The "trial" S3 finally got CableCards installed yesterday - without about 7 days left in the 30 day return period.

 

The saga of getting CCs went from phone calls to three visits to two different TWC offices, and ended with finding the right person who said, "Yeah, we do CableCards." and "Sure you can have two, I'll update your order."  :D

 

Having done extensive reading on TCF about various pitfalls to avoid in doing the Card install(s), I had the Cable Guy follow the instructions - as reinterpreted by yours truly - to the letter.

 

Although there were no major hickups, there was plenty of uncertainty about which 'numbers' where for what and whether/when each CableCard was making progress or finished with various steps. Smart guesses, patience, installer cooperation and good cheer, and a willingness to triple check that things were going right were our friends.

 

TiVo's instructions and setup screens are very poor; they don't give clear information about what is happening or what things mean; I never saw some of the screens mentioned in the Cable Installer Instructions insert. The screens I did see reminded me of DOS. TiVo needs to upgrade the instructions and screens significantly in a future release.

 

This Cable Guy had never 'done' an S3 before. Without the kind of knowledge and tech savvy I brought to the table, there would have been a high likelihood of failure. The typical CE enthusiast is going to have a challenge getting this done right without an installer that's experienced and trained on the Series3.