Wootalyzer's Pricing Post! - The price of today's woot item is saved here for future reference
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TiVo Premiere DVR - 45 Hour HD
$44.99 + $5 Shipping
Condition: Refurbished

*DISCLAIMER* Wootalyzer! is in no way affiliated with Woot!, and this post may not always be here!

45 HOURS?! That's not enough to get me through a weekend! What do you expect me to do, Woot? Go outside? Like a hobo?!

Let's say I don't have cable. Can I still use this to DVR network television (of course paying the Tivo subscription charge)? And play Netflix/Hulu Plus/Amazon on Demand on my TV?

Thanks!

Got one, love it, much prefer it to the cable company issued DVR's.

novastarj wrote:Let's say I don't have cable. Can I still use this to DVR network television (of course paying the Tivo subscription charge)? And play Netflix/Hulu Plus/Amazon on Demand on my TV?

Thanks!

Yes. You hook it up to a TV antenna.

Can this do video game recording? : O

How much can this really save you vs. using a direct tv or xfinity provided dvr?

JenDupre wrote:Got one, love it, much prefer it to the cable company issued DVR's.

Agreed. I have two TiVos and there's no comparison with the cable co's DVR. I do suggest undying the extended warranty on these. I went through 3 refurbs before TiVo gave up & sent me a new one...

45 Hours is kinda small if you ask me!

kjrehberg wrote:Yes. You hook it up to a TV antenna.

Awesome, exactly what I wanted to hear. For some reason I had this idea that you needed a cable card to use this. Good to know it's only required if you're using it with cable.

Another question... are there any comparable digital video recorders out there I can use with network TV that don't require a subscription? Always painful to add another subscription on top of everything else.

I really, really want this, just trying to figure out my options before paying the money and putting myself on the hook for the monthly cost.

If you search the internet, you will find many people ripping on the Tivo Premiere. I wouldn't worry too much about this, it basically came down to a higher monthly price and slower software than the previous Tivo HD models. Both of those issues have been rectified by now.

Tivo is great.

Tivo is offering the same DVR for free with a 2-year commitment at $19.95/month. Much better deal: http://www3.tivo.com/promo/renewedpremiere_0.html

Couple of things here:

It's 45 Hours of HD recording. The SD stuff is hundreds of hours.

You will absolutely need a Wireless adapter. Unless of course, you're right next to your router.

Great deal for the entry level box. I have a Premiere Elite (4 tuner, 2TB or some insane amount of space) and love it.

Although it may get pricey if you buy lifetime, I think it pays out if you use this box for a little over 2 years (if you're a Tivo customer already).

In fact, since you are made of money, I recommend buying two. Two of these boxes + two lifetime subs = 4 tuners and it may work out around the same price as an Elite..(I didn't do the math)...but you can stream from Tivo to Tivo --

The cool thing about the Premiere is that if you record a show, say on HBOHD on Tivo #1; in the past you would have to download the show onto Tivo #2 before playing it (unless you had a fast network) and ONLY if the broadcast flag wasn't on. If it was on (like on HBOHD) you couldn't do anything with it except watch it on the Tivo it's recorded on.

With 2 Premieres, you can stream real time from one Premiere to another and the broadcast flag is irrevelant. And you can still watch something else on the Tivo that's "serving" the recording to the other one.

The current Netflix interface, in a word, blows (you can't add movies, and only can play movies that are already in your queue) but word is this app will be updated this year.

HuluPlus works like HuluPlus. Amazon on Demand works great --but it does NOT stream Prime (free) videos, which sucks. No word on that one. Unless you have XFINITY in California, I don't think yhou can watch ondemand shows from your Tivo via Comcast.

Anyway, I love Tivo. I'm a fan boy, it beats the crap out of cable's DVR. Yes, there are some big upfront costs if you go lifetime, but you can usually make it up on ebay when you sell it for the next new version.

Hope this helps.

sogj wrote:45 HOURS?! That's not enough to get me through a weekend! What do you expect me to do, Woot? Go outside? Like a hobo?!

Don't go outside! Just use the esata port to add an external hard drive.

denhideous wrote:How much can this really save you vs. using a direct tv or xfinity provided dvr?

It doesn't work with DirectTV/Dish and you really won't save much over cable but will be getting a better dvr...

The $45 is a great price, but the monthly fee kills the deal for me. I would have no problem dropping $300 on a DVR, but I can't stand this $15/month. Comcast wants $18/month where I live for a DVR.

Guess I'll stick with my VCR. It isn't as convenient as a DVR, but you can't beat the price. Just a few cents or a buck a month for electricity.

novastarj wrote:Let's say I don't have cable. Can I still use this to DVR network television (of course paying the Tivo subscription charge)? And play Netflix/Hulu Plus/Amazon on Demand on my TV?

Thanks!

Of note, if you intend to be antenna-only, tell that to Tivo when you sign up. They should have a special $9.99 access charge for people that do NOT use cable.

denhideous wrote:How much can this really save you vs. using a direct tv or xfinity provided dvr?

If you keep the cable, it doesn't save you anything. If you drop the cable, it saves quite a bit. I dropped my $95 DirecTV bill for a $10 Tivo bill. Paid for a new computer with the savings.

nightdesigns wrote:Tivo is offering the same DVR for free with a 2-year commitment at $19.95/month. Much better deal: http://www3.tivo.com/promo/renewedpremiere_0.html

For the record:

$19.95 X 24 = $478.80
$49.99 + ($14.99x 24) = $409.75

So not really a much better deal...

novastarj wrote:
Another question... are there any comparable digital video recorders out there I can use with network TV that don't require a subscription? Always painful to add another subscription on top of everything else.

Yes, an HTPC. But if you don't have a computer you can designate for this, there would be a noticeable startup cost for purchasing one.

Well, they aren't "comparable" to Tivo. Tivo is vastly superior. But they do work.

nightdesigns wrote:Tivo is offering the same DVR for free with a 2-year commitment at $19.95/month. Much better deal: http://www3.tivo.com/promo/renewedpremiere_0.html

That's not a better deal.

The TiVo website deal is $480 over two years, and you're committed.

This deal is $410 over two years, and you're not tied into any contract. Plus even cheaper every month you stay subscribed beyond that.

Sure it's more money up front, but much less overall.

kwbelt1 wrote:Don't go outside! Just use the esata port to add an external hard drive.

Just look arount for "Tivo DVR Expander" and they'll work fine.

How does the premier differ from the series 3?

Thanks

pweiss wrote:How does the premier differ from the series 3?

Thanks

Premiere's have a flash based HD on screen menu. Premier's have a dual core chip that has (finally) been activated to run both cores.

Most of the new apps going forward will only be supported on Premieres -- for example, Rhapsody.

So after I buy this, I'd have to pay more than my cable company charges per month for their dvr, and I'd still have to pay monthly for their cable card. I think I'll pass.

sogj wrote:45 HOURS?! That's not enough to get me through a weekend! What do you expect me to do, Woot? Go outside? Like a hobo?!

That's HD, though. If you're recording standard channels on the lowest quality, it's way higher. I believe this is the TiVo I have (it's the basic Premiere, anyway, purchased in March '11) and I have 130 hours on mine. A combination of Basic and Medium quality.

denhideous wrote:How much can this really save you vs. using a direct tv or xfinity provided dvr?

I am not sure how much it might save, but it's really a different product. Both record programs that you directly tell it to tape, but TiVo will also accept a general category (so you can tell it to tape all gymnastics, and you don't even need to know that there will be gymnastics on TV: TiVo's on top of it!) and will also tape unspecified programs that it thinks you will like (like Pandora for TV). TiVo has a lot of flexibility in its settings (so you can tell it to tape every Daily Show, or only new Daily Shows, and to keep all Daily Shows until you delete them, or to keep Daily Shows only until the space is needed, etc.).

I briefly had a Comcast DVR after 2-5 years of using a TiVo and there was no comparison: TiVo vastly improved my experience with television. I no longer have TV, but if you've only used cable-channel DVRs and not TiVo's smart-DVRing, you're missing out.

IcedCorn wrote:Couple of things here:

It's 45 Hours of HD recording. The SD stuff is hundreds of hours.

You will absolutely need a Wireless adapter. Unless of course, you're right next to your router.
(snip)
The cool thing about the Premiere is that if you record a show, say on HBOHD on Tivo #1; in the past you would have to download the show onto Tivo #2 before playing it (unless you had a fast network) and ONLY if the broadcast flag wasn't on. If it was on (like on HBOHD) you couldn't do anything with it except watch it on the Tivo it's recorded on.
(snip)

So, what kind of wireless setup are you using to get your HBO HD to the Premiere? Because you obviously aren't using a coax cable to get it there, just like you can't get an Ethernet cable there. (/sarcasm)

Folks, Ethernet cables can have a very long range, you don't need the device to be "right next to your router" to use one.

pweiss wrote:How does the premier differ from the series 3?

Thanks

HD interface. Access to things like Hulu, Netflix. $15/month requirement instead of $13. (be glad, Premiere used to be $20 requirement) There may also be a cablecard difference, I'm not 'up' on cablecards.

But they are both Tivo.

IcedCorn wrote:
Great deal for the entry level box. I have a Premiere Elite (4 tuner, 2GB or some insane amount of space) and love it.

Just a bit of info, I'm pretty sure the Elite has a 2TB drive... not 2 GB.

Also, in case you do sway someone to buy the Elite instead.. it only works with Cablecards.. no antenna capability.

Spiky wrote:HD interface. Access to things like Hulu, Netflix. $15/month requirement instead of $13. (be glad, Premiere used to be $20 requirement) There may also be a cablecard difference, I'm not 'up' on cablecards.

But they are both Tivo.

The Series 3 HD has access to Netflix, too.

KyserSoze wrote:So after I buy this, I'd have to pay more than my cable company charges per month for their dvr, and I'd still have to pay monthly for their cable card. I think I'll pass.

Most cable companies give you the first two cable cards free.

If you are getting an HDDVR for less than $14.99 a month, let us know what cable company you have.

My cable company charges $16.95 for an HDDVR box...I get the first two cable cards free and since I bought lifetime I'm good.

Spiky wrote:Of note, if you intend to be antenna-only, tell that to Tivo when you sign up. They should have a special $9.99 access charge for people that do NOT use cable.

I've been antenna only for almost 3 years and didn't know about this. This woot is especially timely because I seriously am 8 days from my subscription running out on my Tivo HD and had been debating what to do. Thank you for making my decision easy woot.

michaelmidwest wrote:Just a bit of info, I'm pretty sure the Elite has a 2TB drive... not 2 GB.

Also, in case you do sway someone to buy the Elite instead.. it only works with Cablecards.. no antenna capability.

LOL. Edited. Thanks. it's 1:20 AM here and I shouldn't be posting. That would be like 40 minutes of HD> LOL

And you are correct on the Elite -- it's cable ONLY.

As you stated, the basic Premiere can do Over The Air

goldfndr wrote:
Folks, Ethernet cables can have a very long range, you don't need the device to be "right next to your router" to use one.

Completely agree. I ran one long ethernet cable between the 2 main electronics areas in my house. Router at one end, network switch at the other. There are so many internet-ready devices in audio/video these days, it's great to have them all wired instead of fighting with wireless settings.

I do have 2 wireless networks in the house, but just for devices that really need it: laptops, phones, etc.

i think i'll stick with my current cable companies HD DVR, it's free with my cable package! subscription fees are bogus

Might get one. You can hack them and put up to a 2TB hard disk in them. (Though some are claiming you can get bigger in them with more hacking).

But still cant beat a PVR

michaelmidwest wrote:The Series 3 HD has access to Netflix, too.

Oops.

We switched from an older model of TiVo to one like this about a year ago.

Please make sure you take a look at all the pricing stuff.

They jacked up our monthly price quite a bit (sounds like most of you are okay with the monthly price though...) and you also need to get a cable card from your cable provider which our cable company charges us more for.

I have my own opinions on the whole ridiculous pricing scheme involved with paying a non-trivial monthly fee to use what amounts to a hard drive, but just look at all the numbers before you dive in.