TiVo Premiere

The Box

The TiVo Premiere is yet another piece of technology which merges two technologies into one convenient product. In this case, TiVo is combining the DVR which lets you record your favorite television shows and play them on your own time, with smart technology which lets you run apps, find online content, schedule shows, and integrate with smartphones and iPads. Officially, it's called a web connected cable box, and it's a one box solution that replaces your current cable box. While older DVRs just let you play video from your television, the TiVo Premiere lets you play music as well. Content is displayed in full 1080p. Record, playback, and skip commercials if you want. If not don't worry about it. The choice is yours and that's the point.

Here's how it works. After you've purchased the TiVo Premiere, contact your cable company and tell them what you've done. After they've lamented the loss of your cable box rental fee, tell them you want a CableCARD. This card will go inside the TiVo Premiere and gives you access to the content your cable provider gives you. After this you're ready to use the TiVo Premiere!

Run apps that let you get the content you want, when you want. Some of these apps include: Netflix, Blockbuster On Demand, Amazon Instant Video, YouTube, Pandora, and HuluPlus. The breadth of these apps is a plus for the TiVo Premiere because it really gives you access to a large amount of content such as movies, TV shows, and music. TiVo has even gone as far as to officially label itself the largest on demand library out there. Netflix has stuff Blockbuster On Demand doesn't, who has stuff Amazon Instant Video doesn't, and so on. Granted you might not want to pay for a subscription to all of them, but if you want to the options are there which is better than not being able to if you want. You can even download music besides accessing the music you already have. Use apps such as Pandora, Live365, and iTunes to purchase music or play it through the TiVo Premiere.

TiVo boasts that the interface for the TiVo Premiere is easy-to-use, much easier than the interfaces of competitors. This interface is made even easier when the TiVo Slide Remote is purchased. The Slide Remote has a full Qwerty keyboard which makes searching for content a snap. For a more integrated experience download the TiVo app on your iPad. It's free, and lets you control, search and browse from anywhere without interrupting the program you're currently watching. TiVo also wants you to know that there will soon be similar apps for Android phones and the iPhone.

The Cost

The cost of the TiVo Premiere box itself is going to be $99.99. After that you have two options. You can pay $20/month for service, or a one-time $499 payment for a lifetime of TiVo at your fingertips. If you want a second box, it will cost another $99.99, but it will drop your monthly payment option down to $14.99/month or a one-time $399

Sources:

http://www.tivo.com/products/tivo-premiere/index.html

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2361785,00.asp