Free Pilot Previews on Amazon Unbox

Bionic Woman

Life

Chuck

Journeyman (dhmac)

Thanks! I saw Chuck and Life on the Blockbuster Fall Preview DVD, but Bionic Woman wasn't on there. Nice!

PS There are about 10 shows for free on there. Journeyman, too.

Bionic Woman: 5 out of 10. Action packed episode, but I can't stand the lead actress or the blonde villian.

Life: 6 out of 10. Interesting premise, but the Zen mumbo jumbo got on my nerves.

Chuck: 3 out of 10. Pretty boring. For a dramedy about a guy getting an ability, Reaper is vastly more entertaining.

Here's a direct link to the Journeyman page for downloading its free pilot preview.

I assume you don't watch Battlestar Galactica if you don't like Katee Sackhoff (the blonde Bionic Woman). I saw the Bionic Woman pilot as well and I thought Michelle Ryan did a solid job for a relative newcomer.

Doesn't work on TiVo HD.

I'd say:

Bionic Woman: 7 out of 10
Chuck: 6 out of 10
Journeyman: 4 out of 10
Life: 2 out of 10

Damn. I just read the other day that Unbox works with Tivo. Guess HD is the exception.

How so?

When the Unbox was first announced to work on TiVo, they offered $15 in credit when you signed-up and linked in your TiVo. All $15 of my credit was downloaded to my Series 3.

And when I clicked on the link for Journeyman above, both my Series 2 and Series 3 were in the available TiVo dropdown list.

Unless there's some weird restriction difference between the TiVoHD and Series 3??

Bionic Woman and Life seem to imply you have to subscribe to the entire season to get the pilots free, while the other two do not?

Do you have to register? Will an Amazon account do?

Check the box next to the episode you want watch. Then select "buy episodes with 1 click" on the right hand side. Just like adding to the cart. The total should be $0.00.

I didn't register for Unbox, but the Amazon does remember me (cookies). With a $0.00 total I did not have to log in until I started the Unbox program.

You have to click the little box below next to the first episode then click on 1-Click ordering, as opposed tot he season ordering option.

I didn't even notice the little list down there until I clicked on 1-Click and it said I had to first select an episode from the list.

According to a few postings I found on tivocommunity.com, this still does not work for TiVo HD. Perhaps a bug in the software?

Hmm. It's letting me select my HD Tivo and download/purchase. Whether or not it actually downloaded, I have no idea as I'm at work right now.

From the linking page:
Which TiVo DVRs can play videos from Amazon Unbox?
Any broadband-connected TiVo Series2™ or Series3™ DVR can download and play Unbox videos. Sorry, this service is not available for DIRECTV TiVo subscribers, TiVo Series1™ owners, or TiVo subscribers who use a telephone phone line to access the service.

Just got home from work and there was a blurb on the main page of the TiVo about this.

If you go into the Amazon Unbox page in the Movies download section, there is a listing for "free downloads" which includes these pilots and several other shows.

Much easier to find the free stuff that way than the Amazon site.

Yeah, they have been working on the site. At the time I posted, the free shows were not listed together. Even now the navigation is still poor. I don't think this type of service works well in the Amazon listing model.

Worked fine on my Tivo HD. I have the first($500) model, not the newer one, if that makes a difference.

Downloaded all four yesterday, watched Chuck last night through my HTPC on my 46in set. Not bad. For free.

I have the newer one. It worked on mine too - though the aspect ratio was kinda off.

Works on the newer HD Tivo as well...

edit:beat me to it. Which vid had the aspect ratio issues? Bionic Woman looked okay to me.

My Bionic Woman was messed up aspect ratio-wise. Chuck was fine. I wonder if it "knows" better if you order it from the TiVo instead of the website.

I have deleted Bionic Woman and asked for it again through the TiVo interface to see if that fixes the issue. Was kinda lame that the sound was only in stereo and not 5.1 for Chuck.

I kind of enjoyed Journeyman, but I'm not ready to sign up for a season pass.

Why not available for non PC users?

I guess NBC intends to really screw over iTunes so no Mac support.