TiVo Series2 80-Hour Digital Video Recorder

TiVo Series2 80-Hour Digital Video Recorder

Posted Mar 31, 2006 - Over the past several years, I've owned several ReplayTVs, built my own WinXP MCE and MythTV (Linux) box, and also recently got a Time Warner DVR. So I know what I'm talking about when it comes to DVRs! In general, I think the Tivo is an excellent product from a great company. I was a committed ReplayTV owner until they were bought out and the parent company recently decided to essentially exit the home DVR market. I am unhappy to hear that Tivo has recently ended the Lifetime Subscription offering but understand that it was simply not going to work from a financial perspective for the long-term, so they had to end it. One feature I use constantly with my ReplayTVs that is not available for the Tivo is DVArchive -- a bit of Java software that runs on your PC and lets you pull shows down to your PC so you can edit and burn to DVD or just store on your larger PC hard drive. I haven't been a Tivo user long enough to find an equivalent software for the Tivo -or- it simply does not exist, not sure yet. Anyways, if you are looking for a DVR, you can't go wrong with this Tivo! Quite a bit better than the Time Warner DVR.

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I received my TiVo Series 2 (80-hour) last Christm ...

Posted Jun 3, 2005 - I received my TiVo Series 2 (80-hour) last Christmas, and once I familiarized myself with the controls, it has been an awesome addition to my entertainment setup. If you're familiar with basic TV/audio-visual technologies, setting the TiVo up should be a breeze. For me, I did have to take some time to make sure I would be recording and viewing with the best picture and sound. Which meant: figuring out the proper S-Video, cable and RCA ins and outs. The menus are simply and very user-friendly. TiVo seems designed to make sense to the average user, and at adequate all-around quality levels for the more demanding audio-video geeks (meant in a nice way, since I'm one of them). The infamous channel changing cable. TiVo gives you the option of using a 9-pin serial/data cable that plugs into the cable box in order for the TiVo to change channels, or infrared (IR) control cables. I could use the serial cable with my first cable box, which changed the channels flawlessly. But surprisingly, the newer digital/HD-ready cable box I recently got does not allow me to use the serial cable, so I have to use the somewhat troublesome IR cables until the technology is resolved. The IR control cables are attached to the cable box and stick out like mini red eyes staring at the cable box's front IR receivers. General setup issues and interference make the IR option less reliable, and therefore less desirable. This would be my main con regarding TiVo, although I could easily be blaming the Motorola/Comcast cable box instead. Currently, I have an HD-ready TV with digital/HD cable through Comcast. The way I have it setup took some time, but it might help to share with you here: Basically, the cable goes into the digital/HD receiver from Comcast, and I have digital component cables from the cable box to the TV for HD viewing. I have composite cables (red, white, yellow RCAs) from the cable box to the TiVo, and an S-video from the TiVo to the TV fore regular viewing and recording. I have an digital connection between by cable box and audio receiver, and regular RCAs from my cable box to the TiVo (and TiVo to TV). My TiVo WILL RECORD a high-definition broadcast, but the recording WILL NOT be in true high-def picture and sound. The technology simply does not exist for Comcast digital/HD subscribers (I believe HD-ready TiVo units are available for Direct TV customers). However, TiVo has recently made a deal with Comcast, and not only are HD-ready TiVo boxes supposed to be out early next year, Comcast/HD-ready TiVo boxes should be ready around the same time. Worth noting: Instead of a phone line, my Tivo series 2 connects via a USB wireless device to the Internet, which not only is supposed to be better for updated services and schedules, but it allows for TiVo desktop and TiVoToGo usage. This allows me to schedule recordings from the Internet, as well as any home networked computer. On my home computers I can also transfer the recordings to a hard drive for storing, or even for burning onto a DVD (with certain software only), which I've tried and works great!

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I'm in love with my Tivo

Posted Apr 12, 2006 - I am crazy about my Tivo after having it for only a couple weeks. This thing rocks! It's easy to mark shows for recording, and also nice for watching live tv. You can pause live tv, rewind, etc. You unfortunately cannot watch live tv if you're recording something on another channel, but that is rarely a problem for me since I have so much stuff recorded to watch (you CAN watch a prerecorded show while recording another one). I accidentally bought the wrong USB adapter for my home wireless network TWICE, but I eventually settled on a nice Netgear model that worked well. I'm seriously considering getting another Tivo this week before they stop offering lifetime service agreements.

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Greet Product

Posted Mar 29, 2006 - I bought this product a month ago and got hooked up with TiVo on the same day. It's been a blast with this little thing. It has plenty of storage for hours of tv recordings. Now TiVo becomes the essentials of our daily entertainment.

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