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TiVo Premiere Elite: Four tuners, 300 hours of HD recordings, but what will it cost?

Having been largely bumped to the margins as every pay TV provider has offered a DVR set-top box to subscribers, TiVo is thinking big with its forthcoming Premiere Elite set-top box. The question is: How big is it thinking in terms of price?
Written by Sean Portnoy, Contributor

Having been largely bumped to the margins as every pay TV provider has offered a DVR set-top box to subscribers, TiVo is thinking big with its forthcoming Premiere Elite set-top box. The question is: How big is it thinking in terms of price?

According to documents submitted with the device's FCC filing, the Premier Elite features four tuners that can simultaneously record a quartet of programs, with 2TB of storage to store 300 hours of HD recordings or 2,200 hours of standard-definition recordings. It's also THX certified for top-notch audio and video quality, but it's a digital-only affair, with no support for analog TV sources.

You will need a CableCard or Verizon FiOS service in order to use the Premiere Elite (no satellite TV or AT&T U-verse), and, of course, you'll need to be a TiVo subscriber. The box also can connect with TiVo devices around the home so you can beam recordings to other rooms.

So how much will this set you back? Zatz Not Funny! speculates that the Premiere Elite could run $600 or higher, though Engadget thinks $500 is a better bet. Either way, it may be a bit of a tough sell to consumers used to paying a few bucks a month for their current DVR.

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