# TiVo Mini Unboxing



## cmonroe

To protect the identity of the "big box" store that couldn't resist selling me one of these I won't mention names but I'm sure you can guess 

On a fluke I called to see if they had any in stock. At first they said they didn't even have that product in their system, but put me on hold to check the back. They came back stating they did have some and I asked for one to be held for me to pickup as they are "very hard to find right now", and they did so without question. 

When I arrived at the store it was there waiting. Even with no SKU in the system it rung up without issue and I was out the door 2 minutes later. I picked this up literally 20 minutes ago and haven't even activated it yet. Here are some unboxing pictures. It should be running shortly, if you have any questions feel free to ask and I'll to my best to respond!


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## cmonroe

Open Box, accessories, and back of unit.


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## cmonroe

Size comparison to my TiVo Premiere.


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## daveak

I look forward to hearing more about this unit, especially if you can get it to stream shows from a 2 tuner unit (I think you could but no live TV).


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## magnus

Interesting. Hope to see that it has Netflix and Amazon streaming. That would be cool but my guess is that it does not.


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## magnus

daveak said:


> I look forward to hearing more about this unit, especially if you can get it to stream shows from a 2 tuner unit (I think you could but no live TV).


I sure would hope so. It wouldn't make any sense for them to not let you do that but stranger things have happened. So we'll see.


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## jwagner010

I see it has a USB port. Does the Bluetooth remote work with the unit?


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## magnus

jwagner010 said:


> I see it has a USB port. Does the Bluetooth remote work with the unit?


I wondered if it would play media from a USB drive or not when I saw the picture.


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## Dan203

I wonder if TiVo will actually allow you to register it? If it's not officially for sale yet the CSRs may not even have a way to add it to your account or sell you service on it.


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## cmonroe

Dan203 said:


> I wonder if TiVo will actually allow you to register it? If it's not officially for sale yet the CSRs may not even have a way to add it to your account or sell you service on it.


I'm about to find out. According to the instructions at's all online and looks very simple.


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## cmonroe

Ok, at the "Loading Info" screen now. Moca setup was a breeze. I did the online activation and unfortunately it tried to activate like a normal TiVo (e.g. $12.95/mo or $499/lifetime). I just did the monthly option and figured I'd convert/call TiVo once it goes live. 

@daveak: I'm also powering up my old 2-tuner (in the photo) and will let you know if you can stream shows. 

@magnus: I'll post back shortly with info on this Amazon, Netflix, and USB streaming. If not for that I don't know what USB would be for as you can't use a wireless adapter and there's no need for a SDV adapter. 

@jwagner010: The only bluetooth remote is the slide, correct? If so I don't have one of those. I do have a couple of Bluetooth keyboards, can you pair with those or is there some other device I can test with?


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## BigJimOutlaw

Thanks for today's dose of nerd porn. 

The verbiage on the box (or lack thereof) is really quite telling...

- "Compatible with any Tivo DVR with four or more tuners." 

- No Netflix mentioned on the box, while Hulu is. That's not an accidental "it's coming any second now, sorry for the delay." That's some kind of business issue they've known about for a time.

- They're really adamant about the 4-tuner thing. Sure they want to be crystal clear on the compatibility, but I'm really starting to wonder if they're going to bother with full 2-tuner support even after DTA. They're hammering it in so strongly, and it's tough to put that toothpaste back in the tube. Plus, if they intended to update the box in the relative short term to make that change, why drop the "4 or more tuners" hint now. It seems so... permanent.


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## Dan203

cmonroe said:


> Ok, at the "Loading Info" screen now. Moca setup was a breeze. I did the online activation and unfortunately it tried to activate like a normal TiVo (e.g. $12.95/mo or $499/lifetime). I just did the monthly option and figured I'd convert/call TiVo once it goes live.
> 
> @daveak: I'm also powering up my old 2-tuner (in the photo) and will let you know if you can stream shows.
> 
> @magnus: I'll post back shortly with info on this Amazon, Netflix, and USB streaming. If not for that I don't know what USB would be for as you can't use a wireless adapter and there's no need for a SDV adapter.
> 
> @jwagner010: The only bluetooth remote is the slide, correct? If so I don't have one of those. I do have a couple of Bluetooth keyboards, can you pair with those or is there some other device I can test with?


I thought activation might be a problem. Hopefully it's something they can easily fix once they get everything going on their end.

The USB port is for the Slide remote. The Slide remote comes with a little USB BlueTooth dongle it needs to function. It's highly unlikely the USB port supports any sort of USB storage for local video playback.


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## magnus

Dan203 said:


> I thought activation might be a problem. Hopefully it's something they can easily fix once they get everything going on their end.
> 
> The USB port is for the Slide remote. The Slide remote comes with a little USB BlueTooth dongle it needs to function. It's highly unlikely the USB port supports any sort of USB storage for local video playback.


Seems like a waste of a USB port then.


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## Dan203

I know the Slide was discontinued recently, but this thing was designed a year or two ago. Plus the Slide is likely to be replaced by an updated version eventually so it may not be as wasteful as it seems. And you never really know what else they might think up that could use a USB port.


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## teklock

Can you tell us the sku number that's on the receipt? There has to be something there. Thanks much!


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## magnus

I guess that was really the point. It would be wasteful if that's all they planned to do with it.


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## davezatz

Dan203 said:


> I thought activation might be a problem. Hopefully it's something they can easily fix once they get everything going on their end.


I guess that could be one reason the launch was delayed?


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## teklock

Dan203 said:


> I know the Slide was discontinued recently, but this thing was designed a year or two ago. Plus the Slide is likely to be replaced by an updated version eventually so it may not be as wasteful as it seems. And you never really know what else they might think up that could use a USB port.


Wasn't it reported the usb port was for an IR sensor cable?


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## SullyND

Isn't the USB port reportedly for the add on IR reciever?


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## cmonroe

@Dan203: Under account & system info, I see what I think might be a new field:

Remote Address: 0(IR), (RF)

Do you think this implies bluetooth might be built in? 

@teklock: SKU is 8505056, Model is TCDA92000

I'm happy to crack the box open if you guys want to see a component breakdown.

I'm waiting on an update to finish before I can tell if it supports Amazon/Netflix/Pandora/etc.


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## jano18

SullyND said:


> Isn't the USB port reportedly for the add on IR reciever?


That's possible, but it does appear to work with a Slide based on the images from CES. I guess we will find out soon. I also hope that it will also work via IP control for my Roomie app.


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## jano18

teklock said:


> Can you tell us the sku number that's on the receipt? There has to be something there. Thanks much!


That would be cool if you could post the sku or an image of your receipt. I'd like to try to go get one tomorrow, as I'm sure many others here would as well.


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## teklock

Thanks for the sku..

Looks like none of the stores in the DFW area have any. She said they have some coming from the warehouse on Tuesday though.


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## davezatz

Yes, SKU - PLEASE! And thanks for the permission to run the photo.

Update: I see it above, thanks. Browsing the forum via mobile browser isn't ideal.


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## HarperVision

So does this mean it's not a "Unicorn" anymore?


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## BigJimOutlaw

HarperVision said:


> So does this mean it's not a "Unicorn" anymore?


Perhaps it has reached Bigfoot status. Sightings are alleged and photographs supposedly taken.


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## jfalkingham

Good find cmonroe!

Too bad it does not have Netflix. I was hoping to use exclusively to access Netflix and movies stored on main TiVo. I'll keep using the premiere instead as the big mini


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## carroca

TiVo bundle deals end on Monday. @teklock says Best Buy said shipment is coming from warehouse on Tuesday. Maybe we'll get an announcement on Tuesday or Wednesday next week. Hopefully. I've been waiting forever for these to be released to buy an XL4 for myself and one for my parents along with at least one Mini for each house. Come on TiVo, don't you want my money?


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## Dan203

All signs point to a release on Tuesday. I'd be pretty surprised if it wasn't available by then.


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## cmonroe

I asssure you, no unicorns here  I was just as skeptical this morning. Oddly I'm in a semi-small area rather than a major metropolitan area... idea idea why the store here had them. Anyway, on to the good stuff...

The box shipped with SW version: 20.2.2-01-6-A92
After a while it upgraded to: 20.2.2.1-01-6-A92

e.g. 20.2.2 vs 20.2.2.1. My Q4 is also running 20.2.2.1.

I attached a USB key to the back and it popped up with a message stating "This TiVo Box does not support attaching a device to add recording space. (E02)" so that's a no-go on playing videos from USB. Like the comments above, it's likely for an IR extender. The device has mounting holes on the bottom so it could be mounted flush to a wall or some other surface.

Season pass manager behaves as if you were sitting in front of the Q4/box the Mini is bound to which is an amazing feature in my mind. I've always hated managing season passes on multiple TiVos.

My old 2-tuner TiVo shows up in the now playing list but I can not see any content on it. Maybe this is a bug or maybe this is by design.

Menu options consist of:

Find TV, Movies & Videos

Search
Browse TV & Movies
Hulu Plus
YouTube
AOL On
Web Video Launchpad

So no Netflix is confirmed (at least for now). Search and Browse work just like the regular Premiere interface.

Music & Photos


Spotify
Pandora
Rhapsody Music Service
Live365
Podcaster
Photos & Slideshows

Apps contains most of the usual stuff. I don't really use this section so don't know what may be missing. I can look for something specific if requested.

Under "Remote & Device Settings" you can choose "Connected TiVo DVR". I have a Q4 and 2-tuner premiere in my network only the Q4 can be selected. So even though I performed initial setup with a Q4 it doesn't look like I can use a tuner from the 2-tuner model for the Mini (yet anyway).

Network based remote controls are still supported. Likewise the TiVo iPhone app works just fine with the Mini.

There is still a setting to disable the front LEDs, however the front LED is very dim and much more bedroom friendly (pic attached).

I am using Moca for network connectivity but am a bit disappointed; unlike the Premiere Q4, the Mini won't act as a Moca gateway. I have one other wired Ethernet device in the room and was hoping to connect it to the Mini and bridge it onto the Moca network but it's simply not possible.

On the plus side, the user interface experience is MUCH faster. Speed wise it's what the premiere should have been from day 1. On the other hand I would say channel surfing is a thing of the past; it takes a good 2-3 seconds to start the stream. I put a video up here.

Lastly, I'm sure many of you noticed from the pictures that the component and composite A/V outputs requires a special cable. My old TV doesn't support audio over HDMI so I had to use a headphone to RCA jack cable to connect auto via the A/V output.

Overall impression is that the Mini is a great extension of the Q4. Rather than a Premiere, cable card, Ethernet switch, and Moca adapter in this space I now simply have a Mini which is great. No more managing multiple season passes or remembering where a certain show recorded is the way things should be. The only two things that disappoint so far are:

1.) No Netflix
2.) Moca doesn't bridge to Ethernet

I suspect both of these (well at least Netflix) will be fixed in future software releases.


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## MeInDallas

cmonroe said:


> Remote Address: 0(IR), (RF)
> 
> Do you think this implies bluetooth might be built in?


This shows on all Tivo's. When you program a remote to be specific to a Tivo it will show a number there. Like if you have 2 Tivo's in the same room, you program a remote for each Tivo (2 remotes). Each Tivo will have a different number assigned to it.


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## cmonroe

MeInDallas said:


> This shows on all Tivo's. When you program a remote to be specific to a Tivo it will show a number there. Like if you have 2 Tivo's in the same room, you program a remote for each Tivo (2 remotes). Each Tivo will have a different number assigned to it.


Thanks for the info. I've never noticed it before so I thought I'd check.


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## CoxInPHX

cmonroe said:


> The box shipped with SW version: 20.2.2-01-6-A92
> After a while it upgraded to: 20.2.2.1-01-6-A92
> 
> e.g. 20.2.2 vs 20.2.2.1. *My Q4* is also running 20.2.2.1.


You reference your *"Q4"* is this a Cable Co supplied TiVo Q or a retail Premiere 4 or Elite/XL4?

I ask this question in regards to no Netflix.


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## moyekj

So from my understanding you're saying that Season Pass manager and ToDo list are available from the Mini (and the corresponding TiVo-1 and Tivo-2 shortcuts work as well)? That conflicts with what the CNET review was implying but it's great news if that is indeed the case.

The fact that UI is MUCH faster is also great news and the main reason I'm interested in the Mini as a front end for my Elite.


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## cmonroe

moyekj said:


> So from my understanding you're saying that Season Pass manager and ToDo list are available from the Mini (and the corresponding TiVo-1 and Tivo-2 shortcuts work as well)? That conflicts with what the CNET review was implying but it's great news if that is indeed the case.
> 
> The fact that UI is MUCH faster is also great news and the main reason I'm interested in the Mini as a front end for my Elite.


Regarding Q4, my Premiere 4 shows up as a Q4 from the Mini interface. This was a retail purchased 4-tuner premiere.

As for Season pass manager and to-do list yes, they work from the Mini just like they do from the main premiere.

As for TiVo-1 and TiVo-2 shortcuts they show up in the now playing list, but I can't access shows on my second TiVo, only those on the TiVo the Mini is linked to. Maybe this is a bug TiVo help up release for?


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## Bigg

Dan203 said:


> I know the Slide was discontinued recently, but this thing was designed a year or two ago. Plus the Slide is likely to be replaced by an updated version eventually so it may not be as wasteful as it seems. And you never really know what else they might think up that could use a USB port.


I think we're seeing the beginning of a new TiVo system emerging, and the Mini is only a small part of it, although at this point, I don't see the Slide remote making any sense given that you can type through the iPhone app, and then use the regular Peanut on the couch.


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## moyekj

cmonroe said:


> As for Season pass manager and to-do list yes, they work from the Mini just like they do from the main premiere.


 Excellent! Very happy to hear that.



> As for TiVo-1 and TiVo-2 shortcuts they show up in the now playing list, but I can't access shows on my second TiVo, only those on the TiVo the Mini is linked to. Maybe this is a bug TiVo help up release for?


 Not sure I follow. Pressing Tivo then 1 is just a shortcut to get to SP Manager and likewise pressing TiVo then 2 is a shortcut to get to ToDo list. I was just wondering if those work like they do for normal TiVo units?

I would expect the SP manager and ToDo list to only control the host unit that the Mini is tied to - that makes sense. It would be nice if you could control any series 4 unit, but the regular series 4 units can't do that to each other right now so I wouldn't expect the Mini to either.


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## CoxInPHX

cmonroe said:


> Regarding Q4, my Premiere 4 shows up as a Q4 from the Mini interface. This was a retail purchased 4-tuner premiere.


I wonder if this indicates the current Mini SW is set-up for MSO partners only, for the time being?


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## dhoward

Based on the video it looks like it takes closer to 4-5 seconds for the stream to start after changing channels. That is what my slingbox used to do and I hated it. I thought this might be faster. That is a severe handicap for channel surfing.


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## jano18

dhoward said:


> Based on the video it looks like it takes closer to 4-5 seconds for the stream to start after changing channels. That is what my slingbox used to do and I hated it. I thought this might be faster. That is a severe handicap for channel surfing.


That is slightly disappointing news, but kind of expected. I guess a work around would be surfing the guide. I don't see it as a big issue for me as I will mostly watch one news channel live, stream recordings from my XL4 & occasionally surf.


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## dhoward

How fast is the response to pause, FF, play, etc? The slingbox was slow for those features also. Is the Mini faster then the channel surfing mode?


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## jwagner010

Dan203 said:


> The USB port is for the Slide remote. The Slide remote comes with a little USB BlueTooth dongle it needs to function. It's highly unlikely the USB port supports any sort of USB storage for local video playback.


It has widely been reported that the Bluetooth remote has been discontinued and I cannot see them for sale on the Tivo site anymore. Do we know if a future Bluetooth remote is coming? IMO that has been one of the best things about the Tivo and differentiates it.


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## overFEDEXed

jwagner010 said:


> It has widely been reported that the Bluetooth remote has been discontinued and I cannot see them for sale on the Tivo site anymore. Do we know if a future Bluetooth remote is coming? IMO that has been one of the best things about the Tivo and differentiates it.


I have five Slide remotes. Three in use and two, new in the box, as backups. I paid anywhere from $38 to $58 a piece for them.

In my household, they are great. They are tricky to get right sometimes, but until something new comes out........
The only thing, that I have seen from Tivo, is the survey asking about the lost remote making sounds etc. I can't remember the other info on it.

Also, I tried to get my "Big Box Store" to sell me a Mini. He just looked at me and said "We don't have it for sale, just yet". I don't know if it was in the back or not, but he sure wasn't giving out any other info.


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## BlackBetty

jano18 said:


> That is slightly disappointing news, but kind of expected. I guess a work around would be surfing the guide. I don't see it as a big issue for me as I will mostly watch one news channel live, stream recordings from my XL4 & occasionally surf.


My days of channel surfing ended about 10 years ago when I bought my first tivo. And I was a chronic surfer. Constantly flipping through the stations.


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## dhoward

CMONROE, can you verify the response time for the normal Tivo functions such as FF, REW, Pause, etc? I used to use a Slingbox/Slingcatcher combo and the response time was 3-5 seconds. After awhile that got to be disconcerting so I removed them. I was hoping the Mini would be faster but you mentioned that channel surfing is slow and according to the video it looked like the slingbox response. I want to be able to use the Mini not just to watch recorded shows but also live TV. If its response is 3-5 seconds for all functions then I guess I will save my $250.


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## bluebsh

BlackBetty said:


> My days of channel surfing ended about 10 years ago when I bought my first tivo. And I was a chronic surfer. Constantly flipping through the stations.


oh heck the days of switching channels fast ended when we went to MPEG-2... back when digital first came out changing the channel there was usually a 2+ second delay then the first frame came in as a block pattern and filled out after they keyframe drew... today still on comcast with better hardware there is still a delay of at least a second, not like analog where it was flip flip flip flip... now its flip 1 sec flip 1 sec....


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## Loach

bluebsh said:


> oh heck the days of switching channels fast ended when we went to MPEG-2... back when digital first came out changing the channel there was usually a 2+ second delay then the first frame came in as a block pattern and filled out after they keyframe drew... today still on comcast with better hardware there is still a delay of at least a second, not like analog where it was flip flip flip flip... now its flip 1 sec flip 1 sec....


Agreed - I tend to surf the guide anyway rather than the channels. That is, unless I'm on one of my TVs that isn't hooked up to a box and therefore has no guide and only has analog cable channels and the local digital channels in clear QAM.


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## compnurd

Loach said:


> Agreed - I tend to surf the guide anyway rather than the channels. That is, unless I'm on one of my TVs that isn't hooked up to a box and therefore has no guide and only has analog cable channels and the local digital channels in clear QAM.


+2. I dont channel surf because my cable company as a assbackwards channel line up. Always check the guide to see what we want to watch. Big reason I love the HDUI because compared to Verizon/Dish/Direct TV/everyone else they have one of largest amounts of data they show.


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## bradleys

I realize that without a hard drive this unit isn't going to be able to play from pytivo shares directly... No chance that selecting a video from the share would initiate a transfer to the parent TiVo???

Yeah - the question made me chuckle too.


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## moyekj

bradleys said:


> I realize that without a hard drive this unit isn't going to be able to play from pytivo shares directly... No chance that selecting a video from the share would initiate a transfer to the parent TiVo???
> 
> Yeah - the question made me chuckle too.


 You may be able to run VidMgr on the Mini to initiate pushes to other TiVos in the house (assuming VidMgr lets you pick a destination TiVo other than what it is running on which I'm not sure of since I've never used it).
Streambaby for sure has a way to select a destination TiVo to push a video to so presumably should work as well.


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## tomm1079

Does streambaby work?


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## moyekj

tomm1079 said:


> Does streambaby work?


 For "streaming" videos to a Mini, no. Put should be able to use it to select videos to push to another TiVo in the house as I mentioned above.
cmonroe could confirm one way or the other if he's willing to try it.


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## Bigg

jano18 said:


> That is slightly disappointing news, but kind of expected. I guess a work around would be surfing the guide. I don't see it as a big issue for me as I will mostly watch one news channel live, stream recordings from my XL4 & occasionally surf.


Does anyone channel surf on TiVo anymore? That's what my technology challenged dad does. Guide surfing is what people if any surfing at all, but at this point, with native output requiring resolution changes about half the time anyways, there is a lot of channel changing lag, and it's for the better.


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## cmonroe

I posted this in the comments on ZNF, but regarding channel changes and overall speed:

"I posted the review at TiVo Community and what Chucky is saying is my best guess. You figure changing channels on the Premiere directly which has a cable card, and my market just upgraded to SDV ~3 week ago so one of the gigantic Cisco TAs, takes about 2 seconds anyway. The extra second to setup the streaming session if you figure an average of 3 seconds per channel change is nothing. Id actually have to say that browsing the Now Playing list and starting a recorded show on the Mini is faster, even over a network connection, than it is directly on the Premiere. If they add Netfllix support to the Mini and fix tuner allocation Id almost consider hiding the premiere in a closet somewhere and using the Mini as a thin client for all TVs just due to its responsiveness. I rarely watch live TV so a faster UI + better user experience is a plus in my mind."

@moyekj: Sorry, I didn't follow your comment regarding Tivo-1 and TiVo-2 at first. I've never used those shortcuts but you learn something new ever day. I thought you were referring to TiVo-1 as my primary Premiere and 2 as my secondary. In that case someone had asked if I could stream shows from another premiere in my house, not the one the Mini is bound to. For me at least the second TiVo shows up but I can't see the shows. I was having networking issues last night and will re-try today so my initial comments may be wrong.

@dhoward and others: While channel changes might be slow, like I mentioned above browsing the NPL and starting a recorded show is actually faster which I love. I'll post a comparison video shortly.


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## cmonroe

Loach said:


> Agreed - I tend to surf the guide anyway rather than the channels. That is, unless I'm on one of my TVs that isn't hooked up to a box and therefore has no guide and only has analog cable channels and the local digital channels in clear QAM.


Surfing the guide is much faster in the Mini than on the regular Premiere so I'd rate the overall experience better on the Mini.


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## cmonroe

BTW I'll have hardware pics up shortly as well, stay tuned.


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## sbiller

cmonroe said:


> BTW I'll have hardware pics up shortly as well, stay tuned.


Would love to see a confirmation of the BCM7418 but I fear it might be under a glued-on heat sink like the Broadcom SoC in the Elite/XL4.


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## Davelnlr_

cmonroe said:


> @teklock: SKU is 8505056, Model is TCDA92000


Must have been pulled. No longer showing up on the website.


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## ufo4sale

Can you pause live TV from the Mini?


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## Davisadm

Davelnlr_ said:


> Must have been pulled. No longer showing up on the website.


Didn't show up yesterday evening either.


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## puffdaddy

sbiller said:


> Would love to see a confirmation of the BCM7418 but I fear it might be under a glued-on heat sink like the Broadcom SoC in the Elite/XL4.


It's powered by a bcm7418.


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## cmonroe

ufo4sale said:


> Can you pause live TV from the Mini?


Yup, you can pause just like on the regular Premiere. In fact, if you turn the TV on which the Mini is connected to, hit the "live TV" button and it maintains the most recent 30 minutes of that channel in buffer just like the premiere does. You can come back to your Mini after having the TV off for say 12 hours and rewind the current channel it's on up to 30 minutes which is handy.


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## cmonroe

Sorry the quality is not great, but here's the overall board layout. I couldn't make out more than a Broadcom logo on the die but based on the feature set it aligns well with the 7418 as others have commented. There are 2x Samsung K4B2G1646C chips on board which appear to be 128MB DDR3 RAM, so 256MB total. There is also 1x Samsung KLM2G1HE3F chip that appears to be a 2GB eMMC chip. eMMC includes the MMC interface, flash memory, and flash memory controller on on a single chip. Without digging in deeper likely this is used to store the OS and also contains a partition for buffering up media. 

I didn't notice any obvious connectors, except the 4 pin connector in the bottom right of IMG_2399. This may be a serial port but there is no UART chip to be found anywhere; you'd need an adapter that contains the UART on board (if that's what this port even is). This is typical of high production units to reduce cost.


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## boblinds

Did anyone reveal how much this device costs? (Did I miss that while browsing through the thread?  )


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## HarperVision

$99 plus $149 lifetime or $5.99/month


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## cmonroe

HarperVision said:


> $99 plus $149 lifetime or $5.99/month


Yup, receipt was $107.98 with tax here.


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## Gonats

cmonroe said:


> On the plus side, the user interface experience is MUCH faster. Speed wise it's what the premiere should have been from day 1. On the other hand I would say channel surfing is a thing of the past; it takes a good 2-3 seconds to start the stream.


Im not so worried about the delay starting the stream, but do you have any idea on what, if any, time lag there is between a premiere and attached mini displaying the same program?

I'd like to put a mini in the kitchen for sports, but if folks in the den start cheering 3 seconds before I see it, that would be less than ideal.


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## Dan203

Gonats said:


> Im not so worried about the delay starting the stream, but do you have any idea on what, if any, time lag there is between a premiere and attached mini displaying the same program?
> 
> I'd like to put a mini in the kitchen for sports, but if folks in the den start cheering 3 seconds before I see it, that would be less than ideal.


They're two completely different copies of the program so syncing them up would be nearly impossible.

The streaming technology TiVo uses does not mirror what's being played on the host unit, it streams the digital data for the program to the remote unit and that unit plays it back complete with it's own ability to pause, FF, RW, etc... If you want to mirror what's on the TV in the living room your best bet for a no-lag solution would be to simply run a long cable. There are devices call baluns that can send an HDMI signal over a standard cat6 up to 300' feet if a typical 50' cable wont work.


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## MHunter1

cmonroe said:


> here's the overall board layout


Just to confirm, the Mini has no fan and runs completely silent, unlike the TiVo Stream which produces an annoying hum?


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## jfh3

Davelnlr_ said:


> Must have been pulled. No longer showing up on the website.


It hasn't ever been on the website yet. The SKU is listed in Best Buy's system and has the proper description, but, at least in the Denver area, no stores show any stock or availability at the warehouse.

The interesting thing is that one store told me they don't carry that product, but another store (that has a Magnolia sub store does, but they were currently out of stock). This leads me to wonder if the Mini is going to be available only at the Best Buy locations with Magnolias.


----------



## dhoward

I understand what many of you are saying regarding channel surfing. I know I am not alone in the method. I am not technically challenged. However, people watch TV in many ways. There are a lot of times where I might keep switching between two channels trying to multi-task so to speak. I had a Slingcatcher/Slingbox combo, for a while, hooked up to a Tivo. No matter what remote command I used there was always, roughly, a 4-5 second lag before the response. After awhile that got tedious especially during FF or rewinding. I understood the delay since the signal had to pass thru the catcher to the router to the slingbox and finally the Tivo and all the way back. I am concerned the Mini will exhibit this same time delay. I know it will have something for a delay but how much. Will it be faster then the above combo? That is why I am asking the only consumer who actually has one if he knows the time delay. When I sit in front of a Tivo I am looking for fast response time and I get it in its normal configuration. I want something reasonably close in comparison with a Mini. I know it won't be the same time but I hope it will be fast enough to not get aggravating.


----------



## cmonroe

Dan203 said:


> They're two completely different copies of the program so syncing them up would be nearly impossible.
> 
> The streaming technology TiVo uses does not mirror what's being played on the host unit, it streams the digital data for the program to the remote unit and that unit plays it back complete with it's own ability to pause, FF, RW, etc... If you want to mirror what's on the TV in the living room your best bet for a no-lag solution would be to simply run a long cable. There are devices call baluns that can send an HDMI signal over a standard cat6 up to 300' feet if a typical 50' cable wont work.


Just to confirm yes, there is about a 3 second delay between what you hear on the premiere and what you hear on the mini due to streaming. That being said, I bet if you tuned two minis to the same channel the delay woud be only marginally different (like tuning two premieres to the same live station) as the delay/overhead should be the same. I may pick up another mini today and if I do that I'll report back.


----------



## cmonroe

dhoward said:


> I understand what many of you are saying regarding channel surfing. I know I am not alone in the method. I am not technically challenged. However, people watch TV in many ways. There are a lot of times where I might keep switching between two channels trying to multi-task so to speak. I had a Slingcatcher/Slingbox combo, for a while, hooked up to a Tivo. No matter what remote command I used there was always, roughly, a 4-5 second lag before the response. After awhile that got tedious especially during FF or rewinding. I understood the delay since the signal had to pass thru the catcher to the router to the slingbox and finally the Tivo and all the way back. I am concerned the Mini will exhibit this same time delay. I know it will have something for a delay but how much. Will it be faster then the above combo? That is why I am asking the only consumer who actually has one if he knows the time delay. When I sit in front of a Tivo I am looking for fast response time and I get it in its normal configuration. I want something reasonably close in comparison with a Mini. I know it won't be the same time but I hope it will be fast enough to not get aggravating.


The delay should be much less than your old combo. I actually do something similar when watching two shows on the premiere but by switching tuners. Swapping channels on the mini takes about 3-3.5 seconds. Since you are using a TiVo remote you simply hit "Enter/Last" and it swaps back. I would say it adds maybe 0.5-1.0 seconds over doing the same thing on a Premiere (we were discussing the lag in changing channels on a Premiere due to cable cards and other issues in general) so I find it acceptable.

The one thing you lose out on with the mini is buffering. If you switch between 2 tuners on the Premiere you have 30 minutes of buffer (per-tuner) you can rewind and that doesn't go away if you only switch tuners. Since the mini is tied to one tuner swapping channels releases the buffer. My statement from earlier still stands however; if you turn on the mini after say a few hours and hit "Live TV" it maintains a 30 minute buffer of the current channel (until you change it) which is handy if the show that's on when you turn on the TV is something you want to watch. Simply rewind it and watch as if it were recorded.


----------



## cmonroe

MHunter1 said:


> Just to confirm, the Mini has no fan and runs completely silent, unlike the TiVo Stream which produces an annoying hum?


No fans, no noise whatsoever. LEDs are much less intrusive as well. This device is *very* bedroom friendly. If you see the hardware pics I posted above it shows the full board. The only things not pictured are the heat sink over the BCM chip and the plastic enclosure.


----------



## Dan203

And if you touch the trick play controlls on either it will be even more out of sync.


----------



## cmonroe

Ok, one more update (sorry for the spam). I tried streaming a show from the other TiVo premiere in my house and it worked fine today. It didn't work yesterday due to networking issues. It doesn't look like i can set the Mini up to use a tuner from the 2-tuner premiere but that may be a config issue on the 2-tuner, I'll check it out.


----------



## aaronwt

cmonroe said:


> No fans, no noise whatsoever. LEDs are much less intrusive as well. This device is *very* bedroom friendly. If you see the hardware pics I posted above it shows the full board. The only things not pictured are the heat sink over the BCM chip and the plastic enclosure.


I've had a TiVo in the bedroom for almost the last 12 years. Once I get the Mini I don't know how I'll get to sleep without hearing the TiVo fan and hard drive every night. It's going to be so quiet. Probably too quiet.


----------



## dhoward

cmonroe said:


> The delay should be much less than your old combo. I actually do something similar when watching two shows on the premiere but by switching tuners. Swapping channels on the mini takes about 3-3.5 seconds. Since you are using a TiVo remote you simply hit "Enter/Last" and it swaps back. I would say it adds maybe 0.5-1.0 seconds over doing the same thing on a Premiere (we were discussing the lag in changing channels on a Premiere due to cable cards and other issues in general) so I find it acceptable.
> 
> The one thing you lose out on with the mini is buffering. If you switch between 2 tuners on the Premiere you have 30 minutes of buffer (per-tuner) you can rewind and that doesn't go away if you only switch tuners. Since the mini is tied to one tuner swapping channels releases the buffer. My statement from earlier still stands however; if you turn on the mini after say a few hours and hit "Live TV" it maintains a 30 minute buffer of the current channel (until you change it) which is handy if the show that's on when you turn on the TV is something you want to watch. Simply rewind it and watch as if it were recorded.


Ok, one last question. If I hit pause how long before I actually see the pause occur on the TV attached to the mini?


----------



## magnus

dhoward said:


> Ok, one last question. If I hit pause how long before I actually see the pause occur on the TV attached to the mini?


Misread that.


----------



## cmonroe

dhoward said:


> Ok, one last question. If I hit pause how long before I actually see the pause occur on the TV attached to the mini?


Instantly. Same goes for pressing play on paused content. It feels more responsive than using the premiere itself directly.


----------



## Kevin249

I'd be interested in this strictly for streaming Recorded content from other Tivos I own, and not necessarily for the tuner features. I own 2 TiVo premieres dual tuners and a HD. Any idea if the streaming of recorded content still work even if I don't have a quad tuner to link it to?


----------



## Dan203

Controls are instant. This is not like a slingbox where it is mirroring what is on the remote TiVo. The digital data is actually being streamed to the remote TiVo/Mini so it has full control over it without needing to send any signal to the host. I can't comment directly on the Mini but I have multiple Premieres and use MRS all the time. The only place you really notice that you're not using the local TiVo is during FF/RW. The video is a bit choppier then when playing a local recording so it can be a little but more difficult to land exactly where you want after skipping e commercials. However if you get use to it. Plus if you use 30 second scan instead you notice no difference at all. The rest of the trick play features are indistinguishable from playing the same recording on the host TiVo m


----------



## davezatz

In the DC metro region there are 12 Minis in the Maryland warehouse which can be purchased in-store now for in-store or home delivery. I'm not super literate with Best Buy's inventory system but, from what the clerk showed me, it also looks like more units could be on order or enroute.


----------



## cmonroe

cmonroe said:


> Ok, one more update (sorry for the spam). I tried streaming a show from the other TiVo premiere in my house and it worked fine today. It didn't work yesterday due to networking issues. It doesn't look like i can set the Mini up to use a tuner from the 2-tuner premiere but that may be a config issue on the 2-tuner, I'll check it out.


I checked the 2nd (2-tuner) premiere I have and the "Allow Live TV on Other Devices" menu is missing so I suspect that's why it doesn't work. I'm not sure if this will ever be allowed by TiVo, or if it's maybe one of the bugs they are holding up release for. I've been following the mini pretty closesly but not that closely. I thought I remember reading at one point that initial pairing had to be with a 4-tuner, but you could pair with a 2-tuner afterwards. Maybe I mis-read it or it was another rumor. Either way you can stream content off of the 2-tuner so that's the important part.

Another note: my pyTivo shares are X'd out on the Mini. I suspect I need to setup streambaby or something similar since the mini needs to stream, not copy. If anyone has a pointer on how to set this up on a Mac I'd be happy to test it.


----------



## Dan203

Kevin249 said:


> I'd be interested in this strictly for streaming Recorded content from other Tivos I own, and not necessarily for the tuner features. I own 2 TiVo premieres dual tuners and a HD. Any idea if the streaming of recorded content still work even if I don't have a quad tuner to link it to?


No. It has to be paired to a 4 tuner unit to even get through setup. Although you may want to do the math. It may work out to replace two of your other units with a 4 tuner box and a Mini depending on how much you pay for CableCARDs and outlet fees.


----------



## aaronwt

davezatz said:


> In the DC metro region there are 12 Minis in the Maryland warehouse which can be purchased in-store now for in-store or home delivery. I'm not super literate with Best Buy's inventory system but, from what the clerk showed me, it also looks like more units could be on order or enroute.


I hope so. 12 units for the twenty or more stores in the DC area seems like a small amount. They would sell out very quickly.

I just need to decide if I'm going to make a trip to BestBuy tonight. I typically don't like going there on weekends unless it's early, like AM. Otherwise it's too crowded.


----------



## Kevin249

Thanks for the info. I'll have to do the math then and see if the a new quad makes more sense. Too bad you cant just stream recorded content if you don't want the live tv. Also I just called several stores in my area and they told me several nearby stores have it in stock.


----------



## Dan203

Having a 4 tuner unit that can consolidate all your Season Passes into a single box has value in and of itself. Honestly the only reason I still have two TiVos is because my stupid cable company still has some analog only channels and I have to keep a 2 tuner Premiere to record those. When they finally switch to all digital I'm dumping the Premiere and getting a Mini to replace it instead.


----------



## overFEDEXed

aaronwt said:


> I hope so. 12 units for the twenty or more stores in the DC area seems like a small amount. They would sell out very quickly.
> 
> I just need to decide if I'm going to make a trip to BestBuy tonight. I typically don't like going there on weekends unless it's early, like AM. Otherwise it's too crowded.


I was going to order two more Mini's today (for a relative), after I made my first order. The store said that it was showing "not available" now. Store is Non-Magnolia.

Also, I tried to get the first order shipped to my house, even offering to pay for expedited shipping. The Store employee said that wasn't an option.

At least I THINK that I got my order in. I do have an order number, but it could be canceled, I guess. $213.96 is pending on my Discover card.

Also, I don't know if it matters, but the warehouse is 45 minutes from my house.


----------



## Davelnlr_

Davisadm said:


> Didn't show up yesterday evening either.


I called my local store with the SKU, and he said they had a "bunch" of them at the warehouse, but none of the area stores were slated to carry any...Guess Tivo doesnt have many customers in Arkansas. Guess I wait for the website. Just paired up a third used TivoHD for the guest room with a cablecard from Comcast. At first they told me it would be a $8.95 outlet fee plus $2.95 for the cablecard, but when I got it, she said there was no outlet fee here...so might not need the Mini after all, depends on my actual bill next month


----------



## rsnaider

My TV does not have HDMI, does the dongle come in the package or do you need to purchase it separately?


----------



## jmpage2

cmonroe said:


> No fans, no noise whatsoever. LEDs are much less intrusive as well. This device is *very* bedroom friendly. If you see the hardware pics I posted above it shows the full board. The only things not pictured are the heat sink over the BCM chip and the plastic enclosure.


Can the LEDs be turned off or do they only shut off when the unit is powered off?


----------



## grey ghost

My question is "How far behind the new Mini will the announcement of a new(higher performing) 4 or 6 tuner Tivo be??" Will it coincide with the end of the Premiere 4/Stream bundle special(Mar. 11) or is this just wishful thinking on my part"


----------



## moyekj

cmonroe said:


> I suspect I need to setup streambaby or something similar since the mini needs to stream, not copy. If anyone has a pointer on how to set this up on a Mac I'd be happy to test it.


I doubt you will be able to stream directly to the Mini since streambaby is not real streaming, however as I mentioned earlier you should be able to use streambaby to push videos to other TiVos and then you can use MRS from the Mini to play the videos while they push - at least in theory. Installation is pretty simple:
1. Download streambaby-20111203-2132.zip
2. Unzip it to a new folder somewhere.
3. Edit streambaby.ini file to look something like below (change dir.1 setting to be a valid path to your videos, and for pushes to work you have to provide your tivo.com username and password):
(If ffmpeg is already in your path then you are set. Otherwise you can also add ffmpeg.path=/full/path/to/ffmpeg)


Code:


dir.1=/path/to/where/your/videos/are/here
title=streambaby
autogenerate.continue=false
use.title=false
sort.filename=true
mp4module.interleave=false

#pushes
tivo.username=xxxx
tivo.password=xxxx

4. Start streambaby by executing the "streambaby" script.
5. On Mini from TiVo Central choose "Showcases & Apps" and then find streambaby and click on it.
6. Find a video file and press select. I doubt the "Play" option will work on a Mini but you can try it. For push scroll down to "Push video" and use the left/right arrows to select a TiVo you want to push to, then press select.


----------



## Bigg

grey ghost said:


> My question is "How far behind the new Mini will the announcement of a new(higher performing) 4 or 6 tuner Tivo be??" Will it coincide with the end of the Premiere 4/Stream bundle special(Mar. 11) or is this just wishful thinking on my part"


Yeah, I'm wondering this as well, as it seems like they would be a logical pair to re-launch the whole TiVo system, probably with a 6-tuner Premiere with updated silicon.


----------



## HarperVision

+2


----------



## Bwatford141

cmonroe said:


> Ok, at the "Loading Info" screen now. Moca setup was a breeze. I did the online activation and unfortunately it tried to activate like a normal TiVo (e.g. $12.95/mo or $499/lifetime). I just did the monthly option and figured I'd convert/call TiVo once it goes live.


I was able to activate mine without any issues. After entering the TSN it was recognized as a Mini and I was given the choice of $5.95 monthly or $149.99 lifetime.


----------



## aaronwt

Bwatford141 said:


> I was able to activate mine without any issues. After entering the TSN it was recognized as a Mini and I was given the choice of $5.95 monthly or $149.99 lifetime.


Well at least that is straightened out now. So it sounds like everything should be ready for the official launch. When ever that is.


----------



## BigJimOutlaw

grey ghost said:


> My question is "How far behind the new Mini will the announcement of a new(higher performing) 4 or 6 tuner Tivo be??" Will it coincide with the end of the Premiere 4/Stream bundle special(Mar. 11) or is this just wishful thinking on my part"


There's no intel suggesting a new box is imminent. But we have intel on a 6-tuner box likely in the fall. We don't know if it's higher performing or not, we just know about the # of tuners. (Though common sense suggests it should have a stronger cpu.)


----------



## SullyND

BigJimOutlaw said:


> There's no intel suggesting a new box is imminent.


Well, there is this.



> *Zatznotfunny*
> Interestingly, the packaging [for the Mini] seems to confirm rumors of an upcoming retail 6-tuner TiVo DVR: "Compatible with any TiVo DVR with four *or more* tuners."


----------



## davezatz

Don't think it's imminent. New boxes latter half of summer *at the earliest* would be my *guess*


----------



## BigJimOutlaw

SullyND said:


> Well, there is this.


Saw that. But I trust intel over conjecture.


----------



## innocentfreak

davezatz said:


> Don't think it's imminent. New boxes latter half of summer *at the earliest* would be my *guess*


The Mini being available at all Best Buys is confusing. I can't decide if it is potentially a bad decision without thinking or if it is a sign of how many tuners the next base TiVo will have.

The Premiere 4, 4XL, and Elite are only sold at the Magnolia stores which of course is the must have model for the Mini. I think it has the potential to lead to a lot of returns if people buy it without researching that it requires a 4 model especially since unless they bought at a Magnolia store they might not even be aware of a 4 tuner model.

With the 4 tuner wording I can't see them changing the packaging of the Mini for the next model TiVo which could be taken to mean the next base might be a 4 tuner.


----------



## davezatz

Do we know it's ALL Best Buys?


----------



## Bwatford141

davezatz said:


> Do we know it's ALL Best Buys?


5 of my 6 closest Best Buys are magnolia stores. Of those 6 stores two of them actually Minis in the store. Both of those stores happened to be magnolia stores.


----------



## SullyND

BigJimOutlaw said:


> Saw that. But I trust intel over conjecture.


It's TiVo, immenent could be 2014.


----------



## innocentfreak

davezatz said:


> Do we know it's ALL Best Buys?


I assumed it was all, but maybe you are right. I hadn't heard anyone mention that picked theirs up that it was from a Magnolia store.


----------



## cmonroe

Bwatford141 said:


> I was able to activate mine without any issues. After entering the TSN it was recognized as a Mini and I was given the choice of $5.95 monthly or $149.99 lifetime.


Same here, I activated a second today and it was recognized as a mini. I'm sure release is just around the corner.


----------



## Dan203

BigJimOutlaw said:


> There's no intel suggesting a new box is imminent. But we have intel on a 6-tuner box likely in the fall. We don't know if it's higher performing or not, we just know about the # of tuners. (Though common sense suggests it should have a stronger cpu.)


Actually there is. TiVo just filed a waiver request with the FCC for multiple units which do not support analog. One of which they mention will support OTA. Last time TiVo filed such a waiver request we got the Elite 90 days later. However the Elite waiver request was filed as a "rush", this new one was not. I'm not sure how long this typically takes without a rush but TiVo must not be in that big of a hurry so I'm guessing we're lookngi at about 6 months. Which would coincide with the end of summer just before the new TV season starts. A historically popular time for TiVo to release new hardware.

My guess as to what we'll get... A 6 tuner cable only unit and a 3 tuner unit that supports OTA. (Maybe a 4 tuner unit with OTA if the chipset can handle it)


----------



## jfh3

davezatz said:


> Do we know it's ALL Best Buys?


Info I got today suggests only Magnolia stores.


----------



## BigJimOutlaw

Dan203 said:


> I'm not sure how long this typically takes without a rush but TiVo must not be in that big of a hurry so I'm guessing we're lookngi at about 6 months.


I'm aware... I created the waiver thread. 6 months isn't "imminent" in the context of the question I was answering... which is if we would see one at the end of the current bundle promotion. But I did mention the 6-tuner fall product. We're not disagreeing on anything.


----------



## unitron

davezatz said:


> I guess that could be one reason the launch was delayed?


Wouldn't it be a kick in the head if the delay was due to a problem caused by the Mayan programmer expired cookie code?


----------



## unitron

overFEDEXed said:


> ...
> 
> Also, I don't know if it matters, but the warehouse is 45 minutes from my house.


That depends. Gotta set of bolt cutters and a mini-Maglite?


----------



## cmonroe

jfh3 said:


> Info I got today suggests only Magnolia stores.


I bought two at my store and it's not a Magnolia store.


----------



## cmonroe

cmonroe said:


> Same here, I activated a second today and it was recognized as a mini. I'm sure release is just around the corner.


I was wrong, the second did activate but it does not work. Quoting the comment by DailyPlanet here:



> I was able to activate it at the correct price for lifetime, but when I try to set it up it gives a TiVo DVR Not Found error. As well as an error code. When I looked it up on TiVo.com it said this. NOTE: At this time, a TiVo Mini will not work with a retail TiVo Premiere series DVR.


I responded with:



> @DailyPlanet: I purchased a second Mini today and ran into the same problem. Luckily I was able to activate my other Mini (albeit with a monthly plan @ $12.99/mo no contract) as if it were a regular Premiere. That was yesterday; today at activation time it recognized it as a Mini and I purchased lifetime but ran into the same issue. I change my 4-tuner Premiere from allowing 1 tuner for network usage to 2 tuners to no avail.
> 
> I think TiVo caught on and is holding back until whenever the actual retail launch date is. The crappy part of the deal is we technically paid for a device and paid for service but we cant use it. Luckily my primary works; the secondary was to replace the client in the Living Room (where the 4-tuner, SDV adapter, and Stream live currently) and move those devices to the closet. I can wait a few more days to do this.
> 
> Im still quite curious to know why TiVo held up the launch. On my working Mini everything Ive tested has been rock solid. I took a ton of high quality pictures and a video for zatsnotfunny.com, expect to see them up in a day or two.


----------



## mvalpreda

Well....this didn't take long.

eBay Gouger!


----------



## Dan203

Apparently that's a member here...

http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=501916


----------



## grey ghost

mvalpreda said:


> Well....this didn't take long.
> 
> eBay Gouger!


$250 for a $99 piece of hardware and he justifies the cost because he drove 45 minutes to get it?? The boy needs a tuneup. That's $1.67 per mile!


----------



## cmonroe

grey ghost said:


> $250 for a $99 piece of hardware and he justifies the cost because he drove 45 minutes to get it?? The boy needs a tuneup. That's $1.67 per mile!


If these prove to be very hard to find after launch for whatever reason I'll sell my second unit after launch at cost (assuming it's verified working of course). This is *NOT* the unit I tore open for pictures, that one is happily humming along in the bedroom working perfectly  Unit #2 isn't working due to TiVo service issues (see my post a few up).

I always hate seeing the iPhone/iPad gougers after launch. It took me 10 minutes to walk into the store and pick up device number 2 and won't take more than that to ship. At this point I feel like I'm hoarding them but as device #2 doesn't function selling it now would be pointless and who knows, on release day they may be everywhere.

Bottom line is I'm willing to sell to the first TCF member who messages me. I'll ship as soon as it starts working if they are back ordered or hard to find. I have one, that's enough to hold me over for now; someone else might as well get some enjoyment out of it.


----------



## CoxInPHX

cmonroe said:


> I was wrong, the second did activate but it does not work. Quoting the comment by DailyPlanet here:
> 
> 
> 
> I was able to activate it at the correct price for lifetime, but when I try to set it up it gives a "TiVo DVR Not Found" error. As well as an error code. When I looked it up on TiVo.com it said this. "NOTE: At this time, a TiVo Mini will not work with a retail TiVo Premiere series DVR."
Click to expand...

This might explain why your Premiere 4 is recognized as a "Q4" by your working Mini.

Is Hulu Plus working? MSOs don't have Hulu Plus do they?


----------



## cmonroe

CoxInPHX said:


> This might explain why your Premiere 4 is recognized as a "Q4" by your working Mini.
> 
> Is Hulu Plus working? MSOs don't have Hulu Plus do they?


Yes, Hulu Plus works great.


----------



## cmonroe

moyekj said:


> I doubt you will be able to stream directly to the Mini since streambaby is not real streaming, however as I mentioned earlier you should be able to use streambaby to push videos to other TiVos and then you can use MRS from the Mini to play the videos while they push - at least in theory. Installation is pretty simple:
> 1. Download streambaby-20111203-2132.zip
> 2. Unzip it to a new folder somewhere.
> 3. Edit streambaby.ini file to look something like below (change dir.1 setting to be a valid path to your videos, and for pushes to work you have to provide your tivo.com username and password):
> (If ffmpeg is already in your path then you are set. Otherwise you can also add ffmpeg.path=/full/path/to/ffmpeg)
> 
> 
> Code:
> 
> 
> dir.1=/path/to/where/your/videos/are/here
> title=streambaby
> autogenerate.continue=false
> use.title=false
> sort.filename=true
> mp4module.interleave=false
> 
> #pushes
> tivo.username=xxxx
> tivo.password=xxxx
> 
> 4. Start streambaby by executing the "streambaby" script.
> 5. On Mini from TiVo Central choose "Showcases & Apps" and then find streambaby and click on it.
> 6. Find a video file and press select. I doubt the "Play" option will work on a Mini but you can try it. For push scroll down to "Push video" and use the left/right arrows to select a TiVo you want to push to, then press select.


Thanks for the quick tutorial, I'll give this a shot tomorrow.


----------



## cmonroe

For those curious about timing, see this text file of notes about a video I sent to ZatsNotFunny (should be up in a day or two). It outlines how fast channel changes are, browsing, starting recordings, etc. It will make more sense once you see the video but for now the notes should give you some info.



> Note that all content below was HD. All live content was:
> 1.) On an encrypted channel requiring a cable card (TBS and Food Network)
> 2.) On SDV according to my providor
> 
> As such each live channel change consisted of:
> * TiVo Mini signals Premiere to change channel via Moca network
> * Premiere signals SDV adapter to request desired channel via USB
> * SDV adapter requests channel and frequency from CMTS via cable
> * CMTS responds via cable with frequency of channel and begins streaming if it's not already
> * TiVo Premiere is instructed which frequence to tune to by SDV adapter via USB
> * TiVo Premiere begins sending stream to TiVo Mini via Moca
> 
> Yes 6-8 seconds feels like an eternity when changing channels
> but when you take into account what's happening in the back end
> it's actually pretty impressive. I think the tuning adapters
> are a cheap hack and functionality like that built into a TiVo
> would save a couple of seconds from that time but the benefit
> of an external adapter is the TiVo can work with multiple types
> of head end gear (e.g. Motorola vs. Cisco).
> 
> 0.00: Started recording; on live TV, "Food Network"
> 0.04: Chose "TiVo" button (note how fast TiVo Central loads)
> 0.05: Selected "My Shows"
> 0.10: Scrolled down one page and selected "Storage Wars Texas" (note how fast the page loads)
> 0.13: Scrolled down a couple of episodes and selected a random one
> 0.15: Selected play
> 0.20: Video starts
> 0.23: Start fast forward at 3x
> 0.29: Stop fast forward
> 0.33: Jump 30 seconds ahead
> 0.37: Jump 30 seconds ahead
> 0.47: Pressed "Live TV" button
> 0.50: Live TV starts playing
> 0.54: Pressed "Guide" button (note how fast guide loads)
> 0.57: Start scrolling through the guide; no lag I was going slow looking for a decent show
> 1.09: Chose "The Big Bang Theory"
> 1.15: Video starts playing
> 1.21: Chose "Pause" button; device responds immediately
> 1.28: Chose "Play" button; device responds immediately
> 1.36: Chose "Info" button (note how fast info loads)
> 1.40: Chose "Enter/Last" button to return to "Food Network"
> 1.43: "The Big Bang Theory" stops playing and is replaced with a black screen and spinning circle
> 1.48: Video begins to play on "Food Network"
> 1.54: Chose "TiVo" button (note how fast TiVo Central loads)
> 1.59: End of video


----------



## cmonroe

jmpage2 said:


> Can the LEDs be turned off or do they only shut off when the unit is powered off?


There is only one LED (in the center of the box) and it can be shut off via software just like all other TiVo units. Note that the LED in the Mini is not intrusive at all, you will barely notice it. You can see it in the bottom left corner of the video I mention in the post above that will be posted in a day or two.


----------



## overFEDEXed

davezatz said:


> Do we know it's ALL Best Buys?


Neither one of my two stores, are Magnolia. One store was NEVER able to order the Mini.
The closest store to me, did make the Mini order, but later said that it became unavailable. (Found that out, when we called back, to make a relatives order)
I called the 800 number and my original order is still good, for the 15th so....

It may still be canceled or delayed.


----------



## overFEDEXed

unitron said:


> That depends. Gotta set of bolt cutters and a mini-Maglite?


Next weekend would be a great time. Dublin, Georgia, St. Patrick's day festival.
Just kidding. It's nothing like Savannah.

I've had really good luck with BB. It was great, when one of my neighbors, was our BB store manager.


----------



## aaronwt

grey ghost said:


> $250 for a $99 piece of hardware and he justifies the cost because he drove 45 minutes to get it?? The boy needs a tuneup. That's $1.67 per mile!


You never know. When the HD DirecTiVo came out in 2004, I picked up eight of them at $1k each and sold six of them for around $1500 each on ebay. The profit covered my two boxes and the cost of upgrading the hard drives. You never know what people will pay when they want something and there is short supply.

I also did the same thing in 2001/2002 with the DirecTiVo. I think they were only a couple hundred but I bought ten of them and sold seven, each for over $300 each on ebay. Which covered the cost of my three. I'm still amazed sometimes at the prices that people will pay to get items early.


----------



## magnus

mvalpreda said:


> Well....this didn't take long.
> 
> eBay Gouger!


I expect that Tivo will contact eBay and have it taken down.


----------



## davezatz

magnus said:


> I expect that Tivo will contact eBay and have it taken down.


With what justification? If he bought it legitimately at Best Buy, it's probably his to resell.


----------



## magnus

davezatz said:


> With what justification? If he bought it legitimately at Best Buy, it's probably his to resell.


I believe that he's violating eBay TOS by selling an item that is not available for actual retail sale yet. That's between him and eBay/Tivo... I don't care enough to look it up. I'm sure there is something that they can get him for. I've had auctions pulled for a lot less.


----------



## aaronwt

He bought it at a retail store so it must be available for retail sale. Otherwise how could he have purchased one? If it was sold by mistake, that is not his fault. Personally I've never had an auction pulled on eBay. That sounds like it would be a pain if they pull an auction. Do you lose the fees you've payed?


----------



## magnus

aaronwt said:


> He bought it at a retail store so it must be available for retail sale. Otherwise how could he have purchased one? If it was sold by mistake, that is not his fault. Personally I've never had an auction pulled on eBay. That sounds like it would be a pain if they pull an auction. Do you lose the fees you've payed?


Nope, they give you your money back and tell you not to re-list it. I've not re-listed after they pulled it. So, I don't know what happens after that.

I don't think it will matter that BB sold it to him or not. He won't be able to list it until launch date.


----------



## Bwatford141

magnus said:


> I believe that he's violating eBay TOS by selling an item that is not available for actual retail sale yet. That's between him and eBay/Tivo... I don't care enough to look it up. I'm sure there is something that they can get him for. I've had auctions pulled for a lot less.


I doubt that they're going to pull the auction. I did nothing wrong and only walked into a store and bought one. I also doubt that someone would be willing to pay $250 for a Mini, but who knows...


----------



## Bwatford141

Oh, and thanks for the free advertising everyone


----------



## compnurd

Bwatford141 said:


> Oh, and thanks for the free advertising everyone


appreciated but if this comes out this week you can kiss that profit goodbye


----------



## jjd_87

I can't imagine anyone is gonna pay an 150% markup to get a device they can't even use till its released.


----------



## Bwatford141

jjd_87 said:


> I can't imagine anyone is gonna pay an 150% markup to get a device they can't even use till its released.


Can't use it? My other one is activated with lifetime and working perfectly.


----------



## Bwatford141

Although hijacking one tuner has given me a bit of tuner anxiety.


----------



## lessd

aaronwt said:


> He bought it at a retail store so it must be available for retail sale. Otherwise how could he have purchased one? If it was sold by mistake, that is not his fault. Personally I've never had an auction pulled on eBay. That sounds like it would be a pain if they pull an auction. Do you lose the fees you've payed?


I have buy trying to sell a *Boes product* in the international market, what a pain.


----------



## jjd_87

Bwatford141 said:


> Can't use it? My other one is activated with lifetime and working perfectly.


Maybe I'm wrong but I seemed to remember reading somewhere here that TiVo had caught on and stopped allowing them to be activated.


----------



## morac

I can't fathom why people are rushing to but an unreleased product that complete relies on TiVo to activate service. It really makes no sense to me and I'm not what you'd call a patient man.


----------



## compnurd

jjd_87 said:


> Maybe I'm wrong but I seemed to remember reading somewhere here that TiVo had caught on and stopped allowing them to be activated.


You did.


----------



## Bwatford141

compnurd said:


> You did.


Not true. I have followed these threads and have not read anything like that. Can you provide a link?


----------



## magnus

Bwatford141 said:


> I doubt that they're going to pull the auction. I did nothing wrong and only walked into a store and bought one. I also doubt that someone would be willing to pay $250 for a Mini, but who knows...


Well, I'm not going to tell them but stranger things have happened. I've had auctions pulled for lots of different reasons and all of them seemed pretty stupid to me.


----------



## jjd_87

Bwatford141 said:


> Not true. I have followed these threads and have not read anything like that. Can you provide a link?


Post 116 in this thread.


----------



## DavidAsher

jjd_87 said:


> Post 116 in this thread.


But there's a follow-up post on zatznotfunny which says it is working now after sitting overnight.


----------



## Am_I_Evil

have mine on hold right now at a certain store...friend going to get it for me...picking it up tonight...


----------



## teklock

compnurd said:


> You did.


Did you ever get your 2nd one working? Seems BB has put the mini on the shelfs in many locations.


----------



## Craig in PA

A BB magnolia store on the east coast had a few which were not on display but which employee got for me when I asked. Employee sold me one with only minor hesitation. "If the computer says its ok, its ok."


----------



## SullyND

Two sitting right next to other TiVos at my local BB. No premieres yet for me or I'd pick one up.


----------



## tbielowicz

Which location?


----------



## brholl

grey ghost said:


> My question is "How far behind the new Mini will the announcement of a new(higher performing) 4 or 6 tuner Tivo be??" Will it coincide with the end of the Premiere 4/Stream bundle special(Mar. 11) or is this just wishful thinking on my part"


It looks like they extended the Premiere 4/Stream bundle promotion. I just got an email about it where the fine print says it's available until March 17th. I wonder if this means they're pushing out the release another week?


----------



## poppagene

jwagner010 said:


> I see it has a USB port. Does the Bluetooth remote work with the unit?


USB will probably work for wireless (or wired) keyboard as well like it does for the Series 3 and the Premiere.


----------



## Craig in PA

tbielowicz said:


> Which location?


The city rhymes with Cork, and there is nothing New about the city.


----------



## Am_I_Evil

Called the "Worst Purchase" in Westbury, NY....while they didn't have any they told me South Setauket and Riverhead did....my buddy just picked mine up in South Setauket...


----------



## grey ghost

brholl said:


> It looks like they extended the Premiere 4/Stream bundle promotion. I just got an email about it where the fine print says it's available until March 17th. I wonder if this means they're pushing out the release another week?


Thanks for the heads up on the change. They still have not changed the notice on the website. Could the March 17th extension be for current subscribers only?

March 11th??

Got a question for the Mini owners, can you use a Tivo wireless adapter instead of a direct ethernet connection? If not, I guess I could extend my network using a Apple Express 2 and then run the ethernet from there


----------



## teklock

brholl said:


> It looks like they extended the Premiere 4/Stream bundle promotion. I just got an email about it where the fine print says it's available until March 17th. I wonder if this means they're pushing out the release another week?


BB management are saying the 17th as well, so I bet it will be another week.


----------



## aaronwt

I went by the Springfield VA, Best Buy on the way back from a movie with my GF.
I gave the Magnolia Rep the model and the SKU and they could not find any info about the Mini.


----------



## davezatz

aaronwt said:


> I went by the Springfield VA, Best Buy on the way back from a movie with my GF.
> I gave the Magnolia Rep the model and the SKU and they could not find any info about the Mini.


I had them pull it all up at store in our region as well. Springfield was on the list as having zero in stock. With at least one store on order or in transit and 12 in the MD warehouse. I'd rather not run the screenshot/photo as I don't want to get this guy in any sort of trouble. So your guy didn't check the regional inventory thing or they've been hidden. But the SKU definitely brought it up with the correct pricing (as we know it).


----------



## HenryFarpolo

I picked one up this PM. Activation had a minor glitch on line. I called TIVO CS and they said it couldn't be activated until tomorrow. Tried the online activation a second time and it went right through. 

There was no delay after activation. I went to the TV and the setup process was a snap.

So far everything is as advertised and as other posters have noted. I am very happy with the small form. It replaces a Verizon DCT700, and gives me HD, guide and bells and whistles of a normal DVR. A big step forward!!


----------



## wizardman13

davezatz said:


> I had them pull it all up at store in our region as well. Springfield was on the list as having zero in stock. With at least one store on order or in transit and 12 in the MD warehouse. I'd rather not run the screenshot/photo as I don't want to get this guy in any sort of trouble. So your guy didn't check the regional inventory thing or they've been hidden. But the SKU definitely brought it up with the correct pricing (as we know it).


I live in the Southern MD area and I was told the same thing (on Saturday afternoon about being 12 in the warehouse). He told me Waldorf had two in transit and my best buy wouldn't be getting any at all. (My store is not a Magnolia store). I didn't care to order at that time. When I came home last night and read your post about 12 for the whole East region, I ran back to the store to order two. I didn't realize there was only one warehouse for all these stores. Mine are suppose to come in on Thursday.

My problem is I was looking for a package deal with Tivo with a 4XL and the minis. I don't have a Tivo now so I was hoping for some kind of deal.


----------



## bluebsh

picked up two at a local retailer, they where on the shelf but not scanning... they did a product lookup and sold them for the listed price


----------



## morac

Makes me wonder if the delay was caused by inventory problems.


----------



## aaronwt

Will Walmart be carrying the Mini?


----------



## compnurd

I HIGHLY Doubt the 17th is the release date. That would be a Sunday. I have a feeling it is in next weeks Best Buy ad and the idiots think they cant sell it till then


----------



## Am_I_Evil

got mine all hooked up and activated...paid the $149 for lifetime...seems to have worked fine for the few minutes i played with it...will have more time later..


----------



## Bigg

I went into a BB to see if they be chance had any, and I was really depressed at how poor the selection of HT stuff is at BB. It wasn't a Magnolia, however, so I doubt it would ever have the Mini, unless they update it to work with the 2-tuner boxes that this store sells.


----------



## Bwatford141

compnurd said:


> appreciated but if this comes out this week you can kiss that profit goodbye


Yeah, that's ok. I will just return it to BB and lose my 50¢ list fee.


----------



## Bwatford141

grey ghost said:


> Got a question for the Mini owners, can you use a Tivo wireless adapter instead of a direct ethernet connection? If not, I guess I could extend my network using a Apple Express 2 and then run the ethernet from there


I couldn't tell you. I have mine hooked to my wired network. Everything is very quick! There is about a 4.5 second delay when "channel surfing" as discussed previously, but I only surf the guide.


----------



## brholl

grey ghost said:


> Got a question for the Mini owners, can you use a Tivo wireless adapter instead of a direct ethernet connection? If not, I guess I could extend my network using a Apple Express 2 and then run the ethernet from there


I zoomed in to cmonroe's picture in comment one. It says that only ethernet or coax connections (MoCA Network Adapter) will work. I think wireless would be too slow.

Also, as I was typing this I noticed that Tivo's website was just updated to include the Mini. Looks like it's live now!


----------



## brholl

Yay, this is exciting. I just placed an order using the TiVo Premiere 4 + Stream Bundle promotion (kept the Premiere 4 and MoCA Network Adapter but not the Stream) for a $78 savings and added one Mini at the regular $99.99 price. I've been wanting to upgrade to the Premiere 4 but had no reason to since Comcast On Demand from Tivo isn't available in my Minneapolis suburb yet. The Mini is definitely worth it plus I'll be ready if Comcast ever gets the service working in the SW suburbs. I would have bought everything at Best Buy tomorrow if it weren't for the deal. I hope it ships fast.


----------



## compnurd

brholl said:


> Yay, this is exciting. I just placed an order using the TiVo Premiere 4 + Stream Bundle promotion (kept the Premiere 4 and MoCA Network Adapter but not the Stream) for a $78 savings and added one Mini at the regular $99.99 price. I've been wanting to upgrade to the Premiere 4 but had no reason to since Comcast On Demand from Tivo isn't available in my Minneapolis suburb yet. The Mini is definitely worth it plus I'll be ready if Comcast ever gets the service working in the SW suburbs. I would have bought everything at Best Buy tomorrow if it weren't for the deal. I hope it ships fast.


LOL holy ****. It is up for sale on tivo.com

http://www.tivo.com/products/tivo-mini/index.html


----------



## aaronwt

And still selling the Premiere, Stream, and MoCA bundle. But no bundle with the Mini.


----------



## jano18

compnurd said:


> LOL holy ****. It is up for sale on tivo.com
> 
> http://www.tivo.com/products/tivo-mini/index.html


I just bought a Mini w/lifetime & 3 year warranty for $295.97 & free shipping. I already have my 2 tuner Premiere w/lifetime & 3 year warranty sold for what I paid for it to my friend. Now I just have to wait to get it to start playing with.


----------



## UCLABB

aaronwt said:


> And still selling the Premiere, Stream, and MoCA bundle. But no bundle with the Mini.


Didn't they show a bundle with the mini on the beta page a few days ago? Was the full price without discount tho.


----------



## grey ghost

jano18 said:


> I just bought a Mini w/lifetime & 3 year warranty for $295.97 & free shipping. I already have my 2 tuner Premiere w/lifetime & 3 year warranty sold for what I paid for it to my friend. Now I just have to wait to get it to start playing with.


A Mini won't work with a 2 tuner Premier. It will only work with a 4 tuner Tivo. Do you have one of those also?


----------



## jmpage2

grey ghost said:


> A Mini won't work with a 2 tuner Premier. It will only work with a 4 tuner Tivo. Do you have one of those also?


Yeah, I expect TiVo will get a *LOT* of returns because of this limitation. I'm sure that within a couple of weeks that during checkout they will have giant bold flashing things reminding customers they have to have a 4 tuner TiVo for this product to work.

Better yet, they could check their account and if they don't own a 4 tuner TiVo they just won't allow sale of the item to that customer without talking to a customer service rep.


----------



## southerndoc

Now any projections for when the new series 5 will be out?


----------



## grey ghost

geekmedic said:


> Now any projections for when the new series 5 will be out?


Soon I hope. That's what I'm waiting for. I just can't bring myself to buy 3 year old technology even though I'm dying for a 4 tuner Tivo


----------



## tatergator1

grey ghost said:


> A Mini won't work with a 2 tuner Premier. It will only work with a 4 tuner Tivo. Do you have one of those also?


I'm pretty sure he's not confused. It says he has the 2-tuner sold to a friend. Presumably, he's trying to convey that the Mini will be replacing the 2-tuner in his setup.


----------



## GTXgp

Bwatford141 said:


> Although hijacking one tuner has given me a bit of tuner anxiety.


I agree. If there are 4 shows that need to record on the XL4, does the XL4 take control of the 4th tuner (overriding the Mini) or does the 4th show go into conflict and not record?


----------



## jjd_87

GTXgp said:


> I agree. If there are 4 shows that need to record on the XL4, does the XL4 take control of the 4th tuner (overriding the Mini) or does the 4th show go into conflict and not record?


For now the 4th show doesn't record. This is suppose to change with a future software update.


----------



## UCLABB

jjd_87 said:


> For now the 4th show doesn't record. This is suppose to change with a future software update.


Actually, maybe it's better the way it is. That way the 4 can figure out how to resolve the conflict such as picking up the repeat episode. Otherwise, a mini viewer might be shut out of being able to use it after the fourth program starts recording.


----------



## lessd

UCLABB said:


> Actually, maybe it's better the way it is. That way the 4 can figure out how to resolve the conflict such as picking up the repeat episode. Otherwise, a mini viewer might be shut out of being able to use it after the fourth program starts recording.


Without a tuner being available I thought you could still watch a recorded program on any TP in your home, of the 4 or 2 tuner type.


----------



## jjd_87

lessd said:


> Without a tuner being available I thought you could still watch a recorded program on any TP in your home, of the 4 or 2 tuner type.


Correct. You can even set it up to not use a tuner at all and just use it to watch recordings. Just no live tv if you do that.


----------



## lessd

jjd_87 said:


> Correct. You can even set it up to not use a tuner at all and just use it to watch recordings. Just no live tv if you do that.


That is great !! how hard is to set the Mini up without any tuners, than at another time get a tuner allocated to the Mini ?? Like switching back and forth *tuner/no tuner*


----------



## johnner1999

i agree - i'd be fine having zero tuners assigned, since in the bedroom we never watch "live" tv... we record all of our shows and I assume/hope, you can start a stream while a show is recording no?


----------



## jjd_87

lessd said:


> That is great !! how hard is to set the Mini up without any tuners, than at another time get a tuner allocated to the Mini ?? Like switching back and forth *tuner/no tuner*


Its a setting on your 4 tuner premiere.



Tivo Mini Start Here Brochure said:


> 1. On your TiVo Premiere 4 or XL4/Elites TiVo Central screen, go to Settings & Messages > Settings > Remote, CableCARD, & Devices.
> 2. Select Allow Live TV on other devices.


----------



## HarperVision

From how I read it if you happen to say have 2 minis you can tell the host premiere 4 to only share one tuner and then whichever mini grabs it first for live TV has it. It's shared between them in other words, correct? Then the host TiVo will still have 3 tuners to record and use.


----------



## jmpage2

HarperVision said:


> From how I read it if you happen to say have 2 minis you can tell the host premiere 4 to only share one tuner and then whichever mini grabs it first for live TV has it. It's shared between them in other words, correct? Then the host TiVo will still have 3 tuners to record and use.


Yup. And if/when TiVo gets dynamic tuner allocation working then the XL4 would have that 4th tuner available for doing a scheduled recording.


----------



## HarperVision

Thanks! So if they can make the minis share a tuner, why can't the P4? ;-)


----------



## bearcat2000

Has anyone tried to use a slide remote with the mini yet?


----------



## sbiller

lessd said:


> That is great !! how hard is to set the Mini up without any tuners, than at another time get a tuner allocated to the Mini ?? Like switching back and forth *tuner/no tuner*


Keep in mind that anytime you switch tuner configuration you lose all in-progress recordings so you'll need to be careful about switching back and forth.


----------



## HenryFarpolo

bearcat2000 said:


> Has anyone tried to use a slide remote with the mini yet?


I just tried it...it didn't work....I did not play with it to find out why. What I did find is that it controlled the TV it normally controls two rooms away.


----------



## sbiller

HenryFarpolo said:


> I just tried it...it didn't work....I did not play with it to find out why. What I did find is that it controlled the TV it normally controls two rooms away.


Sounds like your Slide Remote is paired with the USB dongle in the other room.

http://support.tivo.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1788


----------



## Bigg

grey ghost said:


> Soon I hope. That's what I'm waiting for. I just can't bring myself to buy 3 year old technology even though I'm dying for a 4 tuner Tivo


Agreed.


----------



## jano18

grey ghost said:


> A Mini won't work with a 2 tuner Premier. It will only work with a 4 tuner Tivo. Do you have one of those also?


Yes, I have my XL4 in Living Room & a 2 tuner Premiere in my Bedroom that I am selling to my friend for what I paid for it.


----------



## jano18

jmpage2 said:


> Yeah, I expect TiVo will get a *LOT* of returns because of this limitation. I'm sure that within a couple of weeks that during checkout they will have giant bold flashing things reminding customers they have to have a 4 tuner TiVo for this product to work.
> 
> Better yet, they could check their account and if they don't own a 4 tuner TiVo they just won't allow sale of the item to that customer without talking to a customer service rep.


If I remember correctly because it was late when I ordered it, they had warnings that you had to have a 4 tuner & either a moca or Ethernet connection available. They specifically state it will not work with a 2 tuner or wifi.


----------



## HenryFarpolo

sbiller said:


> Sounds like your Slide Remote is paired with the USB dongle in the other room.
> 
> http://support.tivo.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1788


Are you saying the pairing with the USB is providing extended range or the inability to work with the Mini?


----------



## morac

HenryFarpolo said:


> Are you saying the pairing with the USB is providing extended range or the inability to work with the Mini?


You would need to plug the USB dongle into the Mini. The Mini does not have built in Bluetooth.


----------



## southerndoc

I broke down and bought an XL4 and Mini to watch shows in our master bedroom (wife is pregnant).

Activated both at 5:30pm EDT and still can't connect the Mini to the XL4. When I log onto tivo.com and look at my account, it says it's still processing and may take up to 24 hours.

WTH? Does anyone have a realistic time frame to have everything active? I can't even use my TiVo Stream now until the new DVR is registered (don't have a spare CableCard to install in the old Premiere).


----------



## Bwatford141

geekmedic said:


> I broke down and bought an XL4 and Mini to watch shows in our master bedroom (wife is pregnant).
> 
> Activated both at 5:30pm EDT and still can't connect the Mini to the XL4. When I log onto tivo.com and look at my account, it says it's still processing and may take up to 24 hours.
> 
> WTH? Does anyone have a realistic time frame to have everything active? I can't even use my TiVo Stream now until the new DVR is registered (don't have a spare CableCard to install in the old Premiere).


My Mini was 100% functional during the 24 hour processing time at tivo.com. How do you have them networked? What is happening on the mini? Did you select "allow live tv on other devices" on your XL4?


----------



## southerndoc

Bwatford141 said:


> My Mini was 100% functional during the 24 hour processing time at tivo.com. How do you have them networked? What is happening on the mini? Did you select "allow live tv on other devices" on your XL4?


Yes, I selected allow live TV on other devices on the XL4 (1 tuner). The Mini is connected via MoCA. It's getting a network connection because it's downloaded software updates (or at least connected to the network and downloaded something).

It's stuck on a screen that it can't find a compatible DVR on the network.


----------



## moyekj

geekmedic said:


> It's stuck on a screen that it can't find a compatible DVR on the network.


 Have you tried rebooting the XL4? Note that after getting a new TiVo it does take 48-72 hours for MRV/MRS to work properly, so this could be related. Make sure you login to tivo.com and enable TTG functionality such that system information screen has A,A,A for TiVoToGo. If that's still I,I,I that could be your problem.


----------



## southerndoc

moyekj said:


> Have you tried rebooting the XL4? Note that after getting a new TiVo it does take 48-72 hours for MRV/MRS to work properly, so this could be related. Make sure you login to tivo.com and enable TTG functionality such that system information screen has A,A,A for TiVoToGo. If that's still I,I,I that could be your problem.


Twice, and reconnecting to the TiVo center as well.

I wonder if it has something to do with the fact that I activated the XL4 on the multi-service discount plan.

When I log into tivo.com, I was allowed to transfer season passes to the XL4, but when I click on my account it says "We're still processing your activation. Try again in 24 hours." When I click on find shows, it still defaults to the old Premiere and doesn't show the XL4 in the drop down menu.


----------



## UCLABB

geekmedic said:


> Twice, and reconnecting to the TiVo center as well.
> 
> I wonder if it has something to do with the fact that I activated the XL4 on the multi-service discount plan.
> 
> When I log into tivo.com, I was allowed to transfer season passes to the XL4, but when I click on my account it says "We're still processing your activation. Try again in 24 hours." When I click on find shows, it still defaults to the old Premiere and doesn't show the XL4 in the drop down menu.


Uh oh. I have the same situation and I have an existing Premiere. I have an XL4 coming tomorrow and the TA and cable card the next day and the mini on Friday. I hope I don't have this problem.

Is your XL4 getting channels?


----------



## morac

geekmedic said:


> Twice, and reconnecting to the TiVo center as well.
> 
> I wonder if it has something to do with the fact that I activated the XL4 on the multi-service discount plan.
> 
> When I log into tivo.com, I was allowed to transfer season passes to the XL4, but when I click on my account it says "We're still processing your activation. Try again in 24 hours." When I click on find shows, it still defaults to the old Premiere and doesn't show the XL4 in the drop down menu.


It's likely the XL4 hasn't made a VCM connection yet, which is different than a service connection. It does take a new box awhile to show up, Why not give it the 24 hours it's asking for?


----------



## southerndoc

UCLABB said:


> Uh oh. I have the same situation and I have an existing Premiere. I have an XL4 coming tomorrow and the TA and cable card the next day and the mini on Friday. I hope I don't have this problem.
> 
> Is your XL4 getting channels?


Yea the XL4 was getting channels. Had it up and running fairly quickly. Took Comcast an hour to send the refresh signal. (If you have Comcast, Google their CableCard activation number to save time. Don't call their general number.)

At any rate all is working now. I unplugged the XL4 and Mini, plugged the XL4 back in after a few minutes, then plugged the Mini back in after 15 or so minutes. Not sure if that did it or if the TiVo system just updated (it still says processing activation under the my accounts).

I was able to see it on my iPad with my Stream, so maybe just the Mini needed rebooting. I'm guessing I didn't leave it unplugged long enough to clear the memory the first time I rebooted.

I'm impressed with the picture quality and responsiveness of it. Even switching channels manually is not as bad as I had read before. I was looking through the network status section and saw my MoCA status had transmit and receive rates of 240 and 245 Mbps. Is that actually how fast it's working? I thought MoCA1.1 was limited to around 170?


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## teklock

The Best Buy in the DFW area has a few on the shelf. I just picked up 2.


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## caroth

First of all my setup:


Tivo XL4 with a tuning adapter hardwired into a switch which is hardwired into a router. One tuner configured to use the Tivo mini (and yes, that tuner is dedicated to the Tivo mini live TV and cannot be used by the XL4 at all. You do NOT need to allocate a tuner to the Tivo mini if you don't want to watch live TV on it)


Tivo HD connected to the router wirelessly


Tivo Mini hardwired into a switch which is hardwired into a router

I hooked up the Tivo mini. It's boot time was almost as long as the XL4's, which is amazing. Only Tivo engineers can manage to have something boot that slow off a chip. Guess they are having it calculate pi to the 10,000th digit as it boots.

Went through a guided setup similar to the XL4s but minus the ZIP code and cable company configuration. At the end of the setup, it was loading guide data, which took forever and made no sense since it's using the guide data off the XL4 from what I can tell (keep reading and that'll make sense to you).

Set up my remote to control the TV, named the Tivo mini and all that other fun little stuff.

Main menu claimed my XL4 could no longer be found. I unplugged the network cable and plugged in another straight from the router (so bypassing the switch). I get a message that I no longer have internet connectivity and it didn't go away even after I plugged in the network cable again. Found a place to have it test my connection. It went through the test and then hung at the last step "Disconnecting."

Found that somewhere along the lines I lost live TV on my XL4, everything else on it still worked. Could be an odd coincidence, but I'm guessing the Tivo Mini somehow jacked that up.

Rebooted the XL4. Power cycled the Tivo Mini (still hung at "Disconnecting).

All worked well, I could watch live TV and recorded shows, forward, rewind, everything with no apparent lag.

I wanted to post my experience on the forums and while I looked for a good place to do so, I found someone asking if the Tivo Mini played video off the USB port. Just for kicks I copied .AVI, .WMV, .MP4, .MPG and also a .JPG picture to a USB stick and plugged it into the Tivo mini. I got an error that the Tivo Mini does not support storage expansion and saw no way to browse or play the files off the USB stick (I checked under Photos as well to see if maybe you could show .JPG pictures, but no option for the USB stick there either).

Tivo Mini now gave me the error that it could not find the XL4, yet I was still able to watch live TV (but not recordings). When I tried to use the guide, it just gave me an error that it couldn't find the XL4 (which leads me to believe that it's using the XL4's guide, not it's own to where loading data when it connects should not be taking as long as it does).

I removed the USB stick, rebooted the Tivo Mini and no more error. Tried several channels of LiveTV, then noticed that I didn't have the switched channels.

Checked the XL4, sure enough, no switched channels. Rebooted tuning adapter (guess I should have done that when I rebooted the XL4 earlier, but tuning adapter reboots can be such a pain).

Tivo Mini gave an error that the XL4 was doing something using all it's tuners (makes sense for a tuning adapter reboot). Then I was back to it not being able to find the XL4 (UGH!!!). Rebooted the Tivo Mini, all seems well.

I tried some switched channels, apps and Live365 streaming radio off the mini without issues.

I have the suggestion banner on the top enabled on my XL4. I don't see an option to disable that on the Tivo Mini, so it must take over the setting from the XL4 for that. Since the Tivo Mini doesn't come with Netflix, I wondered what would happen if I tried to go into one of the suggestions it listed from Netflix. Want to guess?

If you guess that Tivo Mini no longer found the XL4 and required a reboot, you are a winner!

BTW, it can only Stream of the XL4. It sees my Tivo HD, but won't let me browse it or anything.

I'll use it some more and will let you guys know if I find out anything else, so far the losing connectivity to the XL4 when anything unusual happens and me having to reboot the Tivo mini seems to be the only major issue.

I guess you just have to watch what you select until they fix their bugs (I guess they had some lame beta testers for me to get the error as many times as I did and they didn't catch it in beta)...

03/13/2013 Update:


On subsequent service connections, I noticed that loading the guide data is much faster.


The mini downloaded and installed a service update last night. No message detailing the changes like there usually is on the regular Tivo boxes, I just know because I noticed that there was a pending restart and when I manually restarted, it applied the update.


Even after the update, the Mini intermittently kept giving me errors that it lost connection to the XL4 despite Live TV working fine. I tried static IP addresses for both which made no difference. I suspect that that rather than using the IP address to contact the XL4 directly, Tivo must use something broadcast-based for the heartbeat and maybe that's not always making it through my two switch/router setup.


This morning I changed over to a secure MoCA connection (I do not currently have a POE filter hooked up). During the setup, at first the Mini was acting as if it wasn't seeing the XL4. Then it saw the XL4, but claimed there was an issue connecting to the Tivo service. As before, a reboot fixed 'er up and I was able to use Live TV, Stream shows, use Live365, look at shows on the suggestion banner etc. My advice is definitely if you make any changes to the Mini configuration whatsoever, reboot it. 

03/14/2013 Update:

Since switching over to MoCA, I've not received any more lost connection errors or other issues, so I guess I'll keep using encrypted MoCA rather than ethernet. Seems to work fine without a POE filter and I'm probably not going to install one since I don't need a performance boost and am worried that it could interfere with cable company communications (i.e. the tuning adapter communicating back to Time Warner to get a stream), so I'll go with "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." Since I'm using encrypted MoCA, I don't have to worry about the MoCA signal making it to my neighbors and them streaming off my Tivo... ;-)

After than statement, I'm sure someone will tell me that there is a way to crack MoCA encryption, but based on what I'm using MoCA for and that there aren't many MoCA devices out there to where probably nobody else in a mile radius has one, I'm not too worried...

I hope my experiences above prove useful to somone and that either everything works for you right after you hook up the Tivo Mini or that you get any issues squared away quickly so you can enjoy your Tivo Mini. Good luck everyone!

This will be the final update unless I run into any major issues that just haven't manifested themselves yet.


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## UCLABB

caroth said:


> First of all my setup:
> 
> 
> Tivo XL4 with a tuning adapter hardwired into a switch which is hardwired into a router. One tuner configured to use the Tivo mini (and yes, that tuner is dedicated to the Tivo mini live TV and cannot be used by the XL4 at all. You do NOT need to allocate a tuner to the Tivo mini if you don't want to watch live TV on it)
> 
> 
> Tivo HD connected to the router wirelessly
> 
> 
> Tivo Mini hardwired into a switch which is hardwired into a router
> 
> I hooked up the Tivo mini. It's boot time was almost as long as the XL4's, which is amazing. Only Tivo engineers can manage to have something boot that slow off a chip. Guess they are having it calculate pi to the 10,000th digit as it boots.
> 
> Went through a guided setup similar to the XL4s but minus the ZIP code and cable company configuration. At the end of the setup, it was loading guide data, which took forever and made no sense since it's using the guide data off the XL4 from what I can tell (keep reading and that'll make sense to you).
> 
> Set up my remote to control the TV, named the Tivo mini and all that other fun little stuff.
> 
> Main menu claimed my XL4 could no longer be found. I unplugged the network cable and plugged in another straight from the router (so bypassing the switch). I get a message that I no longer have internet connectivity and it didn't go away even after I plugged in the network cable again. Found a place to have it test my connection. It went through the test and then hung at the last step "Disconnecting."
> 
> Found that somewhere along the lines I lost live TV on my XL4, everything else on it still worked. Could be an odd coincidence, but I'm guessing the Tivo Mini somehow jacked that up.
> 
> Rebooted the XL4. Power cycled the Tivo Mini (still hung at "Disconnecting).
> 
> All worked well, I could watch live TV and recorded shows, forward, rewind, everything with no apparent lag.
> 
> I wanted to post my experience on the forums and while I looked for a good place to do so, I found someone asking if the Tivo Mini played video off the USB port. Just for kicks I copied .AVI, .WMV, .MP4, .MPG and also a .JPG picture to a USB stick and plugged it into the Tivo mini. I got an error that the Tivo Mini does not support storage expansion and saw no way to browse or play the files off the USB stick (I checked under Photos as well to see if maybe you could show .JPG pictures, but no option for the USB stick there either).
> 
> Tivo Mini now gave me the error that it could not find the XL4, yet I was still able to watch live TV (but not recordings). When I tried to use the guide, it just gave me an error that it couldn't find the XL (which leads me to believe that it's using the XL4's guide, not it's own to where loading data when it connects should not be taking as long as it does).
> 
> I removed the USB stick, rebooted the Tivo Mini and no more error. Tried several channels of LiveTV, then noticed that I didn't have the switched channels.
> 
> Checked the XL4, sure enough, no switched channels. Rebooted tuning adapter (guess I should have done that when I rebooted the XL4 earlier, but tuning adapter reboots can be such a pain).
> 
> Tivo Mini gave an error that the XL4 was doing something using all it's tuners (makes sense for a tuning adapter reboot). Then I was back to it not being able to find the XL4 (UGH!!!). Rebooted the Tivo Mini, all seems well.
> 
> I tried some switched channels, apps and Live365 streaming radio off the mini without issues.
> 
> I have the suggestion banner on the top enabled on my XL4. I don't see an option to disable that on the Tivo Mini, so it must take over the setting from the XL4 for that. Since the Tivo Mini doesn't come with Netflix, I wondered what would happen if I tried to go into one of the suggestions it listed from Netflix. Want to guess?
> 
> If you guess that Tivo Mini no longer found the XL4 and required a reboot, you are a winner!
> 
> BTW, it can only Stream of the XL4. It sees my Tivo HD, but won't let me browse it or anything.
> 
> I'll use it some more and will let you guys know if I find out anything else, so far the losing connectivity to the XL4 when anything unusual happens and me having to reboot the Tivo mini seems to be the only major issue.
> 
> I guess you just have to watch what you select until they fix their bugs (I guess they had some lame beta testers for me to get the error as many times as I did and they didn't catch it in beta)...


Well, I'll be going through this Friday. Looks like a bunch of reboots and hope you did it in the right order!

I think you can only stream from other Premieres.


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## lessd

Thank you for the above


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## P42

caroth said:


> BTW, it can only Stream of the XL4. It sees my Tivo HD, but won't let me browse it or anything.


Does the HD support streaming.


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## aaronwt

P42 said:


> Does the HD support streaming.


No it does not. You can only stream from Premiere models. You can't use a TiVoHD with a Mini. You can only use series 4 boxes with a Mini and you have to have at least a four tuner Premiere to even setup a Mini. But once setup you can stream from a two tuner Premiere.


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## caroth

aaronwt said:


> No it does not. You can only stream from Premiere models. You can't use a TiVoHD with a Mini. You can only use series 4 boxes with a Mini and you have to have at least a four tuner Premiere to even setup a Mini. But once setup you can stream from a two tuner Premiere.


You are correct, per Tivo the HD does not support streaming. I merely included this info because a lot of times when a company claims something won't work, it still might, they just don't support it.

I figured someone might find the actual confirmation that it won't work useful.


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## Dan203

Streaming didn't even exist on the Premiere units until an update last year. The S3 and TiVo HD units have not received a software update in almost 3 years. The S3/HD units are end of life. They will never get another update. So if you're unhappy with the functionality they provide your only option is to upgrade to a Premiere.


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## GTXgp

jjd_87 said:


> For now the 4th show doesn't record. This is suppose to change with a future software update.


That is enough for me to skip the mini. I really don't like the idea of losing my 4th tuner to have a mini that rarely gets used.


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## moyekj

GTXgp said:


> That is enough for me to skip the mini. I really don't like the idea of losing my 4th tuner to have a mini that rarely gets used.


 You don't have to - just allocate 0 tuners to the Mini and problem solved.


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## innocentfreak

GTXgp said:


> That is enough for me to skip the mini. I really don't like the idea of losing my 4th tuner to have a mini that rarely gets used.


Tell it not to assign the tuner then. One shortcut Ben mentioned on this week's Engadget HD podcast is if you have an iPad or any of the TiVos app you can browse the guide via that. Then select what you want to watch so it starts a recording. You will be able to select that and watch that via the Mini.

I believe you can also do the same thing by browsing the Guide from the Mini.

This way you don't lose a tuner, but you have to start recording whatever live show you want to watch.


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## sfm

Received my lifetime'd Mini from Tivo today (ordered Monday). Proceeded with the following (as I ordered from Tivo it was already activated):

1) Enabled tuner sharing on my XL4... this was a pain as that menu is only in HD and since I use SD menus I had to switch to using HD (which took a minute or two) then traverse to that screen (which detours through a SD screen... really tivo?) and set it up to share 1 tuner.

2) Hooked up the mini (wired ethernet) and plugged it in... the mini took several minutes to boot (really tivo?) and then went through the guided setup which took about 5 minutes or so to complete. I was hoping that the mini could be plugged into the switched outlets but the unexpectedly slow boot time will probably nix that.

3) Tivo Central then displayed and then I tested:

- Live TV - takes a few seconds to start streaming but it worked fine... as I tend to "guide surf" the HD menus on the mini are much faster than the useless ones on the XL4 and switching channels takes a couple of seconds (5 seconds max actually but that includes the HDMI handshake required when resolution changes as I use "native" output to the video processor) but pretty much as I expected and very much what I am used to.

- Streaming - again takes about max 5 seconds to start the stream... fast forward, rewind, skipping (30 second skip and to tick mark), etc. reasonably fast... not as fast as the XL4 but very usable.

- Xfinity - as I live in an area with xfinity on-demand support I tested this as well... the experience is much like it is on the XL4 so I am happy with that.

- Could not watch anything from the S3 or Tivo HD on the network (V120 error about the tivo being too old a model). I guess this was expected as they do not support MRS and, regardless, the plan is to replace these with minis.

All in all a very positive initial experience (no reboots or anything required here during setup as others have noted) and it appears as if the mini will do what we need it to in our home theater and other second TV setup (will purchase a second mini for that). Once (if) dynamic tuner allocation comes along then I'll be even happier as I can then recover the one tuner I will allocate for the minis. Will now sell the other lifetime'd tivos we have (S3 and HD) to pay for the minis and no longer have to worry about outlet fees, cable card fees, etc. from Comcast and be able to watch anything from the XL4 tivo anywhere.


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## Davisadm

sfm said:


> I was hoping that the mini could be plugged into the switched outlets but the unexpectedly slow boot time will probably nix that.


Why would you want to plug it into a switched outlet?


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## sfm

Davisadm said:


> Why would you want to plug it into a switched outlet?


Home theater and secondary tv area are used only a couple of times a week... most of the equipment in these two areas are plugged into switched outlets controlled by a master device (pre/pro or avr) and are only on when the those devices are brought out of standby. Thinking since the mini is chip based it would boot fast but boy was I wrong there.


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## aaronwt

sfm said:


> Home theater and secondary tv area are used only a couple of times a week... most of the equipment in these two areas are plugged into switched outlets controlled by a master device (pre/pro or avr) and are only on when the those devices are brought out of standby. Thinking since the mini is chip based it would boot fast but boy was I wrong there.


Just turn everything on a few minutes before you want to watch something.


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## JAaronT

Mine came today. Setup was painless and I'm using a wireless bridge. Works great, less filling.


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## mr_smits

innocentfreak said:


> if you have an iPad or any of the TiVos app you can browse the guide via that. Then select what you want to watch so it starts a recording. You will be able to select that and watch that via the Mini.


Sloppy work around but it will work until the dynamic tuner issue is resolved.


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