TIVO TX20: NEBIE- Can you get Digital channels or just analog with antenna?

Sorry, the full model name is Toshiba rs-tx20 with tivo. I am still not clear on how you get the free subscription, by way of an antenna, it has to get to you somehow? Or does a subscription not mean tv channels, but more of a tv guide, but not the actual tv program. When you have a cable subscription, it comes to you through a physical cable wire to your house. So how do you get the tivo free subscription? I do have a external tuner box, that can convert to std def. and the Tivo tv guide, I don't care about. I just want free channels. This person is selling it for $30, but she does not know how they work, so I can't as here about it. thanks again.

So you just want something to convert the HDTV signal to SD? You just need to buy a converter box from wal-mart, best buy or target for about ~$50.

This is a SDTV "Tivo". If you want this "Tivo" to work you need to get analog cable service or feed it with one of the above converter boxes. Please note that this "Tivo" can't change the channel on the converter box so the only way to use this thing will be to manually set up recording times and set the channel yourself.

Brief Specs:

- Mike

The free subscription is just a subscription to the channel guide which you use in turn to scheudle recordings. Without this you are stuck with a hard drive equilivant of a vcr which you have to preset the chanel and also when it should record. And like a VCR it will no longer get a signal because it does not have a DTV tuner in it.. Never the less $30 is a steal for this.. Have you checked how much they are online? Somewhere from $170 - $250.. You'd be ahead just to buy the thing and sell it on eBay.

How can I test the unit to see if it works. The girl selling it, knows nothing about technical stuff. If she has cable or satellite tv, can I connect it with it from the cable to the tivo, and from the tivo to the tv both with a coax cable? What do I do after that, just plug the power and see if a menu comes up. Then it likely is ok? She said it work when her ex last used it, but selling it as is, feel free to test it out. Any advise on how to do a bare minimum test? Thanks.

Well I would plug it into a TV and see if it comes up... Then try playing a dvd.. Then try recording something if you can hook it up to a video source such as cable tv... More than likely if it comes up the DVR part is working.. If it were me I'd just gamble the $30 if turns on and gives a menu.

The subscriptions came in multiple varieties, one of which is 'product lifetime', i.e. prepaid. If this unit has that kind of subscription already, you can use an IR sender glued to the digital-converter to do the channel changing, after the TiVo downloads any needed updates to know what codes to send.

The 'updates' only happen if you have some kind of subscription active.

If it has the remote, connect it to a TV and look at 'messages and settings' 'account and system info' 'System Info' and find out what the TiVo account status is: if it's 'discontinued' you won't get free recording.

Product Lifetime is the best indication, but other statuses leave open the possibility to record by time and set the channel manually on your converter.