This is probably too geeky for most people but:
I use a Windows 7 computer running Windows Media Center. It connects to a Silicon Dust box that, in my case, connects to cable. They also make boxes that will record from over the air. I use the program guide in Media Center to select which programs I want to record. Media Center automatically records them. A software package, MCEBuddy, automatically cuts out the commercials and re-encodes the programs as .mp4 files. I can copy the files to a flash drive, or my laptop to play on the Trailer TV. I can also play the files on my laptop or tablet.
If you have a Win 7 or 8 laptop laying around, you can do all this for around a hundred bucks. No monthly Tivo fees. Does require a internet connection to download the program guide, but so does Tivo.