Digital Home Thoughts: PVR Addicts Just Can't Say No?

"Jeff Davies was so fond of his digital video recorder that he bought a second one. Then he bought another. And another. And another. And another. Today, Davies, a software engineer in Mountain View, owns six TiVo and ReplayTV digital video recorders, and actively uses five of them to record programs from his satellite dish for later viewing. "With my TiVo and Replay units, I can record seven programs at once from DirecTV," Davies said, although so far he has only recorded four simultaneously. "Having an infant who requires feeding, we can now watch our shows at any time, and without commercials."

While the size of Davies' collection may be extreme, his devotion to the technology is not. Since the introduction of TiVo in 1999, digital video recorders have attracted a growing base of fans who say the devices have altered more than their viewing habits. TiVo, they say, has changed their lives."

I always thought that "TiVo changes the way you watch TV" statement was a little overblown...until I bought a ReplayTV off eBay. And even though it doesn't quite work properly (I get TV listings from Montana), it has indeed changed the way I watch TV. I don't know that I'd go out and buy six of them (we only have one TV in the house for TV watching), but I can certainly see the advantages of the PVR approach. What about you? Are you addicted to TiVo or another PVR? How has it changed the way you watch TV?