[roverwolf]

Smarter/better parental controls would be nice.

One thing that annoys me is that "Rated NR" is not treated like "Not Rated", but means the same thing as far as I can tell, so allowing unrated programming still does not allow "Rated NR" programs.

It would also be really nice to be able to specify certain programs that can be watched when parental controls are on without having to disable the parental controls completely (there are a couple TV-14 programs I let my kid watch, but don't want him to be able to watch other things that are rated that, and I don't want to have to be there so he can watch them).

Another great feature would be to be able to disable parental controls for a specific program when going to the channel instead of having it disabled completely.

 

[weymo]

I'm finding that the controls on the V-chip in my TV work real well with the TiVo. Since the kids use a secondary box, sometimes we get shows for parents on their box (due to conflicts is scheduling.) If they try to play back an item that is higher than the V-chip allows the screen goes black...all they have to do is press the TiVo button on the remote to start over, and the screen comes back.

 

[scrappydog65]

I too would really like to have much better parental controls. With our Digital Cable box we can block by Program Title, Channel, or Rating. The one we really like is Program Title.

For example, generally we don't have a problem letting our son watch Nickelodeon, but there are some shows we really would prefer he doesn't watch. I can just block those shows on the cable box, but now he's old enough to know to just switch to TiVo to get around that. If I block the whole channel then he a) misses the shows that are worth while and/or b) we have to unlock it for him (which then unlocks everything instead of just that show).

The other thing I think would be useful is to block by time of day. So, maybe I'd block all but a few channels from 4pm to 9pm, but then automatically turn off parental blocking after that and/or turn it off only for certain types (channel, program, and/or rating).

If TiVo wants to work in a family market, it needs to have better features than what cable boxes offer.

Mike

 

[BenKenobi]

For example, generally we don't have a problem letting our son watch Nickelodeon, but there are some shows we really would prefer he doesn't watch. I can just block those shows on the cable box, but now he's old enough to know to just switch to TiVo to get around that.

Exactly .. My 3 year old loves Nick, but we've discovered he's a bit young for Spongebob (after telling my wife he's gonna "kick her butt" and then starts play-hitting her .. While cute and funny to me, I don't think it'd go over well at the playgroups! ) ...

But it seems that SpongeBob doesn't have an FV (Fantasy Violence) tag on it for me to block it.. and blocking everything higher than TV-Y7 would be a pain! So yeah, blocking by program would be REALLY nice .. I figured bumping an old topic would be better than creating a new one.. It's been 2 years. Any developments on this?

 

[bluevan]

It would also be really nice to be able to specify certain programs that can be watched when parental controls are on without having to disable the parental controls completely there are a couple TV-14 programs I let my kid watch, but don't want him to be able to watch other things that are rated that, and I don't want to have to be there so he can watch them.