PVRblog

TiVo mobile launched

I caught the news on Crave that m.tivo.com was launching as a new mobile presence for adding shows to your TiVo. TiVo previously had a mobile interface for Verizon customers (and they charged for it), but thankfully the new approach seems to follow a much more open model: a simplified HTML site open to anyone.

It definitely seems to be programmed with the iPhone in mind as it's very easy to use on one. I'll definitely use the site when I'm out and about and suddenly wonder if I was recording a major sporting event or a new show set to debut.

Here are a couple screenshots from my iPhone viewing the site this morning:

Pizza ordering on a TiVo coming to Australia

This story of a new feature being added to TiVos in Australia sounds awesome: ordering pizza from the couch. Yeah, on first read it totally reinforces the whole "couch potato" aspect of watching TV and eating unhealthy food, but every once in a while a nice pizza hits the spot. I'd love to see it come to the US.

I've ordered a pizza online before (Domino's, because it was the only option) mostly just to try it out (it was easy and nice to get exactly what I wanted without having to sit on the phone for several minutes) and I imagine the experience in a TiVo environment could be pretty quick and easy once you store your address and phone number.

Wow: looks like someone floated this idea on a blog in 2004

Autographed TiVo HD being auctioned off for charity

A TiVo HD with lifetime service is just about the best thing you could ask for when it comes to recording digital cable, and though it won't make your HD signal any sharper, having Keanu Reeves, Jack Black, and a few other celebrities signature on it is a pretty nice bonus. An employee at TiVo sent me a link to the auction at ebay, where proceeds from the sale of the unit are going to a lung cancer fund.

Previous auctions of similar devices have gone for under or about retail. Considering it's for a good cause, if you were thinking of getting a TiVo for xmas for someone, you can't do much better than the one currently at auction.

TiVo mentions in Tropic Thunder

I just caught a showing of Tropic Thunder the other day, a goofy comedy about the movie industry and there's a running gag between one of the stars and his agent about getting a TiVo. It came up so many times I thought I should try and get a copy of the film and do a TiVo montage from it. After about an hour of editing, I give you every mention of TiVo in Tropic Thunder (spoiler alert: including a scene from the climax of the movie and the audio is NSFW):

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I wonder if TiVo paid for all that product placement?