Comcast begins long-awaited rollout of TiVo set-top-box

It was hard not to doubt yet another seemingly baseless promise heard just this week, but apparently, things have finally fell into place for Comcast and TiVo. According to TiVo spokesman Whit Clay, the New England market of Comcast users can now get their hands on TiVo STBs, as the operator has at long last "begun the commercial rollout of its first cable set-top-boxes that run TiVo's digital video recording technology." Unfortunately, that's all the nitty gritty that has been unveiled thus far, but we'll keep an ear to the ground for further details.

[Aaron @ Oct 11th 2007 5:05PM]

PLEASE come to the Seattle area and QUICKLY. I friggin HATE our DVR software.

[Brymo @ Oct 11th 2007 5:12PM]

I agree!

I was just in the store looking for TiVo, and with yesterdays news, and todays. I will wait it out.

It couldn't take that much longer to get over here!

[Miguel @ Oct 11th 2007 5:31PM]

Amen! The last software update that was pushed to the box a few months ago made it even worse, which was hard to imagine. The UI is still ugly as possible, and the lag on the signal has be jumping between five channels in the course of 2 seconds after a minute of waiting for it to process my first request.

[Neal @ Oct 11th 2007 5:47PM]

Why oh why they got rid of the "powered by Microsoft" software on their Seattle area boxes is beyond me.

+1 this last Comcast update in the Seattle area is utter CRAP. Unresponsive to the remote for 10+ seconds at a time, no more seek buffer so that when you stop fast forward it plays from a few seconds earlier, horrible search and menu now, totally craptastical interface.

Please roll out the TiVo boxes nationwide soon! I love having a HD recorder, but 120G drive is getting small feeling too :)

[cbellevie @ Oct 11th 2007 5:51PM]

couldn't believe how bad the 'update' was to the seattle area software. lags, horrible ui, dvr says 50% when its actually 100%, dvr control (ff/rw) are just horrible, etc etc.

it was my understanding that only this region was running the microsoft software before the update, meaning that the rest of comcast users were using this software?

ack.

[Neal @ Oct 11th 2007 6:00PM]

Yes, this is the pain the rest of the nation has had to deal with and use, the Seattle area was a test bed for the Microsoft software on Comcast's DVR's. For whatever reason, Comcast decided to nix the whole thing and roll everyone on this crap.

With the MS powered software you could:
- Create a 'favorites' channel list to edit out channels you don't get or want to see

- FF/RW would work smoothly and buffer what you saw, so when you hit play as soon as you saw the show start after a commercial, it would be right before the show came back on, rather than where you saw it when you hit play, no need to back up.

- One touch record a show you are watching, no need to go into the menu and setup an entire record scheme for something you have been watching and wanted to save.

- Turn off the DVR even while it's recording, the box would sleep, but the tuner was still on and the HDD was recording the shows.

- MUCH better menu's, search features, etc.

Not knowing this is what everyone else with Comcast had, I didn't know why TiVo was so popular - NOW I do...

[edgore @ Oct 11th 2007 5:05PM]

Argh, I want it so badly. Why isn't Colorado in New England?!?

[tbville @ Oct 11th 2007 5:16PM]

i called customer support and they had no idea about this, they tried to sell me a dvr, which I already have, he then put me on hold to go get more info after I told him they rolled these out in New England. After being on hold he still had no more info, about this.

Wow always great customer service from comcast

[NHAnimator @ Oct 12th 2007 9:02AM]

Win the NLCS and we'll let the Rockies come to Fenway. (Though they may be sorry they did.)

[Kevin @ Oct 11th 2007 5:13PM]

I live in Massachusetts and I'd really like to know what this is going to cost me.
And will they be offering an HD TiVo box?

I got some Q's that need A's...

[rhogan @ Oct 11th 2007 5:19PM]

From what i've heard they will not be offering Tivo's STBs themselves. They will have Tivo software running on the standard Motorola boxes, which do come in an HD variety.

[Tim @ Oct 11th 2007 5:15PM]

Set-Top-Boxes. Do people really set any boxes on their TVs anymore? Its not like any of us still own a console TV. Even the decade old 4:3 TVs don't have enough room for these devices on top. Is it just me or do we need a new name for these devices? A new term is especially needed since more people will be using these devices once digital TV signals are mandatory.

[Jon @ Oct 11th 2007 5:18PM]

Set top box ? i thought it was just going to be software .. I live in Western Ma .. So i hope the kick it out soon

[Sean DL @ Oct 14th 2007 2:16AM]

No, Comcast wants you to buy a new box, That way know to charge you more for the Tivo service vs the regular DVR service now.

The "regular service" will still be around as long as people have the "old" boxes.

[J @ Oct 11th 2007 5:21PM]

Thank God. Even if the software is a disaster, the current offering from Comcast is hands down the worst DVR I have ever used. Literally a disaster. Some highlights:

The FF, RR and Play buttons don't work, they are only for on demand, you need to use the non-intuitive left right and center arrow pad

The box does not have an option to start a program at the beginning, you need to go into the program and rewind. (If it is currently recording)

Season pass feature gets at best 50% of the episodes you want

And best of all... if you turn off the box, it doesn't record any shows. It goes into standby. You need to leave the box on all the time. Don't hit power by accident.

[rhogan @ Oct 11th 2007 5:23PM]

My FF, RR, and play work for the dvr...but i wholeheartedly agree that the motorola boxes suck horribly.

[edgore @ Oct 11th 2007 5:27PM]

While the Comcast DVR software is awful, and was certainly forged in the bowels of perdition by the vile and the damned, I think that you might have a bad box or something. Mine has working fast forward, etc, has a start at the beginning option when playing a show and records when in standby.

The main problems I have are that it records tons of non-first run shows and it is the ugliest interface I have ever seen.

[Lemmiwinks @ Oct 11th 2007 5:32PM]

I think you've got a faulty box and/or remote.

"The FF, RR and Play buttons don't work, they are only for on demand, you need to use the non-intuitive left right and center arrow pad"

My box uses those buttons in addition to the arrow pad.

"The box does not have an option to start a program at the beginning, you need to go into the program and rewind. (If it is currently recording)"

Really? Maybe we have different software here in SF. The menu option that looks like "|

[Lemmiwinks @ Oct 11th 2007 5:34PM]

I think you've got a faulty box and/or remote.

"The FF, RR and Play buttons don't work, they are only for on demand, you need to use the non-intuitive left right and center arrow pad"

My box uses those buttons in addition to the arrow pad.

"The box does not have an option to start a program at the beginning, you need to go into the program and rewind. (If it is currently recording)"

Really? Maybe we have different software here in SF. The menu option that looks like "|-" brings my shows to the beginning whether they're recording or not.

"Season pass feature gets at best 50% of the episodes you want"

Just the opposite for me. When I ask for it to record only new episodes of a show like The Colbert Report, it ends up recording every friggin "new" rerun the next day anyway.

"And best of all... if you turn off the box, it doesn't record any shows. It goes into standby. You need to leave the box on all the time."

This, mine does as well. So stupid. Even my old ReplayTV would keep recording when it was in standby. (That was the only way you could record one program and watch another live.)

[J @ Oct 11th 2007 5:42PM]

I agree the remote may be mapped incorrectly - but the rest is definitely a box issue.

I've seen other Comcast software and other Motorola boxes that doesn't have this problem, but everyone one of the neighbors who has this box also doesn't have the "Start at beginning" option. Just sucks.

It's not uncommon for the "same" cable operator to have different versions of the software on various STBs throughout their network. I say the "same" because many cable operators (Charter is a good example) are just many companies cobbled together under one name, sharing only marketing and no actual infrastructure.

[Jean @ Oct 13th 2007 6:30AM]

You need a new box. shutting the box off shouldn't do any of those things, I have 5 dvr's at my house and non of them do those things. at least not in New England. trust me, I'm a Comcast tech. but honestly, I'm not a fan of our dvr software. I cant wait for the TiVo software upgrade, I wasn't fortunate enough to be a part of the beta testing though, I just hope we didnt brand the hell out of it.

[Mattso @ Oct 11th 2007 5:29PM]

From the article: "Comcast, the nation's largest cable TV provider, has said it will continue to offer its basic DVR service; the TiVo-based offering will be a premium service. Pricing details were not immediately available."

I thought it was replacing the current DVR software via a software update. I'm a little disappointed. I would pay a LITTLE bit more for tivo, but I'm talkin no more than $5/month more. As much as I think the current offering is sub par, I'm simply not willing to give Comcast too much more of my money.

[Sean DL @ Oct 14th 2007 2:18AM]

From what I read, it shouldn't be more then 8 dollars a month(2 dollars more then the regular DVR).

[edgore @ Oct 11th 2007 5:49PM]

When someone gets their hands on the upgrade, could you comment about the following?

Is it possible to edit the channel list? This bugs the hell out of me with the Comcast software. I will NEVER watch a PPV sports channel and don't want them on my guide. Same for freaking home shopping, music channels and non-HD versions of HD channels.

How you got the upgrade? Who did you call, how did the install happen, etc.

Does it look like the guide information is from Tivo or Comcast? I think half of the problem with the Comcast DVR are a result of grappy guide tagging at Comcast. Although some of the show descriptions are hilarious...

[Jordan Marton @ Oct 11th 2007 6:17PM]

I just called Comcast (Boston, MA), they said it still has not rolled out and they don't have the ability to add the Tivo option to accounts. The guy said another month or so.

[rlynd3 @ Oct 11th 2007 6:24PM]

DITTO!!! I can't believe this was called an "Upgrade." I'm a little tired of fastwording then rewinging after the break...

I just got off the phone with a sales rep in the seattle area who said they are planning the roll-out for late november to mid december depending on the test markets (New England) results. Lets all bow are heads and pray to the tivo gods that this is true. :)

[Walter Burke @ Oct 11th 2007 7:26PM]

I live in the Boston area. I just called Comcast and the first agent didn't understand the difference between tivo service and a dvr. He then forwarded me to technical support. This agent understood the difference between the two and put me on a priority list for the Tivo service. The agent didn't have any details however in regards to price or when it was going to be rolled out to my area.

[Nick Catalano @ Oct 11th 2007 8:26PM]

Please. Please. PLEASE hurry up with the Chicago Market!

Comcast DVRs have to be the worst product I have ever used, but I don't feel like paying even more for TiVO. This is going to be perfect!

[Matt @ Oct 11th 2007 9:22PM]

I'm in Philly, Comcast Central, and I called to ask when they would be rolling out the service. The response was " We currently offer DVR service, so it is out already" and then proceeded to inform me that I would need to go buy a Tivo box in order to get the service. Unbelievable.

[strangefate @ Oct 12th 2007 3:23AM]

Yeah, that doesn't surprise me. Comcast's customer support is terrible. I also live in the Philly area by the way. I've called Comcast about TiVo before, most recently being a couple of months ago and the guy I spoke to was trying to find out when it would roll out. After about 5 minutes of searching, he said "Wait a minute, I just realized, you're talking about TiVo. We have DVR, but we don't have TiVo. That is something else you would have to buy a TiVo box for." Then I explained to him that a couple of years ago the company that he works for made a deal with TiVo to offer it to customers.


Also in the past with Comcast, I had asked about a firmware update to those god-awful Motorola boxes. Problem was that the HDMI Out wouldn't transmit audio through another receiver (my HTIB). I bought a HTIB with an HDMI In for this reason. After reading about this online, I learned there was a firmware update for the box that fixed this. I wanted to know when this update would reach my box. The woman I spoke to did not know what firmware was nor could she locate ANYONE on her floor that knew what it was. Infact, she acted to me as if I had no idea what I was talking about and had perhaps mistaken or made up a term.

[Sean DL @ Oct 14th 2007 2:22AM]

They are only trained to deal with what Comcast has in the area. Speculative things they'll have in the future isn't there job.

You might find a person or two who's a gadget geek like you who'll be in the know, but most of them are only there to get paid to do there job, which is to help people who are having problems with the service they have..

[Frank @ Oct 25th 2007 10:03AM]

Same here. I expected nothing less from Comcast. I'm going to ignore this new feature and just go get a stand alone tivo like I had been planning to.

[Darkest Daze @ Oct 12th 2007 12:38AM]

If these will be priced decently, I may be very interested, especially with all the features Tivo's added since we ditched their service 4 years ago. Plus, the basic Comcast DVR service sucks fairly hard.

[Vexorg @ Oct 12th 2007 4:26AM]

I didn't know it was possible to make anything worse than the MSTV software they used to run in the Seattle area for DVRs until they rolled out the other stuff. If I had any viable alternatives to Comcast (I don't have line of sight for satellite TV, and FIOS probably isn't going to reach here for several years) I would have dumped Comcast long ago.

[NHAnimator @ Oct 12th 2007 9:13AM]

Just called Comcast from here in NH. They stated that they are starting to roll out new boxes, but only for their SD (Pace) units. Agent expected to see HD (Motorola) units by the end of the year. Said she was not expecting any new charges.

[skinner6695 @ Oct 12th 2007 1:25PM]

I just went to Comcast office in souhtern NH. The tech said he had the Tivo update on a 3416 but wasnt sure if would work on a 3412. Will find out as I have 2 new 3416s I just picked up M cards and all with the a new front also a lil bigger. I have had a 3412 for awhile.

[Chuck @ Oct 12th 2007 8:22PM]

Couldn't wait any longer. Bought the Tivo Series 3 HD box and am much happier. Final straw was one day when I couldn't tune in Heroes for almost 4 minutes because the darn Motorola box choked again. Besides the cost of the unit itself, I pay about 7 dollars a month more overall, but well worth it. All the other stuff on it is just a bonus

[Sean DL @ Oct 14th 2007 2:24AM]

That is the future of comcast, since the FCC turn them down and told them they HAD to allow people to be albe to buy there own Set Top Boxes(i.e no more renting).

So we'll have peope lwith the comcast Motos and then we'll have people with a Tivo or Sony or Microsoft STB.

[Jake @ Oct 13th 2007 4:12PM]

I just spoke with a Comcast rep, who said that they haven't started distributing Tivo yet. He said that it would be a hardware upgrade (in other words, you'd need a new cable box for it), and it would be a "premium service" (I don't need to tell you what that means with respect to your bill).

There's obviously a lot of confusion here, with various Comcast representatives giving conflicting information. Despite what I was told, my expectation is that it will be a software update to existing hardware, and that it will range from a low additional price for the "standard" Tivo interface to a higher price for "premium" Tivo (all the fancy features--and this might necessitate a new set-top box). We'll see, I guess, but speaking for all the Comcast customers in New England who've been hearing about this for over a year, I wish they would a) get this project going and b) make a clear statement of what the plan is.

[Sean DL @ Oct 14th 2007 2:27AM]

From my memory:

*New STB with TiVo on it.(Still the same Motorola shit)

*Brand New TiVo made Comcast remote.

*DVR service is going up to 8 dollars a month up from 5 dollars.

[Mike @ Oct 26th 2007 12:29PM]

Clearly then, the horrendous menu 'upgrade' that comcrap recently hoisted on us was a calculated business decision to make the upcoming (extra fee) Tivo hybrid more appealing - kind of what I suspected. Nice. I look forward to the day when competition will allow me to dump ALL comcrap services.