TiVo To Challenge Apple TV With Voice Control

Arrgghhh... Why? Why do I want to talk to my TV?? Can't they focus on getting content, i.e. other streaming apps? I can't imagine that people say "I was going to buy a Tivo but it doesn't let me talk to it, so instead I will get Roku/Amazon Fire/ Apple TV". People don't get Tivo for usually one of three reasons:

1) They don't have/want a cable card.

2) Quantity of streaming apps are vastly inferior to Roku/Amazon/Apple, i.e the competition (despite what their marketing says). Currently we can choose what, NetFlix/Hulu/Amazon/YouTube/Vudu.. ok how about the channels, like HBO or Showtime??? I think I have HBO2Go on a Walkman/Blender, but not my TiVo.

3) The cost. Unit plus $12 a month? Even the new AppleTV looks cheap compared to that... People don't understand why they have a monthly fee when it gets them no content on a box that they own... Remember people are cutting the cable because they feel like they are paying too much for things they don't want.. i.e. content... and a TiVo I am paying for information about content? That is a hard sell...

If I was them they should be working on:

1) Become the next SlingTV. Seriously if they are not making that a reality then everything is hinging on collecting money on their patents. It makes the monthly fee seem reasonable and does not tie them to what the cable companies are doing. Become the virtual cable operator then you are good to go... Cable Cards? who cares you stream.

2) Enable the porting of streaming apps from say Andriod or whatever to TiVo. Seems like if they could do that they could vastly increase their streaming options (i.e. match their capabilities with what their marketing says on their website/box). It is awesome that the iOS app knows if a show is in another streaming app (like HBO or ABC) and opens it, but this does not carry over to the TiVo box because the streaming apps are not available to my TiVo box, which is crazy. I have more options in the TiVo iOS app than on the TiVo hardware... that means they are doing something very wrong, when Apple/Andriod is creating a better TiVo experience than TiVo is.

3) Make Wishlist suck less. Seriously two monthly ago I searched for Interstellar, it brings me the movie, I set up a wishlist... for the next two months if either the title of the show or summary has the word interstellar in it, it gets recorded. All false positives. This continually blows my mind... some how from the search menu when I bring up Interstellar and look at upcoming it lists only upcoming showings of this movie, but set up a wishlist and it is total garbage... Why for the love of God, why???

4) Maybe this is just a dream of mine, but I would imagine that people who currently use TiVo (my self included) invest more in TV then the average person, so they have HBO or Showtime, what not... I would love to be able to find a place where I could see what are the new movies in the next two weeks. Not just new to this channel, but actual new movies, the ones that usually premiere on Fri-Sun on a pay channel... I would love that instead of hand going through all the stupid pay channels/website to see what this is, then set up the recording (hopefully not a wish list...).

5) Ok going on a limb here, but movie trailers and new TV shows... I loved that you could see TV show trailers then easily set up a season pass.. why not movie trailers? (after you fix the horrific wishlist functionality).

6) Flogging a dead horse, but a consistent UI would be nice, but I think in 2015 clearly you don't care and honestly at this point I don't either, I rarely visit the crappy UI portions of my TiVo and it isn't a reason that people don't buy.

TiVo please don't do until you address the actual TV/Movie entertainment ideas from above, i.e. the reason I have a Tivo, the below is just gravy/"a rabbit hole" not a reason to get into the ecosystem:
1) Voice Control
2) Virtual Reality
3) Games
4) Home automation
5) Social TV <- Whatever that is
6) The physical appears of the TiVo box <- People may ooh and awe over Apple's design but it because they press that electronic slab against their face and hold it in their hand, my Tivo is out of sight, because honestly I don't need more LED lights in front of me, neither does anyone else... Remote sure, that is out on the coffee table, I like the slidely keyboard, awesome, two gold stars.
7) Adding more functionality for people who watch sports <- Just sit this out for a while, but I can't imagine this is your core... See how that MLB app for the AppleTV works out, do people want 24/7 stats while watching a game?

I think that if TiVo sticks with trying to be a universal hub for viewing entertainment, then they can't go to wrong. Make it easier, make it more breadth (cable or streaming) than I can imagine, let me watch it whenever or where ever (Andriod/iOS.Amazon streaming) and you got something. Short of that, hopefully that new patent works out...

View Comments

Scott G. Lewis says:

September 16, 2015 at 9:50 am

I wonder if you'll be able to use voice control to control some of those SD menus that still exist?
ensaburnur says:

September 16, 2015 at 10:53 am

I'm really want to see the 4K Tivo Bolt. It sounds like THE ONE I've been looking for...live tv/dvr, OTT apps and integrated voice control that works well. Tivo is still the best option to me. Hopefully, the Bolt is even better.
Brad says:

September 16, 2015 at 11:04 am

Arrgghhh... Why? Why do I want to talk to my TV?? Can't they focus on getting content, i.e. other streaming apps? I can't imagine that people say "I was going to buy a Tivo but it doesn't let me talk to it, so instead I will get Roku/Amazon Fire/ Apple TV". People don't get Tivo for usually one of three reasons:

1) They don't have/want a cable card.

2) Quantity of streaming apps are vastly inferior to Roku/Amazon/Apple, i.e the competition (despite what their marketing says). Currently we can choose what, NetFlix/Hulu/Amazon/YouTube/Vudu.. ok how about the channels, like HBO or Showtime??? I think I have HBO2Go on a Walkman/Blender, but not my TiVo.

3) The cost. Unit plus $12 a month? Even the new AppleTV looks cheap compared to that... People don't understand why they have a monthly fee when it gets them no content on a box that they own... Remember people are cutting the cable because they feel like they are paying too much for things they don't want.. i.e. content... and a TiVo I am paying for information about content? That is a hard sell...

If I was them they should be working on:

1) Become the next SlingTV. Seriously if they are not making that a reality then everything is hinging on collecting money on their patents. It makes the monthly fee seem reasonable and does not tie them to what the cable companies are doing. Become the virtual cable operator then you are good to go... Cable Cards? who cares you stream.

2) Enable the porting of streaming apps from say Andriod or whatever to TiVo. Seems like if they could do that they could vastly increase their streaming options (i.e. match their capabilities with what their marketing says on their website/box). It is awesome that the iOS app knows if a show is in another streaming app (like HBO or ABC) and opens it, but this does not carry over to the TiVo box because the streaming apps are not available to my TiVo box, which is crazy. I have more options in the TiVo iOS app than on the TiVo hardware... that means they are doing something very wrong, when Apple/Andriod is creating a better TiVo experience than TiVo is.

3) Make Wishlist suck less. Seriously two monthly ago I searched for Interstellar, it brings me the movie, I set up a wishlist... for the next two months if either the title of the show or summary has the word interstellar in it, it gets recorded. All false positives. This continually blows my mind... some how from the search menu when I bring up Interstellar and look at upcoming it lists only upcoming showings of this movie, but set up a wishlist and it is total garbage... Why for the love of God, why???

4) Maybe this is just a dream of mine, but I would imagine that people who currently use TiVo (my self included) invest more in TV then the average person, so they have HBO or Showtime, what not... I would love to be able to find a place where I could see what are the new movies in the next two weeks. Not just new to this channel, but actual new movies, the ones that usually premiere on Fri-Sun on a pay channel... I would love that instead of hand going through all the stupid pay channels/website to see what this is, then set up the recording (hopefully not a wish list...).

5) Ok going on a limb here, but movie trailers and new TV shows... I loved that you could see TV show trailers then easily set up a season pass.. why not movie trailers? (after you fix the horrific wishlist functionality).

6) Flogging a dead horse, but a consistent UI would be nice, but I think in 2015 clearly you don't care and honestly at this point I don't either, I rarely visit the crappy UI portions of my TiVo and it isn't a reason that people don't buy.

TiVo please don't do until you address the actual TV/Movie entertainment ideas from above, i.e. the reason I have a Tivo, the below is just gravy/"a rabbit hole" not a reason to get into the ecosystem:
1) Voice Control
2) Virtual Reality
3) Games
4) Home automation
5) Social TV <- Whatever that is
6) The physical appears of the TiVo box <- People may ooh and awe over Apple's design but it because they press that electronic slab against their face and hold it in their hand, my Tivo is out of sight, because honestly I don't need more LED lights in front of me, neither does anyone else... Remote sure, that is out on the coffee table, I like the slidely keyboard, awesome, two gold stars.
7) Adding more functionality for people who watch sports <- Just sit this out for a while, but I can't imagine this is your core... See how that MLB app for the AppleTV works out, do people want 24/7 stats while watching a game?

I think that if TiVo sticks with trying to be a universal hub for viewing entertainment, then they can't go to wrong. Make it easier, make it more breadth (cable or streaming) than I can imagine, let me watch it whenever or where ever (Andriod/iOS.Amazon streaming) and you got something. Short of that, hopefully that new patent works out...