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Sree's
Thoughts on TiVo
Thursday, August 16, 2001 |
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So I am rather excited about the advent of what are known as personal video recorders. Think of them as VCRs for the Internet age. They record 20 to 60 hours of programs onto a built-in hard disk, eliminating the need for videotape to store shows. These products are still evolving and offer you a glimpse of the convergent future -- when your PC and your TV become one. The best known of these products is TiVo, which sells its service through various manufacturers, including Sony and Philips, and works in conjunction with cable, satellite dish or an antenna.
Once you set it up you can do things you never could with a VCR:
You can easily dub anything on your TiVo onto a VCR tape, in case you want to make room on your hard disk or share a tape with someone else. Couple of things to watch for: None of these products allow you to record two shows at the same time or watch a show and record one at the same time. These systems are so dependent on their remote controls that if you misplace yours, you are stuck (the elegant Sony machine I tested has no buttons for you to press, not even an on/off one). In my house, the coffee table already has an array of five remotes on it. Also, you will also need to hook up the TiVo to a telephone line so that it can download the latest programming information. This sounds more complicated than it is and doesn't require a second phone (the system comes with a useful 50-foot phone cord and splitter to connect on to your existing phone jack).
The major competition for Tivo is UltimateTV, a product from Microsoft. If you live in an area with DirectTV satellite television coverage, you can try out UltimateTV. It works pretty much along the same lines of TiVo, with the main difference that you must have satellite TV to make it work. Living in a Manhattan apartment with no balcony to place a dish, that rules me out. Watch for the personal video recorder to evolve and become better and cheaper in the months and years ahead. Resources: TiVo: UltimateTV:
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Sree's Site of The Week
A site dedicated to aviation; the best starting point to learn more about airplanes and even accidents. Among its vast databases: airplane safety records, pilot histories and more. The directory of aviation links is particularly helpful to explore almost any aspect of flight. This works well for the serious fligh enthusiast as well as the casually interested. o o o o o To join the LOW-volume "Sree Tips" e-mail mailing list, send your name and e-mail address to sreetips-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. No more than once a month, you will receive an e-mail message with tips and tricks about new, useful and fun Web sites. |
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Like
millions of other consumers,
I am VCR challenged. I find programming my VCR painful (though
I can proudly say the clock is set, but only because it's
a relatively recent model which sets the clock on its own).
The
TiVo box, which looks like a DVD player, fits on top of your
TV (joining, in my case, the ever-higher stack of boxes --
VCR, DVD, digital cable box). It has a fairly straight-forward
but lengthy setup process as it takes charge of your TV and
your TV viewing life.
Costs:
The set-top box costs vary, from $199-$599, depending on how
much storage you want, from 20 hours to 60 hours. You then
pay a subscription fee of $9.95 a month or you can pay $249.95
for a lifetime subscription (that's the lifetime of the product,
not yours). The Sony SVR-200 I tested has 30 hours of recording
capability and costs $399, though there is currently a $100
rebate available.