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Cox May replace its own DVRs with TiVos
Controlio writes "According to a posting by user BrettStah on the TiVo Community Forums, Cox Cable is currently circulating a survey to gauge customer's interest in TiVo services. From the survey, 'While Cox currently offers its own DVR service, the Cox DVR may soon be powered by TiVo, and include the features that TiVo owners have come to expect. If Cox were to offer digital cable service with a TiVo branded DVR for about the same price as you are currently paying for satellite service each month, how likely would you be to switch from satellite TV to Cox cable that featured this TiVo branded DVR service?'"
It's not entirely fair to offer an opinion, I have never seen or used the Cox PVR. My experience has been there are few pretenders to the throne that even come close to Tivo's quality of service.
Tivo pioneered the user experience for PVR viewing, and from their first offering (which I purchased and actually returned -- it was not quite ready for prime time then) which was very good they have steadily improved their already leading product.
For those who may care, here is one of my earlier posts on tivo features vs Comcast.
If I had the option and was a Cox subscriber, not only would I ask for the swap for similar pricing, I'd be happy to pay a premium. Tivo is that good, and what I've seen of other offerings is that bad! (I recently visited neighbors who had their new Dish PVR. While I'd wished a Tivo for them, I was happy for their new window into PVR viewing. I tried to walk them through the simplest setups: record one show, pause live TV, etc., but even I found the interface clunky, intrusive, inconsistent, and obfuscated. It bordered on unusable. I was able to figure it out, but it was a RPITA to use. And, before anyone points out I had to "learn" how to use the tivo, too, that really wasn't true. The litmus test for me for entertainment gadgets is that I be able to use it out-of-the-box with no instruction manual reading. Tivo is usable from the get-go.)
If I lived in a region where I had some OTHER cable service, and heard Cox was offering PVR with Tivo, I'd switch.
Good luck, Tivo...
A little bit before the new year, I picked up a new HD set. I was pretty excited about it. If I'd known the runaround I was going to get from Comcast, I wouldn't have been.
1. I call Comcast. They tell me that an HD tuner and service is already in my plan, and all I need to do is pick one up at the office. When I show up (It's a 20 minute drive), they tell me that they're out. But they'll call me when they come in.
2. I check in after a couple of weeks. The person at Comcast says, "Oh - no, they're not gonna call you. You have to keep calling us." "Great. Hey - does my office have these HD tuners in yet?" "Yes!" Except when I get there, it turns out they don't, and haven't for days. I pitch a hissy fit, and they give me an "all in one" box (HD + DVR), promising not to charge me for the DVR part. I leave, mollified. The box doesn't work.
3. Guy from Comcast shows up... 8 days later. "Yup, it's broken," he says. He swaps the DVR out with a brand new box. Beautiful high-definition television, complete with DVR functionality! It works! For a few hours, anyway. That evening, the hard drive (or something) on the device starts making a clicking noise. The DVR part no longer works.
4. Guy from Comcast shows up... another TWO WEEKS LATER. He starts to swap out the box, discovers that the new one he has doesn't work at all, and puts the old one back. "It's a real problem," he admits. "All the techs just had a meeting about it. We unplug the units from the network to take them out, something changes in their config, and they have to be taken back to the office." Great. "Call to schedule another appointment in a couple of weeks."
5. I schedule another appointment. I call out from work to be there. Then someone leaves a message on the answering machine saying... they're out of set-top boxes again, and I've stayed home for nothing.
Fuck Comcast, right in their fucking eye.