TiVo Mavrik’s FCC confidentiality has lifted… suggesting the unannounced cord cutting solution is behind schedule but treating us to even more pre-release photos and intel on the product. It’s pretty clear at this point that Mavrik is a Tablo-esque network tuner that streams live over-the-air television and DVR recordings to set-tops, like Fire TV, and mobile devices. While we know Mavrik will offer a cloud DVR service, a la Boxee, it’s not clear if the two-tuner, headless set-top will also record locally via included SD slot or USB-attached storage.
More FCC analysis from the TiVo Community indicate the Mavrik incorporates Bolt-level processing and transcoding capabilities, an 8GB cache, and 512MB of memory. Beyond Tablo, also active in this space is Channels which utilizes HDHomeRun hardware to pipe live (or recorded) television into Apple TV and iPhone or iPad.
SD card slot? Interesting.
I love my TiVo Bolt, but I do feel like TiVo just makes way more sense as a service. It seems like it would be more at home as an app instead of a whole set-top box. That said, if it just copies everything to the cloud, I would say for anyone with Comcast (or any other cable co internet with a cap), then this thing is DOA. If you can just plug in a USB hard drive, then it sounds great.
That SD slot is very interesting… I am assuming an SD slot would be required for minimal usage of buffer space? Not sure…
Dan – I am not a fan of the movement to apps. The UI isn’t as fluid, everything gets compressed and transcoded and trick play is atrocious.
bradley, it has 8GG internal – presumably for buffering, caching. Might just be a “service port” of sorts as I see little practical value (based on my device assumptions).
No HDMI port??
I thought it isn’t designed as a device to connect to your display? Just to connect to your network and you use another device to view the content?
If this works with the Bolt/Roamio, I might just sell my Roamios I use with OTA and get the Mavrik instead. Especially if those recordings can be sent to a Roamio or Bolt for storage.
Any word on CableCard support for next-gen TiVos? I still have a Premiere/Mini setup and might consider an app-based TiVo. Else, I’m completely ditching cable and TiVo and going otp.
I have a Roamio OTA and several Minis. I’m curious if the Mavrik will get me any features beyond what I already have or can have with a Tivo Stream.
Dennis, that’s why I called it a “headless” “network tuner” – it’ll sit on your network and beam that video content to other endpoints, like Fire TV. Will be interesting to see if it links into their very own TiVo Mini. I bet it does, but like 8 months after release knowing how TiVo rolls.
Interesting. Assuming that Tivo supports a wide range of streaming boxes (e.g. Roku) and that the pricing is competitive to Tablo, then this might get some traction.
Needs to have a local hard drive for those of us with low speed internet access.
I have to assume this is going to be a lower cost play for people who think traditional TiVo DVRs cost to much. I have ZERO interest in cloud storage and see no reason I would want this over my Roamio or Bolt. Now if they did something like this when ATSC 3.0 shows up and made it work with my Bolt I would be very interested.
I agree this is DOA if there is no local recording.
Where does the cable card come into play??
@OG, there is no cablecard. This device is for over the air antenna signals only.
This seems a device appealing for younglings who do all viewing via connected devices (or PC’s and mobile) and who find a traditional DVR box too expensive, as atmusky stated, or just clunky old technology. This things seems to add no advantages or superior features to a TiVo Roamio or bolt 9nor most MVPD’s DVR’s), with the possible exception of cloud storage, but that is a non-feature for those with either datacaps or slow internet speeds. The Mavrik is for a different generation; the Mavrik seems for the long-term future change in how we watch and records and store those recordings.
Those of us with–and who PREFER–local DVR’s and local storage (we also get the streaming benifits with built-in or external Stream, Sling, or whatever MVPD proprietary streaming experience is provided along with VOD OOH) are becoming dinasours. The other old folks would choose a Channel Master DVR+ any day over a Mavrik, only because they (we) are far more comfortable (and can wrap our heads around) a physical BOX that records and connects to the TV to watch content, and we just don’t intellectually invest nor use our LAN’s and streaming as often nor in the way the youngsters do, and the younglings don’t know what they are missing by watching content on 4″ screens or listening to music with earbuds and using lossy compression. They don’t really care for nor know what they are missing on a big HDTV or UHDTV. It’s not their reahlm.
Condiering some youngsters re-discovering vinyl because it sounds so much better than their MP3’s, I wonder if those same people may stumble upon high quality PQ on a UHDTV with an AVR spitting out lossless audio may also become suduced by superior quality as they age and be willing to spend on those things rather than a new iPhone every quarter?
Vinyl?!?! I trashed all my records in 1985 after getting my first CD player. I will gladly listen to an MP3 any day over a record.
Heck!! I wouldn’t even touch a CD any more either.
“Vinyl?!?!”
Actually kinda useful if you’re into vintage 12″ singles that never got CD releases. Plus some new rare-groove stuff is vinyl only, if you’re into that.
“Heck!! I wouldn’t even touch a CD any more either.”
Amazon’s habit of selling CD’s with auto-MP3 rips is pretty cool, IMHO. Store the CD’s untouched as backup for the apocalypse, and you’re still just really buying the MP3’s.
But, Chucky, those kids are falling in LOVE with vinyl because of all its limitations and objective inferiority to Redbook (there is always going to be compromises with any format, and even digital has it compromised compared to analog), they and a few older than they folks just LOVE how it sound–compared to high compression LOSSY formats that had been listening to music using earbuds. AND there are plenty of the hottest with the youngsters of today acts releasing VINYL copies of their latest CD’s or other digital releases. I agree with your Chucky; Vinyl? UHHHGGGG!!! But those kids can’t help to hear the difference compared to highly compressed MP3’s.
I got an email today that I can transfer my Series 2 or 3 Lifetime service to a new Bolt for $99. This is pretty remarkable, as I haven’t seen such an offer in quite some time (and not sure I ever did with Bolt), but it’s only for a couple of weeks. I wonder if this is just a push to get out of the Bolt business and into the Mavrik business, or if it’s a random marketing ploy that I just haven’t been included in for a few years. Either way, you can get a Bolt with All In service for as little as $300, which would be the least I have paid for a TiVo with service in probably 15 years!
Unfortunately, doesn’t appear to work on Bolt+…
That’s a pretty sweet deal there, Bricketh! I would hop on that.
I’d hop on that, but then sell it on tivocommunity or ebay.
I still believe the 3.5″ drives in the Roamio models will prove more reliable than the 2.5″ drives in the Bolt models.
Just dropped a $50, 3TB WD AV-GP pull into the $199 Roamio OTA w/ lifetime refurb I bought from Tivo last Thanksgiving.
Where did you get a 3TB WD HDD for $50, Bill? I’d definitely hop on that deal! (Must be close to Easter with all this “hopping” going on!)
It was a pulled drive, off ebay.
Picked it because that’s what is in my other Roamio.
That same model drive has been running fine 24/7 there for over 3 years.