TiVo TCD540080 Series 2 80-Hour Digital Video Recorder

I thought that it was pretty hokey when people would say that Tivo had completely changed the way that they watch TV. I am now a believer. I didn't realize that it would help me with my wife too because I am not worried about when stuff comes on, so if she wants to talk then so be it - I'll start the latest episode of Lost once she is done talking. So much less stress!!

I purchased this for my girlfriend and have to say that in the few years that we've owned it, we use it every day. We can record our favorite shows for weeks and watch them whenever it is most convenient. We never watch live TV and can fast forward through commercials in a matter of seconds. One of the best investments I have ever made!

This required a learning curve. Setup is somewhat difficult, but the tech people at TIVO helped me thru it. I needed extra cables because I have both satellite and cable and they sent them at no charge. Once you learn all the settings it becomes pretty. It has a mind of its own and tries to be helpful. It will interrupt the program you are watching to tape something else it thinks you will like unless you tell it not to. You can disable this feature in the settings mode. My spouse loves it for its simplicity. She can really program our VCR, but this is much easier. Just set it and forget it!

Not going to beat a dead horse...there's plenty of reviews on this product. However, I love this product. I would recommend this to anyone that hates spending time watching commercials, hates flipping through channels constantly looking for things to watch, and likes actually being able to no-kidding own whats on the box and not have to lose all your recordings just because you change cable service providers.

The TiVo is all that it promises to be. It has "re-organized" how I watch television by providing information about ALL possible showtimes for programs; among which I can then choose. The only reason I give it 4 starts instead of 5, is the REBATE. It is a long process, and even after submitting all documents and being approved for one, it takes 4-5 weeks MORE to receive the rebate check itself. It also does not have HDMI or component hook-ups. So though the Best Quality recordings (an option on can choose) are still good (through a digital cable box), it cannot record nor provide an HD picture. I hope this ability will come in the future.