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Frustrated with TiVo Premiere. Is this normal?

1862 Views 18 Replies 10 Participants Last post by  atmuscarella, 
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My wife and I were very happy with our Series2 DT for the past 5 years. When our CRT TV start going and we replaced it with a modest LCD HDTV we realized that the Series2 hooked up the LCD via composite (no S-video on the new TV, no component) on the TiVo really looked awful, however. After talking through our "upgrade" options with a service rep we ended up ordering a new Premier with lifetime service, since the previous TiVo had been rock-solid for years.

We've been regretting it ever since. We've got an HD picture that looks great on the new TV, and I can finally record two shows at the same time (which hasn't really been an option since they stuck us on a cable box). Overall if I could go back to our old TV and our old TiVo I'd be much happier, though.

- The HD menus aren't usable, but everyone seems to know (and accept) that.m A serious WTF, but I'm not going to beat a dead horse here. After having it lock up at the Now Playing screen more times than I can count I switched to the SD menus.

- Every two or three days after pressing a button on the remote it will randomly start playing the intro video and be unusable for a minute or two until it ends up at the home screen. It seems to happen the most when going from live TV to the main menu or vice versa, but it's also happened when bringing up the guide. This is after disabling the HD menus.

- Fast forwarding seems to lag some times to the point where it's 5 minute past the end of a commercial when it realizes I want to watch TV. I'm sitting there jamming the play button repeatedly with the yellow light showing up on the front panel, but it's still plowing forward past the point I want. It finally realizes what I want and plays, but then it's time to rewind back. Not a huge deal, but really annoying considering I NEVER had a problem like this with the previous model

- The on-demand video streams that were supposed to be the big feature of the Premiere that set it apart from the previous model just don't work well. The Netflix interface is a pain in the butt compared to my Xbox and still doesn't do subtitles. I tried to pull up something on Hulu today and tried three times to get to the Family Guy episode I was looking for before I gave up. The interface was so incredibly slow and laggy I kept going a couple steps further than I wanted to go (arrowing past season 10 back to season 2). I couldn't figure out a way to go back to the main Hulu screen from (bad) search results without going through the main TiVo screen, which mean waiting for the entire thing to load again. Maybe I just lack the proper patience, but I REALLY do not appreciate TV watching becoming a hassle.

Are these problems normal? I don't think all this would bug me nearly as much if I hadn't have sprung for the lifetime plan. If I were still yearly I could at least try to talk a service rep into a credit since the new unit has really been sub-par, but aside from fixing their problems (which they don't seem to be doing) there doesn't seem to be a lot they can offer me. Is there anything I can do about the unpleasant experience with the Premiere? We used to be some of the biggest TiVo advocates, and loved using our Series2. Now I can't think of any reason to recommend TiVo, however.
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smbaker
Yes, these are average, typical complaints, aside from the fast-forward issue (haven't seen that one myself).

Personally though I get along fine with the HDUI. It's often an Internet connectivity issue that exasperates this problem. The box still doesn't handle less-than-perfect Internet connections gracefully. As such, you might want to look for connectivity issues (wireless in particular, if you're using that).

As far as Netflix and Amazon plugins, you're seeing the cobwebs and layers of dust that indicates the programmers haven't touched those apps in a long, long time.
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atmuscarella
bearda said:
- The HD menus aren't usable, but everyone seems to know (and accept) that.m A serious WTF, but I'm not going to beat a dead horse here. After having it lock up at the Now Playing screen more times than I can count I switched to the SD menus.
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If you have not done so restart the Premiere.

There have been plenty of problems with the HDUI in the past. However since the last software update the HDUI works fairly well. How long have you had the Premiere? has the unit been updated to the latest software? As smbaker indicated a flaky Internet connection can cause problems

bearda said:
- Every two or three days after pressing a button on the remote it will randomly start playing the intro video and be unusable for a minute or two until it ends up at the home screen. It seems to happen the most when going from live TV to the main menu or vice versa, but it's also happened when bringing up the guide. This is after disabling the HD menus.
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I have not had this problem - others have reported something similar.

bearda said:
- Fast forwarding seems to lag some times to the point where it's 5 minute past the end of a commercial when it realizes I want to watch TV. I'm sitting there jamming the play button repeatedly with the yellow light showing up on the front panel, but it's still plowing forward past the point I want. It finally realizes what I want and plays, but then it's time to rewind back. Not a huge deal, but really annoying considering I NEVER had a problem like this with the previous model
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Again I have not seen this problem

bearda said:
- The on-demand video streams that were supposed to be the big feature of the Premiere that set it apart from the previous model just don't work well. The Netflix interface is a pain in the butt compared to my Xbox and still doesn't do subtitles. I tried to pull up something on Hulu today and tried three times to get to the Family Guy episode I was looking for before I gave up. The interface was so incredibly slow and laggy I kept going a couple steps further than I wanted to go (arrowing past season 10 back to season 2). I couldn't figure out a way to go back to the main Hulu screen from (bad) search results without going through the main TiVo screen, which mean waiting for the entire thing to load again. Maybe I just lack the proper patience, but I REALLY do not appreciate TV watching becoming a hassle.
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I don't use Netflix but everyone says there are issues. I have used Hulu+ and did not have issues beyond the fact that so much of what is available when you access Hulu on a computer is not available on Hulu+ when using a connected device like a TiVo this is a Hulu issue not a TiVo issue. I did find it was much easier to add stuff to my queue using my computer.

I would call Tivo support you really sound like you are having way more issues than what I think is normal now. Maybe they will replace your unit.

Good Luck,
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U
If you can return the Premiere (and get your money back on the lifetime) you may want to consider getting a series 3 unit. They have been around for many years and are pretty solid units from a software perspective.

Because the series 3 unit are older, some hardware issues can and do come up (hard drive, power supply ect). You can still find new Tivo HD's on e-bay sometimes.

Good luck.
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aaronwt
uw69 said:
If you can return the Premiere (and get your money back on the lifetime) you may want to consider getting a series 3 unit. They have been around for many years and are pretty solid units from a software perspective.

Because the series 3 unit are older, some hardware issues can and do come up (hard drive, power supply ect). You can still find new Tivo HD's on e-bay sometimes.

Good luck.
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They can also switch to using the SD menus in the Premiere. Although personally I can't stand using the SD menus. I keep my boxes on the HDUI. But since I hate the SD menus it's also one of the thinge I hate about the unfinished HDUI since it still switches back to some of the SD menus.

I know for me, I can't stand using my girlfriends' S3 boxes. I liked using them in 2006, but I would not want to go back to using them in 2011.
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N
i guess i have different issues..the HD menu is somewhat usable but i have my own router issues independently so it becomes a real hassle, not tivos fault though but i do think it's nuts you cant search while the internet is down

i dont have your FF issue nor your intro issue...2nd week with tivo here, hope it doesnt show

i DO have a recurring issue of snow...the HDMI kicks out i guess and i get all snow...rebooting the tv or sometimes just waiting fixes it but i shudder to think of the POP noise i'd hear if i had a movie running thru my stereo..

one problem no one else here has had was that for streaming netflix and hulu i cant see the picture. i can seee the bar moving, i can see the closed captioning, i can see all the right stuff in the menus etc but i cannot see the actual streaming pic! component solves the problem but who wants to use component :) so i'm dumping my free hulu once it's over and using wii for netflix when i even bother to use it.

both hulu and tivo have never heard of my problem either so it must be my 6 yr old hdmi tv connection BUT my HR20 and HR10 never had this issue so it's definitely a tivo issue
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crxssi
bearda said:
Frustrated with TiVo Premiere. Is this normal?
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I can see by your post count that you haven't been here long :) Yes, it is quite normal.

- The HD menus aren't usable, but everyone seems to know (and accept) that.m A serious WTF, but I'm not going to beat a dead horse here. After having it lock up at the Now Playing screen more times than I can count I switched to the SD menus.
Click to expand...
Some people find them usable. I certainly don't. Way too slow, clunky, laggy, and irritating for me. Yes, it would be beating a dead horse, but it is part of your initiation here :)

- Every two or three days after pressing a button on the remote it will randomly start playing the intro video and be unusable for a minute or two until it ends up at the home screen. It seems to happen the most when going from live TV to the main menu or vice versa, but it's also happened when bringing up the guide. This is after disabling the HD menus.
Click to expand...
Yep. Happens to me nearly every day. It is a nasty bug that was introduced a few updates ago and was NOT fixed with the last update. Irritating.

- Fast forwarding seems to lag some times to the point where it's 5 minute past the end of a commercial when it realizes I want to watch TV. I'm sitting there jamming the play button repeatedly with the yellow light showing up on the front panel, but it's still plowing forward past the point I want. It finally realizes what I want and plays, but then it's time to rewind back. Not a huge deal, but really annoying considering I NEVER had a problem like this with the previous model
Click to expand...
Now that one is interesting. It was a SERIOUS problem a few versions ago, but for me that was completely solved after the last update.

- The on-demand video streams that were supposed to be the big feature of the Premiere that set it apart from the previous model just don't work well. The Netflix interface is a pain in the butt
Click to expand...
Yep. Welcome to an interface that hasn't been updated IN YEARS. It does work, eventually. Just not terribly well.

Are these problems normal?
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Yes. And more. I guess you haven't hit the "this group is empty" SDUI bug that is a throwback to the TiVo HD and has not been fixed IN YEARS. Or the very serious "Stops responding to remote command" and sits there dead for anywhere from 2 to 40 minutes. That one really burns my butt.

.... Is there anything I can do about the unpleasant experience with the Premiere? We used to be some of the biggest TiVo advocates, and loved using our Series2. Now I can't think of any reason to recommend TiVo, however.
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Nope. Not really. Sorry. You can call and complain to TiVo. You can write them a letter. You can sign up as a TiVo Adviser and fill out surveys. Not much else you can do but just sit and wait like all the rest of us, hoping they will EVENTUALLY fix all these bugs (without introducing new ones), and SERIOUSLY improve the performance.
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crxssi
atmuscarella said:
I would call Tivo support you really sound like you are having way more issues than what I think is normal now. Maybe they will replace your unit.
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I would absolutely call. But I can almost guarantee that replacing the box will do nothing to fix most of the issues. See me previous post...
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crxssi
aaronwt said:
They can also switch to using the SD menus in the Premiere.
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He already said he is using the SDUI (just like me) because he can't stand how clumsy and slow the HDUI is (just like me). It doesn't solve the problems he mentioned (other than avoiding the slow/frustrating HDUI).
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aaronwt
crxssi said:
He already said he is using the SDUI (just like me) because he can't stand how clumsy and slow the HDUI is (just like me). It doesn't solve the problems he mentioned (other than avoiding the slow/frustrating HDUI).
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Then his problems aren't normal. I don't encounter them with my six boxes. Of course any UI can always be faster but otherwise it has performed very well on my boxes using my FiOS connection at home or a Verizon DSL connection at my girlfriends house.
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crxssi
aaronwt said:
Then his problems aren't normal. I don't encounter them with my six boxes. Of course any UI can always be faster but otherwise it has performed very well on my boxes using my FiOS connection at home or a Verizon DSL connection at my girlfriends house.
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We already know you never have any problems with your 12 or so TiVo's. But then there is the rest of us! Anyway, three of the bugs listed by he and I are SDUI-only and would not affect you, since you are using the slow/clunky HDUI.

And 90% of the performance issue with HDUI is not related to the speed of the Internet connection. On Cox I get 36Mb/s down, 10Mb/s up, and 15ms ping (which places me in the top 5% in the country)...
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T
None of this is typical for me. Have never seen the start up video in your situation, only use HDUI and it is only slow when my Internet is acting up which is 1x every 2 weeks. Still usable, but I'd switch if it was like that more often. Netflix could be better, but the picture is better than my Xbox was so I live with occasionally having to restart Netflix.

I don't use the SDUI so maybe it is way faster than the HDUI? My only comparison is coming from a dish VIP 722, cable motorola DVR, and my parents direct TV DVR they all had HD interfaces that lock up all the time. So I can empathize with those that may be having problems with their premiere. When I visit my parents I almost throw the remote through the Tv when i have to use their DTV DVR. Weird, experiences vary so much with the new TIVO?
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crxssi
timatkn said:
I don't use the SDUI so maybe it is way faster than the HDUI?
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Much, MUCH faster. Try it and see. You will lose some functionality, however, and it is not "pretty". It is much more no-nonsense. Really, try it out... just so you know what TiVo used to look and act like by default.

My only comparison is coming from a dish VIP 722, cable motorola DVR, and my parents direct TV DVR they all had HD interfaces that lock up all the time. So I can empathize with those that may be having problems with their premiere. When I visit my parents I almost throw the remote through the Tv when i have to use their DTV DVR. Weird, experiences vary so much with the new TIVO?
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People who are patient and/or are used to very slow and/or older cable company DVR's and such are nowhere near as disappointed with the HDUI as previous TiVo owners (especially TiVo HD users) that were used to the SDUI (like me). That explains some of the varying feedback about performance. Everything is relative.
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crxssi said:
Much, MUCH faster. Try it and see. You will lose some functionality, however, and it is not "pretty". It is much more no-nonsense. Really, try it out... just so you know what TiVo used to look and act like by default.

People who are patient and/or are used to very slow and/or older cable company DVR's and such are nowhere near as disappointed with the HDUI as previous TiVo owners (especially TiVo HD users) that were used to the SDUI (like me). That explains some of the varying feedback about performance. Everything is relative.
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I am not going to try the SDUI, I am happy in my ignorance why ruin it :)

It could also be why TIVO seemed behind other providers on using the HD interface. It is just harder to get it to work quickly.

T
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crxssi
timatkn said:
I am not going to try the SDUI, I am happy in my ignorance why ruin it
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You do have a point
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S
Its frustrating. Hell Yes.

I have a premiere with only the hollow promise of a 14.9 Savvior upgrade to rescue me. I have a noise upon start up that im told is probably a fan but to send it to Tivo I will be charged $49 dollar diagnostics under warranty :rolleyes: . Really $49 buck for there defective fan?

I wouldn't mind upgrading to the supposedly fixed elite units but alas I have a lifetime subscription and they wont let us transfer it to a new unit. So I am forced to spend my money elsewhere and get a HD upgrade kit. So hooray to the small business man that recognizes a customers need and services them and boo to Tivo who can make some cash but is seemngly to retarded to figure out upgrades and transfer options. As my WARRANTY does not seem to be worth the paper its printed on I will soon upgrade and go it alone.

I'm not a Tivo hater, I own one for christ sake but the company needs bette management in my opinion as these guys seem on par with the Netflix managers that recently destroyed that company.
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If your tivo is under warranty, you shouldn't have to pay anything.
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I will call back to verify tomorrow but I was told its $49 bucks under warranty and $149 out of warranty O-o
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atmuscarella
mattack said:
If your tivo is under warranty, you shouldn't have to pay anything.
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The only time it is free is for the first 90 days (or if you have purchased an extended warranty) which covers parts and labor.

The warranty only covers parts from 90 days to 1 year. The $49 fee has been TiVos standard "labor" fee during that time period for as long as I have owned a TiVo.

As for the $150 out of warranty replacement fee, that also includes transferring lifetime service to the replacement unit. That seems pretty pro customer to me.

Thanks,
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