Last day for TiVo lifetime plan signups

Not to beat a dying horse or anything, but we just thought we'd let you know that today is the last day for TiVo owners to sign up for the service's lifetime plan (though there is an exception for some owners of older boxes that gives you until April 15th). So, if you have a TiVo box, or can pick one up prior to 8PM Pacific Time today, you'll be able to sign up for life (that's the lifetime of the box, not of the owner, so forget about signing up your 6-month-old kid and keeping your TiVo service going for the next 90 years).

[Steve @ Mar 16th 2006 12:54PM]

OH.. thanks for the heads up on the gift card.. because the way I was reading it. I would lose the next 10 months of my 12 month gift card if I bought a Lifetime right now (unless i'm still reading it wrong). If someone can confirm my reading before the end of day.. I'll be getting the lifetime tonight on the way home.
Steve

[Robert @ Mar 16th 2006 1:41PM]

Uh... Lifetime + 10 months = Lifetime! Think about it. What would you be losing exactly?

[StuBee @ Mar 16th 2006 1:47PM]

well..any box purchased prior to today still has a month to get lifetime. You just have to make a phone call instead of activate via their website.

[Steve @ Mar 16th 2006 2:01PM]

Let me correct myself... I don't want to see 10 months left on subscription going to waste, unless they will credit it towards the lifetime subscription. Yes, it would be a double purchase, but the 12 month was an x-mas gift.

So I might try to call them and see if they will credit it towards the Lifetime...

[oldschool @ Mar 16th 2006 2:27PM]

Lifetime is a word used by companies in different ways. For example, 3Com used to offer a real lifetime warranty. Now it means about 3years, although it is still a lifetime (of the product). So the lifetime subscription could be over as soon as the next-gen equipment comes out.

[StuBee @ Mar 16th 2006 2:39PM]

oldschool:
Lifetime in the Tivo contract refers to lifetime of the unit (ie as long as it functions). Not until the next product is released.

[Adam Simon @ Mar 16th 2006 3:03PM]

Acccording to the Terms of Service, those Lifetime Subscription Gift Cards don't expire ever in California, Massachusetts, and anywhere else where it's prohibited by law. So, if you live in an eligible state, you could theoretically hang on to it indefinitely and they'd still have to honor it.

[Adam Simon @ Mar 16th 2006 3:04PM]

Oops, here's the link to the Terms of Service: http://www.tivo.com/2.0.tsandcs.asp#GSTC

[Steve @ Mar 16th 2006 5:00PM]

From the Manage Account page when you log into Tivo:

"SPECIAL NOTE RE: GIFT SUBSCRIPTIONS: Did you activate TiVo service with a monthly gift subscription? If so, you will be charged the price of Product Lifetime service less the unused balance of your gift subscription."

[Joe @ Mar 16th 2006 5:46PM]

I have a series 1 TiVo with an upgraded hard-drive. The only part that I see breaking down is the hard drive, and I can replace that. So why is it unreasonable to think that I could continue using the same lifetime subscription 90 years or more?

[Richard @ Mar 16th 2006 6:29PM]

Would your contents insurance cover you to get a new sub if your box is destroyed?

[SideSwipe @ Mar 16th 2006 7:52PM]

I bought a Tivo 2 weeks ago (80hr series 2 on their special $70 deal when you subscribe for 1 year of monthly), and I decided to upgrade to the lifetime. After only having had it in use for 1 week, already I can tell that it will be worth my while to pay an additional $150 (less than the cost of another year's service) and have a lifetime of service.

If the drive dies, I can replace it. If I upgrade it and sell it on eBay later, the lifetime subscription goes with it, that makes for better resale. Somebody will want it - people buy all sorts of crazy sh!t on eBay every day! :)

[Kiran Wagle @ Mar 17th 2006 2:05AM]

"Most people are getting [lifetime subscription cards] to save them until the Series 3 units come out. "

IF the Series 3 come out. HOW long ago did they display the HD TiVo reference platform? (See below. I especially like the cool blue faceplate.)

If I believed there were even a slight likelihood of a Series 3 coming out before the beginning of fall TV season, I might buy one of these cards. Had I bought one when the HD reference platform was announced, TiVo would have had an interest-free loan for three years and counting. At $7 per additional unit (I'm very glad I bought lifetime for my SVR3000 :-)) that $300 will pay for 3.5 years of monthly service, and in 3.5 years there will certainly be a Series 4 to replace it... yeah, right.

Buying $300 lifetime subscription cards for hardware that was promised three years ago reminds me of the time a financial analyst was asked how people could lessen their risk when buying tickets on failing airlines. His refreshingly straightforward and unequivocal answer was "Don't loan money to bankrupt companies! That's just plain stupid." TiVo isn't bankrupt yet, but they certainly haven't produced anything exciting or new since the new (and admittedly extremely cool) startup animation a few years ago.

http://www.pbase.com/image/10792288

"January 9, 2003--Consumer Electronics Show, Las Vegas, NV--TiVo today announced it has developed the first DVR platform that supports recording in HDTV formats. The reference design will be licensed to leading CE manufacturers who are expected to offer the new DVR to consumers by the end of the year."

~ Kiran

[chad @ Mar 17th 2006 8:54AM]

I've purchased 6 tivos to date, for myself, friends, and family, and I have yet to purchase a lifetime subscription. Of those TiVo's, I pay the monthly subscription for all but one of the units still active.

Also, I have yet to have a single unit last 3 years.

The unit that I purchased for my parents went almost exactly 23 months (roughly, the break point) before dying. My frist unit died about 3 months after the warranty expired, and the repair fee was exactly equal to the cost of a new unit -- because, I found out, the repair proceedure was to mail me a new unit.

I have had *mostly* one unit for several years now, because I upgraded the drive in the unit the first time it died.

Combining my experiences with that of my various friends with TiVo, I think that the lifetime subscription is slightly cheaper, on the order ot 1-3 months subscription cost, given the MTBF of the TiVo Series 2 units; of course, that doesn't factor in the cost of paying up front.

All in all, I can't recommend people buy a lifetime subscription in general. I'm considering buying a subscription card now, because I live in MA, and I'll be able to save the card to apply to a Serires 3 device, or in case TiVo raises the subscription fees.

[Marlon Deason @ Apr 3rd 2006 10:22PM]

Has anyone else notice a few shifty new 'features' of the latest Tivo service update? I now get canned messages every other day pointed out features that I already know about. When my Tivo receives the message it resets my 30 second skip settings. Extremely annoying, since now when you enter the 30-second skip code the Tivo changes the channel to '30' (and deletes your live TV/instant replay recording of what you where watching).

Another asinine new 'feature' is the screenful of advertisements for Yahoo! er,... I mean new features which burry the original 'Music' and 'Photos' in the "Music, Photos & More' menu.

Hopefully there are a few lawyers out there who would love to get a class action suit together regarding this.