TiVo Series2 DVR (80-hours)

November 16, 2004 08:55

3.0/5

January 30, 2005 09:57
Mediocre
1.0/5

February 20, 2006 07:25

4.0/5
I think I ran into the same problem as the guy who gave a rating of 2. He complained of video quality in real time playback. I had the same problem, almost the exact issues he described. And I thought I was done for. But I called Tivo support and found out what I did wrong was to use a coax connector on the tivo out and red/white/yellow connector to the TV. That caused the problem. I switched to the cables Tivo supplied, red/white/yellow connectors on both ends. And that solved the problem beautifully. Good thing I called because I was ready to return the thing.

The issue with channel surfing is indeed a bit of a problem. But again, the 2.0 rating guy was seeing the default, with the big info box that shows when you switch to a new channel. The Tivo support guy said to hit the right arrow key till til got a red blue button that just shows the channel I surfed to. That wasn't as annoying to see.

But the black screen each time I switch channels is something the Tivo support guy said is something that I'd have to live with. Not too bad a tradeoff for all the great Tivo benefits. I'm actually amazed how good the tv quality is, both playback and real time.

- valdsmt

October 24, 2007 08:51
Good
1.5/5
I'm returning it. The picture quality has degraded 50% when I hooked it up. Trying to call them right now while I am writing. It seems their pre-recorded message is 24/7!

- shonabby

October 14, 2007 09:01

4.0/5
Great little unit. The new HD units are what people need now though. This unit is perfect for a SDTV.

- firetwuck

July 15, 2007 04:39

4.0/5
My TiVo S2 DVR used to be the 80 hour, but because of the fact that this product is so easy to upgrade, it is now a 300+ hour TiVo. When I bought it, 80 hour capacity was the most I could get in my area, and it was great, but as I used it more often, and I got more and more season passes, I hadto upgrade it. It was as simple as opening the box, using debian linux to dd the old drive to the new, and hooking up the new drive. Thank you TiVo for making such an awesome product.

- Elliwyn

January 5, 2007 09:34

4.5/5
TiVo does what it is supposed to do and does it well. I don't really know what else to say! TiVo is NOT a VCR with a Hard Drive. TiVo is NOT like a cable companies' DVR. TiVo is a TiVo. I've always said that if a person were to be given a TiVo for free for 3 months, and they took the time to program in 75 Season Passes and Wishlists, they would NEVER think of watching TV "LIVE" again...and they wouldn't complain about paying a fee to use the TiVo after that 3 months!

TiVo is just that good.

Both of my TiVo's have lifetime subscriptions...

- Nfuego

December 19, 2006 09:20

3.5/5
It saves me lots of time that I can skip commercials and also chooses to record shows that it thinks I will like based on my ratings...a very cool feature. I have gotten into many new shows based on Tivo's recommendations. If you have satelite TV, "surfing" is an impossibility, as it takes at least 3-4 seconds to change the channel going up or down. But for me, I got Tivo to watch LESS TV so it's worked out well. The unit is garbage once I get an HDTV, but will still keep it and use elsewhere. A must-have if you are never home to watch your shows.

- davidkempner

February 24, 2006 10:22

3.5/5
TiVo wins the "Best Product Regardless" award. There's no doubt it's the greatest advance in TV watching since the original Betamax VCR, but like the early Betamax it is a half-finished product that is not ready for the average consumer - you know, the guy or girl whose VCR flashed "12:00" the entire time he owned it.

I knew I was in for a rough ride when I saw that every single TiVo box on the shelf at Fry's Electronics in Palo Alto has been returned at least once. If I were not an obsessive systems geek, I'm sure my box would have ended up with one of those stickers on it as well.

The networking capabilities of TiVo are at least half the reason to buy one but, incredibly, TiVo does not provide any networking hardware with their systems (not even an RJ-45 jack!) and right now there are essentially NO compatible network adapters available. After three trips to three different stores (and buying two adapters on TiVo's "approved list" that turned out to be useless) I found a Netgear adapter (WG111NA with serial 130xx) specifically labeled "TiVo Compatible" and it WAS compatible - after hours and hours of reading forum posts and experimenting. If you follow the TiVo recommended procedures, there's no way you'll get it working.

TiVo is now selling its own branded network adapter, which I suppose they must properly support, but it's back-ordered until early March. Based on my experience, I'd get the TiVo-branded adapter in your hand BEFORE you buy any TiVo box. If all you want to do is use the basic recording features the dial-up connection is fine, but once the box is on your network it can help manage all your media: video, music, photos - the works. It becomes a true media hub linking PC/Internet with TV and home audio. This is truly revolutionary...but not yet simple.

- shouldbesimple

January 1, 2006 10:37

4.5/5
I've only had my Tivo for about three days now and already can't imagine life without it. I never have to watch another commercial again. I've already figured out if I record my entire evenings lineup I can skip the commercials. All I do is wait about 20 - 30 minutes after the first show starts recording, then I start watching it while it finishes up. While watching that show, Tivo will change channels if neccesary and start recording my next show.

The only complaint that I have is not being able to transfer shows from the Tivo to my laptop over the internet. I feel if I have the rights to transfer the shows over my own private home network, I should be able to transfer them using the software Tivo provides to transfer a show over the internet while traveling. Sure I can get a Slingbox, but come one how many pieces of hardware does someone need to enjoy their TV?

- nelsondr