The last stand for the stand-alone boxes? - Industry analysts are calling this Christmas the last for "stand-alone" digital video recorder boxes, a la TiVo, according to this NYT article. The biggest challege: cable boxes with DVR functionality built-in will really put the pressure on the makers of separate components. (No wires to connect!) Comcast is already testing models with capabilities rivaling TiVo OS 4.0's Home Media Option. But maybe, just maybe, our buddies in Alviso, California have a plan. They are already putting TiVo-branded DVR technology inside the next must-have TV gadget, the DVD-burner. (So long, VCR.) As enticing as such bleeding-edge devices are, I am still waiting on the only new TiVo I'd be willing to buy, the long-promised HDTiVo. And waiting... And waiting...

Catching up on related news, the rumored split between TiVo and Rupert Murdoch, the new owner of DirecTV, appears to be greatly exaggerated.