TiVo just released version 2.3 of TiVoDesktop.  This version is a long awaited upgrade which includes the ability to schedule transfers as well as the capability to convert TiVo recordings into a format that mobile devices such as an iPod, Treo & PSP can play.  In order to perform this conversion, you will have to pay a one time fee of $24.95.  According to TiVoPony, this fee is due to the fact that TiVo had to license some technology to do the conversion.

This is a great upgrade for anybody who wants to watch their TiVo recordings on a mobile device.  TiVo has said that they would release this functionality however, it has been quite some time since we heard anything about it.  I know that I am going to go home today and upgrade my system to this latest version.   I’m most excited about the schedule transfer feature since I don’t own an iPod video or any other device which can playback video.

If you don’t want to pay $24.95 to get the upgrade, you could always use one of the free video conversion utilities such as AutoPilot, Videora or VEMode.

According to the following news.com article, TiVo will announce today a new feature that allows you to transfer your TiVo recordings to an iPod video or PSP.

Taken from news.com’s site:

Owners of the Apple or Sony devices will need to pay TiVo to unlock the portion of the new software that converts videos to the MPEG-4 format used by those players. While TiVo has not yet set the price for the software, similar programs typically cost between $15 and $30, Denney said. The cost will cover licensing fees and other expenses associated with using the MPEG-4 format, he said.

The new TiVo software will also have a syncing feature that will allow subscribers to choose whether they want new recordings of their favorite programs transferred to their portable devices automatically via their PC.

Based on the above quote, it looks as though you will have to buy some additional software to remove the DRM and allow you to play it on your PSP or iPod.

More info from here:

TiVo plans to begin testing software to enable video downloads to iPods from its digital video recorders within the next couple of weeks, the newspaper said. It said the company intends to make the software available to all TiVo users in the first quarter of 2006 for a one-time fee, most likely between $15 and $30.

While I don’t own an iPod video or PSP, this is definitely big news for TiVo. After all, look at how many shows have been downloaded off of the Apple’s iTunes music store. Apparently people are ready for portable video recordings.

In the event that you don’t want to shell out the 15-$30 for TiVo’s new software, you could instead use AutoPilot which allows you transfer your shows to your iPod, PSP at no cost.

Hat tip: MegaZone & several others…