SlingTV is disappointing

[folivier]

Well I signed up on Directvnow to learn more about it. But when I log in with Safari all I get is a blank web page. Anyone else having problems like that?

 

[stlguy57]

Safari user here. Mine loads fine. If I recall when I signed up, it requires Microsoft Silverlight to display and render the page correctly on Safari.

 

[Dawg52]

On a cord cutter group I belong to it was suggested that the picture quality of DTV Now is a little better than on Vue and Sling. I don't know if they know what they are talking about but they said Now is streamed in 1080hd whereas Sling and Vue is in 720hd. They also said the 1080 stream will eat up 30% more data. So for anyone concerned with data caps, that might be something to consider when subscribing to DTV Now. For me the picture quality of Vue is outstanding as compared to old cable packages w/o HD. But I can see a little bit of difference(better) when watching an OTA HD show via my home antenna vs Vue.

 

[hesperus]

For those who are trying the new streaming DirecTV now, is the content on it live, such as you would see if you had a cable subscription? We have SlingTV, but it seems that what we are offered on some of their channels is prepackaged series that run ad nauseum. I'm trying to determine if the content between the two (given the same channels) is actually different.

 

[Midpack]

For those who are trying the new streaming DirecTV now, is the content on it live, such as you would see if you had a cable subscription? We have SlingTV, but it seems that what we are offered on some of their channels is prepackaged series that run ad nauseum. I'm trying to determine if the content between the two (given the same channels) is actually different.

See post #28, it shows which channels are live (most), VOD or both. However, I don't have DTV Now yet, so someone else needs to confirm if that list is correct re: what's live.

 

[hesperus]

See post #28, it shows which channels are live (most), VOD or both. However, I don't have DTV Now yet, so someone else needs to confirm if that list is correct re: what's live.

thx midpack. do you happen to have a link to that list? I had some trouble reading the text in the attachment.
But You're right, it IS difficult to find that info, and I would like to see if others can confirm it. If we weren't travelling in the next week, I'd just sign up for the trial and see for myself. The other issue is that we have a roku box, and DirecTV now is not yet supported.

 

[ArkTinkerer]

I use a Roku and PlayLater that allows me to use my PC as a DVR. Looking at building up a specialized mini-PC to act as a universal DVR though. Hate having to make sure that the office PC is always on. Hate that most commercial DVRs seem to be tied to subscription services. If I could just find the time now that I'm retired to work on all these projects...

 

[hesperus]

I went ahead and signed up for a 3 month pre paid subscrip to DirecTV now, so that way I'll get a free AppleTV gen 4, and - if it works - I get locked in at 35 bucks for 100 channels. They don't offer it on Roku yet, so next to my PC, it's the only way I have to stream their content. Here's my take after two days on how this compares to SlingTV - Not ready for prime time! I cannot get any 'live' channel stream from direcTV. I am able to get a few movies to stream, but they are not nearly as sharp and resolute as SlingTV is right now on my roku. They appear rather soft. They shouldn't be as I'm getting 60 mbps on my internet feed. To be fair, I was an early adopter of SlingTV, and they went through similar issues in the early stages, with poor image quality and serious buffering problems. But now, other than content I should be able to view, SlingTV has a superior stream quality. I'm going to hang with DirecTV for the three months to see if they get this thing working. Perhaps others are able to view DirecTV now without issues, but I (and numerous others according to the forums out there) are having major problems.

 

[audreyh1]

Well the Apple TV Gen 4 is a nice box, so at least you'll have that after your experiment.

 

[hesperus]

Well the Apple TV Gen 4 is a nice box, so at least you'll have that after your experiment.

That's good to hear. I'm sure it is also DirecTV's way of bribing me to try it out and generate some revenue for this fledgling service. SlingTV did the same thing, they sent me a roku streaming stick in the early roll out.

 

[gerntz]

We pay $51.57 for Comcast basic cable + internet.

Basic cable which is just ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS, CW, FOX. Because we are half-way between Philadelphia and NYC, we get both sets of channels.
No DVRs. Just have a DTA box which unscrambles the cable signal which so far has been free.

The internet is Economy Plus which is the slowest.

My phone service is landline with Verizon, and I plan on keeping it that way.

I cannot imagine paying $290 a month for cable and internet.

(S)he isn't. That price includes phone also, though unclear if landline and/or mobile.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

Just an update on the DirecTV Now. I cancelled about 5 days into the free trial since it was absolutely terrible. They offered me an additional 14 days of a free trial and it still sucks. Terrible buffering issues and it tends to crash my FireTV and will also cause audio issues which requires me to do a hard restart of the box. Same issues (with the exception of the audio problem) on two other FireTV Sticks. So...still not ready for primetime. Perhaps in a few months it will be worth it. Right now? It's free and still not really worth it.

 

[Katsmeow]

I wish I could do that. We were on a promo for Triple Play, but that ran out a year and a half ago. We were paying $200, but then it jumped up to $240 and then this summer went to $274, and just last month went to $290. We've called several times to try to get something better but the offers have been awful. The one now that would save $60 a month is the best one we've gotten. The last time we checked it was going to save hardly anything and required a 2 year contract.

Where they really have us on the internet. I would just get internet alone if I could and just do streaming stuff for everything else. But, with the gaming and streaming we do, I can't tolerate the 25 mbps service. That is the fastest service that doesn't require a TV package. The next level is 100 mbps (we have 200 now) but requires the TV package.

So, DH called back and was insistent about having the fast internet without TV. Turns out we could have it for about $107 a month. For $5 a month more, we could have local TV channels on one TV. We considered getting that and then getting Playstation Vue (either the $30 or $35 package). We would have had to buy a Roku or a PS or something to watch it in on.

But, they finally offered us something a bit better on our current service. Two year contract but it saves us $82 a month from what we are paying now.

Overall, I think I would have done the internet and local channels (for the TV my mom watches when she is here), then get a Roku for the TV in our bedroom and get the PS Vue service. We have another TV that has TV service on it. Our son uses that TV when he is here, but doesn't watch TV channels. He is currently here full-time as he just graduated college last week and is here temporarily.

With PS Vue we would have given up having a lot of what we have now. We have basically the premier version of Comcast with the pay channels and we get their voice service as well. I don't actually give that number out to anyone but I use that phone when I really need a reliable connection. We have horrible cell service in our house and it routinely drops the connection.

So, overall, DH felt that the $82 month less for Comcast was better than cutting the cord. We'll revisit it in 2 years.

 

[GTFan]

$107 a month just for HSI?? Jeez what a ripoff, you must have one of the most expensive local Comcast franchises in the country.

 

[NoMoreJob]

I would caution you about the Direct TV Now deal. I think AT&T came to market WAY, WAY too early. They are running a deal that if you sign up for the $35 deal a month, you will have that price FOR LIFE. Sounded great, right? Well, the app sucks and its pretty much unwatchable. Constant buffering, and you will see over and over and over again the "Error 40" message. It has a whopping 2 star rating on the application. I spent over an hour this AM getting it cancelled before the 7 day trial is over.

Will it be worth $35 a month in the future? Maybe. The only thing it did for me was convince me that I have no need for it and that $35/month could be used (or not used) somewhere else.

I went ahead and signed up for the $35 special you mention because the channel lineup is much more robust than Sling which I used last summer to watch in-market baseball. I also did the 3 month prepay which got me a free AppleTV. As far as I know both offers are still available.

I've had a couple of hiccups but nothing as serious as you mention. I've found the quality of the streams to be generally better on DirecTV NOW than on Sling. I like the AppleTV better than the Roku2 that I got free with Sling and I like the DirecTV NOW guide better than Sling. So if Direct can get their bugs worked out I think it will be a much better option with the $35 'locked in' price. I would feel differently at the regular price somewhere around twice that.

I was using Sling and now DirecTV NOW in combination with an OTA antenna and TiVo Roamio OTA DVR. For our purposes it's a great combination. It has cut our cable bill about in half while increasing the programming available to us considerably, especially sports. It also gives us a great deal of flexibility and leverage to take advantage of new options or just fall back to free OTA service. I like options!

We're currently paying about $47 for fiber option internet, $0 for broadcast networks and $35+tax for DirecTV, so we're right around $85/mo for the full meal deal. My TiVo Roamio OTA DVR was paid for in about 5 months with savings so is now free (lifetime guide). If it turns out I don't like DirecTV after 3 months I can go back to just internet and antenna or add back Sing if I want additional sports.

 

[Katsmeow]

$107 a month just for HSI?? Jeez what a ripoff, you must have one of the most expensive local Comcast franchises in the country.

Yes, it is ridiculous but there it is. I mean you can get it for less if you consider 25 MBps or 10 Mbps to be high speed. This is for 200. 100 is I think $15 less.

 

[NoMoreJob]

I do all my streaming with 15Mbs service with no problem. It is fiber optic service so a consistent 15 and sometimes closer to 20. We're typically not doing multiple streams although we are often surfing on two laptops while streaming.

 

[Dawg52]

Yes, it is ridiculous but there it is. I mean you can get it for less if you consider 25 MBps or 10 Mbps to be high speed. This is for 200. 100 is I think $15 less.

Just curious....what do you do on the net that requires 200 mbps? I currently have 25 and stream all kinds of video(Prime&Vue) and music with no hiccups at all. Before I moved into this house I had just 3 and streamed Netflix/Sling just as well. Only reason I have 25 now is a promo they gave me when moving.

 

[GTFan]

Exactly. If you want to pay extra for 200mbps you can, but even 25mbps is plenty for a couple of folks if you're not heavy downloaders. And it's a whole lot cheaper on Comcast since Performance HSI (25) often has a good promo you can usually get. You've got 30 days to change your mind on that 2-year contract btw.

Back on topic - if anyone wants a cheap Roku stick (2016 version), Sling has a promo going on now where you can pay for a month's service ($20) and get the stick for free, a $50 value. And there's an Amex offer floating around for $5 off $15 at sling.com, check you card offers online to see if you can add it to a card. $15 for a current Roku is a good deal, just did this yesterday. Will cancel after I get the stick.

 

[ERD50]

Originally Posted by Katsmeow View Post
Yes, it is ridiculous but there it is. I mean you can get it for less if you consider 25 MBps or 10 Mbps to be high speed. This is for 200. 100 is I think $15 less.

Just curious....what do you do on the net that requires 200 mbps? I currently have 25 and stream all kinds of video(Prime&Vue) and music with no hiccups at all. Before I moved into this house I had just 3 and streamed Netflix/Sling just as well. Only reason I have 25 now is a promo they gave me when moving.

I'm curious as well. We have just 6 Mbps, and streaming generally works just fine, but 10-25 would be helpful for multiple streams.

I think Katsmeow mentioned gaming earlier, I'm not a gamer, but I'm guessing that is more dependent on ping times (round-trip response times) rather than speed. I'm not sure 100 or 200 Mbps has significantly better ping times than 25 Mbps.

-ERD50

 

[GTFan]

Gaming latency has nothing to do with d/l speed and everything to do with the network you choose (including your home setup). But speed does make downloading some of those massive games and patches go a lot quicker, not that this should matter for ERs with plenty of time.

 

[Katsmeow]

Just curious....what do you do on the net that requires 200 mbps? I currently have 25 and stream all kinds of video(Prime&Vue) and music with no hiccups at all. Before I moved into this house I had just 3 and streamed Netflix/Sling just as well. Only reason I have 25 now is a promo they gave me when moving.

Gaming for both DH and I. I tried slower service a few years ago and really hated it.

Curious for anyone who does have 100 or 200 Mbps (or more). Do you find it preferable to 25?

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

Gaming for both DH and I. I tried slower service a few years ago and really hated it.

Curious for anyone who does have 100 or 200 Mbps (or more). Do you find it preferable to 25?

I am curious about that as well. Google Fiber and AT&T Gigapower (or whatever it's branded as now) is installing around us and people are all sorts of ready to drop $100+ a month for this speed. We have the 18-24 mbps speed (it averages about 22 mbps) and have had ZERO issues streaming anything (except the God forsaken DirecTV Now app that is pretty much worthless right now). So, the only benefit I could see would be someone who games or uses an extraordinary amount of data.

Perhaps it's a bragging rights kinda thing..you know, the consumerist who love to tout the fact that they spend way too much money for stuff. "Yeah...I have Google Fiber...it's awesome...don't be jealous"

 

[bloom2708]

Gaming for both DH and I. I tried slower service a few years ago and really hated it.

Curious for anyone who does have 100 or 200 Mbps (or more). Do you find it preferable to 25?

25mb down should be pretty good for most people.

We have 50mb down. As a test I put all 5 TVs on streaming full HD content over wi-fi. No issues.

Much depends on your router. About 1 year ago I upgraded to a new router with two wireless networks (2.4ghz and 5ghz). We can connect devices based on the best signal or put less used devices on the 2.4ghz network.

past 100mb down, it seems silly because nothing requires that fast of a connection.

One cable company in town offers 1,000 mb down service but they only allow you to use 300GB of data per month. It is a total rip off. At some point you will be able to download all 300GB in 1 second. Then the rest of the month you are over your data cap.

 

[mpeirce]

I am curious about that as well. Google Fiber and AT&T Gigapower (or whatever it's branded as now) is installing around us and people are all sorts of ready to drop $100+ a month for this speed. We have the 18-24 mbps speed (it averages about 22 mbps) and have had ZERO issues streaming anything (except the God forsaken DirecTV Now app that is pretty much worthless right now).

So I just picked up DirectTV Now (testing for my parents - it's a long story...). Anyway, I've used DTVN for a couple of days on the Apple TV, iPad, Mac and iPhone and it has been working for me just fine for me.

I have 100/10 Mbps internet in the home and I have yet to see any dropout or interruptions. Frankly it's better than I expected. I saw Leo Laporte demoing it on one of his podcasts and he got repeated black screens. Maybe they've sorted out some of their teething problems?

The DTVN guide works OK. I'd really like to see DVR functionality before I'm willing to use it myself, but they've said it is on their roadmap.

I also tested on ATT LTE (at the Y today) and it worked fine on my iPhone 6S. When I started viewing it, the app said I was an ATT customer so I get free data usage when viewing DTVN when using their network. Nice. Both my folks have ATT so that might be good for them.