Great for Busy People
Pros:
Control what and when you watch TV. VERY easy to use.
Cons:
Service is expensive but not outrageous compared to my local cable provider.
The Bottom Line:
I look at it as investment that allows me to control my own TV schedule. I recommend this!
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Overall Rating:
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Author's Review
Because of my job, I travel quite a bit. I am sick of paying for cable TV and always missing my favorite TV shows so I decided to invest in TIVO. I did my research on the internet and decided to stick with the named brand (TIVO). I couldn't make my mind up between the TIVO model and the other models that have a built in DVR drive.
I figured if I had a 140 hour drive, I most likely would not run out of space anytime soon so I just went with the non-DVD drive. So, if I want to burn DVDs, I will need to connect my laptop to the TIVO.
I called and spoke to the TIVO support network and they said I could use a USB to USB connection and connect my TIVO directly to my laptop. So, this will make burning DVDs very easy.
Some new features that also came out are that you can also download movies to the IPOD or I also have a Treo 650. So, I will also try to do this. Some other neat features are that you can download your music and your photos to the TIVO. So, if you have company over, you can have your digital library playing instead of the TV.
One thing that I also purchased was a signal splitter. Without the splitter, you can only watch one channel at time with the TIVO. Why that is important is that if you are watching one channel, you can't record another. So, it cost $3 at Walmart plus $4 for an extra cable. It is definitely worth the investment.
I have noticed that the picture quality on the TV seems to be better with the TIVO hooked up. I have a 50" Sony. It is not high def and I don't have digial cable. So, it is straight out of the wall. I think the quality is better.
Some other features that are quite nice are the season pass. I record my top 5 favorite shows for the entire season. So, I don't have to worry if I am home or traveling. The shows are always there. If I am home, I just delete the episode after it is recorded. It is actually easier to watch a recorded show because you can zip through the commercials.
The pause TV feature is quite nice. So, if I am watching TV and the phone rings, I can pause the show and come back to it when the call is over.
TIVO is running a special now that if you buy a unit, you can get $150 rebate if you sign up for the service. I went ahead and paid for the lifetime service ($299). I hate the monthly fees. I did search on the internet for the best deal I could find. I ended up paying $299 for the unit but I will get the $150 rebate on the unit. I ended up getting mine from buy.com. Use one of the search engines on the internet for the best pricing. The prices change quite often.
I didn't think it was important to list all of the technical specs of the unit. You can get that at TIVO.com or CNET does a good job rating explaining the unit. I do think it is an expensive device but I think in the long run it will be worth it. I do have the Windows Media Edition on my laptop and I have recorded shows on the laptop for free. The only negative there is that the recordings are not very good. It could be because my laptop is not fast enough but it is frustrating trying to watch shows on the laptop.
