• by Michelle Prieb , July 9, 2008

My 2-year-old TiVo's hard drive died an unexpected death a while back, and after several dreadful weeks without any time-delay TV to watch, we broke down and purchased a new box. Although the new model is not the super-fancy TiVo 3, I am discovering that there are many more TiVo features available than I had previously realized. I was seriously underutilizing the functionality of my TiVo!

My past activity was limited to season passes and TiVo Suggestions, but I am impressed by some new(er) features that I never tried (some of which, do, indeed, make TiVo more than just a DVR, as fellow TV Boarder Mitch Oscar mentioned in a recent post): TiVoCast, TiVo software on my laptop to download recorded TV content, accessing music and photos on my TV via home network, Amazon Unbox. These are all things I did not realize I could do through my TV and now I am really excited to try them. I think I knew that I could schedule a season pass or record an episode online, but had never accessed my TiVo account until several days ago. Why? I have no idea, but I will in the future!

However, all is not sunshine and butterflies with the new TiVo box. My new TiVo doesn't know what I like. It doesn't remember my settings, my favorites, my season passes or the shows that I didn't like. As soon as the box was activated online, I had to sit with the remote and search for all of the shows for which I had previously scheduled a season pass. I have also had to delete at least 20 bad "suggestions" each time I go to my "Now Playing" list, because TiVo doesn't remember that I would prefer not to have 10 episodes of "Law and Order: Criminal Intent" or "CSI: Miami"waiting for me each day.

With all of the amazing features I now know TiVo offers that center around networking my TiVo to my computer as well as my online account, why is it that I have to completely reprogram my new TiVo manually to record what I want? If I can modify my Season Pass or To Do list from my online account, why couldn't a backup of my old Season Pass list be available in that same space?

Unless I am missing something (and please do share with me if this feature exists and I am simply unable to find it), all of my settings died with my old TiVo even though they were previously accessible online. I think it would be really valuable if the schedule I establish via TiVo were mirrored or even housed online and synched with the appropriate box, whether it be one I've had forever or a new TiVo box once I upgrade equipment.

This "settings backup" would be useful for a number of reasons indirectly related to my impatience with reprogramming a service I liked before it died. First, it would ease the transition to new and better TiVo equipment because I would be able to preserve my settings. Secondly, it would provide a safety net for TiVo subscribers when equipment fails -- just get your settings online when your new box arrives! Third, I think that being able to synch or download your Season Pass list and settings from your online account would be more consistent with the format that TiVo uses for home network/online account interactivity.

Finally, a feature of this nature might be extended to allow TiVo users to share or recommend Season Passes with other users, much like the system currently provides a channel for sharing home movies with other TiVo users (although sharing Season Passes should not cost, because it encourages use of the system).

Although I really am very excited about trying TiVoCast and all of the other features I only recently discovered I could use with my TiVo, I do wish it recognized me and what I like. I think that is a next step for TiVo to improve functionality and facilitate the move from one piece of TiVo equipment to another. I think I am not the only TiVo user who would welcome such a feature. Am I right?