PVRblog

Vizio HDTVs with Amazon and Netflix

I looked around at a lot of CES wrapups and to be honest didn't see too many impressive things. Nothing really stood out as an all-new aha! kind of gadget like I've seen in years past. The theme of this year seemed to be mostly just refinement of existing technologies.

Towards that theme, I'd have to say the best thing I've seen so far is this line of Vizio HDTVs with built-in 802.11n allowing for Netflix and Amazon streaming movies, Rhapsody music, and flickr photo integration. It's nice to see more opportunities for Netflix streaming to show up in the wild (I love the feature on my TiVo) and it's also nice to see it from a company like Vizio, who I associate with being an affordable brand at big box stores like Costco.

I suppose the tanking economy took the wind out of the sails of most CES news this week, but I'm still a bit surprised there weren't any wild breakthrough products unveiled.

The Digital TV switchover

I'm going to go out on a not-so-far limb and say the scheduled Digital TV switchover away from analog scheduled to take place next month on February 17 is going to be delayed again. Originally planned to take place several years ago but pushed to 2009, the early tests in various markets sounded problematic and I can't imagine what will happen on a national scale.

Obama's transition team has already recommended a delay, I bet one of his first actions as president will be to push it back to 2010-2012. The only weird bit is that Hawaii is scheduled to change over in two days, so if Obama does move it back another year or two, will Hawaii stay digital-only?

The Good News and Bad News about New TiVo Features

There's been a recent update to TiVo boxes, enabling two famous and long-rumored features: Netflix support and Ads displayed while pausing/fast-forwarding. Both were first discussed on this site four years ago and it wasn't until this week that both finally became available for TiVo users.

The Netflix support is really good, exactly like using a dedicated Roku box. You add things to your Instant Queue on the Netflix website, then walk over to your TiVo to play them. Unfortunately you can't search for new movies from your couch and have to use a computer to interact with the Netflix website, but the the syncing is nearly instant and easy enough to use. Video quality is quite good and I had some low-end HD video that looked a lot like the AppleTV's 720p HD movies. Movie selection is limited to studios that allow for Netflix streaming but one of my favorite genres (Documentary) is well represented.

The ads displayed during fast forwarding has been a long time coming and raised quite a ruckus when it first was announced. Gizmodo has a screenshot of what they look like and say it's only on the older Series 2 boxes for now. On first glance it doesn't seem as invasive as I envisioned, but it does seem like a distraction from the way a TiVo is typically used.

TiVo mobile launched

I caught the news on Crave that m.tivo.com was launching as a new mobile presence for adding shows to your TiVo. TiVo previously had a mobile interface for Verizon customers (and they charged for it), but thankfully the new approach seems to follow a much more open model: a simplified HTML site open to anyone.

It definitely seems to be programmed with the iPhone in mind as it's very easy to use on one. I'll definitely use the site when I'm out and about and suddenly wonder if I was recording a major sporting event or a new show set to debut.

Here are a couple screenshots from my iPhone viewing the site this morning:

Pizza ordering on a TiVo coming to Australia

This story of a new feature being added to TiVos in Australia sounds awesome: ordering pizza from the couch. Yeah, on first read it totally reinforces the whole "couch potato" aspect of watching TV and eating unhealthy food, but every once in a while a nice pizza hits the spot. I'd love to see it come to the US.

I've ordered a pizza online before (Domino's, because it was the only option) mostly just to try it out (it was easy and nice to get exactly what I wanted without having to sit on the phone for several minutes) and I imagine the experience in a TiVo environment could be pretty quick and easy once you store your address and phone number.

Wow: looks like someone floated this idea on a blog in 2004

Autographed TiVo HD being auctioned off for charity

A TiVo HD with lifetime service is just about the best thing you could ask for when it comes to recording digital cable, and though it won't make your HD signal any sharper, having Keanu Reeves, Jack Black, and a few other celebrities signature on it is a pretty nice bonus. An employee at TiVo sent me a link to the auction at ebay, where proceeds from the sale of the unit are going to a lung cancer fund.

Previous auctions of similar devices have gone for under or about retail. Considering it's for a good cause, if you were thinking of getting a TiVo for xmas for someone, you can't do much better than the one currently at auction.

TiVo mentions in Tropic Thunder

I just caught a showing of Tropic Thunder the other day, a goofy comedy about the movie industry and there's a running gag between one of the stars and his agent about getting a TiVo. It came up so many times I thought I should try and get a copy of the film and do a TiVo montage from it. After about an hour of editing, I give you every mention of TiVo in Tropic Thunder (spoiler alert: including a scene from the climax of the movie and the audio is NSFW):

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I wonder if TiVo paid for all that product placement?

Netflix coming to TiVo HD boxes

Wow, the partnership deal that began in 2004 and died in 2005 is back from the dead to finally happen in 2008. The New York Times reports that Netflix's stream now movies that are currently available on devices like their Roku player and their website will finally be coming to TiVo HD boxes soon.

The article states that it will go into beta this week and should be available to TiVo customers by December. It's a good idea and a long time coming, and I'm really looking forward to seeing this feature get released. Having purchased and used a Roku player to enjoy some of Netflix's library on my TV, I will definitely enjoy seeing the same films on my TiVo directly, removing one more device from my media cabinet. Kudos to TiVo and Netflix for finally making this deal work.

Netflix coming to TiVo HD boxes

Wow, the partnership deal that began in 2004 and died in 2005 is back from the dead to finally happen in 2008. The New York Times reports that Netflix's stream now movies that are currently available on devices like their Roku player and their website will finally be coming to TiVo HD boxes soon.

The article states that it will go into beta this week and should be available to TiVo customers by December. It's a good idea and a long time coming, and I'm really looking forward to seeing this feature get released. Having purchased and used a Roku player to enjoy some of Netflix's library on my TV, I will definitely enjoy seeing the same films on my TiVo directly, removing one more device from my media cabinet. Kudos to TiVo and Netflix for finally making this deal work.

TiVo's rebound

Five years ago, I wrote a post here called TiVo's Apple Problem. I looked at the current state of TiVo and wondered if they would be much like Apple was at the time (Apple has since gained much more mainstream appeal and higher sales), which was to say it would be a high-end product used by a small number of people and that things like cable company DVRs offered for free would dominate the space.

Off and on for the past six years I've been an armchair quarterback for TiVo telling them they should do anything and everything to become profitable, among other things: they should offer pay-per-view downloads (I asked for this in 2002), they should broker deals with cable companies, that they should release software for PCs, that they should move to international markets, and that while I'm not a fan of software patents in general I feel the TiVo patents are original and worth fighting.