500GB TiVO BOLT DVR for $155 (subscription required)

If you like the TiVO service and don’t object to paying for it on a monthly or annual basis, the new condition 500GB TiVO BOLT DVR is currently on sale for $155 with free shipping at Amazon by Amazon actual. You can use this with a cable subscription or an over-the-air antenna, but you still have to pay TiVO a monthly or prepaid subscription. It averages 3.9 out of 5 based on 369 customer reviews.

If you use antennas only, and you are a cordcutter (no cable subscription), and you hate the idea of paying TiVO a monthly subscription, they have a different product, the TiVo Roamio OTA DVR goes for $370. Think of it as prepaying the TiVO service for the lifetime of the device. It also integrates some of popular online streaming services.

On the other hand, if you are the second paragraph, but hate paying that much for a device, and don’t watch a lot of TV, you can get single-tuner chinese OTA DVRs for around $30. These have primitive user interfaces, and remind of VCR programming usability, but the price is right. I have tried and reviewed one of these devices if you want to get a feel for them, here’s my unboxing (text/pictures only) and my review summary of the Mediasonic HW-150PVR.

February 2, 2017 Filed Under: tech Tagged With: ,

Cordcutters: 1TB TiVO Roamio OTA DVR for $400 without Monthly Fee

If you are a cordcutter and watch only a little over-the-air TV, a basic no-name Over-the-Air DVR for under $40 may be good enough for you. If so, check our unboxing of the Mediasonic HW-150pvr (review coming as soon as I can transfer my thoughts and notes on paper).

On the other hand, if you are a power-viewer and power-user and watch something equivalent to what you are used to with your cable or TiVO DVRs, now there’s a brand new release from TIVO without the dreaded monthly fee. $400 is what it takes to get you the 1TB TiVO Roamio OTA DVR from Amazon which ships in about 2-4 weeks from today.

Unlike the basic sub-$40 OTA DVR mentioned above, the new TiVO model allows you to record up to four shows at the same time, basically covering the prime time of four your favorite OTA networks.

Other features include a commercial skip mode, an option to play video faster to save you time (for slow-moving or talking-heads type of shows), and has some integration with streaming services (eg Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Instant Video, etc) so you can watch it all from one place.

If 1TB is not enough, you can use external TiVo-ready NETGEAR ReadyNAS storage (you have to purchase these ones, but your TiVO itself includes 1TB of internal storage).

May 2, 2016 Filed Under: tech Tagged With: ,

[DEAD] TiVo Mini with IR Remote (Old Version) for $90

This sale ended…

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October 28, 2015 Filed Under: tech Tagged With:

TiVO Roamio Over-the-Air HD DVR with LifeTime Service for $300

If you watch a lot of over-the-air (OTA) HD television and want a solid DVR for it, and you are comfortable you’ll be happy with TiVO in the long term, there’s a new offer at Amazon, with Lifetime TiVO service, for $300 you can get the TiVo Roamio OTA HD DVR. This is a pretty good deal by TiVo standards.

You buy the DVR on its own for $50, but you have to pay $15/mo to get the TiVo service (program guide and all their other helpful features). The difference between the two is $250. Divide that by $15, and that means you come ahead with the “Lifetime Service” after 17~ months. That’s less than 1.5 years – as long as you live at a place where you have over-the-air antenna reception.

IMPORTANT: for whatever reason, activation is not straightforward for this promotion. If you want to avoid hassle and frustration, TiVo’s Support page has detailed instructions on how to set it up and configure it.

October 4, 2015 Filed Under: shopping Tagged With: