Value…Added

At home I use both a TiVo DVR and a DVR from my local cable company; each with its strengths and weaknesses. With my cable company DVR I have access to the full range of channels offered by them (standard and HD broadcast), but the user interface is somewhat unpolished and not very intuitive. The TiVo DVR has an amazingly insightful user interface, but limited channel access (even with their HD box). I have used both DVRs for the past few years convincing myself that I would eventually choose one over the other and standardize throughout the house. Obviously, by this writing, I haven’t been able to make up mind.

Yesterday, this all changed. I was out running errands with my wife after work and she commented that a new show was airing that she REALLY wanted to watch. We were about 30 miles from home and had more errands to do, so going back to the house and setting one of the DVRs to record the show was not an option. For a moment we thought about calling a friend or family member and asking them to record the show, but quickly dismissed this idea as it would mean a trip to someone else’s house to watch the show at a later date…and this would be way to intrusive to the other people. As any good techie/geek/nerd (take your pick) would do, I took out my BlackBerry (Pearl 8120) and googled “dvr remote record.” The search results page displayed a few articles relating to DVRs, recording, etc. But, on page 2, there was an article relating to a new application developed for BlackBerry’s that would allow the user to sign into their TiVo account and: search shows (by title, actor/director or keyword), setup recordings, request a season pass, etc. I was intrigued, so I researched the application a bit more. Research completed, I decided to download the application and give it a try.

With the new TiVo for BlackBerry application (http://blogs.blackberry.com/2009/09/tivo-for-blackberry-smartphones-available-today.html) installed, I fired it up and quickly liked what I saw and was able to do. I searched for the show by title, and within a few moments was presented with the relevant results. I clicked on one of the show titles and was offered several recording options. I chose my recording options, clicked “continue” and went about my business. Within seconds I received an e-mail from TiVo confirming my recording request. I was amazed and impressed! About 25 minutes later I received another e-mail from TiVo verifying that my recording request had been successfully transmitted to my TiVo unit. Wow! The show was recorded, the wife was happy.

And just when you thought things couldn’t get any better…the application is FREE.

In my opinion TiVo was already a great value and service, at an affordable price. But now, with the introduction of the TiVo for BlackBerrys application, a whole new level of value has been added, taking TiVo (and BlackBerry) to the next level.