Quote:
Originally Posted by Horizon
If VM were to have a stb and software that was fast to use (not holding my breadth on that one) where you could access everything under one UI, that would be a game changer. TiVo tries, but its too sluggish. If I want BBC shows, I go to the iPlayer all on my smart TV which is far quicker than going through TiVo, yet I pay a premium for TiVo..... Something is wrong somewhere.
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But it's not that simple.
Inexpensive streaming boxes such Roku and Amazon Fire TV can refresh their range on a regular one to two year cycle and improve processing power each time.
TV manufacturers refresh their ranges yearly and do the same. Obviously TVs are more expensive, but very few people can afford to change their TVs each year. And on older TV models, apps sometimes stop working.
Tivo is five years old, and therefore processing power is behind the times. Plus Tivo has to do a lot more than a streamer box or TV. It would be unreasonable to expect VM to update their boxes with new hardware more often than they do; cost wise it would be too prohibitive.
And then there are the apps; VM can't just add apps without agreement and co-operation from the services they want. The big missing ones are Now TV and Amazon. Technically the Amazon Prime app could be added after the update to the US Tivo Premier earlier this year. But it is down to commercial considerations between VM, Amazon and Sky for Now TV.
Given that streamer boxes are relatively inexpensive, and can be hardware updated more frequently, it makes more sense to me, to use these for streaming video content alongside Tivo's PVR functionality.
If VM do release a new Tivo box, (and I agree with steveh, it will most likely be the last traditional PVR), then it will be great with apps for the first year and then it will start to become slow again as new apps need more processing power.