New DTV TIVO - kind of a joke it took so long

Strange, I had 2 B-band converters in each of my two boxes. Since I was replacing two HD-DVRs, I didn't even use them.

Stand-by, I never use it. But to each his own I suppose. I learned a long time ago that what works for me doesn't always work for others.

As far as the remote, again, no problems so far with mine. But also be aware, the regular DirecTV DVR remote works with the Tivo too, but you'd be missing the thumbs up and down buttons as well as slow.

Personally, I'm ecstatic to have my Tivo back after so long.

 

My 2 THR's had the B band converters in the accessory box with everything else.
There was one other thread that said the the B band converters were missing.

My remotes work fine, like the feel of the buttons, they don't have the softer feeling like the HR10 remote had. Over the years I have gone through several HR10 tiVo remotes where some of the buttons took a lot of pressure to operate as they wore out.

The only complaint that I have with the THR22 is the fact that the circle of blue insomnia LED's can't be turned off when this box is used in the bedroom.
What were they thinking of when they overlooked this function. Even on low, they light up the room at night.
Its fine to have them on in the living room, but for bedroom applications, the LED's need to have the option of being able to turn them off. I hate the fact that the only option for solving this is by taping a piece of cardboard over the bright blue night light that D* keeps on to antagonize me.

--->>D* is it too much to ask for that in your next software download that you add the option for turning them off? Your other boxes had the off feature, and the only time the LED's came on is when there was an update downloaded which was fine.

 

Supposedly this was a Tivo design choice. Their supports techs use the front panel lights as a diagnostic aid to detect remote control activity, so Tivo decided to disable the full OFF mode for the front panel lights.

 

Advertisements

That is a very lame excuse since the LED's can be turned on from the front panel controls if the remote fails.

 

that is where black electrical tape comes in handy Also its no secret Directv wants this box to fail, I had to call numerous times to try and get one and every single time the rep basicaly was trying to talk me out of it saying it much older technology, does not support MRV, no directv cinema ondemand, etc etc. Its actually some what a pain to get them to actually get past they're trained responces on trying to get you to use the Directv DVR and not the newer tivo one.

 

litzdog,
After discovering how to turn off 3 of the ring LED's, the pressing of the ring buttons on the remote control lights up the ring LED of the same position. when the button on the remote is released, the LED go out.
So if TiVo used that excuse for not having an off setting isn't a valid excuse at all as even when they are off, they will flash when the remote buttons are pressed.
It also shows that a software patch can be made to have an off setting, and still have their diagnostic tool.
So much for excuses.

 

Agreed.

 

So Tivo designed-in a flaw, on its own, DirecTV had nothing to do with it, for a purpose that makes no sense.

According to sources.

Ironically, bizzarre as this sounds, it's one of the more credible accusations against Tivo, IMHO, in this "Who deliberately crippled the new DirecTivo?" exchange of unsupported rumors; its probability may even approach 50%.

 

If you use a DirecTV remote with the THR22, the OFF button will put the unit in standby and someone over at DBSTalk said he managed to find a TiVo TV code for his model that will too.

The code the installer used for ours doesn't work with mute so I plan to do some exprimenting with ours soon to enable both mute and standby.

 

I think the joke, assuming there is one, may be on Tivo fanboys. Or on Tivo the company, itself.

Regarding the theory they want it to fail, DirecTV doesn't seem to feature this DVR much on their website, other than in a features grid that clearly shows that their typical garden-variety DVR has more main features than the new DTivo does. This is clearly not a "premium" DVR as was rumored (although you must pay a premium to use one month to month).

It's an alternative at best, targeted narrowly at the remaining lunatic fringe who still have a nostalgic place in their hearts for the "good old days" of 7 years ago when Tivo reigned supreme (and now is just one more ho-hum nearly-bankrupt DVR UI supplier), and at those who are so miffed by the UI design direction that DTV has taken that they refuse to ever make peace with that (who both together usually comprise the same group of short-sighted elite-ests, anyway).

What do we actually get for our extra few $ a month, one might ask? Suggestions (a fuzzy logic proprietary and all-but-useless feature than typically suggests laughable offerings) and the ability to undelete, which will likely be a wishlist feature added soon to the HD DVR+. And what else? Am I forgetting something? Looking at this another way, aren't a lot of the clever new innovations the HD DVR+ has come up with still very useful features that Tivo never dreamed of or never even considered?

Mind you, I was deeply, hopelessly in love with Tivo myself once upon a time, and I am not out to disparage Tivo; they still make a great UI. It's just sad for them that they basically rested on their laurels and for that sin were promptly and unceremoniously, caught and passed. Its not too hard to picture Tom Rogers sitting on the edge of the bed with his Glock in his mouth.

Regardless (don't do it, Tom) the new DTivo seems like far from a bargain and far from "premium"; more like DTV throwing Tivo a bone to keep them from suing over intellectual property and giving them something not very worthwhile even though it is win-win for DTV. More like "lose-break even" for Tivo.

Apple should get off of that obscenely-huge pile of cash and just buy them already for the patents and be done with it. Make Rogers a VP and give him an office in Cupertino. It's not really a much longer commute.

 

I told D* I would be back when they had a Tivo DVR... I lied. I sholud have said that when they had a better DVR than I had.

 

Obviously, since I bought 2 of them, I have to disagree. And what's funny is, my main reason is what you consider all-but useless. Suggestions are massively important to me. I understand many people dislike them, but for the way I use a DVR, they are one of my favorite features.

But the Tivo does offer more than what you've listed. It's Wishlist function if far superior to the keyword search on the HR boxes. Being able to have more than 50 season passes is another feature. The trick play functions are much better on the Tivo. The prompt to delete a program when you hit the stop button in the last 5 minutes, while a small feature, is still a nice plus. The clip feature is another little plus. And finally, the Tivo guide is my wife's preferred interface.

So I understand this box doesn't have all the features of the HR boxes, but the HR boxes also don't have all the features of the Tivo. You just need to decide which features are most important to you.

 

The "Wishlist" was great. That's the only thing I miss. Well that and the ability to undelete.

 

This is exactly why I am getting rid of Directv very soon and going with a cable/Tivo.

 

Are you trying to convince us, or yourself? Why come here and attack people who are simply happy to the DVR experience that they prefer? You sound like someone who is miffed because you've discovered that some folks consider your old girlfriend prettier than your new girlfriend.

Nearly bankrupt? TiVo has 650 million dollars in the bank and no debt against a loss of just 25 million last quarter. They have a long way to go to get close to bankruptcy.

Wow, why so bitter? Fantasies of a Tom Rogers suicide? Your old girlfriend may be prettier than your new girlfriend, but your new girlfriend isn't that unattractive. In a big-boned, gap toothed, horse faced sort of way, I mean.

You're welcome to your opinion. I doubt that I would agree and I'm not willing to take on a two year commitment just for the privilege of finding out since I'm very happy with my TiVo S3. But the reviews from THR22 owners are revealing. They suggest that while DirecTV has worked hard to check off a bunch of feature boxes that make their DVRs sound comparable to TiVo, they haven't made much progress on fundamental usability.

No wonder you're so miffed.

 

Hide and watch.

Not "miffed" at all or in any way, regardless of and quite contrary to your creepy fantasies. I know you want to make sense out of what makes no sense to you but puh-leeze, desperate much? I am both delighted that DTV stepped up and took the lead with their own DVR and were so astoundingly successful doing it, and saddened that Tivo will give them no real competition by living up to my precise prediction that they would not. That is pretty far from any definition of "miffed".

I would be "miffed" if I were disenfranchised from being able to have the DTivo for any reason, that is if I considered it to have features and capabilities worth paying for, which I am still waiting vainly for anyone to convince me of.

I would be "miffed" if I had just replaced the aging HR10-250 among my 4 DVRs with something worse than the Dtivo (I probably will have to replace it at some point in the next year or two) which of the choices available to DTV subs now seems highly unlikely.

I would be "miffed" if I could not afford the "premium" that it will be costing you and everyone else.

But I AM NOT disenfranchised; it is available in my area; I EASILY could afford it, although I won't have to; and it's a no-brainer that I WILL NOT have to consider replacing my venerable HR10 with anything as pitifully unadvanced as what the new DTivo appears to be. I also am not a bit sorry about any of that, so, hardly "miffed". I already have what I want.

Well, apparently not from the shoddy treatment you seem to want to dole out. If I were welcome to my opinion would I really be forced to tolerate this childishness? And I will remind you it is very likely an opinion that is much more widely held than that of the lunatic fringe. There's not even a love fest over here where one might expect one. Like I said earlier, hide and watch.

You will just have to face the facts, and here they are:

I don't have to like the new DTivo to post here, and you don't have to like the fact that I am not in the least impressed, either with you (never have been), with the DTivo, or with how you treat forum members. I don't have to like any of those things, and you don't have to like the fact that a great number of folks will agree with me and that this is the way things are going to be; you just have to live with it.

And I haven't attacked anyone, personally or otherwise, just expressed my evaluation of the reality before us. Can you claim the same? Pot, meet kettle. And those "girlfriend" fantasies...where did that come from? Really very disturbing. Deer rifle in a clock tower disturbing. You might want to move out from over that paint store and get some fresh air before you actually hurt someone.

 

Lotta gun imagery here. Not cool.

 

Why does the fact that some people prefer something different than you bother you so much? Dismissing a difference in preferences with repeated allusions to a "lunatic fringe" is certainly a personal attack on those people.

I'm amused that you have an opinion on me.

 

I don't think DirecTV wants this to fail, per se, but they don't have any incentive to market this above their own DVRs. This is basically a DVR that is alive so that TiVo won't sue DirecTV.

The likely reason it's so neutered is because TiVo had to port this to a new platform, just like they did with Comcast and the Motorola cable boxes. The THR-22 is much closer to a real TiVo than the Comcast junk, so I would be hopeful that there is a chance that over time, now that it's released, TiVo will work towards bringing this branch of their software up to parity with the Series 4.