Product Comparison: TiVo Roamio OTA vs TiVo BOLT
Advertiser Disclosure
X
This site is a free online resource that strives to offer helpful content and comparison features to its visitors. Please be advised that the operator of this site accepts advertising compensation from certain companies that appear on the site, and such compensation impacts the location and order in which the companies (and/or their products) are presented, and in some cases may also impact the scoring that is assigned to them. The scoring that appears on this site is determined by the site operator in its sole discretion, and should NOT be relied upon for accuracy purposes. In fact, Company/product listings on this page DO NOT imply endorsement by the site operator. Except as expressly set forth in our Terms of Use, all representations and warranties regarding the information presented on this page are disclaimed. The information which appears on this site is subject to change at any time. More info
General Specifications
Brand
TiVo
TiVo
Model
Roamio OTA
BOLT
Origin
Mexico
Mexico
About the Product
The TiVo Roamio OTA VOX brings you the best in free, over-the-air TV with the voice-controlled, on-screen experience only TiVo and the TiVo VOX Remote™ can offer. The Roamio OTA VOX works with any HD-capable TV antenna, records approximately 150 hours of HDTV programming and, best of all, there are no monthly fees.
TiVo’s innovative Unified Entertainment System now includes the ultimate voice remote that dramatically improves the search experience across all your live TV, DVR and streaming TV series and movies. The 4K Ultra HD compatible TiVo BOLT VOX still boasts TiVo’s unique fan-favorite features including SkipMode®, OnePass™, OneSearch™ and more. And with three different models, there’s a BOLT VOX specifically crafted to meet your entertainment demands and budget.
Key Specs
Maximum Video Resolution
1080 p
2160 p
Hard Drive Included
Yes
Yes
Storage Capacity
1000 GB
500 GB
Number Of Tuners
4
4
What customers say about "Key Specs"
TiVo Roamio OTA (R84600) Digital Video Recorder and Streaming Media Player
- I like that I can add additional storage to the device, however for my purposes I think the generous 1TB drive (recording up to 25 shows before overwriting them) should be enough. 150 hours of saved programming is something I'll never get through anyway.
- Attractive and effective TV guide; good over the air (OTA) TV reception and recording; logical menu system; search function searches across all media sources; free lifetime (of the unit) subscription to the guide
- Was excited to get this highly rated 4-tuner OTA DVR. After quite a difficult setup and registration process, the unit then worked quite well despite a non-intuitive and multiple clicks menu system. Love the "skip commercial" feature and additional info about each program.
- It used a time-based recording scheme and downloaded 2 weeks of limited program info OTA. Still, it was one of the best dual tuner DVRs at the time.
- Really bad tuners. Defective unit? Don't care I'm going to get my refund first. Simply moving the cable back and forth from the TiVO to the TV. TV perfect. TiVO barely hanging on to a few channels. Constant loss of signal. Really annoying. Seemed to be getting worse.
TiVo BOLT 500 GB Digital Video Recorder and Streaming Media Player
- The Bolt recognizes my T.V. is UHD and drives it in full 3840x2160 60P resolution regardless of program content (upscales the HD to UHD).
- Dumped my cable company's DVR and down scaled to local stations only. What a dramatic improvement ! The Bolt recognizes my T.V. is UHD and drives it in full 3840x2160 60P resolution regardless of program content (upscales the HD to UHD).
- Love the speed, the commercial skip, the ability to add a hard drive to enlarge storage.
- The video resolution sometimes changes depending upon the apps I'm using. For example, my Amazon Video looks a lot rougher than other devices. Upscale to the set resolution, please!
- I've had the Tivo Bolt for almost a month, records, plays back good, shows national channels, ABC, NBC CBS etc. good Hi Definition but not as good 4K as my 4K flat panel TV, was disappointed with Tivo not having as good 4K Hi-Def picture.
Size & Weight
Height
2 in.
1.8 in.
Width
14.2 in.
11.4 in.
Depth
7.4 in.
7.3 in.
Weight
3.7 lbs.
1.9 lbs.
Recording And Playback
Content Subscription Required
No
Yes
Service Fee
TiVo service subscription is required. Options include a monthly service plan at $14.99/mo. with a one-year commitment or an annual service plan at $149.99/year. All-in service options also available.
TiVo service subscription is required. Options include a monthly service plan at $14.99/mo. with a one-year commitment or an annual service plan at $149.99/year. All-in service options also available.
Recording Resolution
1080
2160
Commercial Skip Function
Yes
Yes
What customers say about "Recording And Playback"
TiVo Roamio OTA (R84600) Digital Video Recorder and Streaming Media Player
- Extensions to view content from other providers like amazon, netflix, etc
- Setting up recordings of programs within the guide is easy, but it would be great if there was something in the box that indicated a step-by-step way to do it. I found the TiVo website and YouTube to be helpful, as well as the TiVo forum.
- The main reason I purchased the TiVo Roamio OTA was to have an onscreen Guide for my husband to easily follow (he's not a techie type...) and for me to be able to record OTA shows while still being able to view Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime content.
- I've run into some minor resolution/screen format issues with the guide, but nothing that changes my mind about the unit. Overall a great experience and very easy to use
- The record feature (one pass) is a little confusing at first
TiVo BOLT 500 GB Digital Video Recorder and Streaming Media Player
- Great DVR overall, better than the Genie. Perfect forward and advance feature if set at 1080i while watching cable.
- I absolutely LOVE my TIVO. Return your Comcast DVR. X1 is just a bad imitation of this! The commercial skip is my favorite function. It just works.
- I do like alot of the features like commercial skip, watching my amazon movies and being able to record more than 2 shows with lots of storage space.
- There are many things that are great about the TIVO Bolt, record 4 shows at once, scheduled recordings, guide viewing and Skip is one of the best features ever.
- The skip feature is great, but not consistent - sometimes it is available and sometimes not, even on the same show.
Features
4K Compatible
No
Yes
Extras
Works with TiVo Stream, Works with TiVo Mini, Connects to other TiVo DVRs, iOS & Android app for browsing/scheduling, Expandable storage (eSATA)
The Tru Multi Room™ Experience, OneSearch - search broadcast TV and streaming content all at the same time, SkipMode - skip commercial breaks with a single button, QuickMode - watch shows 30% faster with pitch perfect audio, Watch shows on all your screens via iOS & Android apps and TiVo Online, Cast shows from your mobile device to TV, Works with TiVo Mini and TiVo Mini VOX, Expandable storage (eSATA)
Remote Control
Voice remote control, IR remote control
Voice remote control
Cable(s) Included
HDMI
HDMI
What customers say about "Features"
TiVo Roamio OTA (R84600) Digital Video Recorder and Streaming Media Player
- The menu interface is beautiful and easy to navigate (pro tip: in the TiVo menu - get back to full screen using the "Zoom" button. Took me forever to figure that out!)
- The remote is RF so no need to point the remote directly at the Tivo. However, the TV volume/mute still uses IR so must point the remote at the TV for those functions.
- And while watching the Olympics, I really, really, really loved the commercial skip feature. It worked flawlessly, as it does for all our TV shows. It makes watching a recording almost as seamless as NF and Amazon streaming.
- I really like the features of this unit, I am very pleased with this purchase.
- Tivo is great! This is WAY better than any cable company DVR and you own it! No more of them raising their fee's all the time. This is very feature rich and I love how it starts to fine tune what shows you like and automatically record them for you.
TiVo BOLT 500 GB Digital Video Recorder and Streaming Media Player
- Happy with the Bolt features. What it REALLY needs is what Comcast beat Tivo to the punch with, Voice remote. The xfinity remote channel and search with voice would be a great feature to have.
- The integration between TV, Netflix, Amazon, etc... is great and works pretty well. It's definitely nice being able to go through different sources seamlessly with one box and one interface.
- The search engine is clear, user friendly and also excellent.
- The interface is on par with the very excellent DirecTv Genie...very user friendly.
- The Warranty is for one year, BUT only the first 30 days have free parts and labor. The remaining year you pay labor and parts. (NOT GOOD)
- The BOLT does NOT have a screen saver.....if you freeze it to take a call and then get involved, the picture with be glued on your TV until the TV or the BOLT shuts off due to non use. Could be hours. SERIOUSLY!!!!? Yes!
Connectivity
Optical Digital Audio Outputs
1
1
Wi-Fi Built-in
Yes
Yes
Compatible Wireless Standard(s)
A, B, G, N
AC dual band, N, G, B, A
Number of HDMI Outputs
1
1
Ethernet Port
Yes
Yes
Number Of USB Port(s)
2
2
What customers say about "Connectivity"
TiVo Roamio OTA (R84600) Digital Video Recorder and Streaming Media Player
- I liked that it could be either hard wired or wirelessly connected to our home network.
- I purchased this for my parents since they watch a lot of OTA TV. They also don't have much patience to mess around with selecting different TV inputs and using a connected PC to watch Netflix.
- I suggest you use an ethernet connection for set up if you can. It went pretty smoothly with the ethernet connection.
- I'll have to troubleshoot it a bit more as it may be something related to bringing the audio through the AV receiver versus a direct connection.
- It's even more stupid to have the coax connection require MOCA but not offer that option in the OTA Roamio.
TiVo BOLT 500 GB Digital Video Recorder and Streaming Media Player
- It connects easily to the TV, requiring 1 HDMI cord. Connecting the series 2 13 years ago was way more complicated.
- The iOS app allows me to delete content from the Bolt, love it.
- We have loved TiVo for a long time. This one gives us great connecting to streaming accounts and we love Skip!!!
- It was easy to connect it to ours tv and network.
- Got our unit 2 months ago. Our cable provider is Comcast. Connected via Ethernet. Loses connection and won't reboot. So I have to unplug the unit and plug it back in. I have to do this at least once a week and sometimes twice a week.
Warranty / Certifications
Manufacturer Warranty
1 year(s)
1 year(s)
Certifications
FCC, cUL Listed
CE
Other Information
Manual
Price History
Popular Comparisons
DIRECTV HR44 Genie Server
vs
DIRECTV HR54 Genie Server
TiVo BOLT 500 GB Digital Video Recorder and Streaming Media Player
vs
TiVo BOLT Plus 3 TB Digital Video Recorder and Streaming Media Player
TiVo BOLT 500 GB Digital Video Recorder and Streaming Media Player
vs
TiVo Roamio Pro Digital Video Recorder and Streaming Media Player