Got one! Now what?

[dshinnick]

Hey gang-

I finally found a Directivo at a thrift store, a series one Hughes. Tivo has confirmed that it has a lifetime subscription. It doesn't have a hard drive (I can fix that), nor an access card. My big question is, what's the benefit of a DTivo having lifetime? Does it save the owner the $5/month Tivo fee? The $6 Directv mirroring fee? Both?

Right now, with no hard drive, it stops at the "Powering up..." message, but that's to be expected; at least it turns on!

And, just for the heck of it, after I replace the hard drive and image, can I take the access card from one of my other Dtivo's and expect it to work in this series one?

Thanks experts-

Dave

[rminsk]

If you found it in a thrift store then most likely you will not be able to get the lifetime subscription. When DirecTV took over the DirecTiVo the lifetime was transfered from the box to the account. The only way to get lifetime would be for the person who owned the box before you to close there DirecTV account and explicity transfer the lifetime to your DirecTV account.

Lifetime saves you the DVR fee. You will still have to pay mirroring fees for every receiver after the first one on your account.

The access card can be transfered but a CSR has to remarry the card to the DirecTiVo.

[dshinnick]

Ok, back to the store it goes. Maybe next time I'll find a *real* Tivo w/lifetime.

:O)

dave

[Stanley Rohner]

The access card can be transfered but a CSR has to remarry the card to the DirecTiVo.

DIRECTV will tell you that you have to get a new access card for it. I think it's about $20 for a new card. You bought the unit at a thrift store, what's another $20 for a new access card ? That's always been the standard practice when someone buys a used receiver and wants to add it to their DIRECTV account.

Some people claim they call DIRECTV and whine about it and they transfer it for them after xx number of phone calls and spending a lot of time on the phone being a crybaby.

[dshinnick]

True, I could probably cry and do it. But, it's only saving $5/month, and that's only if it's your first DTivo, because the fee is a per-household fee. I looked on Ebay and DTivo's with lifetime are selling for the grand sum of $50-60. Not worth it. Now, where did I put that darned receipt??

[Stanley Rohner]

I think most thrift store items are - SOLD AS IS, NO REFUNDS.

[eboydog]

You could just mod it, put it on your home network, run superpatch to enable MRV and HMO. I run a Dtivo in my son's room, he records shows he wants on the the subbed Dtivo and then transfers them to the the one in his room. I delete he shows off the subbed after they are transfered which frees up the main one (his taste in tv is much different than mine) Also he likes it just to listen music and streaming internet audio since I run JavaHMO on the PC side.

There's no such thing as a useless working Dtivo even if it can't be subbed.

Check out the underground section to find out more.

If it's a S1 then I guess you might need to get a one of those turbo/cach card for ethernet since as I understand the S1 Dtivo's don't have USB.....

[dshinnick]

What a bunch of great ideas! First, Goodwill will accept returns of electrical items, for store credit. Fine with me; I buy a fair amount of stuff from them. Second, I already have two Series 1 Dtivo's in my garage without lifetime, so I don't need another one. Last, if I put a DTivo in my son's room, I'd probably never see him again!

Hmmmm....why didn't I think of that sooner? Be right back........

[rpdre1]

You could just mod it, put it on your home network, run superpatch to enable MRV and HMO. I run a Dtivo in my son's room, he records shows he wants on the the subbed Dtivo and then transfers them to the the one in his room. I delete he shows off the subbed after they are transfered which frees up the main one (his taste in tv is much different than mine) Also he likes it just to listen music and streaming internet audio since I run JavaHMO on the PC side.

There's no such thing as a useless working Dtivo even if it can't be subbed.

Check out the underground section to find out more.

If it's a S1 then I guess you might need to get a one of those turbo/cach card for ethernet since as I understand the S1 Dtivo's don't have USB.....


actually even with the turbo/cachecard, he can't superpatch the S1 dtivo because the mrv/hmo code is not in the S1 TiVo OS versions.

[naijai]

lifetime agreements are for only those who purchased it on their acct when it was available ypu can get 200 boxes with the lifetime and you will still be billed the tivo service fee so before yu hit ebay with the wrong info
""purchase a used receiver = purchasing a new access card"
""whether the receiver has lifetime on it or not cannot be transferred from one account to another"

[rminsk]

l"whether the receiver has lifetime on it or not cannot be transferred from one account to another"It can be transfered from one account to another. The account being transfered from has to be closed in order to transfer.