Do you know that you can increase the capacity of Dish Network’s ViP612 DVR by utilizing its USB hard drive feature? A USB 2.0 port is located at the back of many Dish Network receivers. When enabled, you can store and watch recorded programs on a separate external hard drive rather than on its internal storage which increases the DVR capacity by a few more hours. You can actually enjoy more shows from your Satellite TV package. Other Dish receiver models that support this feature include the ViP622, ViP722 and the ViP722k HD receivers.

Here’s how.

• Check if your DVR support the USB feature. You can do this online through Dish Network’s website.
• Try to invest in a USB external hard drive with a capacity of at least 250 GB, the more the better. Make sure that your hard drive has its own power supply and is USB 2.0 compliant.
• Connect the power supply of your USB external hard drive near to your Dish receiver. Then connect it to the USB port at the back of your Dish receiver using a USB 2.0 cable.
• Activate the USB service by calling Dish Network. Note that there is a one-time fee for the activation.
• Follow the instructions onscreen to reformat your external hard drive. Restart your receiver when prompted. Also note that after Dish Network reformats the external hard drive, you won’t be using it for anything besides as an extension space for the DVR.
• Press the Menu button of your remote and select Multimedia, USB Storage and then Manage Device to view the programs that is currently stored in your DVR. Choose Send to Device to move all of your recorded programs to your external hard drive. Select USB Storage again to play, delete or restore the DVR programs in your receiver's internal drive.