Audio Video News

TiVo is the latest company to pledge allegiance to Amazon’s voice-enabled virtual assistant Alexa.

Starting June 1, TiVo Series 4, Series 5, Series 6, and Bolt Vox set-top DVR boxes will receive a firmware update that enables voice control via Alexa.

“Alexa can do many of the things you usually do with your TiVo remote,” said Andrew Heymann, TiVo’s senior director of product management. “You can ask Alexa to change the channel or launch an app.” Voice commands can also be used to skip commercials for SkipMode-enabled shows, jump back 8 seconds in the program, and control playback functions like fast forward and rewind.

“With far-field voice control, life becomes more untethered for our customers,” Heymann added. “They can continue to enjoy watching their favorite programming with TiVo’s cool features even when they’re preparing dinner and their hands are too dirty to use the remote, or when they’re exercising, and they don’t have access to their remote.”

The addition of Alexa voice control will be available alongside TiVo’s own voice-enabled Vox remote, which is available as a $45 accessory for the TiVo Bolt, Roamio, and Mini Vox.

The Vox remote offers a higher degree of voice functionality than the Alexa skill, providing quick access to recorded content and enabling viewers to search for movies and shows across live TV, DVR, video-on-demand, and streaming services.