# TiVo launches Pandora on the Premiere



## innocentfreak (Aug 25, 2001)

TiVo Launches Pandora

TiVo page on Pandora and TiVo Blog Post

I don't see it on either of my Premieres though even after a daily call.

According to Dave Zatz tweet, it should start rolling out later today.


> TiVo tells me the Pandora app will begin rolling out in a few hours. I assume that means when the west coast folks get into the office.


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## alokkola (Apr 18, 2006)

innocentfreak said:


> TiVo Launches Pandora
> 
> TiVo page on Pandora
> 
> ...


Please tell me this is happening right-away. If it is, then Tivo folks have finally listened. Add Pandora, update Netflix and I will start loving my Premiere even without the HDUI.


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## aaronwt (Jan 31, 2002)

Pandora works very well on the Premiere. But I only run the HDUI. I don't know if it's on the SDUI. I would think it is, but I have no desire to find out since I dislike the SDUI.


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## larrs (May 2, 2005)

This is one of the things I look forward to the most. I have a Vudu box that would never get used if it wasn't for Pandora, since I also have Vudu on my BD player. This will fee up an HDMI input on my AVR...


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## Mike-Mike (Mar 2, 2010)

sweet!


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## innocentfreak (Aug 25, 2001)

aaronwt said:


> Pandora works very well on the Premiere. But I only run the HDUI. I don't know if it's on the SDUI. I would think it is, but I have no desire to find out since I dislike the SDUI.


According to the TiVo page it is on both UIs. When did it show up for you?


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## davezatz (Apr 18, 2002)

innocentfreak said:


> According to the TiVo page it is on both UIs. When did it show up for you?


I assumed he was a beta tester.

TiVo tells me it's Premiere-only for the moment, but support is planned for the S3/HD as well. Not sure if additional development work is needed or this is a marketing strategy.


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## innocentfreak (Aug 25, 2001)

I am at work so wasn't sure if it showed up after your tweet since I can't check mine currently. 

Sounds like a decent marketing strategy especially with how many people were able to get the $99 lifetime on Series 3 and TiVo HDs. Also it shows them continuing to implement features that are possible on older hardware giving those less of a reason to switch if they don't want the UI or transfer speeds.

I can't remember now if originally they announced Pandora would be available for the Series 3/HD or not.


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## aswhitey (Nov 9, 2006)

I have been a TiVo customer for 7 years and I'm angry that TiVo says that Pandora would be available months after their March announcement and then that it would be available on Premiere and S3 and now this. TiVo customers are few and far between and this is not the way to keep your customers loyal.


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## eatmyjustice (Mar 28, 2010)

I'm on the east coast and I still don't have it at 2:00pm... I just forced a connection and rebooted.


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## Jackamus (Sep 20, 2010)

Will be nice to have this feature.


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## innocentfreak (Aug 25, 2001)

aswhitey said:


> I have been a TiVo customer for 7 years and I'm angry that TiVo says that Pandora would be available months after their March announcement and then that it would be available on Premiere and S3 and now this. TiVo customers are few and far between and this is not the way to keep your customers loyal.


So you are upset that Pandora is now rolling out and will be eventually on the series 3 and TiVo HD as announced?

My guess is they focused on the Premiere since it is the new and current platform. Also with the series 3 and HD no word that I know of if it will use the HDUI format like the TiVo search does for Pandora.


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## eatmyjustice (Mar 28, 2010)

mine started working at 2:45 eastern


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## alokkola (Apr 18, 2006)

eatmyjustice said:


> mine started working at 2:45 eastern


Please tell me it is available on Premiere SDUI as well.


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## curiousgeorge (Nov 28, 2002)

4 months late, but progress is progress...

Bring on 14.7. Make me love TiVo again, please.


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## SugarBowl (Jan 5, 2007)

too bad it has to flicker from HD to SD, and then back to HD.


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## donnoh (Mar 7, 2008)

I love Pandora, best thing since sliced bread


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## _Ryan_ (Apr 4, 2010)

The Pandora interface on the Premiere is pretty nice - it shares the same theme for the gui as the normal HD menu system on the Premiere, but without any ad-bar on the top. I really like it. The "preview window" in the upper right corner shows the song currently playing, and thumbs up/down work as you would expect to rate song choices. 
(Hopefully they'll update Netflix to look similar too!)

Question: does anyone know if upgrading to Pandora's paid service will increase the bitrate of the streaming audio on the Premiere Pandora App?


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## ncted (May 13, 2007)

Looks pretty nice. Glad I bought the Premier last week instead of the HD XL now. Things are looking up!

Ted


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## aaronwt (Jan 31, 2002)

I didn't know Pandora had a paid service. what does it cost?


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## gt7610c (Oct 5, 2002)

There is the 40 hr free limit. At which point you can pay $0.99 for unlimited hrs for the rest of the calendar month, or upgrade to Pandora One for $36/yr. Paying the $0.99 does not remove ads or skip limit like Pandora One does. There are other benefits to Pandora One.

Having said that, I still prefer Slacker


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## lessd (Jan 23, 2005)

aaronwt said:


> I didn't know Pandora had a paid service. what does it cost?


You get 40 hours/month free, for $39/year you get unlimited time no Ads + other stuff.


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## _Ryan_ (Apr 4, 2010)

is anyone else experiencing an annoying pause bug with the app?

this happens about half the time I pause a song and then unpause it: the progress indicator stops moving (stays still after unpausing despite the song progressing), and when the song ends, there is only silence. Requires changing the "station" to get music playing again.


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## shwru980r (Jun 22, 2008)

My $99 Bluray player has pandora, but not my Tivo HD. Go figure.


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## bobrt6676 (Dec 31, 2007)

_Ryan_ said:


> is anyone else experiencing an annoying pause bug with the app?
> 
> this happens about half the time I pause a song and then unpause it: the progress indicator stops moving (stays still after unpausing despite the song progressing), and when the song ends, there is only silence. Requires changing the "station" to get music playing again.


Same here. If the indicator stops moving after I pause, I can hit pause and start again and the indicator starts moving and songs will switch at the end.
I tried this about 20 times and it worked every time.( Although pausing does not always freeze the indicator bar)


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## innocentfreak (Aug 25, 2001)

I get the same result when pausing. I probably wouldn't have noticed if I hadn't read this since I don't think I would pause. I would probably just exit it or leave it running. 

One concern for me is I wish it had a screen saver that came up while the song was playing. I tend to baby my HDTV so I am hesitant to leave it on for long periods with no screen changes on Pandora.

Also it is disappointing that it doesn't have the feature like on the web site where you can scroll back through songs you just played to rate them.


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## steve614 (May 1, 2006)

davezatz said:


> TiVo tells me it's Premiere-only for the moment, but support is planned for the S3/HD as well. Not sure if additional development work is needed or this is a marketing strategy.





shwru980r said:


> My $99 Bluray player has pandora, but not my Tivo HD. Go figure.


The Tivo S3s/HDs are in the middle of a software update right now. I doubt we'll see Pandora until after the rollout is complete.

http://tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=455781


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## Karunch (Mar 23, 2010)

innocentfreak said:


> One concern for me is I wish it had a screen saver that came up while the song was playing. I tend to baby my HDTV so I am hesitant to leave it on for long periods with no screen changes on Pandora.


The screen saver takes about 20 minutes to turn on.. But if you hit thumbs up, thumbs down, or skip a song then then it will take another 20 minutes..


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## crxssi (Apr 5, 2010)

I never rebooted nor had it contact for a service update. Yet when I saw this thread tonight, I looked and sure enough, there is a menu option for "Pandora". I activated it- it was super easy. It is playing right now! Not sure when it appeared. There isn't even a "Message" on the TiVo about it.

Yes, it works even in the SDUI, although it the pandora app is HD. Looks good, seems to work fine. Good job!


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## crxssi (Apr 5, 2010)

innocentfreak said:


> One concern for me is I wish it had a screen saver that came up while the song was playing. I tend to baby my HDTV so I am hesitant to leave it on for long periods with no screen changes on Pandora


Unless you are using a Plasma TV, it shouldn't matter at all.


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## innocentfreak (Aug 25, 2001)

Karunch said:


> The screen saver takes about 20 minutes to turn on.. But if you hit thumbs up, thumbs down, or skip a song then then it will take another 20 minutes..


Good to know. I only played a few songs to try it out so I didn't let it sit long enough.

And yes I use a Plasma which is still only a couple months old. I couldn't stand the look of LCDs.


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## mriman (May 16, 2010)

crxssi said:


> I never rebooted nor had it contact for a service update. Yet when I saw this thread tonight, I looked and sure enough, there is a menu option for "Pandora". I activated it- it was super easy. It is playing right now! Not sure when it appeared. There isn't even a "Message" on the TiVo about it.
> 
> Yes, it works even in the SDUI, although it the pandora app is HD. Looks good, seems to work fine. Good job!


I too am surprised that there is no TIVO message to get the word out!
This was one of the big complaints on the message board here and now that TIVO has delivered I would think they would toot their own horn a bit.


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## mriman (May 16, 2010)

My LG plays Pandora comfortably at volume setting of 5-7 (of ? 100) where TV listening is at 25-30 for comparable volume. That is one thing I don't like is various sources delivering variable volume.


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## innocentfreak (Aug 25, 2001)

mriman said:


> I too am surprised that there is no TIVO message to get the word out!
> This was one of the big complaints on the message board here and now that TIVO has delivered I would think they would toot their own horn a bit.


I am sure it will be in the next newsletter and I wouldn't be surprised to eventually see a message on TiVo about it. They did it for Frame Channel, but they usually wait a little bit before doing so.

They did add a page on TiVo.com, tweeted it, and made a post on their blog.


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## orangeboy (Apr 19, 2004)

mriman said:


> I too am surprised that there is no TIVO message to get the word out!
> This was one of the big complaints on the message board here and now that TIVO has delivered I would think they would toot their own horn a bit.


Straight from TiVo:


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## crxssi (Apr 5, 2010)

orangeboy said:


> Straight from TiVo:


That is not a message on the TiVo. Not many customers visit their website frequently...


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## orangeboy (Apr 19, 2004)

crxssi said:


> That is not a message on the TiVo. Not many customers visit their website frequently...


I completely misinterpreted the original statement.

They may not send a message to the DVRs until a bit of time passes, maybe after they can assess Customer Support call frequency for the app. If the phones don't ring for problems with Pandora for a couple of days or a week, then maybe send out a message...


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## wp746911 (Feb 19, 2005)

innocentfreak said:


> Good to know. I only played a few songs to try it out so I didn't let it sit long enough.
> 
> And yes I use a Plasma which is still only a couple months old. I couldn't stand the look of LCDs.


if your concern is about plasma burnin- I guess that is a continued concern, but modern plasmas just dont burn in like they used to. If i were leaving it on pandora for that long, I would just turn my tv off- I have a pioneer plasam and 2 led lcds and all three of them make a horrendously expensive pandora display- whenever I play music through them I find the songs and then turn them off. Save some energy and some power.


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## Mike-Mike (Mar 2, 2010)

I normally come on here and say how awesome Roku is, but i have to say, I think the Pandora app on Tivo is much sweeter thant he Roku app, but I am getting that pause bug you mentioned earlier, but it's random


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## greensky (Mar 3, 2010)

The only issue I have with the Pandora app is the UI is a bit laggy. Other than that it's fully featured and beats the Roku app hands down.


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## ncted (May 13, 2007)

wp746911 said:


> if your concern is about plasma burnin- I guess that is a continued concern, but modern plasmas just dont burn in like they used to. If i were leaving it on pandora for that long, I would just turn my tv off- I have a pioneer plasam and 2 led lcds and all three of them make a horrendously expensive pandora display- whenever I play music through them I find the songs and then turn them off. Save some energy and some power.


It seems like some manufacturers are finding new ways to make burn-in a problem. I almost bought a Samsung Plasma which has an awesome picture, but the number of people complaining about burn-in on their new models gave me pause. I do wish TVs had a way to turn off the panel while leaving the speakers on, so I could listen to music without running the backlight which wastes power and lifespan.

Ted


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## bklockhart (Dec 10, 2006)

Just trying it out for the first time today. Prefer the UI to what's on my Samsung blu-ray player. Only minor concern is that it occasionally freezes on a song and skips forward. Overall a welcome addition.


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## curiousgeorge (Nov 28, 2002)

ncted said:


> It seems like some manufacturers are finding new ways to make burn-in a problem. I almost bought a Samsung Plasma which has an awesome picture, but the number of people complaining about burn-in on their new models gave me pause. I do wish TVs had a way to turn off the panel while leaving the speakers on, so I could listen to music without running the backlight which wastes power and lifespan.
> 
> Ted


Yeah, that was my experience, too. Samsungs, even the newer ones, have WAY more persistence/burn in issues than Panasonic. It's why we got rid of our 5 month old 63" Samsung at a loss. Gorgeous picture aside, I could see the future on that one, and it wasn't pretty. We're now 100% Panasonic again.

I guess they're assuming most people have their setup with a receiver for the audio and aren't running it through the TV.


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## crxssi (Apr 5, 2010)

curiousgeorge said:


> I guess they're assuming most people have their setup with a receiver for the audio and aren't running it through the TV.


Or they are assuming that perhaps 98%+ of TV's sold in the last several years are LCD or DLT and thus don't have issues with burnin. And they would be right.


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## innocentfreak (Aug 25, 2001)

crxssi said:


> Or they are assuming that perhaps 98%+ of TV's sold in the last several years are LCD or DLT and thus don't have issues with burnin. And they would be right.


Just because it is popular doesn't mean it is good look at TiVo vs cable DVRs.

If they didn't have plasma TVs, I would still be using a CRT. In fact it is why I still use a 21" CRTs for my PCs since I can't stand using LCDs due to the brightness, motion handling, lag, and off angle viewing.


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## curiousgeorge (Nov 28, 2002)

crxssi said:


> Or they are assuming that perhaps 98%+ of TV's sold in the last several years are LCD or DLT and thus don't have issues with burnin. And they would be right.


Let's not go numbers crazy. Plasma was down to 10% of the market last year, and 5-7% this year, so 90-93% is more accurate.  Far superior technology and picture, but that didn't help it.


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## crxssi (Apr 5, 2010)

curiousgeorge said:


> Let's not go numbers crazy. Plasma was down to 10% of the market last year, and 5-7% this year, so 90-93% is more accurate.


I am surprised it is that much, still!



> Far superior technology and picture, but that didn't help it.


Picture quality yes; technology in general- not really. Plasma is very very heavy, thicker, more prone to failure, uses a lot more electricity, is more expensive, susceptible to burnin, and available in fewer sizes. LCD has been improving a lot- brighter, more contrast, faster, better color, better viewing angle each year. Still not to the level of plasma/CRT yet, but I bet it will match it pretty soon (in all ways that matter).

I used to have a DLT, which did have almost the picture quality of plasma, but it had the annoying spinny color wheel thing and some [to me noticeable] high frequency flicker and long bulb warmup. Once LCD improved enough, I jumped to it. Still, if I were able to ignore all other factors, yes, I would have a plasma.


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## curiousgeorge (Nov 28, 2002)

crxssi said:


> I am surprised it is that much, still!


Two camps holding the Plasma fort:

1. Videophiles, picky consumers
Picture quality and performance matter to the videophiles. You can't get those at anywhere close to high-end plasma levels with LCD/LED.

2. 3D TV adopters
People (foolishly) jumping into 3D TV have realized that 3D plasmas destroy 3D LCD/LED sets. Plasma tech is better suited to the technology.


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## gt7610c (Oct 5, 2002)

I don't know why there is a lot of FUD involving plasma. Today's plasma displays don't consume a lot of electricity (every one I looked at was met or exceeded the latest Energy Star requirement for 2010), don't have any issue with screen burn in, and (my favourite) the plasma doesn't need "recharging" after several years nor does it "leak out". I was a big fan of LCD, but plasma blows it away for _my_ purposes. Viewing angle, black level, most "CRT like" viewing, I love my plasma. Anyone looking at a set should take a look at plasma and compare (not saying it is right for everyone).


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## crxssi (Apr 5, 2010)

gt7610c said:


> I don't know why there is a lot of FUD involving plasma. Today's plasma displays


Well, it isn't read "FUD", it is just outdated information, all of it based on correct past facts. The reality is that not only has LCD technology improved, plasma technology has improved a lot also. When I started digging more, it is surprising how much weight plasma has shed, and how much more power efficient they have become.


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## innocentfreak (Aug 25, 2001)

One other thing to consider when taking into account sales of plasma vs LCD is sizes. Plasma doesn't offer smaller TVs while LCDs you can get as low as 19".

I would be curious to see sales comparisons at specific sizes. I wouldn't be surpised to still see LCD higher since when I was looking at buying my plasma all the sales drones were pushing LCD. I would think it would be closer as you get larger though.


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## crxssi (Apr 5, 2010)

innocentfreak said:


> One other thing to consider when taking into account sales of plasma vs LCD is sizes. Plasma doesn't offer smaller TVs while LCDs you can get as low as 19".


Actually, I already mentioned that, above:

"Plasma is [...] available in fewer sizes"



> all the sales drones were pushing LCD


Now all the drones are pushing some fantasy called "LED TV's", even though there is no such thing (they are LCD with LED backlights- it would be like calling an internal combustion engine car an "electric" car, simply because it has a battery used for the starter). Well, that is when they are not pushing 3D, yeesh. You can tell I often loathe sales tactics...


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## curiousgeorge (Nov 28, 2002)

crxssi said:


> Actually, I already mentioned that, above:
> 
> "Plasma is [...] available in fewer sizes"
> 
> Now all the drones are pushing some fantasy called "LED TV's", even though there is no such thing (they are LCD with LED backlights- it would be like calling an internal combustion engine car an "electric" car, simply because it has a battery used for the starter). Well, that is when they are not pushing 3D, yeesh. You can tell I often loathe sales tactics...


I don't think they really think *that*. I know in my case and the stuff I read, when referring to LCD screens, LCD and LED are quick shorthand for "older" LCD tech with general lighting, and the newer LCD tech with LED (general and local) lighting. People know what you're talking about with less typing.


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## george 64 (Jul 19, 2009)

innocentfreak said:


> TiVo Launches Pandora
> 
> TiVo page on Pandora and TiVo Blog Post
> 
> ...


good to hear


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## prisaz (Aug 30, 2009)

Pandora is on TiVO HD and up and running. It took one long download and multiple connections to TiVO, but revision 11.0j is loaded. Pandora rocks!


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## sehale (Jun 28, 2007)

gt7610c said:


> There is the 40 hr free limit. At which point you can pay $0.99 for unlimited hrs for the rest of the calendar month, or upgrade to Pandora One for $36/yr. Paying the $0.99 does not remove ads or skip limit like Pandora One does. There are other benefits to Pandora One.
> 
> Having said that, I still prefer Slacker


Just to clarify - it's 40 hours free _per month_. Every month you get a "fresh" 40 hours (but no roll-over minutes/hours). I initially thought it was a lifetime total of 40 hours and I wasn't going to bother with it. But knowing this, I gave it a shot. Pretty good!


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## aaronwt (Jan 31, 2002)

I'm using Pandora regularly now, especially on my Android phone. I might need to start paying for it if I keep listening to it like I have been for the last week.


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## gamo62 (Oct 12, 2002)

I have the THD, and with version 11.0j Pandora is there. I was thinking of upgrading to the Premiere, but with the relase of Netflix for the PS3 that streams DD 5.1 and 1080p, I have no reason to upgrade. HD menus are not important, and as of now, no one broadcasts 1080p.


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## jgantert (Jan 24, 2008)

aaronwt said:


> I'm using Pandora regularly now, especially on my Android phone. I might need to start paying for it if I keep listening to it like I have been for the last week.


Just FYI, the 40 hour limit does not apply to Tivo or other CE devices like blu-ray players. I'm not sure about phones.


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## crxssi (Apr 5, 2010)

jgantert said:


> Just FYI, the 40 hour limit does not apply to Tivo or other CE devices like blu-ray players. I'm not sure about phones.


Really? Are you sure about that? Why would they treat "appliance" devices differently than computer/web devices? Are they getting kickbacks from the appliance companies??


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