Sling TV - recommend or not

[pugmom]

Hi all, we have had Hulu now for a while, but it has gotten pretty expensive ($89+) and we are no longer sure it is worth that to us. We like to watch shows like 48 Hours, Dateline, et al, and I definitely watch a lot of HGTV.

Looking at Sling, even their premier Blue+Orange package is only $55 and seems to cover most of what we want.. we do not need more than the 50 hours of DVR included.

But still, I would appreciate hearing from actual Sling users... likes, dislikes?

Thanks!

 

[steelyman]

I’ve had Sling (Orange + Blue and Hollywood Extra) for a while and really like it. They sent a notice that the price would increase by $5 in December but I’ll stay.

It really depends on what you want to watch but it may be worth trying.

Something relevant is that there’s excellent broadcast service (antenna) in this area and that makes a big difference. I don’t know if I’d want to go Sling-only.

[ADDED] I use the 50-hr DVR a lot so that’s a nice free feature. I think it used to be 10 hours.

 

[RetiredAt49]

YouTube TV is only $55 (3 months) then goes to $65/month with unlimited cloud storage. Can share account with 6 people (6 different logins and no shared content)…

 

[Scrapr]

I use it for several years. maybe 5? I like it. I use it mostly for Pac 12 games. Football, baseball, the odd basketball game. I don't watch NFL but I think I get NFL Red zone. I like it for what it is. I've thought about quitting in the summer but haven't yet. We also do Hulu, Apple tv & maybe Paramount?

When Jan 6 hearings were on we taped/recorded for later viewing. That kind of thing happens on occasion.What is your viewing habits?

 

[Midpack]

Hulu+Live, YouTubeTV and Sling are all good packages. We have Hulu+Live and it’s worth it because DW likes having Disney+ included. Otherwise YTTV would make the most sense for us. Sling would be even better if we used an antenna for major networks and didn’t care about recording those programs, DW won’t stand for that. That’s the decision as I understand it.

OP: Just trial Sling for a month, and switch back to Hulu+Live or YTTV if you don’t like Sling. Why not, no contracts…

 

[retire48in2018]

We went from YouTube TV to Sling when it went up in cost to $65, went to sling for $35 (now it’s $40).

The 2 negatives we notice: sling TV does not allow a very long pause on live TV like YTTV. My wife would occasionally want to pause for 5-10 min, but sling times out around 2-3 min? When she gets a phone call, or whatever - YTTV would pause for a long time and she could resume it - even hours later. Not Sling.

The sling app on fire tv and Roku is not as quick to load. (Very noticeably when changing different steaming services - like Pluto to Sling or Netflix to Sling.)

 

[pugmom]

Thanks to all who replied. I think we will give Sling a try, but possibly not delete our Hulu account until we are sure. The first month of Sling is 50% off anyway.

 

[isisdave]

I use it for several years. maybe 5? I like it. I use it mostly for Pac 12 games. Football, baseball, the odd basketball game. I don't watch NFL but I think I get NFL Red zone. I like it for what it is. I've thought about quitting in the summer but haven't yet. We also do Hulu, Apple tv & maybe Paramount?

When Jan 6 hearings were on we taped/recorded for later viewing. That kind of thing happens on occasion.What is your viewing habits?

Same here, as DW is UCLA fan. We have to have Orange and the sports pack, for $40 + $11, just to be able to watch PAC-12 during volleyball season. PAC-12 does not have a way to subscribe directly; you have to be hooked up through a cable provider to watch even non-televised events. Or Sling.

 

[disneysteve]

We’ve had Sling for about 2 years and have been happy with it. $35 for orange (was $30 but went up recently). Our only complaint is that it doesn’t include ABC.

 

[RonBoyd]

This is my most current spreadsheet of Subscription Networks:

View attachment Current Subscription Networks.xls

 

[isisdave]

This is my most current spreadsheet of Subscription Networks:

View attachment 44348

We need something like this, but not for channels. We need a "what the heck service has that show about the Swedish criminal assistant" when we can't even remember the title.

 

[qwerty3656]

I went to the Sling website - are local channels through an antenna?

Edit: unrelated question. For people who just stream (no cable or satelite TV). Do your ISPs give any grief over the high volume of streaming (I've never not had either cable or satelite)?

 

[SoReady]

I would suggest using this site to select the channels that are most important to you. It will then list out the streaming apps and prices, along with notes on how many hours of DVR, and also if there are deals.

https://www.suppose.tv/tv

As for Sling, I had it for a while. It eventually didn't handle everything I needed, as well as, the interface I wasn't too happy about. I do keep it around for free because I have outside antenna's hooked up that I can get to through Sling with AirTV.

I now use YTTV and like the interface much better. It has creeped up in price and if it goes higher I may need to revisit the link I've provided.

 

[RunningBum]

Edit: unrelated question. For people who just stream (no cable or satelite TV). Do your ISPs give any grief over the high volume of streaming (I've never not had either cable or satelite)?

No, they know most people are streaming. Most people in my area had cable TV and internet when the power co-op came in with fiber. They knew people would be confused about how they would get their TV, so they recommended people look to a streaming service (without naming any) for that.

 

[Dave J]

I have used Sling Blue for maybe 3 years. No complaints from me.

 

[Midpack]

I went to the Sling website - are local channels through an antenna?

Edit: unrelated question. For people who just stream (no cable or satelite TV). Do your ISPs give any grief over the high volume of streaming (I've never not had either cable or satelite)?

It varies by region, you have to check yours. I don’t think Sling makes CBS, NBC, ABC and Fox all available in any region. But they do offer some majors in some regions, though some may still have 0 of 4. You’ll have to use an antenna or another method for any missing majors in your area, though there are some sophisticated workarounds for the tech savvy.

Some impose a data cap, e.g. 1 TB/mo is common. Above that you are subject to throttling. However, we’ve done nothing but streaming since Feb 2018 with 3 HD TV’s and we’re usually between 400-600 GB, so no issues.