TiVo Premiere DVR Adds Streaming Internet Video

The DVR may be on the extinction list, but TiVo is evolving. Threatened by the increasingly threat of irrelevance from Web-connected Blu-ray players, consoles and set-top boxes like the Boxee Box, TiVo has introduced a new set-top box that combines the video recording of a DVR with the streaming capabilities of more modern hardware.

The new TiVo Premiere will function as exactly as the company’s last boxes did, but add streaming Netflix, Blockbuster Demand, YouTube and Amazon Video on Demand to the mix. It will also support streaming music and Web photo galleries through Picasa, Rhapsody, Music Choice, Photobucket, and Live365, and access locally stored music and photos across a network.

As with all TiVo devices, cable subscribers will need to request a Cablecard from their cable company to swap the Premiere for a traditional cable box, and pay monthly TiVo fees – about $12.95 monthly.

The basic TiVo Premiere box, which can handle up to 45 hours of recorded HD programming, will retail for $300. The more advanced TiVo Premiere XL will triple recording space to 150 hours, add THX certification, and a premium backlit remote control for $500. Both will be available starting in April.