Update on Cord Cutting (Cable TV) 2017 - 2020

[REWahoo]

We had Hulu Live for a couple months. We had a lots of buffering issues, always ended up rebooting the Wifi router or the ROKU in order to watch a show. One evening, shortly after signing up for the service, I was trying to watch a show midway through or near the end that I had set to DVR from the beginning. Lots of issues, and would not work. Contacted Hulu, not supported. I had to create a separate profile to watch the same show, while my other profile was DVRing the show. We dropped HuluTV, and went to YouTubeTV. YMMV

Bad news.

My daughter's family has been using Hulu Live for the past two months with no problems. They have the exact same internet provider and speed as we do, so I hope I get her experience, not yours.

Really great that we aren't stuck with any streaming service for more than a month (and then only if we stay beyond the trial period) and can switch to another any time we wish.

 

[MichaelB]

Really great that we aren't stuck with any streaming service for more than a month (and then only if we stay beyond the trial period) and can switch to another any time we wish.

+1

 

[JoeWras]

It means that DVR navigation is, in my experience, a lot smoother and crisper with recordings on a local hard disk than with streaming. If you reverse, for example, you can smoothly see all the action (in reverse) with a conventional cable/satellite/OTA DVR with the recording saved on local disk. With streaming you see like one frame every couple seconds (or less frequent with faster rewinds) so if you are looking for a particular scene to replay, it can be harder to find.

This is exactly one thing slowing my decision to cut the cord.

I am also a master of my complicated DVR remote control, which has all kinds of buttons to do things fast, such as menu views, information, 10 second rewind, 30 second fast forward, traditional rewind and fast forward, pause, etc.

Streaming devices, apparently bowing down to King Apple's ideas, have simplified the remote device too much. I want those damn buttons.

 

[arch57]

Yeah, with most streaming it's really "DVR" -- in quotes -- essentially trying to mimic the physical DVR experience. It's getting better, but still falls short.

+1 Ziggy
I cut cord and have both antenna and YouTube TV (mainly for sports) but always prefer to use my TiVo OTA DVR as the user experience is far superior for rewinding, FF, 8-second rewind, etc. Hopefully Roku/YouTube TV and other streaming channels will enhance the user experience but I still don’t miss my $250 cable bill.

 

[Midpack]

Using DVR features on streaming is (currently) far inferior to doing so on cable or satellite.

While that may be true for your specific case, I’m not sure it’s accurate in all cases. We went from Dish Network DVR to PS Vue cloud DVR and there’s little difference. I’d give a slight edge to Dish, easier to FF thru commercials and unlimited storage - but at double the cost I’m more than willing to live with PSV cloud DVR, it’s almost as good to us.

On-demand libraries are making DVRs less and less important, it wouldn’t surprise me if on-demand libraries become so complete, the DVR may become obsolete.

 

[ziggy29]

I’d give a slight edge to Dish, easier to FF thru commercials and unlimited storage - but at double the cost I’m more than willing to live with PSV cloud DVR, it’s almost as good to us.

Oh, I agree. The only reason we even have satellite is because when we moved last year, my FIL moved with us and into the basement (how is that for role reversal -- a parent living in their child's basement). And he really wanted it and he was willing to pay for it, so OK. If he wasn't here we'd be in more of a hurry to get an OTA antenna up on the house and then ditch the dish the next day.

But I do notice a difference in usability and smoothness of operation. Not worth close to $100 a month extra, but it's there, at least to me.

 

[explanade]

Obviously a software DVR or cloud DVR is going to be inferior to a piece of dedicated hardware.

You also have to deal with latency in sending commands over the Internet to control the stream.

But beyond the technical differences, these cloud DVRs give them more control so that you can't skip commercials or it's painful to do so.

They don't want you to skip ad, why should they want that?

Anyways I heard, maybe it was earlier this thread, that some cable TV company charges $25 a month for DVR rental.

No substitute for Tivo, as long as cable systems still support them.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

Using DVR features on streaming is (currently) far inferior to doing so on cable or satellite. Until streaming feels as smooth and responsive as it is on a conventional DVR, IMO this will push a lot of customers away. Not to mention buffering issues, too. (Where we lived in the Texas boondocks, we had DSL and an old Roku and we got hit with "buffering" all the time. Now, with (supposedly) 100 Mbps cable internet -- usually more like 50-70 -- and a new Roku Ultra, buffering is almost nonexistent. But the fast forward, reverse and the like are still a lot clunkier than it was with satellite TV and a DVR.

You can put me in this camp. We have attempted to use the Sling DVR and well...it sucks. As did the Directv Now that we had before I cancelled it. We have used Firestick, Roku and borrowed a PS Vue and EVERY ONE OF THEM had issues. I can "force stop/clear cache/restart" my apps in about .4 seconds time...and it's tiring. We don't have too many buffering issues (300Mps service that has been very reliable) but the failure of the DVR features (or just the apps themselves) has us "re-connecting the cord"

As it stands, I signed up for a two year deal with...yes, the cable company. I had been on the fence about it but after spending a long weekend in an AirBnB that had "old school" cable TV (with DVR and on demand) that worked WITHOUT AN ISSUE, it sealed the deal. With the deals that were made available, I will be paying $12 more a month for the cable (all in with taxes/extra fees/etc) but I think it will be worth it. I further hope that in the next 2 years, the streaming providers will have fixed some issues and that much of the teething will be done.

So, guess I am traitor!

 

[beowulf]

You are not a traitor at all. You tried to cut the cord and you were unable to get the service you wanted. I have TV, a DVR and internet from Xfinity. Do I like them - NO. Do I think they charge too much - YES. Does their customer service stink - OF COURSE. I do have one TV in a spare bedroom on an OTA antenna with an amp. Works pretty well for what I can get and it paid for itself in 9 months (rather than paying for another cable box). But the hassle of trying to hobble a bunch of things together so I can watch the cable channels I like and record them just isn’t worth it. So I bite the bullet and say life is too short to nickel and dime something like this. If I couldn’t afford it, then I’d just use OTA antennas. Since that isn’t the case, I see no reason not to enjoy something I like. Or, as they say on another thread, “Blow that dough.”

 

[REWahoo]

I can "force stop/clear cache/restart" my apps in about .4 seconds time...and it's tiring.

I can understand your frustration as that sounds like a real PITA.

I had to re-read your statement a couple of times to figure it out because in the 5+ months since we cut the cord and started streaming I've never had need to force stop or restart an app. Not once. And I've never noticed any issues launching/using any streaming app (we primarily use Prime, Acorn, & Philo and are currently giving Hulu Live a test for sports). Although streaming is a bit different than the Dish setup we had previously, notably in the DVR area, it all seems to work fine for us.

So, guess I am traitor!

I wouldn't classify you as a traitor, just a highly resistant convert.

 

[Midpack]

Obviously a software DVR or cloud DVR is going to be inferior to a piece of dedicated hardware.

You also have to deal with latency in sending commands over the Internet to control the stream.

But beyond the technical differences, these cloud DVRs give them more control so that you can't skip commercials or it's painful to do so.

They don't want you to skip ad, why should they want that?

It’s not “obvious” to me. Cloud DVRs have unlimited simultaneous recording, more storage capacity options and portability advantages too.

As for the rest, not necessarily. We’ve been using PS Vue on various Roku’s since Feb 2018 and we always skip commercials on our cloud DVR recordings. And we watch more shows off DVR than live.

What you might be thinking, some (not all) networks block users from skipping commercials with on-demand content, but some let you skip commercials there too.

We’ve never run into latency issues either. DVR shows look exactly the same as live without exceptions in our experience.

Believe me if streaming using PS Vue was inferior viewing or harder to use in any way, DW would have put her foot down 20 months ago. And I’m sure Sling, YouTube TV, Hulu Live and Direct/ATT Now are just as easy to use.

 

[explanade]

They could easily eliminate features.

Also if they have to provide more cloud DVRs because the subscriber base grew, then the horsepower on the cloud cluster may be insufficient to maintain the responsiveness.

 

[camfused]

I noticed that one of the grocery store silly magazines at the checkout (I don't remember which one) last week had some sort of article about cable TV fighting back. It said something like "we've changed, no really!". The implication was that cable TV is trying to win customers back.

This just makes me laugh.

 

[JoeWras]

We’ve never run into latency issues either. DVR shows look exactly the same as live without exceptions in our experience.

That's pretty impressive because you've been having issues loading web pages and other internet problems, as we discussed on the other thread.


Makes me think your web issues are PC related and not internet or router since the cloud DVR works so well.

 

[Kwirk]

I was at the Verizon store today to activate the eSIM on my phone. While I waited I looked over the list of previous customers. 1 person had been there to pay the bill. 4 people had been there to 'return equipment.' As I was leaving a gentleman was entering with 3 boxes that looked like DVRs.

This is probably not a representative sample but it seems that many may be cord cutting.

 

[Midpack]

They could easily eliminate features.

Also if they have to provide more cloud DVRs because the subscriber base grew, then the horsepower on the cloud cluster may be insufficient to maintain the responsiveness.

Adding HD capacity is easier then getting a larger physical DVR.

That's pretty impressive because you've been having issues loading web pages and other internet problems, as we discussed on the other thread.

Makes me think your web issues are PC related and not internet or router since the cloud DVR works so well.

Nope, but I won’t beat it to death again. Streaming TV has been decent, and our desktop PC is hardwired Ethernet, also decent. The slow loading has been with WiFi>iPads, iPhones and laptop - and that’s been traced to a crummy standard AT&T gateway router. My personal router works great with devices on WiFi. Problems basically solved.

 

[Cobra9777]

"Alexa, fast-forward 3 minutes." Done. If I over/undershoot, each left/right press of the Fire TV remote results in 10 seconds of instant time travel.

I have no issue at all with cloud DVR on PS Vue/Fire TV. And, while it's been 5-6 years and things have probably improved, I recall the cable company's DVR being slow and clunky without much storage capacity. And they charged like $20/mo rent. No thank you... I don't need "financing" for a $150 device. Don't get me started on the junk fees and contracts.

All that said, I'm not a DVR junkie and never have been. I mostly watch YouTube and some ad-free documentaries on Netflix and Curiosity Stream. I do record several Science channel programs on PS Vue and watch them with no problem whatsoever on cloud DVR. Alexa skips the commercials for me.

 

[ncbill]

Just signed up for Hulu TV for a game I want to watch Friday before canceling during the free trial...seems the guide only has the next two days of show info...is this typical for streaming services (guide on my Tivos is 2+ weeks)

 

[Cobra9777]

...seems the guide only has the next two days of show info...is this typical for streaming services (guide on my Tivos is 2+ weeks)

We have PS Vue. I've never used the guide except for the current day. Anyway, I checked... in addition to the current day, it has 7 days in the past and 6 days in the future.

 

[ls99]

Got rid of TV service over two years ago. And I don't stream anything. Still don't miss it.

 

[Rustic23]

Update on Cord Cutting (Cable TV)

I have posted before, I have just about every streaming device except the Nvidia Shield.

I use Roku, and ultra and two sticks as my primary streamers on three TVs. However, about a year ago I got a 'free' Apple TV when I paid for 4 months of DirecTV. I hated, and still do their remote. However, since then I have gone to the Interset remote

https://www.amazon.com/Inteset-Univ...&sprefix=roku+apple+rem,stripbooks,266&sr=8-4

It works with Roku and Apple. The Apple TV is definitely faster, and not just a little bit. I have had a problem with Roku of going black after VOD commercials and not returning to the show. I have not had that problem with the Apple. However, I have not used it long enough to be sure it is a Roku problem. (used with Youtube TV).

I now use the main TV with Apple, and the guest, and bedroom TV's with Roku Sticks. I have no intention starting an Apple Roku war. In fact I still like the Roku interface better than Apple, and if, as reported in the media, Roku may update the Ultra this year, I may go to it.. If it has faster processors.

Edit: Fire TV/Stick is not an option with Youtube TV now. Otherwise I like it.

 

[ToneGod]

Streaming Solo

To those who have had experience subscribing to your own domain - Url and using dreamlink,formuler,netgear etc. Any recommendations or feedback?
A friend told me you can get everything in high res with dreamlink t2. I just don't know which host to subscribe to for URL or if it even makes any difference?

 

[pb4uski]

Using DVR features on streaming is (currently) far inferior to doing so on cable or satellite. Until streaming feels as smooth and responsive as it is on a conventional DVR, IMO this will push a lot of customers away. ....But the fast forward, reverse and the like are still a lot clunkier than it was with satellite TV and a DVR.

+1 here. We trialed the Fitzy TV DVR and it was not near as elegant as the Dish TV and Xfinity DVRs we have. It worked, but was primitive by comparison.

 

[ToneGod]

Thanks for the feedback. So I assume any URL host will do then?

 

[SmallCityDave]

How much data are you guys using? I recently got a notification that we've used 900gb of data in a month apparently we are capped at 1tb.