Sony SVR-2000 Digital Video Recorder
A noisy unit
I own a Sony Sat-T60, which is the version of Sony's Tivo unit that has the built-in DirecTV receiver.  I agree completely with all the great things other people have said about Tivo, however, I have one big warning about the Sony Tivo box: the cooling fan is annoyingly noisy. It cycles on and off to keep the machine cool, and when it's on, it's noticeably louder than my computer. This could be a big problem for you if you're one of those rare intellectual types who occasionally sits in a room with the TV off, perhaps to read a book purchased on Amazon.com.  I called Sony to ask about the noisy fan, and they said, essentially, &quot;Yup, it's loud alright. Tough luck, dude.&quot;  Naturally, the sound would be muffled if you keep the box in an enclosed entertainment center, but if you don't have such a cabinet, beware. I have also owned a Phillips Tivo w/ DirecTV and it was perfectly silent, and worked just as well as the Sony, if not better. It's also cheaper. Get the Phillips.