Nielsen, TiVo and Snapstream Media. One of those three is well known for tracking television viewership, but the other two: TiVo and Snapstream Media (makers of the Beyond TV PC DVR software) are not as well known in this realm, but offer a more transparent and relatively useful snapshot of what Television Viewers like you and I are watching. Would you agree that Heroes and The Office are hit shows - at least better than Dancing with the Stars or 60 Minutes? Well you’d likely agree more with TiVo and Beyond TV users.

Since the early 1940’s the television and advertising industries have relied on Nielsen Media Research to measure the popularity and success of television programming. Nielsen continues to be the leading provider of this information and their list of the top TV shows by demographic are consistently highlighted in the media and watched closely by Advertisers and the Television Networks. While I’m still interested in what Nielsen is reporting as the top shows, I’m left wanting more.

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No surprise here — TiVoToGo, Multi-Room Viewing, and external storage have arrived for TiVo Series3 and TiVo HD units (as promised). All you need is system software 9.2 (request it here) and for TiVo to flip the switch on their end. I’m on the road, but looking forward to checking out the transfer features via Slingbox and LogMeIn.

External Storage
Currently, the 5ooGB Western Digital My DVR Expander ($200) is the only “TiVo Verified” external drive - good for about 65 hours of HD content. However, a variety of eSATA drives will work just fine - if you’re looking for more storage or a lower price point, review this thread. FYI The WD drive doesn’t have the TiVo guy on it as pictured (sorry) but should show up at the TiVo store shortly.

Multi-Room Viewing
Video transfers between and amongst both Series2 and HD TiVo units are now available. The only (unsurprising) caveat being that Series2 units are limited to standard def content.

TiVoToGo
TiVoToGo video transfers to computer are also being enabled, including HD content. Current methods for playback and conversion, including the official TiVo Desktop (PC) and Roxio (Mac) software, should work fine.

While most folks haven’t been cleared to receive the Comcast TiVo and pricing still hasn’t been revealed, some lucky New Englanders have the hookup.

But before we get to the exclusive pictures, I’d like to pose a series of questions… How much will the TiVo on Comcast service cost? I’ve heard monthly fees could be anything from $2.95 - $6.95 (additional) or Comcast might even charge a one time DVR “upgrade” fee. Will New England customers receive special pricing (or free service) while Comcast ramps up and builds awareness? Speaking of New England, what’s the time frame for deployment in that region (I’m hearing next month)… and the regions beyond? What hardware will TiVo run on? Two Motorola models were mentioned at CES, but that was prior to the release of Moto’s CableCARD boxes. But the question I’d really like to get answered: Is Firewire video extraction available? (Since, I assume, TiVoToGo will never be available.)

And now, I present the first photos of a deployed Comcast TiVo running on Motorola hardware:

Comcast TiVo Central with PIP and On Demand.

Comcast TiVo Season Pass Manager. Again notice the PIP.

Comcast TiVo Season Pass Options. Notice the HD flag!

Grid guide looks like the Comcast and TiVo UIs have been fused together.

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TiVoBlog reports that TiVo has expanded their Fall Software priority update page to now offer Series3 and TiVo HD owners version 9.2 - you know, the one with official eSATA support. Though TiVo’s still leaving us in the dark regarding those new hard drive partners:

For TiVo Series3 & TiVo HD DVRs the latest release also enables the use of a TiVo Verified storage device. (COMING SOON)

Guess we’ll find out next week… so get your service numbers submitted. Especially if you’ve encountered 9.1 bugs - Megazone indicates they’ve been resolved. Hopefully an update for Series2 units will also be available shortly. Though, last night, a new TiVo HD replaced my bedroom Humax DVD-burning TiVo which has been experiencing newly introduced networking issues.

Every now and then, a study will be released suggesting that DVR owners don’t actually skip very many ads. While I can understand why people would want to watch certain programs live, it’s always hard for me to take this kind of data seriously, because it tracks so differently, from my own DVR experience.

I love being able to time shift my television and take full advantage of my fast forward button. If I absolutely need to see something live, I’ll still wait 20 minutes, just so that I can skip past the commercials. Over the last six years, I’ve been every marketers worst nightmare and yet, there has been one company that I have never been able to block.

Sleeptrain Mattress Centers

It’s not a major company, but this sleepy little company has been able to outsmart the DVR, by exploiting the very fast forward feature, that I love so much.

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Seems like just yesterday (or last month) TiVo began rolling out system software 9.1. And here we are today with 9.2 hitting some units… finally bringing that (official) eSATA storage goodness. I wonder if the rollout was kicked off early given the 9.1 buginess, no updated TiVo support pages, no advance notice from TiVo PR, and just a place holder:

Interested in adding a TiVo Verified storage device to your TiVo HD or Series3? Check back soon for details on this exciting new product.

My living room Series3 wasn’t one of today’s lottery winners. Maybe I’ll have better luck tomorrow. Maybe we’ll also learn if TiVo is providing branded drives or partnering with a Western Digital.

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