April 13, 2011

TiVo installations: order confirmation

I've had a few folk asking if they should have got a confirmation of TiVo installation notification. From what I understand Virgin Media engineers normally send a text message to your mobile to confirm an installation before arriving but there's no email confirmation if you've added or modified your package through the call centre.

66 comments:

Matthew Arkle said...

I was supposed to be getting Tivo installed tomorrow between 1-6 however someone rang up today and asked if it was possible to bring it to today.

Virgin dude is installing it right now. Only took about an hour after they phoned if that so must have been in the area :)

streaky_7 said...

Nialli - Now the installs are being rolled out, it would be interesting to do a poll for those who have now got it and as people get it, so they can rate their opinion of TiVo once they have had a play with it. Especially from people who have had to pay £149 for it as those who got it free may not be as fussed as to how extra special it is......or isnt......

ca9phoenix said...

installed, no text or call the bloke just turned up.... he had no idea what he was doing and i had to show him how to link the remote to my tv/av and show him how to turn off the annoying beep!

it was his first install of it tho

Nialli said...

@ Streaky_7: I'll run a few polls/posts on the blog maybe next week along the lines of "how satisfied are you" and "what do you find most useful"

Anonymous said...

What annoying beep?
I assume it still has the original TiVo v1 sounds?

overyourhead said...

I actually did get a confirmation of my Tivo installation. A telephone call in fact. I had made the booking on Monday for an install this Friday and got a call today (Wednesday) reconfirming the time slot and asking if there is parking nearby (I live in London).

Funnily enough I got a second call from the same woman an hour later asking the same question. (grin)

Unknown said...

For what its worth, email arrived lunchtime today (Wednesday) I'm not VIP or anything smart, just had it since whoever originally dug up the street, before virgin... before ntl...!

Phoned, arranged upgrade including extra to phone and broadband, coming next Tuesday.

Also wanted to move second BT phone to become the Virgin number and get shot of that line... needed Customer Services for that who called back and sorted.

All good, assuming it comes/works :)

Unknown said...

Tat will teach me for refusing to give my mobile number.
Nevermind, I'll just wait and see. Still a week away for me anyway.

spk said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
spk said...

Mine is installed. Was the installer's first job in Belfast and he was nervous. Install went flawlessly, although other engineers were phoning in to ask him how it was going, which was quite amusing! So far, excellent - although I can't get it to work in 1080p.

Only downside so far: those grubby SD screens which pull you up when you're out of the crisp HD screens. Also, my wife is going to have a time of it now that there are no reminders.

Installer commented that among installer's morale is up regarding Virgin: he thinks they have a hit on their hands. So far, I'm very impressed. It's like going from Windows XP (V+) to Mac OS X

;-)

Unknown said...

@spk

So you don't like the Tivo box then ;)

Ah, Apple banter. Gotta love it :)

Unknown said...

Has anybody checked there bills on My Virgin Media? I just did but the charge isn't showing yet. Is this the case for anybody else? Hope they haven't forgotten about me!!!

sibod said...

Now I get an email from Virgin apologising for the delay and they're experiencing higher than expected demand. Huh? 50,000 pre-registrations and it's Unexpected Demand?

bryoung said...

I just had a call from Virgin regarding my Tivo installation Tomorrow.

They offered me the option of keeping my V+ box for free with no additional charges! The guy even offered to install it in another room at the same time for free too!

Happy days!

Me said...

A word of warning...... If you've ordered Tivo and have been told that the £149.95 will be added to your next bill it may take you over your credit limit (which you may not know about!) and Virgin will restrict your services until you make a payment.

I have just been on the phone to the billing department to check this as it happened to me when I originally added TV to my phone and broadband account some time ago. They confirmed that there would be an issue so I made a payment. So all should be ok when Tivo goes in tomorrow.

It may be worth a call if you're not sure.

Square eyes said...

@EVERYONE

If you have a good payment history and have been with the company for a while, the you will not exceed any credit limits. Credit limits are normally in place if you are a new customer or have a poor payment history.

All being well I hope you all pay your bills on time....lol

Hope this clears any confusion

rmns said...

Booked Tivo on Monday but had a phone call on my mobile from Virgin last night to confirm my install was booked for tomorrow 1-6and was that still ok.

Me said...

@Square_eyes

I've been with them 2 years and have a good payment history. Of course, 2 years may not be classed as a long time.

I'm not trying to scare anyone, merely pointing out that it may be worth checking to save an annoyed call to Virgin if it does happen.

In fact, credit limit is shown in the my bills section online so can be checked easily without calling them.

Barry said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Barry said...

Can anybody in the northwest confirm any tivo installs?
After a billing fudgeup my account is in quite significant credit that would nicely cover tivo install but I have been told to wait till 9th may for "Full" launch as its not in my area yet!

alan said...
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alan said...

i ordered mine,but had more thoughts,what are you getting extra for you £149.00 + £3.00 pm +vat,you cant copy to dvd in the background,like you can with the v+ box,still only 1080i,no p,no extra content just a new way of searching for content,and having a machine think what you might like to see,also no reminders as on the v+ box,the plus side you get 1gb hard drive,i rung vm and cancelled tivo,the man said in america they can stream films,this will be comeing to tivo and lots more,i said will all this extra content cost more,oh yes you bet,when is all this extra stuff for tivo comeing,oh in the future,oh yes like all the hd virgin media promised,anyway they are big on telling you what you may be getting,i shall wait and keep my eye on it,for now i shall keep my £149.00 for what is all just a box for a new way of searching for content

Unknown said...

Whoop TiVo install day, as excited as a kid at christmas, please turn up, please work, please, please, please :)

Me said...

@gareth78

I second all of that :-)

Unknown said...

@alan

You've pretty much echoed my thoughts. £149 is just a bit too much, given that I'm generally happy with my Sammy V+, other than I'd like more disk space. So I'm probably going to leave it for now, and hope I'm not kicking myself in a couple of months' time when everyone is raving about their TiVos and they're back up to full price!

Square eyes said...

@Ant

another option is to contact customer service or the collection tean and see if they will raise the limit or remove it, again based on history & length of time with VM

Me said...

@Square_eyes

Thanks for the advice.

Funnily enough the guy I spoke to in billing last night didn't tell me that was an option, but I did see online last night that they are happy to review it. Although I probably won't bother as it's only in situations of upgrade where it can be an issue for me as my monthly bill is usually less than half what my credit limit is.

I was just concerned that the virgin sales team seem to be happy to say you can add it to your next bill (when I was happy to pay there and then) and then people who may have a credit limit can run into problems without knowing/being told about it and it's happened to me twice now.

Saj said...

@Alan,

You have now confused me.
Can someone come with some really strong point for having tivo installed, as I am now thinking to cancel my Tivo too
:-(

Unknown said...

@ Sajid:

- 1tb storage space
- Catch-up in the EPG
- Recomendations
- Actor search, bios etc
- Autorecord of conent you way wish to watch
- Function wereby if you have clashes in the recording the box will automatically scan the upcoming week and if there's a repeat will record that instead.

Those are just a few off the top of my head :)

Carryonvending said...

Good News - Got my TIVO Box Installed

Bad News - Only part of it works!

The on demand apps etc won't work.

So..............Installer thought TIVO Tech Support would sort it via remote access..... No way Jose

So...........Installer on his way back with TIVO BOX 2

I'm like a kid with sweets I can see, but can't eat! Will keep you posted.

Saj said...

@Neil Gillibrand
Well apart from EPG going backword for 7 days, nothing really impress.
Y would someone need recomandation, I know which programme I like. Recording is much better I think in V+box, if it calshes, it gives me warning in wel advance, I can then record repeat.
I think there isnt superlatively impressive about Tivo - atleast for now
Unless there is really big comes up.
Also I will not have RED button on tivo until July, which you dont know will be available or not
I think I will go for cancellation
Anymore out there to persude me for Tivo guys
Please

alan said...

sajid
you got to look at what you want,for me the tivo searches and records different to v+ and has a few apps thats all,your v+ box sees the same channels,same hd same audio,there is nothing that says to me must have,to me its all about content,and vm could do with a lot more hd,dont listen to the hype,its not must have,not yet by a long shot.

Saj said...

@Alan,
Thanks mate, more and more I read and think, I am getting firm about cancelling my Tivo.
I am happy with my V+ box and cant see any dramatic change if I get Tivo installed for £149.
Also my recording only reach half of the limit so 1TB is just a waste for me
I think cancellation it is, tonight when I go home

Anonymous said...

received email, paid for box, conformation email received, install 27th April. Hassle free.....extremely rare for VM....

Carryonvending said...

It gets worse folks - lost six hours today, with TWO x TIVO boxes installed with three different cards.

The engineer Andy has sweat blood, he has made more calls to Langley HQ than I care to recall.....not one of the techies at the other end saw a plan turning tits up.....they just read the prepared script.

SO....what has gone wrong?

All the boxes issued are regionally programmed plus with TIVO it should have one of the ports that is even MORE locally set.

The last I overheard was that 6000 Tivo boxes all wrongly programmed so Its like having a new Bugatti Veyron with no wheels.... Apparently 48 hours to rectify with the equivalent of a V+ Box without on demand + Apps + full features.

Next call is to customer services.

alan said...

sajid
sit on the fence,and see how it all pans out,if you think that you will go for it later go for it,vm wont shift truck loads at that price,it will be interesting to see what the price will be,when all the ist people that must have it have been sorted,as i have said before vm needs to wake up to more hd,

Saj said...

@Alan
I can bet my life that within 6 month, £199 will drop down to £149 anyway, as I dont think VM will be able to sell it £199 anyway.
So yep, lets just wait and watch, and if 500gb box gives me the same thing as 1tb, that is lot cheaper and I can always call customer service to remove installation charge. So as you sed, lets see how it pans out

Unknown said...

@Carryonvending

I'm having the exact same problem, installer left expecting it to get resolved remotely, have had a call from level 1 support and awaiting another call, did you chase to get a replacement box?

Carryonvending said...

Gareth78

Its not worth using another box, as the bath they picked up today from Redpath the distributors all are REGIONALLY challenged.

I spoke to Customer Service staff in India.... She couldn't even read the script correctly.

I suggested that if my day has been messed up, and with 48 hours to wait to see if a firmware update will fix it or not, or stay in for another half day to get a THIRD box.

I suggested that as an act of goodwill that my £3 per month extra be commuted for a year to placate me. Guess what she offered?

Sir, I am empowered to give to a rebate on your £3 for this month, and for as many days that you have to wait..... HENCE (I don't think she thought the insult through) £3 divided by 30 days and three days rebate which equates to 30p. When I challenged her about this insult, she promised to speak to the TIVO team to see if they could 'better the offer'. They are calling me back.....yea right!

Me said...

@Carryonvending & @Gareth78

Also having same problem and actually showed them this blog.

So gotta wait the 48 hours, or I'll get a call if they need to replace the box. Apparently suppliers have loaded wrong firmware on the boxes, or at least that's what they told me

Unknown said...

@Carryonvending

Have just had a call back, they have said that the TiVo guys have identified the problem relating to a server at their end and a few people are experiencing the same issue, he wasn't sure how long it will take to get sorted but said it should take too long now that the problem has been identified but will call me back as soon as he gets feedback. Will update as i hear something...

Anthony said...

@Carryonvending & @Gareth78 & @Ant

Just wondering what regions you are in? Is it affecting the whole country, or just certain areas?

Me said...

I'm in Hertfordshire, although I think I'm covered by Luton in terms of the crew so to speak

alan said...

VM customer services need a kick up the ----,when i had my new 30 supahub,they said an installer will be calling to install this will take about 2 hrs,the installer turned out to be a van driver just delivering a box,sign here goodbye,signed up for tivo,got email please pick 2 installation dates that they gave me,i picked 26 or 27 april am,got email thanks your installion date will be 20 april pm,(no it wont,just cancelled it)what planet do vm think they are on,and as for the problems people are having with tivo,this really shows what a cock up wm is,we schould getting better than this,

Unknown said...

@Anthony

I'm in Woking, not sure if its related to any changes they are making for TiVo issues but my internet just went down for about 10 mins

RyanM said...

I wish I had looked at the comments on here today, TiVo installed yesterday, tv, phone, broadband and email suspended today, called and paid off the £149.95 balance at 10:00 hours, account still suspended at 17:30 hours! My limit is £120 and I've been with them for 2 years and never missed a payment.

Can't tell you what the TiVo box is like as I can't use it. I'm not impressed with their phone mannor at all no one wants to help and they keep saying it will be 24 hours until it all works again!

Quick to take my money not so quick to rectify their mistake!

Rant over.

RM, ryanm, ca9phoenix all are me

streaky_7 said...

Well I have had TiVo installed today. Took about an hour. No fuss. Engineer nice bloke and no issues.

As for some comments on here about is it worth it........well that is a matter of opinion, obviously! But to dismiss it as an expensive v+ box or not much better is crazy.

I'm not going to go in to the comparisons of this box compared to the V+ box (or Sky 1tb box for that matter) as you can get that info easily on this blog as well as others.

But I do appreciate its not for everyone. You have to want to be given suggestions, use the 1tb of hard drive space, be able to look forward 3 weeks on the guide and make wish lists (a personal fav). Otherwise it isn't worth it.

Me, I think it's quality. I will make use of all of the above and plenty of it. And my little girl hasn't stopped laughing at cats doing silly things on you tube for 40mins! It's funnier on a big screen compared to the laptop apparently.

SOLD!

Carryonvending said...

Ant said...

I'm in Hertfordshire, although I think I'm covered by Luton in terms of the crew so to speak
----------------------------------
Letchworth Herts - Covered by Luton Area.

Andy my installer was a GREAT AMBASSADOR for VM - Courteous, clued up, with complete empathy with 'my pain' after waiting ages and it not completing my wishes.

Me said...

@Carryonvending

My installed (although I ended up with 2) was Andy too so I think we had the same guy. You're right, he was great. I presume your's still isn't working? I haven't had a call from anyone.

xmaspast said...

I got an email from VM on the 12th, chose from 2 install dates, Saturday 23rd with the following Saturday as my second choice with a time of 8AM to 1PM
Just got an email from VM in Nottingham telling me they are coming on the 10th May from 1PM to 6PM?
Why ask what date and time we want if the ignore it?

Unknown said...

Hmm... I'm a little worried my order failed now. Meant to be on next bill, which was just emailed through, yet it (and the £3 charge) are not. Makes me worried it wasn't done right.

Also, this credit limit thing is bonkers, I'm gonna be SO annoyed if that applies for me as I specifically only purchased as being on my bill meant it would come out AFTER my next paycheck. Hopefully it wont apply to me (online thing saying about it isn't working)

Square eyes said...

@EVERYONE

When you are told that it will appear on your next bill, it means the bill after the insatll has taken place, VM will not bill you prior to installation. So don't worry if you do not see anything at this time.

Unknown said...

@ Square Eyes

I had my bill through yesterday (payable 15th May) and my install is on Monday. So does this mean I won't get billed until next month, thus paying in June?

Thanks.

overyourhead said...

Two and a half hours later. One dead box later. All done. Channels work, HD works, on-demand works, YouTube works. Happy, happy. The fun and games of this morning's install here: http://www.overyourhead.co.uk/2011/04/tivo.html

Unknown said...

anyone who had the install issues yesterday had an update? still haven't got on-demand, interactive or any TiVo features yet

streaky_7 said...

Well low and behold, installed yesterday with no issues and everything working fine. I even posted saying how smoothly it went.

Wake up this morning and no Internet connection. All on demand features had gone.

Call VM who were as helpful as they could be and I have an engineer coming out tomorrow morning though based on what others have said, I dont know if he can help?!!!

Unknown said...

just had an email from my much better half saying someone called from VM and the problem appears to have been fixed, or at least the exclamation marks have gone away, will have to wait till i get home from work to check!

Me said...

@gareth78.... I'll have to check when I get home too, although haven't had calls from anyone!

Square eyes said...

@Neil Gillibrand

Thats right, it will be on the next bill

Unknown said...

@ Square Eyes

May thanks. Gret news as well, means I can spend the cash I had all ready this month to pay for it. What to buy, what to buy...?

Carryonvending said...

NEW FIRMWARE DOWNLOADED

Techie from Dudley called, got me to update - All now working.

I hear 1000s of installs went tits up!

I lost a day and half VM - Compensation??????????

Me said...

@Carryonvending

How do you update it? Do you just go to "Connect to Virgin Media"?

Carryonvending said...

Ant said...

@Carryonvending

How do you update it? Do you just go to "Connect to Virgin Media"?

YES - if you have had the firmware download - Then reboot

The Lovely Emma may call you to talk you through it.

aycliffe_angel said...

Had a courtesy call from VM this afternoon, confirming that they would be coming on Monday morning to facilitate my install.

streaky_7 said...

Well I have got home and still no on demand. Problem I have is the little heart picture on the TiVo box itself has a little light under it flashing. And I have no Internet access so I can't get updates.

Plus some HD pictures are really poor quality, breaking up etc.

Maybe I have a different fault altogether?

Me said...

@Carryonvending

Thanks for the help - all seems to be working ok now :-)