TiVo Hydra is coming… the interface (and more), several years in the making, that re-envisions the TiVo experience upon a modern, extensible platform. And should you be primed and ready to go, TiVo Consumer VP Ted Malone has provided details how to accelerate the optional update process for existing Bolt, Roamio, and Mini boxes:
On Sunday morning, you will be able to go to a page on the TiVo website and request the upgrade for any TSN that is on your account. While not technically “forever”, you will need to wait 2-3 hours before forcing a call to download the new software.
However, before you take the plunge, there are some things you should know…
- Despite the extensive gestation period, including the incorporation of Fan TV talent and departure of design chief Margret Schmidt, Hydra remains a work in progress. Folks who lived with the prior interfaces for years upon years should be prepared for a shock to the system. Not to say the experience isn’t good, but it’s dramatically different and not yet complete. Not that these things ever are…
- And one feature in particular power users need to be alerted to: PC-to-TiVo uploads (think TiVo Desktop, pytivo, etc) are not yet operational. I don’t believe this is an intentional EOL event. Rather, there was work prioritized ahead of this more niche functionality and the retrofitting of likely archaic hooks. However, transferring recordings from various TiVo DVRs to Hydra boxes works (via TiVo.com, versus STB initiation) as does downloading recordings to computer.
- The possibly pioneering, two column Live Guide is gone. Which amuses me to no end. For years and years I pined for a grid guide (look, here’s a post from 2006) while TiVo pushed their supposedly superior solution and lamented grid guide removal after TiVo’s brief dalliance. But, in what I assume may be a concession to the cable companies, Hydra features a traditional grid guide. While I’m perfectly OK with that, I suspect many others may not be.
- Owners of first generation TiVo Minis should be aware they lack the interface’s critical ‘back’ remote control button. The ‘zoom’ button will act as a stand-in should you be prepared to move forward with Hydra without committing to the purchase of a new remote.
- Should you update to Hydra and later change your mind (or someone in your household changes it for you), you can revert back. However, it requires a complete factory reset … and lose of all your recordings.
In any event, I expect several updates over the next few weeks ironing out any last-minute bugs before the team gets to work on more significant refinement based on our feedback and what I assume is an extensive roadmap.
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If you're running 20.7.4 and pick up a TiVo Vox voice remote, clicking the blue voice button will also initiate the Hydra update.
Ted shipped me a 4K Mini Vox that should arrive Monday, but I can't tell you how quickly I'll get to blogging. Between the day job, new home, and toddler, I have limited time and energy. :) Best bet for more timely updates is to follow me on Twitter.
Been testing it for weeks. Still *very* buggy but that won’t stop them from going ahead with it. Other testers are dumbfounded that they’re going to release it so soon. I’d recommend waiting a month or two before anyone installs it.
The consumer electronics space has many challenging elements - and one is you gotta get hardware out for holiday sales, Best Buy shelf reset, along with the new packaging, etc. All this stuff is coordinated months ahead of time. Which means sometimes incomplete software tags along.
This isn't specific to TiVo. Although their track record hasn't been inspiring. For Premiere, they chose to hold back hardware because the HDUI wasn't ready, skipped the critical holiday sales season, and still released a beta, incomplete, optional HDUI when they launched hardware the next spring. And that was a very costly delay and decision in my estimation.
I'm good with, support the recommendation to hang back -- if I wasn't so gung ho to test the voice functionality, I'd be waiting too. Hopefully my wife doesn't leave me.