Each of these recommended accessories requires some hardware and/or skills that you might not have.  Each has been highlighted, along with links to the application/program or the web site where you can get more information.

Accessory 1: An HDTV Antenna

Hardware Requirement: The antenna
Skill Level: If you can turn a screwdriver, you can do this

Covered already in the article Buh-Bye DirecTV, Hello TiVo – How I Ditched Cable, the HDTV antenna is a must-have accessory for anyone looking to get the most out of their TiVo (Premiere or HD).  You might have cable service, but an HDTV antenna will pull down super high quality broadcasts for FREE!  Whether you decide to lower your bills by ditching cable or simply want a backup (in case that cable service acts up), the HD antenna will not cost you too much and will provide years of service without any monthly fees.

Did you know that the picture quality of FREE over-the-air (OTA) HD signals is unmatched by cable or satellite providers?  ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX… Depending on your area you might get 10 HD channels or 60.  For more information on what channels you can receive and what type of HD antenna would be best suited for your area, visit http://antennaweb.org/aw/welcome.aspx.  You only need to enter your zip code to find out more.  No registration or purchase is necessary to use this site.

Accessory 2: TiVo iPad and iPhone Apps (updated 7-21-2011)

Hardware Requirement: iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad
Skill Level: Easy
Link 1 (iPad): Click Here to Get App via iTunes
Link 2 (iPhone/iPod touch): Click Here to Get App via iTunes

The TiVo Premiere and Premiere XL both come with a standard “peanut” remote and, while the XL’s remote has lighted keys, neither has a QWERTY keyboard.  Since you’ll be searching for shows, movies and actor names in the TiVo interface, a better input method is a must.  One option is the TiVo Slide Remote, available from TiVo.com for $59 (as of 7-22-2011), but iOS users can save the money by downloading the official TiVo app for their device.

The official TiVo app, which is FREE by the way, turns your iPad or iPhone into “command central for your TiVo DVR.”  You’ll be able to search, browse, discover and share the show you’re watching quickly and easily.  Other features allow you to view guides, schedule and manage recordings and even get recommendations.

The iPhone TiVo App from iTunes

Accessory 3: pyTiVo

Hardware Requirement: PC or Mac (running Windows, Linux, OS X, Ubuntu, Solaris or Linksys NSLU2)
Skill Level: Difficult
Link: Click Here for More Info from SourceForge.net

Do you have home movies or other digital recordings stored on your PC and would like to view them on your TV.  Your TiVo Premiere (or other compatible TiVo) can play videos from your PC with the help of pyTiVo.  pyTiVo installs on your computer and creates a link to your TiVo.  From there on out, simply drag and drop any video files you choose and start watching them in minutes.  The program is FREE!

Setup of pyTiVo will take some time and some familiarity with computers.  The instructions provided via sourceforge.net are detailed enough to walk just about anyone through the process.

Play Files from Your PC on Your TiVo

Accessory 4: CAT6 or CAT5 Cabling

Hardware Requirement: Router
Skill Level: Medium to Difficult

It may seem like a step back from the world of wireless adapters and communicating without cables, but there is no speed like the screaming data connection you can get from good ol’ CAT6 or CAt5 cabling.  TiVo does not come with built-in wireles, so you would need to shell out $40 or more for a G or N network adapter.  You might be able to save even more if you go with “non-branded” wireless adapters, but you’ll need multiple if you want to transfer information between multiple units.  There is just no comparison between the $80+ dollars you’ll spend on adapters and the enhanced data speeds of $30 worth of cabling.

With services like Netflix, Amazon Video on Demand and Blockbuster just a click away, you don’t want to sacrifice anything.  Netflix is pure streaming entertainment and the slightest hiccup in your wireless network will cause you some serious frustration.  So, if you can stomach wires run throughout the house or are willing to climb up in the attic and run wires through the walls, you can save money and build an entertainment network in your house.  I ran the wires and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Related Articles in the Hello TiVo Series

• Cancel Your Cable/Satellite and Save Money While Adding Functionality
• Buh-Bye DirecTV, Hello TiVo – How I Ditched Cable
• Buh-Bye DirecTV, Hello TiVo – How I Ditched Cable – Part II
• Living With the TiVo Premiere – Day-to-Day Digital Living Reviewed

We’re back for the second segment in a series of articles on ditching cable and moving to a TiVo solution.  So far, I’ve authored two articles on the subject and brought you my reasoning, preparation and installation (links below).  Now, we pick up with The Reality of switching from the high-cost cable bill to a mix-n-match approach of keeping up with our favorite TV shows, cable series, movies and more.

• Cancel Your Cable/Satellite and Save Money While Adding Functionality
• Buh-Bye DirecTV, Hello TiVo – How I Ditched Cable

Our last article ended with the photo story of our TiVo units arriving, getting hooked up and powering on.  After 3 weeks with the new TiVo Premiere units, I have some insight for others who might want to take the same plunge.

Reality

What is it like to live day-by-day with no cable.  In two words: challenging and awesome!  As with any change, there are some hurdles that we couldn’t predict, but they were not the result of the TiVo hardware or software.

Challenge 1:  Only OTA

MTV... seriously???

I knew that our switch away from cable would pose some issues when it came to watching our favorite TV shows and programs from cable stations, but I wasn’t fully prepared for the switch.  Example: The MTV Movie Awards.  About 2 weeks into our switch, the MTV Movie Awards were going to air.  Since we only receive local stations on our TiVo units, I had to find another way to watch this live show.  Surely a company like MTV, with a core audience of tech-savvy young adults, would be airing a simple awards show online… right?

As it turns out, the MTV web site stated that there was an “All Access Live Stream” available on their web site, so we settled in to watch the program on the PC set up in the living room (with our HDTV as the monitor).  What a let down!  The only thing you could see via the “All Access Live Stream” was the audience.  Yes, you read that right.  We could hear the host, award nominations and acceptance speeches (barely), but we could only see the audience.  Major, major FAIL!!!!  MTV, what were you thinking?

Challenge 2:  Soccer

FIFA World Cup

If you are aware that soccer exists or you own a television, you know that it is World Cup time.  Now through July 11th, there will be matches almost every day and they will be broadcast for the world to see.  This was something I was not prepared for, as many of the games are televised on ESPN3 and not local broadcast stations like ABC, NBC or CBS.  Luckily, they do show the games on Univision (the Spanish channel).  Unfortunately, I do not speak Spanish.  Maybe by the time the World Cup is over, I’ll be fluent.

Missing out on ESPN and the World Cup got me thinking.  What else will we miss due to our switch.  Uh-oh!  Monday Night Football will be back on ESPN again this season.  The good news there is you can always catch the Monday night games at a local sports bar or restaurant, but I would honestly rather watch it at home.  Maybe there will be a solution by the time football season starts.

Challenge 3:  True Blood

HBO Will Figure it Out.... One Day

Here is another example of trouble that I could not predict.  The new season of True Blood started last Sunday.  Prior to dumping DirecTV, I researched all of our shows and saw that True Blood was available on Amazon.com to download.  As it turns out, the “brain-trusts” over at HBO don’t offer their programs for immediate download on iTunes or Amazon.  Instead, they wait until the season is complete to start offering digital downloads of their content.  I can only assume that this is to increase their number of monthly subscriptions via cable, but for a non-cable subscriber this is not an option.

I guess nobody at HBO has ever heard of bittorrents, rapidshare or peer-to-peer file-sharing (don’t feel bad if you haven’t either), as their shows are readily available for illegal download all over the internet.  I can only imagine the lost revenue that is floating around from computer to computer as HBO sits back and waits on the general public to shell over hard-earned dollars for 6-month old programming.  Hey HBO, we want to watch our programs now, not after the storyline has been spoiled by co-workers, magazines and fan sites.  Don’t you like money?

Awesome 1:  HD Everywhere

One of the benefits in making this switch is the availability of HD programming.  Not only are the HD broadcasts picked up by my new attic-mounted antenna in full 1080p HD, but the additional programs that I purchase on Amazon.com and the movies we watch via Netflix (streaming) are also in full HD.  Before, with DirecTV, many stations were still not available in HD and (even if they were) the signal had been filtered by DirecTV.  The quality of programming that we receive now is far beyond our previous setup.

Awesome 2:  Online Content on our TV

Amazon Video on Demand!

The single best part of the new TiVo Premiere units is their ability to stream “online content” locally.  As mentioned above, we are streaming movies and TV from Netflix and Amazon Video on Demand, but what I didn’t mention is that I also have access to Blockbuster video and YouTube.  We haven’t used the Blockbuster service yet, since Amazon’s service is so easy to use and error-free.  We did however spend one night watching YouTube videos.  Aside from the bad quality of the videos posted (user error), the service was top-notch.

With Amazon Video on Demand, you can purchase TV Passes (basically a season pass) of your favorite shows at a reduced rate.  Soon, we’ll have new seasons of shows like Rescue Me, Mad Men and Weeds and, if the service works as I hope it will, new episodes will simply appear in “my shows” once they are available.  In the mean time, I can purchase individual episodes of ongoing shows like Justified and Breaking Bad to watch instantly.  I have already watched about 10 different shows this way and the service is fantastic.

Awesome 3:  Room-to-Room

Before the TiVo Premiere units arrived, we had to keep track of what was recorded in each room.  It never failed that we would get settled into bed to watch a favorite show and realize that it was recorded in the living room.  TiVo allows you to copy shows from room-to-room so you can view them wherever and whenever you like.  There are some restrictions on downloaded content, but once again this is not a result of TiVo’s strict rules.  We have the networks and film studios to thank for that complication.

Verdict

Challenging and Awesome!  While there are some hurdles, the enhancements provided by TiVo far outweigh the cost of a high monthly cable bill.  I have no doubt that cable stations like MTV and HBO will eventually get with the times and find a way to make money from online broadcasts and downloads (like the rest of the entertainment industry has already done).  So, I’ll wait patiently and continue to research the changes as they unfold.  In the mean time, I’ll begin putting money back in my pocket, enjoy my HD programming and watch what I want, when I want, on the best DVR software to ever grace the small screen.

Accessories

You might have thought this was the end of the Hello TiVo series.  Well, don’t give up on me yet.  TiVo has a huge following and their technology has been enhanced by others through applications, wireless keyboards, software programs and more.  In our next article we review some of the Accessories that make the TiVo Premiere easier to use and even more powerful than advertised.

Related Articles:

Finding a Cable Alternative – Dumping DirecTV for TiVo (posted on KilltheCableBill.com)

I had been a customer of DirecTV for almost 10 years, but the rising costs, pitiful DVR hardware, lack of room-to-room sharing and inability to download TV shows or movies on my schedule was getting old.  We held on to the last DirecTV/TiVo box released by the company (HR10-250) as long as we could, but it was showing signs of failure.  By the middle of May, I had read a number of reviews on the new TiVo hardware (the Premiere and Premiere XL) and heard way too many “no official release date or hardware specifications” announcements from DirecTV on their upcoming release of a new DirecTV/TiVo box.  The time had come to take the plunge, so I put on my research hat and looked closely at my options as a TV fanatic.

Our HR10-250 Was Struggling to Hang On

After some serious research, I posted my findings in the article Cancel Your Cable/Satellite and Save Money While Adding Functionality.  In short, it seemed that completely canceling DirecTV and going with two Tivo Premiere units, along with OTA (over the air) HD antennas, would provide us with what we needed.  The upfront cost would be significant, but the savings would begin in just over a year and $56.42 a month would start going back into my bank account.

The Switch

The day after writing that article, I ordered our new TiVo Premieres (one of them an XL) and began preparations for their arrival.  I had convinced myself that TiVo was the way to go and pulled the trigger before I had time to talk myself out of it.  But before I could power up our new units and bask in the glory of the best DVR software on the planet, I had some work to do:

• A new HD antenna – each Premiere is capable of recording 2 HD shows at once from an OTA HD antenna, but I only had one.  I decided on the ClearStream4 HDTV Antenna (purchased from Amazon.com) and installed it in my attic.  Assembly was a bit of a hurdle, while installation only took a few minutes.  To run the signal from the antenna to the location for the new TiVo Premiere, I simply hijacked one of the existing DirecTV cables that was already run through the attic and walls.

My ClearStream4 HDTV Antenna - Attic Mounted

• CAT6 cabling – The new TiVo units are designed to communicate with one another and the internet.  While a wireless adapter is available (for an additional cost), I decided to save money and increase transfer speeds by running CAT6 Ethernet Cable (Networking Cable) from my router to the 2 locations where the TiVo units would be placed.  The Premieres do not have gigabit network adapters, so running the cheaper CAT5 cabling would have been fine, but I decided to look forward (just in case I needed the faster connection later).  This part of the project took me several hours and was a little frustrating, but well worth the effort in the long-run.

CAT6 Networking in my Attic

• Contact DirecTV – Canceling the existing service from DirecTV was an important step (so I didn’t pay for extra days), but I was a bit hesitant about the functionality of the new TiVo units with OTA HD signals and downloading TV shows, movies, etc. from the internet.  After all, I had never even laid eyes on a Premiere unit, much-less had a test drive.  Also, since TiVo offers a 30-day money back guarantee, I thought I better hold onto my DirecTV service until I was sure.  I didn’t call to cancel my service until a week after installing the new units and testing everything to my satisfaction.

The Units Arrive

Plugging in the proper cables and attaching the TiVo Premieres to their appropriate displays was so easy that it really doesn’t need a step-by-step explanation, so here are a few photos to describe my experience.

From Boxes to Welcome Screen

Reality

Continue reading in Part II and see the verdict on switching to TiVo Premiere without cable (see link below).  Spoiler alert, the switch was definitely worth the effort.

Link: Buh-Bye DirecTV, Hello TiVo – How I Ditched Cable – Part II

Related Articles:

Finding a Cable Alternative – Dumping DirecTV for TiVo (posted on KilltheCableBill.com)

Right Now

Currently, I am a DirecTV prisoner.  What started as a comparable bill to local cable service has turned into a monster and I now pay over $100 a month for cable.  With taxes, my last bill was $105 and here is what I got for my money:

• 2 HD DVR Receivers
  • HR10-250 – TiVo bought 5 years ago – In the living room and NOT capable of recording HD stations since DirecTV decided to shut down my last 10 stations last month
  • HR21-200 – In the bedroom – capable of recording HD, only it is not a TiVo.
• HBO
• Pay Per View – movies are available for $4.99 – $5.99, but only at scheduled times

I have investigated upgrading the HD DVR in the living room to a newer model, but that would extend my contract another 2 years and require that I pay for the new box.  On top of that, I have to pay a lease fee for the box and a new fee to share information between the two.  Yes, you read it correctly, even if I go out and find another HR21-200 for $99, I will pay a monthly lease fee to DirecTV for the box, which they technically still own.  Failure to return the box at the end of my contract will result in major fees (several hundred dollars each).

The Change – Idea 1

My first thought was to cancel my DirecTV service and simply purchase season passes to the shows that we watch.  Season Passes are available from iTunes and Amazon.com for fairly reasonable rates.  On average, a TV show will cost you about $40 a year (HD quality) and then you own the download.  My first thought was “how many shows do we really watch?”  As it turns out, we have about 35 shows that we enjoy.  That includes the programs that my wife watches that I really don’t care for.

Unfortunately, there are some major drawbacks to this idea, starting with the fact that 35 shows would cost over $1,400 a year.  Since the idea is to lower the monthly bill, this just won’t work.  Apple has been investigating the idea of selling monthly subscription fees for all of the major stations (estimated around $30/month), but so far we have heard no announcements that this will happen any time soon.

There Has to be a Better Way

After some brainstorming and research, I figured out the answer.  Before you read any further, know that I have not officially made the switch yet. I am looking for the possible problems with this solution and would love input from anyone who has attempted a similar idea.

The idea is simple: Dump DirecTV and switch to 2 TiVo Premiere units.  Since TiVo announced it’s new Premiere model (Series 4), I have been itching to try it out and see how it works. Luckily for me, that meant I also researched it from all possible angles.  Here is why switching will add functionality to our current entertainment setup (cable) and save us money.

Functionality

• FREE Local HD – TiVo Premiere units have ATSC tuners that allow the DVR to record up to two channels at once from digital over-the-air broadcasts in full HD.  That means I only need an antenna (which I already have) to get FREE HD broadcasts from the local stations (ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, CW).
• Downloads/Streaming- TiVo Premiere units connect to Amazon.com and Netflix (along with premium providers) and allows me to purchase TV Shows and movies, including season passes.
• Sharing – TiVo Premiere units can share programming between one another, so I can watch any show I want from either the living room or bedroom.
• Transfers – Many shows and movies can be shared to my PC and/or mobile device, so I can take my shows with me on my iPod Touch or PSP.
• Energy Savings – The newest TiVo units are Energy Star Compliant, which should cut down on the electricity bill each year.
• Expandable - External hard drives can be added for more recording space.

Savings

The math is simple and the first year will be slightly higher than my current setup, but every year after that will mean MAJOR savings for our household budget.

Year 1: Purchase 1 – TiVo Premiere XL ($499), 1 – TiVo Premiere ($299), 2 – Yearly Subscriptions ($129 + $99) and the remaining shows that are not broadcast over local HD stations ($295)
Cost: $499 + $299 + $129 + $99 + $295 = $1321

Year 2 and All Years After: 2 – Yearly Subscriptions ($129 + $99) and remaining shows ($295)
Cost: $129 + $99 + $295 = $523

Compare that to the cost of my current DirecTV “service” ($1200 a year) and the savings happen within the first 15 months.  From there on out, I will be saving $56.42 per month on my cable bill.  If I wanted to increase my savings, I could purchase lifetime subscriptions for both units and never pay a monthly or yearly service fee again.  The only problem with that is the out-of-pocket costs that I would be hit with today.

See what happened when I took the plunge and made the switch:

• Buh-Bye DirecTV, Hello TiVo – How I Ditched Cable
• Buh-Bye DirecTV, Hello TiVo – How I Ditched Cable – Part II

Related Articles:

• Finding a Cable Alternative – Dumping DirecTV for TiVo (posted on KilltheCableBill.com)

We are a 2-DVR family and both of our units were put through some serious stress-testing this season.  Every so often, bad weather or a power outage caused one or both of our DVR units to miss a show, or at least a portion of it.  Being the true television fans that we are, we didn’t want to miss out on important plot-lines and details, so we headed out to the world wide web, in search of the episode in question.  In almost every situation, we found the solution on the web site of the television station itself.  There were however a few situations that required additional searching.  That’s where the fun really started.

Episode Failure 1: Smallville

Description: Our DirecTV DVR only recorded a portion of a critical episode, so I headed out to CWTV.com.  Their site does allow users to watch full episodes of some programs, but only stores the 2 most recent at any given time.  I am not sure what the reasoning is, but it meant we couldn’t watch our missing episode there.  I decided to try the Playstation Store (from Sony) next.  The PS3 needed a quick update, but a few minutes later we located our program and had to simply decide on SD (standard definition) or HD (high definition).  Since the HD version was $2.99 and I thought it would take longer to download, we opted for SD at $1.99.  We were able to begin viewing the program as it downloaded and the service worked perfectly!

Verdict: The Playstation Store experience was great.  The SD program was amazingly crisp and clean (nearly HD) and it only took a few minutes to begin watching the show.  I highly recommend the PS3 and the Playstation Store.

The Playstation Store on PS3

Episode Failure 2: Big Bang Theory

Description: Our favorite new comedy on CBS this season is a must watch.  Due to an operator error (my fault), we missed an episode.  I immediately went out to the CBS web site and found the page for the show.  To my surprise, CBS did NOT offer full episodes at all.  Off to Amazon.com, then iTunes, then some intense Google searching.

Verdict: FAIL! FAIL! FAIL! I couldn’t find a legal method for watching the episode, paid or not.

Episode Failure 3: The Mentalist

Description: Just like the Smallville recording, we only got a portion of the program.  Not very helpful for a crime solving mystery.  Off to CBS.com I went again and then on to Amazon.com, iTunes …  Nothing.  Finally, through some Google searches, I found a site called Yidio that provided a link to www.watch-mentalist-online.com.  I’m not sure if this site was operating legally, but we took a chance and watched the show anyway.  Unfortunately, the quality was so bad that we could barely make out the faces of the actors.  At least we got the storyline.

Verdict: FAIL! FAIL! FAIL! I couldn’t find a legal method for watching the episode, paid or not.  The site I found filled the void just enough, but I feel like I did something wrong by watching it.

Overall Verdict

Being able to watch TV online just seems logical.  For the most part, the programming I want is available, but you can see that there are still some holes.  Until Apple, or some other mega-company, makes some serious changes, I will have to hold onto my satellite and DVR boxes and give up on my dream of just buying the shows I want to watch online.  For now, there just seems to be a lack of information on where to go when I want to watch a show.  I couldn’t find a single site that provided information on every show and what sites you could buy it from (there is a FREE business idea for some lucky soul out there).  TVGuide.com did provide valuable information on where to buy some shows, but fell short on the 2 programs I was looking for.

@CBS – I am not sure what is going on, but it seems to me that you are missing out on a HUGE market.  You have some great programs and there are millions of us who think so.  Why are you not taking advantage of any of the services available to distribute your content?  You missed out on at least $4 of my money.  With 110 million TVs in the U.S., you are probably giving up on quite a bit of money.  Yes, I might buy a series on DVD/Blu-Ray, but I can’t get that until a year after it is shown on TV.  That doesn’t help me much.  We are a nation of “here and now.”  You should probably take advantage of that instead of banking on media that will begin to fade as quickly as it came to be.