TiVo becoming part of the Digital Hub
I just got a new Sony TiVo SVR-3000 for Christmas, and it has really piqued my imagination as to some new digital hub functionality that I think we'll be seeing very soon. I thought some of you might be interested to see where TiVo is taking the digital hub.
I've been reading that TiVo will be announcing new functionality at CES on January 11th that will include some interesting new digital hub-like capabilities. These include the ability to view digital photos and listen to MP3s TiVo, as well as scheduling recordings via the web.
Here is a pic of the photo app:
And a pic of the music app:
There's been a lot of talk about Apple creating a set top device to interact with iTunes and play MP3s on your stereo, etc. I think this would be exactly the direction Apple might take, minus the PVR functionality.
I'm hoping that TiVo will officially support some type of wireless networking (Airport) to access your home PC.
Also, wouldn't it be great to schedule your TiVo recordings via iCal? You could probably use iSync to match up recording schedules from PC to TiVo!
Anyway, a lot of stuff to think about. I'm hoping that in a few weeks TiVo will be an even more important part of my digital hub!!
Anyone else here have TiVo? What are your thoughts, and what else do you expect to see from TiVo in the near future???
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RosettaStoned
I've been reading that TiVo will be announcing new functionality at CES on January 11th that will include some interesting new digital hub-like capabilities. These include the ability to view digital photos and listen to MP3s TiVo, as well as scheduling recordings via the web.
Here is a pic of the photo app:
And a pic of the music app:
There's been a lot of talk about Apple creating a set top device to interact with iTunes and play MP3s on your stereo, etc. I think this would be exactly the direction Apple might take, minus the PVR functionality.
I'm hoping that TiVo will officially support some type of wireless networking (Airport) to access your home PC.
Also, wouldn't it be great to schedule your TiVo recordings via iCal? You could probably use iSync to match up recording schedules from PC to TiVo!
Anyway, a lot of stuff to think about. I'm hoping that in a few weeks TiVo will be an even more important part of my digital hub!!
Anyone else here have TiVo? What are your thoughts, and what else do you expect to see from TiVo in the near future???
--------------
RosettaStoned
Comments
Over Ethernet. Built-in. No hacks needed.
Honestly, I can't figure out how Tivo got the mindshare it has... its product line isn't as consumer friendly, it isn't as capable, and it doesn't cost any less.
<strong>
Honestly, I can't figure out how Tivo got the mindshare it has... </strong><hr></blockquote>
The name.
TiVo is easy to remember, hard to forget. ReplayTV is an ugly name.
Sonic Who?
Lets face it... Tivo advertises... I ain't never heard of this here competitor, so it doesn't matter how much better it is. If I don't read about it or see it on television or hear it discussed on the radio, I am not likely to run out and buy one.
2. First mover advantage
3. Integrated with DirectTV
4. Very hacker friendly for a proprietary tech company
<strong>1. Tivo's interface is about a thousand times more consumer friendly than ReplayTV.
2. First mover advantage
3. Integrated with DirectTV
4. Very hacker friendly for a proprietary tech company</strong><hr></blockquote>
1. Or a Thousand Times more annoying. I read that many Tivo user turn off many of the features. I think the average user just wants to record their intended shows with a minimum of hassle.
2. Neither company has sold enough machines to match the hype. Any profits they made when to Lawyers in their stupid law suits.
3. Only Series One Tivo's have DirecTV Integration. I haven't seen a Series Two.
4. The average consumer doesn't want to "hack" into their TV. Geeks love this but as a selling point it's about nil effective.
Tivo is crap. While ReplayTV has given us automatic skipping of commercials and Network transfer via ethernet. Tivo has given us MP3 and Photos both of which are most likely handled better by other devices. Tivo hasn't even added Ethernet yet..making it's users shell out additional for USB-Ethernet adapters...geez thanks.
Sorry I'm not even considering a Tivo despite the cute name. I've been fair to both but I don't trust Tivo and I'm wary of Sonic Blue.
Apple. Jump into this market and add PVR functionality to .mac. You can reach Millions of Boob Tubers with the right product.
You have *GOT* to be kidding me. Try adding a larger hard drive. Got a Linux box lying around? You need one to install the filesystem, bless it, etc, and that's only because someone reverse engineered the ability. Then you have to install the hard drive. Want to pull files off of it? You can either hack an ethernet card into it (voiding your warrantee) for $100, buy a USB/Enet adapter (ooooh, USB speeds), or... remove the hard drive, plop it in a *ta-da* Linux box, and try it that way.
OTOH, a ReplayTV unit figures out that the hard drive is new and auto-configures it, comes with it's own Enet port, and unlike the TiVo, isn't a door stop if the company closes its doors.
Yup, a TiVo *CANNOT* operate without contacting the mothership. a) The scheduling information format is proprietary b) The TiVo can, theoretically, be used in 'manual' mode, like a programmable VCR... except that... c) the *ONLY* way to set the time/date on a TiVo is to have it contact TiVo.
SonicBlue has published their schedule format, and there are mirrors and local-only databases you can contact. Plus, if the worst case happens and the MPAA/networks manage to shut down TiVo and SonicBlue, and even manage to make the databases illegal, you can manually set the time/date all you want, and use it as a programmable VCR with a hard drive... that you can send your files to your Mac to... and edit... and burn... ReplayTV is simply MPEG-2. Easy.
Unless TiVo has seriously changed how they operate, this is the situation. (As of two months ago, at the very least, the last time I researched this.)
I still hope Apple comes out with an integrated solution with their own style of integration and UI, but right now ReplayTV kicks TiVo's sorry little tushie in just about every category... except marketshare.
But if we cared about *THAT*, we wouldn't be Mac users, now would we?
I like my Tivo for a variety of reasons...
?I like the season pass. I just hit the show and it will record it on that channel no matter when its on. I can have it record reruns and first runs, or no reruns.
?Sometimes I will have watched everything on the Tivo and will not want to resort to commercial TV. That is when Tivos sujestions come in. Maybe it will have an episode of Star Trek, or one of the many sindicated sitcoms I really do not want to record every episode of every time it is on, but is nice to have one recorded for you now and then.
?I like the interface personally more then RePlay.
we all have our own opinions right?
About 2 months ago I decided to purchase a DVR and realized that the best way to compare the two leading brands was to test them myself, using Best Buy's 30-day return guarantee. I tried out the Replay TV first because it had those "whiz-bang" features that TiVo didn't (as have been discussed above). After a few weeks, I came to the conclusion that, for me, those features were unnecessary and didn't outweigh some of the disadvantages I discovered after extensive use of the Replay box (those included horrible conflict resolution, no to-do list of upcoming recordings, a clunky user interface, HORRIBLE instability (mine crashed almost every other day), etc). I returned the Replay and tried out the TiVo.
TiVo, on the other hand, has all the features I was looking for (Season passes, wishlists, a to-do list, rapid searching of the program guide by title, director, keyword, genre, and actor, due to daily indexing which replay doesn't do, stability (it hasn't crashed ONCE), and much better ease-of-use than replay). I connect to the TiVo service by a usb-to-ethernet adapter (which cost me a total of $20), and I can continue to use TiVo during the service call, which Replay cannot do.
There are indeed Series 2 DirecTiVos, contrary to a previous poster's report. Also, TiVo will continue to operate normally without connecting to the service until the channel guide data has run out (about 2 weeks). Replay, on the other hand, will stop working after 2 days of being unable to connect to the service.
I'm not much of a hacker, but since TiVo uses Linux as its OS, anyone familiar with the command line can do some basic mucking with the internals. Replay, on the other hand, uses a proprietary OS that is much more difficult to work with (if you're into that sort of thing).
I get the impression that most of the TiVo-bashers here haven't used both TiVo AND Replay for an extended period of time to really compare the two. After perusing the TiVo and Replay AVS forums, it seems like TiVo owners are much more satisfied as a whole than their Replay-owning brethren. I consider myself a new member of the TiVolution.
I'm keeping my TiVo, and you can pry the remote out of my cold, dead fingers (didn't I say that about my Mac?).
But, that's just my opinion.
Personally, I'm not all that keen on suggestion lists (oooh, look, it's gathering info on me! Whee! What's TiVo's latest consumer privacy policy? Originally they were willing to sell your viewing habits to the highest bidder. SonicBlue OTOH, forced the networks to sue them to try and get the info... and then won. Yay!), but I *DO* want to be able to pull the MPEG-2 files off for editing and archiving, and use the home server as a mass storage library for remote (living room) viewing. Also, being able to plop in a 200GB drive is a cheap way to go from a $400 PVR to a $1200 retail PVR.
If you like the TiVo better, go for it. For me, it doesn't meet my needs, and TiVo the company seems a bit too eager in my book to be the MPAA and networks' b*tch. *shrug*
Did you find any reason why the 2 day ReplayTV limit was a problem? Is it that it can't search any further into the future than that? Odd to hear that it crashed on you repeatedly... can't say that I've heard that as a real problem before. Weird.
Edit: Oh duh, topic.
Actually, my desires of having it integrate with the home server illustrates exactly how this could be a sweet device from Apple... Rendevous, MPEG-4 QT, good GUI, XML/SOAP hookup for server info... yum.
[ 01-05-2003: Message edited by: Kickaha ]</p>
Back to topic... I think that Apple should have their own Tivo box or make a deal with Tivo or someone similar. They need a way to get the Digital Hub action to the Media Center without making people sit computers by their stereos. They could spiff up the design to look more Aqua like on the interface and put a white lucite front on and be ready to roll.
I hate dragging my iBook over by my stereo to listen to music and then not being able to really surf the web or other such things.
Doing a deal with Tivo would be great. A Sherlock/iCal integrated TivoWeb interface with iTunes/iPhoto integration would be perfect.
Even better would be their own box using Quicktime MPEG-4 video encoding and serving.
Put a firewire port and USB port on front for digital camera/iPod integration...
Getting a little dreamy eyes here...
when i looked at both units , my primary concern was that the company would be around long enough for me to get my use out of the unit. TIVO offers a compromise position. i can fast forward through commercials, but not delete them. i can record shows, but not email them. in the long run, i think their willingness to compromise improves TIVO's chances for survival. PVR is a great technology, whatever brand you choose.
i chose a TIVO series 2 80 hour unit and have no regrets.
<strong>Oh well... I'm not gonna argue this one anymore, I pretty much think Replay sucks and you think Tivo sucks...</strong><hr></blockquote>
No, just an inferior product for the things I am interested in, like accessing the files elsewhere or sticking up for consumer rights. Your priorities are elsewhere.
But this is a dead horse.
[quote]<strong>Back to topic...(kersnip)
Getting a little dreamy eyes here...</strong><hr></blockquote>
I agree, but I'd be shocked if Tivo were the company Apple chose, due to the consumer rights issues.
I don't think they need to work with anybody on this, to be honest. They have all the pieces in place... they just need to put them together. Sherlock/iCal/AppleScript for scheduling (onboard or remote over the internet) via XML/SOAP over an Enet port, a slick GUI, Rendevous for LAN access and local sharing, QT for codec support... heck, an iBook mobo would be able to handle this more than adequately, I would think.
Output... can the iBook video out be converted to DVI signal for inclusion with upcoming HDTVs? (Of course, it already has the FireWire port that HDTVs also include...)
Assume they leverage already existing technologies like the iBook mobo, but in a new case. Cost estimates? iBook - LCD - iBook case + iPVR case = $?
Okay, so $1099 eMac - ? for CRT vs. $999 ibook - ? for LCD...
I had an idea about a remote control. Superficially its a normal PVR remote for controlling the channels, volume, rewinding fowarding, etc. But it opens like a Nokia communicator to reveal a small thumb keyboard in a standard qwerty layout and a trackpad for navigation. No LCD screen so instead of it opening up like the communicator it should hinge all the way around. The batteries could be kept on the hinge like those small Sony laptops. This would be ideal for sending messages via the device or entering in long titles for searches and such. Even web browsing would not be out of the question. Integrate this with my consumer video conferencing idea, this may be the killer app Apple needs.
<a href="http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2003/jan/07rendezvous.html"; target="_blank">TiVo, Brother & Aspyr Announce Rendezvous Networked Products</a>
Could someone change the title to "CONFIRMED..."