel grants permission with the the restriction that you can't fast-forward or skip ahead. Some channels don't impose a restriction.

Consumers have the right to record a program for their own personal use, That was officially included in the last major update to the copyright act several years ago.

 

IMHO, this note advises that these restrictions only apply to those channels with the Restart feature. They are not talking about channels that you record on your own.

I hope this is helpful.