PlayStation Vue!

[Dawg52]

For you baseball fans PS Vue added the MLB Network today to their $35/mo Core package. If you're into sports, this is a good package for the money.

[Murf2]

I tried PS Vue for a week on my TV with a Roku stick.
The programming is just what I need but the user interface with Roku sucks unless I'm missing something.
Does Vue have any menu available when using an actual PlayStation or some other device? I guess I'm old fashion but I like a menu and watching more like cable TV.

[Midpack]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Murf2 I tried PS Vue for a week on my TV with a Roku stick. The programming is just what I need but the user interface with Roku sucks unless I'm missing something. Does Vue have any menu available when using an actual PlayStation or some other device? I guess I'm old fashion but I like a menu and watching more like cable TV.

PS Vue has a traditional menu with a PS, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, or any iOS or Android tablet or smartphone. I have no idea why, but Roku's are the only devices without a matrix style guide most viewers have come to expect. I assume that'll be remedied, hopefully soon. There is a workable guide on Roku, and many viewers think it's acceptable, but it's not what cable and satellite viewers are used to.

[Murf2]

Thanks Midpack! Do you have any thoughts on any of these. I will have to check them out.
Thanks again
Murf

[Midpack]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Murf2 Thanks Midpack! Do you have any thoughts on any of these. I will have to check them out. Thanks again Murf

I have my own opinions, but I'm not sure how useful they would be. Very briefly, I prefer Roku over other streaming devices and PS Vue (in my metro area) over Sling TV or DirecTV Now, though I am anxious to see what YouTube TV and Hulu Live offer in the months ahead. I assume the PS Vue guide on Roku will be brought up to the same level as on other streaming platforms. I can get many OTA channels where I am, but I'd rather just stream everything.

Was there a specific question?

[Murf2]

No, not really. I just wanted ant thoughts you might have. You prefer Roku, even with no real guide? Do you just stream specific shows? I'm more of a surfer I guess. I will look into some other apps.
I'm tired of $90 per month. Maybe just go to OTA like the old days. Kinda spoiled now, tho.

Thanks
Murf

[Midpack]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Murf2 No, not really. I just wanted ant thoughts you might have. You prefer Roku, even with no real guide? Do you just stream specific shows? I'm more of a surfer I guess. I will look into some other apps. I'm tired of $90 per month. Maybe just go to OTA like the old days. Kinda spoiled now, tho.

I prefer Roku despite the Roku PS Vue guide, again I expect that to get fixed in time. "No real guide" isn't accurate IMO. There is a guide, it's just very different than cable or satellite, more like Netflix or Hulu - which many people find OK, some even prefer. You can surf just as easily with the latter guide. And I can see a conventional guide on my phone or tablet with the PS Vue app if needed for now.

We're going from a discounted $82/mo to $40/mo, happy to save $509/year without giving up anything we cared about. We had about 100 channels with Dish we literally never watched once, just annoying clutter to us.

[Dawg52]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Murf2 No, not really. I just wanted ant thoughts you might have. You prefer Roku, even with no real guide? Do you just stream specific shows? I'm more of a surfer I guess. I will look into some other apps. I'm tired of $90 per month. Maybe just go to OTA like the old days. Kinda spoiled now, tho. Thanks Murf

I have an Amazon Fire TV box in my living room and an older Roku in my bedroom. Viewing Vue on the Fire TV is much better than Roku, but as already mentioned I feel sure Roku will fix this in time.

[pb4uski]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pb4uski I think when we get home we'll probably run Vue "parallel" with Dish for a month or so to make sure that it works for us and then get rid of Dish if it works like I think it will.

Bumping this thread for an update.

We got home last night and I started a Playstation Vue trial this morning since we are at the base of a mountain between us and local transmitters and as a result can not get OTA but Playstation Vue has the main local CBS channel that we care about. Initial impressions is that it is slow but I think that is because we are using a 1st generation Kindle Fire stick. DD has an Apple TV and we will see her on Monday and I'll get that to try. Unfortunately none of our TVs have built-in internet browser.

I'm hesitant to go out and invest in a bunch of streaming devices for Playstation Vue until after our trial period is over. If we decide to go with Playtation Vue, then I'll buy Fire TVs for our two main TVs and 2nd generation Fire TV Sticks for our other two TVs.

Any other impressions from those who have been using Playstation Vue for a while?

I found the video review below interesting, especially the section towards the end that you can use you Playstation Vue credentials just like cable tv credentials to use other streaming apps and get access to even more content.

DW is skeptical (as am I to a lesser extent)... change is hard for her. Just the fact that she has to use the Firestick remote to control the TV but the TV remote to control the volume was annoying to her... so time will tell. OTOH, our savings will only be about $30/month so it it doesn't work our it is not the end of the world.

https://youtu.be/T0kHqs5FGeI

[Midpack]

I've given my views so you're asking others. PS Vue is still my favorite, but I am trialing YouTube TV at present and it has a very nice UI and it's $ and feature competitive with PS Vue near Chicago.

YTTV advantages: It appears they're going to offer 40-50 channels including ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox in all areas. PS Vue only offers all major channels in 7 large metro area, limited or no majors in 200+ other metro areas (will that change?). The YTTV UI is intuitive and slightly quicker than PS Vue.

PS Vue advantages: It appears they're going to offer 40-50 channels, but all majors only in 7 large metro areas. However there are way more quality cable channels with PSV vs YTTV missing HGTV, Food Network, CNN, TBS, TNT and others. Users should compare channel by channel, but the PS Vue lineup is much better than YTTV for us.

Neither offer Viacom channels which includes Comedy Central and several others http://www.viacom.com/brands/pages/default.aspx

[pb4uski]

From you Midpack, I was just wondering if your previously expressed views had changed now that you have had more experience using the service.

[pb4uski]

Jury is still out but it isn't looking good. DW doesn't like it at all and wants to pull the plug on it right now... but she dislikes change to begin with.

I'm on the fence but in the end I don't think the disadvantages compared to our Dish set up will be worth the ~$28/month of savings.

It hangs on us at least once a day. I'm not at all keen on the vertical guide vs the horizontal guide that I'm used to with Dish and Xfinity. The fact that when I launch PSV it takes me to some seemingly random channel of live TV vs the last channel I was tuned to is annoying. The limitations on rewinding while watching live TV are annoying compared to what I am used to.

[Carpediem]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pb4uski Jury is still out but it isn't looking good. DW doesn't like it at all and wants to pull the plug on it right now... but she dislikes change to begin with.

Similar situation here. I'm a current Dish customer paying around $135 per month. (Too much!) But after taking Vue for a test drive and thinking about all the other services / equipment I'd need to cut the cord, I'm kind of hesitant to fire Dish. We currently have 4 remotes - TV, sound bar, Roku, Dish. We never use the TV remote but just having the 3 other remotes doesn't make DW happy. I can't imagine the struggles if I went to a Vue, Tablo, etc setup.

[Dawg52]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Carpediem Similar situation here. I'm a current Dish customer paying around $135 per month. (Too much!) But after taking Vue for a test drive and thinking about all the other services / equipment I'd need to cut the cord, I'm kind of hesitant to fire Dish. We currently have 4 remotes - TV, sound bar, Roku, Dish. We never use the TV remote but just having the 3 other remotes doesn't make DW happy. I can't imagine the struggles if I went to a Vue, Tablo, etc setup.

I've posted this before but in case some didn't see it here it is again. The Sideclick remote solved multiple remotes for me. Others swear by the Logitech Harmony remotes. Those will give you more features but the Sideclick handles all my daily needs for tv viewing. Simple to program. I don't have a Tablo so not sure how that fits in. PS Vue has a DVR feature which is all I need.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8JIMBYN4TWc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6VnBhyNGpA

[Midpack]

See below.

Quote:

Originally Posted by pb4uski From you Midpack, I was just wondering if your previously expressed views had changed now that you have had more experience using the service. While Dish Network is better integrated, it's not worth an additional $509/yr to us. And we've had the same out of date Dish equipment we started with. If we want new receivers, etc. it would cost us another $144/yr, so we'd be up to a $653/yr premium. I assume at some point they will quit supporting the old equipment and force us to new and the upcharge. So we will go with PS Vue (because DW would like to avoid change) unless Dish extends their deep 6-mo discount they gave us. We're in a major metro area where PS Vue includes ABC, NBC, CBS & Fox live. If we were in an area without live major networks, we would not be so keen on PS Vue. We trialed YouTube TV over the past few weeks, and cancelled today. A better UI, though still vertical (vs horizontal) guide, and performance was excellent. But they are missing way too many channels vs PS Vue so far - so YouTube TV doesn't make sense for us. When/if YouTube TV adds more popular channels, we'll switch - that's part of the beauty of streaming TV, there are no contracts so you can switch any time. Jury is still out but it isn't looking good. DW doesn't like it at all and wants to pull the plug on it right now... but she dislikes change to begin with. My DW doesn't like change either, but she agrees Dish is not worth $509/year. I'm on the fence but in the end I don't think the disadvantages compared to our Dish set up will be worth the ~$28/month of savings. Our savings will be $42-$54/mo. It hangs on us at least once a day. I'm not at all keen on the vertical guide vs the horizontal guide that I'm used to with Dish and Xfinity. The fact that when I launch PSV it takes me to some seemingly random channel of live TV vs the last channel I was tuned to is annoying. The limitations on rewinding while watching live TV are annoying compared to what I am used to. It hasn't hung up on us that often, we can live with it. We agree the traditional horizontal guide is preferable more familiar. Folks who have lived with Netflix, Hulu, etc. seem to expect the vertical guide, so we know we could get used to it. The irony is, on every platform except Roku, PS Vue does provide a horizontal guide - I don't get what's holding them back? And I agree the rewind/fast forward capability is inferior, but $509/yr and getting out from under the thumb of cable/satellite is worth it to us.

[MichaelB]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pb4uski Jury is still out but it isn't looking good. DW doesn't like it at all and wants to pull the plug on it right now... but she dislikes change to begin with. I'm on the fence but in the end I don't think the disadvantages compared to our Dish set up will be worth the ~$28/month of savings. It hangs on us at least once a day. I'm not at all keen on the vertical guide vs the horizontal guide that I'm used to with Dish and Xfinity. The fact that when I launch PSV it takes me to some seemingly random channel of live TV vs the last channel I was tuned to is annoying. The limitations on rewinding while watching live TV are annoying compared to what I am used to.

So, the channel guide scrolls horizontally like Netflix or Amazon Prime? Is it text or icon based? Can you only see what is currently showing, or can you also see scheduled programming for a later time?

[tinlizzy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MichaelB So, the channel guide scrolls horizontally like Netflix or Amazon Prime? Is it text or icon based? Can you only see what is currently showing, or can you also see scheduled programming for a later time?

I'm interested in this, also. I spent most of yesterday comparing SlingTV and PlayStation Vue.

I don't have a smart TV so I would be casting from the app on my tablet.

[Midpack]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tinlizzy I'm interested in this, also. I spent most of yesterday comparing SlingTV and PlayStation Vue. I don't have a smart TV so I would be casting from the app on my tablet.

I don't know Sling. But the PS Vue iPad app has the newer vertical and a horizontal (matrix) guide, like cable and satellite have offered for decades. You can designate favorite channels and they will appear first in the matrix, and all the other channels alphabetically after. I believe PS Vue offers the conventional matrix guide on every device except Roku

[bloom2708]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Murf2 I tried PS Vue for a week on my TV with a Roku stick. The programming is just what I need but the user interface with Roku sucks unless I'm missing something. Does Vue have any menu available when using an actual PlayStation or some other device? I guess I'm old fashion but I like a menu and watching more like cable TV.

Playstation Vue on Amazon Fire TV (box version, not stick version) is a really good experience. Very fast, super picture. We have box and stick versions. The box is really superior because of the more RAM and faster processor.

[Dreamer]

We cut the cord on 5/1/17, thanks to the encouragement of the threads here. I first heard of PlayStation Vue here and went to their website for more information. We were over at my son's house and were watching the basketball games and I noticed that it said PlayStation Vue on the screen. I thought that it was Comcast. Seeing it first hand and having DH see it first hand made all the difference.

Our Comcast Triple Play had crept up to $217.xx per month. We replaced the phone with Ooma (again I heard about it on this site) and had our phone number ported over and our bill is supposed to be $4.xx per month, signed up for PlayStation Vue and chose the cheapest package at $29.99 per month for now and Comcast ended up letting us have the Digital Blast internet at the promotional price of $59.99 per month for 12 months. We bought our Arris Surfboard Modem and the Ooma. We already had the Roku Ultra and the Apple Airport Extreme. We need to get another streaming device for the bedroom, but I am waiting for a short time. I would prefer to get the Apple TV, but I don't think that it has Amazon on it and we do have Amazon Prime. I could be wrong on this and need to read more. We thought about Fire TV, but the review I read said they tend to push their products and try to exclude others. Same thing can be said about Apple pushing Itunes Store. I will keep reading here on what others decide and like.

Anyway, I am so excited to reduce our bill and our reliance on Comcast. We really don't have much choice when it comes to internet.