TiVo Series3 vs Motorola DCT6412 image gallery

by Ben Drawbaugh, posted Jul 5th 2007 at 8:35AM

There are very few people who would argue that a Motorola DVR is better than a TiVo Series3, but let's face it, the price of your cable company's DVR is right. This doesn't stop people from comparing them, and this is one of the best interface galleries we've seen. It shows just about every user interface screen from both boxes side by side so you can really see what all that money is for -- assuming all the great features and reliability weren't enough to get you to pony up the cash.

Filed under: DVRs, Others, Cable, Fiber

Tags: 6412, DCT6412, Motorola, Series3, TiVo

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Neutral

Big Sam @ Jul 5th 2007 10:27AM

I want to see what the Comcast interface looks like after they get Tivo integrated.

Highly Ranked

Brian @ Jul 5th 2007 11:34AM

I've had the comcast HD DVR for 3 years and just purchased a Series3 HD Tivo for $406 after the $200 rebate...not bad!

Anyway, what this does not illistrate is my main reason for purchasing the Tivo. The Comcast HD DVR IS SO BUGGY IT NEARLY DRIVES YOU MAD!!! Every single time you sit down to watch TV with it you are plagued with a dirt slow UI, freezes which once it unfreezes any button you pushed on the remote now catches up and who knows what you've done now, and even occasional freezes where it never recovers and you're forced to pull the power which stops any recordings, deletes your program guide, and takes hours to reconstruct once it's rebooted. The Comcast HD DVR is highly frustrating to use.

The new Series3 HD Tivo I just got on the other hand...what a dream. Not only does it have the Tivo UI which is by far the best I've ever used, but it all works perfectly and with speed. No more freezing with the dreaded remote button-catch-up. It was well worth the $400...I'm very happy to have Tivo again...I've missed it.

Neutral

Dave Zatz @ Jul 5th 2007 12:18PM

Since TiVo software will run on that same hardware and FiOS TV currently does, plus Moxi software also runs (other) on Moto hardware... Instead of "Motorola DVR" it might be more accurate to say "Comcast DVR" or Comcast-powered Motorola DVR.

Neutral

Smithee @ Jul 5th 2007 2:42PM

It would be more accurate still to say i-Guide. I'm on a former Comcast system now owned by Time-Warner. They not only still run the 6412 with i-Guide, but, at long last, recently upgraded my box to firmware version 16.35 and i-Guide version 74.53. As rumored, these upgrades make most of the control lockouts go away.

Neutral

yun lin @ Jul 5th 2007 2:24PM

A huge omission in these screen shots is the Tivo's wishlist search feature vs Motorola's. Tivo's guide provides much more info and search capability and flexibility than th Motorola, it's one of the main reasons I switched to the S3.

One example is for my local baseball team's games in HD. On the Motorola I could only search for "MLB Baseball" title, then scroll through everything and pick the games I want, and I have to do this every week since the Motorola's HDD space is so limited.

On S3, I do a search for my team name, add an HD only filter, add sub category for sport event so I can avoid all the talk shows, set the wishliet ti auto-record, then I never have to worry about it again.

Neutral

yun @ Jul 5th 2007 2:27PM

Your comments: A huge omission in these screen shots is the Tivo's wishlist search feature vs Motorola's. Tivo's guide provides much more info and search capability and flexibility than the Motorola, it's one of the main reasons I switched to the S3.

One example is for my local baseball team's games in HD. On the Motorola I could only search for
"MLB Baseball" title, then scroll through everything and pick the games I want, and I have to do this every week since the Motorola's HDD space is so limited.On S3, I do a search for my team name, add a HD only filter, add sub category for sport event so I can avoid all the talk shows, set the wishliet ti auto-record, then I never have to worry about it again.

Neutral

Zenny @ Jul 5th 2007 5:48PM

Sigh. Why must you torture me with 'comparisons' of TIVO to Comcrap Motorola? I HAD to switch over from DirecTv/Tivo to Comcast because the frikkin trees in the backyard didn't provide a 'clear southern sky'. I had regular DirecTv, but the extra satellite that HDD uses wouldn't get a signal thru the trees. Boo Hoo! I've been waiting about a year now for Comcast to put out their 'promised' TIVO interface (but suspect I will still have to use the same damn box and remote from hell!). If TIVO S3 comes down some I might just make the switch (but still have to put up with lousy Comcast signal/packages). Where's my chainsaw... I want my DirecTv!

Neutral

Brad @ Jul 6th 2007 11:21AM

"One example, my mother lives in Canada, she has a TiVo. I sent her a 4 of July video, directly to her TiVo. She does not need a PC to see my videos.
If you can get a S3 for $400 don't hasitate to try it."

Does the S3 actually support this feature that you are talking about? I have a S3, and didn't know you could do this.

If this is a TiVo feature regulated only to the S2, then it is irrelvant to the comparison between these two boxes...

Neutral

Brenda Bregoli @ Oct 30th 2007 12:12PM

Your question:
>>Does the S3 actually support this feature that you are talking about?

Neutral

William C Bonner @ Jul 6th 2007 11:36AM

I was hoping to see a screen comparison between a Series3 TiVo and the comcast cable box running the TiVo interface.

I want to see how the cable box version of Tivo works, to know if I'm better saving my money for buying a tivo, or waiting till comcast offers tivo boxes directly.

Neutral

Ben @ Jul 6th 2007 11:36AM

We'd all love to see that, but I don't know of anyone with one yet.

Neutral

John @ Jul 7th 2007 8:36PM

Well, the motorola DVR looks light-years ahead of the crappy Scientific Atlanta box Cablevision stuck me with...

Neutral

Thelma Price @ Aug 19th 2007 4:31PM

The S3 is worth what you pay for it. I have try Direct TV and Time Warner boxes, they are so inferior to TiVo that, I feel it is even shameful to compare those big companies boxes to TiVo.

One example, my mother lives in Canada, she has a TiVo. I sent her a 4 of July video, directly to her TiVo. She does not need a PC to see my videos.

If you can get a S3 for $400 don't hasitate to try it. You will be glad you did. There is only one problem with TiVo, they say once you try it, you can't live without it, I think, it is true.

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