Tivo does have a 30 second skip option. Also, the fast forward is nice in that at the higher speeds you are taken back so you don't accidentaly ff over the first minute of the show. For example: commercial break starts and I go to hit ff 3 times. When I see the show again I hit ff again and it backsteps to right before the point I hit the button again. It is a manual mode but I can fly through a commercial break in about 5-10 seconds or less and land at the beginning of the next segment every time.