TiVo Adds iPod Support -- For a Price

TiVo on Wednesday released a new version of its TiVo Desktop application for Windows, which enables subscribers to transfer recorded television programs from the set-top box to their computers and portable devices.

The DVR maker also released a premium version of the software called TiVo Desktop Plus with support for transferring content to Apple's iPod, Sony's PSP, Treo and Nokia phones, along with other portable devices that support MPEG-4 or H.264 video. The Plus version is priced at $24.95 USD.

The basic TiVo Desktop 2.3 is free of charge to TiVo customers, and features automatic transferring of television programs each night so they are ready by the morning. The application additionally lets customers watch slideshows of their photos directly on the TV.

Windows Mobile and Microsoft's Portable Media Center devices are supported in the basic TiVo Desktop. Burning recorded shows to DVD is also supported, but that feature requires the purchase of Sonic MyDVD, an external burning application.

TiVo Desktop 2.3 is available to customers with a Series2 TiVo and running Windows 2000 or Windows XP. The iteration for Mac OS X does not yet support the TiVo To Go feature, which provides the ability for copying content from TiVo devices.

TiVo Desktop 2.3 is available for download from FileForum. TiVo Desktop Plus can be purchased from the TiVo Web site. A license key will be provided to unlock the full features of the application.