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Using a Tivo w/o Service?

3K views 14 replies 6 participants last post by  lillevig 
#1 ·
So I am considering putting a new tv in a second living room with a tivo...however the only reason I want the tivo is for the ability to transfer shows from the tivo HD which is in the main viewing area.

I don't record a bunch of shows, so I don't need the capability to record more shows than I do now. So I was wondering if I could just get a tivo with no service and simply use it to transfer shows. Is that possible?

I'm thinking I might have to get one that is used and previously activated?
 
#2 ·
Not possible to transfer shows without a subscription. You could transfer shows from your subbed Tivo to a PC and use something like a Western Digital media player. The files would need to be converted from the .Tivo format using something like kmttg (there is a thread here about that free SW).
 
#3 ·
Crap.

I thought about transferring to a pc, but that doesn't solve my issue of not wanting the expense of lifetime service (I have a problem buying a tivo and then paying every month for it, so mine have lifetime only). But in this situation I don't want to pay 300 for lifetime for this room.

Suppose I could find a used lifetime on ebay or CL...maybe.
 
#4 ·
Crap.

I thought about transferring to a pc, but that doesn't solve my issue of not wanting the expense of lifetime service (I have a problem buying a tivo and then paying every month for it, so mine have lifetime only). But in this situation I don't want to pay 300 for lifetime for this room.

Suppose I could find a used lifetime on ebay or CL...maybe.
Did I misunderstand? I thought you had a lifetime unit and just wanted a way to get shows from it to another TV. The PC method requires a little more work but after the files are copied (in a usable format) to the PC you can just copy them to an external USB drive and then plug that into the media player unit that is connected to your Tivoless TV. Some media player units even let you network wirelessly to your PC to stream video directly from there.
 
#6 ·
No you didn't miss anything. I just don't have a spare pc to do this with, so what I was getting with the 300 buck service cost was that I'd have to spend 300 for a pc to do this with...in which case I should just buy a TiVo with lifetime.
The media player unit does not require a PC to work. You just plug in a USB drive with the recordings on it.
 
#8 ·
Don't I have to plug it into a pc to get the recordings on it?

Either way I was hoping for an easy (not that this is hard) remote operated/on demand solution.
No, what you plug into the PC is the USB drive so you can copy the recordings that you transferred from your Tivo. Then you sneakernet the USB drive to the room where the media player is connected to your TV. The USB drive is what gets plugged into the media player unit.
 
#9 ·
You could split the HDMI output from the Tivo HD, run a cable to your other room and control the Tivo HD with a smart phone.
 
#10 ·
Seconded the opinion above. Roku allows you to look at Nfs file systems, while the Sony media player handles dlna files. Not enchanted with dlna, but I've been using it to play things on my vortexbox. Now when I automate slurping things from the TiVo to archive it on the vortexbox, I will be very happy.
 
#11 ·
No, what you plug into the PC is the USB drive so you can copy the recordings that you transferred from your Tivo. Then you sneakernet the USB drive to the room where the media player is connected to your TV. The USB drive is what gets plugged into the media player unit.
I use a WD Live unit to do what you say here. Its connected to a TV that does not have a TiVo. Of course you will not be able to download Copy Protected shows to the PC so keep this in mind.
 
#12 ·
tv in a second living room ... just get a tivo with no service and simply use it to transfer shows. Is that possible?
The capabilities are all there with the old HR10-250 as a playback station.

Unfortunately, the transfer capability is cumbersome without the extensive use of scripting. I've jerry-rigged the process between a Tivo 3 and the HR10, but very crudely and still requiring more hands-on than any rational person would put up with.

The basic problem is that the HR10-250, with current software, can only deal with old .tmf/.ty type files, not any type of normal mpeg. So the Tivo files need to be processed, which is trivial but requires several steps and has not been automated. Plus the files (assuming hidef) are very large so the processing and transfer time is substantial; it really needs to be done on some kind of ongoing scripted process rather than on-demand.

It's a shame no one has taken on the modification of the existing TivoServer/MovieLoader for exactly the use you describe. There is no interest among those with the skills, probably because the HR10-250 is regarded as just too slow to make it interesting as a playback station.
 
#13 ·
I use a WD Live unit to do what you say here. Its connected to a TV that does not have a TiVo. Of course you will not be able to download Copy Protected shows to the PC so keep this in mind.
From what I've gathered in other threads, the whole copy protection thing for Tivo recorded shows seems to be highly cable provider dependent. I've yet to see anything on my Tivos that is marked as not being able to be tranferred or copied to the PC.
 
#14 ·
From what I've gathered in other threads, the whole copy protection thing for Tivo recorded shows seems to be highly cable provider dependent. I've yet to see anything on my Tivos that is marked as not being able to be tranferred or copied to the PC.
That may very well be true. I can verify that Cablevision in my area has a copy flag on the premium channels and some of these even need a TA.
 
#15 ·
That may very well be true. I can verify that Cablevision in my area has a copy flag on the premium channels and some of these even need a TA.
Premium channels (HBO, etc.) I would expect but I've read that some folks can't even copy many non-premium channel recordings. ESPN and TCM are about as "premium" as I get. :D
 
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