Tivo or DVR?

[bigmama67]

This is SO weird...it's been days since I've been able to read any posts on the board, but it seems to be letting me make one at least. It keeps saying "Server Busy" whenever I click on something to read...argh!

Anyway, we used to have DVR in our old place (the unit was free and the service was not too much $$). Now that we have finally bought a house (yay!) I was thinking about putting in DVR again but DH is interested in Tivo. If anyone has one or the other and has thoughts about the advantages or disadvantages, I'd love to hear it.

One drawback to TIVO is having to buy the unit...but DH says it can cut out commercials which is awesome! (Of course we have ZERO time to watch TV at the moment, but a girl can dream!)

Thanks.

 

[bonoriffic]

Any DVR can cut out commercials. With Tivo you are paying for the superior interface and extras. Netflix, YouTube, streaming pictures, music, and videos from your computer to Tivo, and the ability to send your recorded shows to your computer/iPod/burn to DVD are the reasons to get Tivo.

Buy the cheaper Tivo as you can expand the hard drive for $70 to basically be unlimited with a simple plug in of an external HD. The new Tivo Premiere is coming next month with keyboard remote, I would wait a month for that.

 

[mickeymaker2003]

TiVo can't "cut out" the commercials, but you can fast forward through them pretty quickly.

We have 3 TiVos (so we like them).

Do you need the HD capability? If not, you may want to look into Toshiba RS-TX20 or RS-TX60. They are not available new anymore, but can be gotten off ebay. They do not require service for basic operation (tell it a time and channel to record and it will do it and it gives you three days in advance of guide data). It also allows you to record your shows to DVD.

If you want HD capability, you can get TiVo HD, Series 3, or there is a new one called Premier that will be coming out soon.

If you want Season Passes (tell it the name of the show you want and it will record it for you--all episodes or just the first runs (you choose)) then you will need to get one that has service. TiVos are fairly durable and the weakest part of them is the hard drive, which can be replaced, so you may want to consider paying up front for lifetime service instead of monthly service. In the long run, it will end up being cheaper and if you decide to sell the unit later, the lifetime service goes with it and the resale value is pretty good.

 

[ktlm]

We love our DVR. We have never had TIVO. One thing to think about is that you have to buy a TIVO unit, so if it breaks it is your problem and you have to go buy a new one. With a DVR through a cable company if the unit breaks you call them and most places you just go to their office and switch them out for free. Our FIL and BIL/SIL both had Tivo and they switched to DVR. They prefer the DVR. For some reason FIL's picture was really fuzzy with Tivo even though he had a good quality TV. The picture cleared up the minute they switched to DVR. BIL says their picture quality is better with DVR too. Also, they had some delays with the remotes on Tivo that they say they don't have on DVR.

 

[TallyTutter]

TIVO!!! Hands down TIVO!!! We were cutting back on our bills, trying to save $$ & got rid of our TiVo and switched to the Dish DVR - HATE IT!!!

TiVo has so many extra features. Season Pass is just one of them. We want our TiVo back but are stuck now in a 2 yr. contract because we jumped before we talked to the people @ TiVo.

 

[tink2dw]

I have a Directv Tivo that I truely love!! It has all the Tivo features.

I got Dh the Directv DVR and it is more complicated to work, even the remote is different. He has had to call for service several times.

We love Diectv!! and their patient Service Tech's!!

Much better and cheaper than Comcast Cable tv.

 

[dex08]

Tivo!! I've had a Tivo for about 8 years now and I'd never switch to any other dvr. I've used my cable company's (Comcast) and it's so inferior. I recently upgraded to a Series 3 Tivo when my Series 1 model died (it was a refurbished unit) and also bought the My DVR Expander so I never have to worry about hard drive space anymore.

You just missed it too -- yesterday's Woot deal: $169.99 for TiVo Series 3 High Definition 250GB THX Certified DVR.

The new Premier model is coming out but when I compared with Series 3 it doesn't seem to have that many differences.

 

[bonoriffic]

If you haven't experienced Tivo, you may be blissfully ignorant of what an awful experience you are receiving from the cable company DVR. (And I work for the company that makes the DVR for Comcast and AT&T)

With Comcast the break even point is about 3 years for the cost of owning Tivo with lifetime service vs. a Comcast provided DVR. After that Tivo will save you several hundred dollars a year compared to the Comcast DVR.

 

[hbsprite]

I have used DVR's from both Time Warner and Verizon, and none of them can hold a candle to the Tivo software.

Tivo is kind of like Apple: Anyone can build a DVR, but what really sets tivo apart is the interface (software). It is literally light years beyond the cable companies' DVR software.

 

[dougsmom98]

We have both. We started with TIVO five years ago before we had an HD TV. We instantly fell in love with it. It is the best thing ever. A year ago we got a big screen HD TV and rather than upgrading to a TIVO with HD, we decided to put our TIVO on an older TV and just get a DVR from the cable company for our new TV. The DVR doesn't even compare. I actually hate it, but I can't afford an HD TIVO right now. If I start watching a show that I had previously taped on the DVR and then stop in the middle of it and go to bed, the DVR doesn't remember where I left off when I go to watch it the next day! My TIVO remembers where I left off. MY DVR also does weird things like start taping a show and I will get 18 minutes of it. It will then stop and start recording again like it is a separate program. I think the search feature is so much more user friendly on TIVO than on the DVR. Just getting in and out of my recorded list on the DVR is a struggle for me. TIVO lets me prioritize my "seasons passes" so that if there is a conflict, it will tape my higher preference. TIVO will also find out when the show is being played again, so if there is a conflict, it will tape it for me if the show gets repeated.

 

[dex08]

One more thing about Tivo I forgot to mention...

You can download your shows to any computer on the same home network and save them to watch later. And you can buy Roxio software to convert the shows so you can burn to dvd or transfer to your iPod!