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Streaming TV (again)

D M C

D M C

Oh good god, this again?
Feb 19, 2015
837
9,797
North America, Earth
#1
I'm looking for your experience with streaming service(s). I know it's been a thread topic before, but with new services coming available at a faster pace, i hope we can spread the word, good and bad.

Has anyone cut the cable and gone to SlingTV, HuluLive TV, DirectTV Now, YouTube live TV, or another service? I know YouTube Live TV is only available in NYC, Philly, Chi, LA and the Bay Area so it's hard to get a measure on whether it's worth waiting for. And I think Hulu is only available on select devices (not Roku,) so I wanna know if it's worth getting chromecast or whatever to get it. I don't have a PlayStation but if you wanna add PlayStation Vue to the mix, great.

Also, is a cloud DVR is available and if so, how much extra, and does it get local live stations and which ones (I think some affiliates aren't available on some services?)

I've heard some good things and some bad things about SlingTV (orange, blue and both,) so if you can speak to reliability or quality of service and having experience with multiple streaming services it's appreciated.

Thanks
 
#3
We cut the cord last year in favor of Amazon FireTV and haven't regretted it for one second. We added SlingTV (blue) at the outset since it gives me the one channel I really wanted (NBCSN) before I could cut the cord. We haven't had any issues with Sling (or any of the other streaming services we use). We add HBO and Showtime for a month or two at a time to catch up on specific programs and then cancel those subscriptions when not in use. We now pay less than half of what our cable bill used to be. I only wish I would have done this sooner!
 
#4
I cut the Comcast/xfinity TV cord a couple months ago. I chose PlayStation Vue and so far I'm satisfied. Note that you do not need a Sony device to use this service. I'm subscribed to the "Elite Slim" package -- If I could abstain from Velocity I'd save $10/mo with the "Core Slim" package.

PS Vue has DVR recording to the cloud. Any show you Favorite is automatically stored in the cloud for later playback for 28 days. This was an essential feature for me. And it has the usual apps for playback on mobile devices.

I'm streaming PS Vue via a Roku Premiere+ and Apple TV Gen 4. Both seem to work pretty well although the PS Vue app for Apple TV has a very annoying "feature" when navigating menus that makes it way too easy to accidentally unfavorite a show or a channel. Once you figure this out, it's easy to work around.

The main channels I stream regularly are CNN, Velocity, and whatever AMC show I'm into at the time. Oh yeah, and FX Channel for Fargo. FX, Velocity, and AMC live stream very reliably, almost no hiccups. CNN seems to have occasional glitches, not sure why but it only happens to CNN. I can live with it. I watched the last 3 or 4 episodes of Better Call Saul via PS Vue live streaming and they were fine. Watched 4 or 5 Fargos via the cloud DVR, also fine.

BTW I still have Comcast/xfinity for broadband because the alternative is DSL at only 1.5mbps. That's insanely useless for streaming. Comcast costs me $75/mo for 100mb down and 7mb up. No complaints.

Having said all that, if Comcast offered me the same package of channels I'm getting with PS Vue for the same price, I'd switch back to Comcast just for the convenience factor. But Comcast has made no effort to bring me back in the fold.

Oh yeah, final note: I've tried PS Vue on my Playstation 3 (the old jumbo version) and it doesn't work worth a crap! The PS3 randomly locks up and has to be force-rebooted. This only happens with Sony's own PS Vue app.

EDIT: I get ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, and FOX over the air with a $15 RCA antenna. It's a little annoying having to switch things between OTA and streaming but again I can live with that first world "problem". I have a TiVo Roamio to DVR shows on those networks.
 
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#7
FingerDub said:
The Sling service works well per se, but I had to quit using it because I found the interface terrible clunky and frustrating. Going to try YouTube TV next.
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From what I've read so far, YouTube Live TV seems like the most suitable. I have familiarity with the YouTube app, so that's a plus and the DVR is free and unlimited storage, from what I've read. Sling charges an extra fee for that perk. The only down side, and it's a big one, is its unavailable where I live.
 
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#8
The gotta haves for me is ESPN, fox sports, CNN, MSNBC, Big Ten Network, AMC, FX and over air channels. TCM would be nice, but not necessary. The wife requires those plus HGTV, DIY, Food Network, BBC America, CNBC, SyFy and a few other schlocky channels that carry paranormal, ghosty type stuff.
 
#11
there are maybe 2 or 3 shows on network TV I will make time to watch, aside from that ,PBS has the occasional interest for me. I recently watched a show called "the Ranch" over at my sisters place I thought was pretty good so I guess Netflix will be on the menu come fall
 
#12
I had Sling TV but cancelled it. I don't watch sports and if I'm patient, the shows I was paying to watch live will eventually pop up on Netflix/Hulu/Amazon. Those three keep me busy enough. I can't say I'm watching less TV but the quality of TV I'm watching is definitely way up.
 
#13
We cut the Comcast cord over one year ago.
We tried Sling, Roku, and Netflix then decided on Roku.
I thought I had to have all my sports channels like ESPN, but I don't.
My cousin shares his DIRECTV login with me so I pick up hockey games during the season.

-Mike
 
#14
Couple of random observations about live streaming.

They carry the east coast network feed in all time zones. No west coast delay. So on the west coast we get a show like Better Call Saul at 7PM instead of 10PM. That's a bonus. Comcast used to be like that but they were coerced into observing time zone delays by the networks.

Most network shows with commercials have national commercial spots, as well as local spots. So a Portland advertiser can book an ad on a nationally televised show, but the ad will only air in Portland. So fans of BCS in Portland will see local businesses running ads. I suspect those local commercial timeslots are booked by the cable company, not the network.

Those local ad spots are usually blank when live streaming. A card comes up saying "Commercial break in progress" where a local ad would normally have run for 30 seconds, or however long the local ad slot is. Usually these local blanks are bookended by national commercials.
 
#15
elgecko said:
I don't watch sports and if I'm patient, the shows I was paying to watch live will eventually pop up on Netflix/Hulu/Amazon.
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This is, unfortunately, a show stopper for me. I do watch sports and wife insists on watching programs as they air nationally (it upsets her no end that BBC America delays the Dr. Who Xmas show until the 26th, whereas in GB they show it on Xmas day.)

We also use HBO Now, Netflix and Amazon Prime, but I don't really consider them cable TV replacements. They're Redbox replacements, though they do have original programming than was unavailable from VHS rentals.
 
#17
bolophonic said:
We got an Apple TV and use a couple of streaming services like Netflix. 99% of television is frankly garbage, so my willingness to pay very much to watch it is minimal.
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Been there myself. I cycle through movies, youtube and PlutoTV (a free service) in Kodi media player. I considered paying for Netflix but I've never been desperate to shell out money for it. I can do with news and gaming. Plenty of entertainment. That and steam offers a video service.
 
#18
D M C said:
This is, unfortunately, a show stopper for me. I do watch sports and wife insists on watching programs as they air nationally (it upsets her no end that BBC America delays the Dr. Who Xmas show until the 26th, whereas in GB they show it on Xmas day.)
Click to expand...

Maybe you should just stick with traditional cable TV.
There is probably some way to achieve what you are after without traditional cable, but the mix of subscriptions and services you'll have to pay for may make it more complicated than just paying for traditional cable.

-Mike
 
#19
MJ5150 said:
Maybe you should just stick with traditional cable TV.
There is probably some way to achieve what you are after without traditional cable, but the mix of subscriptions and services you'll have to pay for may make it more complicated than just paying for traditional cable.

-Mike
Click to expand...

This. We do MLB TV to get most Red Sox games. We do the online subscription, not the cable one. But we still have cable. We use it for Disney for the kids, news and sports for me, all the networks and their talent shows my wife loves, etc. I could probably cobble together some streaming subscriptions that would give me Disney, the networks, Red Sox games, etc. But by the time I got everything I wanted I would be right beck to cable prices.

I think streaming is more for people who want to watch TV shows and movies whenever they feel like it. Adding live news and sports events makes it more complicated to go all streaming on the cheap.
 
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#20
Biggbass said:
a digital attic antenna, Amazon, Netflix, Kodi and a fast ISP download speed
cover about 99% of it.
Click to expand...

Same for me - digital antenna for OTA channels (so I can watch live hockey and the Olympics). Amazon, Netflix, Redbull TV, CraveTV (Canadian flavours) via Apple TV or our second SmartTV. I've got high speed internet - 50/10 MB/s speed + unlimited usage for $50/month. Cut the cable almost 5 years ago with no regrets. Don't miss the inane commercials. Wish I could get live broadcast of the Tour de France and the Dakar Rally. And PBS. But I can live with those compromises.
 
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