While I chose the TiVo from Philips for my foray into the world of smarter TV viewing, many ZDNet users posted questions about TiVo's competitor ReplayTV, while a vocal group of ReplayTV owners began detailing their preference for the competing platform, until things started eerily resembling the Windows vs. OS/2 debates of the mid-'90s.
In other words, something had to be done.
Luckily, the folks at ReplayTV were kind enough to rush me their latest unit, and within a day or two, I had set up a makeshift home-testing lab for the ultimate shoot-out: TiVo in one room, ReplayTV in the other, and may the best platform win. Here's how both units fared after one month of continual use in my home.
Remote-control units may seem like an odd place to start, but in the home, the remote is key. Unlike computer mice that can easily be swapped out, the growing complexity of today's home electronics means having to stay close to your original remote or giving up proprietary features for a "universal remote."
I can't stress how beautifully designed the TiVo remote is. Physically, it sits solidly in your hand like a true control; instead of clunky arrow buttons for navigating the many menus and submenus of the TiVo system, the unit uses a round thumb pad that you can aim upward, downward and right to left with ease.
Accessing everything on TiVo starts from the press of a single button -- shaped to resemble the TiVo cartoon character. Color-coded thumbs-up and -down buttons allow you to rate programs quickly, and the unit ties sound effects to remote-control actions to let you know when you've selected something, moved forward or backward, or completed a task. (A very useful touch, and I'm not a fan of sound effects.)
ReplayTV's remote is easy to use, but it definitely from the old-school cable box and satellite dish world of remote controls. The main access points to the ReplayTV system are hidden under tiny buttons called "guide" in one place and "menu" in another, and I still make mistakes trying to remember which one gets me to my recorded programs. The remote is also huge -- I felt like I could land the space shuttle with it -- usually not a bad thing in my book, but compared with the simplicity and ease of the TiVo remote, the Replay was simply too clunky to compete.
Winner: TiVo
I love adding new electronics to my home, but both units were far from easy to deploy. Both provided clear diagrams to address the array of connection possibilities (satellite dish, plus VCR, plus cable box, plus surround-sound amp was my favorite), and both laid out everything (including cables) you'll need to wedge a recorder such as TiVo or Replay TV into your entertainment stack correctly. Nevertheless, the complexity of the job makes it very time consuming, and it's easy for errors to creep in.
TiVo offered more connection possibilities (to older TVs as well as high-end optical connections), but nothing prepared me for the two days I spent trying to dial into the main server for my initial setup call. The manual said it would take 3 minutes to compete a dial-in call, but because of heavy new user volume, I had to set my alarm for 2 a.m. and try every 30 minutes to get a free line in.
No luck. Finally in a fit of desperation and sleeplessness, I removed my call-waiting-blocking string (*70), and the unit dialed in on the first try. No technical support person was able to suggest that, and I lost a lot of sleep getting the unit up to speed.
ReplayTV installed on the first try, made the necessary dial-in call and began indexing show information on schedule. All the dialing and redialing and indexing means you have a lot of waiting to do for your new digital life -- something most people are unprepared for when they toss one of these units into their carts.
Winner: ReplayTV
Like its advanced remote control, TiVo sported a polished and colorful-looking interface that made navigating the system a breeze. Recorded shows reside under the "Now showing" menu, and everything is easy to get to thanks to the remote's almost gliding way of whooshing from one menu to the next -- up, down, right or left.
ReplayTV sports a more serious interface -- again, very satellite dish or digital cable box. Things are orderly and arranged by what it calls "channels." If you like Saturday Night Live, the unit builds you a "Saturday Night Live" channel, and from then on, all matching programs reside there for you to browse through. (TiVo offers you a "season pass" option that records every show.) The description of each recorded show appears at the top of the screen even as you're browsing lists, which is very helpful You can also search by actor and director -- while the TiVo is limited to main categories such as action and comedy.
I did find the ReplayTV search function lacking. I searched for the popular show "Frasier" and found nothing, although browsing the channel lineup of NBC showed Frasier playing that night as well as daily re-runs from the local affiliate. I was also left in the weeds on ReplayTV when it came to picking things I might like -- a feature I grew to love with TiVo.
Occasionally something would appear in my channel lineup I didn't remember recording, but there was no visual differentiation between a suggested program and one I asked for.
TiVo also does a better job managing your recorded programs and wiping away older shows by setting expiration dates. You can prolong an expiration date or save the program indefinitely, but on ReplayTV everything is still there until you delete it.
TiVo was also much "smarter" when it came to resolving scheduling conflicts. If you pick a show to record during a time when something else is scheduled to run, TiVo lets you decide which program you want. ReplayTV makes you resolve conflicts manually -- and that missing feature alone makes TiVo the superior recorder in my book.
When actually viewing a program, ReplayTV has a very wonderful little button that zaps ahead 30 seconds to move past commercials. Very handy and easy to zap, zap, zap your way back to the show. TiVo has a fast forward that can whip past commercials, but no way to skip ahead 30 seconds without watching commercials whiz by. TiVo does back up a bit when you stop fast forwarding -- a nice touch after you overshoot the beginning of a show. Both pause live TV beautifully, but TiVo gets points for showing a status bar on live TV and recorded shows so you know exact where you are in the broadcast.
Winner: TiVo
TiVo is simply slicker and more polished. You get more out of your TV, and the unit really does do what it promises -- making TV watching happen your way. The preference rating/suggestion capability is top-notch, as are the scheduling, housekeeping and conflict-resolving features.
ReplayTV, however, is also a fine choice and not one I would dismiss outright. It is definitely "geekier" in its interface and more manual when it comes to deciding on what to record. If you truly like to do things your way, you may prefer the build-your-own-channel approach of the ReplayTV system. Not available as of this writing: ReplayTV will also let you program your unit via the Web, which is ultra-cool. The comapny also now has a $100 rebate like TiVo.
You can't go wrong with either one, but overall, TiVo aces the competition.
Alice Hill was the vice president of development and editorial director for CNet and is EVP of Cornerhardware.com. She covers technology every other week for ZDNet News, pondering everything from the wireless Web to why geeks love motor scooters and the twillight of the LCD display. She welcomes your comments and e-mails.
