# TiVo Mini Wireless Adapter



## krkaufman (Nov 25, 2003)

This isn't news, but I couldn't find a thread dedicated to this new product TiVo is scheduled to release this year: the *TiVo Mini Wireless Adapter*. I thought we could use a thread to aggregate info on the adapter, and as a place for speculation and additional new info, as it becomes available.

TiVo Announces WiFi Adaptor for TiVo Mini | The Digital Media Zone

_"The new USB adaptor will allow a TiVo Mini to connect to a base TiVo unit using your home Wi-Fi. If you're using a TiVo Bolt, the adaptor will allow the TiVo Mini to connect wirelessly to your TiVo without even using your network."_​
*Zatz CES2019 article* discussing the adapter: TiVo Mini Wireless Adapter Slated For Midyear Release @ $60

Some critical details supplied by @TiVo_Ted over in the CES2019 thread:

_"This is a USB adapter, not a bridge. The initial driver work is being done on TE4. I'm not sure whether we'll be able to duplicate the work on TE3. As far as supporting A92 or A93 MINI's, the main issue is CPU and memory performance. I'll know more once we start testing." _(link)​









(edits: added DMZ link providing better product description)


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## krkaufman (Nov 25, 2003)

...


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

I expect the price to fall about 50%. Check Amazon. A while back I tried a few USB adapters (with my computers). Almost all used the same chipset, software and had about the same performance. I never complained about the user interface of the TiVo adapters, just the throughput. Like existing networking, so many people blame the TiVo when the fault is a weak router.


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## krkaufman (Nov 25, 2003)

JoeKustra said:


> I'm standing in line to purchase one. Not using the router raises several questions. I'll wait and not make too many guesses.


One question I had was based on the Mini adapter being configured for a direct connection to a TE4 BOLT, rather than connecting to the home network, wondering whether/how it affects host DVR configuration. /// ... though I think I partly answered my own question as I was typing it.

Selecting a TE3 box as the host DVR would likely be problematic since the adapter wouldn't function after rollback to TE3 on the Mini, assuming support is limited to TE4.

I'd think switching between different TE4 host DVRs would function normally, assuming the network connection is a distinct setting from the host DVR configuration. But you'd be doubling network traffic through the wireless source BOLT when the Mini is configured to use a different DVR as its host.


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## Jetspeedz (Dec 20, 2014)

JoeKustra said:


> Like existing networking, so many people blame the TiVo when the fault is a weak router.


Not just Tivo, in general people don't understand the shortcomings of Wifi in general.


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## SNJpage1 (May 25, 2006)

I was wondering if a WIFI bridge would work with a Mini? Mini hard wired to Bridge. Then WIFI back to a WIFI router.


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## krkaufman (Nov 25, 2003)

SNJpage1 said:


> I was wondering if a WIFI bridge would work with a Mini? Mini hard wired to Bridge. Then WIFI back to a WIFI router.


Many people are using DIY wireless setups such as that, but much depends on the quality of the wireless base station and the bridge used, along with the environment. @JoeKustra is a great resource on this front.


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

SNJpage1 said:


> I was wondering if a WIFI bridge would work with a Mini? Mini hard wired to Bridge. Then WIFI back to a WIFI router.


What model is your router and how far is it from the Mini (in floors & rooms). I have two Mini locations running daily right now. Both are using WUMC710. Since they're "extenders" and not pure bridges, I can still turn off their 2.4GHz transmitters and receivers, plus the 5Ghz receiver. They can be found used on eBay or Amazon. Tomorrow I'm going to switch both to RE6500. I frequently rotate bridges just to remain familiar with their operation.

I am looking forward to buying one of the new TiVo Mini adapters.


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## SNJpage1 (May 25, 2006)

JoeKustra said:


> What model is your router and how far is it from the Mini (in floors & rooms). I have two Mini locations running daily right now. Both are using WUMC710. Since they're "extenders" and not pure bridges, I can still turn off their 2.4GHz transmitters and receivers, plus the 5Ghz receiver. They can be found used on eBay or Amazon. Tomorrow I'm going to switch both to RE6500. I frequently rotate bridges just to remain familiar with their operation.
> 
> I have a D link unit that can be switched to either work as a 4 port bridge or as an AP with 4 lan ports. The wifi signal would be sent to a Comcast wifi router/modem about 30 feet away in another room. I can drill holes thru the floors and run cat 5 thru the crawl space but I have the bridge unit sitting on a self not being used.


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

_I have a D link unit that can be switched to either work as a 4 port bridge or as an AP with 4 lan ports. The wifi signal would be sent to a Comcast wifi router/modem about 30 feet away in another room. I can drill holes thru the floors and run cat 5 thru the crawl space but I have the bridge unit sitting on a self not being used.
_
I find a D-Link DAP-1650 works well.


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## Myrtledog (Jul 10, 2017)

When’s this thing due to be released? Can’t come soon enough.


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

Myrtledog said:


> When's this thing due to be released? Can't come soon enough.


2019. Probably.


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## krkaufman (Nov 25, 2003)

Myrtledog said:


> When's this thing due to be released? Can't come soon enough.


From the first linked article above...

_TiVo expects to release the adaptor in the second quarter of 2019_​


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## Myrtledog (Jul 10, 2017)

I’ve been using a Orbi mesh network and hardwiring my minis to the Orbi Satellites. Works fairly well except when it doesn’t. 
I routinely get between 100 and 200 down according to Speedtest however I get dropped connectivity to the minis. Sometimes a little and sometimes a lot...
Would love to try one of the pending WiFi adaptors to see if it fixes this.


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## Myrtledog (Jul 10, 2017)

Myrtledog said:


> I've been using a Orbi mesh network and hardwiring my minis to the Orbi Satellites. Works fairly well except when it doesn't.
> I routinely get between 100 and 200 down according to Speedtest however I get dropped connectivity to the minis. Sometimes a little and sometimes a lot...
> Would love to try one of the pending WiFi adaptors to see if it fixes this.


Watching tv with the minis just gets more frustrating as time goes by...

Whenever we sit down to watch a baseball game you can count on the signal dropping approximately 2 - 6 times throughout the game! When this happens it'll take 3-5 minutes to get it back.

I'm actually thinking of giving up on the whole TiVo thing and just going back to Spectrum dvrs throughout the house. I just don't see this getting any better...


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## HerronScott (Jan 1, 2002)

Myrtledog said:


> Watching tv with the minis just gets more frustrating as time goes by...
> 
> Whenever we sit down to watch a baseball game you can count on the signal dropping approximately 2 - 6 times throughout the game! When this happens it'll take 3-5 minutes to get it back.
> 
> I'm actually thinking of giving up on the whole TiVo thing and just going back to Spectrum dvrs throughout the house. I just don't see this getting any better...


Have not had any issues here with our Mini (A93) using a Powerline adapter.

Scott


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## Myrtledog (Jul 10, 2017)

HerronScott said:


> Have not had any issues here with our Mini (A93) using a Powerline adapter.
> 
> Scott


What power line adapter are you using?


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## HerronScott (Jan 1, 2002)

Zyxel 600Mbps PLA5215 from 4 years ago. I haven't looked at what's available since then so not sure what I would pick today.

Scott


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## jaselzer (Sep 10, 2018)

I use a Luxul AC1200 Wifi Bridge at the moment. My wireless access point(Pakedge) is quite close but still the Mini can time out from time to time.


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## Time_Lord (Jun 4, 2012)

My only concern with the mini over wireless is the quality of the wireless network. Remember the mini requires close to 20mb/s of data to watch a live HD feed at 720, I can't image what it might be at 4K.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say most people with wifi in their homes will have 802.11n and it is questionable if it is single or dual band radio. 802.11ac is great but as I recall there is only one channel that can be used for the full bandwidth, plus you really think you can get 1.5gb on wireless? In your dreams!

I pity the person that tries to get a mini working over wireless to find that they only have 802.11b (yes I'm sure it is still out there), even 802.11a or 802.11g would be iffy at best and probably a failure if any thing else was on the frequency and you didn't have a perfect signal.

802.11n - 2.4ghz can supply up to 144Mb/s which should be enough
802.11n - 5ghz (40mhz channel) can supply up to 300Mb/s which also will be enough

The problem is wireless is half duplex so those numbers are not a guaranty plus single strength AND interferience plays a very big part in your performance. 

Live out in the sticks and you might be fine with wireless, live in an apartment building and forgetaboutit, I hear horror stories about not being able to reliably surf the web which is very low bandwidth! 

My preference for networking is a wired connection, wireless is nice and done right it works well but too many things can cause grief.


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

I have an A95 Mini and two A93 Mini. I connected all of them to a WUMC710. I could watch 1080i on all three boxes at the same time while still using the basic Roamio to watch live TV. I live in a semi-rural area and only detect a dozen or so other wireless routers. Everything is 802.11ac except my printer, Roku, Blu-ray and TV sets. I can be done, but I don't push it to others. I am really hoping the TiVo adapter works.


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

I wonder who is building the item? It can't be TiVo since they don't build stuff anymore. If Arris, it must be a low priority item. If it's being built by Foxconn in China, maybe it has succumbed to our wonderful relations with China. It's not like they're building a space shuttle.


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## krkaufman (Nov 25, 2003)

JoeKustra said:


> If it's being built by Foxconn in China, maybe it has succumbed to our wonderful relations with China.


I'd been wondering if tariffs were part of the reason for the price bump of the Motorola MM1000 MoCA adapter. (from $60 bumped to $70)


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## jaselzer (Sep 10, 2018)

You already know how I feel about companies that do not keep their customers generally informed. It is the epitome of incompetence to announce a product and it's approximate release date and then go dark. It is one of the major reasons that the moron at the Essential phone company failed. Terrible customer communication. At least that genius but wacked out Elon Musk is so successful. Every day information is released to Tesla customers. It does not even matter if it is not true.


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## Mike Campbell (Oct 7, 2019)

I have heard Tivo was going to release the adapter this week but they are still waiting for the first shipment to do so. I plan on ordering the day it is released. I already have a new Edge and Mini VOX on order.


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