[randymac88]

I had my SA cablecards installed into my TiVoHD this weekend. I am on Time Warner Cable Southern Manhattan (Digital Cable). It took two truck rolls to get them in, but they're in and I'm receiving all of my channels.

I have pixelation issues on both tuners, at times a lot of it. I have yet to deem something "unwatchable", but it's starting to get to me. It's annoying and worse than my old 8300. I called TiVo this morning to report the problem, and they said that they were aware of this and other problems and will be rolling out new software that will fix the problem. He did not have a timeline for its release.

I am also on day 17 of my 30-day return window, and will be leaving for vacation in four days, during which the 30-day window will expire.

So my question is:

Is the pixelation problem definitely something that can be fixed via a software upgrade, or is it possible that it is a hardware issue? Seems like not everyone is having the pixelation problems, so I worry it's the latter.

If this is something that could potentially be a long-term or un-fixable solution without some sort of "mail back to TiVo and get a new one" piece to it, I may want to bring this one back. But, I really don't want to as I'm a TiVo fan. Does anyone have any advice?

 

[RoyK]

That's your call of course. But if I buy something and it doesn't work I take it back. Nuts to this bear with it and they'll resolve the problem someday stuff. If I hear later that the problem is resolved I may buy another -- or may not.

 

[dolfer]

Randy, we are nearly twins... Same exact situation as you - finally got it working this weekend, two truck rolls, SA cards, all channels show up, and all channels seem to have annoying but not yet unwatchable levels of pixelation. Only difference is that I am Time Warner Cincinnati...

I am relatively confident Tivo is going to fix this quickly. This is a critically important product and Tivo can't afford for these problems to start scaring off buyers. Scientific Atlanta cards are all over the place! That's what Time Warner is giving us for the foreseeable future so it is *imperative* that Tivo gets this fixed ASAP.

My prediction... A fix by the end of the month. Just in time for the fall season....

 

[Dr_Diablo]

I had my SA cablecards installed into my TiVoHD this weekend. I am on Time Warner Cable Southern Manhattan (Digital Cable). It took two truck rolls to get them in, but they're in and I'm receiving all of my channels.

I have pixelation issues on both tuners, at times a lot of it. I have yet to deem something "unwatchable", but it's starting to get to me. It's annoying and worse than my old 8300. I called TiVo this morning to report the problem, and they said that they were aware of this and other problems and will be rolling out new software that will fix the problem. He did not have a timeline for its release.

I am also on day 17 of my 30-day return window, and will be leaving for vacation in four days, during which the 30-day window will expire.

So my question is:

Is the pixelation problem definitely something that can be fixed via a software upgrade, or is it possible that it is a hardware issue? Seems like not everyone is having the pixelation problems, so I worry it's the latter.

If this is something that could potentially be a long-term or un-fixable solution without some sort of "mail back to TiVo and get a new one" piece to it, I may want to bring this one back. But, I really don't want to as I'm a TiVo fan. Does anyone have any advice?

It appears this has been an ongoing problem with this Tivo HD unit.

I was assured by Tivo that should your return date pass that Tivo can and will issue you a return to, point of purchase, case number for a refund or exchange.

You could just return the unit now before you depart on vacation, or deal with it opon your return. Were it me, I'd opt to return the Tivo now and enjoy the time away. Then try again when you return from holiday.

 

[stream]

I decided not to risk if it was a SW or HW problem, and returned my unit. The first time I called TiVo about the issue, they said they just released a fix that day, so I did a forced update & restart, but it didn't solve the issue. No sense going beyond the 30 day return period and risking it's a HW issue (which may or not be addressed by TiVo doing a swap).

 

[Chimpware]

I spoke with Tivo Support today to get an update, and nothing new really. Still "Known Issue", still "Working on it". I explained the sentiments in this thread that many people having this issue would not be willing to go beyond the 30 day return date, and that this will impact sales beyond these people as I am sure many of us are the first to try new products here, and then offer advice and recommendations to friends and family. I told him I did not want to return the 2 units I have and cancel the 2 subscriptions, but if they could not fix the issue within the 30 day window, which was coming up quickly, I would be forced to. The Tech. was polite and said he would pass along my concerns and the urgency of the issue.

Come on Tivo, fix this before I have to box it up and return it.

 

[jfh3]

I spoke with Tivo Support today to get an update, and nothing new really. Still "Known Issue", still "Working on it". I explained the sentiments in this thread that many people having this issue would not be willing to go beyond the 30 day return date, and that this will impact sales beyond these people as I am sure many of us are the first to try new products here, and then offer advice and recommendations to friends and family. I told him I did not want to return the 2 units I have and cancel the 2 subscriptions, but if they could not fix the issue within the 30 day window, which was coming up quickly, I would be forced to. The Tech. was polite and said he would pass along my concerns and the urgency of the issue.

Come on Tivo, fix this before I have to box it up and return it.

I know this problem bothers you, as it does anyone else who has it, but you need to take a deep breath and calm down.

You aren't "forced" to do anything. If you don't have any confidence that Tivo will fix the problem and handle customer situations appropriately, regardless of the 30 day window, just return the boxes today and be done with it.

Personally, I have every confidence that Tivo will address this ASAP and in the appropriate manner and am not worried at all. (And I have a lot of skin in the game - I have two Tivo HD boxes and used a lifetime gift card to activate service on both).

 

[TiVotion]

jfh3,

I couldn't agree with you more. This is what I've been trying to say, but "tivocommunity" might as well be "tivocomplaints" of late. Like you, I have a lot of coin invested in TiVo, and I'm not worried. History shows that similar issues were fixed on the S3 boxes, and I believe they will be on the HD box as well. TiVo has a lot of hardware out there, a lot of money riding on this product, and they aren't about to issue some sort of massive recall on the boxes.

Bottom line, it's like giving a friend a loan. Don't risk more than you're willing to lose.

 

[Greeble]

Try buying a 2 way cable amplifier. I bought one from radio shack for $30 and it fixed all my pixelation problems.

(I did this about 3 months ago, no problems since. I have FiOS and they claim that the signal from the ONT was good. I think the TiVO tuners are just not as sensitive as the cable companies)

 

[jmpage2]

Try buying a 2 way cable amplifier. I bought one from radio shack for $30 and it fixed all my pixelation problems.

(I did this about 3 months ago, no problems since. I have FiOS and they claim that the signal from the ONT was good. I think the TiVO tuners are just not as sensitive as the cable companies)

Greeble, there have been numerous posts about signal strength and pixelation on the Tivo HD. They don't appear to be correlated at all. Quite a few people with -6dBM signals (100% on the Tivo) are still experiencing the problem.

I suspect it's a driver problem since the Tivo HD has a new video chipset in it. As others have said, I'm hopeful that Tivo gets a fix out soon.

 

[jfh3]

A cable amplifer would have no impact on those that see the pixelization problems on the Tivo menus.

It may help for some, but I suspect it will do nothing for the vast majority of people seeing this problem.

 

[Chimpware]

I know this problem bothers you, as it does anyone else who has it, but you need to take a deep breath and calm down.

You aren't "forced" to do anything. If you don't have any confidence that Tivo will fix the problem and handle customer situations appropriately, regardless of the 30 day window, just return the boxes today and be done with it.

Personally, I have every confidence that Tivo will address this ASAP and in the appropriate manner and am not worried at all. (And I have a lot of skin in the game - I have two Tivo HD boxes and used a lifetime gift card to activate service on both).

I am actually pretty calm about this, just persistent, which I know bothers some people on this board.

I am glad you have confidence in Tivo, but given posts by S3 owners who still claim to have issues with pixelation I am not sure your confidence is well founded. I am willing to give Tivo the benefit of the doubt on this for 30 days however as I have already invested my personal time as well as the installation money with Cablevision, neither of which I will get back if I simply throw in the towel now and return the boxes.

In the context of how I used the word "forced" I am. Tivo clearly is not providing the value I am paying for, and unless they remedy that I will return the Tivo units. I would prefer to keep them, but unless they work properly I will not, simple as that. When I would prefer to do one thing, but because of circumstances not in my control I cannot, I consider that being forced.

 

[Chimpware]

jfh3,

I couldn't agree with you more. This is what I've been trying to say, but "tivocommunity" might as well be "tivocomplaints" of late. Like you, I have a lot of coin invested in TiVo, and I'm not worried. History shows that similar issues were fixed on the S3 boxes, and I believe they will be on the HD box as well. TiVo has a lot of hardware out there, a lot of money riding on this product, and they aren't about to issue some sort of massive recall on the boxes.

Bottom line, it's like giving a friend a loan. Don't risk more than you're willing to lose.

TivoCommunity turned into TivoComplaints because Tivo chose to ship a unit that does not work properly for many people. It is Tivo's fault, not the people posting about the issues.

Actually based on some posts on this forum recently not all the pixealation issues have been resolved with the S3, so I think history actually shows that in some cases Tivo does not, or cannot remedy the problems. As a reference he is a giant thread on that issue:

http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=352788&highlight=s3+pixelation

I am glad you have confidence in Tivo to the point that you consider your Tivo purchase in the same vein as a personal loan to a friend. I do not share this sentiment and although you seem to consider a Tivo purchase as a gamble, where I should only be willing to lsoe what I can afford. This should not be a gamble for people, and although I can afford to lose many times over the price of these systems, this is not where I chose to gamble with my money.

Bottom line is this is a consumer product, not a loan to a friend or a lottery ticket and to characterize it as such to try to minimize the issue makes no sense.

 

[AGBulls]

TivoCommunity turned into TivoComplaints because Tivo chose to ship a unit that does not work properly for many people. It is Tivo's fault, not the people posting about the issues.

Actually based on some posts on this forum recently not all the pixealation issues have been resolved with the S3, so I think history actually shows that in some cases Tivo does not, or cannot remedy the problems. As a reference he is a giant thread on that issue:

http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=352788&highlight=s3+pixelation

I am glad you have confidence in Tivo to the point that you consider your Tivo purchase in the same vein as a personal loan to a friend. I do not share this sentiment and although you seem to consider a Tivo purchase as a gamble, where I should only be willing to lsoe what I can afford. This should not be a gamble for people, and although I can afford to lose many times over the price of these systems, this is not where I chose to gamble with my money.

Bottom line is this is a consumer product, not a loan to a friend or a lottery ticket and to characterize it as such to try to minimize the issue makes no sense.

Chimpware -- I respect your opinion and totally agree that Tivo needs to take absolute ownership over the problem and rectify it ASAP.

However, with that said, do you think *****ing about it in EVERY thread, EVERY other post is going to make a difference right now? As stated by many people before me, there are software people likely working on a fix right now. Tivo knows the longer this goes on, the worse things are going to get PR-wise. They can't afford for this launch to not be successful long-term.

Considering how angry you are, I'd recommend one of the two options that the rest of us are already considering.

1. Return the unit
2. Sit and wait for another firmware update

Until you do one or the other, what's there to discuss really?

 

[jfh3]

Chimpware,

No one is saying there isn't a problem. Yes, there are some that have had/have pixelization problems with the S3. They seem to be FAR less prevalent than what is being seen on the THD platform. In both cases, I suspect a Tivo software/chip driver issue (and there are other, non-Tivo related causes as well).

so I think history actually shows that in some cases Tivo does not, or cannot remedy the problems.

Duh. There are bugs. There will always be bugs. Tivo certainly won't fix all of them, but the big ones almost always get fixed.

I am actually pretty calm about this, just persistent

You've crossed the line from persistent to annoying and seem to be working up to troll. No one is going to forget about this issue. Unless you have new information to add, no reason to recycle the same comments over and over in multiple threads.

The box isn't going to be perfect by the end of your 30 day window. I'd be surprised if there is another s/w release by then. You might as well just go ahead and return your boxes if your only criteria is "fix the pixelization by the end of the window".

 

[Dr_Diablo]

Chimpware -- I respect your opinion and totally agree that Tivo needs to take absolute ownership over the problem and rectify it ASAP.

However, with that said, do you think *****ing about it in EVERY thread, EVERY other post is going to make a difference right now? As stated by many people before me, there are software people likely working on a fix right now. Tivo knows the longer this goes on, the worse things are going to get PR-wise. They can't afford for this launch to not be successful long-term.

Considering how angry you are, I'd recommend one of the two options that the rest of us are already considering.

1. Return the unit
2. Sit and wait for another firmware update

Until you do one or the other, what's there to discuss really?

Appears that a "Poll" of this matter is in order. Many are "venting" their frustration here, at one another.
Doing so is non-productive.
In the end, all we want is a device that does what it was/is intended to do... WORK properly

 

[Chimpware]

Appears that a "Poll" of this matter is in order. Many are "venting" their frustration here, at one another.
Doing so is non-productive.
In the end, all we want is a device that does what it was/is intended to do... WORK properly

Agreed.

 

[saramj]

Is the pixilation issue just with the expensive series 3 or does it follow the series 3 software to the less expensive TIVO HD?

 

[usnret]

If this pix. problem is shared by many S3's and TivoHd's, isn't there some sort of a test that could have been performed by Tivo before they shipped this equipment?? The problem seems to be spread around the country and not just with one cable provider. Just wondering. I realize that Tivo doesn't/can't test every unit prior to shipping, but if they found it on some units initially, then why not fix the problem before selling?? Not a slam against Tivo, just wondering if it could have been fixed initially.

 

[fergiej]

IF you do a poll on this, please be sure to include the options of stating which brand of CC you have as well. Maybe something like this:

Moto cards. No problems
Moto Cards. Some
Moto cards. Really bad

SA cards, etc...

It seems to me that most people that are here complaining have SA cards.

I think the poll is a very good idea.