TiVoToGo to go for Macs in mid-2006?

They're sure taking their damned sweet time with it, but with the latest newsletter they sent out TiVo's confirmed the word on the street that the Mac version of TiVoToGo is indeed still underway, and they're hoping to show it off in mid-2006. A year and a half to port the program to OS X seems a little silly to us, but hey, at least they're still working on it, right? Oh, for those of you who want to know exactly what TiVo said:

(Confidential to my Mac buddies: I know, I know. But this announcement, while still PC-specific, bodes very well. Hang in there-we are targeting mid-2006 for Mac support for TivoToGoT!)

[Neg @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

whats TiVoToGoT?

TiVo to Goat?

(NB: First Post!)

--neg

[Joshua Ochs @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

I'll still be very interested in the technical details behind this. In the past, everything was wrapped up in Microsoft's DirectShow, which was why we never saw it for the Mac.

However, with their announcement of iPod/PSP support using MPEG-4 and a simple watermark, might this be the future of TivoToGo?

[pure wishful thinking] Now if only they could release a Tivo Series3 that used MPEG-4 or H.264 internally, and meld in all of these various network features they've been adding piecemeal over the years. Could be quite the spiffy box to compete with "home media PC's" approaching on every side. [/]

[aaron @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

I've been using Direct Show dump to get my TiVo files into a workable state on my mac - but I'm Bi-OSexual and have a Vaio to do that on.

I'm sort of confused why the DRM isn't too restrictive. I strip out the gunk, and its straight MPEG 2. The transfer is hideously long though and not that reliable over wireless.

TiVo would be happy to know that I've made probably 1 copy of 1 the shows i've transferred (of I'd say about 30 in all) to give to my sister.

These media companies that TiVo has to take into consideration need to realize that most of us don't have time to abuse their content.

[Alex @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

I wonder what happens if Apple comes up with something that can record TV shows (Maybe HD quality) to the mac and then upload to ipod BEFORE TiVo announces TiVoToGo for mac.

All that yr n half of hard work down the drain?

[babasyzygy @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Yeah, right.

And they were going to bring non-DRMed AAC support to the TiVoDesktop in mid-2003, too. Oh, what's that, they don't *support* TiVoDesktop on the current Mac OS X?

Not holding *my* breath...

[Dave Zatz @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Joshua, I believe DirectShow was used as a convenience because TiVo has had PC experts on hand. There's no reason why they can't decrypt the video on other OS-es - they just need someone with the expertise to build the widget to strip out the gunk. Afterall, they are encrypting the MPEG2 on a Linux box! Actually, I think removing the encryption is easy... The delay is in protecting that content by only streaming it -- not leaving the unencrypted files sitting around the hard drive.

[jacob santiago @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

who cares about tivo to go.I get all my shows of my dvr and onto a my ipod now using a mac.And its really simple,
tivo are so behind on things and such losers

[dalton @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Too little, too late. TiVo has really missed out on this one, as well all of the other gaffes in the last 12 - 18 months, what with the broadcast flag mix up, bad upgrades, screwy wireless, etc.

Even their new partnership with Yahoo seems pretty useless. I think it was Alex from Diggnation that said - "I could do that on my X Box Media Center years ago!"

I know that I'll be looking for a different DVR when the time comes to replace my TiVo. I don't think that the DirecTV equipment is all that great, so it will probably be Windows Media, or, we can only hope, Mac based.

[Dale @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

I love TiVo, but they are 2+ years behind. Apple will have a killer solution long before they get this clunky 'ToGo' rollin'.

Bye bye, TiVo . . . I will set you on my shelf next to my beloved Palm as once-glorious products lost in the shuffle of lazy decision-making.

[Jakob van Santen @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Why wait around for Tivo? Elgato's eyeTV does this now:

http://www.elgato.com/index.php?file=products_eyetvmain

[tanda @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Tivo2go is a nice idea, but in practive it's just a pain for me. It's very slow. First, transfer the program over 802.11b which takes 30 min for one 30 min program. Then strip the DRM. Encode for your device or end format. Oh yeah, edit out the commercials. Move to your device of choice. It's hours. PITA.

[Alex @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Wait, I swear there was a little thing happening to Macs called INTEL next year

So what's that, another year and a half to make it Intel compatible?

[Willrad @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

"So what's that, another year and a half to make it Intel compatible?"

Actually, since they're working on it right now, it's probably already Intel-compatible. The development tools handle all that junk for you.

[mark smith @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Too little, too late. I'm getting a Hauppage 250 for Christmas and my MythTV box will be functional. I'll be getting/ordering a Mac PVR the DAY it is announced, not the week or month. And I'll be too happy to trash my Series 2. (Or put it on the free Basic service with no season passes)

[The Jeremy @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

DirectShow Dump works great. However, what really sucks is that the stripped MPEG-2 file doesn't play nice on Macs (without purchasing the QuickTime MPEG-2 package) or burnt to a DVD to play on the Philips DVP-642 DVD player. Of course, maybe it was the fact that I had it burnt on a Fuji DVD-RW disc that the Philips player might not have particularly liked. I had wanted to import the video into iMovie to edit, but alas, that was a no go without the MPEG-2 package and some other programs to convert the file into DV-format. Not a lot of fun, lemme tell ya.

As for TiVo-2-Go not working with OS X, just use the WindowsPC you are "switching from" as your go between with your TiVo.

[Veronica @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

"Too little, too late. I'm getting a Hauppage 250 for Christmas and my MythTV box will be functional. I'll be getting/ordering a Mac PVR the DAY it is announced, not the week or month. And I'll be too happy to trash my Series 2. (Or put it on the free Basic service with no season passes)"

I agree. The second I heard the Apple DVR rumor, all my desire to own a TiVo dried up. TiVo has their heart in the right place, but I'm sick of feeling like a second class citizen when it comes to owning a Mac and having it be compatible with... anything. It's our cross to bear, I suppose. ;)

[LordJohnWhorfin @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Why wait for a DRM-riddled solution when a fast, reliable, DRM-free tool is already available? http://www.tivotool.com

[joEz @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Mac user don't need that... Most of them are victims of Itune alright. So they would rather pay the 2$ per download. lol...

[Veronica @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

I had some hope for TivoTool, except for the fact that it requires Panther to run the Series 2 TiVo on a Mac. Annoying. I don't have the time or the impetus to put Panther on a partition, nor the funds to get a new machine. Boo! Make things easier for me, I am very lazy.

[Silver @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Heh, mid-2006 eh? That's about the time I plan on burying my TiVo and replacing it with whatever Apple has up its sleeve. TiVo has been stuck in time for far too long. And their Mac neglect has me bitter and cranky.

Thanks for the memories, TiVo. Goodbye.