# free refurbished Tivo



## ajwees41 (May 7, 2006)

is there hope that the free refurbished Tivo is offered again soon? also the ad's on side still show the offer that is expired.


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## GoEagles (Dec 2, 2006)

ajwees41 said:


> is there hope that the free refurbished Tivo is offered again soon? also the ad's on side still show the offer that is expired.


Doesn't hurt to call and see what they are offering now. Why not just buy a used Premiere? Get one off of Craigslist for $50 - $75 and you don't have to have a 2 year contract at $19.99. At that price $19.99 x 24 = $479.76) you could buy PLS upfront if you can afford the upfront cost.


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## GoEagles (Dec 2, 2006)

The deal is back - http://www3.tivo.com/promo/renewedpremiere_0.html?WT.mc_id=RCRC_0down


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

Not much of a deal since the monthly fee is $5/mo more and you have to commit to two years. After the commitment period you'll have paid $120 for the TiVo. You can just buy one for $80 and only have to pay $14.99/mo with just a 1 year commitment.

Dan


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## ajwees41 (May 7, 2006)

can't beat the upfront cost though. free is a lot better than $80 plus service 1st month price.


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## Test (Dec 8, 2004)

Anyone jump on the last deal? Can you confirm if they allowed lifetime on these?


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## ajwees41 (May 7, 2006)

Test said:


> Anyone jump on the last deal? Can you confirm if they allowed lifetime on these?


probably have to wait the 2 years then put lifetime on it.


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## GoEagles (Dec 2, 2006)

ajwees41 said:


> probably have to wait the 2 years then put lifetime on it.


This is true, you can't PLS on a box that has a term committment. You could however go along with the first suggestion and just find a used box on craigslist and then pay $399 for the PLS if you can afford the upfront cost.


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## scandia101 (Oct 20, 2007)

Dan203 said:


> Not much of a deal since the monthly fee is $5/mo more and you have to commit to two years. After the commitment period you'll have paid $120 for the TiVo. You can just buy one for $80 and only have to pay $14.99/mo with just a 1 year commitment.
> 
> Dan


It's not supposed to be a great deal. Some people can't come up with $80 upfront. It's supposed to get customers that can't (or choose not to be able to) afford the regular purchase price.


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## steve614 (May 1, 2006)

The question I would have is, are these Premieres refurbished to original specs, or are they refurbished with the 500GB drives that are now standard in the Premiere?


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## ajwees41 (May 7, 2006)

steve614 said:


> The question I would have is, are these Premieres refurbished to original specs, or are they refurbished with the 500GB drives that are now standard in the Premiere?


as was just pointed out to me if you look at the specs match up to the current model 500GB


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## CoxInPHX (Jan 14, 2011)

You had the opportunity to purchase a New one for $49.95 and you passed on that deal.
http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=484312


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## ajwees41 (May 7, 2006)

CoxInPHX said:


> You had the opportunity to purchase a New one for $49.95 and you passed on that deal.
> http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=484312


that was only good for one and also we watch a ton of ondemand, so we are hoping Cox ondemand via Tivo launches soon.


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

scandia101 said:


> It's not supposed to be a great deal. Some people can't come up with $80 upfront. It's supposed to get customers that can't (or choose not to be able to) afford the regular purchase price.


If it were an expensive box then I'd understand that, but it's only $80. If you can't afford $80 then you probably shouldn't be buying luxuries like a TiVo in the first place.

Dan


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## ajwees41 (May 7, 2006)

Dan203 said:


> If it were an expensive box then I'd understand that, but it's only $80. If you can't afford $80 then you probably shouldn't be buying luxuries like a TiVo in the first place.
> 
> Dan


but why pay $160 up front when they offer this deal occasionally and then it's only $40 per month with no up front costs? like I said we most likely will be waiting for Cox on demand to launch through tivo first.


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

Because, as I said in my initial post, it's cheaper over the long run. Basically this deal is extending you a line of credit and you're paying $10/mo interest (on two units) over the two year contract. If you can afford the $160 then why bother paying interest on it? I can guarantee you that $160 is not going to earn you $80 over the next two years, so why spend $80 to save it?

I know everyone has their own ideas when it comes to financial stuff, but in my opinion you should avoid paying interest whenever possible. The only time I do financing is when the item I'm buying costs more then I have in the bank or when there is some sort of 0% deal, and then I make sure to pay it off before the term expires. The amount you earn on interest from saving the money is always less then the amount you pay to borrow the money. (this is how banks make money) So unless you're a very skilled day trader or a very lucky gambler it's really not worth saving the cash and paying interest to borrow it instead. 

Dan


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## bradleys (Oct 31, 2007)

This 

Then again - I have no idea why somebody would purchase a TiVo without opting for PLS. Just the residual value on resale pays the investment back...

Penny wise, dollar foolish


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## ajwees41 (May 7, 2006)

bradleys said:


> This
> 
> Then again - I have no idea why somebody would purchase a TiVo without opting for PLS. Just the residual value on resale pays the investment back...
> 
> Penny wise, dollar foolish


can't afford the huge upfront cost of lifetime


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## ajwees41 (May 7, 2006)

Dan203 said:


> Because, as I said in my initial post, it's cheaper over the long run. Basically this deal is extending you a line of credit and you're paying $10/mo interest (on two units) over the two year contract. If you can afford the $160 then why bother paying interest on it? I can guarantee you that $160 is not going to earn you $80 over the next two years, so why spend $80 to save it?
> 
> I know everyone has their own ideas when it comes to financial stuff, but in my opinion you should avoid paying interest whenever possible. The only time I do financing is when the item I'm buying costs more then I have in the bank or when there is some sort of 0% deal, and then I make sure to pay it off before the term expires. The amount you earn on interest from saving the money is always less then the amount you pay to borrow the money. (this is how banks make money) So unless you're a very skilled day trader or a very lucky gambler it's really not worth saving the cash and paying interest to borrow it instead.
> 
> Dan


how do figure you would be paying interest on it?


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## steve614 (May 1, 2006)

Pay $0 down for the Premiere box, pay $19.99/mo. with a 2 year commitment (So TiVo is guaranteed they get their money for the cost of the box).

If you 'pay' for the box up front, you can get a lower monthly subscription rate.
Pay $149 for the Premiere box up front, pay $14.99/mo, with a 1 year commitment (again, so TiVo gets their money back for the cost of the box).

You can also call TiVo and request to pay full price for the box, for no commitment pricing.

Each of those options will equal out for TiVo in the long run.

For me, a REAL deal would be something like an offer for a lifetime transfer from an S2 or earlier Tivo to a Premiere for something like $199.


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## ajwees41 (May 7, 2006)

you pay $284 more with the free tivo compared to the 2 $79 Tivo's with a one year contract


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## scandia101 (Oct 20, 2007)

Dan203 said:


> If it were an expensive box then I'd understand that, but it's only $80. If you can't afford $80 then you probably shouldn't be buying luxuries like a TiVo in the first place.
> 
> Dan


To you it's only $80. Some people are not that fortunate to see it that way and many of the people who don't see it like you spend money on things they probably shouldn't buy.
Businesses don't come up with this type of purchase plans for people who can afford not to use it.

I fully understand your view on not paying interest if you don't have to pay it, but your response to me is a very narrow and naive view of the world.


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## ltxi (Feb 14, 2010)

$80 is a tank of gas. Whether you view that as an alternative or an "oh, well then who cares" thingy......


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## mattack (Apr 9, 2001)

$80 is in no way a tank of gas, unless you drive an SUV.. (and are thus an evil person..) and if you have a SUV, you have $80 for a Tivo.


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

ajwees41 said:


> how do figure you would be paying interest on it?


If you buy a refurb for $80 then you only pay $14.95/mo for service. The "free" unit costs $19.95/mo. That's $5 extra a month for 2 years, totaling $120 extra paid over those 2 years. Subtract the $80 you would have paid for the box had you bought it outright and you paid an extra $40 or $1.67/mo. That's what I'm calling interest.



scandia101 said:


> To you it's only $80. Some people are not that fortunate to see it that way and many of the people who don't see it like you spend money on things they probably shouldn't buy.
> Businesses don't come up with this type of purchase plans for people who can afford not to use it.
> 
> I fully understand your view on not paying interest if you don't have to pay it, but your response to me is a very narrow and naive view of the world.


I understand why TiVo is offering it, I was simply pointing out that it is foolish for people to take advantage of it.

Dan


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## CoxInPHX (Jan 14, 2011)

ajwees41 said:


> that was only good for one and also we watch a ton of ondemand, so we are hoping Cox ondemand via Tivo launches soon.


Here now you can purchase 3 Refurbished TiVo Premieres 45Hr 320GB for $44.95ea
http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=486906

http://www.woot.com/


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