# After booting FiOS DVRs, TiVo Roamio Pro saving me money, frustration



## comma splice (Feb 4, 2010)

Well, I'm pleased to say I'm back with TiVo.

I was spending this to have TV+DVR in three rooms with FiOS Quantum:

$22/month - FiOS DVR service (6 tuners)
$7.99/month - first box
$7.99/month - second box
$7.99/month - third box

*$45.97 total*

Now I'm spending this:

$19.99/month - TiVo fee (I got in on the discounted preowned deal -- save on box price and have a slightly higher monthly fee)
$4.99/month - CableCARD fee

*$24.98 total *

And with two Minis I now have TiVo in all three rooms. Still with 6 tuners.

Yes, I had upfront costs with TiVo, but the service is so much better and I can sell the boxes later if I want.

*Other pluses:*

+ So much faster. Inputting channels took forever on the FiOS DVRs. Typing in channel "505" would sometimes take me to 505 after a few seconds. But more regularly it would take me to channels 50, 05, 5005, 55, etc.
+ More integrated. A search for "Broad City," for example, gives me upcoming showings, Amazon Prime listings, and showings on my DVR.
+ Episode numbering and list. I love that I can make sure I'm watching shows in order.
+ First aired date. TiVo tells me when the show first aired, so I know whether it's pretty new or really old.
+ iPad app. Streaming live TV out of home or in. Finding shows to watch while sitting on the couch. Downloading shows for offline viewing. It's awesome. When browsing movies you see their Metacritic score. When browsing live sporting events, you see their Thuuz score. Love that because I use both of those sites. 
+ What to Watch Now. I'm digging this portion of the TiVo menu. My favorite part is probably the list of all the movies playing now. It even shows the movie posters.

What else do you love about TiVo that FiOS DVRs don't have?


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## caughey (May 26, 2007)

That's crazy! Save your $20/month savings, and in 20 months you can buy lifetime and save even more. 

You can also offload shows and store them on your computer (search kmttg).

Plus Amazon, Netflix, etc.


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## tarheelblue32 (Jan 13, 2014)

You might wind up saving a few dollars more than $45.97 you calculated. In most states you would have to pay some taxes on that amount too. And Verizon will probably follow the lead of the cable companies and start jacking up equipment rental fees every year or two.


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## trip1eX (Apr 2, 2005)

Better than what you were paying but I would have gone all the way and just got a deal on lifetime and saved even more.


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## jjg247 (Oct 1, 2002)

Currently with Comcast, but I had a similar realization. After I ran the numbers I moved to FIOS with a Roamio Plus and two minis. Two-year contract so the price remains the same and I end up saving a thousand dollars on top of the cost for the Tivo equipment. The box fees with Comcast and FIOS are unreal.


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## piano man (Dec 30, 2014)

caughey said:


> That's crazy! Save your $20/month savings, and in 20 months you can buy lifetime and save even more.


I'd expect the TIVO Roamio's to be obsolete (no 4K output) in 2 years. So wouldn't you lose money with a $500 lifetime product sub (or $400 right now) vs $12.50 per month on a yearly subscription?


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## mattack (Apr 9, 2001)

$12.50/month ends up as $300 in two years. However, a subscriptionless Tivo is not worth very much, yet a lifetime one IS. Even "old" Tivos that have lifetime sell on ebay, for $200 or so.

Basically, going lifetime is almost certainly worth the gamble, plus I think 2 years is awfully soon. Lifetime pays for itself at that rate in 2 2/3 years (yes, I'm not counting anything you could have made by investing the rest of the money over that time).


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

piano man said:


> I'd expect the TIVO Roamio's to be obsolete (no 4K output) in 2 years. So wouldn't you lose money with a $500 lifetime product sub (or $400 right now) vs $12.50 per month on a yearly subscription?


4k is not coming in two years. We might have a few cable providers with a couple of 4k channels, but that's about it. The bandwidth requirements for 4k are immense (25-30Mbps) the entire infastructure needs to be upgraded to handle it on a large scale. There may be a 4k TiVo available in 2 years, but that wont severly diminsh the value of an HD only TiVo.

My biggest concern would be about the future of CableCARD. If the MSOs convince the FCC or congress to allow them to stop issuing new cards, then the value of a lifetime TiVo is going to diminish.


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## Phantom Gremlin (Jun 20, 2002)

4K is this year's joke to con people to buy new TVs. Just like 3D was a few years ago. How's ESPN 3D working out for everyone? Apologies in advance to those of you who like to watch Avatar over and over in 3D.

In other words, it's just like Dan203 said. There will be very little programming available in 4K anytime soon.


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## tarheelblue32 (Jan 13, 2014)

Phantom Gremlin said:


> 4K is this year's joke to con people to buy new TVs. Just like 3D was a few years ago. How's ESPN 3D working out for everyone? Apologies in advance to those of you who like to watch Avatar over and over in 3D.
> 
> In other words, it's just like Dan203 said. There will be very little programming available in 4K anytime soon.


At least viewing 4K doesn't require special glasses, though you may require prescription glasses to be able to see any benefit from 4K.


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