TiVo Premiere patched to version 14.4 for better performance
By Richard Lawler 
posted May 20th 2010 11:11PM
posted May 20th 2010 11:11PM
posted May 20th 2010 11:11PM
A look back on popular stories from today in a specific year.
Now that we've thrown 'em off the trail, use the form below to get in touch with the people at Engadget. Please fill in all of the required fields because they're required.
Umm, not to be too technical, but this is a software update. Tivo hardly (if ever) updates the box's firmware after it leaves the factory.
@gabmasterjcc This is not true. I am a tivo owner and tivo often updates the firmware. How else would we have gotten swivel search, netflix hd integration, tivo to go and numerous other bug fixes. The Tivo HD i bought 3 years ago is actually far more stable and has a good number of extra features now than it did before.
@normychas
That isn't firmware, it is software. It is stored and loaded from the harddrive. Just about the only thing that you see the Tivo doing from firmware is the boot screens (Just a few minutes more...).
@gabmasterjcc noted, and updated.
Too little, too late. I cancelled my pre-order when I saw the performance and box specs.
An iPhone OUTPERFORMS the new TiVO box.
They tried to save $25 on a real CPU and opted for the tired old 1990's-era Broadcom chipset again.
Couple that with no way to migrate your existing TiVO season passes, or lifetime membership service transfer etc and you have a deal killer, especially at the outrageous price of the new boxes.
What they need to survive is some SERIOUS, life-threatening competition to give them a wake-up call.
Hello Google-TV.
@dcooper
You canceled because of the specs? I hope wasn't because of the processing power, as it is currently the most powerful box amongst cable co/sat DVRs...
Maybe the Tivo is slower in processing power, but they don't share any of the same apps or pretty much anything else...
Again, what's your deal about the CPU. The one in the iPhone has a similar pedigree, that plus this one was designed in the last year or so. There was nothing similar to it in the 1990's when it comes to the power envelope.
Migrate your your existing season passes, I'll give you that one, but it is really easy to program them all quickly online...
Transfer PRODUCT Lifetime Service? Under what obligation are they to do that? Oh any by the way they offered something even better this time around. Users with PLS right now can get PLS on their new box for $199, but get to keep it on their old box.
Outrageous price of the new box? The box prices are the same or lower as the HD and HD XL.
Google TV, you make me laugh. I don't think you understand what that is. Google TV doesn't actually do TV. It provides access to web apps on a TV, but does display your current broadcast/cable/sat TV. It doesn't record it. Really it does nothing more than add a search box to my blu-ray player.
@gabmasterjcc I cancelled my preorder like many others, after seeing the pitiful demos online. You clearly don't understand the implications of Android and Google TV. The initial devices announced won't have DVR capability, but they won't be far behind. TiVO's death, like someone else so eloquently put it, is well deserved for stagnating so incredibly all these years after their amazing initial innovations. I have an HD XL and I love it, but there is so much they could have done these past 3-4 years and haven't. Using the Broadcom chipset, clinging to the past in so many ways, have made them a two-hit wonder. The plethora of Android TV devices and TV's on the way, I believe, will innovate at rates only a pre-IPO TiVO seemed capable of, and leave it further sidelined.
I hope the best for them, but the gross mismanagement of such an historic brand and amazing innovative lead has resulted in others picking up the next gen DVR story.
If you canceled your order you are only hurting yourself. I got Premiere when it came out and I love, 14.1c fixed most issues for me and 14.4 will add to it. I sold my old box with lifetime for $550 on eBay and got Priemiere for $530 with tax and shipping. There is no better option out there.
@jkudlacz How long did it take you to reenter all your season passes by hand? I have an HD XL. The "Premiere" has nothing new or better I need.
@jkudlacz And don't you now have to add a new lifetime sub onto that cost?
@dcooper
It took 10 minutes to get my 14 season passes, I also had to transfer some of my shows over from TiVo Series 3 to TiVo Premiere.
Because TiVo always offers special deals to current customers, I only had to pay $200 for lifetime subscription so TiVo Premiere was only $530.
I like premiere cause its much faster, Picture in Picture feature is great, and suggestions by TiVo are actually awesome because they suggest not only what is going to air but also what is available from Netflix, Amazon on Demand or Blockbuster.
HD interface is very neat, and as TiVo continues to improve their product it will only get better. In my case as I stated in original comment, I got TiVo for $20 less than my previous Series 3, so it was like TiVo gave me this better box and Paid me that money, in addition to that now I only need M-Card instead of 2 Cable Cards I had in my Series 3, this also saves me additional $35 dollars a year, so even more savings for me.
The problem where when you hit play after fast forwarding, it starts playing well after the intended location, is fixed.