CABLE
If your cable company offers HDTV channels (most do), ask it to swap out your current box for a dual-tuner high-def model with a 120- to 160-GB hard drive that can hold up to 20 hours of high-def or 90 hours of regular programming. While it’s up to the cable company to decide what model you actually get, it’s likely to be either the Motorola DCT6412 (offered by Comcast, RCN, and others) or the Scientific-Atlanta Explorer 8300HD (from Time Warner and others). Your cable service will charge $8 to $10 a month, in addition to your programming subscription, to lease a box.