Tivo Premiere TCD746320 Review- Legit or Loser?

The TiVo premiere TCD 746320 DVR is a fantastic single device that does everything you need a digital video recorder to do. Some of its features include a dual tuner with a powerful processor, the ability to decode QAM cable or premium cable. You will need a cablecard from you cable provider for premium cable.

Best of all, the Tivo Series 4 can be connected to an antenna so you can receive your signals free! These free over the air broadcasts (OTA) in both ATSC and NTSC are often in high definition 1080p and, did I mention, FREE. The Tivo Premier HD processes these signals with ease and in my experience; the Tivo TV tuners hold the signal in tune better than any I have tested.

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It also has a number of streaming services available. Those include Netflix, Hulu Plus which at the time of this review comes with six months free subscription, Pandora, Amazon instant video, You Tube, Blockbuster instant video to name a few. I have had my new Tivo for four months.

I purchased it when I decided to “Cut the Cord” and cancel my bundled Internet TV and cable service. It is the best choice I have made a long time. I now have more reliable higher quality content available. I can watch it when I want. I have had no problems, but I take comfort in knowing that TiVo’s customer service is among the best in the industry. Compare that to AT&T or Time Warner, if you can actually get through and talk to somebody in America.

Tivo Premier TCD746320

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I am a bit of a Techie nerd so I first attempted to go the PC route, put tuner card in my computer, used Windows Media Center, and connected to my television using an HDMI cord, thus creating my own DVR. It worked. The problem was I used my PC in my office and needed a solution for the living room. I saw an ad for Ti vo, saw how inexpensive it was and that they had a 90 day free return, so I figured I would try.

I bought a Tivo Premiere TCD746320 for $79. I already had an old Series 2 Tivo with Tivo lifetime service in the garage; the previous owners of the home left it. I read on the Tivo website that I could get a discount on the Tivo service from $19.99 per month to $15.99 per month if I hooked up that other box, which I did. I paired it with the digital converter box, Zinwell ZAT-970A Digital to Analog TV Converter Box, so that it was able to receive the digital broadcasts. Tivo also discounts the Tivo Lifetime Service from $499 to $399 if you have another Tivo activated.

I Ordered Mine and…

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I ordered my TiVo premiere and received it three days later. The set up was very easy to do. I followed instructions and it began to work immediately. I got an e-mail from TiVo saying that it was eligible for six months of Hulu Plus service free. However, my TiVo did not have Hulu Plus. I contacted TiVo. They walked me through the firmware upgrade. It was very easy and took less than 15 minutes on the phone and now I have Hulu Plus free for six months. In addition, I have a Netflix subscription, streaming only since they increased the cost of DVD’s.

So all my subscription services that are:

• $15 for TiVo
• $8 for Netflix
• Hulu Plus is free for six months, $8 if I choose to keep it.

Obviously, I need broadband service in order to receive the internet content Netflix, Hulu Plus, Pandora, Block Buster, YouTube etc. A minimum of 7Mbs download speed is necessary to receive Netflix reliably. I went ahead and upped my bandwidth to 15Mbs. The monthly fee from AT&T Universe for that is $40 per month.

Add it all up;

• $40 for internet,
• $15 for TiVo
• $8 for Netflix

That’s $63 a month. I use my cell phone and Skype for phone service. Whereas my bundled service from AT&T U-verse had reached $141 per month. I am now spending $63.

That is a savings of $78 a month! I could not be happier.

Tivo Premiere TCD746320 Netflix menu

In four months, I have had no reliability issues at all with the TiVo. It works every time, every time, every time. The tuners built into the TiVo premiere are exceptional. I get more channels and I did with my computer. The picture is fantastic 1080p quality. My TiVo suggests to me things that I would not otherwise have known to record. The user interface on the TiVo is the easiest and simplest of any I have seen, it is better and more intuitive than cable or Windows Media Center. Tivo videos of tips and tricks are available to help me get even more out of the Tivo Premier.

A Negative Point about the Tivo Premiere and it’s Hard Drive

The premiere comes with 45 hours HD recording capacity, which, if there is any drawback to my set up, is that 45 hours may seem like a lot, but it really is not. I have two choices to change that, the first is I can purchase the TiVo approved Western Digital My DVR Expander 500GB or 1 TB external drive or I can install, with the considerable effort, a two terabyte Western Digital Caviar Green AV Hard Drive into the TiVo box. There are plenty of how-to’s on how to do it on the Internet. However, that action will void the TiVo warranty. I have not decided which one I am going to do yet.

 Tivo Premiere- in conclusion

So if you are tired of dealing with the big cable company’s lack of service and high cost. I suggest that you “Cut the Cord” today. By far the easiest and simplest solution is the TiVo Premiere TCD746320. Buy yourself a good antenna, subscribe to Netflix and/or Hulu Plus you will save on average $70 per month you have better service more content available, and an overall better experience.

The TiVo Series 4 Premiere or the Tivo Premiere XL is The Ultimate Cut the Cord Solution. Get yours today.