Does anyone have a TiVo?

madmatt

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I don't have a TiVo, but we do have a Dish Network subscription, which included a 100-hour DVR unit.

I find the DVR indispensable now, especially since I don't have a TV in my room while I'm at university. I've set up the DVR so that it records all the TV shows that I want to watch during the week, and I watch all of them when I go back home on weekends. Being able to skip through all the ads is also a nice added bonus. :)

I haven't really looked into what benefits and additional features a TiVo offers over one of these, but I'm more than satisfied with the DVR unit we have. 100 hours is easily more than what I need, the channel guide and DVR UI is pretty intuitive, and there are a number of nice features, like the ability to automatically skip recording a particular episode if it's a re-run, for example.
 
We have had a Series 2 40 hour Tivo at our house now for two years I believe. Once you get one, you will not ever go back to to the days of VCR's and downloading TV shows.

That first link you posted looks like a great deal, the dual tuner will make life a lot easier. However they do now have a series 3 DVR that supports HD and other features. That might be something you are interested in, however it is rather expensive.

Tivo recently introduced a new price plan, you no long actually purchase a dvr outright. Instead you get it for free for the base model, or you pay a one time fee for the higher models (in your case $70) And to pay for the rest of the cost of the unit your monthly fee goes up slightly.

If you have any other questions I can happily try to find more info out for you. My brother has been working at Tivo for the last year, so I can try to get you more technical info if you like.
 
with the way that cable and dish operators are I find no use for a tivo. You can just add a dvr for like 5 dollars or 10 dollars (if you want the HD variant) a month to your cable bill (with comcast at least) and get one that you don't have to buy or pay a higher monthly bill. my 2 cents
 
NR, my parents have DISH and it works really well. Since I now have Business Class cable for my business and basic cable to go along with that I have decided to purchase a TiVo like device to make my life fun again. Aprox is right, once you've tasted DVR you will never go back to VCR.

Aprox, I don't need the HD model yet. However, do you know if the subscription can be transfered to a new device if I buy a new device in a year (or so)?

Tuffgong4, I don't have digital cable and I really don't need it. I only have basic cable and will likely stick with it for a while ($100 for Business Class Internet and another $50 for cable TV is enough for me).

Thanks for the information thus far.
 
Aprox, with the device I am looking at... If I am recording one show can I watch a completely different show? I would assume I can because I can record two shows at once. Please clarify for me. Thank you.
 
Aprox, with the device I am looking at... If I am recording one show can I watch a completely different show? I would assume I can because I can record two shows at once. Please clarify for me. Thank you.

Yes you can, thats the beauty of the dual tuner model. You can record and watch another program or just record two at once.

As far as transferring to another device, I will need to get back to you on that for a solid answer. Unfortunately at the moment my brother is unavailable, he is in Ireland on a business trip. If he gets online I will try my best to get that info for you. Otherwise he will be back by next weekend, so I can get an answer then.

In my own personal speculation I would imagine you would be able to transfer to a new DVR with no problem. You might need to call Tivo or do something on their website however. Since each DVR has a unique access code that is attached to your account. You are limited to one DVR per account, unless you pay for two or more Tivo Subscriptions. You do get a slight discount when signing up for more than one.

I'm not very familiar with the Dish DVR service, but it sounds like it might be a better deal. Im not sure on the quality and service though. Plus Tivo has that awesome budeep sound. :)
 
no tivo here, but a digital tv tuner card that captures anything i tell it to. receives a 7-day guide and automatically records shows i regularly watch, and some that don't have reliable scedules are automatically added too. i haven't seen a TV ad in ages :D
 
Aprox, thanks again. I think you made up my mind already.
 
Not a problem, I hope you enjoy it! :) I will still try to get you that info regarding service transfer.
 
Not Tivo, but we have got sky+. (Satellite decoder with hard disk)
 
Eventhough I'm always weeks behind, I'd be lost without my DVR!

Also love the ability to rewind live TV
 
I am back with another TiVo question... for those of you who have it.

I looked through the manual, skimmed more like...

Do you leave the TiVo on all the time? The remote has a power button for the TV but I can't find a way to turn the TiVo off. Is it designed to stay on 24/7/365?

Thank you.
 
It should be designed to stay on.
It wouldn't be able to record scheduled shows while it's off, which would defeat one of the main purposes of having a DVR, right? :D
 
Perhaps they should have a stand by mode so you aren't using so much power all the time. Then when a show comes on it automatically powers on.
 
My current Dish DVR can be turned off (at the very least there IS a power button and the status lights go off on the front).

Just curious.
 
Do you leave the TiVo on all the time? The remote has a power button for the TV but I can't find a way to turn the TiVo off. Is it designed to stay on 24/7/365?

Leave on all the time, I believe. We moved ours (got Comcast's whatever it's called) and put TIVO in husband's office. I just ran in and asked him for you...and he looked at power button and said yes, it's not for TIVO.
 
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