TiVo: Case of Lovin' and Loathin'
I LOVE my TiVo. Best $400 I've ever spent ($100 for the unit, $300 for the 'life time' subscription), and I'd gladly blabber on for hours until you give up and fork over some moola to get your own unit. Nonetheless, there are a few things that I really find annoying.
I should definitely have shelled out more dough to get the 80 hr unit when I got my TiVo two years ago; instead, I got a whimpy 40 hr one that keep erasing the good shows I want to watch and fill the list with crap. This is less of an issue when I'm travelling while on client project assignments -- every Thursday night, I return home to find my TiVo full of the shows I'm following (e.g. 'Arrested Development,' 'House,' 'The Office,' and most recently, 'Prison Break') before TiVo gets a chance to record over them. When I'm away on trips two weeks or more, however, the limitations on the recording capacity really becomes an issue and my TiVo's full of stupid crap. Lesson learned: bigger is better. Don't go cheap on capacity!
Also, flipping channels is incredibly slow. I'd click on 'channel up' button and my TiVo/TV will think for a full second, blank out the screen for another full second, then switch to the next channel with the familiar TiVo 'blip' noise (I wonder how they came up with that distinct 'blip' noise? Some sort of extensive focus group? Millions of dollars in research? Is there even a name under which this 'blip' noise is identified by those in the know-how?). In effect, channel surfing is an incredibly frustrating endeavor with a Comcast digital cable and TiVo combo unless you have the patience of Buddha. Mmmm... no... that ain't true: even Buddha will hurl the remote control at the screen in disgust and gnaw his own hand to stop the outpouring of profanities.
On a side note, my TiVo is not recording enough shows fast enough to help me pass time while I'm 'on the bench' (consulting term that describes the little gap -- usually a week or two -- between client projects). I mean, how many more episodes of Blind Date or Judge Judy can I possibly watch in one sitting? (This is actually my own fault for being too lazy to program it to record more shows.) Does this mean I have to venture out of my tiny apartment and start interacting with other human beings? Shucks. I guess this means I need to shower and everything... now, where is that damned toothbrush?
Being on the bench has its ups and downs.
I should definitely have shelled out more dough to get the 80 hr unit when I got my TiVo two years ago; instead, I got a whimpy 40 hr one that keep erasing the good shows I want to watch and fill the list with crap. This is less of an issue when I'm travelling while on client project assignments -- every Thursday night, I return home to find my TiVo full of the shows I'm following (e.g. 'Arrested Development,' 'House,' 'The Office,' and most recently, 'Prison Break') before TiVo gets a chance to record over them. When I'm away on trips two weeks or more, however, the limitations on the recording capacity really becomes an issue and my TiVo's full of stupid crap. Lesson learned: bigger is better. Don't go cheap on capacity!
Also, flipping channels is incredibly slow. I'd click on 'channel up' button and my TiVo/TV will think for a full second, blank out the screen for another full second, then switch to the next channel with the familiar TiVo 'blip' noise (I wonder how they came up with that distinct 'blip' noise? Some sort of extensive focus group? Millions of dollars in research? Is there even a name under which this 'blip' noise is identified by those in the know-how?). In effect, channel surfing is an incredibly frustrating endeavor with a Comcast digital cable and TiVo combo unless you have the patience of Buddha. Mmmm... no... that ain't true: even Buddha will hurl the remote control at the screen in disgust and gnaw his own hand to stop the outpouring of profanities.
On a side note, my TiVo is not recording enough shows fast enough to help me pass time while I'm 'on the bench' (consulting term that describes the little gap -- usually a week or two -- between client projects). I mean, how many more episodes of Blind Date or Judge Judy can I possibly watch in one sitting? (This is actually my own fault for being too lazy to program it to record more shows.) Does this mean I have to venture out of my tiny apartment and start interacting with other human beings? Shucks. I guess this means I need to shower and everything... now, where is that damned toothbrush?
Being on the bench has its ups and downs.
posted by choongster at 12:45 PM
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