Easiest Streaming Stick?

[Offgrid Organic Farmer]

Your cable is out, but your internet connection is still working?

My town does not have any cable company. We get online using our phone company landline. So we can watch netflix, etc.

 

[Chuckanut]

Will the Amazon stick do services like YouTube? The last I heard Amazon and Google will not play with each other. Not having YouTube is a big negative when one considers the vast amount of content on it.

Note: When I mention content I am not thinking of the cat videos and the other silly stuff.

 

[REWahoo]

Will the Amazon stick do services like YouTube?

Nope:

Fire TV. I gave this one away. Works great with Amazon Prime and other Amazon products. It seems to push their products. And, this brings me to the reason I got rid of it. Amazon and Goggle do not play well with each other. I use Youtube TV as my prime tv source. It is not available on the Fire TV. You can side load it, but, for me, it is not worth the effort and many people say it is buggy.

 

[54andchange]

Many years of use with different generations of Roku boxes (excellent) changed overnight for us to The Amazon FIREstick with Alexa control. FIREstick so easy to use I barely noticed the transition, no learning curve at all. Perfect Voice input is my primary requirement for all my devices in 2018. As with many here I have played with hobby boxes over the years including Kodi on Android TV with wireless keyboard, however; reliable and easy still wins out for day to day use.

 

[COcheesehead]

We use the Comcast app. Also you can telecast You Tube from a mobile device onto to your TV. We also use iTunes.

 

[audreyh1]

Will the Amazon stick do services like YouTube? The last I heard Amazon and Google will not play with each other. Not having YouTube is a big negative when one considers the vast amount of content on it.

Note: When I mention content I am not thinking of the cat videos and the other silly stuff.

AppleTV does both. It does a great job with Amazon Prime Video now that Amazon finally deigned to provide an app for the AppleTV.

 

[Sunny]

Just be aware your subject title called for a “stick” which implies a small USB thumb drive type device. Some of the above are more like little 2-3 inch by 2-3 inch boxes. Shouldn’t be a big deal, but some people want the actual stick so they can use it easier on a laptop, or have it more portable.

We have Roku, were gifted a jail broken amazon stick with questionable software on it, and an AppleTv. If you are in an apple ecosystem you can’t beat it. Being able to project to the TV from your iDevices is also fun.

I see you have already ordered but also asked about commercial free experiences. I think Hulu has a commercial free version for more $, and Netflix and has a pretty decent selection. As others have said, if you do Amazon Prime it includes videos, but the selection isn’t as good as Netflix. Still worthwhile though.

Another consideration is to ditch your cable for streaming cable. I believe YouTube and a few others do this, but DirectTv Now appears to have the best offering. We had it for awhile, getting a free Apple TV, but cancled eventually. Just don’t watch live TV much at all, and don’t know TV programs to use their DVR on, so it wasn’t worth it.

 

[joeea]

Yes. It's related to some kind of switchover to digital TV.

Spectrum, perhaps? You probably need new boxes, DTAs, etc.

At our weekend/vacation home Spectrum recently converted to all digital. The 3 televisions which previously had the cable directly connected each needed a DTA box installed.

Not a big deal, just had to run down to the Spectrum office, get the 3 boxes, install them, configure the sets to get input from HDMI 1, realize that one of the televisions was so old it had no HDMI input, run back to the Spectrum office to switch out the box, install the new one. And voila! Digital television.

Oh and then the neighbors stated asking for help.

I expect we'll be all up and running by July 4th.

 

[TromboneAl]

I've been playing with it, but I don't think it will work for us.

After 30+ years of skipping over commercials, I'm not willing to sit through ads. I know, I'm spoiled.

I just wanted to watch a nightly news program, but so far the ones I've tried either have a constant live broadcast (CBS Now) which can't be paused or fast forwarded, or NBC Nightly News, which has individual news articles.

With our Tivo, we'd record the nightly news (on three networks) then skip the ads and articles we didn't want to see. So far, I haven't found anything that will work like that on the Fire Stick.

I'd also like to watch the monologues for Kimmel, Meyers, and/or Colbert. Haven't found a way to do that yet.

Any suggestions?

 

[Independent]

I've been playing with it, but I don't think it will work for us.

After 30+ years of skipping over commercials, I'm not willing to sit through ads. I know, I'm spoiled.

I just wanted to watch a nightly news program, but so far the ones I've tried either have a constant live broadcast (CBS Now) which can't be paused or fast forwarded, or NBC Nightly News, which has individual news articles.

With our Tivo, we'd record the nightly news (on three networks) then skip the ads and articles we didn't want to see. So far, I haven't found anything that will work like that on the Fire Stick.

I'd also like to watch the monologues for Kimmel, Meyers, and/or Colbert. Haven't found a way to do that yet.

Any suggestions?

We have an antenna and a ChannelMaster DVR. That combination works fine for the things you list.

 

[TromboneAl]

An antenna wouldn't work where we are (remote and surrounded by hills).

I found a full episode broadcast of NBC news, surprisingly without commercials:

https://youtu.be/dJne9oa1_DQ

All attempts to mirror my Android screen failed and resulted in a lot of Googling of bad info on how to do it. Example: this screen:

The Amazon password didn't work there. No idea what password it wanted.

Cable still out.

I can cast to the TIVO (but with bad video and stuttering), but haven't found a way to cast to the Fire TV.

 

[SoReady]

For those that have Fire sticks, if you use the remote that comes with it, do you find that the batteries wear down quickly? Seems like I'm replacing them every 6 weeks or so.

 

[txtig]

For those that have Fire sticks, if you use the remote that comes with it, do you find that the batteries wear down quickly? Seems like I'm replacing them every 6 weeks or so.

I have several Fire Sticks and Fire Boxes. I have not had this type of battery problems. I find they last around a year or so.

 

[txtig]

Will the Amazon stick do services like YouTube? The last I heard Amazon and Google will not play with each other.

Someone responded earlier that the Fire Stick will not do YouTube. This is not exactly true. While it is true that the old dedicated YouTube app (developed by Google) no longer works, you can still view YouTube videos using one of a couple different web browser apps. We use it all the time and it works very well.

 

[TromboneAl]

Someone responded earlier that the Fire Stick will not do YouTube. This is not exactly true. While it is true that the old dedicated YouTube app (developed by Google) no longer works, you can still view YouTube videos using one of a couple different web browser apps. We use it all the time and it works very well.

I've been using YouTube almost exclusively. When I get a chance, I'm going to install an ad blocker that's reported to work.

 

[kitesurfer2]

You might want to check with your cable company. I have Spectrum. They have an app. With that app and a smart tv or a streaming stick, I can watch cable tv without any box or cable wire attached to the tv. The catch is, however, that their app only works with a Samsung tv and the Roku. I have a Samsung and it works good so I’ll be getting rid of that box and save $8/mo. If I’m willing to give up my dvr, I can get a Roku for my other tv (an LG) and save $20/mo. Looking for Roku deals this shopping season but first need to understand the differences in their different models.

I use a TABLO with my Roku's. Tablo appears to have the bugs worked out now. no issues with it for 6 months now.

 

[Jerry1]

I use a TABLO with my Roku's. Tablo appears to have the bugs worked out now. no issues with it for 6 months now.

Looked it up. Never heard of such a device. Looks like a great answer. Thanks.

 

[MissMolly]

We've been using our Tablo/Roku setup for about 2 years now. Never an issue.

 

[Carpediem]

We've been using Tablo with Fire TV for almost a year and in general, we're pleased with it. I considered getting an Amazon Recast for better integration with Prime but that device is lacking a lot of features for now.

 

[TromboneAl]

The idea of free, over-the-air TV is seductive. I wonder if there's a way to really know what kind of results I'd get without buying an antenna? This is just an approximation:

 

[Jerry1]

You can get a really cheap antenna and get a good idea of how many channels you can get. Hold the antenna in a few different positions and scan for channels with you tv. It won’t be as good as puttin an antenna up in you attic or outside high on your roof, but you should get a good idea of what you can pick up. I can get a number of channels with a simple antenna. I’m thinking of putting a multidirectional antenna up in my attic and attaching it to a cable that is already run directly to one of my tv’s.

If that grid is your actual, you’re probably going to need a good antenna. 31 miles is a lot unless you have something close to line of sight. If you or those transmission antenna are on a hill/mountain, you’re going to be in a lot better shape. Is that all the channels your search uncovered, or, is that just an example?

 

[kitesurfer2]

Don't mean to hijack this thread but regarding the Recast device, make sure you read the reviews before buying. I currently have a Tablo for OTA DVR and although it works pretty well, I often wished it wasn't so slow at times. When I heard about the Recast I was ready to jump in with both feet....until I read the reviews and learned more things about it.

Keep in mind this device is 'version 1' and it appears they tried to cut some corners in order to get it out the door. For example, you are unable to schedule recordings in advance. You must be watching the show before you can record it. Plus, there is no option (currently) to record the series of a show. Now all this might be quickly rectified with a software update but who knows how long it will take. I decided to stick with Tablo for now.

with my tablo, I can set recordings 2 weeks in advance. Mine records any series that I want. I pay an extra $50 a year for the menu if that is what it is called. maybe that makes a difference.

 

[TromboneAl]

If that grid is your actual, you’re probably going to need a good antenna. 31 miles is a lot unless you have something close to line of sight. If you or those transmission antenna are on a hill/mountain, you’re going to be in a lot better shape. Is that all the channels your search uncovered, or, is that just an example?

Yes, that grid is the actual, and there are hills between us and the antenna.

Also, is it all or nothing? That is, do I either get a good picture or no picture?

 

[REWahoo]

Also, is it all or nothing? That is, do I either get a good picture or no picture?

Not all or nothing. You could get a good picture that pixellates intermittently. The only way to find out is as suggested - get an antenna and give it a try.

 

[TappyGee]

Roku is easiest by far. Beats smartTVs, FireStick, and BluRay players. Pick any Roku you want.