Tivo without a phone

[DBowling]

Is it possible for me to have tivo without a phone line? Anyone done it? info please

[shadow29]

I don't think you can.

My phone line got unplugged going into it and it came up with a thing telling me that I needed to plug in the phone line in order to update the guide information.

[FatMan]

Does TIVO play well with cable boxes? I've heard you need to use an IR blaster some times.

[Paluka]

You can run a series 2 tivo through an ethernet connection, but you still need a phoneline for the initial setup. You can do that at a friend's house though, it is a one time thing.

[Soul Daddy]

Yeah, I think it's more for setup than for any functional purpose. The line that was hooked up to my (DirecTV) Tivo shorted out long ago, and I have had no problems. I get an error message each day saying it needs to make a daily call soon, but those are just words. My guide works, I can order PPV, etc...

[DBowling]

[ QUOTE ]
You can run a series 2 tivo through an ethernet connection, but you still need a phoneline for the initial setup. You can do that at a friend's house though, it is a one time thing.

[/ QUOTE ]

thank you

[Shajen]

I moved my TV and forgot to run a new phone line to it.

There's been a few glitches, but other than getting that annoying message every 24 hours, nothing wrong with the service.

Tivo uses the phone line for billing purposes, etc., not to update the tv guide listing...that's updated through the cable.

It's been about 270 days since I last had the phone line plugged in according to the warning screen I get when I turn on the tv.

You do obviously need it for the initial setup though.

[Freakin]

[ QUOTE ]
Does TIVO play well with cable boxes? I've heard you need to use an IR blaster some times.

[/ QUOTE ]

Newer and older comcast boxes have serial ports. The rest use IR, which has never worked 100% of the time for me.

Freakin

[JPotMaster]

I got a DVR from my cable company, Moxi (http://www.digeo.com/) and am very happy with it. Runs without a phone line. Check with your cable company to see if they offer DVR services

[Freakin]

[ QUOTE ]
I got a DVR from my cable company, Moxi (http://www.digeo.com/) and am very happy with it. Runs without a phone line. Check with your cable company to see if they offer DVR services

[/ QUOTE ]

I can't give up the bweep-boop sounds of my tivo, or the brilliant and easy-to-use scheduling and season pass features. I don't think any other DVR even comes close, and thats what I pay Tivo for.

Freakin

[Sporky]

[ QUOTE ]
Is it possible for me to have tivo without a phone line? Anyone done it? info please

[/ QUOTE ]

absolutely. i have a series 1 sony tivo. basically the first model of the sony tivo that i'm aware of. anyways, i live in florida and apparently during 1 of the 10000 hurricanes we had last year my tivo's modem got blasted. i forgot to unplug the phone line.

luckily, the tivo has a serial port on the back. the tivo comes with a serial cable that goes from the stereo mini-jack in the back to a DB9 connection. you can then set up a special dial code for when the tivo dials and it will communicate out of the serial port instead of the modem. hook it up to your pc's serial port and do some software configuration and you're rocking. i'll admit it was a little bit of a hassle to set up, but it works now and i don't have to touch my setup. there are a lot of guides etc to setting your tivo up this way. google for "tivo ppp" and it should bring up quite a bit of stuff.

[RacersEdge]

That's why I would hate to have a Tevo. They want a phone line to monitor what you watch - then they sell that information to advertisers - and charge YOU for the privilege. I just have a plain DVR from SA.

[Freakin]

[ QUOTE ]
That's why I would hate to have a Tevo. They want a phone line to monitor what you watch - then they sell that information to advertisers - and charge YOU for the privilege. I just have a plain DVR from SA.

[/ QUOTE ]

Are you being serious?

Freakin

[RacersEdge]

Ummmm...yes.

http://news.com.com/2100-1041_3-5154219.html?tag=nefd_lede

[Freakin]

a) This can be done on nearly every addressable cable convertor (like a digital cable box)
b) This can be done on your beloved DVR
c) Who the [censored] cares if Tivo knows that I like 24, Lost, and Seinfeld?

Are you aware that the phone company can see who you call? Or that your ISP can see what pages you are viewing on the internet? A cell phone company can trace your location, a rental car company can tell if you're speeding.

Clearly you don't avoid all those other companies/products, so why do you single out Tivo?

Freakin

[Shajen]

two things:

One, here is a drunk cat smoking a cigarette. That's funny.

http://www.lewrockwell.com/wallace/cat_wasted.jpg

Secondly, how did you make it this far in life without your hat?

http://www.ericsiegmund.com/images/fireant/babs.jpg

[b0000000000m]

You can plug a wireless adapter right into the USB port in the back of the Tivo. (This is obviously only helpful if you have wireless internet).

[mmbt0ne]

</font><blockquote><font class="small">En réponse à:</font><hr />
I can't give up the bweep-boop sounds of my tivo, or the brilliant and easy-to-use scheduling and season pass features. I don't think any other DVR even comes close, and thats what I pay Tivo for.

Freakin

[/ QUOTE ]

We have the Dish Network DVR and it's really nice. Not as nice as Tivo, from what I've seen at friends' houses, but certainly better than anything else out there. You can still set certain shows to record everytime they're on, and and all of the scheduling is done through the regular menu screen of the receiver. Plus, it keeps everything in one box.

[Freakin]

That first pic is awesome. As for the tin-foil hat, I could care less about people watching me do stuff. I use my credit card for many transactions, i signed up for my grocery card with my home address and real name, and I give my phone number at radio shack when buying batteries....

I just am amused by people who are suprised/frightened by the thought that the people of Tivo can see what shows they watch.

Freakin

[Freakin]

[ QUOTE ]
Plus, it keeps everything in one box.

[/ QUOTE ]

Huge advantage over Tivo.

I also like Tivo's online scheduling and TivoToGo features, so I can put Tivo shows on my PSP.

Freakin

[RacersEdge]

These other companies aren't selling your information to third parties. How does the phone company profit by knowing who you call?? Tivo makes money of the people who have signed up - and then these people pay an extra fee for the privilege. You can get the same setup from your cable provider much cheaper - without the tracking algorithms.

But if you like throwing all your information around to whoever wants its, good luck with that.

[Freakin]

So to clarify, your concern is that Tivo is collecting data on you, anonymizing it for sale, then profiting off of it? And for some reason you think that Tivo is the only paid "TV service" that practices this? My point is simply that Tivo is not alone in it's market, and it's market is certainly not alone in the industry. Many companies do this without your consent already. At least you know that Tivo is doing it.

Freakin

[mmbt0ne]

Oh yeah, and happy birthday.

[WC64]

I got a phone line just for my tivo, I dont even have a phone attached and its only 11 bucks a month I believe.