TV Blend’s own Matt Norris did a Clicker article about TiVo back in March but since Thanksgiving is this week, I thought I’d take a few minutes to express my appreciation for TiVo. With the holidays around the corner, it might not be a bad idea to consider getting yourself or a loved one a TiVo, as it is what I believe to be one of the greatest things to happen to TV since the remote control.
DVRs in general are a must own electronics device for any regular TV watcher. Sure, VCRs are great but lets face it, they’re dinosaurs in the world of video recording and playback. We’re all accustomed to the convenience of DVD players when it comes to viewing movies. Being able to jump to certain points of the film without the inconvenience of fast-forwarding and rewinding all over the place is one of the main reasons most of us were willing to re-purchase all of our favorite movies in DVD format. So why shouldn’t we have the same convenience when it comes to recording and watching our favorite TV shows?
I purchased a TiVo DVR for my husband two years ago and since then, the VCR and what’s left of our VHS tapes has been in the attic. The elimination of the VCR from our entertainment center came with owning the DVR but it was the purchase of the TiVo service membership that completely changed how I watch TV.
With regards to recording shows, a DVR by itself functions just like a VCR. Set the date, time and channel and the machine records it for you. What the TiVo service offers is the ability to download regular program schedules and record by title rather than by time and channel. You can set a show for a seasons pass which means that TiVo will automatically find the show each week and record it, even if the network makes changes to the line-up.
With the amount of money you spend on cable or satellite service, you might be thinking you don’t want to spend any more money on TV but the way I look at it, TiVo helps me get the most out of my digital cable. Not only is the seasons pass feature a huge convenience, but the wishlist feature is also not to be missed. The wishlist feature allows you to tell TiVo what you want it to find in a more general way.
For example, I’m a huge Harry Potter fan. Occasionally there’ll be a special on Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling or one of the actors from the films. I have “Harry Potter” set in my TiVo keywords and whenever one of these specials is on, it records automatically. This is how I make the most of my cable service. There’s no way I would be able to know what’s on all of the channels I have access to.
I got my original TiVo DVR two years ago but this year my husband and I upgraded to a dual-tuner DVR. This allows us to watch and record two shows at once. With all of the great new shows on this season, especially on Thursday nights, we no longer have to choose which shows we want to watch.
One predicament we’ll be avoiding next year is that when January rolls round, we wont have to worry about missing ‘24’ or ‘Heroes’, which are both on Monday nights at 9 pm. With the Emmy award winning ‘24’ primed for its 6th (and hopefully, best) season and the new show ‘Heroes’ being even better than we’d hoped, we’ll be able to watch one and record the other or record both, if we want.
So if you’re looking for something great to get yourself or a loved one, this holiday season, I strongly recommend purchasing a DVR and the TiVo service. Amazon.com and other DVR vendors often offer a pretty great rebates on TiVo DVRs if you subscribe to the service. If you already subscribe to TiVo, you might want to consider upgrading to the dual-tuner DVR. TiVo will change the way you watch TV forever.
I know this Clicker seems like an ad for TiVo but it should be said that we at TV Blend stand to gain nothing from endorsing the service nor are we in any way affiliated with TiVo. I just can’t help gushing over TiVo. Its one of my most favorite things ever.
”Amazing Race 10” (CBS) 8:00 pm
Lookin’ Like a Blue-Haired Lady On A Sunday Drive - (New) The competition is down to a handful of teams and with no elimination last week, one team is most likely going to be eliminated this week.
”Desperate Housewives” (ABC) 9:00 pm
Beautiful Girls- (New!) – After a failed attempt to return to modeling, Gaby decides to teach young girls how to work the runway. Meanwhile, Lynette continues to be suspicious of the new neighbor with the little-boy picture collage in his basement.
”How I Met Your Mother” (CBS) 8:00 pm
Slap Bet- (New!) – Robin has an extreme distaste for malls but refuses to say why. The gang tries to guess what her secret is.
”Heroes” (NBC) 9:00 pm
Homecoming- (New!) – This is it folks. If the episode lives up to the promos, this should be the “save the cheerleader” part of the new hit show (I’m going to assume the “save the world” part will come later but who knows?)
”Veronica Mars” (CW) 9:00 pm
Lord of the Pi’s- (New!) – The dean hires Keith to find a missing woman and Logan takes it upon himself to protect Veronica after she was attacked by the campus shaver.
”Jericho” (CBS) 8:00 pm
Red Flag- (New!) – Food is dropped from planes onto Jericho and the town debates on whether or not its safe to eat.
”Day Break” (ABC) 9:00 pm
What If He Lets Her Go- (New! ) – Though this new show is similar to the film Groundhog’s Day, Taye Diggs’ character, Hopper is no Phil Connors. I caught the pilot last week and found the show to be much better than I expected. Even if you missed the first episode, I highly recommend catching the next one!
”Ugly Betty” (ABC) 8:00 pm
Lose The Boss?- (New!) – Since its Thanksgiving, ‘Earl’ and ‘The Office’ aren’t on but ‘Ugly Betty’ is and it’s a new episode! Most likely to be the typical humorous but charming episode in which Betty gets sent on some ridiculous and nearly impossible mission. It’s a somewhat predictable show but entertaining none the less.
”Grey’s Anatomy” (ABC) 9:00 pm
From a Whisper to a Scream- (New!) Tensions rise high as Cristina continues to try and keep Burke’s secret. Sooner or later its all going to fall apart. I’m just wondering if her relationship with Burke will self-destruct first.
Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (Cinemax) 7:50 pm
It’s the 1997 redone version, but Empire is still a great movie.
Bruce Almighty (FOX) 8:00 pm
Nurse yourself back from the turkey hangover and shopping exhaustion with this family friendly comedy in which Jim Carrey plays a guy who gets to be God for a little bit.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (HBO) 7:30 pm
The fourth installment in the Harry Potter film franchise is definitely worth watching. As always, its not nearly as good as the book but watch it for the tri-wizard championship (which involves dragons, underwater adventures and an insane maze), not to mention the return of You-know-who.
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