TiVo Premiere 4

Ok, so yesterday I received an email from TiVo that I nearly tossed in the recycle bin. Normally they will send a newsletter out every few days with product information, what shows are hot, customer surveys and tips and tricks. Because I was super busy and honestly not in the mood at the time, I headed for the trash can just as something caught my eye, the price.

TiVo (1999)

So back in 1999 I ordered us our first TiVo and watching shows since then has not been the same. Commercials are more annoying than ever and trying to be home for a show at the exact time that it is airing is not ideal by any means. I would find myself constantly trying to tell friends and family about this awesome device that I had at home and almost no-one ever understood it or why you would want such a thing. My TiVo was amazing for many years but slowly became outdated because of high definition TV and the need for recording more than one show at a time which could be as simple as 2 shows overlapping by a minute so one would not record.

TiVo HD (2008-2013)

Around 2008 TiVo came out with a newer model DVR to handle the high definition (HD) content that many cable subscribers were now receiving. We were one of the many that had upgraded our cable channels to support this because of a new LCD flat screen TV that we purchased. We now wanted to be able to record our favorite recorded shows in HD since we were paying additional charges to have those channels delivered to us in that format. From 2008 until this very day we have used the TiVo HD and enjoyed it just as much as the original TiVo, only with additional features.

The problem comes in because as of 2010 or so pretty much all of the cable and dish companies had a DVR (digital video recorder) or PVR (personal video recorder) that they offered along with their set-top boxes for a nominal monthly fee. The biggest advantage to these was that they allowed recording of up to 4 channels at the same time, while watching another, so 5 total.

In all honesty we did not need this feature very often but when we did I was a bit green with envy and bummed that I had to make a decision on what was more important to record at that time. Some of the companies have models that I think will let you do 6 to 9 at a time! I don't see us needing that anytime soon to be perfectly honest. Even so, for the majority of consumers, they still had no idea what the hell a TiVo was so to them this was some new technology from the cable provider that they simply had to have. Finally, and welcome to 1999 people!

In my opinion the TiVo is still the best option. Not just because I own one but because it just is, 'nuff said. Sure, there are some pluses to the cable provided box in the fact that it is their box and upgrades or problems are not your problem. I don't think that is not enough of a "pro" because of the monthly fee's and because it's not a TiVo - the one that started it all in the first place. I have never had issues with any of my TiVo's to date anyhow. I have heard that Charter for example may start using TiVo for their boxes but I have a feeling it would still be slightly different than what you get now, maybe not?

TiVo Premiere 4 (2013)

This brings us to the present day, today to be exact. As mentioned, yesterday I received an email from TiVo and I am really happy that I took the time to look at because it was an offer for a new TiVo Premiere 4 along with lifetime subscription (as I always get - I hate that month-to-month crap) for just under $600. That includes shipping, taxes, lifetime subscription and the TiVo itself - around $250 off the normal price.

The over-all price is the one thing that has kept me from upgrading to a newer TiVo up to this point. The lifetime subscription to the TiVo service runs $499, about $150 more than any of the TiVo hardware which was always a hard pill to swallow, so I never did. Sure you could get a new TiVo for $250 to $400 and then go month-to-month for the service, but after 3 years or so you would have broken even and even though it sounds like a long time, 3 years goes by fast and the technology does not change in this arena enough to justify updating the hardware as frequently. If you go through the cable company you essentially pay the $400 for their month-to-month "rental" for their DVR in just over 2 years and have nothing to show for it in the end. At least I have the option to resell my box and have some money toward the latest and greatest model if I wanted to.

Pulled The Trigger

This morning I contacted TiVo because I wanted to see if there was a way to get the XL version of the Premiere 4 which has 225 hours of additional HD recording space. Not that we need it, but since we keep the boxes for so long I figured we might as well get as much as we can. Unfortunately they are only offering the deal for the 4, which is still a great offer and 55 hours more recoding time than our current TiVo HD has and it has been perfectly fine for the most part. Occasionally we have to hurry up and watch something so something else can record, but its pretty infrequent. I still have the option to add on an external drive which would give me another 140 hours of recording.

So yep, I talked over the pro's and con's with Cicely and pulled the trigger on a the TiVo Premiere 4 for the living room. We will move the TiVo HD to the bedroom in case we ever want to watch shows in there. We have a 40" LCD TV that has been sitting in the box, brand new, in the garage that I need to hang on the wall in the bedroom anyhow so this gives me reason to quit putting it off. I was going to hook up an Apple TV to the bedroom TV for Netflix and stuff but I think I may just hook up the TiVo HD because I can still connect to Netflix from it. The cool thing is if you have multiple TiVo boxes then you can share shows that are on one TiVo with another one in another room pretty seamlessly. Then pick up on either where you left off. Add-in the mobile connections like an iPad and you can pretty much move around anywhere with your shows as you watch them.

It should be here in 4 to 7 days according to the website and the confirmation email that I received from TiVo. I usually go stir crazy waiting for new toys to arrive, but in this case it is worth it because I need the time to back-up all of our current season passes and related from the TiVo HD so I can add them directly on the Premiere 4 and not have to go through them all one-by-one. Not to mention since some shows we watch are not currently airing we would not be able to add them until they were back on if I did not do the transfer, not good nor fun. So for once, waiting is preferred.

Fuzzy Kid

So the fuzzy kid came to work with us today and hung out in the studio, mostly Cicely's cube. He has to go to the vet and get his 3 year rabies vaccine and have his stool sample looked at to be certain he does not have any issues. I think he has to get a bordetella vaccination as well but that is super easy and inexpensive. I worry when he has to get stuff done, but he is such a good boy and a great little trooper so I know he will do great like he always does. Having him at work is pretty awesome, I wish we could bring him in everyday!

The End

That is about all of the new news for today. I am considering getting a new universal remote to control all of our main devices in the living room (TV, TiVo, Apple TV, SpeakerCraft Sound Base, Ceiling Fan, DVD and related). I am going with the Logitech Harmony Touch ($250). It is a great looking, great functioning remote with the ability to control up to 15 devices. There is one model that is a few bucks more that will broadcast an RF signal if your devices are inside of a cabinet, ours are not and never will be so I am skipping on that option and saving a few bucks. The remote is programmable via USB cable as well which is exactly what I wanted so I can really tweak and modify it to our needs which also makes it much more "future proof".

Anyway, more on that tomorrow or in a future entry if I end up picking up the Harmony Touch tonight after work over at Best Buy. Until next time, I hope Friday treated you well!

Photo: TiVo Premiere 4