# Is there a streaming device that can organize my shows like a Tivo?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-streaming-device-that-can-organize-my-shows-like-a-tivo/982160
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [April 4, 2023, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-streaming-device-that-can-organize-my-shows-like-a-tivo/982160 "2023-04-04T22:13:01Z")
**Posts on this page:** 6
**Page:** 2
### Author:  [@zbuzz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zbuzz)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2023, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-streaming-device-that-can-organize-my-shows-like-a-tivo/982160/21 "2023-04-07T01:46:35Z")
> [@doreen](#):
>
> or he might be looking for something that actually says “new season” or “new episodes” like some streaming services have
When a new episode is released it automatically shows up listed as “Next” instead of “New,” but that’s just semantics. So, wherever you are in the show, it will display the next available episode to watch. It also lists the season and episode number.
So I mean…
> [@doreen](#):
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> it seems like what you are looking for is something that will tell you on the home screen that The Handmaids Tale" on Hulu and " The Crown" on Netflix both have new episodes.
… that’s what it does (but not counting Netflix, as has been mentioned).
Or am I missing something?
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### Author:  [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2023, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-streaming-device-that-can-organize-my-shows-like-a-tivo/982160/22 "2023-04-07T01:58:32Z")
This isn’t exactly what you’re looking for (and it seems like Apple TV does it, or so I’ve read), but I noticed you spend part of your time doing:
> The other day, I counted how many keystrokes it took to go from “Are there any new episodes of [streaming show]” to “Are there any new episodes of [streaming show on a different network]”.
There’s a very good TV Calendar [here](https://www.pogdesign.co.uk/cat/) that helps you keep track of your TV calendar. You can add shows to your account and it’ll tell you when new episodes are coming and what network they’re on. You can check off episodes once you’ve watched them, and view show pages to see previous episodes and seasons.
It’s not as single-click as you’re dreaming of but it’s quite good for managing shows you want to watch.
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### Author:  [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2023, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-streaming-device-that-can-organize-my-shows-like-a-tivo/982160/23 "2023-04-07T13:37:00Z")
I don’t think I am, and Rokus don’t do what you’re asking, because they were never intended to do that.
You buy a Roku when you want to hook up a projector/old TV/etc… and have access to streaming content on _a device that would otherwise not have access to show it_.
It’s not something that replaces a DVR and organizes the shows/movies/etc… that you’re watching so you can go in and easily see when the new episodes are out, etc… It’s a platform for presenting the user with other streaming service apps, and not much else.
I’ve got both- a Roku and a cable box/DVR. I know what they both do, and I also know what a smart TV does (got one of those too!). There’s substantial overlap between the Roku and the smart TV functionality, but the Roku was great when Panasonic discontinued the smart TV functionality on my old TV a few years ago (before the TV was broken by a child) because it allowed that access when the TV itself did not.
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### Author:  [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2023, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-streaming-device-that-can-organize-my-shows-like-a-tivo/982160/24 "2023-04-07T17:09:53Z")
> [@bump](#):
>
> I don’t think I am
You are. I asked if “there is a streaming device that can organize my shows like a tivo”.
It may not have come through well in my OP, which was written out of frustration, but I understand the Roku doesn’t do this, which is why I was asking if there was another device that does do it.
You’ve spent three posts explaining to me what a Roku is.
> [@bump](#):
>
> Well, a Roku is more of a… clearinghouse device/app for presenting other streaming services, and not some sort of omni-streaming platform that would work like a DVR for streaming.
> [@bump](#):
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> A Roku is generally a little USB gizmo with Wi-FI that allows you to attach it to a device via HDMI (or whatever) and watch streaming video.
> [@bump](#):
>
> You buy a Roku when you want to hook up a projector/old TV/etc… and have access to streaming content on _a device that would otherwise not have access to show it_.
What they’re used for:
> [@bump](#):
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> Rokus are typically used in situations where the TV itself isn’t able to natively host the apps for the various streaming services.
> [@bump](#):
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> Its market niche is that it allows you to watch streaming video on ANY device with a HDMI port.
> [@bump](#):
>
> You buy a Roku when you want to hook up a projector/old TV/etc… and have access to streaming content on _a device that would otherwise not have access to show it_.
What they don’t do:
> [@bump](#):
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> It’s not much of a show-manager, in the sense of showing a menu of shows from multiple streaming services as if they had been recorded on a DVR.
> [@bump](#):
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> What it isn’t, is a sort of catch-all streaming video manager. It doesn’t track what you’ve watched, what’s new, etc… independent of what the various services’ streaming apps do themselves.
> [@bump](#):
>
> It’s not something that replaces a DVR and organizes the shows/movies/etc
I don’t really want to keep going around in circles here. I think I’ll leave it at that, look into the suggestions other posters have made and perhaps find a different/better way to word my OP in the future if I decide to ask about it again.
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### Author:  [@Didi44](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Didi44)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2023, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-streaming-device-that-can-organize-my-shows-like-a-tivo/982160/25 "2023-04-07T17:19:25Z")
Yes, most of the links for Kodi say that it does use the TVDB and IMDB for the searches.
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### Author:  [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)
#### Post date: [April 7, 2023, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-streaming-device-that-can-organize-my-shows-like-a-tivo/982160/26 "2023-04-07T19:40:39Z")
i tell people who dont have it that roku is pretty much a digital cable box for streaming services in the fact it keeps them all in one easy to find place
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