TiVo TCD746320 Premiere DVR, Black (2010 Model)

Tivo is something I didn't really understand at first on how different it is from a regular Cable DVR. I understand really well how cable technologies work with my degree in Computer Networking as well working for Level 3 support at my local cable company. I read all the reviews on this TiVo box and it was somewhat puzzleing. Some of these reviews do seem to be one sided...either a huge grudge against the cable company, a huge grudge against TiVo, or they just love everything. I'm going to play neutral and try to break it down so that is may seemed more central opinion.I have owned my TiVo for a few weeks, and right now there really isn't too much a difference between it and my Cable DVR. The main thing is, if you want to save money in the long run...and I mean a long long run, the TiVo is a better deal. If you want stuff to work right away, the Cable DVR is the best way to go. Here are my reasons why:Cost: The cost of the TiVo is expensive, but can be worth it in the long run. Most Cable DVRs run between $15-$20. My Time Warner Cable HD DVR is $17 and runs with no problems. Now, if you think that just buying a TiVo will save you money, well, look at all the other added costs. You will need to get a MultiStream CableCard from your cable company and they most likely aren't free. Mine is $2.85/month, and make sure when the technician comes out to install it, that it needs to be a MultiStream CableCard and not a Single Stream. Single Streams will not work with this box and you'll just have to wait longer for your box to start receiving digital channels. Also you'll need to get a service plan with TiVo. Tivo has monthly plans starting at $15/month (add that to the cable card and now you're not saving any money because it now cost as much per month for the TiVo as your CableDVR did), or you can choose quarterly, yearly, or get it over with with one payment. If you going for cost, you mind as well just pay it off all together right away. So, $299 for the DVR + $399 for the lifetime service plan =$700 one time charge. Now do the math. 700 divided by 17 is about 41 months. It will take 41 months to match what you're paying for with your cable DVR. Hence, if you're going for cost, don't plan on upgrading the box for a long time, because you're just going to be losing money.Winner on Cost: Both- Depends if you're okay on keeping a box for about 4 years or not without an upgrade.Time: The time to get a TiVo fully functional is a process that takes weeks. You need to have your TiVo set up and ready to go before the cable guy comes out to install the cablecard. Then after your cablecard is set up, as long as you don't live in a Switched Digital Video (SDV) area, you're ready to go. If you live in SDV area, you'll need to sign up for a Tuning adapter through your cable company (their free if you have Time Warner Cable). Mine will be shipped to me when one comes available, hence I don't have it yet. Without this box, you won't be able to watch all your channels. SDV works by turning TV streams off that are not in use, so if no one is watching BBCHD, and you want to watch it on your TiVo box without the Tuning Adapter, you won't be able to watch it. Call your cable company to see if this is needed if you think about going this route.Also, the TiVo takes a long time to download the guide and set your channels on initial set up, so don't be in a hurry. It takes about 1.5-2hrs for the TiVo to install everything.Winner on Time: Cable DVRContent: I think TiVo wins this category big time. With Amazon on Demand, as well as HD streaming from Netflix, its really nice. The only problem is that if you subscribe to premium channels like HBO, Cinemax, Showtime, or Starz, you're not going to get their On Demands like standard cable customers get for free with their subscriptions. Amazon On Demand has more choices and better prices than Cable On Demand. Their have been reviews on here that say you can not watch your Amazon On Demands right when you order it...this is false. You have to give it about 2-3 min to download enough content, then you'll be able to start watching it (as long as you have high speed Internet about or above 7Mbps).Winner on Content: TiVoInterface: I'm very partial to both interfaces. My Cable DVR has a nice looking interface, but its harder to navigate all the settings and options. The TiVo interface is rough. The guide isn't a clear as I would have thought for an HD Box. You can see the letters are fuzzier than HD quality should be. Both boxes fail at using the remote to search for programming. It takes forever to type in a show, or log into YouTube off the TiVo. I wish either one would develop a Wii concept for better interaction. The TiVo's is better at interacting with you. TiVo will help you find suggestions for your programming you like with the ratings on which you give each show. Plus, you can choose what to record off of TiVo's website, which is really nice. I know the cable companies will soon be coming out with this, but as of this review, they aren't out yet.Winner of Interface: TivoExtra Features: So, each box has its special features. My Cable DVR has Caller ID on TV which is really nice and can't be done on the TiVo. Also, Cable On Demands and Pay Per Views will not work at all on a TiVo until they become Tru2Way compliant. TiVo's extra features include access to online vendors like YouTube and Netflix. The other really nice thing that TiVo comes with is the ability to transfer your recored shows to your computer so you can burn them to DVDs if you so wish. This is a very nice feature to have especially when you do networking like me. So, if you can give up Caller ID on TV and your Cable On Demands, then you'll be fine with the TiVo. Also, TiVo does have multi room viewing, but you'll need to have multiple TiVo's in order to do this.Extra Features Winner: TiVoCustomer Support: Either way, if you have to contact either the Cable Company or TiVo for customer support due to technical issues, you'll probably won't be happy. We as Americans want our stuff fixed and working now, not until the box can be replaced or a tech to come out. So, you'll have to put these grudges aside for now. Remember, you own your TiVo box. After you buy it, you're responsible for it. You break it, its your fault. TiVo will be more than willing to help you with your box issues, but if it is broken by a power surge or a natural disaster in your house, its your fault, not theirs so remember that before you call up and and start screaming. If you have your Cable DVR, if anything ever happened to it, its owned by the cable company. They'll take their box back and give you another, normally within a days notice.Winner of Customer Service: Cable DVRSo, in summery, its about a 50/50 match. If you prefer light monthly costs, Time, and Support, its better to have the Cable Company's DVR. If you prefer on the Interface, Extra Features, and not upgrading your box for 4 years, then the TiVo is a good direction to go. All in all, I give this box 3/5 stars and if you do decide on getting it, I hope you enjoy yours as much as I do mine.

**** UPDATED: March 26th, 2012 ****1) After my original review was written I was contacted by TiVo executive customer service that wanted to offer me the chance to purchase Lifetime service on my new Premiere. But I'd already shipped it back to Amazon. I did get the name and number of the gentleman who contacted me though, who promised they would make good on the offer if I changed my mind in the future. At the time I was doing a number of major household renovations, but I did eventually buy a Premiere in March, 2011, and TiVo Executive service allowed me to purchase the Lifetime service. I was NOT allowed to transfer it from my old Tivo, but I was able to sell that unit so it was a decent deal.2) On May 19th, 2011, Tivo revised their Payment Plans policy to allow TiVo Lifetime service to be purchased on "retail" units for a $499 price-tag.3) I've been using the Premiere XL for just over a year now and it's a reliable unit, with all the usual TiVo service offerings. The biggest disappointment about it is the HD (Hi-Def) support for the interface. Only the main menu and a few sub-menus are presented in HD. For many functions you use routinely including seeing up Season Passes, Wishlists, changing settings and more, it switches back to SD (Standard Def) menus, which actually slows things down since you have to wait for the TiVo to switch resolutions and of course your TV or AV Receiver to catch-up. They came out with a recent new software release that does expand the HD support a bit but really, it's absurd how much of the old interface system is used (probably around 75 to 80%). Also, when you have HD menus activated, absoilutely NO PARENTAL CONTROLS ARE AVAILABLE. That's right, No KidZone and not even the basic Parental Controls!! I was pretty stunned by this. Since I have a child who prefers to use KidZone and I don't want them just randomly watching whatever happens to be on, I just keep HD menus turned-off. You can still record and watch HD programming using the SD menus, so it's not a total loss. But it is very important to realize when buying the HD Premiere you realize that the HD menus are superficial layers and that if you have kids, you probably won't be able to use them anyways.(Switching between HD and SD menus is moderately tedious as well because if you do have Parental Controls you have to turn them off before you can switch to HD)All that being said, I've changed my rating from 1 star to 4 stars. TiVo did finally change their policies (I wasn't aware of it sooner), and I've had the unit for a year and it's performed fine. We get plenty of use out of it.####################################################################################################################################################################We're longtime Tivo users and have always gotten Lifetime service (aka Product Lifetime Service aka PLS) on our Tivo units. I'm a big fan of the Tivo interface and features, the reliability of the units, etc.What Tivo and Amazon have done here, however, is a shameless bait-and-switch that is going to have me filing a complaint to the FTC, writing off to Consumerist and of course leaving this one-star review.When I tried to activate the new HD Tivo, I was only offered one option: A 1-year subscription at $19.99 a month. Period. Nothing else. - I can't pre-pay for a year, even at full price - I can't commit to more than one year - I can't go month-to-month AT ANY PRICE - I can't add Product Lifetime Service, not even at the full $399 priceEven as an existing Tivo customer, I'm given NO other option. Hell, I can't even transfer my existing PLS to the new unit, SOMETHING I AM WILLING TO PAY MONEY FOR. Me : "Hey Tivo, do you want $400?" Tivo: "DERP" Me : "No, really, I want to give you a bunch of my money. Here, take this wad of cash--" Tivo: "DEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRRRRRRP!" *sets cash on fire*When I talked to Caitlin in Tivo's Activation department, she said that all of the units sold at these reduced prices (i.e. through Blockbuster, Best Buy, Amazon, etc) are ineligible for anything but the crappy, single service rate. It is part of a promotion being done during the holidays, which ends Dec. 31st, 2010. Caitlin also said that Tivo "may" offer other options after the 1 year commitment is up, but I am absolutely not going to buy into that without a written guarantee that I would be able to get PLS.I will add that Caitlin was at all times professional and courteous, and I could tell from her tone that she's had to deal with more than a few stunned customers like me.I am also very annoyed at Amazon.com for deceiving customers. No where in the description of the item or during the purchasing process was I told that I could only do a monthly plan. Under technical specifications, they merely say "Monthly service plan required". Well yes, of course you must have a service plan to use a Tivo. But what they actually mean is "ONLY MONTHLY SERVICE PLAN AVAILABLE". Tivo's own website also glosses over this, except buried deep into the payment plans option:################################2.1.2 When purchasing a TiVo Premiere box from a third party retailer at $99.99 (includes an instant $200 savings off MSRP) for the TiVo Premiere box or $299.99 (includes an instant $200 savings off MSRP) for the TiVo Premiere XL box, you may only subscribe to the TiVo Service on a monthly basis for $19.99 a month with a one (1) year commitment (renews monthly after one year).################################More than likely I will be returning this unit to Amazon, as it is completely useless to me. I may consider going through Tivo's upgrade program, but I will also be considering going to the DVR service offered by my cable company. After all, I was already planning to upgrade to digital cable and the DVR will be built into the cable box, and it'll only cost me $7 or $8 a month. I stand to save $230 that way.In summary, if you buy this highly-discounted unit you will HAVE to pay an additional $240 over the course of one year in $19.99 increments. No other option exists, even if you are already a Tivo customer. And you have no guarantee you will EVER be allowed to get Lifetime Service, EVER.