LAS VEGAS—TiVo is courting over-the-air housesholds with a new version of its Roamio OTA DVR. TiVo said that following a successful limited edition launch of the TiVo Roamio OTA DVR last fall, the company will be making the product widely available in the U.S. market. The device was offered in 400 Best Buy stores last fall.
When paired with an antenna, the TiVo Roamio OTA can record up to four shows simultaneously and has 500 GB of storage for 75 hours of HD programming. Depending on reception, the device when coupled with a antenna will pick up local network affiliates—ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, PBS, Telemundo and Univision, plus indies and LPTVs where available, plus Internet video services such as Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Instant Video and YouTube, among others.
The device is compatible with TiVo Stream, which sends live streaming and recorded TV to smartphones and tablets inside and outside the home. TiVo Roamio OTA is available now at BestBuy.com, and will be available at Amazon.com in mid-January and TiVo.com in February for $49.99, with a $14.99 per month service and a one-year commitment. Product and service pricing subject to change.
The Roamio enters the OTA field alongside Channel Master, which offers a 16 GB DVR that requires an external hard drive for $249; and a 1 TB box for $399 that does not. Neither require a subscription, and Channel Master packages its DVRs with its own antenna technology. The Channel Masters also handle the over-the-air networks, and include YouTube, Vudu and Pandora on the streaming side.
