TiVo Community Forums Archives - Comcast box with Tivo in it?

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Comcast box with Tivo in it?
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Posted by: GaryGnu

The news guy on my local radio station (a Tivo owner) mentioned that Comcast told him that Comcast would be using boxes soon that had Tivo in them. Is there any truth to this? I've searched but cannot find any info on it.

Posted by: OLdDog

Not TiVo. The box will be a basic DVR. Kind of like a VCR with a hard disk.

No wishlists and other TiVo type functions will be missing.

Posted by: Sopranoman

No news is good news:D

Anyway no offense OLdDog but I understand this is a TiVo Forum, however he is a guy who is asking a simple question and you immediately put down the Comcast Box saying it is a "VCR with a Hard Disk". Thats kinda of wrong cause technically so is tivo. Did you mention the Comcast Box can record 2 channels at the same time or that is may be able to record high def, better yet that it will have component video or no need to use IR to change channels or that the format may be user friendly.

I am a TiVo user for at least 3 years and originally had a Directivo. However becasue of my divorce I am not in a home anymore and my apartment has free comcast cable. So my Directivo is sitting in my closet until I need it. At the same time I moved in I bought a 51" Sony RPTV and I could not live without TiVo so I plunked down $300 and bought a S2 and quite honestly it sucks compared to the DTivo. Especaily the not being able to record 2 channles at the same time. But for me (and probably others) I do not use Wishlists or some of the other Tivo functions. So if Comcast makes it available in my area I will probably jump on it, not cause I do not like Tivo but becasue I want other feature that Tivo may not have that is more important to me. If this happens I may put the Tivo in my room or sell on ebay and keep the DTivo for when I go back to satelite, which WILL HAPPEN cause I loved it but not enough to pay for channels twice.

So I do not mean to bash but I am sick of everyone giving putting down the Comcast Box or other similar devices, yet someone comes on here and gives a bad experience about TiVo or says Tivo SUCKS and is glorified VCR they are immediately consider a TROLL and all the DIEHARDS start bahshing that person.

So based on the number of posts you have I take it that you have a good amount of knowledge of Tivo. Just try and not have a Bias opinion as this guy is looking for you to help him in decision and wants all of the facts, not just what will make him become one of US.....TIVO USERS!

Best regards and no hard feelings,

SOPRANOMAN:cool:

Posted by: morac

quote:
Originally posted by phone1
The Comcast DVR (Scientific Atlanta 8000) has been discussed to death here.

Well to be fair he might be talking about the Motorola DVR (6xxx I think) which hasn't been released yet. Still it's not a TiVo and it has been discussed (though not as much as the SA 8000). Though the Motorola DVR is capable of recording HDTV which gives it a plus over TiVo, TiVo is still better.

Posted by: Sopranoman

Well I beg to differ a forum is a place to discuss and gather information, it should not be one sided or bias. That is all I am saying. Not everyone wants to have tons of storage or wants be able to "add" storage on thier own. I consider myself a die hard Tivo user, however TiVo is not perfect.

So why not let the guy now the bad points so he can make a WISE decesion rather than just saying "Not TiVo. The box will be a basic DVR. Kind of like a VCR with a hard disk. or No wishlists and other TiVo type functions will be missing." Explain what the pros and conss of BOTH are so if he decides to get a Tivo rather than the Comcast Box he knows he made a good decision made on people who have the experience.

Posted by: Sopranoman

quote:
Originally posted by morac
Well to be fair he might be talking about the Motorola DVR (6xxx I think) which hasn't been released yet. Still it's not a TiVo and it has been discussed (though not as much as the SA 8000). Though the Motorola DVR is capable of recording HDTV which gives it a plus over TiVo, TiVo is still better.

I agree and I NEVER said TIVO was not better. I love tivo ,but for me, like others the recording of HDTV and recording 2 shows at once may pull me to the Comcast.....for the interm....

Jeff

Posted by: phone1

quote:
Originally posted by morac
Well to be fair he might be talking about the Motorola DVR (6xxx I think) which hasn't been released yet. Still it's not a TiVo and it has been discussed (though not as much as the SA 8000). Though the Motorola DVR is capable of recording HDTV which gives it a plus over TiVo, TiVo is still better.

I realized this and removed my post while I did a little more research aboput which box Comcast is offering. The Motorola does record HD, but does not have dual tuners. One big shortcoming IMO is the 80GB (not upgradeable?) drive, which only allows for 8 hours of HD programming. It also does not offer "complete" guide data for 14 days, as TiVo does. The Scientific Atlanta 8000 has dual tuners, but no HD recording capability, although one that does is going to be available eventually.

As OldDog says, they are basically VCRs with a hard drive in that they have no "smart" functions to compare to TiVo (SP's or wishlists that automatically find and record programs, suggestions, etc.) The consensus here is that they are inferior in terms of features to TiVo.

Posted by: Your User Name:

Well, I have a S2 Tivo that more or less acts as a VCR for me now, since it doesn't work with HD. I can't get a dish due to los issues and my Comcast cable is included in my HOA fees anyway. So, when Comcast comes out with an HD DVR, I will certainly give it a shot. I would really miss the Season Pass if Comcast doesn't have a similar feature, but if it's between SP funtionality and the ability to work with HD, it is no contest: I'll take the HD. Plus I thought the Comcast HD DVR was going to use Moxi, which (I thought) does have a more robust feature set.

Posted by: GaryGnu

Thanks for the info. Actually, I'm not using this info to make a decision. I'm just curious. I have Directivo, and I hate Comcast with a passion. This does close the gap a bit though.

Posted by: CraigHB

AFAIK, a digital cable TiVo does not exist and no one plans on making one availalble. The Time Warner (TW) digital cable DVR is similar to what other cable companies are/will be offering. Recently in this forum, MEngland posted a lengthy review of the TW DVR versus the stand-alone (SA) TiVo. In that post, he states the SA TiVo outclasses the TW box in many respects. One notable advantage of the TW box is the ability to record two shows at the same time, something an SA TiVo could never do because it has access to only one tuner. An exception is DirecTiVo which does have 2 tuners. Cost was similar when considering the resale value of the TiVo unit. One important advantage with a TiVo box is the ability to upgrade the hard drive capacity far beyond that of a non-upgradeable cable company DVR.

Since I'm kind of stuck with cable right now (DirecTiVo would be the ultimate), a digital cable TiVo would be a great thing to have. I don't understand what the big hurdle is for providers to offer something. Right now, I'm using two digital boxes, one dedicated to the Tivo and the other on my TV's auxilliary input. It sure would be nice to have a digital cable box with a TiVo built in. I could get rid of a lot of hardware and gain a dual tuner in the process. For me, the smart features TiVo offers are not worth giving up for the sake of what the cable companies are/will be offering. And I haven't yet found the inability to record two shows at the same time to be much of a problem. I've also got a 160 hour TiVo after an upgrade. Even if a digital cable TiVo was available, there's a question of it's capacity and whether or not it could be upgraded.

Posted by: dylanemcgregor

quote:
Originally posted by Your User Name:
Plus I thought the Comcast HD DVR was going to use Moxi, which (I thought) does have a more robust feature set.

Last I heard Moxi was still quite a ways away from completion. I think that they were bought by Digeo, which is a Paul Allen company, and would therefor be used as Charter's DVR. I hadn't heard that they had deals with any other MSOs. The Moxi/Digeo/whatever does have some pretty compelling features, but it is still anyones guess when/if they will make it to market.

-Dylan

Posted by: d_anders

quote:
Originally posted by dylanemcgregor
The Moxi/Digeo/whatever does have some pretty compelling features, but it is still anyones guess when/if they will make it to market.
-Dylan

I agree, their marketing statements are compelling. However, it's all vapor until the product is actually available, on-the-street, and performs well.

Replay-TV units have some nice features, but they have a scattered history of performance issues. Sometimes, just doing the basics well is an accomplishment.

Posted by: MikeCG

This sounds to me like a simple case of using the word "Tivo" in its generic sense, that it has become the noun to describe all DVRs, and the verb to describe recording to a DVR. I hope the Tivo company is taking adequate steps to protect the name, or it will wind up like Thermos.

Posted by: jdl

quote:
Originally posted by phone1
I realized this and removed my post while I did a little more research aboput which box Comcast is offering. The Motorola does record HD, but does not have dual tuners. One big shortcoming IMO is the 80GB (not upgradeable?) drive, which only allows for 8 hours of HD programming. It also does not offer "complete" guide data for 14 days, as TiVo does. The Scientific Atlanta 8000 has dual tuners, but no HD recording capability, although one that does is going to be available eventually.

The 6408 has 2 tuners. Some Comcast regions may be holding off on deployment until this one is ready as opposed to the single tuner 6208. I think it has a larger HD as well.

And yes, the Tivo software and interface will still be superior. ;)

Posted by: TiVo Fool

quote:
Originally posted by jdl
And yes, the Tivo software and interface will still be superior. ;)

Whose software will be in the Comcast 6208?

Motorola's, Comcast's or Microsoft's?

Posted by: tomo_kun

quote:
Originally posted by TiVo Fool
Whose software will be in the Comcast 6208?

Motorola's, Comcast's or Microsoft's?

digeo. Yes, MOXI!

Posted by: mbernste

quote:
Originally posted by TiVo Fool
Whose software will be in the Comcast 6208?

Motorola's, Comcast's or Microsoft's?

None of the above. It will be the "Blue" Gemstar/TV Guide.

Posted by: megory

quote:
Originally posted by Sopranoman
No news is good news:D

So I do not mean to bash but I am sick of everyone giving putting down the Comcast Box or other similar devices,

Best regards and no hard feelings,

SOPRANOMAN:cool:

Hey, no offense Jersey boy, but you are praising and supporting an item you have only read about, right? That confuses me right off the bat.

I use the Time Warner Box as an adjunct to Tivo. Fortunately, I seldom use that television OR the POS that the Scientific Atlanta box is. I have had it since they came out. The interface sucks. Every little thing that need to be done is tedious to do, and the whole way it works does not make sense to me -- prolly because I'm a Tivo User and Tivo has spoiled me.

To a non Tivo person, another box might be all right. But the majority of Americans have no interest in recording shows. They wanna play DVDs but they don't know how to turn off their flashing clock let alone program a recording.

For those people, the buffer will be the only boon they need.

But you are more discerning now. I know the coming Comcast PVR is supposed to be a Motorola and will be different from mine.

I'll be interested in how you like the interface and how it works . . . after you've had it a month.

Iliked mine for at least 2 days.

Good luck.