Cutting The Cord on Cable/Satellite TV Service?

Cesar Crespo

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Dec 22, 2002
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What are my options to watch the Celtics 82 games a year? Is PS Vue's core package at $45 the best value? I love the NBA in general, is there a lot of NBA content on Vue? I used my free 5 day membership to watch the Pat's season opener, so I can't really see what their NBA coverage is.

I loved the free membership and I'm 99% ready to move over to Vue and just ditch everything else, especially since they have NESN and the local CBS feed. I think the only Patriots games that wouldn't be covered are games on Fox, which would require an antenna.
 

Marceline

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Pretty much all the streaming services have CSN NE at this point.

NESN is more limited so if you need NESN during the winter you probably want PS Vue.
 

kenneycb

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It also has Fox. I really enjoyed my 14 day free trial but couldn't make the economics work with my current Verizon deal unfortunately.
 

dirtynine

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Dec 17, 2002
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I’m trialing Fubo. They just massively upgraded their Roku app. $40 a month is nuts, but for a soccer fan, in season, and now with NESN...
 

Tangled Up In Red

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Hulu with live TV is now viewable (the live tv portion) on desktop in beta. Previously, live/local was only on mobile/tablet.
 

ElUno20

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Jul 19, 2005
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I got a notification today that as of Jan 1, Amazon firestick isn't supporting the YouTube app. This really sucks.
 

The_Powa_of_Seiji_Ozawa

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Sep 9, 2006
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I got a notification today that as of Jan 1, Amazon firestick isn't supporting the YouTube app. This really sucks.
That's so Apple.

This was a problem with the first gen Amazon boxes that were rooted. The only way to get YouTube apps to work was to allow the firmware to update, thereby losing the root. You could still sideload stuff with updates firmware but still.
 

edoug

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Jul 15, 2005
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That's so Apple.

This was a problem with the first gen Amazon boxes that were rooted. The only way to get YouTube apps to work was to allow the firmware to update, thereby losing the root. You could still sideload stuff with updates firmware but still.
With both sides playing Apple. I tried Youtube on downloader and wouldn't suggest it. For those that don't know, there is an app called Silk Browser on Amazon's Fire TV devices. It's not too bad. It can be a little clunky but Amazon apps can be like that.
 

ElUno20

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Jul 19, 2005
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With both sides playing Apple. I tried Youtube on downloader and wouldn't suggest it. For those that don't know, there is an app called Silk Browser on Amazon's Fire TV devices. It's not too bad. It can be a little clunky but Amazon apps can be like that.
Thank you for the tip. We try to limit his screen time but when we do play some videos for the boy, YouTube is it. The thought of losing this Jan 1 sent chills down my spine
 

luckiestman

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Jul 15, 2005
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Thank you for the tip. We try to limit his screen time but when we do play some videos for the boy, YouTube is it. The thought of losing this Jan 1 sent chills down my spine

Have you tried the Pbs kids app
 

ElUno20

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Have you tried the Pbs kids app
Not yet. But I'm guessing a lot of the sesame Street stuff is on HBO right?

It's really these sing along phonic and number songs he loves so that's why YouTube is #1 right now.

I'll give the pbs one a try though, thanks for the tip.
 

edoug

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Thank you for the tip. We try to limit his screen time but when we do play some videos for the boy, YouTube is it. The thought of losing this Jan 1 sent chills down my spine
Your welcome, hopefully it works out for you.
 

Haunted

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Aug 23, 2006
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I'd presume could still cast from your phone, correct? That's how I use YouTube on my fire stick most of the time anyway
 

Bongorific

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Jul 16, 2005
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Not yet. But I'm guessing a lot of the sesame Street stuff is on HBO right?

It's really these sing along phonic and number songs he loves so that's why YouTube is #1 right now.

I'll give the pbs one a try though, thanks for the tip.
There’s still Sesame Street stuff on the pbs kids app. That app gets more use than any other in our household.
 

Yaz4Ever

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Anyone here using Kodi on a Fire Stick that can recommend a better build (including a DIY) than Wookie, please let me know. I'm pretty meh with my current setup.
 

MikeM

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Anyone here using Kodi on a Fire Stick that can recommend a better build (including a DIY) than Wookie, please let me know. I'm pretty meh with my current setup.
I'm firmly in the builds suck camp, since I really don't care about custom skins/widgets and just want the smoothest experience without too much overlap clutter in the back round potentially messing things up. So if you are willing to go the DIY route and as of today I'd currently recommend Rebirth as the best overall working add-on for free links to people that already have a pretty good idea of what they are looking to watch. Maybe add in Bob's Unleashed or Pyramid if you don't. Cerebro is also looking looking like it makes a solid backup to Rebirth. Install guide to all of that stuff found by clicking on their icons here: https://kodiapps.com/addons-chart

As noted above the latest add free version of Terrarium TV is pretty solid too if you are looking for EZMode streaming. Supports both both Trakt and Real-Debrid/Alluc integration as well.
 
Aug 24, 2017
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My digital antenna is just not working enough of the time. Is there any other cord-cutting way to get CBS, NBC, ABC, FOX? I only need them for live sports.
 

Ed Hillel

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Dec 12, 2007
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PSVue seems to have added NESN national to its sports package. I assume sports games will be blacked out, but there’s a ton of Charlie Moore.
My digital antenna is just not working enough of the time. Is there any other cord-cutting way to get CBS, NBC, ABC, FOX? I only need them for live sports.
Depending on market, DirectTV Now or Vue and/or some combination of network apps. You have to check it out on their websites.
 

GreenMonsterVsGodzilla

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We love DirectTV Now and we got a great price by bundling with AT&T cell service (it’s owned by AT&T.). Only thing worse than cable is not being able to record shows.
So as of yesterday there’s ads for YouTube TV - same channels more or less but with UNLIMITED DVR recording. That’s killer app stuff.
So here’s the question - do the other streaming services catch up in the near future? Or does YouTube TV continue to be the only one offering it? This proves that there’s no technical/rights issues with recording streaming TV.
 

Ed Hillel

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Dec 12, 2007
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So here’s the question - do the other streaming services catch up in the near future? Or does YouTube TV continue to be the only one offering it? This proves that there’s no technical/rights issues with recording streaming TV.
Playstation Vue has like 100 hours plus free with service. Direct TV Now promised it this past fall, but now have pushed it forward. I am planning on switching when they get it, or when Vue gets ABC live, whichever happens first.
 

sox311

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Jan 30, 2004
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That's what she said.
DirecTV Now has a beta Cloud DVR in the wild I have seen and used. Hopefully it is released soon. The higher, much much higher, priority for DTV/ATT is Satellite DTV still though.

First to market could win this, so they better get their butt in line and release it if YouTube already has.
 

The Needler

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Dec 7, 2016
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DirecTV Now has a beta Cloud DVR in the wild I have seen and used. Hopefully it is released soon. The higher, much much higher, priority for DTV/ATT is Satellite DTV still though.

First to market could win this, so they better get their butt in line and release it if YouTube already has.
I have been using the DTV Now beta app on Apple TV for a couple of months now. I don't use the DVR much, but it works fine for me. I have 20 hours, though I've heard other people were allotted more, and there's no clue as yet how much will be given in the final version or whether there will be an additional charge.
 

Eastchop

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Jul 31, 2006
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Great info in this thread.

One question, and I admit my tech savvy is essentially nonexistent:

I understand sling box has been discontinued. I need this exact functionality, but am very reluctant to drop $300 on a sling box at this point given support for future OSs seems likely to be discontinued as well.

Anyone know of any alternatives that provide essentially the same function? In a nutshell, I’d like to access my cable from one home at another home with internet only. Thanks in advance for any suggestions!
 

johnmd20

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Great info in this thread.

One question, and I admit my tech savvy is essentially nonexistent:

I understand sling box has been discontinued. I need this exact functionality, but am very reluctant to drop $300 on a sling box at this point given support for future OSs seems likely to be discontinued as well.

Anyone know of any alternatives that provide essentially the same function? In a nutshell, I’d like to access my cable from one home at another home with internet only. Thanks in advance for any suggestions!
I currently use a slingbox and let me say it's fantastic. I use it a lot because it enables me to have a 3rd TV in my office, without requiring a 3rd cable connection. I am not sure how long they are going to continue to support them, but I assume it's going to be for many more years. They are still in the TV game, and they are selling ads on their service, (and the iPad app does cost 15 bucks, which is cheap and worth it but it's also revenue) so that should give them enough to support it.

I hope.
 

Eastchop

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I currently use a slingbox and let me say it's fantastic. I use it a lot because it enables me to have a 3rd TV in my office, without requiring a 3rd cable connection. I am not sure how long they are going to continue to support them, but I assume it's going to be for many more years. They are still in the TV game, and they are selling ads on their service, (and the iPad app does cost 15 bucks, which is cheap and worth it but it's also revenue) so that should give them enough to support it.

I hope.
I could keep it simple and just buy a sling box... It fits my needs perfectly. Just strange they’re discontinuing a useful product with what appears to be zero competition or alternatives
 

johnmd20

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I could keep it simple and just buy a sling box... It fits my needs perfectly. Just strange they’re discontinuing a useful product with what appears to be zero competition or alternatives
The company now offers a pay TV service. And it's now owned by DishNetwork. It makes no sense for them to offer products that allow people to use their current cable connection to stream their TV anywhere instead of buying their cable product.
 

Eastchop

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The company now offers a pay TV service. And it's now owned by DishNetwork. It makes no sense for them to offer products that allow people to use their current cable connection to stream their TV anywhere instead of buying their cable product.
Yeah, given the conflict of interest it makes sense. Just disappointed it looks like there aren’t really any alternatives that offer similar functionality.

I pay for cable for sports and have held off cord cutting largely due to lack of economical live sports options. I’d rather not pay for cable x2 when a sling box will solve this for me... just nervous about purchasing a discontinued device. Maybe this is what finally gets me to cut cable altogether
 

Hank Scorpio

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Apr 1, 2013
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Is there any alternative to cable to get Sox games in the Boston area? I have FioS, but stopped their TV service. The basic cable package was utter crap, not offering a single worthwhile channel, unless you count CNN and TBS, which I don’t. And that was at approx $100/month. To get NESN, AMC, Comedy Central, etc, you’re shelling out an additional $50/month or more.

I cycle Netflix and Hulu on and off, and have Amazon Prime and MLBtv, and have been using Unlocator - but it’s a pain in the ass because MLBtv often refuses to load with a VPN service, and Netflix often blocks it too.

Usually I’ll just load Netflix through FireTV and MLB through PS4, but it’s still annoying. Often need to load MLB.TV through Verizon, then change to VPN once app is loaded. First world problems, I guess, but a tedious process.
 

garlan5

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May 13, 2009
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Ugh I'm a few months in cordless and most everything runs fine but watch espn app. Buffering constantly. Netflix and other apps work fine. 25mb download speed
 

Montana Fan

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Ugh I'm a few months in cordless and most everything runs fine but watch espn app. Buffering constantly. Netflix and other apps work fine. 25mb download speed
Sorry to read that especially tonight. I'm on the ESPN app and it is working better than Sling TV which is what provides me access to the ESPN app. Also 25mb. Tell the family to shut their stuff off til the game is over.
 

schillzilla

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May 11, 2006
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Yeah, given the conflict of interest it makes sense. Just disappointed it looks like there aren’t really any alternatives that offer similar functionality.

I pay for cable for sports and have held off cord cutting largely due to lack of economical live sports options. I’d rather not pay for cable x2 when a sling box will solve this for me... just nervous about purchasing a discontinued device. Maybe this is what finally gets me to cut cable altogether
I bought an old slingbox on eBay for 90 bucks. It was an old M1, it needs apps, but they have an app that is still working on Mac high Sierra, iOS and amazon fire stick, among other platforms. My understanding is the M2 just needs a web browser to stream your channels ( no app needed), so perhaps that is more future proof?

Overall I’ve used the slingbox to watch Cs and Pats since September - and it’s been fantastic. I bought my parents a fire stick and they are using it now and absolutely loving it to watch their “local” Boston channels while they are in FL for the winter. Note, only one person can stream from the slingbox at a given time.
 

garlan5

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May 13, 2009
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Virginia
Sorry to read that especially tonight. I'm on the ESPN app and it is working better than Sling TV which is what provides me access to the ESPN app. Also 25mb. Tell the family to shut their stuff off til the game is over.
It got better not sure why. Always espn. Netflix etc never checks up
 

Papelbon's Poutine

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Dec 4, 2005
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I currently use a slingbox and let me say it's fantastic. I use it a lot because it enables me to have a 3rd TV in my office, without requiring a 3rd cable connection. I am not sure how long they are going to continue to support them, but I assume it's going to be for many more years. They are still in the TV game, and they are selling ads on their service, (and the iPad app does cost 15 bucks, which is cheap and worth it but it's also revenue) so that should give them enough to support it.

I hope.
To note, we gave up on a cable box in the bedroom a while back, just didn’t watch it enough (and actually had issues with it, Comcast replaced it three times before we realized the issue was actually the hdmi input on the tv) and scrapped it. Decided to just go with a roku in there. Xfinity now has an app you can watch live tv on roku, you can’t pause or record stuff (yet at least) but we essentially have a cable box for free now. It’s been a game changer. Not really ‘cutting the cord’, but it’s been great since we found it. Between that, Netflix and the cable apps, we rarely find ourselves in bed without being able to watch what we want.
 

johnmd20

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To note, we gave up on a cable box in the bedroom a while back, just didn’t watch it enough (and actually had issues with it, Comcast replaced it three times before we realized the issue was actually the hdmi input on the tv) and scrapped it. Decided to just go with a roku in there. Xfinity now has an app you can watch live tv on roku, you can’t pause or record stuff (yet at least) but we essentially have a cable box for free now. It’s been a game changer. Not really ‘cutting the cord’, but it’s been great since we found it. Between that, Netflix and the cable apps, we rarely find ourselves in bed without being able to watch what we want.
Yes, Time Warner also has that app, (Optimum does NOT) which is a pretty nice option to have. These apps are only available on the Roku, which is a pretty big competitive advantage for them.