Gizmo Lovers Blog » THR22

New DirecTiVo THR22 Widely Available

MegaZone — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 08:25:08 +0000

This bit of news broke while I was off on my honeymoon and if this is something you were waiting for your probably already aware of this. While WeaKnees had expected the DirecTiVo to release wide around 1/30, they weren’t off by much. The new TiVo HD DVR from DIRECTV THR22, aka DirecTiVo, officially hit wide release on Thursday 2/9 – though it showed up at a few resellers in the days before the official release.

The THR22 initially launched back on 12/8, but only in limited markets and it was only available directly from DirecTV. Now it is available nationwide from resellers as well as DirecTV. Which also means the super-sized units are available through WeaKnees.

While the THR22 lacks many of the features of the current DirecTV DVRs, if you prefer the TiVo interface it is the only game in town for DirecTV. And that’s enough for some users.

WeaKnees Expects The DirecTV THR22 DirecTiVo Wide Release On 01/30

MegaZone — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 08:29:36 +0000

While the new THR22 DirecTV TiVo HD DVR, aka DirecTiVo, launched last December 8th, it has only been available in limited markets. All we’ve known about general availability is that it was expected in ‘early 2012′. Well now we have an expected date for wide release, according to the WeaKnees Blog, and that is January 30th. WeaKnees has had their super-sized THR22s on pre-order, but until now the release date was still pending. Now they expect the units to start shipping on 1/30.

This isn’t a guarantee, and it is subject to change, you know the drill. But they seem to feel it is a fairly solid date. It it holds true, it should make a lot of people happy.

Supersized THR22 DirecTiVo Available For Pre-Order From WeaKnees

MegaZone — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 02:27:56 +0000

A couple of weeks ago I posted about WeaKnees’s forthcoming upgraded THR22, with up to 2TB of recording capacity. They now have four models of THR22 available for pre-order. The stock 500GB unit, with up to 61 HD hours and 529 SD hours, is $199.99. The three upgraded models start with a 1TB unit with 141 HD/1233 SD hours is $399.99. A 1.5TB unit with 221 HD/1937 SD hours is $499.99. And the top end 2TB unit, with a whopping 302 HD/2641 SD hours recording capacity, is $599.99. They don’t have a ship date yet, but they expect to have their initial allocation toward the end of January or in early February. It is first come, first served, so if you’re interested you should jump on a pre-order. You can cancel at any point before they ship without any penalty.

Current Shipping Status of the THR22 TiVo for DIRECTV
When will these ship from WeaKnees?
DIRECTV has a limited number of these units currently available, and has not yet started shipping to distributors and retailers. We are currently being told that we should have our initial allocation towards the end of January or beginning of February, 2012.
Of course, we are doing everything we can to speed up the timeline, and also to make sure our initial allocation will allow us to fill all backorders that we’ve taken up until that point. For the best chance of getting a unit in the initial allocation, be sure to get your order in early.
Orders may be cancelled at any time up until the product actually ships. If an order is cancelled and then reinstated, the position in the shipping queue will be lost and the order will be moved to the back of the queue.
Last Updated: 12/16/2011

More information about the HD TiVo THR22 for DIRECTV:
Works with TiVo’s KidZone for parental controls (requires a network connection)
Has two 30 minute buffers that are always active
Compatible with DIRECTV On Demand (requires a network connection)
Traditional TiVo Season Passes with all the features – and an unlimited number!
TiVo SwivelSearch and WishList Search options (requires a network connection)
Up to 1080p HD resolution
Fully SWM compatible
Includes a new DIRECTV access card
Includes two B-Band adapters for use in non-SWM systems
Ships with HDMI, composite, component, phone, and power cables
NOT compatible with other TiVo Peanut Remotes
Add an AM21 to get over-the-air HD channels into your THR22
The following DIRECTV features are not available with the TiVo HD DVR: Whole-Home DVR service, DIRECTV iPad App remote control and live TV streaming functionality, DIRECTV CINEMA (satellite downloads), YouTube on TV, 3D, and GameSearch
Monthly fees: $10 HD fee, $7 DVR fee, and $5 TiVo fee, in addition to your monthly receiver/lease fee. The HD, DVR, and TiVo fees are once per account, no matter how many DVRs are on the account. The receiver/lease fee occurs per unit.

Supersized New THR22 DirecTiVos On The Way From WeaKnees

MegaZone — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 01:59:01 +0000

While the new THR22 DirecTiVo is only in limited distribution, and only available directly from DirecTV, WeaKnees.com is planning ahead. The THR22 will be in wide release in early 2012, including through resellers like WeaKnees. They’ve managed to get their hands on one already and they’ve been able to perform their magic on it and upgrade it to 2TB of recording capacity – as attested to by the screen shot above. So, while the new THR22 may not have all of the features some hoped for, users will have the option of massive recording capacities once it is widely available.

Finally – New THR22 DirecTiVo Launches On December 8th!

MegaZone — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 12:35:47 +0000

It has been a long time coming, but the ‘new’ DirecTiVo, more properly known as the TiVo HD DVR from DirecTV, model THR22-100, is finally launching on December 8th. Of course, given the saga to date, there has to be a catch – and there is. It is only launching as an option for new and existing customers in these ten markets:

Chicago IL
Denver CO
Los Angeles CA
New York NY
Philadelphia PA
Phoenix AZ
Sacramento CA
San Francisco CA
Seattle WA
Washington DC

As DirecTV’s forum post states:“The national rollout for all remaining markets is still being evaluated.” This isn’t a surprised though, we were warned to expect this on TiVo’s last quarterly call.

As for pricing:

The TiVo® HD DVR will carry a $5 per month TiVo service fee, which is in addition to the $10 per month HD Access fee and the $7 per month DVR service fee.

The post includes a TiVo Overview v1.2 document PDF which I’ve uploaded.

Unfortunately, I don’t think the new DirecTiVo is going to fare well. DirecTV delayed it long enough to get their new, in-house HD UI out and the new five tuner HR34 is about to release as well. The THR22 is based on the old HR22 HW and the TiVo OS it is running looks like the old TiVo HD platform tweaked for DirecTV, and not the TiVo Premiere base – no HD UI. Now, we won’t know until people get the units and report on the version, so it could be similar to RCN’s initial deployment where it was the newer software but with the HD UI disabled. Still, no HD UI is a drawback when DirecTV’s own DVRs now have it. And, as you can see in the document, the THR22 lacks many features now standard in other DirecTV DVRs, such as multi-room viewing. And, adding insult to injury, even YouTube is not supported – something TiVo had long before DirecTV added it to their own units.

Still, it is a TiVo option for DirecTV users, and it is certainly better than the old DirecTiVo units still limping along after all these years. So for those who’ve been holding out for a new TiVo option for DirecTV, this will likely be a welcome release. But for customers who aren’t already in the TiVo fold, I don’t think this will win over many converts. Especially not with the additional $5/month fee.

Spotted via InvestorVillage.

DirecTV THR22, aka the new DirecTiVo, Listed at Solid Signal

MegaZone — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 17:24:53 +0000

Online distributor Solid Signal has listed the DirecTV THR22, also known as the new DirecTiVo, on their site. Unfortunately it is listed as “Currently Not Available” and no price is given, but the listing does confirm some of the previously available information. And it all makes sense given the THR22 seems to be pretty much the existing HR22 with a new face plate and the TiVo software loaded. We’ll have to wait for someone to tear one open and compare the internals, but I expect they’ll be pretty similar, if not the same. (Given it has been a few years since the HR22 was produced some components may be updated just for supply reasons.)

Some of the features, as listed by Solid Signal:

The DIRECTV THR22 supports 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i picture resolution outputs and multiple screen formats.
New DIRECTV Reciever with TiVo
Pause live TV for up to 90 minutes and use rewind, instant replay and slow motion on live or recorded TV
Does not have built in ATSC tuner
HDMI cable included
500gb Hard Drive Allows up to 100 Hours of MPEG4 HD or 400 Hours of SD
The DIRECTV THR22 includes two satellite tuners for access to SD and HD DIRECTV programming
Access Card and Remote Control included
Compatible with Single Wire Multiswitch (SWM) Systems
Record up to 400 hrs of SD, up to 100 hours of HD (MPEG-4) programming
Watch whatever you want on your own schedule. Store your favorite programs, whether standard-definition or high-definition.

So it looks like the new DirecTiVo really is coming soon.