Hello, Tivo. Goodbye, Life.

Cool!! They're standard IDE drives then, I take it? That's neat, because I can get a 160GB drive fairly cheap these days. I think it's laughable when some of these hard drive electronics come with such small 20GB or 40GB drives. There'd be some serious storage space with a pair of 160GB or 200GB drives in place.

I have no plans to get Tivo (I watch DirecTV rarely), but I may look at one of those DVD recorders with the hard drive to transfer a lot of lasers and VHS tapes to DVD. I'm sure someone would have a similar upgrade available for those.

 

Exactly. And it really doesn't matter how much television someone watches, w/ a DVR the television you watch is BETTER! It's TV on your terms, not the Networks & Cable channels.

If you're an existing DirecTV customer you can have a unit for $99, and I BELIEVE that's installed. You can check out the details at the link I provided in the previous post and go to the DirecTV receiver w/ TiVo forum.

 

The only thing I'd probably record would be Spongebob and Powerpuff Girls for the kids...and since they're only here a few days out of the week, and there's no way to transfer those to DVD, it's almost pointless. (With episodes now out on DVD, we barely turn on Nickelodeon anymore.) S-VHS, though...I could do that.

The only time I really turn on DirecTV anymore is when there is a Red Wings game I want to watch on ESPN or Fox Sports. And in Detroit it's nearly blasphemy to not watch a Wings game live. I actually use it now to listen to the music channels on Music Choice.

 

I hope I don't come off sounding like a Luddite or something, but what is all the fuss about? My TV watching habits are admittedly sketchy (at best) and I haven't popped for a Tivo yet. However, I'm at a loss to understand the excitement. Can somebody tell me how this differs from (basically) a VCR on steroids? After all, quotes like "TV my way" seems to go back to around 1981 when I bought my first Panasonic VHS deck. I've been in control of my recordings for quite a while now but maybe I'm missing something here. Would this be significantly better than the recordings that I make on my computer via its video tuner card (ATI AIW Radeon 8500V) and then burn to DVD or tape? Just curious.

dave

 

To describe the experience...well, I'd only come up lacking. It's something that has to be used to fully appreciate what a DVR can do. I gifted a Standalone TiVo that I'd upgraded to over 100hrs. at BASIC PQ level and Lifetime service to a couple near & dear to me. I tried to describe what they could expect, but it was only after 10 days of using it that I could tell they understood. I was talking on the phone to the husband and he said, "Using the TiVo, I finally feel like I'm getting some value for what I pay for cable".

Maybe you're happy w/ your set up Dave. But, if you want to know what all the fuss is about, just click on the link I provided in the previous post & check it out for yourself.

 

Nothing wrong with just using a VCR. Of course you can record all the shows you want. It's just there it's all the more easier with a PVR and there.

- No tapes, so you don't have to track down where you put what, make sure you have extra tapes handy, etc.

- No signal degradation that comes with tapes.

- No programming- you just select the show from the guide.

- Searching and recording shows by title, not just time.

- rewinding and pausing live TV

I don't even watch much TV but I've become totally dependant on my ReplayTV.

 

Also very cool is the ability to search by actor or director. Create "wish lists" for your favs.

 

That's it in a nutshell, Mike. Once you experience the way a PVR changes your life, living w/out is unimaginable. It just makes viewing easier & more enjoyable. Plus, it has one of the highest WAFs (Wife Acceptance Factor) of any piece of electronic equipment. Once your spouse becomes familiar w/ it, and they're not hard to use (much easier than a VCR), she'll appreciate it for the "tool" it is.

 

We had Dish Network installed with a PVR about 3 months ago. We will never, never, ever, go back!! Not only can you pause live TV, the other day a hit rewind while watching something live, and sure enough, it was rewinding live TV. We can record up to 60 hours, there's a new one out, that will have you watching one channel while recording another, that record's up to 30 hours. You gotta love it.