A refreshed version of Xperi’s popular TiVo Stream 4K device is now being sold at Target, according to a product listing spotted by The Desk on Thursday.
The device sports many of the same features as the original TiVo Stream 4K, but includes an updated TiVo mascot — now sporting eyes — on the dedicated TiVo remote button and on the device itself.
Introduced early last year, the TiVo Stream 4K incorporates the Android TV operating system with TiVo’s own content recommendation engine, which pulls in TV shows and movies from a handful of content partners like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and HBO Max.
The device launched last year with a promised retail price of $70, but was discounted to $50 as part of a promotional deal. The price increase never materialized; instead, Xperi has offered the TiVo Stream 4K for as little as $40 through various sales on Amazon and elsewhere.
As noted by The Desk last year, Xperi’s first brick-and-mortar retail partner for the TiVo Stream 4K was Walmart, where the device continues to sell for $50. But Target is offering a big incentive for customers to buy a new TiVo Stream 4K from them: The streamer is currently on sale via Target’s website for just $30, one of the lowest sale prices for the device since it was introduced.
There was rampant speculation last month that Xperi would eventually move away from the TiVo Stream 4K after the company’s chief executive said Google’s recent decision to enter the hardware market with a television content recommendation software made it difficult to compete in that space. But a TiVo spokesperson later confirmed to tech columnist Jared Newman that the company remained committed to its Android TV streamer and would support it for the foreseeable future.
Xperi’s decision to release a slightly refreshed version of the TiVo Stream 4K — and through a new retail partner — certainly seems to indicate that the company is standing by its decision to offer Android TV hardware and will continue to do so for at least a little while longer.
