A digital video recorder (DVR) like the TiVo Series2 WILL change your TV viewing habits

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TiVo has come to be a generic word for digital video recorder (DVR) even when TiVo is not the maker of that DVR. TiVo is fighting back against imitators and inferior DVR manufacturers with a new version of its Series2 DVR. It's identical to the original TiVo Series2 which is OK because TiVo is the best standalone digital video recorder (DVR) for your money. Its user friendly interface and network-friendly features surpass all DVRs offered by cable companies.

The only real competition is ReplayTV's 5500 series digital video recorder featuring automatic commercial skipping and real-time program sharing between multiple units.(ReplayTV also has progressive-scan output not found on the TiVo). Replay and TiVo both require a monthly fee of $13 (or a onetime payment of $300 above and beyond its $199 price tag). Cable companies charge approx $8 a month for a cable company's digital video recorder (DVR).

The 40-hour Series2 TiVo digital video recorder has control options on the device's excellent remote. It's barbell shaped and has a TiVo button perched on its tip for accessing the main menu. The button shapes help you separate the features they control. Like most remotes today you can setup the system to command your TV's power and input selection with your volume control affected by either the television or an A/V receiver. It'll take you about an hour to set up the TiVo Series2 using its guided setup.

There's a default dial-up mode using a regular phone line so TiVo can make its nightly calls to the server where it gets program information. You choose a local number from a long list of offerings. Broadband is a better option on the TiVo Series2 digital video recorder because it now features USB ports to connect to a broadband Internet service via compatible USB-to-Ethernet and USB Wi-Fi adapters.

TiVo does not support VoIP services but with persistence you can run the call setup. Broadband connectivity is required to make use of the TiVo's home-networking features. It's not enabled straight out of the box. so if you use VoIP you will need to bring the TiVo Series2 over to a neighbor to do the initial setup download. .

This TiVo Series2 DVR's has a nice interface. It uses real English phrases, like "Watch live TV" and "Pick programs to record," for menu choices. This is a real advantage over the icons used by TiVo competitors. The Series2 comes in three hard drive sizes: 40 hours, 80 hours, and 140 hours. As expected the numbers refer to the recording time each TiVo offers. At its highest-quality setting, this 40-hour drive delivers a little more than 13 hours of recording time.

These ar the connections offered on the TiVo Seies2 digital video recorder. You'll find an A/V input with S-Video, a pair of A/V outputs with one S-Video jack, an RF coaxial input and output, jacks for the IR and serial cable-box controllers, two USB ports, and a phone jack on the back of the TiVo Series2.

TiVo service delivers a program guide for all cable, satellite providers and local stations. For those of you unfamiliar with TiVo you can search the guide for upcoming shows by title, subject, actor, director, time, and channel. The box records upcoming shows to match the search criteria. TiVo has a Season Pass feature that arranges to record all showings of your favorite series. The TiVo experience really changes your viewing habits. Using the TiVo Series2 will quickly became second nature.

A reminder of the 2 most used advantages of a TiVo DVR:

1) you can pause whatever you're watching for up to 30 minutes, come back, then fast-forward to skip the commercials. 2) while viewing live TV, you're able to rewind in order to catch something that you missed, or you can watch the action in slow motion. Pressing the Record button saves the program to the hard drive.

These are the negatives to buying the TiVo Series2.

1) When channel surfering there is a brief delay (downloading program info) when switching channels but like most things in life you'll get use to it because of all the other features TiVo provide.

2) The Series2's picture quality is a little soft even in the highest-quality recording mode but it's no worse than the best standard-definition cable and satellite services offerings. (Remember this is not a DVD recorder).

3) There's no dual tuner option so you have to record what you watch at the time.

4) No Optical Output of Surround Sound

5) TiVo does not support VoIP services

There are other TiVo powered DVRs available such as the Pioneer DVR-810H DVD recorder or Toshiba's DVD player/DVR combo, the SD-H400, which makes the Season Pass and Home Media Option features a voluntary upgrade, while including basic recording features right out of the box.