We were going to purchase the Amazon Recast, but the negative reviews about the interface caused us to go with TIVO. We used to have TIVO with our DirectTV many, many years ago, and liked it a lot. We are cable cutters, and have been for about 6 years now, but never thought to want to be able to record the shows off of the air. We pay for Netflix and Hulu, and have an Amazon Prime account. We have been using an Apple TV for years. The Tivo has mostly taken away the need for the Apple TV. I'll have to see about that one.
I planned to wait to review the TIVO until we'd had it for a while, but I can already tell how much better our TV watching has become. The Tivo found way more channels than our Vizio Smart TV did using the same antenna. Now we have a guide, and the ability to tape shows and fast forward through commercials. It came with HULU and Netflix and Prime Video already loaded, so we just use these apps on the Tivo now. I can't say enough good about the on-screen guide. It's so easy, and we can get a pass to tape all of our favorite shows. The voice control allows us to search for anything without having to type it in. It really works well.
I gotta say, It's all about the interface. The remote and the on-screen guide make it very easy. The annual fee for using the TIVO service is only $69. Quite a bargain. I was going to get a subscription to Sling TV, but I will wait and see if we really need it. We live near LA, so we have access to so much digital content just using the Antenna. If you live somewhere else, check to see what you can get with an antenna before considering the OTA version. It works great for us. I think the only thing left for us to purchase will be Disney+, which is a Hulu add-on as part of a bundle. I already have Hulu, so it will only be a few dollars more a month. We now get all the TV we could ever want for less than $25/month. I don't count Amazon Prime in that because I pay for Prime for other reasons and the TV stuff is just a bonus.
BTW...Installation was really easy. I thought it would take a while, but we hooked up the antenna and the TIVO started up, asked us a few questions and for the internet password to hook up wirelessly to the wifi, then scanned the channels, did a software update and we were done and up and running. I had signed up for Tivo service about 10 minutes prior to setting up the device and when it hooked up to Wifi, already had all of our account info and authorizations. We then had to sign into the Netflix and Hulu accounts, but were up and running in about 20 minutes. It told us it might take a few days to have the guide loaded with up to two weeks of programming, but it seemed like it was working right away.
We couldn't be happier. We went from 3 remotes to 1. So very nice. If anything goes wrong, I will update this review, but I can't imaging finding a problem (unless, of course it dies - then we will be very sad).
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Dead box after only 3 months
92 days after buying the OTA Bolt, it failed (bad hard drive). When calling customer support I was told I would have to pay $49 to have a replacement sent to me while it is still under warrantee. This is the second Tivo box I have had with a hard drive that has failed in less than half a year. Needless to say all the shows and movies I had recorded were toast. I have been with Tivo since 2001, but I can honestly say in the last few years their customer support and product quality has went downhill. There are much better options out there these days, sad to say but I’m finally jumping ship on Tivo. Be wise, look elsewhere for your DVR needs.
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