I've had various TiVo boxes for a long time (about 12 years). In 2015 my current one crashed. I was bummed, but mine all seem to last about 5 years, so I was expecting it. I decided to get a Roamio. I bought one with lifetime service and a Mini for the other room. It came to about $800. I used the exact same cables, cable card and tuning adapter I had for my old TiVo. Since then, Cox has given me a new cable card and tuning adapter to try and address my problem.
I didn't have problems initially, but then it started freezing. When I say freezing, I would push play on a recorded show, and the screen would go black. It would make the TiVo button sound for certain buttons, but not others. For instance, the TiVo or Channel Up buttons would make a sound, but not Channel down. And that was very consistent. But even the buttons that were making sounds wouldn't do anything. I would also get problems with only recording about 2-3 minutes of a show. When I look in the history, it says it didn't record because it was a duplicate. The only fix I could find was to unplug the Roamio. That would work...until the next time I had the problem.
Cox has been out three times, and they insist that the signal is well within the normal parameters. Cox has been fairly pleasant and always willing to send someone out, but they don't seem very motivated to fix what they see as a TiVo problem.
I'm a huge fan of TiVo, but I've never had to deal with technical support until now, and it is TERRIBLE. At this point I've spent over 24 hours with TiVo technical support. Basically, their answer is always that it's Cox's fault, or that I need to put splitters on the signal because it's too high. At one point, I had five splitters on the cable coming in, but still had the same problem, but with the added joy of recordings being pixelated or glitchy. I've been dealing with this problem for over a year and they are rude and not interested in fixing it at all. Literally, the only thing that changed was the TiVo box, and they can't fathom that it's the Roamio that is the problem.
The big problem is that these issues don't show up immediately. I've had four different Roamio boxes and the problems don't show up for a couple of months. And then they start getting more frequent. it will freeze/not record once a month, then every other week, then it gets to where it's doing it every day. It's been the same pattern with each box and now, on my fourth box, it's either recording 2 minutes or nothing at all of most of my shows. Thankfully, I can use Cox on Demand or the internet so I don't miss anything, but what's the point of having a TiVo?
After many hours of dealing with TiVo technical support, I tried dealing with TiVo customer support, which is even worse. I suggested returning the Roamio and paying whatever the difference would be to go to a Bolt, to see if that would fix the problem. Unfortunately, because the problem didn't occur within a month of my purchase, "There's nothing we can do." I can keep the Roamio, but if I want a Bolt, I have to pay full price. So, for another $1,000, I can keep my Roamio with lifetime service that only records 2 minutes of a show, if that, and have a Bolt with lifetime service, that might work, but also might work just long enough for me not to be able to return it.
I've been all over the internet and spent countless hours with technical support. I don't believe I will ever be able to fix the problem with the Roamio. So, my question is, does anyone think the Bolt will have the same problem? Should I just sell the Roamio and settle for Cox's inferior Countour? Should I give Bolt a try and return it within a month?
I didn't have problems initially, but then it started freezing. When I say freezing, I would push play on a recorded show, and the screen would go black. It would make the TiVo button sound for certain buttons, but not others. For instance, the TiVo or Channel Up buttons would make a sound, but not Channel down. And that was very consistent. But even the buttons that were making sounds wouldn't do anything. I would also get problems with only recording about 2-3 minutes of a show. When I look in the history, it says it didn't record because it was a duplicate. The only fix I could find was to unplug the Roamio. That would work...until the next time I had the problem.
Cox has been out three times, and they insist that the signal is well within the normal parameters. Cox has been fairly pleasant and always willing to send someone out, but they don't seem very motivated to fix what they see as a TiVo problem.
I'm a huge fan of TiVo, but I've never had to deal with technical support until now, and it is TERRIBLE. At this point I've spent over 24 hours with TiVo technical support. Basically, their answer is always that it's Cox's fault, or that I need to put splitters on the signal because it's too high. At one point, I had five splitters on the cable coming in, but still had the same problem, but with the added joy of recordings being pixelated or glitchy. I've been dealing with this problem for over a year and they are rude and not interested in fixing it at all. Literally, the only thing that changed was the TiVo box, and they can't fathom that it's the Roamio that is the problem.
The big problem is that these issues don't show up immediately. I've had four different Roamio boxes and the problems don't show up for a couple of months. And then they start getting more frequent. it will freeze/not record once a month, then every other week, then it gets to where it's doing it every day. It's been the same pattern with each box and now, on my fourth box, it's either recording 2 minutes or nothing at all of most of my shows. Thankfully, I can use Cox on Demand or the internet so I don't miss anything, but what's the point of having a TiVo?
After many hours of dealing with TiVo technical support, I tried dealing with TiVo customer support, which is even worse. I suggested returning the Roamio and paying whatever the difference would be to go to a Bolt, to see if that would fix the problem. Unfortunately, because the problem didn't occur within a month of my purchase, "There's nothing we can do." I can keep the Roamio, but if I want a Bolt, I have to pay full price. So, for another $1,000, I can keep my Roamio with lifetime service that only records 2 minutes of a show, if that, and have a Bolt with lifetime service, that might work, but also might work just long enough for me not to be able to return it.
I've been all over the internet and spent countless hours with technical support. I don't believe I will ever be able to fix the problem with the Roamio. So, my question is, does anyone think the Bolt will have the same problem? Should I just sell the Roamio and settle for Cox's inferior Countour? Should I give Bolt a try and return it within a month?
