TiVo News: Did she say “Product Lifetime Service”?

Letter From the Editor

Since it’s post-T-Day, I’m going to get right down to business first with a gift idea that only a TiVo elf like me can share with TiVo family like you: It’s called TiVo® Product Lifetime Service. And just like those wreaths starting to don nearby doors, I can promise you this offer is not going to be hanging around for long.

You – and I mean exclusively the You that is a current TiVo customer – have the very-out-of-the-ordinary opportunity to give someone (who includes your deserving self, natch) the gorgeous new TiVo® HD DVR + Product Lifetime Service: the Joy of that legendary service option that translates into the Comfort of having no more monthly bills for the life of your DVR. Hallelujah!

In fact, make that a double-glory Hallelujah, because you can give as many TiVo HD + Product Lifetime Service packages as you want – with one catch: You only have until January 7, 2008 to do it. (Since I cannot afford to treat everyone this year, I even offered to buy on behalf of my non-TiVo customer friends, provided they wrote me a check upfront! Tacky, perhaps, but I made four friends very merry, indeed. Oh, the places we go for the rare pleasure of any service company that would ever offer Product Lifetime Service! I doubt my cell phone company would indulge me.)

And if that wasn’t enough, we’ve got plenty of Web-exclusive Holiday TiVo Specials, and packages that include extra TiVo gifts to stuff a stocking or two.

Twinkle & Shine (and yes, that’s me pictured as my best s(E)lf),

Shanan

P.S. Order before December 17 and you’ll save an additional $17 with FREE Shipping, plus the bonus of having it delivered by December 24!

This one’s dedicated to anyone who is still connecting to the TiVo® service via a standard phone line.

Several amazing, easy-to-use TiVo features are just waiting to pop up on a TiVo menu near you when you plug into a broadband connection, including sending feature films straight to your TV with Amazon Unbox. And considering the Hollywood writers’ strike is still plenty strike-y, the time is nigh to familiarize yourself with alternative entertainment options made especially easy when you’ve got TiVo. And that’s not just me with my editorial propaganda; I got the email featured below from what could be a proper grandma.

If you’re a words person, you’ll enjoy these step-by-step directions. Prefer pictures? Watch these How to set up TiVo videos, which include the super-easy step to connect through broadband. You should also remember these videos when your friends get TiVo as a gift but want you to come set it up for them on December 26th, mmhmm.

Back to top

Back to top

Toshiba SDP1900 Portable DVD Player

Point Value: 25,000

In case you’re going over the river and through the woods, a portable DVD player may be just the thing to bring to grandma-ma this year. (Hey, it’s still a gift, even if you earned it through TiVo Rewards.)

Even more remarkable than the truth behind “My TiVo gets me” is the inspiring fact that many of you truly get the real genius of TiVo, and why a cable DVR couldn’t even begin to compare.

If you like The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, you know what happens when the show takes a week or two hiatus: Your DVR records lots of repeats because they stop listing the guests for each night. Why? When the networks don’t provide unique guide data, TiVo can’t determine if the show is new or a repeat, so it records them all to play it safe. Waste space and/or manual recordings no more! Martin T., from the Web’s most beloved TiVo community forum, exercised the new-and-improved TiVo WishList® feature to to get us our daily Jon Stewart, without the three extra servings. Here’s how:

1. Go to Find Programs, and create a new WishList� search.
2. Enter the show title as your first Keyword: Daily Show with Jon Stewart.
3. Select “Done entering Keyword.”
4. Next, select Keyword again, this time entering the generic program description (the following is the generic descriptor for Daily Show): A humorous slant on top news stories.
5. Now give it a Thumbs down. (By default, your first Keyword gets a Thumbs up.)
6. Set the WishList to “Auto-record” with “First-run only.”
7. Delete the old Season Pass recording for Daily Show.

So what just happened? You’ve instructed your TiVo DVR to record all new episodes and ignore episodes with generic guide data. No more reruns. No more multiple recordings. And if two of your tuners are busy at airtime, TiVo will choose to record a later show. Ahhhh…

“In addition to working very well for The Daily Show and The Colbert Report,” explains Martin. “I use the above method for an ongoing ‘Amazing Race’ WishList search that will automatically record each new season, but ignore generic reruns, as well as ‘Saturday Night Live’ and ‘Conan O’Brien’ WishList searches that ignore generic, late-night reruns.” Thanks for sharing, Martin!

Back to top

If you have questions or comments regarding this newsletter, you can email the editor. (Unfortunately, due to volume received, not every email can be answered, though Shanan wishes she could!) By submitting comments, you grant TiVo Inc. a nonexclusive, irrevocable right to use your comments in any way it desires without notice or compensation to you.

Back to top