# How is FIOS with TiVo?



## nycityuser (Dec 30, 2004)

Verizon FIOS has finally come to my building in New York. I am now one of the lucky ones with lots of choices - Time Warner, RCN or Verizon FIOS.

I currently have RCN and it works well with my TiVo Series 2 and my two TiVo HD machines. And the cablecards are only $1.50/month.

I'm considering switching to FIOS, particularly for their super-fast Internet speeds. How well does TiVo work with FIOS? Will I need an attenuator? Will the Series 2 work well with a standard receiver from FIOS (at $5.99/month)?


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## WhiskeyTango (Sep 20, 2006)

My parents have Tivo and Fios and only had a problem with 2 channels out of like 1000 that would have required an attenuator but decided it was a big enough issue to do so. They also have an S2 with a Fios box and don't have any problems.


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## RangerOne (Dec 30, 2006)

I currently have Comcast in the greater Boston area. I've noticed that when I watch movies such as the Lord of the Rings on TNT-HD, there is some noticeable pixelization during the action scenes. FIOS is running a promotion in my area and I'm wondering if the picture quality is better than Comcast.


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## shoeboo (Nov 28, 2006)

I have the exact setup and am very happy with fios. They should have m-cards, which are 3.99 a month. These are not actually paired, just activated which means I can change them between boxes (or upgrade) without a truck roll. It also means they don't have copy protection (cci byte) enabled allowing me to make full use of MRV including HBO and other premiums. 
The standard def box works pretty good and is able to be controlled by serial cable. Only problems I have had is if the power goes out, the box stays off and i will very occasionally get in some weird channel changing loop where the tivo requests a channel change and the box misses something and then then the channel changes like 10 times and i miss the recording. It is only recording kids shows so I haven't investigated.


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## smgeisler (Dec 23, 2001)

I have FIOS in Pittsburgh. I have 2 Series 2, a TiVo-DT and a TiVo-HD. All work fine with no attenuators. The HD uses cable cards and the other three each use one of what they call "Basic Digital Adapter" Model DCT7000. They receive all the channels but of course they don't have video on demand or other features provided by the Regular cable boxes. I started out using the regular cable boxes but I had a couple major problems with them. One is that they have screen savers that kick in and then your recorded programs are just the Verizon logo floating around the screen. I looked through the manual, looked at every setting on the remote and called customer service to find out how to disable the screen saver. They said there was no way to disable it. Another problem with the regular cable boxes is that they would shut off randomly for some unknown reason (firmware/software updates/power failures?). I'd start to watch programs only to find a blank screen was recorded. Again, customer service said there was no way to stop it. So I replaced the the regular boxes with the "Basic Digital Adapters" and have had no problems since. No screen saver & when the power goes out, when it comes back on so does the cable box. Sorry I don't remember the model numbers for the big and small cable boxes, but the regular ones are $5.99 and the DCT7000s are $3.99.


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## David3000 (Jan 10, 2010)

I have fios in Brooklyn with two tivos (Tivo HD and Tivo HDXL). I have no issues and love my setup. Because I didn't know how much I would miss On Demand, when I got fios installed 6 weeks ago I had them split one of the lines and I put the tivo box on one line and the fios box on the other. Now if I want to watch On Demand, I just switch the TV input to the fios box. To be honest, between all the HD shows recorded on Tivo, the million of live choices on Tivo, and was tons of choices on Netflix I've only used On Demand once or twice. I'll probably return the box soon and save the ~$7 per month rental fee.

FIOS + Tivo :up: :up:


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## Capmeister (Jan 20, 2005)

I also have an HD and HDXL on FiOS in Maryland. Very pleased with my investment and choice!


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## reubanks (Feb 19, 2006)

Likewise HD and HDXL on FiOS in Southern California. Both units have a single M-Card and work perfectly. I never plan to order Pay-Per-View, so am not missing anything.


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## nycityuser (Dec 30, 2004)

smgeisler said:


> Sorry I don't remember the model numbers for the big and small cable boxes, but the big ones are $5.99 and the mall ones are $2.99 (At least when I got mine).


What is the difference between the "big" box and the "small" one? Is one an HD box and the other one not? What they are offering me is a standard box (non-HD) or an HD box, either one for $5.99/month. These are their non-DVR boxes. For DVR boxes (which I won't need) they offer a multi-room box for $19.99 or a single room box for $15.99.

Obviously any box with a screensaver is useless for a Series 2.


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## Brad516 (Apr 15, 2002)

I've had FIOS for a few weeks here in Montgomery County, MD. 

Two TivoHDs with M cards, one w/lifetime
Tivo Series 2 w/lifetime
Tivo Series 1 w/lifetime
One Home Media DVR
four FIOS HD boxes
two projectors
7 HD drops total 

Everything works great except the Series 1 hasn't completed guided setup yet. The Series 2 records any channel, including HD ones, in SD. The TivoHDs both have M cards. I had RCN and while I was generally happy with it FIOS blows it away. I have HD on five TVs and two projectors for what I was paying for one DVR and two M cards with RCN. I have 25/15 internet and it regularly exceeds those speeds on tests. The picture quality is excellent, noticeably better than what I had, which was nice. I also have far more channels than I had. The Home Media DVR can be viewed on the other FIOS cable box setups and of course, not on the Tivos. I watch Netflix on the TivoHDs and that service has improved greatly.

So... 
four extra HD drops (everything is now HD).
25/15 internet
Home Media DVR viewable in other rooms
100's of channels including way more HD content than I could need.
For what I was paying RCN before for far less. It took some negotiating to get the pricing I ended up with at RCN, it took some negotiating to do the same at Verizon. Funny how many discounts they can find when you tell them no.

I'm satisfied... in fact far more than satified. I'm surprised at how well all of this works. The cable card installs took more time than I cared for but that wasn't surprising. I was told they had no cable cards a couple of times before I talked to someone who actually knew anything about them. I had at least three managers tell me they had not cable cards and didn't work with Tivo... and I should get their DVRs and scrap my Tivos. Funny stuff.

I like the FIOS guide so far, lots of info easily available. The Home Media DVR is easy to use on the other TVs, no complaints there but I haven't really tried using it on multiple TVs simultaneously. They charge $4/month for M cards and HD boxes. More than RCN for the cards, way less for the boxes. So far I only get the screen saver when I turn the box off. 

I haven't called Tivo about the issue with the Series 1, the last time this happened it tooks months to remedy and there was quite a runaround about the actual problem. Frankly I expect the same this time. I had season passes setup for The Daily Show and the Colbert Report (among other things) on this Tivo that's installed in a home theater setup in my kitchen (hidden components, in-wall speaker with sub, Yamaha components, 22" LCD display, DVD and VHS ). The upside is that Comedy Central is now in HD (it isn't with RCN) so we watch these shows on the Tivo HD on the Samsung 61" in the family room. We have one more Series 1 with lifetime that I might install on one of the other HD boxes if this ever gets sorted out.

The internet is great. Not much to say about that. I use N type wireless adapters with the FIOS router and the speed is sweet. I thought I'd need to install my N router but so far so good.

Service has operated without a hitch since we got it. Glad we did this.


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## nycityuser (Dec 30, 2004)

Hey Brad516, thanks for all the info. Do you live in a school or something? I mean, you have so many televisions. 

I actually do not own HD televisions yet and one reason is that I am a nightly viewer of Jon Stewart (as you are) and Keith Olbermann. It was silly to get HDTVs and watch them in blurry SD. But, as you say, FIOS offers both in HD now. So switching to FIOS would give me a reason to buy an HDTV.

I'm surprised that so few Verizon folks knew about cablecards. I talked to two salespeople on the phone today and both knew about cablecards. They quoted me pretty firm pricing for the various packages. How did you go about negotiating them down?


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## mr.unnatural (Feb 2, 2006)

I've had FIOS with two S3 Tivos for three years now and everything has worked out great. I migrated from DirecTV and never looked back.


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## anuyag (Apr 18, 2006)

Use it with my HDTivo and could not be happier. I use a multi-channel cable-card which works great. The only annoyance is that I cannot do on-demand stuff but it is not a huge problem for me.


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## smgeisler (Dec 23, 2001)

nycityuser said:


> What is the difference between the "big" box and the "small" one? Is one an HD box and the other one not? What they are offering me is a standard box (non-HD) or an HD box, either one for $5.99/month. These are their non-DVR boxes. For DVR boxes (which I won't need) they offer a multi-room box for $19.99 or a single room box for $15.99.
> 
> Obviously any box with a screensaver is useless for a Series 2.


The "Big" box is a just the regular Motorola cable box. The "small" box is basically just a channel changer with an "On light" about 5" wide, 6" deep and sloping from 1" to 1.5" high. If it's plugged in and the power is on, it's on. It has no buttons, switches or display. It uses the same remote as the regular cable box. Neither are HD, but the HD TiVos use cable cards anyway. They do have HD cable boxes of course but you probably wouldn't want to use one with a Series 1 or 2 TiVo. The model number for the "small" box is DCT7000 (Now that I'm home and can look at it). So these DCT7000s are what you would want to use with Series 1 and Series 2 TiVos. As I said above, the regular cable boxes are not any good to use with TiVos unless they have made changes to their firmware to disable the screen saver and turn themselves back on after a power failure. And you'll have to ask for the DCT7000s. They don't really advertise their existence. The installer told me about them.

OK. I went online and looked up the DCT7000 (I called it the "small" box). Here's how they describe it:

Basic Digital Adapter
• Watch standard definition programming
• Does not support Video on Demand, the TV listings guide, or any additional interactive TV features
• Not compatible with High Definition Home Media DVR

They are currently $3.99 per month.


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## RangerOne (Dec 30, 2006)

Brad516 wrote:



> The TivoHDs both have M cards. I had RCN and while I was generally happy with it FIOS blows it away.


Brad, thanks for the feedback on picture quality. Anyone in the Boston area switch and have feedback about Comcast versus FIOS quality? Does the Boston area have m-cards?


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## eholliman (Sep 26, 2006)

@smgeisler - The description mentions that the device does not support the TV Listings guide. Is this referring to the FIOS TV Listing? I assume that this doesn't affect the onboard Tivo listing, correct? When you had the 'Big Box' did it support the FIOS TV listing?

Thanks for your info.


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## dbenrosen (Sep 20, 2003)

The "big" box supports the FIOS TV Listings. The "small" box does not. If you are using the small box as the channel changer with a Series 2 (or prior) version, you will get the TiVo listings via the TiVo as you would expect. The Series 3 (and above) don't use a cable box of any sort. They use cable cards and replace entirely any "box" from FIOS.

I had used the small box on with my old Series 1 (since retired) and I have one in my kitchen.


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## Joe01880 (Feb 8, 2009)

I have had FiOS for years and it works flawlessly with my TiVO HD and my Premiere, the picture quality of FiOS blows away both Comcast and RCN and DirecTv (I have used all three). The only thing you will miss is the FiOS On Demand by not using the FiOS DVR. The downfall to FiOS is their DVR sucks and the guide data is a joke. Thats the reason i went back to TiVo, but with an expanded HDD in or attached to your TiVo you can record anything you can imagine and have no need for Demand other than PPV and TiVo has several offerings to get PPV movies. 
I have read RCN offers a TiVo with their service that gets On Demand but RCN was always so pricey and the picture quality was so bad i would go OTA before i went back to them. Comcasts PQ compared to FiOS is terrible as well. If you can get it, *IMO*, FiOS is a no brainer.
If by signing up for FiOS they give you a free DVR i would take it but also use TiVo. I have a FiOS Moto 7232-2 with a 500 gig HDD that works rather well but it still aint no TiVo!
I am told on new installs the only boxes FiOS is installing are the new 7232-2's which will also allow for an external HDD but doesnt as of now. If you are offered a 6416 series or a 71XX series (DVR) box from FiOS you should pass and just take the MCard(s) for your TiVo(s) The Moto 7100 non DVR STB from FiOS seems to work fine.


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## Scraff (Feb 14, 2009)

Joe01880 said:


> The only thing you will miss is the FiOS On Demand by not using the FiOS DVR.


You can't use on Demand without the FiOS DVR?


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## nycityuser (Dec 30, 2004)

Scraff said:


> You can't use on Demand without the FiOS DVR?


No, you can't use on Demand without a FIOS cable box. It does not have to be a DVR.

I rent an HD box from Verizon for $5.99/month. It gives me all on Demand access as well as most else of what FIOS offers. I have it connected to a Series 2 TiVo and so can record anything sent out of the box, including on Demand content.

I use that combination in addition to two TiVo HD boxes with cablecards. Everything works perfectly and I can partake of everything that FIOS offers.


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## Scraff (Feb 14, 2009)

Good to hear. I'm scheduled to get the FiOS triple play on Thursday.


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## sgip2000 (Jun 19, 2009)

Scraff said:


> Good to hear. I'm scheduled to get the FiOS triple play on Thursday.


Hopefully you're serviced by Verizon and not Frontier.


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## Scraff (Feb 14, 2009)

I'm in NJ.


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## Phantom Gremlin (Jun 20, 2002)

Scraff said:


> I'm in NJ.


Wow, an advantage to living in NJ over OR!

I'm originally from NYC; that means I'm allowed to share Roseanne Roseannadanna's general opinion of life in NJ.


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## MPSAN (Jun 20, 2009)

Phantom Gremlin said:


> Wow, an advantage to living in NJ over OR!
> 
> I'm originally from NYC; that means I'm allowed to share Roseanne Roseannadanna's general opinion of life in NJ.


Well, is Hartford, CT, close enough. I was born there and have been a Migrant Electronics Worker ever since...even spent time in Cherry Hill, NJ!


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## Jimmbo (Feb 21, 2011)

Is anyone feeling patient? 

I'm new to Fios, and never had TIVO. And a newbie just in general, too. And I'd really really appreciate some basic advice on this, with no jargon.

I just installed FIOS on my HDTV, but with no DVR (though, strangely, FIOS does let me record a little bit...I guess there's a dab of DVR space provided for free or something, idunno).

I can order FIOS DVR, or go with TIVO. I hear TIVO is great, so I'm leaning toward that. But I like being able to control everything with my iphone (FIOS has apps to control both the cable and the DVR). I don't care about on demand. And I don't know about boxes and attenuators and cards - all the stuff discussed above. 

Can someone help me (patiently, and in beginner's terms) understand what I need to do to add TIVO to this setup? And will I lose my ability to control everything via iPhone? 

Should I just get a FIOS DVR and use tivo over that somehow? (again, I'm really dumb on this stuff).


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## Joe01880 (Feb 8, 2009)

Jimmbo said:


> *I just installed FIOS on my HDTV, but with no DVR (though, strangely, FIOS does let me record a little bit...I guess there's a dab of DVR space provided for free or something, idunno).*.


Not knowing which FiOS set top box you have i can say this. Verizon Set top boxes (STB's) are either DVR's or are NOT DVR's. They do not record "a little bit". If they record anything it is a DVR.
For a stone cold beginner to DVR's staying with a FiOS DVR might be your best bet to start off with. There are a few advantages of using the FiOS DVR for a newb. 
1) FiOS will support it, meaning help you with it if you have problems and or replacing it if it goes bad at no charge to you. Getting hooked up with a FiOS DVR is easy, the guy comes over, hooks everything up, gives you a quick tour of how to play with it and tunrs you lose with it and you not knowing any better enjoy it.
2) FiOS has On Demand which has a lot of free content, you might not think you care about On Demand, but once you get used to it its nice to have.
3) If you are new to FiOS you probably got a DVR for some period of time at no charge, 3 months, 6 months, a year or maybe more. Depends on what deal you made. Be aware at some point that honeymoon ends and your bill will reflect an increase for the DVR sooner or later.
4) FiOS DVR's can be buggy and have problems. FiOS guide data just plain and simple sucks. It is often wrong or incomplete.

If you are dead set on getting a TiVo, TiVo has a lot of things going for it.
1) The TiVo interface is cool, user friendly and looks pretty nice. The High Definition interface in the Premieres are very nice and even the standard def version is better than FiOS.
2)TiVo has a few On Demand type options but do not confuse them with On Demand like FiOS, RCN or the other cable companies. The cable companies have a distinct advantage in ON Demand over TiVo. The argument can be made that with all the recording space available with a TiVo you really do not need many of the On Demand options cable companies offer, this may be true but On Demand is still nice to have.
3) At current FiOS does not offer external storage to increase how much content you can store to watch when you get around to it. FiOS says it will have this option in the near future but "coming soon" to both FiOS and TiVo means maybe one day, dont call me Ill call you, checks in the mail.
4) TiVo through Tribune has wicked good guide data and TiVo search and wish lists are a great addition to any couch potato's entertainment resume.
5) Nothing is free with TiVo...nothing, true you can get OTA, (over the air broadcast) using a TiVo but youre talking FiOS so it doesnt look like your looking to use the OTA option. You are going to have the cost of the TiVo which can vary greatly. The cost of TiVo service, (YOU MUST HAVE TiVo service) which includes your guide and upgrades to your TiVo. You will also need a cable card for your TiVo, without one it will not work with FiOS. $3.99 a month for the cable card, you will need 1 M-Card. You may also have to pay for FiOS to roll a truck and tech to your house to install the M-Card. That can cost an additional $79. There are ways around that but Im not going in to them here.
TiVo service can be your largest costs. As much as 19.99 month and go way down from there. You will have to research that and decide whats best for you.
Regardless of what you might read in this forum TiVo's are very reliable, like everything there are lemons and bugs but for the most part TiVos do what they are supposed to do, they are Top Notch DVR's, ok at the little internet stuff they do including Netflix and Amazon and Blockbuster PPV movie rentals. TiVo Premieres and HD's get Pandora, very nice. They are advertised with HULU "coming soon" dont hold your breath. They also get You Tube vidoes, not a deal maker or a deal breaker for me.
Best way to go is get a FiOS DVR for free anyway you can, that will offset the cost of TiVo. The new FiOS DVR's have 500 gig hard drives in them, thats a lot of record space. TiVos can have 2 terabytes of record space, thats a butt load more than FiOS, if you can do both you can pretty much record anything you ever wanted to and watch when you feel like it and skip through anything you dont want to watch.
Hope some of that helps.


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## RangerOne (Dec 30, 2006)

Here's my own experience. I posted on this thread at about this same time last year and was looking for feedback. I am very glad that I have made the switch to FIOS. It costs less, the picture quality is better and the network performance is more consistent.

I have a TiVo and a FIOS DVR. Of the two, I prefer the TiVo. I have a Series3 TiVo and the interface is easy to use. The family has tried both solutions and they think TiVo is easier when you take into account everything (UI, remote control, amount of recording space).

FIOS is supposed to be coming out with a new DVR with an improved interface and more recording space. Apparently its being tested in the NJ market. We'll have to see how that compares when it's available but for now TiVo is still my favorite!

There is no dedicated iPhone app to control the Tivo but there is an amazing iPad app. There is a tivo mobile web site that you can pull up on the iphone and remotely schedule shows. I have to look for the URL.

If you would like to add TiVo, you will need to do the following.
Buy a Tivo (Premier or a used Series 3). Some folks have reservations about the Premier but others are happy with it. 
Call FIOS and schedule a cable card install. If you buy a new TiVO, request they send a single "m-card". If you get the older series 3 (the one with the cool OLED display), you will need to request two "s-cards". Each of these options will allow you to record two programs on once.

Activate your tivo before fios installer shows up by going to http://www.tivo.com/activate

Plan to connect your Tivo to your home network. Ideally connect with a ethernet cable to your router. If not, you can buy a tivo wireless adapter. Last resort, you will need to connect to a phone line.

The installer will show up and will install the cablecard in your tivo. You will no longer need a cable box for that TV.

Enjoy your Tivo and your freedom!


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## RangerOne (Dec 30, 2006)

The Tivo mobile web site can be accessed here:
http://m.tivo.com/


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## RangerOne (Dec 30, 2006)

> You may also have to pay for FiOS to roll a truck and tech to your house to install the M-Card. That can cost an additional $79. There are ways around that but Im not going in to them here.


If you just got FIOS installed, they are usually willing to waive the fee.


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## wmcbrine (Aug 2, 2003)

RangerOne said:


> There is no dedicated iPhone app to control the Tivo but there is an amazing iPad app.


Actually, there are several iPhone remote apps for the TiVo -- just not "official" apps from TiVo Inc.


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## Jimmbo (Feb 21, 2011)

While I absorb all the info, one thing:



Joe01880 said:


> Not knowing which FiOS set top box you have i can say this. Verizon Set top boxes (STB's) are either DVR's or are NOT DVR's. They do not record "a little bit". If they record anything it is a DVR.


Yes, I understand that. But I didn't order DVR, didn't pay for DVR, and I find I can tape a few things here and there (I haven't tried to push it by recording more than 15 mins at a time), and enjoy the buffer (i.e. fast forwarding/rewinding), but if I try to access the deeper DVR controls/settings, I'm told to call customer service. So either there's some sort of memory, be it DVR or something else, built into the system, or I was installed a DVR that's crippled until I pay for it.


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## Jimmbo (Feb 21, 2011)

Ok, great info, you guys; I'm much obliged.

Just got my Verizon bill, and, yup, they're charging me $16/month for a DVR I didn't order. OTOH, I think I like the advice to proceed with this until I shed my newbie status. Maybe consider Tivo down the road.

My only question is....if Fios improves their DVR, do I get a shot at a replacement once it finishes testing in Jersey?


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## vurbano (Apr 20, 2004)

nycityuser said:


> Verizon FIOS has finally come to my building in New York. I am now one of the lucky ones with lots of choices - Time Warner, RCN or Verizon FIOS.
> 
> I currently have RCN and it works well with my TiVo Series 2 and my two TiVo HD machines. And the cablecards are only $1.50/month.
> 
> I'm considering switching to FIOS, particularly for their super-fast Internet speeds. How well does TiVo work with FIOS? Will I need an attenuator? Will the Series 2 work well with a standard receiver from FIOS (at $5.99/month)?


In short it is Nirvana. Every channel I have is unprotected except one. I can transfer anything I want to PC or to other tivos in the house. Picture quality is the best you can get short of a BUD. And I use no attenuators on any of the equipment listed below.


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## cwoody222 (Nov 13, 1999)

Will a TiVo Series2 get updated guide data over a FiOS digital phone line?


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## wmcbrine (Aug 2, 2003)

You should use a network adapter with a Series 2.


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## oViTynoT (May 18, 2007)

Yes, a series 2 will work as-is with FiOS phone line. INSIDE your house, the phone line is analog like always. Only after the NID does it become digital... It's transparent to everything in your house.


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## dejapooh (Jan 5, 2010)

OK, I am a rank Beginner with this stuff. We just got Fios with the DVR that they offer. Well, it sucks BIG TIME. If I wanted to upgrade to Tivo, exactly what would I have to buy, order, request, acquire, ect. Please, remember that I know nothing... So, if you tell me I need a stick card, you need to tell me what that is because I am too ignorant to know. 

Thanks for your help. 

DP


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## lrhorer (Aug 31, 2003)

dejapooh said:


> OK, I am a rank Beginner with this stuff. We just got Fios with the DVR that they offer. Well, it sucks BIG TIME. If I wanted to upgrade to Tivo, exactly what would I have to buy, order, request, acquire, ect. Please, remember that I know nothing... So, if you tell me I need a stick card, you need to tell me what that is because I am too ignorant to know.


Fortunately, the short answer is, "Not much". Of course you will need a TiVo. If you are looking to buy used, there are lots of options that require digging a bit deeper into the situation. If you are buying new, things are a bit simpler.

Even so, there are some variables at hand, but taking the simplest approach:

If you do not have broadband internet, you need to sign up for it, either with FIOS or someone else.

You need to arrange for a Category 5e cable to be run from the internet router to the TiVo. If the drop is already there, but is being used by some other device, then you probably need to buy a small Ethernet switch.

You need to have a cable drop run to the TiVo (you probably already have this).

You need power for the TiVo (you no doubt already have this, also).

You need to order a CableCard from FIOS. Be sure to demand an M-Card.

Plug in the RF cable and the Ethernet cable to the TiVo, plug in the power, and follow the instructions that come with the TiVo for installing and activating the CableCard.

That's it.


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## dejapooh (Jan 5, 2010)

thanks a ton. Seems I am much closer to being ready than i thought...


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## dejapooh (Jan 5, 2010)

Which Tivo's do you think would be best?


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## dejapooh (Jan 5, 2010)

is that rj45 cat 5e?


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## lrhorer (Aug 31, 2003)

dejapooh said:


> Which Tivo's do you think would be best?


That depends considerably on your criteria. Do you want new, or a lower price? Is network speed a concern? Do you want to (possibly ever) transfer videos from your TiVo to an external PC or to DVD? Are you wanting to pay for the service month-month, or do you want to pay a lump sum? Do you want all the newest bells and whistles, or is it more important to you to have a finished product in hand?


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## lrhorer (Aug 31, 2003)

dejapooh said:


> is that rj45 cat 5e?


Um, yeah. I think I said that.


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## dejapooh (Jan 5, 2010)

lrhorer said:


> Um, yeah. I think I said that.


actually you said cat5e. I was making sure it was the rj45.

As for the Tivo, 100+ hours of record time (hd) and tivo interface would be enough. Given that our needs are quite small, I guess we can do with used... anything else I should look for?

Finally, I saw a wifi network card for the tivo, we bought the highest speed internet from fios. would that work instead of the cable?


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## Jonathan_S (Oct 23, 2001)

lrhorer said:


> That depends considerably on your criteria. Do you want new, or a lower price? Is network speed a concern? Do you want to (possibly ever) transfer videos from your TiVo to an external PC or to DVD? Are you wanting to pay for the service month-month, or do you want to pay a lump sum? Do you want all the newest bells and whistles, or is it more important to you to have a finished product in hand?


And also how many shows he might simultaniously want to record. (Would he want the 4-tuner TiVo Premiere Elite)


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## Housted (Nov 6, 2011)

I am having Fios TV installed this Wed. Will have a cable card added to my S3. What do I do about all my season passes which are tied to my old COX cable service? Will I have to do guided setup again to tell the S3 that I now am FIOS? TIA this forum is great!!!
Housted


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## nycityuser (Dec 30, 2004)

Housted said:


> I am having Fios TV installed this Wed. Will have a cable card added to my S3. What do I do about all my season passes which are tied to my old COX cable service? Will I have to do guided setup again to tell the S3 that I now am FIOS? TIA this forum is great!!!
> Housted


Yes, you need to do guided setup again. I switched from RCN Cable to FIOS, did guided setup and all my season passes were remapped to the new channels.

I think I did the guided setup before the FIOS installers came. I did it the same day so that the wrong things would not be recorded, but I did it before they arrived. That way you can test the cablecard while they are in your home. Obviously the TiVo is useless after doing setup for FIOS while still on Cox, but this should only be a short time.


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## wmcbrine (Aug 2, 2003)

With any luck, your season passes will automatically get mapped to the correct new channels (after you redo guided setup). There is some risk that they'll be mapped to SD channels rather than HD, so keep an eye out for that. (I suggest removing SD channels from the list of channels you receive if there's an HD equivalent in the lineup.)


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## dlfl (Jul 6, 2006)

My impression from posts in other threads is that Verizon FIOS is much superior to Frontier FIOS -- yet this discussion seems to go on with many posters saying things about FIOS without saying which FIOS they mean. Are the technical aspects and equipment identical for the two providers?


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## Housted (Nov 6, 2011)

nycityuser said:


> Yes, you need to do guided setup again. I switched from RCN Cable to FIOS, did guided setup and all my season passes were remapped to the new channels.
> 
> I think I did the guided setup before the FIOS installers came. I did it the same day so that the wrong things would not be recorded, but I did it before they arrived. That way you can test the cablecard while they are in your home. Obviously the TiVo is useless after doing setup for FIOS while still on Cox, but this should only be a short time.


With any luck, your season passes will automatically get mapped to the correct new channels (after you redo guided setup). There is some risk that they'll be mapped to SD channels rather than HD, so keep an eye out for that. (I suggest removing SD channels from the list of channels you receive if there's an HD equivalent in the lineup.)

Thanks to both of you...

The install went perfectly, did the setup before the guy arrived and all my season passes are now mapped to the new channels. Interestingly they are mapped to both SD and HD cannels. I will have to fix that but otherwise all is great. My universal Vizio remote will even run the FIOS box so channels changes are as before.

Thanks to Both of you guys, again this forum is great!!!

Housted


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## lrhorer (Aug 31, 2003)

dlfl said:


> My impression from posts in other threads is that Verizon FIOS is much superior to Frontier FIOS -- yet this discussion seems to go on with many posters saying things about FIOS without saying which FIOS they mean. Are the technical aspects and equipment identical for the two providers?


Probably not, but I can't say from personal experience. What I can tell you is Verizon does not set the CCI flag on any of their channels other than IPPV and VOD (which the TiVo can't get anyway), while Frontier aggressively sets the CCI byte on everything they can.


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## lrhorer (Aug 31, 2003)

dejapooh said:


> As for the Tivo, 100+ hours of record time (hd) and tivo interface would be enough.


You might be surprised. Nonetheless, its easily expandable. The main issue of hard drive space is not how many hours it can record, per se, but how large the FIFO space is. If the drive is too small for your family's viewing habits (or what they come to be after owning the TiVo for a while), then you will have to make somethng of an effort to manage the free space on the drive. Beyond a certain point, however, the free space becomes essentially infinite, and you will never have to worry about managing your recordings.



dejapooh said:


> Given that our needs are quite small, I guess we can do with used... anything else I should look for?


Lifetime service is a plus. I would definitely stick with an S3 or a TiVo HD. I wouldn't pay too much of a premium for an expanded hard drive. Instead, I recommend going with a smaller hard drive and upgrading, leaving the old drive on the shelf in case the new drive fails. The glo-remote is nicer than the plain peanut remote. S3s have better network performance than THDs. The Premiers have the best network performance, but I cannot recommend them.



dejapooh said:


> Finally, I saw a wifi network card for the tivo, we bought the highest speed internet from fios. would that work instead of the cable?


You mean instead of wired Ethernet? I don't recommend it. Wireless Ethernet is fraught with peril. It can work, but it can also be a major pain in the tuccus. It's also nowhere nearly as fast as wired, especially if you have a fair number of hosts.


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## V7Goose (May 28, 2005)

lrhorer said:


> Fortunately, the short answer is, "Not much". Of course you will need a TiVo. If you are looking to buy used, there are lots of options that require digging a bit deeper into the situation. If you are buying new, things are a bit simpler.
> 
> Even so, there are some variables at hand, but taking the simplest approach:
> 
> ...


There are several corrections to this post that are needed for the "rank Beginner". I know the post included the brief reference to only buying new boxes, but I still think the "beginner" really needs to see the rest of this information to not be confused. I have numbered the points in the original post that I feel need correction or clarification.

While connecting your TiVo via a LAN and using broadband internet is highly recommended (and absolutely needed for internet streaming services), it is not required for any of the models that have a normal phone jack. This includes all TiVo boxes prior to the Premier series, and for HD recoding, this includes the original Series 3 and TiVo HD boxes. If you just want to record anything broadcast from FiOS, you can do this fine with only a phone line.
Wireless works fine. Although most prefer to connect the TiVo via wired LAN, there are numerous options to connect your TiVo to a LAN via wireless. If you cannot or do not want to run cat5 wires to the TiVo, you do not need to. This applies to ALL HD capable TiVo boxes.
Cable cards - Although most HD TiVo boxes will operate fine with a single M cable card, the beginner needs to know that the original Series 3 TiVo MUST HAVE TWO CARDS, and those cards do not need to be M cards. In fact, a few of the S3 boxes (mine included) do not seem to work at all with an M card. This information is important for someone looking to pick up a used TiVo on the cheap to try the service.


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## V7Goose (May 28, 2005)

dejapooh said:


> Finally, I saw a wifi network card for the tivo, we bought the highest speed internet from fios. would that work instead of the cable?


Wireless works just fine IF you have the knowledge to set up your WAN correctly. If you do not already know this, or are not prepared to do a lot of research and testing, you could be really frustrated.

Your TiVo is not going to be able to use hardly any of the "highest Speed" you bought from FiOS, so no need to even think about that. In fact, a used S3 or THD box is not even going to be able to use more bandwidth and the typical wireless G WAN. But this is completely sufficient, even for internet streaming, if it is set up correctly.

If you live where there is not much interference from other WANs (neighbors), and you do not have a lot of wireless activity on your own WAN, then your TiVo wireless performance will probably be just fine as long as you have a strong signal from the access point (50-100 feet and limited walls between).


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## lrhorer (Aug 31, 2003)

V7Goose said:


> There are several corrections to this post that are needed for the "rank Beginner". I know the post included the brief reference to only buying new boxes


That's right, it did. That's why only information relative to purchasing a new box was supplied. If the correspondent is interested in buying used, then the question of additional considerations was implied.



V7Goose said:


> but I still think the "beginner" really needs to see the rest of this information to not be confused.


The post you referenced also said very specifically:



lrhorer said:


> If you are buying new, things are a bit simpler.
> 
> Even so, there are some variables at hand, but taking the simplest approach:...


This also directly implied if the user wished to get more in-depth, then he should ask more in-depth questions.



V7Goose said:


> While connecting your TiVo via a LAN and using broadband internet is highly recommended (and absolutely needed for internet streaming services)


'Not just for internet streaming services. 'For any network services, including HME, HMO, and MRV. That's a ton of services, and indeed in my case (and many others) they comprise the bulk of what I do with my TiVos.



V7Goose said:


> it is not required for any of the models that have a normal phone jack. This includes all TiVo boxes prior to the Premier series


Again, the focus was narrowed to "New". That means no phone jack. Even if it's not a new unit, however, he has indicated he has broadband internet. Suggesting the use of a phone line when one already has broadband internet is just absurd.



V7Goose said:


> Wireless works fine.


This statement is so unqualified that it is almost totally false. Wireless does not work "fine". The performance of wireless is very poor, but in many cases good enough to be acceptable, depending very strongly on the environment and the user's needs. It is always the medium of last resort, and should only be employed if absolutely necessary. I cannot recommend it at all for video, although some people have had reasonable results doing so. They are rather lucky, and their requirements only modest at best.



V7Goose said:


> Although most prefer to connect the TiVo via wired LAN, there are numerous options to connect your TiVo to a LAN via wireless.


There are a number of ways to do it, yes, but all of them are fraught with the issues and limitations of wireless. Even under the best of conditions, wireless is dreadfully slow, and under poor conditions it can become so slow as to be unusable. It is more expensive. Its range is greatly limited. It is highly prone to noise and interference. Duplicate packets are just about inevitable on a wireless LAN, and their presence impacts speed, latency, and jitter.



V7Goose said:


> Cable cards - Although most HD TiVo boxes will operate fine with a single M cable card, the beginner needs to know that the original Series 3 TiVo MUST HAVE TWO CARDS, and those cards do not need to be M cards. In fact, a few of the S3 boxes (mine included) do not seem to work at all with an M card. This information is important for someone looking to pick up a used TiVo on the cheap to try the service.


Well, this is true, but S3 TiVo's are getting pretty scarce. You are right, however, the user should know this if he comes across an original S3 and his provider charges for additional CableCards. If it's not an S3 or the provider does not charge for additional cards, then the point is moot.


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## lrhorer (Aug 31, 2003)

V7Goose said:


> Wireless works just fine IF you have the knowledge to set up your WAN correctly. If you do not already know this, or are not prepared to do a lot of research and testing, you could be really frustrated.


It's not a matter of setting up the WAN. It's a matter of possibly intermittent poor performance.



V7Goose said:


> Your TiVo is not going to be able to use hardly any of the "highest Speed" you bought from FiOS, so no need to even think about that. In fact, a used S3 or THD box is not even going to be able to use more bandwidth and the typical wireless G WAN.


First of all, this is just untrue. I can regularly transfer data off my S3 at more than 50Mbps, which is better than Wireless G can manage even under ideal circumstances. What's more I can transfer to or from all three TiVos at speeds well in excess of 90Mbps total. If he has a wireless TiVo and two or three other wireless clients, then he is limited to at most ~50Mbps total to and from all the devices, and that only under ideal conditions.



V7Goose said:


> But this is completely sufficient, even for internet streaming, if it is set up correctly.


I almost never do internet streaming, but I use the network interfaces of my TiVos extensively.



V7Goose said:


> If you live where there is not much interference from other WANs (neighbors), and you do not have a lot of wireless activity on your own WAN, then your TiVo wireless performance will probably be just fine as long as you have a strong signal from the access point (50-100 feet and limited walls between).


If, if, if, if, and maybe. That's a lot of ifs and one great big maybe.


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## wkearney99 (Dec 5, 2003)

V7Goose said:


> Wireless works just fine IF you have the knowledge to set up your WAN correctly. If you do not already know this, or are not prepared to do a lot of research and testing, you could be really frustrated.
> 
> Your TiVo is not going to be able to use hardly any of the "highest Speed" you bought from FiOS, so no need to even think about that. In fact, a used S3 or THD box is not even going to be able to use more bandwidth and the typical wireless G WAN. But this is completely sufficient, even for internet streaming, if it is set up correctly.
> 
> If you live where there is not much interference from other WANs (neighbors), and you do not have a lot of wireless activity on your own WAN, then your TiVo wireless performance will probably be just fine as long as you have a strong signal from the access point (50-100 feet and limited walls between).


Clearly you've not had much experience with networks and Tivo.

First off, WAN means Wide-Area-Network, which has nothing to do with wireless. WAN is the connection made from your router to your internet service provider.

Secondly, streaming in HiDef does not work as consistently over WiFi as it does over a wired connection. I know, I've tried in several different locations. Even where there were NO other WiFi networks within range. If you want your Tivo to stream from Netflix or other online sources you'd be much better served using a wired connection. That way there won't be any issues with the wireless network that could interfere with getting the highest possible throughput.

Basic 10/5 FIOS is sufficient for hi-def streaming from Netflix for ONE Tivo and no other heavy downloading. If you want to stream to more than one Tivo at a time, or have other heavy downloading needs then you may want to subscribe to one of their higher speed connections. You can start with 10/5 and see how it goes. But their 35mpbs connection would certainly be overkill for just streaming traffic.

Yes, the Tivo's *basic * network features can work over WiFi. You can get your guide just fine. You can pull videos from one Tivo to another. Granted, any other wireless traffic will slow down because of it (as will the Tivo transfers). So unless you want to slow down all your other WiFi traffic you probably don't want to use Tivo wirelessly.

Setting up a Tivo with FIOS requires no special knowledge. It's just another network device. There's absolutely nothing about the router setup that needs to be changed to accommodate a Tivo. It's a good idea, however, to use a wired connection for the Tivo. This guarantees you'll get a consistently reliable experience. One that will always work and won't suffer from interference; now or in the future.


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