tOADY

TonyT

I see those things go up for sale on Ebay every once in a while. I think Comcast uses Scientific Atlanta or maybe Cox does? I don't know, but I'm not sure if you can do this really.

bicker

The laws have been crafted to permit the manufacture and distribution of cable converter boxes, with full support for separable security. However, there are no manufacturers who have seen fit to offer such boxes for sale. There evidently isn't enough money to be made and/or too much cost to support such boxes out in the wild.

There are a few companies that have seen fit to offer DVRs for sale to the general public, that work with cable television systems. TiVo is the most well-established. You can get a dual-tuner HD TiVo for $199 (sometimes), plus $299 for lifetime service. Moxi has recently released their first HD DVR for cable. I believe it runs about $800 and includes lifetime service. Another option is Microsoft Windows Media Center, with CableCARD support (but I don't know much about that).

Jay

Those boxes on Ebay will not work with cable unless they're activated with Comcast which will not likely happen unless you're a subscriber of Comcast's digital tier package. If you do happen to get a box from someone that "is supposed to work" with your cable host, it's probably an illegal descrambler type of box.

@Bicker, doesn't the Tivo DVR still require a subscription or monthly service fee for use with cable (even after forking over the $199)?

bicker

After forking over the $199 plus $299, there is no monthly service fee.

(There is a monthly service fee option, instead of lifetime service, if folks prefer that. It is kind of hard to compare the TiVo to the Moxi, when the pricing is presented that way. It is far easier to compare the TiVo to the Moxi, lifetime-to-lifetime, because the Moxi does not offer a monthly service fee option.)

Actually, the boxes on eBay are either stolen, or Canadian. Either way, the MSOs are not required to, and generally will not activate them. The government has imposed regulations requiring MSOs to support CableCARD, so since they've been forced to incur the costs of supporting CableCARD, that is the only mechanism by which customer-owned devices are authorized for use in most cable systems.

HTNut

and don't even think about connecting one of those boxes onto Comcast's network. They can absolutely detect an illegal box on their network. Huge fines. Not worth it...

faithekaye

So by the end of the day it'll still be best to just rent them. So it seems to me. Just curious, if this is true, then why are there still people selling these on the net like those on e-bay?

bicker

Because there are enough folks who aren't smart enough to ask the question you asked.

slider

This is good to know. You never know who is going to rip you off.

roger budd

i was told that you can get something from best buys. is this true?