TiVo: The Best Way to Digitally Record Your Favorite Programs

Having a digital video recorder, better known as a DVR, is starting to be a normal thing as time goes on. Many people have used VCR's to record programs for quite a few years. Although they are cheap, they tend to be a hassle. I personally love my TiVo! The things you can do with this DVR are amazing. You can set it up so that you never miss your favorite television shows or movies.

Features that are important:

Online scheduling - This is a major convenience factor! If you're away from home and have internet access, no need to worry about forgetting to set your TiVo to record something for you while you're gone. You can schedule it online through the TiVo website. Of course, if you have your TiVo hooked up to your phone line or network (must faster). You can still schedule online using phone line though. You just need to complete a few extra steps, but in the end is well worth it. With this feature, you really have NO need to worry about missing anything as long as you have internet access.

Season Pass - Have you ever gotten tired of having to remember to set your VCR each week for a program? With Season Pass, you don't have to worry about it. You set up a Season Pass for a certain program and it will record all episodes. This includes reruns if you'd like, or you can only record the first run of a show. With a busy life, it's nice to know once you set the TiVo for a season pass, you don't have to think about it again!

Quality level of recording - Since the TiVo only stores so much on its hard drive, you can adjust the level of recording. If you want more on the hard drive, obviously the quality will be less, but if you have the room to record at better quality, that's fine too. Each scheduled item (including setting up a season pass) you can choose the quality.

KidZone - As many know, most kids for some reason love remotes! They love to press the buttons and play, but all it takes is one wrong button to switch channels to a program that isn't suitable for a child. With this feature, you can make it so that your children are only seeing the programming that is suitable for them. This is operating on a password system, so you can get to the full programming by entering a password. The other nice thing is that after a certain period of inactivity, the TiVo will automatically return to the KidZone feature, so you never have to worry.

Amazon Unbox on TiVo service - This is a fairly new feature in association with Amazon. You can order a movie either to buy or rent and it will upload to your Tivo so that you can watch it at your own convenience. The rentals go for 30 days and you don't have to keep them on your TiVo taking up space. It stores your collection online so you are able to download the selections again. The only thing you do need to have it TiVo connected to your home network and internet. This can't be done over the phone line connection.

TiVoCast - This great feature lets you download internet videos from specific sites to your TiVo. Again, this needs to be done over the home network and internet, not the phone line. You can get videos from such places online as The New York Times, CNET, iVillage, and Heavy for example. Great little addition that makes TiVo that much more amazing!

TiVo to Go - This is great for travelers! You download your programs to your computer and then transfer them either over your network to another computer or to a mobile device to take along with you. If you're going on a trip and your kids have a portable device, what a great way to help them enjoy the car ride (as well as the parents).

TiVo Desktop Software - This is where you can turn your television into a huge monitor and sound system. All you have to do is install the software and you can browse and listen to your computer's MP3 library from your TiVo box. You can also watch slides shows on your television through you TiVo that you have stored on your computer.

Automatic Deletion - When setting recording options for a program you can schedule it to delete after so many days or after so many episodes. This is a feature is so nice to make sure you don't run out of room and miss a recording of one of your favorite shows.

I don't know what I did before TiVo. I have had DVR through a satellite company before, but when we switched to cable television, I knew I had to get something again. I decided to try TiVo. The cost is actually about the same price as what the cable company here charges, so I knew I wasn't losing any value. Once I received the TiVo in just a couple days, I don't think I could ever live without it. It has so many extra features that normal DVR's do not have.

How can you pass up a deal like this for well under $20 per month? That price includes buying your receiver, so when the commitment period is done, you own your receiver. Right now, you can get TiVo service for $12.95 per month and you can get a TiVo receiver for free or upgrade for low prices as well. The TiVo is so easy to operate and has so many features that most DVR's do NOT have. Try it out - I haven't heard anyone who has been unhappy with the service. I have only had positive experiences with my TiVo and am convinced that you would too!