TiVo Basic

Keith Russell writes "TiVo has announced a new TiVo Basic service. ( Press release here, CNet story here) The Basic service only offers a 3-day program grid, and doesn't include title searches, season passes, or wish lists. There's no subscription fees for Basic, however, and it can be upgraded to a full-on Series 2 unit by the usual payment options ($12.95/mo. or $299 lifetime). The first product to include it is a Toshiba DVD player with an 80 GB hard drive and progressive-scan output of both DVD and Tivo content."

Comments

The Toshiba Box: RD-X2

[MBCook]

Near as I can tell, here is the Toshiba box that the story talks about. The URL is also below:

http://www.toshiba.com/tacp/dvd/current/RDX2.htm l

Re:The Toshiba Box: RD-X2

[Babbster]

While revisions to that unit might indeed have the Tivo Basic functionality (according to your own link, it's not in the current list of features), it is NOT the device referenced in the press release or CNet article.

The model number of the device in the story's links is the SD-H400 which is a DVD player (not a recorder) combined with the 80GB hard drive and Tivo service (basic included, upgrade to full Tivo possible via extra money). This device is not currently listed in the Toshiba lineup (possibly because it hasn't been released yet?)

Personally, I consider $748 (the suggested price of the Toshiba device plus $299 for service upgrade) WAY too much money to spend on a progressive scan DVD player and a Tivo, one box or not.

Re:Could someone please...

[thoth]

Basically, the TiVo service comes in two forms:

1) Monthly payment of $12.95, or
2) Lifetime fee of $249.00.

Note: the lifetime fee applies to the unit, not the owner.

Subscribing to TiVo service lets you get the guide data, which is programming info up to two weeks out. This is what lets you do wishlists, season passes, etc.

New with series 2 is the "home media option", which is a upgrade available for $99.00

MythTV...

[Yebyen]

Someone really needs to start building Mini-ITX machines with Debian and MythTV preloaded en masse. I've been using my desktop as a MythTV machine since the early days, and it's just about surpassed Tivo anyway. Not to mention, no subscription fee.

A stripped down Tivo without season passes removes almost all of the usefulness of the device. MythTV has the same functionality, but it doesn't cost you anything but the hardware. I can't speak for the quality of the software versus Tivo, as I've never used a tivo, but I do find myself spouting the same "Changed the way I think about TV" rhetoric as every tivo user.

Either way, one thing I know MythTV has which Tivo does not have is automatic commercial detection. That's right. Download 0.8, play with it.

Forget everything you know about TiVo

[mblase]

This isn't a "TiVo box" as we usually know it, without all the subscription features. What it is, is a DVD-VCR. Without any subscription fees (a cause for hesitation among average consumers), it allows you to record shows and movies to the hard disk, then burn them at your leisure to a recordable DVD. Voila, all the functionality of a VCR with the advantages of digital media and commercial-free archiving.

It seems to me that TiVo's strategy is to make this a must-have device for those features alone -- which are all Toshiba's hard work, not theirs -- while including the TiVo subscription features as a kind of upgrade, which no doubt is advertised prominently at the bottom of the 3-day guide every time you use it.

It's a good strategy, and I think it will pay off -- not in the sense of 90% of all purchasers becoming subscribers, but in the sense of maybe 20% of all people who wouldn't buy a TiVo because of the subscription now buy it for the DVD-recording features. Like another poster suggested, I'm sure TiVo will offer AOL-like 30-day trial subscriptions for free somewhere along the line, once enough of these TiVo-capable recorders are out there being used. Because like broadband internet, once you learn to love it, there's no going back.

Re:Canada

[ePhil_One]

Considering that TiVo hasn't advertised at all in three years, and seems to be living hand-to-mouth at the moment, the addition of another country might have to wait until there's a viable bottom line.

Well, their stock is up, so the markets thinking positive things about them. And while they haven't paid for the standard 30 second spots, NBC has done several placements in their TV series (Friends, Scrubs, Will & Grace). Not sure if they're paying for it or NBC's throwing it in as part of their investment.

Besides, the word of mouth advertising they get is pretty strong, and is a damned site better than lame TV spots.

Funny thing is, Tivo is hugely popular with the whole entertainment industry, outside of everyones favorite mad dog, Jack Valenti.

Re:Marketing mantra

[Sivar]

A no-fee basic system does sound nice (and will probably entice people to get the full service), but $12.95 seems like quite a rip-off when the DirecTV DVR service (another name for Tivo service) is $4.99/mo. Of course, that only works with DirecTV Tivos, but they are better anyway (no re-compressing of video, dual tuners, "purchase and record" pay-per-views, etc.)