The New TiVos Are Coming…

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While I’ve been expecting refreshed over-the-air TiVo hardware, given a simplistic repurposing of base Roamio hardware for OTA and the Aereo acquisition, I hadn’t anticipated anything imminent in digital cable… especially with the ongoing CableCARD and successor uncertainty. Heck, I’d even assumed the absurd TiVo Mega was dead. Yet, CableLabs just updated their self certification paperwork… with two new TiVo models.

  • Tivo 07/01/15 PNP SCV1113 Digital Only TCD849500 STB
  • Tivo 07/01/15 PNP SCV1114 Digital Only TCD849000 STB

Historically, we could determine TiVo hardware generation from the first half of the model number and capacity from the second half. I’m not so sure hard drive is still in play these days. Yet, all prior Roamio models begin with 84, so I’d guess these similarly denoted units must be closely related and still represent TiVo Series 5 hardware. As to what exactly they are, I haven’t the foggiest.

These probably don’t represent the TiVo Bolt, which sounds more like a service. But could they be Mega variants? Hopefully not, as I really hope that initiative is dead with engineering resources better detailed to mass market products. But I could still see TiVo moving upmarket in presentation, if not storage, and perhaps these represent 4k-capable Roamio units… and you can check out my previous Broadcom chipset speculation here. Lastly, one of TiVo’s biggest retail challenges remains pricing — so whatever they’re working on hopefully reduces the BOM, with savings passed on to customers.

As to timing, we’re still awaiting TiVo’s “late July” Aereo announcement. But, again, these two models are specific to digital cable and lack over-the-air capabilities. So we’re just going to have to wait until more information presents itself.

Timeline:

23 thoughts on “The New TiVos Are Coming…”

  1. Wandered over to mention that the OTA and the base-level OTA/CableCard model are being pushed by Tivo on the Summer Sale page — including a refurb OTA/CC Roamio available for $50, and lifetime subs are available for both OTA-compatible models for $349. Essentially, either model with lifetime can be had for $400 now. (It’s at https://www.tivo.com/roamiopma15 in case they’re randomizing as they did in May.) I’m still pretty satisfied with the Series 3, but meh, for this price, maybe I can talk myself into the impulse purchase.

  2. My main hopes are software-specific. I still want everything to move faster (which could happen via a faster processor, of course). Also, the over the top apps need to be better integrated into the GUI – Plex is under Music & Photos, while Netflix and Amazon are under Video. Maybe the apps should coexist under a single heading and perhaps higher up. And let’s get rid of lists and move to tiles in a grid. Heck, maybe live TV becomes an app/icon like on Mom’s Roku TVs.

  3. “But I could still see TiVo moving upmarket in presentation, if not storage, and perhaps these represent 4k-capable Roamio units”

    Ugh. Why now? There’s no multicast 4K content, so seems utterly wrong to me.

    Minor chipset update to run things faster makes better sense to me.

    “And let’s get rid of lists and move to tiles in a grid. Heck, maybe live TV becomes an app/icon like on Mom’s Roku TVs.”

    Double ugh. Why significantly downgrade the UX just to please grandma’s?

    Not to mention the obvious: a software downgrade certainly doesn’t require a hardware update…

  5. Grandma doesn’t like TV as an app… I do. But it’s not an issue for her since the Roku allows you to power on straight into TV, which is how I set that option. I would take a faster TiVo tho. Whatever it is, I hope and assume it has a newer processor. Not sure how much money I’d be willing to spend to upgrade if this is just a Roamio+ tho. Hm.

  6. I’ve been waiting for an update. My Premiere is feeling a bit sluggish and I was hoping to skip Roamio (I try to get every other generation to save my wallet a bit of pain).

  7. We should have all skipped Premiere… those were some dark days on of TiVo. ;) At least until that Haxe update and freshened up Netflix/Amazon apps hit. Wonder if they’ll ever finish the HDUI.

  8. So when do we think this official announcement will come? I just boat a roamio basic two weeks ago (at a great price)- should I consider returning it? Do you think it will be adequate for the next few years?

    I know technology is moving fast and into newer areas, I’d just like to know my $400 for a roamio will be better money spent than $700 for whatever replaces it.

  9. Substantive/different hardware *design* change as a part of Tivo’s overall rebrand strategy. Software roadmap and updates have been pretty predictable…

  10. Thanks for the nugget! The Roamio Pro/Plus didn’t have much going on in the way of personality and given the disbandment of the industrial design team, perhaps they outsourced this time around. Wonder if a refreshed, in appearance, Mini will also make an appearance – as there’s no unity between Mini and Roamio OTA/Basic and Roamio Pro/Plus. It’s not as crazy as Slingbox 350 and Slingbox 500 disparity, but they can do better. I assume there have been some internal component changes if they had to resubmit to CableLabs – and I hear partner MSOs find T6 pricing to be a burden, something a different box and/or chip could address. With all that in mind, perhaps one is a 4-tuner model and one is a 6-tuner model and both would be available to retail and partner MSO. Having said that, there’s been no new FCC filings… yet.

  11. “I would take a faster TiVo tho. Whatever it is, I hope and assume it has a newer processor. Not sure how much money I’d be willing to spend to upgrade if this is just a Roamio+ tho. Hm.”

    Yeah. Stipulating it’s just a chipset speed-bump, I don’t think the core audience is Roamio folks looking to upgrade a notch. More for new folks and S4 folks waiting. They speed bumped the Mini chipset, so why not the HD edition too? Regular incremental improvement is good for the platform.

    As far as Roamio owners go, depends, of course, on the degree of speed bump. Make it run things 3x or more faster, and I start getting interested, especially because I’m an anti-‘lifetime’ customer. With the ability to jump rip the old HD out, makes things even easier for upgraders. Hell, if they made it so you could rip out the old HD out, plug it into the new unit, and have your shows still there, I’d start to get very tempted, if the speed bump is decent…

    —–

    “We should have all skipped Premiere”

    Some of your readers are smarties, y’know…

  12. “The Roamio Pro/Plus didn’t have much going on in the way of personality and given the disbandment of the industrial design team, perhaps they outsourced this time around.”

    I’m really hoping for tailfins to make the TiVo more aerodynamic. I think it could improve gas mileage.

  13. anti-lifetime customer?!?!? You apparently know all of the arguments, but (1) if you keep it long enough, it becomes WAY cheaper, and (2) you can recoup some of it by selling the old lifetime box.

  14. Yep, I’m with you Dave on wishes for a software update. Hopefully, if these new units sport an updated UI, it also rolls out to Roamios too. I like my Roamio OTA but the UI design does feel outdated. And anything that further integrates streaming services into the UX is most definitely welcome and, in my opinion, a strategic step in the right direction.

  15. “anti-lifetime customer?!?!? You apparently know all of the arguments, but (1) if you keep it long enough, it becomes WAY cheaper, and (2) you can recoup some of it by selling the old lifetime box.”

    Oh, I indeed know the argument fully well, and find it to be utterly correct.

    However, being the weirdo I am, (and having a reasonable grandfathered rate), I decided it was worth my while to incentivize TiVo to provide excellent support for older hardware by voting with my wallet.

    Again, I indeed know this has cost me a few more bucks, but it’s not enough for me to particularly worry about, and I take (non-monetary) satisfaction from my stance. Not recommending this to others, just my own weirdo position.

    (Also, I hate dealing with the hassles of selling old equipment. But that really wasn’t my prime motivation.)

  16. So if it were just XL storage bumps, would they need to go through the fcc?

    Just dropped a 3TB into my Roamio Plus on top of owning a Pro and three mini’s. I’m mostly happy with what I own all with lifetime. ?

    The UI sure could use some work, ie buried plex app.

  17. If they were simply changing the hard drive capacity, they shouldn’t need to resubmit to FCC. However, the CableLabs certifications suggest something more than hard drive. But there’s different ways to approach FCC – a partner WiFi or RF chips could be blessed without the whole set-top going thru, it could be filed under the manufacturer’s name (versus “TiVo”), it may not have been processed yet, etc.

  18. Am I the only one who thinks this version of the Plex app is terrible. Where is the filtering (genres, collections, etc). I have over 1,300 movies & tv in my collection and it’s impossible to get to any one of them quickly.

    (a little off-topic, sorry!)

  20. Totally agreed on plex client. Unfortunate we are stuck with having to still switch inputs to use plex due to the extremely poor app implementation with v1.

  21. “I imagine the real Plex aficionados will use better clients…”

    Say, hell, yeah!

    I love my OnePass TiVo for multicast and my supported OTT sources. But there are other inputs.

    (FWIW, I even think all y’all using Roku endpoints for Plex are suckers. God invented Mac Mini HTPC’s for a bunch of reasons, and a proper Plex endpoint is clustered among the top of those reasons…)

  24. So I hesitated on the Roamio offers (and they’re long gone from that link), but now with today’s Xbox announcement, I think the Series 3 will probably be dismantled the moment these features hit my living room next year. Unless Microsoft’s product reminds me too much of my Philips Series 1, I don’t think Tivo can come up with anything that justifies paying more than free.

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