TiVoToGo for Portables Updated 53
fistfullast33l writes "In a followup to previous stories on Slashdot, IGN is reporting that TiVo has released a new version of TiVoToGo that now allows subscribers to transfer shows to portables such as the iPod, PSP, and Treo without the need for third-party software such as Videora. The upgrade costs $25 for current subscribers and includes the ability to transfer to desktop PCs as well. To recap, you can now transfer your TiVo shows to your laptop, desktop, and portable, as well as burn them to DVD. Time for me to subscribe to HBO."
But still not available for MacOS... (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:ultimately a disappointment... (Score:3, Insightful)
It seems to me they're doing the opposite of rushing anything. They announced this a very long time ago and we're just now seeing it. Transcoding is a very simple thing, and there are programs all over the web to do it. So why then does it take Tivo so long to add this feature? Why are mac users STILL waiting for TivoToGo support. What has it been? A year? Two years?
I don't think the problem is that Tivo doesn't have their priorities straight. I think the problem is they are talentless hacks. Whoever the programmers were that started the Tivo product must not be around anymore. The people doing it now seem incapable of getting anything completed on a reasonable timeframe. And when they do finally get it completed it's almost always very crappy.
I'm at the point where I wish someone would come along and make a nice DVR box for like 300 bucks that just acts as a VCR with a hard drive. I don't need to rate my shows. I don't need to get every rerun of Family Guy that airs on any channel at any time. All I need to do is be able to easily record shows without swapping tapes/DVDs. And the best part is I wouldn't have to pay for this stupid service fee. Especially when I see all these new features unavailable to me as a Mac/Linux user.
HBO? (Score:4, Insightful)
The pay movie channels really aren't all that great, IMO. Except for the homegrown series that can be pretty good, the movie selection sucks. They just repeat the same limited set of movies all month long. And if you have a cable provider that does on-demand, you can usually watch most of them for free anytime you want. For the cost of just one or two premium channels you can get a Netflix account and get just about any movie you want. Spend a month or three seriously abusing Netflix and you can end up with a pretty big collection of ripped movies which you can reencode however you want and put on whatever device you want.
Heck, I don't even have cable anymore. I used to use a MythTV box to record TV, but now I just use it to play shows downloaded from Bittorrent. That is, when it is too early to get the show on DVD from Netflix. I wasn't watching the commercials anyway, so I don't feel like a pirate. (they were being broadcast for free originally). Saves a lot of money per month. Cable is just too damn expensive.
Life Ungotten (Score:3, Insightful)
Let's see, $50 for basic cable, $20 extra for HBO, $15 for your Tivo subscription. That's a really big recurring cost. You could go to a lot of movies and rent a lot of DVDs for that much. Perhaps you're willing to pay a huge premium just to see the latest ep of The Sopranos without waiting for it come out on DVD. Or maybe you (shudder) spend so much time in front of the tube that it's a bargain.
But most likely, you're like most consumers: you've been programmed to shell out big money for little bits of entertainment. Now that is really a sad though.