500GB to 1TB upgrade question
 

I have just signed up for TV XL with a 500GB Tivo box. Already this box's capacity is woefully inadequate given the fact that I tend to record mostly HD programmes. Does anyone know how much extra it would cost to upgrade to a 1GB Tivo box?

Ta.

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

From what I see on their site, £49.95 activation fee and £49.95 installation.

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

Before anyone starts in on me as to what I could possibly need a bigger hard drive for, I am an avid Baseball fan and the live transmissions can easily last for 4 hours if you add an hours for overruns. Love my baseball, record everything I can.

---------- Post added at 22:29 ---------- Previous post was at 22:26 ----------

OMG, would I have to pay ANOTHER near fifty quid to get a decent capacity box????? My VM bill this month is £130.00 with installation etc as it is!!! Why on Earth even BOTHER with 500GB in this Hi Def age?

---------- Post added at 22:35 ---------- Previous post was at 22:29 ----------

This crappy tivo box seriously needs some sort of compression software. I have two baseball games and two cookery shows recorded in HD.....125 GB...Jesus.

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

I know, it sucks. As my box only ever gets near 80% capacity, I cannot justify a bigger capacity one. Although when this TiVo goes wrong, as every box I touch does at some point, I might ask if they can do a deal for a bigger one as replacement.

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

IMO 500GB is for the people that are as bothered about recording e.g. OAPs, sinlge people that stay at home etc

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

Are you including the database in that? 9 hours of HD recordings should be about half that size. You can see the size of each recording by going into the recording details from MyShows, then pressing 'info'.

Incidentally the data already is compressed. Compressing any more would lose picture quality - you may as well record SD instead.

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

Sorry, I do not understand that at all.

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

Just on a random one, any reason why i get the following;

BBC One HD - 1hr 20min - 10.81GB
Sky1 HD - 1hr 5min - 3.65GB
Sky Movies Premiere HD - 2hr 5min - 12.16GB

How come the Sky1HD recording is so small? I understand its the bitrates etc but surely they should be near enough the same

I guess the Movie is also quite small considering there isnt much difference between it and the 1hr 20min BBC One recording?

---------- Post added at 18:57 ---------- Previous post was at 18:57 ----------

500Gb is designed for those who are less bothered about recording but get a Tivo

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

Or maybe it's for people who don't agree with paying £49.95 for a box they'll never own? :shrug:

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

I have 500 gb Tivo and have never had any capacity problems. Quite simply once the many programmes recorded individually and as series links have been watched by anyone who wants to,we delete them.

The only things kept are mainly childrens movies saved for my 5 year old grandaughter. Virtually everything recorded is HD and we have never been at more than 80% capacity.

I believe the 500gb is for "everyday people" who still mainly watch live TV and only record when necessary for programme clashes, out at work etc. Whereas the 1 TB is for people who fully utilize the Tivo and tend to record everthing so they can watch it at their leisure.

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

Got all sorts on my TiVo including FLt20 finals day and that was all day in hd mine is at 80%.

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

Probably different compression?

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

digital audio?

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

Yes the other 2 will have 5.1 audio probably and if they are full of movement and action as well this will make a difference too

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

I used to record everything in HD. I now only use SD as I don't think the difference is worth the storage space as the box upscales quite well anyhow.

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

What :confused: seriously :confused: :banghead:

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

Are you... Erm... Are you okay?

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

Think he needs to nip to a opticians

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

Seriously?? The SD picture on my TV is god awful.

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

Don't do sd at all,like going from bluray to VHS ;)

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

With the problems recently I have had with my TiVo hard drive, I would not store up any level of my favourite shows for a rainy day! I hope that not in the to distant future with mpeg4 compression the file sizes of HD recordings will no longer be a talking point on VM platform!

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

Maybe you need a better TV then? :);)

Obviously SD is not as good as HD but if SD is as awful as you say on your TV, then something is wrong.

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

Even on top of the range sets, if your eyes are good some channels can look shocking, not everybody sees the same amount of colours, shades and gradiations.

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

I agree , when I was with VM Universal picture quality was awful from my Samsung V+ box no amount of changing the settings could change that.

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

Still is that's the channels I'm looking forward to l8r........universal hd rookie blue tonight me thinks. :cleader:


Not arrived yet hopefully be another 45min then I see 2nd half,could be a lot to do with the vm vans blocking me cul de sac :D

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

Not disputing that HD is much better, but to say SD is really 'awful', 'shocking' or equivalent to VHS is ridiculous IMHO and doesn't look that way on my TV.

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

No, Mr Stokes, the 1TB box is for those who use their TIVOs correctly.

I am not one for watching a lot of TV, but when I do watch it, I want to watch something that I like.

Some people are lazy and just watch what is on the channel that is displayed, advertisements and all. Others don't want to stick with a channel on which there is not a programme they want to watch, so they 'channel hop', which is a very inefficient way of finding a programme. Most of the time the programme you land on that you like has been broadcasting already for some time and so you miss most of it, as well as having to endure endless adverts.

Surely, a sensible approach is to record everything you want to watch at the beginning of the week and just pick out the programmes from your recordings that you want to watch. That way, you always have stuff on there that you want to see (because you chose it) and you can fast forward through the ads. One hour programmes on the likes of Sky 1 can be viewed in 45 minutes in this way, so you can cram in more quality viewing.

It's really nothing to do with having time on your hands and watching TV all day. It's about ensuring that when you do sit down in front of the box, you are not bored out of your skull.

A 2TB box would be better, as well as more tuners!

---------- Post added at 19:25 ---------- Previous post was at 19:23 ----------

Agreed, I am happy with the way the TIVO upscales the picture. Still prefer to watch in HD, however!

Re: 500GB to 1TB upgrade question
 

Re: 500mb to 1gb upgrade question
 

I've sent the squirrels around to nick your dish :p: