We like the idea of chronicling our lives and times on video, but most people waste the idea on mundane stuff like weddings, graduations, births of children – you, the kinds of things that happen all the time. They leave out the most important record of who we are and how we live: the TV shows we watch. Babies are born every day, but the season finale of House only happens once a year! You seen one wedding, you seen ‘em all, but there’s a surprise in every episode of Two and a Half Men! Am I right, people?

The Toshiba RSTX20 TiVo and DVD Recorder makes it easier than ever to perpetually preserve your preferred programs. D-V-D, it’s easy as one-two-three: grab ‘em with the free basic TiVo service (or use the $150 rebate for new TiVo Plus subscribers); store ‘em on the 120GB hard drive; and burn ‘em to DVD-R or DVD-RW. And the magic all happens inside the RSTX20’s svelte silver casing – no ugly wires, no extra components, no saturated fat.

Toshiba didn’t just put two crappy functions together in one box, either, if that’s what you’re muttering about. Nope, the disc player/recorder brings righteous progressive scan quality, polyglot compatibility (DVD, DVD-R, DVD-RW, VCD, CD, CD-R, CD-RW, MP3), and 3:2 pulldown, just what you would expect from a quality outfit like the ‘Sheeb. A variety of inputs even let you record those dreary old home movies direct from the camcorder to DVD.

And yes, you read us right above: the TiVo receiver includes both a free subscription to TiVo Basic Service, and a $150 rebate if you sign up for a new TiVo Plus membership. The Basic Service lacks features like Season Pass and only lets you program 3 days in advance, but it’s also free. TiVo Plus costs money, but you’ll get $150 of it back. You win whatever you do. Spend your rebate wherever you want, but trust us - How I Met Your Mother is even funnier when accompanied by a little wine. (And we might know where you could get a bottle or four.)

After you pass on and leave a permanent archive of every minute of TV you’ve ever watched, the people of the future will truly understand what it felt like when Friday nights were ruled by the likes of Jim Belushi and George Lopez. God willing, they’ll never let it happen again.

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