TiVo TCD540080 (80 GB) 80-Hours DVR
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- Type: Video Recorder (DVR)
- Broadcast Type: Cable Satellite
- Compatible Service: TiVo
- Analog Tuner: NTSC
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Watch TV on YOUR terms with Tivo
Pros
User friendly, cheap monthly fee, can't live without it!
Cons
Somewhat confusing setup.
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
I would definitely recommend Tivo to anyone. The 80 hour unit is more than enough. Once you have Tivo, you can't live without it!
My wife had her bridal shower back in June, 2006 and one of the guests purchased Tivo for us. At first, I thought this was a poor gift choice, however, over the last few months, I have found that this is a new necessity in our household, and something we cannot live without.
My wife and I are both busy professionals, between work, socializing, caring for a crazy puppy and everything else. Like most Americans, we have our favorite shows, but due to prior commitments, we don't always get to see them. No longer! Now that we have Tivo, we can watch TV on our terms, not the cable company's!
I am not a tech geek, but I can certainly set up a computer, television, DVD player and other common household electronics. I will admit, Tivo was a bit of a challenge. Our entertainment system, like most people, consists of a television, a DVD player, a receiver and a surround sound system. There were plenty of wires to begin with, so when I opened the Tivo box and found more wires and more instructions, I almost wanted to return the product and say forget it! But after some minor tinkering, and a call to Tivo, I was able to successfully initiate the setup.
Prior to actually using the Tivo service, you must call Tivo and create an account and initiate a payment plan. I understand that Tivo used to offer a lifetime subscription for $300, but they have temporarily done away with that. So I elected to pay on a month-to-month basis for a measly $12.95/month. Within a day or two, the service kicked on and I was ready to roll.
The Tivo system comes with a very user friendly remote control and a very user friendly interface. Guiding yourself through the initial setup was a breeze and I encountered no problems at all.
The unit we have, the TCD540080 (80 hours) has performed exceptionally well. We quickly learned how to use the Season-Pass manager, as well as how to record our favorite shows.
At this time, we do not have digital cable, and after reading some of the other reviews, I have seen where a number of people have complained about the picture quality. I agree....somewhat. The quality of the recording could certainly be better, but I found that after watching only a few shows, I almost forgot about the quality. It is by no means "bad quality"....it's just not as good as live TV.
Perhaps the two best features of the unit are the Instant Replay function on the remote control. Let's say you're watching a football game and you want to see that amazing play again. Simply hit the Instant Replay button on the remote and you'll get an automatic 8 second rewind. Awesome for sports and if you're watching a show/movie and you miss a line. The other incredible feature of this unit is the ability to pause live TV. Let's say you are in the middle of watching your favorite show, and the phone rings. Just hit pause. When you return, hit play and you will pick up right where you left off! Pausing live TV is amazing!
Now for the downside. As the others have said, you can't watch one channel and record another. This is something that Tivo will undoubtedly fix in the future, but for now, we must live with it. The other negative feature of this is when Tivo is programmed to record something and you are in the middle of watching another show. An annoying little prompt comes up, prompting you to either change the channel, or cancel the recording.
Aside from the two negative aspects of this unit, I have been very happy with it. Currently, I am addicted to watching shows on Food TV. I have a season pass to my favorite shows, and as I continue to add requests, Tivo actually learns what I like and starts recording shows which it thinks I may be interested in....a very neat function!
Overall, my wife and I are very happy with this unit. We have found that 80 hours of recording time is more than plenty for our needs. The unit has plenty of space and you can adjust the settings so that a particular show will not get erased until you manually erase it.
In sum, this is a great product and it is one of those things that you wonder "how did I ever live without this?"
My wife and I are both busy professionals, between work, socializing, caring for a crazy puppy and everything else. Like most Americans, we have our favorite shows, but due to prior commitments, we don't always get to see them. No longer! Now that we have Tivo, we can watch TV on our terms, not the cable company's!
I am not a tech geek, but I can certainly set up a computer, television, DVD player and other common household electronics. I will admit, Tivo was a bit of a challenge. Our entertainment system, like most people, consists of a television, a DVD player, a receiver and a surround sound system. There were plenty of wires to begin with, so when I opened the Tivo box and found more wires and more instructions, I almost wanted to return the product and say forget it! But after some minor tinkering, and a call to Tivo, I was able to successfully initiate the setup.
Prior to actually using the Tivo service, you must call Tivo and create an account and initiate a payment plan. I understand that Tivo used to offer a lifetime subscription for $300, but they have temporarily done away with that. So I elected to pay on a month-to-month basis for a measly $12.95/month. Within a day or two, the service kicked on and I was ready to roll.
The Tivo system comes with a very user friendly remote control and a very user friendly interface. Guiding yourself through the initial setup was a breeze and I encountered no problems at all.
The unit we have, the TCD540080 (80 hours) has performed exceptionally well. We quickly learned how to use the Season-Pass manager, as well as how to record our favorite shows.
At this time, we do not have digital cable, and after reading some of the other reviews, I have seen where a number of people have complained about the picture quality. I agree....somewhat. The quality of the recording could certainly be better, but I found that after watching only a few shows, I almost forgot about the quality. It is by no means "bad quality"....it's just not as good as live TV.
Perhaps the two best features of the unit are the Instant Replay function on the remote control. Let's say you're watching a football game and you want to see that amazing play again. Simply hit the Instant Replay button on the remote and you'll get an automatic 8 second rewind. Awesome for sports and if you're watching a show/movie and you miss a line. The other incredible feature of this unit is the ability to pause live TV. Let's say you are in the middle of watching your favorite show, and the phone rings. Just hit pause. When you return, hit play and you will pick up right where you left off! Pausing live TV is amazing!
Now for the downside. As the others have said, you can't watch one channel and record another. This is something that Tivo will undoubtedly fix in the future, but for now, we must live with it. The other negative feature of this is when Tivo is programmed to record something and you are in the middle of watching another show. An annoying little prompt comes up, prompting you to either change the channel, or cancel the recording.
Aside from the two negative aspects of this unit, I have been very happy with it. Currently, I am addicted to watching shows on Food TV. I have a season pass to my favorite shows, and as I continue to add requests, Tivo actually learns what I like and starts recording shows which it thinks I may be interested in....a very neat function!
Overall, my wife and I are very happy with this unit. We have found that 80 hours of recording time is more than plenty for our needs. The unit has plenty of space and you can adjust the settings so that a particular show will not get erased until you manually erase it.
In sum, this is a great product and it is one of those things that you wonder "how did I ever live without this?"
