Comcast OnDemand

[timstack8969]

I'm thinking about getting a New HDTV this Christmas and of coarse I would have to get TIVO HD. My question do people miss the Comcast Ondemand feature because I know the cable cards don't support this. I love TIVO but there are sometimes I do use the Ondemand. Will I miss this comcast feature with the TIVO HD?

[RonDawg]

None of the CableCard-capable TiVo models support On Demand, and require that Pay Per View be ordered over the telephone (or some other means other than via the TiVo's remote control).

If VoD is important to you, and you want a CableCard-capable TiVo, one solution is to get a non-DVR box from your cable provider just for this specific purpose.

[ferrumpneuma]

I wonder why something like the tuning resolver for SDV can't be developed for PPV and OnDemand for series 3 tivos.

[hiker]

You should be able to get the digital box free if it is on your primary TV. See the 2nd to last answer in this FAQ at Comcast here (http://www.comcast.com/customers/faq/FaqDetails.ashx?ID=2540).

[joe mama]

Would I be able to get HD channels and HD ON Demand thru the digital cable box? I couldn't find the answer on the Comcast site.

[ZeoTiVo]

I wonder why something like the tuning resolver for SDV can't be developed for PPV and OnDemand for series 3 tivos.

because a user interface is also needed and TiVo can not get in the business of coding one for each cable company.

Thus the series 4 with Tru2way is in the works that will provide the OCAP sandbox (java based) that will let each cable co download their UI just for the VOD/PPV part - then you switch back to TiVo interface for DVR and other TiVo features.

this series 4 will most likely not show up till 2010 though.

[charms]

Sure, you might miss OnDemand for a little while, but you always have Amazon UnBox for video on demand. My thoughts on TiVo/UnBox versus OnDemand:

- First and foremost, TiVo is effectively the world's best personalized OnDemand. You'll have so much great content recorded by TiVo for you -- ready to watch when you want it -- that you won't need OnDemand. People watch OnDemand because "nothing else is on" but with TiVo there is always something on just for you.
- In my experience, OnDemand gets new release movies a bit sooner, but UnBox has a much bigger back catalog.
- OnDemand has HD content, and UnBox doesn't (but if rumors are correct, this will change within the next year)
- If you miss a network TV program, you can always download it to your PC and then transfer it to your TiVo. More complex than getting it direct from OnDemand, but I've only had to do this once or twice because TiVo simply doesn't screw up.

[RonDawg]

Would I be able to get HD channels and HD ON Demand thru the digital cable box? I couldn't find the answer on the Comcast site.

Yes as long as you get an HD STB and you have enough HD inputs on your TV for both the STB and the TiVo.

[joe mama]

Yes as long as you get an HD STB and you have enough HD inputs on your TV for both the STB and the TiVo.

So I would have to pay extra for the HD STB over the Digital STB?

[20TIL6]

Between Amazon, Jaman, CinemaNow, and Netflix on deck.... plus all the recorded broadcast content, OnDemand via cable is not something I am missing at all.

[nirisahn]

I wouldn't compare OnDemand with Unbox, Jaman, etc. for one reason. OnDemand comes with the box and doesn't cost any extra, unless you order PPV or want to watch something from a premier service (like HBO) to which you don't subscribe. Unbox, Jaman, etc. charge per download. So it's not really a fair comparison.

Next step then is to compare the monthly cost of an HD or regular cable box with what it would cost to download Unbox, etc. How often do you usually watch something from OnDemand? Is it often enough that the monthly box rent would be cheaper than the occasional download? Do you like the amount of choice available from OnDemand? And so on.

I have Comcast and 3 TiVos, one of which is HD. I still have an HD Comcast receiver that is hooked up both directly to my HDTV and to a non-HD TiVo. If I want to watch OnDemand in HD, I can. If I need to record more than two shows, I can. And the HD broadcast still looks better on my regular TiVo than a standard broadcast would. It's the best of both worlds! Good thing the tv has enough hookups on it for all the stuff I have going to it.

[20TIL6]

Point taken, I did not consider OnDemand as free content. I thought of it as all PPV. Still, I don't find myself missing OnDemand via cable.

[ewilts]

You should be able to get the digital box free if it is on your primary TV. See the 2nd to last answer in this FAQ at Comcast here (http://www.comcast.com/customers/faq/FaqDetails.ashx?ID=2540).
When I asked Comcast, they told me $6.95 per month. Thanks for the link - I'll forward that to them and see if they'll change their minds...

[jcaudle]

I am a big Tivo booster, but Amazon is no replacement for On Demand's free elements. For example you can watch current season episodes of Dexter if you subscribe to Showtime for no extra charge. Amazon costs 2 bucks for an episode if they even have a particular series. It would be nice to see Tivo be able to integrate Hulu and Abc/Cbs site content for download. That way you could watch any episodes that you might have missed. The commercial content on Hulu/Cbs/ABC is far less than watching it on regular TV.

[mattack]

But if you subscribe to Showtime, why not just tivo them? Don't get me wrong, I actually wish that Tivo would work with hulu, mostly for when I miss *parts* of an episode (couldn't pad because of a conflict).