So, can this box convert analog cable to HD? I recently cut the chord and now on basic cable only (not even HD). So, can I take the cable coming out of my wall (provided by my cable co), hook it up to tivo and have tivo connected to my TV via HDMI and expect to see HD picture?

Also, I It's a trap to subscribe monthly. Can I still accomplish what I explained without subscription? Appreciate your responses. Thanks

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

sorry--are you numerically challenged?

thefrozentin wrote:So, can this box convert analog cable to HD? I recently cut the chord and now on basic cable only (not even HD). So, can I take the cable coming out of my wall (provided by my cable co), hook it up to tivo and have tivo connected to my TV via HDMI and expect to see HD picture?

Also, I It's a trap to subscribe monthly. Can I still accomplish what I explained without subscription? Appreciate your responses. Thanks

No it will not upconvert the signal.

bryaninphx wrote:This is BS the Cable DVR is not a "mini-computer which downloads" anything. All programming is streamed mostly in MPEG2 and has nothing to do with "memory" The Cable DVR is a 2-way capable device and the TiVo is a one-way device UDCP to be exact.

As others have pointed out Comcast Xfinity OnDemand is now live on TiVo in SF CA, and soon nationwide.

I got my info directly from Time Warner so if you disagree, take issue with them, not me. It's what I was told when I researched getting Tivo. While data is streamed, there is memory in the box to hold enough video to manipulate, i.e. rewind and fast forward, and I'm not just talking about a buffer.

And you need to read carefully, no one was talking about "cable DVR." We were discussing digital cable boxes. You don't need a cable DVR to use OnDemand services. Finally, what's happening San Francisco has no bearing on someone who lives elsewhere and wants to know if s/he can have OnDemand now.

I like the fact that they've dropped the subscription price from $20 to $15/mo. since I first subscribed on my similar (if not identical) unit over a year ago, but the TiVo site implies that I can't drop my existing monthly payment on my current subscription. Stinkheads! So, I bought one here from Woot. I'll put it in my dog's name, using some other payment plan...fair trade milkbones, perhaps.

I use my current TiVo Premiere to record antenna HD programming, and the equipment and service are very good. Their billing policy accountants, however, need to be fired...by the other accountants.

ILGal wrote:I have Verizon for my cable company. They say this about cable cards:

"Using a CableCARD device instead of a Comcast digital converter means you will only be able to receive one-way digital cable channels and not be able to receive On Demand, pay-per-view, or the interactive programming guide."

So if I replace my Verizon DVR with this TiVo and a cable card, I'll lose the channel guide? (Maybe the interactive programming guide is different than the list of what is currently on each channel?)

Yes, you will lose the Verizon channel guide but the Tivo uses its own channel guide which is better than most cable company's channel guides.

As to an earlier question about two Tivos and one subscription, each Tivo requires a separate subscription. Currently, Tivo offers lifetime subscriptions for $499. If you already have at least one Tivo, then you can get a multi service discount on the lifetime service for $399. Tivo sometimes offers coupon codes that drop the lifetime subscription to $399 for those without multiple Tivos (a current one is PLSR). They can usually be found on the internet. I had two series 2 Tivos that both lasted about 7 years before the hard drives failed so the lifetime service is almost always a much better deal than the monthly rate. It will pay for itself in about two years. After that, your only cost, if any will be for the cable card. My cable company, Insight, offers one cable card for free and the second one I have is $1.99 per month.

One thing that has been mentioned but needs to be made clear is that the Tivo will need to be connected to your network. It will need to be done with an ethernet cable or a wireless adapter. The thing to know about the wireless adapters is that the new Tivos will ONLY work with a Tivo brand wireless adapter. They make a wireless N and wireless G adapter. Tivo sells them on their website but they both are about 25 dollars cheaper if you get them from someplace other than Tivo such as Amazon. If you plan on buying this and using it on a wireless network, you should go ahead and order the adapter as soon as possible so that you have it when you get your Tivo. If you opt for the N adapter, it works a little differently than the G adapter and is a little more difficult to set up. Make sure you read the directions. If your router doesn't support WPS, then the N adapter will have to be connected to a computer to be setup. My router supports WPS but I couldn't get it to work so I had to connect it to the computer.

I've had Tivo service for a long time and am a huge fan. If you can live with the disadvantage of not having on demand from the cable card, then I would highly recommend it.

So, I can't just buy this and hook it up between my TV and DirecTV cable and go? I have to pay for some additional subscription?

That seems like a waste.

dapfel wrote:I like the fact that they've dropped the subscription price from $20 to $15/mo. since I first subscribed on my similar (if not identical) unit over a year ago, but the TiVo site implies that I can't drop my existing monthly payment on my current subscription. Stinkheads! So, I bought one here from Woot. I'll put it in my dog's name, using some other payment plan...fair trade milkbones, perhaps.

I use my current TiVo Premiere to record antenna HD programming, and the equipment and service are very good. Their billing policy accountants, however, need to be fired...by the other accountants.

If you bought one of the free ones from Tivo you would have paid 14.99 since they have multi tivo discounts so you kind of wasted $50.

vibes4me wrote:So, I can't just buy this and hook it up between my TV and DirecTV cable and go? I have to pay for some additional subscription?

That seems like a waste.

It would be a waste for you because DirecTV has some of the best DVRs out there (unless your DVR is older than 3 years). BTW you can't use this with DirecTV you need a special one from Tivo.

Check out Mohu [url=]http://www.gomohu.com/ ; they make the best Indoor Antennas on the market and they are very reasonably priced. For an outdoor antenna with the range you need, look at [url=]http://hdtv-antenna-review.toptenreviews.com/channel-master-cm-3020-review.html

Tivo is so much better than any cable or satellite company DVR. I cannot wait to have a Tivo again! Just ordered one....woot!

vibes4me wrote:So, I can't just buy this and hook it up between my TV and DirecTV cable and go? I have to pay for some additional subscription?

That seems like a waste.

No. And, yes. I agree.

doc362 wrote:You can get Hulu AND NetFlix for a dollar more per month.
[...]
Cable and satellite are becoming obsolete FAST. Continuing to support it only prevents actual progress in digital media distribution. I refuse to pay for channels I'll never use.

Obsolete? I watch a lot of PBS, news and documentaries. For example, I watch most of the political discussion shows every Sunday morning, i.e. Meet the Press, The MacLaughlin Group, etc. I also watch a lot of CNN and PBS programming like Great Performances, not to mention local public affair shows. So how do Netflix and Hulu benefit someone like me, who actually prefers the dynamic nature of LIVE and current events?

The simplest solution is to network the Tivo with a PC. I have 3TB of external storage connected to my PC. Am able to stream any of 300 movies or 2,000 TV shows back to the Tivo. Oh the Tivo ToGo software makes it "grandma easy" to transfer a show from Tivo to PC and also convert it to play on an iPad.

One could also ad ext. SATA HDD to the Tivo itself. While easy to do it doesn't offer the "unlimited" expansion with networking the Tivo

jseureau wrote:45 Hours is kinda small if you ask me!

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.

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.

I just finished a chat with Tivo CSR and was told that the cheaper rate for Antenna Only service no longer exists, so you will still pay the $14+/mo

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

You're paying $5 more/month for service here. Buying the box pays back in the first year.

This TiVo, as has been already mentioned, is not compatible with DirecTV.

What jlg says...

I'm with Time Warner in an area of LA that was formerly Adelphia. They never upgraded the teletext-like guides and menus and they have the most Neanderthal DVRs ever manufactured. Last month I bought two of these and never looked back.

I replaced the drive in one with 2TB and since they're networked, I have access to it with the one that still has the 45 hour drive.

They're perfect. The TiVo service is cheaper than renting DVRs from TW. The menuing is much more elegant. And while it's true I no longer have access to TW's On Demand, I don't miss it at all. If there's something I really need to see, I'll use Amazon, Hulu or Netflix which is built into TiVo.

If you're on the fence, get off and get one of these. TiVo's become MUCH more sophisticated over the past few years.

If you're thinking about doing the hard drive upgrade by the way, you'll need to wait until you activate service and update the firmware that comes with this unit. But once you do, you'll be a very happy camper.

By the way (again), has anyone tried ordering equipment from TiVo.com? When I was starting to price the DVRs, I noticed they tried to charge DOUBLE the CA tax rate, close to 20%. I called and asked why, and all they could explain was that CA has a high tax rate. Huh? So I ended up buying 'em on Amazon.

I would love to be wrong in this case. But check it out: TiVo has a labyrinthine subscription price depending on when you activated your unit; mine was over a year ago, in the midst of the $20/mo. time frame. It's not like they take you automatically down to their lowest current pricing, is it.

http://www.tivo.com/abouttivo/policies/tivoservicepaymentplanstermsandconditions.html

Zapp Brannigan wrote:...waste of $50...

I would love to be wrong in this case. But check it out: TiVo has a labyrinthine subscription price depending on when you activated your unit; mine was over a year ago, in the midst of the $20/mo. time frame. It's not like they take you automatically down to their lowest current pricing, is it.

http://www.tivo.com/abouttivo/policies/tivoservicepaymentplanstermsandconditions.html

I own two Tivo DVR's and live in California with Xfinity and you CANNOT get on-demand with the Tivo's. You would still have to have a cable box to get the on-demand stuff. I found that the Tivo and the cable box do not work well together so I opted for the cable card in my Tivo and have had no issues. I never really used the 'on demand' anyway so it was no biggie for me.

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE my Tivo's I have the HD one and the new premier. I have owned Tivo's for 7 years and as long as they keep producing a good product I wouldn't change. They only thing that would cause me concern is if Tivo raises their monthly subscription prices. Right now they are still lower than the cable DVR. I think the best deal is to purchase the "lifetime" subscription to Tivo, if you think your going to use it for awhile. I have yet to have a Tivo go bad on me, I get a new one about every 3-5 years just for the new features. Then I use the second older one for my second TV. Right now I can record 4 shows at once on two Tivo's. It's come in handy at times.

Tivo also let's you save your recordings to your PC for watching later or just to save a show you like.

Oh and if you don't have or don't want wireless and you don't want to run a long Cat5 cable you can purchase wired network over power. I purchased these through Ebay for my roku player and they work great. Just plug one into a power outlet near your router and plug the other into a power outlet near your Tivo (or other device) and instant network! Not quite as fast as true wired network but I have had no issues with it. Check on ebay for these devices. I got a good deal there.

cma0651 wrote:Can I get this and not use the TiVo part? I want it for the streaming Netflix and amazon

If you don't need DVR functionality, you have two other choices that will definitely work:

1) Get a network-capable Blu-Ray player. Most will stream Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, etc. And you'll be able to play BluRays and DVDs. You'll also save energy since this can be turned off when not used, unlike Tivo which is on 24/7. Many refurbished units can be found for as little as $50. Woot has sold some in the past.

2) Get a streaming media player such as Roku. They're much smaller than this Tivo and uses less energy when in use. You save even more energy because Tivo is on 24/7 while you turn off the media player when not in use. Many media players will also allow you to play videos off SD cards, USB memory and your networked computer. YOu an find these players for as little as $40.

dapfel wrote:I would love to be wrong in this case. But check it out: TiVo has a labyrinthine subscription price depending on when you activated your unit; mine was over a year ago, in the midst of the $20/mo. time frame. It's not like they take you automatically down to their lowest current pricing, is it.

http://www.tivo.com/abouttivo/policies/tivoservicepaymentplanstermsandconditions.html

I have 2 Tivo's one I got free with a 2 year subscription at 19.99 a month. Last year in August I got another Refurbished for free and when I activated that Tivo it's price is $14.99 . they have multi service discount if you buy it from Tivo, if you buy it here at Woot or Amazon or anywhere else it doesn't count. Trust me I've done this before and in the same boat as you since my contract is not up on the original until November I can't change that one down to 14.99 yet.

Can you use this thing with FIOS?

I just called my local TWC company and was told that the cable card fee is $2 per month extra. I asked if I could use my current HD-dvr box and also use the Tivo on another TV at the same time? He said I could do that. Does anyone know if he is correct? His foreign language skills were poor, which made me question if he knows what he's taking about?

If I retain my current dvr cable box, then I can still have instant replay and VOD. Basically I'm looking for expanded recording capability, since I seem to fill up the dvr faster than I can watch the recorded shows.

Can anyone tell how to record the dvr recordings from the cable box to a CD disc?

queenangelfish wrote:I just called my local TWC company and was told that the cable card fee is $2 per month extra. I asked if I could use my current HD-dvr box and also use the Tivo on another TV at the same time? He said I could do that. Does anyone know if he is correct? His foreign language skills were poor, which made me question if he knows what he's taking about?

If I retain my current dvr cable box, then I can still have instant replay and VOD. Basically I'm looking for expanded recording capability, since I seem to fill up the dvr faster than I can watch the recorded shows.

Can anyone tell how to record the dvr recordings from the cable box to a CD disc?

Yes you can use your Cable company's box and the Tivo at the same time. With the Tivo you have to install their software to transfer the shows to your computer.

One more thing about TiVo: I own one and like it but it is an energy hog. My electricity bill has increased and not dropped down since I put it in. It is in an enclosed base with glass doors, and in a room in which sun comes in.

If it is warm or hot in the room, the unit does not work and the temp inside the base is very high. The TiVo pumps out a lot of heat, and it seems to run all the time. I know it is a hard drive and has to stay cool, but one would think the TiVo designers would figure these sorts of devices are often kept in small enclosed areas or shelves and made allowances in design.

I have to cool the room down and aim a fan at the unit to be able to use it on hot days.

So I have FIOS, two standard set-top boxes, and the cheapo. $10 a month for the two, and $4 for the cheapo. If I get a cablecard, that will cost me $4.
So I drop one of the set-top boxes, get this instead, and get a cable card. So instead of paying $10 to get FIOS on one of my TVs, I'm spending $4 plus the cost of the TIVO subscription ($15?).
Here's my question. These are standard set-top boxes. I have the HD Extreme service, but up until this past month, I didn't have an HD TV. Now I do.
What I'm reading says that with the cable card, $4 a month, and the TIVO subscription, I will get HD channels? Yes?

If I had cable/FIOS service, I would TOTALLY buy this, especially for the price. Alas, I receive satellite service, and they don't support this or the use of cable cards. Le sigh. My SD TiVo lasted 10 years, and coulda gone another if I'd replaced the hard drive and still had an SD TV.

tigerxchaos wrote:What on Earth kind of logic is this?
Yeah, you can avoid a car payment by buying your car outright. BUT YOU'RE STILL PAYING THE MONEY.
Remember that the lifetime subscription can't be transferred to a new box. Once you get rid of this one for the latest and greatest in a couple of years, you're hit with that expense all over again.

I like the idea of TiVo, but they can go straight to hell with that subscription BS.

This is statistically untrue. A Lifetime plan pays for itself within 3 years (36 months x $14.99 = $539.64) and most Tivo DVRs outlive this by many years. For example, I just bought a Series 2 Tivo off ebay that is about 7 years old (calculated from the date of manufacture). Based on the programs that was left on the hard drive by its previous owner, the thing was in use until it was sold to me. I also have a Pioneer 810HS, a Tivo/DVD recorder hybrid. The hard drive lasted 6 years. And after it failed, I just replaced the drive and it's now functioning fine again -- while retaining the original Lifetime subscription. Unless you expect Tivo to go out of business in 3 years, a Lifetime subscription is still the best deal.

You also seem to misunderstand the concept of reselling. Since a Lifetime subscription (on a single device) is transferable from owner to owner, used Tivos with a Lifetime subscription are in high demand. HD Tivos sell for about $330 on ebay and bidding is usually fierce. Most non-collectibles -- especially electronics -- go down in price with time. That's certainly true of Tivo and other DVRs. HOWEVER, the opposite is true of a Lifetime Tivo subscription. As subscription prices rise, Lifetime plans actually increase in value over time (albeit somewhat offset by the fact that the Tivo unit itself is more likely to die as it ages). In other words, a Tivo with Lifetime subscription is very resellable.

Here are some very rough calculations. If you buy this and a lifetime subscription, you'd shell out $550. At $14.99/month, the lifetime plan will play for itself in about 3 years (36 months x $14.99 = $539.64). You can then sell it on eBay for the $330, assuming the current selling prices. You just made a $330 profit! No one is expecting Tivo to go out of business in 3 years, and most units will last beyond that. Furthermore, I see no technology -- including streaming services like Netflix -- that will significantly impact Tivo within the next 3 years. I think it's a safe investment.

dapfel wrote:I would love to be wrong in this case. But check it out: TiVo has a labyrinthine subscription price depending on when you activated your unit; mine was over a year ago, in the midst of the $20/mo. time frame. It's not like they take you automatically down to their lowest current pricing, is it.

FWIW, Right now under “My TiVo / My Account” there is a “Change Future Plan” function that’s showing the below options, so that at the end of my current plan’s 1 year commitment (ending Dec 2012) it will renew at:

$19.99 Monthly service with no commitment
$14.99 Monthly service with 1 yr commitment
$499.99 Product Lifetime service

You can't beat Tivo for the 'experience' or the features. I've been using them for 8 years or so. I've had four, and I only had one die due to a power supply failure (multiple power brownouts, not the Tivo's fault). Keep in mind that unless you want to plug in to an ethernet cable, you will have to get a wireless adapter. Dialup is not recommended. Tivo sells their own good quality USB adapters. If you use a USB adapter, you must use a Tivo one - they detect and enable only their own ID's. Or you can use any wireless bridge that plugs into the ethernet port like the N speed bridges.

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. I do. As long as the TiVo box has an ATSC tuner, like this one, you can get digital broadcasts. To get Netflix etc., you'll need a TiVo Wi-Fi antenna, which is about $50 on Amazon.

Spiky wrote: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.

There's MOXI.

Spiky wrote: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.

How exactly does it reduce your cable bill by $85? TIVO charges $14.96 a month, not $10.00. I pay $8 for my DirecTV DVR. Unless you mean you went to OTA only. That's no comparison at all. If I can't get FX, AMC, or the History Channel I might as well give my TV to charity.

rcbarnes wrote:I've owned both the series2 and the series3/HD TiVo lines and frankly, they have made no meaningful improvements except adding half-finished HD support in the better part of a decade. If the simplicity of operation is paramount, then TiVo is still the easiest for the grandparent set. Besides that, it's pretty disappointing, making a mess of most modern cable providers.

Many channels will have significant errors in their reported listings that require careful review several times a week lest important shows be skipped or some rerun marathon get taped as "new" and push out other content.

If you have switched cable (ESPECIALLY Time Warner), expect to miss at least 5% of your shows because the tuner fails to catch (I've logged no fewer than two dozen house-calls trying to keep that fragile setup working). If you lose power for even a second, depending on how many channels you get you
may wait up to an hour for the reboot and re-init.

Right on brother! I have been a Tivo devotee (tivotee I guess) for 8 or 9 years but feel that TiVo hasn't been innovative in a great while. I miss the $7 a month subscriptions and bulletproof hardware of yore!


The menus and controls are much too large for HD screens, so you can't see 4-number channel numbers or 4-letter station IDs in most lists. Even worse, cable companies like TWC illegally set the do not transfer/do not stream bit on entire channels so you can't view any recordings elsewhere on your network (these restrictions were only supposed to apply to PayPerView).

In short, TiVo deals terribly with almost any modern cable subscription, and thanks to their locked-down hardware competent programmers (like me) can't fix any of the issues, stripping the device of the community improvements that drive other Linux devices like Android phones.

It's an incredible shame that the other DVR providers manage to make even worse products because TiVo was once innovative and polished. but no competition means no motivation to do anything but sit back and collect user's mandatory monthly fees.

superboiler wrote:No Amazon Prime Videos?

Unfortunately no... they don't support prime instant video. It's an issue for sure.

kreegah wrote:If I had cable/FIOS service, I would TOTALLY buy this, especially for the price. Alas, I receive satellite service, and they don't support this or the use of cable cards. Le sigh. My SD TiVo lasted 10 years, and coulda gone another if I'd replaced the hard drive and still had an SD TV.

I have Comcast in De. & pay a total of 85.00 a mounth total.Free dvr 250hrs.Hd phone & internet. I have HBO Starz Encore & ppv.

I just got one. Until I read this discussion, I had no idea that Tivo worked over broadcast antenna. I've been thinking of cutting the cable cord for some time. It sounds like a Tivo subscription and an antenna will do the job. There aren't a lot of cable shows I can't bear to miss--and I figure it's probably better to buy a season pass for those few shows anyway.