Before we left for Australia we made a little extravagant purchase that is seriously the best thing EVER!
We have a TiVo Premiere!
This is how the box looks –
We had a bit of drama leading up to being able to use this though.
Being Miss Organized 2010 meant that of course, I had marked off our to-do list four weeks before we moved that we had to pick up our TiVo from Best Buy. One night we went along to Best Buy, handed over our saved up dollars and went home so excited to have such a groovy looking DVR. We then organized for Time Warner to be at our place on the first day of the move to install the card so that we can say goodbye to their ridiculous DVR FOREVER! (The Time Warner DVR is like using a cassette deck… to go from Foxtel IQ in Australia to the Time Warner DVR was like stepping back in time for me and oh-so-painful!)
Three weeks after our purchase, it was announced that TiVo was relasing a brand new set top box called the Premiere that was a bigger hard drive, nicer interface, looks better and was just a step above the previous model.
So we went back, returned our Tivo and convinced ourselves that we could deal with the Time Warner Cable DVR for one more month.
We arrived back from Melbourne on Tuesday night and Bill was so excited about TiVo he booked the installation guys to arrive at… 8am Wednesday.
While we did intend on getting rid of the Time Warner DVR we have decided to be particularly extravagant and move that to the bedroom so I can have my own to record my own shows seeing as that is my TV where I can watch the multitude of DVDs and TV shows that Bill just shakes his head at. I must say, Bill is particularly patient with what is deemed as ridiculous TV choices. I basically watch no shows that ‘everyone else’ watches. Instead I am stuck on made-for-tv movies, old re-runs of sitcoms and of course my favourites – Martha Stewart, Oprah, Little House on the Prarie, Nancy Grace, 7th Heaven, Touched by an Angel, The Brady Bunch, 90210 and Days of our Lives.
The TiVo is AMAZING. Combined with our Netflix subscription we get our normal DVD at a time through that but we have the ability to stream shows through the TiVo straight to our TV and they have a great selection so far. I went onto their database, found they had EVERY episode of Fawlty Towers and was able to watch it there and then in great quality, streaming over the net onto our big TV. No more 1000 degree laptop on my lap or crazy ads and while Netflix streaming doesn’t have a huge collection, it is good enough! They also have a great Australian selection as well which has been refreshing!
This is how the on screen menu looks –
Other bonuses – the selection of TiVo radio stations is awesome so whenever I feel the need to play Christmas music in May, I can do it on their holiday station! We can also listen to podcasts and watch YouTube clips.
Bill has done a great job of programming all of our favourite shows in and if you are a heavy duty TV watcher nothing surpasses it. For some reason, I also find the digital signal is better through the TiVo than the old DVR. When we were flicking channels on my budget DVR the other night Bill actually suggested that we will have to end up getting a TiVo on my TV as well. I’m not saying a word!
PS – Also, yes – the remote is AMAZING!