Tivo Systems

Hi Woot Staff,
The TiVo Mini being advertised appears to be the old model. What is the difference between this and the new model?

And can Woot confirm this is no additional service fees? The service charge free part seems a new policy by TiVo, right? I do have a Roamio Pro.
BW

Does this include the lifetime service for the mini?

Answering my own question: It looks like the new model offers the same RF remote that the Roamios use.

And it does look like lifetime sub for the Mini is now included in the price (the one I bought 2 years ago required paying an added fee to get that).

So this is that old stock being cleared out for a 33% savings from what the new costs.

Keep in mind that the only reason to buy the low-end Roamio is to use it with an antenna, but Best Buy and Tivo.com sell a $50 model for OTA users. You’re paying $50 for a CableCard slot. If you want the expansion capability just in case, that may be worth it.

Per the features:

Requires subscription to the TiVo service - as low as $12.50/month with annual plan

I know that’s true of the DVRs, TT, but the Mini is more like the Slingbox that’s turned up here occasionally, more of an extender that lets you play videos recorded on Roamios elsewhere in the house on TVs in other rooms. Tivo used to charge for that, but currently says there’s no service charge. Some gadget news sites have said that there’s a new model that has no service charge, while others say there’s no longer a service charge regardless of new or old Minis. I think that’s where the confusion is coming from.

slawson928, the Tivo Mini FAQ currently says

Since this sale goes on for a few more days, you probably have time to contact Tivo and verify if you want, but if nothing else, if Tivo tried to charge you a fee, I’d think the answer to that FAQ would make a good argument for why they shouldn’t. But as a one-TV kind of guy, I can’t promise anything!

Oh derp on me. I quoted from the small TiVo instead of the Mini.

//smacks self on head.

The new Mini’s are $129 including lifetime service.
So these refurbs for $99 if you have to pay the $6/month is a miss. New would pay for itself in <6 months of subscription fees.
As far as the $99 basic vs the $49 OTA only model from BB or mothership. This $99 refurb beyond having the cablecard slot is also eligible for the multi-unit, family,lifetime, and all other subscription discounts. Whereas the $49 OTA only model you are locked into the $15/month full price contract and not eligible for any subscription discounts.
So if like me you are on the $9.99/month plan ( grandfathered ) this $99 refurb is a far better deal than the $49 from BB or mothership with its $15/mo service.

a word of caution. I bought this deal (Tivo Plus) and called tivo to setup. they were happy to activate (ie. take my money) but said the 90day tivo warranty was unknown.

even if you buy directly from Tivo, the refurb warranty is only 30days.

Thus, they said the 90day warranty is something we’d have to “get through amazon”.

Obviously, amazon and tivo not on same page re: 90day warranty.

all that said – tivo rocks.

Can lifetime service be added to these Tivo Roamio’s? Thanks!

STOP - HALT - WARNING - DANGER…

I went for broke - got the DVR and two Minis - in an attempt to cut the cord. They got here within two days - very excited as I was setting them up…

HOWEVER - I was stopped cold when trying to bring up the DVR - it is stuck on the Welcome page - not initializing. I then chatted with Tivo Tech Support and they said:

“You will have to return them to Woot. We don’t know where they got these, but none of them are working.”

So, WOOT - talk to us. What is fu*K with these? What will you do for us to keep in good graces with the Woot Community?

Note - a free bag of crap for suckers who bought these would be nice…

Hope to hear from you soon,

Dave

I’m sorry for the experience you’ve had with yours, but there is no known issue with all the units we’ve shipped. I’ll check in with our team to make sure we speak with TiVo, but it seems like the rep you spoke with was too eager to put the whole blame on us. If you haven’t already, check with our CS team for assistance, you can contact us using the support tab towards the top of the page.