Rating: 
Summary: TiVo best thing since sliced bread!
Review: I've had a TiVo for over a year now. I don't know how I'd watch TV without it. Let me address some items from an earlier review:And now for the drawbacks of tivo (which far surpasses the good things). 1. Unless you have a newer tv with 2 video inputs, you can't record one show, while viewing another. True. But even my older TV has 2 inputs. 2. You can only rewind live tv back to the point where you changed the channel. This means that if you change the channel to Leno and just barely miss the punchline... too bad, you can't rewind. Well if you started recording anything after it started how could you go back to before then? TiVo would need to be recording every channel you received at the same time to do what you are complaining about here. 3. You can only pause for a max of 30 mins. True. If you are going to pause for longer just hit RECORD. 4. You can only rewind to a max of 30 mins, UNLESS the show is being recorded, in which case you can rewind all the way to the beginning of the recording. True the live buffer is 30 min. If you hit RECORD the new software will record back to the beginning of the live buffer so you're covered. 5. If you are watching tv behind real time and want to change the channel for a few minutes, when you come back to the show you were watching, it'll resume at real time and you can't rewind, so you'll have missed however much time you were behind. True, again TiVo can only record one thing at a time. How would it know you wanted to come back? You did change channels right? 6. The "Season Pass" function is supposed to record the selected show no matter what time it plays and no matter what channel. I got a season pass for Spin City, but I had to set 2 Season Passes... one for channel 13 and the other for channel 7 in order for it to work correctly. The Seasons Pass needs to be setup for each channel. This is a feature so you can get the programs from the source you want. 7. The Thumbs up/down system doesn't work very well. For some reason I end up with more Fresh Prince of Bel Air (3 thumbs up) than Spin City (which I have a season pass for). Also, my tivo likes to record practically every movie on Sundance even though I give every single one of those movies 3 thumbs down. Suggestions (thumbs up/down) take awhile for TiVo to learn. Give it some time and it works great. Also over use of thumbs down will really hose you up. 8. Since the tivo box is ALWAYS on, there's no way for it to tell if you're actually there watching tv. So in the middle of a show a message will pop up asking to change the channel so that it can record a "tivo suggestion." Sometimes this is a hassle to find the remote and select "cancel recording and stay on this channel." Also, if you're listening to the tv, but not actually watching it, you may miss the pop up message, in which case it will automatically change the channel and start recording. This means, that you have to cancel the recording, and then switch back to the channel you were on, therefore missing part of the show you were listening to. How else is it supposed to know if it can change channels? I think this was very well implemented. Would you rather tell it to record like a VCR? You can do that if you like by using the manual recording method. 9. Sometimes you'll be watching a show (which is not being recorded) and something really spectacular or funny will happen. You would think that you could rewind and then hit record, so that you could show it to somebody later. But when you hit record, it'll start recording from live tv to the end of the show. This is also the same problem if you have live tv paused. Let's say the phone rings, so you pause the show you're watching. You realize that you're going to be on the phone for longer than 30 mins, so you hit record. When you go back to watch the show, you'll find that it didn't record from the point it was paused at, but rather the point of live tv when you hit record. This has been changed with the new software. It will record from the beginning of the buffer forward. 10. Shows are recorded based on the tivo programming guide which is downloaded over your phone line. This means that many times you will miss the intro or last joke of a recorded show. Or if a game goes into overtime, yep, that's right you miss the whole overtime. Of course you can always record manually by setting a time period, but that's kind of a hassle. Missing of intros or program ends is NOT TiVo's fault. The networks are starting early or ending late to get people into the next program. Complain to the networks about this. As to a game how would TiVo know a game was going into overtime? If you know this in advance you are an amazing person! Also, the DirecTv Tivo's (a DirecTv reciever with TiVo built in) have dual tuners. At present only one of them is active but a software upgrade that is due out this summer will allow you to watch one program while recording another. Or better yet, record two programs at the same time! You have nothing to lose TiVo has a 30 day money back guarentee. So give it a try. You'll not know how you lived without it.
Rating:
Summary: Response to KeithKi on TiVo
Review: Anyone that is thinking of purchasing a TiVo unit from Phillips or Sony should completely ignore the review submitted by KeithKi. He apparently has no idea how to use his TiVo unit or did extremely poor research prior to purchasing it. I wold like to answer each of his points; And now for the drawbacks of tivo (which far surpasses the good things). 1. Unless you have a newer tv with 2 video inputs, you can't record one show, while viewing another. Correct, and you can't do it with a VCR either. No where does TiVo make the claim that you can record one show while watching another. What you can do is watch a recorded show while another one is recorded. Can a VCR do that? NO! 2. You can only rewind live tv back to the point where you changed the channel. This means that if you change the channel to Leno and just barely miss the punchline... too bad, you can't rewind. Obviously the unit can only buffer the last 30 minutes of the channel you have been watching, if you expected it to buffer every channel you have on the off-chance you might channel surf over to it you made another huge mistake during your research. 3. You can only pause for a max of 30 mins. Well if you are pausing for 30 minutes perhaps you should be recording it instead. 4. You can only rewind to a max of 30 mins, UNLESS the show is being recorded, in which case you can rewind all the way to the beginning of the recording. Again, you clearly have no idea how this unit operates. It buffers the last 30 minutes of the channel you are watching. What you stated is true, whats the problem? 5. If you are watching tv behind real time and want to change the channel for a few minutes, when you come back to the show you were watching, it'll resume at real time and you can't rewind, so you'll have missed however much time you were behind. See response to #2 and add you have no idea how this unit works. 6. The "Season Pass" function is supposed to record the selected show no matter what time it plays and no matter what channel. I got a season pass for Spin City, but I had to set 2 Season Passes... one for channel 13 and the other for channel 7 in order for it to work correctly. The new version of the TiVo software offers much broader control over the Season Pass, and whats the problem with two Season Passes? When you select the Season Pass it clearly states which channel it will be recording from. The new software allows for recording only first run episodes or all reruns as well. YOu can prioritize Season Passes should there be a conflict between several shows so TiVO will record the higher priority show. 7. The Thumbs Up/Down system doesn't work very well. For some reason I end up with more Fresh Prince of Bel Air (3 thumbs up) than Spin City (which I have a season pass for). Also, my tivo likes to record practically every movie on Sundance even though I give every single one of those movies 3 thumbs down. It takes several weeks for the Thumbs Up/Down feature to begin to accurately predict what you may like/dislike. You can also tell the unit not to record the suggestions but rather review a list of them and decide which ones you want to record and delete the ones you don't want. 8. Since the tivo box is ALWAYS on, there's no way for it to tell if you're actually there watching tv. So in the middle of a show a message will pop up asking to change the channel so that it can record a "tivo suggestion." Sometimes this is a hassle to find the remote and select "cancel recording and stay on this channel." Also, if you're listening to the tv, but not actually watching it, you may miss the pop up message, in which case it will automatically change the channel and start recording. This means, that you have to cancel the recording, and then switch back to the channel you were on, therefore missing part of the show you were listening to. Again, turn off the Suggestions from being recorded. You really need to learn how to use the TiVo unit. 9. Sometimes you'll be watching a show (which is not being recorded) and something really spectacular or funny will happen. You would think that you could rewind and then hit record, so that you could show it to somebody later. But when you hit record, it'll start recording from live tv to the end of the show. This is also the same problem if you have live tv paused. Let's say the phone rings, so you pause the show you're watching. You realize that you're going to be on the phone for longer than 30 mins, so you hit record. When you go back to watch the show, you'll find that it didn't record from the point it was paused at, but rather the point of live tv when you hit record. The new version of the software allows you to record the buffer and begin recording the show, problem solved! 10. Shows are recorded based on the tivo programming guide which is downloaded over your phone line. This means that many times you will miss the intro or last joke of a recorded show. Or if a game goes into overtime, yep, that's right you miss the whole overtime. Of course you can always record manually by setting a time period, but that's kind of a hassle. The new version of the TiVo software allows you to pad the recording time in order to capture shows that may run over, like Survivor running over by 2-3 minutes. Of course nobody can predict if a sporting event will go into overtime so you're going to miss the overtime with a VCR or a TiVo. I am extremely happy with my Sony Tivo, it performs as advertised and makes watching TV a new experience. If you just take the time to fully learn what TiVo can do you will see that it far surpasses both VCRs and its own advertising. I hope this clears up the inaccuracies in the review posted by KeithKi. Bruce
Rating: 
Summary: Great technology marred by crash prone behavior...
Review: well, my first Tivo unit came DOA - apparently the hard drive cable was not connected to the system board. Tivo/Phillips people sent me a refurbished unit (in only a week - very timely) - the new unit worked for 2 days, then crashola. it tells me politely to wait for 3 hours whilst it attempts to recover. "A serious system error has occurred." it warns me. I wait. nothing happens. i call Tivo. they tell me to "let it sit for 24 hours to rebuild itself." it sits. i wait. nothing. now i will call again, wasting another $14 to ship the unit back to them to replace. this time i am going to ask for a new replacement unit, not a refurbished one. perhaps this time it will work. when it is working, it is phenomental. when it is working, that is. which for me has been two days over the past three weeks. sigh.
Rating:
Summary: Get Replay. No Monthly fees, better guide
Review: I tried both, replaytv is clear winner. 1) 30 Seconds skip button 2) Ability to pad shows. 3) Superior Channel guide 4) No monthly fees to pay
Rating:
Summary: Best New Product Out There
Review: I compared TiVo with my friends Replay and Microsofts WebTV versions, and Tivo is by far the best. Replay is not as user friendly, with the remote a bit awkward. Also Replay is very loud, and the clicking of the hard drive can be quite bothersome, especially if you have it in your bedroom. TiVo's layout is very intuitive and can easily be used. The recording menu is very simple that I didn't even have to read the manual to understand how it works. I've had my TiVo for over a year and a half now, and it runs smoothly with no problems or glitches. It did not crash on me or miss a program yet, (maybe because it is using the Linux based OS). I love Microsoft but WebTV is not up to par with the quality and consistency as Tivo. I love this product. -Mar
Rating:
Summary: Get the smallest cheapest Tivo you can and upgrade
Review: I started out about a year or so ago with a 14 hour Tivo unit and LOVED it. The problem was they lie about capacity... sort of. 14 hours or in the case of the 30 hour unit are really more like 6 hours and 11 hours with the recorder set to record at BEST quality... anything lower and the picture looks bad. I then paid Tivo to send me a new unit that had been upgraded to 3 hours.... Then that was still not enough time with the system set at best quality. I finally found out I could upgrade the thing myself... so my recomendation is to get the cheapest on that you can and upgrade it. This VOIDS you tivo warrenty but hey we all like to live on the edge right :) I now have a 117 hour Tivo because the company I used to upgrade my Tivo (http://www.digitalrecorder.tv/) added an 80GB disk and now instead of having to delete my recordings early or being more picky about what I record I can go nuts and record anything and everything. I even saw on one website (http://pvrhack.sonnik.com/tivo/tivoking.htm) a guy who has a 151+ hour Tivo. Another good website for Tivo upgrade information is http://www.9thtee.com/tivoupgrades.htm. They have parts for sale and directions on how to upgrade your Tivo (The easiest is a 14 hour unit since you just add a "blessed" drive) happy Tivoing and hack away! PS If you can't tell I love this thing!
Rating:
Summary: Best electronic component I have ever bought
Review: Finally a recording device that lets you see the name and description of the recording. The super simple delete feature is great. Due to all the simple features Tivo offers I don't believe it can be compared to a VCR. I like the 50ft phone cord. If you don't want to install a jack no need to worry it is not necessary to call up the service every night. One call shows future programming 2 weeks in advance. If you want to watch tv that you like when you want to watch it you shouldn't hesitate any longer.
Rating: 
Summary: Good for recording, not worth the money
Review: First off, I want to say that I am completely satisfied with my Philips 30 hour recorder, ONLY because of the 100 dollar rebate along with a 100 dollar gift certificate that I had. So I paid only 200 dollars for a product that I knew I was simply going to use to record just a FEW television shows. I was not getting tivo because I wanted to pause or rewind live tv or record 30 hours worth of shows. For 200 dollars and not expecting much from this product, tivo was completely worth it. I can record up to 9 hours at best quality, which is equal to live tv quality. I don't like watching recordings at less than tv quality and besides 9 hours is plenty for me; I'm not trying to record every single show being broadcasted! I hardly ever pause live tv, but occassionally I will rewind a few minutes to catch something I missed or want to watch more carefully (i.e. basketball play). Right after, I usually fast forward back to live tv (you can skip straight to live tv, but by fast forwarding it's like skimming the show, so that you don't really miss anything). Another cool thing with tivo is that you get displays like direct tv, whereas you can see the title of the show and read a short summary. Set up was very easy and straightforward. And now for the drawbacks of tivo (which far surpasses the good things). 1. Unless you have a newer tv with 2 video inputs, you can't record one show, while viewing another. 2. You can only rewind live tv back to the point where you changed the channel. This means that if you change the channel to Leno and just barely miss the punchline... too bad, you can't rewind. 3. You can only pause for a max of 30 mins. 4. You can only rewind to a max of 30 mins, UNLESS the show is being recorded, in which case you can rewind all the way to the beginning of the recording. 5. If you are watching tv behind real time and want to change the channel for a few minutes, when you come back to the show you were watching, it'll resume at real time and you can't rewind, so you'll have missed however much time you were behind. 6. The "Season Pass" function is supposed to record the selected show no matter what time it plays and no matter what channel. I got a season pass for Spin City, but I had to set 2 Season Passes... one for channel 13 and the other for channel 7 in order for it to work correctly. 7. The Thumbs up/down system doesn't work very well. For some reason I end up with more Fresh Prince of Bel Air (3 thumbs up) than Spin City (which I have a season pass for). Also, my tivo likes to record practically every movie on Sundance even though I give every single one of those movies 3 thumbs down. 8. Since the tivo box is ALWAYS on, there's no way for it to tell if you're actually there watching tv. So in the middle of a show a message will pop up asking to change the channel so that it can record a "tivo suggestion." Sometimes this is a hassle to find the remote and select "cancel recording and stay on this channel." Also, if you're listening to the tv, but not actually watching it, you may miss the pop up message, in which case it will automatically change the channel and start recording. This means, that you have to cancel the recording, and then switch back to the channel you were on, therefore missing part of the show you were listening to. 9. Sometimes you'll be watching a show (which is not being recorded) and something really spectacular or funny will happen. You would think that you could rewind and then hit record, so that you could show it to somebody later. But when you hit record, it'll start recording from live tv to the end of the show. This is also the same problem if you have live tv paused. Let's say the phone rings, so you pause the show you're watching. You realize that you're going to be on the phone for longer than 30 mins, so you hit record. When you go back to watch the show, you'll find that it didn't record from the point it was paused at, but rather the point of live tv when you hit record. 10. Shows are recorded based on the tivo programming guide which is downloaded over your phone line. This means that many times you will miss the intro or last joke of a recorded show. Or if a game goes into overtime, yep, that's right you miss the whole overtime. Of course you can always record manually by setting a time period, but that's kind of a hassle. To sum it up, imagine this: You invite a friend over and you begin demonstrating your tivo system. Your friend says "do this... do that." Well, you can be sure that with the majority of those things, you'll have to reply, "it can't do that." If you want something that records shows easily and at good quality and you don't mind blowing 400 dollars plus the cost of tivo service (10 bucks a month), then tivo is for you. If you're looking for a really cool gadget that has complete control over tv, save your money because you're going to be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: Nice toy, which can only get better.
Review: Very handy useful device that has made me a coach potato! This will truly change the way you watch TV for good. I was very please the moment I opened the box. Everything in the box is nicely organized and all the cables you could possibly need are included, which made the setup quick and easy (still had to wait for the software download - about 2 hours). Give this thing a week to learn what you like and program all your favorite shows and you too will be hooked. The only downside I can think of is you can't record two shows at the same time. Plus, the image quality will take a hit when viewing "live" and recorded TV. Since the TiVo is viewed through your TVs composite A/V input you could switch b/w regular cable and TiVo TV if there is a recording conflict or you want to see a better image from time to time. But these are very minor flaws, which will improve as technology improves. For now, I am very pleased and much fatter :)
Rating:
Summary: I'm hooked
Review: After reading about Tivo and personal digital recorders in magazine reviews and here, I decided I would take the plunge. I thought hard about getting the Phillips 60 hour version, but at twice the cost and because I hadn't even tried the concept out, I decided to settle for the Phillips 30 hour unit. After an easy, but time consuming setup (best if you do it right before bedtime), I quickly realized how cool and useful this thing is. The video quality is fine, decent even at the "lesser" levels (movie credits do get blurry and difficult to read), although true videophiles may find it unexceptional. I would have to say the most pleasing aspect of this is that I am now getting the most out of my premium cable movie channels. I am now catching a lot of movies I routinely missed because I was not vigilant enough to find out when they might be on so that I could set my VCR to tape them. Now, the "Network Showcase" feature alerts me to all of the channels' current and upcoming flicks and all I have to do is to say "yea" or "nay" to recording them. Even if I don't check ahead, the thing records movies it thinks I might like based upon preferences I have expressed for other features and shows. Awesome. Also, skipping commercials is an easy and pleasurable feature. By the way, any football (or other live action sports) enthusiast easily will see the usefulness of such a device. One thing that disturbs me about the Tivo phenomena is that I fear that it may be rendered obsolete quickly because of how rapidly technology is evolving. I purchased the lifetime service option and I will be downright bummed if something else comes along to supplant it before I get my money's worth and I wind up having to buy into something else!
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