Question about Tivo: lifetime subscription vs. montly subscription; wireless phone jack system; cheapest place?
 

Hello,

I am posting this message in hope someone can help me. I am
considering buying a Tivo 24008A Series 2 digital video recorder and
wanted to know if it is better to go with the monthly fee or the
product lifetime subscription fee? I guess in the long run, the
lifetime fee is cheaper. What has been your experience? Has anyone
had a unit break down and then have to fork over another subscription
fee for the new unit? I just didn't want that to happen to me. In
addition, how long do the units last?

I am looking at buying the Tivo 24008A Series 2 the 80-hour capacity
unit at Costco for $319.99 plus 7 ¼% sales tax of $23.20 for a total
of $343.19. This is slightly cheaper than Amazon.com's price. Does
anyone know if I can find this at a cheaper price than this? Just
thought I ask. It also pays to shop around.

As a side note, is it better to buy a Series 2 model or an earlier
model? I heard the older models are better but I could be wrong. What
is the major difference between the old models and Series 2? Thanks.

I also plan to use a wireless phone jack system to connect the Tivo to
a telephone line. The room where the Tivo is going into does not have
a telephone jack. Therefore, I thought I would get a wireless phone
jack system as a work around. If I am not mistaken, a wireless phone
jack system for phones / modems is designed to turn any electrical
outlet into a phone jack that can be used to connect computer modems,
video set-top-boxes, Internet appliances, fax machines, and other data
oriented devices to the phone line. Has anyone used any such device
and how well do they work with Tivo? Is there a brand you can
recommend? I am looking at the following 6 systems:

Phonex PX-441 Wireless Jack System for Modems
GE 96595 InstaJack for Phones
RCA RC930 Caller-ID-Compatible Wireless Modem Jack
RCA RC920 Wireless Phone Jack System
GE 96596 Extension unit for InstaJack for Phones
RCA RC926 Wireless Phone Jack

I have heard that these units pick up a lot of static and aren't very
good when using with Tivo, but that may not be accurate. Does anyone
know or have you used such a system with your Tivo? What has been your
experience?

Thanks again for your time and I appreciate it.

"Gary" wrote in message om...
....

I am looking at buying the Tivo 24008A Series 2 the 80-hour capacity
unit at Costco for $319.99 plus 7 ¼% sales tax of $23.20 for a total
of $343.19. This is slightly cheaper than Amazon.com's price. Does
anyone know if I can find this at a cheaper price than this? Just
thought I ask. It also pays to shop around.


http://www.tivo.com/2.0.asp

"Gary" wrote in message om...
....

I am looking at buying the Tivo 24008A Series 2 the 80-hour capacity
unit at Costco for $319.99 plus 7 ¼% sales tax of $23.20 for a total
of $343.19. This is slightly cheaper than Amazon.com's price. Does
anyone know if I can find this at a cheaper price than this? Just
thought I ask. It also pays to shop around.


http://www.tivo.com/2.0.asp

On Fri, 07 Nov 2003 19:29:01 +0000, Jack Ak wrote:

http://www.tivo.com/2.0.asp

Assuming that the $50 MIR would work from Costco as well, then it's a good
deal from Costco, beating Tivo's own price by $30.

If the rebate doesn't work, then it's a decision of rebates vs. instant
savings. Costco's price (if the rebate won't work) is $20 higher than
Tivo's, but you don't need to wait for a rebate.

--
Lenroc

On Fri, 07 Nov 2003 19:29:01 +0000, Jack Ak wrote:

http://www.tivo.com/2.0.asp

Assuming that the $50 MIR would work from Costco as well, then it's a good
deal from Costco, beating Tivo's own price by $30.

If the rebate doesn't work, then it's a decision of rebates vs. instant
savings. Costco's price (if the rebate won't work) is $20 higher than
Tivo's, but you don't need to wait for a rebate.

--
Lenroc

(Gary) shaped the electrons to say:
I am posting this message in hope someone can help me. I am
considering buying a Tivo 24008A Series 2 digital video recorder and
wanted to know if it is better to go with the monthly fee or the
product lifetime subscription fee? I guess in the long run, the

I personally think lifetime is better and I've purchased it on all of
my units. Break even, based stricting on the current lifetime vs
current montly rate, is around two years. I expect to have the units
for more than 2 years. And if I decide to sell them the lifetime goes
with the unit, and units with a sub sell for more. If you pay monthly
you're not building up any equity.

had a unit break down and then have to fork over another subscription
fee for the new unit? I just didn't want that to happen to me. In
addition, how long do the units last?

If you have a unit repaired by an authorized repair center and they
have to replace it the lifetime sub will be transferred. You just
can't go buy a new one yourself. Though a number of the problems that
crop up can be self-repaired, like a HD failure.

TiVo has stated their expected life of a unit is four years. That
doesn't mean they expect the unit to just stop working, but that a
four year old unit will probably be obsoleted by something new. The
most likely component to fail is the HD since it is mechanical.

I am looking at buying the Tivo 24008A Series 2 the 80-hour capacity
unit at Costco for $319.99 plus 7 ¼% sales tax of $23.20 for a total
of $343.19. This is slightly cheaper than Amazon.com's price. Does

Is that before or after rebate? TiVo is selling them for $349 with a
$50 rebate, so $299 total - free shipping. And I think they only
charge tax if you're in CA.

Though if you're at all tech savvy you might buy a 40 hour unit and
upgrade the drive yourself and save money over all:
http://www.newreleasesvideo.com/hinsdale-how-to/

As a side note, is it better to buy a Series 2 model or an earlier
model? I heard the older models are better but I could be wrong. What
is the major difference between the old models and Series 2? Thanks.

Series2 standalone units support networking via a USB adapter out of
the box. S1 units don't have USB ports. S2 units have a much faster
CPU (200MHz MIPS vs 54MHz PowerPC) and twice the RAM (32MB vs 16MB,
IIRC) of the S1 units - so they're a bit faster in use. S2 units
allow you to buy the Home Media Option add-on package as well.

I'd buy a Series2 myself - in face I have 2, I had a S1 but I sold it
and got my 2nd S2 instead. If you plan on doing a lot of serious TiVo
hacking, the S1 is easier to hack. But these days the S2 has been
fairly thoroughly cracked.

I also plan to use a wireless phone jack system to connect the Tivo to
a telephone line. The room where the Tivo is going into does not have

That should be fine - just make *sure* the one you buy is for
*modems*. Models that don't explicitly state they support modems will
probably not work.

-MZ, RHCE #806199299900541, ex-CISSP #3762
--
URL:mailto:megazoneatmegazone.org Gweep, Discordian, Author, Engineer, me.
"A little nonsense now and then, is relished by the wisest men" 508-755-4098
URL:http://www.megazone.org/ URL:http://www.eyrie-productions.com/ Eris

(Gary) shaped the electrons to say:
I am posting this message in hope someone can help me. I am
considering buying a Tivo 24008A Series 2 digital video recorder and
wanted to know if it is better to go with the monthly fee or the
product lifetime subscription fee? I guess in the long run, the

I personally think lifetime is better and I've purchased it on all of
my units. Break even, based stricting on the current lifetime vs
current montly rate, is around two years. I expect to have the units
for more than 2 years. And if I decide to sell them the lifetime goes
with the unit, and units with a sub sell for more. If you pay monthly
you're not building up any equity.

had a unit break down and then have to fork over another subscription
fee for the new unit? I just didn't want that to happen to me. In
addition, how long do the units last?

If you have a unit repaired by an authorized repair center and they
have to replace it the lifetime sub will be transferred. You just
can't go buy a new one yourself. Though a number of the problems that
crop up can be self-repaired, like a HD failure.

TiVo has stated their expected life of a unit is four years. That
doesn't mean they expect the unit to just stop working, but that a
four year old unit will probably be obsoleted by something new. The
most likely component to fail is the HD since it is mechanical.

I am looking at buying the Tivo 24008A Series 2 the 80-hour capacity
unit at Costco for $319.99 plus 7 ¼% sales tax of $23.20 for a total
of $343.19. This is slightly cheaper than Amazon.com's price. Does

Is that before or after rebate? TiVo is selling them for $349 with a
$50 rebate, so $299 total - free shipping. And I think they only
charge tax if you're in CA.

Though if you're at all tech savvy you might buy a 40 hour unit and
upgrade the drive yourself and save money over all:
http://www.newreleasesvideo.com/hinsdale-how-to/

As a side note, is it better to buy a Series 2 model or an earlier
model? I heard the older models are better but I could be wrong. What
is the major difference between the old models and Series 2? Thanks.

Series2 standalone units support networking via a USB adapter out of
the box. S1 units don't have USB ports. S2 units have a much faster
CPU (200MHz MIPS vs 54MHz PowerPC) and twice the RAM (32MB vs 16MB,
IIRC) of the S1 units - so they're a bit faster in use. S2 units
allow you to buy the Home Media Option add-on package as well.

I'd buy a Series2 myself - in face I have 2, I had a S1 but I sold it
and got my 2nd S2 instead. If you plan on doing a lot of serious TiVo
hacking, the S1 is easier to hack. But these days the S2 has been
fairly thoroughly cracked.

I also plan to use a wireless phone jack system to connect the Tivo to
a telephone line. The room where the Tivo is going into does not have

That should be fine - just make *sure* the one you buy is for
*modems*. Models that don't explicitly state they support modems will
probably not work.

-MZ, RHCE #806199299900541, ex-CISSP #3762
--
URL:mailto:megazoneatmegazone.org Gweep, Discordian, Author, Engineer, me.
"A little nonsense now and then, is relished by the wisest men" 508-755-4098
URL:http://www.megazone.org/ URL:http://www.eyrie-productions.com/ Eris

"Gary" wrote in message
om...
Hello,

I am posting this message in hope someone can help me. I am
considering buying a Tivo 24008A Series 2 digital video recorder and
wanted to know if it is better to go with the monthly fee or the
product lifetime subscription fee? I guess in the long run, the
lifetime fee is cheaper. What has been your experience? Has anyone
had a unit break down and then have to fork over another subscription
fee for the new unit? I just didn't want that to happen to me. In
addition, how long do the units last?

I am looking at buying the Tivo 24008A Series 2 the 80-hour capacity
unit at Costco for $319.99 plus 7 ¼% sales tax of $23.20 for a total
of $343.19. This is slightly cheaper than Amazon.com's price. Does
anyone know if I can find this at a cheaper price than this? Just
thought I ask. It also pays to shop around.

As a side note, is it better to buy a Series 2 model or an earlier
model? I heard the older models are better but I could be wrong. What
is the major difference between the old models and Series 2? Thanks.

I also plan to use a wireless phone jack system to connect the Tivo to
a telephone line. The room where the Tivo is going into does not have
a telephone jack. Therefore, I thought I would get a wireless phone
jack system as a work around. If I am not mistaken, a wireless phone
jack system for phones / modems is designed to turn any electrical
outlet into a phone jack that can be used to connect computer modems,
video set-top-boxes, Internet appliances, fax machines, and other data
oriented devices to the phone line. Has anyone used any such device
and how well do they work with Tivo? Is there a brand you can
recommend? I am looking at the following 6 systems:

Phonex PX-441 Wireless Jack System for Modems
GE 96595 InstaJack for Phones
RCA RC930 Caller-ID-Compatible Wireless Modem Jack
RCA RC920 Wireless Phone Jack System
GE 96596 Extension unit for InstaJack for Phones
RCA RC926 Wireless Phone Jack

I have heard that these units pick up a lot of static and aren't very
good when using with Tivo, but that may not be accurate. Does anyone
know or have you used such a system with your Tivo? What has been your
experience?

Thanks again for your time and I appreciate it.

If you can go with DirecTV HDVR2 you will be a lot happier.

Less than $300 should have you running and be able to record 4 shows at the
same time. You would pay $4.99 per month more than if you would pay for 2 of
the cheepest recevers they have. It will store 30 to 38 hours each in a
better quality than you can get form any SA unit.

I have 3 lifttime SA units which I have replace with 4 HDVR2s. Much better
than what I had before
Only works if you can go with DirecTV.

"Gary" wrote in message
om...
Hello,

I am posting this message in hope someone can help me. I am
considering buying a Tivo 24008A Series 2 digital video recorder and
wanted to know if it is better to go with the monthly fee or the
product lifetime subscription fee? I guess in the long run, the
lifetime fee is cheaper. What has been your experience? Has anyone
had a unit break down and then have to fork over another subscription
fee for the new unit? I just didn't want that to happen to me. In
addition, how long do the units last?

I am looking at buying the Tivo 24008A Series 2 the 80-hour capacity
unit at Costco for $319.99 plus 7 ¼% sales tax of $23.20 for a total
of $343.19. This is slightly cheaper than Amazon.com's price. Does
anyone know if I can find this at a cheaper price than this? Just
thought I ask. It also pays to shop around.

As a side note, is it better to buy a Series 2 model or an earlier
model? I heard the older models are better but I could be wrong. What
is the major difference between the old models and Series 2? Thanks.

I also plan to use a wireless phone jack system to connect the Tivo to
a telephone line. The room where the Tivo is going into does not have
a telephone jack. Therefore, I thought I would get a wireless phone
jack system as a work around. If I am not mistaken, a wireless phone
jack system for phones / modems is designed to turn any electrical
outlet into a phone jack that can be used to connect computer modems,
video set-top-boxes, Internet appliances, fax machines, and other data
oriented devices to the phone line. Has anyone used any such device
and how well do they work with Tivo? Is there a brand you can
recommend? I am looking at the following 6 systems:

Phonex PX-441 Wireless Jack System for Modems
GE 96595 InstaJack for Phones
RCA RC930 Caller-ID-Compatible Wireless Modem Jack
RCA RC920 Wireless Phone Jack System
GE 96596 Extension unit for InstaJack for Phones
RCA RC926 Wireless Phone Jack

I have heard that these units pick up a lot of static and aren't very
good when using with Tivo, but that may not be accurate. Does anyone
know or have you used such a system with your Tivo? What has been your
experience?

Thanks again for your time and I appreciate it.

If you can go with DirecTV HDVR2 you will be a lot happier.

Less than $300 should have you running and be able to record 4 shows at the
same time. You would pay $4.99 per month more than if you would pay for 2 of
the cheepest recevers they have. It will store 30 to 38 hours each in a
better quality than you can get form any SA unit.

I have 3 lifttime SA units which I have replace with 4 HDVR2s. Much better
than what I had before
Only works if you can go with DirecTV.