Gearfuse

Blockbuster is still the largest video rental store in the country but that’s not something to be proud of. People want content in their homes as soon as possible and driving to a store and renting a physical disc just doesn’t make the cut anymore. So, in an effort to save itself, Blockbuster has scrambled and partnered with dying DVR company TiVo.

While TiVo is in a much healthier state than Blockbuster, it only has 3.3 million subscribers, not a significant number. TiVo owners who have Blockbuster accounts will pay up to $4 to rent a movie, most with DVD-quality images. Customers will have 30 days to begin watching; once they do, they can view the video as much as they want for 24 hours. It will cost as much as $20 to buy a movie, but digital-rights software will prevent it from being copied to a DVD.

Essentially, Blockbuster is on its way out and wants to make one last stand. Remember the Alamo!

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Ordering pizza from the comfort of your couch while watching your favorite television shows on DVR is now a realization. That is, if you’ve got a TiVo. Now that Netflix has bailed TiVo out, TiVo is getting smart by offering its customers a crucial feature that’ll prevent them from leaving their seat: pizza.

A new Domino’s widget is available for US TiVo subscribers that allows you to order pizza right from your television. Sure it’s ridiculously awesome, yet absurd, but while it might not be as lazy as ordering Pizza Hut while playing Everquest II, it certainly will make shows like The Shield more enjoyable, if that’s even possible.

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Step aside Microsoft, there’s a new Netflix streamer in town. Today, Netflix announced that it has added TiVo to its growing list of streaming partners. Being that TiVo’s subscriber base hasn’t grown much since 2005, we’re thinking TiVo needs this partnership more than Netflix; considering Netflix has already partnered with LG, Microsoft and Samsung.

Netflix will be available to TiVo Series3, TiVo HD and TiVo HD XL owners. The two companies will begin testing the new service today in “several thousand” U.S. households, and it’s expected to be widely available in early December. Whether or not this will keep TiVo in the business of DVR remains to be seen. For TiVo’s sake, this partnership should keep them in the running for a few more years.

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A few years ago, the phrase DVR meant TiVo. If you were recording TV shows, you were TiVoing. Times changed, TiVo panicked and the company stopped offering lifetime subscriptions. Ever since then, TiVo’s charisma has been flawed and the company has been offering extras to subscribers to placate them year after year.

Thankfully, the company has realized the error of its ways and will now offer lifetime subscriptions again. Unfortunately, the price-tag that comes with it isn’t all that great. Be prepared to shell out $399. Not only that, the subscription is box-specific, meaning that you can’t upgrade to that Series 3 without shelling out more bucks.

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Well, how about this for a twist in the DVR tale. A new patent filing hints that Apple could be planning to bring a Live TV recording feature to their Apple TV.

Not only will Apple TV users be able to browse and record live TV programming, but they’ll be able to watch their downloaded movies and TV programs purchased from iTunes. TiVo betta’ watch themselves. Apple is ready for a telemedia revolution. — Andrew Dobrow

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I’ve always wanted TiVo, but I’ve never made the initial call to actually sign up. This holiday season TiVo is offering a special set of discounted prices, which might just make me (as I’m sure others) get on the TiVo bandwagon. Monthly prices have gone from $16.95 to $12.95, 1 year pre-payed accounts have gone from $179 to $129, 2 year pre-paye has gone from $279 to $249, and 3 year pre-payed is keeping its current price at $299.

This offer is only available to new customers, although current members will have access to a special previously defunct lifetime membership free for $399 for a limited time. That’s a whole lot of TiVo! That’s, hmm lets see, only $100 more for what could be 40 more years of access? Yeah, I’d do that one. — Andrew Dobrow

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Food and recipe blogs have become an underrated force in the blogging world. The Yummy Kitchen Connect, an entry in the Microsoft / IDSA Design Competition, might win the food talk a little extra recognition. We’ve seen some really cool kitchen design in the past, but the Yummy might be the most usable of the bunch for every day life. The Kitchen Connector will join you and your kitchen to the food blogging network. Specially designed for the kitchen, the Yummy takes up very little room, fitting on the wall like a wall calender. The Yummy takes the information from your kitchen and food life, such as food you have available, diet schedule, and saved recipes and recommends food to make that you might like. Think of it as your kitchen Tivo. The Yummy can also access media such as podcasts, video blogs, music, webtv, and Skype for kitchen calling. All in a useful touchscreen interface.

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Take a good look at that picture. Let it all soak in. Mmm yeah, that’s good. This homemade rack (which you too can create with enough time) has a DVD player, a cable box, a PS3, an XBox 360, a Wii, an XBox, and a TiVo shelved down its center. It even has a custom LED computer cooling fan on each side of every device, resembling the blue lit Antec Nine Hundred Gamer PC Case. Talk about parking yourself in front of an optimal gaming rig, and we thought some other rigs were ultimate nooks ! Each device also has its very own stand with an open vented bottom so that it can radiate heat from all sides. Every controller has its own rack so as not to get tangled up into an impossible knot with the rest of the wiring. Though probably not its intended purpose, the subwoofer even functions as a Guitar Hero guitar stand for an all-encompassing gamer case. And they say gaming isn’t an addiction.

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