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Rating: - Excellent DVR.
After our local cable company "upgraded" the firmware on the DVR we were renting from them, it became obvious that it was time to look at alternatives.

After reading many reviews, I decided to get the Series3. It is an excellent DVR. TiVos in general have been covered in many reviews, but here are the big things I've noticed:

Plusses:

* Swivel Search is really nice and lets you find programs pretty easily.

* It learns what you like quickly and starts recording extra suggestions.

* The interface is fast except when you re-shuffle some of your recording priorities.

* The front display is excellent: It's really neat to be able to see what it's recording at all times.

Minues:

* Some programs (e.g. The Daily Show/Colbert Report) don't set the new/re-run status, and TiVo records the extraneous during the day showings.

* the cable company DVR had the ability to keep a program playing in a window(either live or recorded) while looking at the list of recorded programs. With recent firmware, the TiVo can do this with the program guide (as an overlay, not a window), but doesn't seem to do it with the Now Playing list or parts of the UI.

* My cable company won't let me have most of my HD channels unless I rent either their HD-DVR or their cheaper cable-box, despite the fact that I have the TiVo and CableCards rented.

Other things to note:
* It's a little disconcerting to not have an on/off switch.

* The TiVo-To-Go works, but it doesn't seem to send copyrighted shows (i.e. 99% of content) to the PC. The other way (PC -> TiVo) works great. This might be user error on my part, I haven't investigated thoroughly. It does automatically convert into iPod format and load it up onto my iPod.

Overall, it is an excellent device. It is a little expensive though.

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Rating: - TIVO USED WITHOUT TV CONNECTION
I purchased the unit for organizing my videos and connecting to utube. I have directtv service so I cant use the tv options. I now have all my audio, video and music files stored on the unit. Access has never been easier.It does a perfect job and with the $200 discount well worth the money. All my media is organized perfectly.

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Rating: - No complaints
After owning a Series 1 SVR2000 for over 9 years that still works great (and regretting not having purchased the lifetime membership) I finally decided to buy this Series 3 to be able to record HD programming. It delivers the same straightforward experience I was used to with my Series 1, and the universal remote now has more features. My big concern was getting the 2 cablecards working since I had read many online horror stories before getting the Tivo and was bracing myself, but either the cable compaines have improved or I got lucky because the dual cablecard setup was painless and took under 15 minutes. IMO, the Tivo Series 3 is not a device you can't live without, so I'd wait until there's a special price for either the device, the lifetime membership service or both.

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Rating: - I'm overjoyed with the Series 3 capabilities
I've owned a TiVo for over 8 and a half years and can no longer live without one. It's what I've wanted all my TV-watching life. I recently bought an HD TV and needed to upgrade to an HD TiVo in order to take advantage of the new HD resolution.

While waiting for the HD TiVo to arrive, I got an HD cable box recorder from Time Warner. It did the job but was difficult to use and I filled it up half way in about a week. But it worked in a pinch. It's like comparing an old cell phone with an iPhone. They both make calls, but there's no comparison beyond that as far as ease of use. No one can compare with TiVo for that.

My existing Tivo was old technology, but I had upgraded it with larger hard drives (started with only 14 hour capacity but now have 300 hours) and an internet connection for downloading TV shows through various hacks. Still, I have been missing out on the latest TiVo technology.

The HD Tivo is amazing! I'm glad I was able to wait until the Series 3 HD version was available. HD capability is a must for me now, and the Series 3 lets you add an extra hard drive for more capacity without having to hack it! In fact, the new TiVo does almost EVERYTHING I used to do with my old hacked TiVo--and more--without the need for hacking.

You are legally allowed to download TV shows from your TiVo to your computer and convert them for your iPod or even burn them to DVDs (for your own use!). You are also allowed to UPLOAD your own movies or TV show episodes to your TiVo for easy viewing)! And you can rent movies and have them loaded onto your TiVo for you. It will also show photos and play music from your computer. You can schedule recordings for your unit from the TiVo web site from any web browser. This is everything you would want, and more--and all without hacking! And it all works on my Mac (PCs, too, of course).

Also, I didn't know what I was missing by not having a dual-tuner recorder all this time. I have very few recording conflicts now and usually shows record without me even knowing that it's happened. With two cable cards installed from my cable company, I no longer need my cable box (that saves me about $8/month). The TiVo can run everything and change channels instantly--no more IR blaster hanging in front of the cable box to change channels (or miss changing, occasionally). There's a little display on the front of the unit that shows the name of the TV shows currently being recorded, along with a clock. Neat!

There are even a few games on the TiVo you can play using the remote!

Best of all, the lifetime subscription is available again (at a discount if you already have a TiVo). And the price of the recorder has dropped substantially ($200 rebate coupons are regularly available). This makes it very affordable for the function. After all, this is a device that I use every day and it's working for me 24-hours a day, searching for shows I may like -- suggestions to fill any free space it may have. There's ALWAYS something good on TV with the TiVo on the job. And now, it's in high-def.

The HD video takes up quite a bit more space than standard definition, however. The 30 hours of HD (or 300 standard) weren't going to be enough for me, so I also got the expansion drive for about $150, which gives about 60 more hours of HD. I haven't needed it, but probably will soon (once you connect it, it's there for life--so I'm waiting until I'm full).

Anyway, I don't see how you can go wrong with this. I wish my old TV had broken earlier so I could have lived in this luxury sooner. I've had mine for a couple of weeks now and I'm just overjoyed with it.

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Rating: - High-tech marvel !!
This box is simply outstanding. As a Tivo enthusiast I was already familiar with the great service features and my old Series 2 has served faithfully. I'd researched before buying the Series 3HD but still I was unprepared for just how cool this thing really is. With two CableCards installed and both Tivo boxes wireless networked I can watch a recorded program, transfer a program, and record a favorite -- simultaneuosly!!
The video quality is greatly improved coming through the 3HD -- even regular TV looks better.

My one gripe is that I was forced to by the Tivo wireless USB adapter.
I had a perfectly good Linksys G but the Series 3 box only supports its own adapter(a discounted $40 @ Amazon, by the way).

All in all I am very pleased with Series 3 HD and glad that I started building my new home theater system with it as a key component.