The DVR (digital video recorder) is now in 17.2 percent of American TV households according to Nielsen Media Research. Major cities have higher DVR penetration than small ones, reports eMarketer. The Dallas-Fort Worth market alone has over a quarter penetration.

The data indicates that DVRs are on the cusp of becoming mainstream technology.

"The point at which a technology moves into the mainstream has always been 30 percent. Within the largest TV markets in the country this point [for DVRs] will be reached in 2007/2008," said eMarketer analyst Ben Macklin.

DVR adoption has been slow since TiVo entered the market in the late '90s, but as DVRs saw inclusion in set-top boxes, a clear increase in its popularity was also seen.