Verizon does not charge extra for HD programming and there are no additional DVR fees, etc...just rent an HD receiver or HD DVR.
I also have a 500GB Sony HD DVR (it comes with free TV Guide On Screen which receive programming guide using an over-the-air antenna) and pay $3.99 per month to lease a Cablecard - it works great! The TiVo HD also works well, but it was actually more expensive than the Verizon HD DVR (purchase price, subscription fee, Cablecard fees, etc.)
The local Verizon FiOS quality control just called me a short while ago because they noticed I had placed an exceptionally high number of calls into the Call Center. I explained that the billing issues were squared-away a few weeks ago, but I voiced my displeasure with the Motorola DVR and the fact it doesn't support external storage where as all the major DBS and Cable providers do. Although she is not a tech, she told me new products and services would be coming out after Verizon updated their network to all digital and rolled over 100 HD channels. She will follow up with a better answer after contacting her manager and tech support.
Oh, and she was articulate, had the requisite "softskills" needed by anyone in customer services, and she actually made me feel like a valued customer.

Although I rarely had a problems with Dish Network (lost signal for a few minutes during really bad storms a handful of times each year), our Comcast broadband (and subsequently our VOIP service) hickuped every month or so whereas FiOS phone, broadband had been 100% reliable 24/7 - the darn thing just plain works.