TiVo Roamio? Other DVR options???

[kristenrice]

Normally, I am fairly good with technology, but I need some help on this one. Our cable/internet bundle is already at the max that I am willing to pay ($130/month for the most BASIC cable available) and we have no DVR or HD service.

I miss watching a lot of my Detroit sports games due to work schedules (and family that wants to watch stuff on demand) and I would like to find a DVR option that is independent of our cable service. I am not 100% sure how TiVo works so can someone explain it to me? I would ideally like a device similar to the old relic VCR's that can be programmed to record a specific show or channel for a specific time and can then be watched again at a later time. I would not need excessive storage since I'm only talking about a total of about 5 hours a week that would need to be stored. If I get more than one ballgame/hockey game behind, then I would just delete one and skip it.

What are my options? Costs? Benefits? Sales? To keep this Disney related, I have to work on Christmas Day so I would love to record the Christmas Day Parade since I always seem to miss it every year.

 

[Ragnrok23]

Normally, I am fairly good with technology, but I need some help on this one. Our cable/internet bundle is already at the max that I am willing to pay ($130/month for the most BASIC cable available) and we have no DVR or HD service.

I miss watching a lot of my Detroit sports games due to work schedules (and family that wants to watch stuff on demand) and I would like to find a DVR option that is independent of our cable service. I am not 100% sure how TiVo works so can someone explain it to me? I would ideally like a device similar to the old relic VCR's that can be programmed to record a specific show or channel for a specific time and can then be watched again at a later time. I would not need excessive storage since I'm only talking about a total of about 5 hours a week that would need to be stored. If I get more than one ballgame/hockey game behind, then I would just delete one and skip it.

What are my options? Costs? Benefits? Sales? To keep this Disney related, I have to work on Christmas Day so I would love to record the Christmas Day Parade since I always seem to miss it every year.

The Tivo will replace your cable box and you'll need a cable card. Be warned not all cable companies support on-demand through Tivo, so you might have to factor that extra storage space to record those shows instead of watching them on demand

Also Tivo charges a monthly fee of $12.99 (I think) or you can purchased a lifetime suscription for $399

 

[Skywise]

A TiVo is basically your old VCR on steroids. You don't schedule a recording by "time" (although you can), you find the program on the guide and then select it to record it. You can also set it up to record the program whenever it's on or only when it's a "new" episode of that program. TiVo also provides a feature called "suggestions" that will record shows it thinks you'll like (when you're not already watching something) and backfills any unused space on your hard drive so you'll always have something you can watch. It'll also stream from most major services (netflix, hulu, amazon instant video, xfinity on demand, etc)

All of the newer Tivo Roamio series require a cable card to work with your cable provider (they do NOT work with AT&T Uverse or the satellite companies). The entry level Tivo Roamio also has a built-in tuner so you can record OTA programming - however the tivo can only do one or the other, not both at the same time (If you configure it to use the cable card it will only use the cable card and will shut the tuner off - if you configure it to use the tuner it'll turn the cable card slot off). On the bright side, if you get the basic Roamio and decide to stop getting cable you can still use it to record OTA programming.

Depending on the cable card you get and the Tivo model you get you can record up to 6 different programs at the same time while watching a seventh that's already been recorded!

The TiVo Roamio is $150 and will allow you to record 75 hours of HD programming or 500 hours of SD programming. (It's a 500gb hard drive and You can easily purchase a 2TB drive and replace the drive it came with to get 300 hours of HD programming or 2000 hours of SD programmng!) You'll also have to subscribe to the Tivo service. This service keeps the Tivo's schedules up to date as well as software maintenance and some other features. You can do this monthly at $15, a year at a time (at a cheaper rate) or pay a one-time lifetime service fee for $500. The lifetime service is tied to THAT box so if you ever sell it, it goes along with that box (which ups its resale value). If you can swing it and plan on keeping the tivo for longer than 3 years, the lifetime service is the way to go because it'll pay itself back in the long term. (If the hard drive goes bad you just need to put a new one in, the Tivo will automatically format the new one and start using it).

A few other things - You'll need an internet connection of some sort to wherever you put the Tivo so it can get the schedule data. In my area, my comcast cable card fee is $2.50 but I also get a discount of almost $2 for providing my own cable box (the tivo) so the only thing I'm paying the cable company for is the cable service.

 

[DawnM]

We got older Tivos from ebay and CL that came with lifetime subscriptions. We have been very satisfied with them.

A Tivo subscription is $14.99/mo for the first Tivo.

27 months of a Tivo subscription equals the cost of a lifetime subscription, so if you want a new Tivo, that may be your best bet.

Dawn

 

[OhhBother]

TiVo will change your life, and you'll wonder how you've made it this long without it. We've had a TiVo since the first 20-hour model came out forever ago. We now have three TiVos in the house, including a Roamio that will record six channels at once.

It's so easy to set up and so easy to use. It's truly consumer-friendly technology. Take the leap. You'll never regret it. You can learn a lot in the forums at tivocommunity,com. They're a great resource.

Good luck!

 

[wenrob]

I too, have had Tivos since the beginning. Completely spoiled by them. We have the apps on our iPads and can stream or download our shows to them. My husband and teen DD use this function ALL the time. When we went out of town last summer, I loaded mine up with shows to watch while hubby drove. A function like that may be beneficial to you OP if your family is hogging the TV.

Two things, my cable company (Cox) does not support On Demand for my Tivos. This is something you would want to check out if your family uses it heavily. It's never bothered me because I record all my shows and watch them on my own schedule anyway. I haven't watched TV live in years.

And two, when I bought my Roamio earlier this year I was told they no longer offer annual payments. However, I was replacing an ancient Tivo HD and they grandfathered my yearly payments over to the Roamio. So again, something you'd want to check out if your are thinking annual payments versus monthly or Lifetime.

Oh and third, your cable company will be clueless when it comes to the Tivo, I second the suggestion of heading over to the Tivo forums to get your information. You will have to pick up and install the cable card yourself. No worries though, Tivo gives very clear instructions on how to do it.

 

[tasha99]

I have had Tivo off and on since the beginning and love it. Every other box I've tried has been disappointing, and we've gone back to Tivo.

Do expect the cable company to be clueless, even possibly telling you they "can't" install Tivo and are not compatible with Tivo (Charter told me this as well as Xfinity). Both were able to install my Tivo with some extra phone calls. I think it's an anti-trust issue, but hey, it's a cable company so no suprise there. Plan to be very assertive if you have to be.

When I had Charter, there was no "On Demand" (but I was in a rural area that had none for anyone. I do get it now with Xfinity. It shows up, along with HuluPlus and Netflix.

Btw, after a box has been activated for 3 years, currently you can buy Lifetime service for $99. (This offer may come and go--we got it when we asked to disconnect one of our boxes.)

I have heard that the Roamio supports Amazon Prime, but I'm not sure about that. My Tivo Premiere doesn't, and this is a source of some frustration (something to think about if you buy a used Tivo with Lifetime. We're thinking the Amazon firestick we ordered will fix this).

 

[kristenrice]

Thanks for all the information...you have given me a lot to think about.

One quick question about "streaming to the devices"...I have a Kindle Fire, an iPhone 4S (yup, no upgrade for me) and the kids both have Samsung Galaxy Tabs (which they rarely use). So when you refer to "streaming" to the devices or "loading them up" for travel, does that require a wireless or 3G/4G connection when you actually want to watch the show? I guess I am wondering if I can, say, record a baseball game, "stream" it to one of the tablets and then bring it to work with me to watch without an internet connection...is that possible?

One more question for the clueless...we have one cable box and two "adaptors" for our other TV's. The one hooked up to the box is the only one we can watch OnDemand programming on and it is also the only one with a channel guide. With a TiVo, I assume that the main box would replace my cable box and I would need to buy additional hardware to watch recorded TV on the other sets. Is this what the Roamio is all about?

Oh, and someone mentioned the Amazon Fire stick...I bought one of those too when it was on sale for $19. I won't get it until January and I am also a little confused as to how it will work. I figured it would be nice to take on trips where there is wi-fi at the hotels so we can stream Netflix and Amazon Instant video. I'm not sure I will have a huge use for it at home since we currently stream through the Wii.


Anyone know if there will be any BF deals on a TiVo??

 

[wenrob]

For streaming you would use WiFi and be logged into your account on the app. My DD does this up in her room or when she is dog sitting. I would not recommend using your data from your devices. When I say "loaded up" I transfer the already recorded shows to my device with the TiVo app like you would a movie or music playlist from iTunes. I do not know what all devices the TiVo app is available for but I do know it will work on your iPhone.

The other questions would be best answered by someone else as we just have direct cable to the kids TVs and Tivos in our bedroom and living room. No cable boxes at all.