Just one note about DVRs - the software in the cable company DVRs is markedly inferior to the 2 industry leaders, Tivo and ReplayTV. I would HIGHLY encourage getting one of these 2 rather than the cable company DVRs. Unfortunately, the differences are hard to quantify - let's just say that the user interface is much, MUCH better with Tivo and ReplayTV, being much more polished. But I can understand the price argument as well ...
Masaki