http://androidpcreview.com/dont-buy-this-box-streamsmart-box/6829/

DesertB3ar;842808220 said:

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If you get a streamsmart there is no need for a DVR since all of the TVshows and movies automatically record. You would need a separate box for each tv but they pay for themselves when you factor all the money you save by not paying for cable and the PPVs you get for free. UFC fights alone are $70/each.

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Seems like his biggest beef is with the price. I've had other kodi boxes and this is by far the best one I've had. Most kodi boxes have the same apps for movies or tv shows, but what makes the streamsmart best in my opinion is the live tv in HD. I paid $250 for mine and definitely have gotten my money's worth.

Are these things like the modified fire sticks? Allow unlimited streaming of content that would normally come at a cost?

Smiley;842808224 said:

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http://androidpcreview.com/dont-buy-this-box-streamsmart-box/6829/

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Wow - I'd never heard of a Streamsmart, but that article and other reviews around the web make it sound like a complete scam. I think I'll stay far away.

DesertB3ar;842808237 said:

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Seems like his biggest beef is with the price. I've had other kodi boxes and this is by far the best one I've had. Most kodi boxes have the same apps for movies or tv shows, but what makes the streamsmart best in my opinion is the live tv in HD. I paid $250 for mine and definitely have gotten my money's worth.

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This thread was interesting, and I remember being introduced to Sling Box here years ago, and now I own one.
But I am missing something-for those of you who are cord cutting, what are you doing for internet? At a second home I did Direct TV and Verizon internet and that was better than Comcast (which I have at home)..but am I missing an obvious internet solution?

mbBear;842808423 said:

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This thread was interesting, and I remember being introduced to Sling Box here years ago, and now I own one.
But I am missing something-for those of you who are cord cutting, what are you doing for internet? At a second home I did Direct TV and Verizon internet and that was better than Comcast (which I have at home)..but am I missing an obvious internet solution?

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I use Sonic.com for my internet. It runs me $78/mo for their Fusion FTTN X2 50 Mbps service. In some limited areas they now offer gigabit service, but not in mine yet. The FTTN X2 is two AT&T provided copper lines. When I've run speed tests I do get pretty close to the advertised speed. AT&T comes out and does the hookup, and provides their own rental modem (required) which is included in the monthly bill. It's initially a one year contract, and also includes (whether you want it or not) a VOIP phone line, 15 email accounts, and web hosting. Sonic is known for having very good customer service, although I can't vouch for that, because I've never had an issue with service. I like Sonic because they don't jerk you around with teaser rates that spike up later unless you complain. I got tired of playing that game with AT&T. With Sonic, the price is the price.

UrsusSanJoseus;842808529 said:

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I use Sonic.com for my internet. It runs me $78/mo for their Fusion FTTN X2 50 Mbps service. In some limited areas they now offer gigabit service, but not in mine yet. The FTTN X2 is two AT&T provided copper lines. When I've run speed tests I do get pretty close to the advertised speed. AT&T comes out and does the hookup, and provides their own rental modem (required) which is included in the monthly bill. It's initially a one year contract, and also includes (whether you want it or not) a VOIP phone line, 15 email accounts, and web hosting. Sonic is known for having very good customer service, although I can't vouch for that, because I've never had an issue with service. I like Sonic because they don't jerk you around with teaser rates that spike up later unless you complain. I got tired of playing that game with AT&T. With Sonic, the price is the price.

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My primary concern is a second/beach home. Verizon is less than that (in that area) but they just did a "bait and switch" telling me that I won't get charged at all the months I want to turn it off, and then that turned out to be far from the truth. So, I dropped them, and can activate for a lot less when I need it again But I like hearing the options, and I will see what Sonic has to say about the months I don't need them.

mbBear;842808614 said:

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My primary concern is a second/beach home. Verizon is less than that (in that area) but they just did a "bait and switch" telling me that I won't get charged at all the months I want to turn it off, and then that turned out to be far from the truth. So, I dropped them, and can activate for a lot less when I need it again But I like hearing the options, and I will see what Sonic has to say about the months I don't need them.

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As you may have guessed, BeachedBear has a second home (almost primary) at the beach. I use the local cable company (Charter?) and get their cheapest package that has internet (and comes with standard TV, but I can never remember the lineup and rarely find channels). I get about 25 Mbps download and normal channels (local, ESPN, but not P12 network) for under $40/mo. When I need to watch a Cal game, I stream it on my laptop and run it through an HDMI cable. The 25 Mbps is more than sufficient to stream unless I have 3 or 4 kids simultaneously streaming video. In that case, I just yell at them to shut it down - as I'm watching the Cal game.

ps. No land line phone either - just rely on cell coverage. It's been great for the last 5 years or so. My primary cable package includes p12 network, so I can use that log on for streaming.

:gobears:

mbBear;842808423 said:

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This thread was interesting, and I remember being introduced to Sling Box here years ago, and now I own one.
But I am missing something-for those of you who are cord cutting, what are you doing for internet? At a second home I did Direct TV and Verizon internet and that was better than Comcast (which I have at home)..but am I missing an obvious internet solution?

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If I read your post correctly, cord-cutting refers to cutting out paying for cable or satellite TV service. A person would still pay for internet service... unless they really wanted to cut all costs and mooch wifi or do everything through cellular tethering (I actually did this for several hours when my Comcast cable service went out).

rathokan;842808791 said:

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If I read your post correctly, cord-cutting refers to cutting out paying for cable or satellite TV service. A person would still pay for internet service... unless they really wanted to cut all costs and mooch wifi or do everything through cellular tethering (I actually did this for several hours when my Comcast cable service went out).

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Yes, I understood that. But for me, I have always had my cable and internet bundled together, that stand alone internet was never the economic move. So, that was my inspiration for going down that path-I believe my view is too narrow.
My phone without WIFI does well pretty much everywhere, even when I travel.

Very interesting as this was just announced.

YouTube TV (Google) going live soon...$35/month for over 40 stations (including major networks) plus DVR service.

Wonder if the Pac12 Network will be here?!? I see the SEC Network in there.....

http://www.androidpolice.com/2017/02/28/youtube-tv-official-includes-40-networks-35month/

I imagine Amazon will offer something comparable, hopefully discounted for Prime Members...

Looks pretty attractive. I've got about 18 months left on my Dish commitment but I'll be interested to see what's available when I become a "free agent".

59bear;842813303 said:

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Looks pretty attractive. I've got about 18 months left on my Dish commitment but I'll be interested to see what's available when I become a "free agent".

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Might be worth it to go now, anyways. I believe Dish charges $20 per month left on your contract if you terminate early. That's $360. If you're paying $80ish per month like I am, and the Google deal saves you $45/month, you'd actually save $90 over the life of the contract if you left early. Of course, it doesn't sound like YouTube TV is yet comparable to what you have, just pointing out the Dish early termination fee is not necessarily cost prohibitive.

Yeah, I understand that and I'm in no rush although the lure of dumping a few hundred channels I never watch is compelling. I'm sure much will develop in this area over the next few months.

BeachedBear;842808633 said:

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As you may have guessed, BeachedBear has a second home (almost primary) at the beach. I use the local cable company (Charter?) and get their cheapest package that has internet (and comes with standard TV, but I can never remember the lineup and rarely find channels). I get about 25 Mbps download and normal channels (local, ESPN, but not P12 network) for under $40/mo. When I need to watch a Cal game, I stream it on my laptop and run it through an HDMI cable. The 25 Mbps is more than sufficient to stream unless I have 3 or 4 kids simultaneously streaming video. In that case, I just yell at them to shut it down - as I'm watching the Cal game.

ps. No land line phone either - just rely on cell coverage. It's been great for the last 5 years or so. My primary cable package includes p12 network, so I can use that log on for streaming.

:gobears:

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Late to the party responding to this but: I have incorporated a lot of what you do as well, especially your Cal games component. For Phillies game, I got a Sling Box but I think that dynamic is going to change this season, as they are being allowed to stream etc.
I'm not anywhere close to having my "shore" (to use our lingo) house as a second home, so the ability to suspend service was key. Comcast (the local provider) let me(and others) do it for 6 months, for $25 a month. DirectTV was more flexible and doesn't charge anything for my suspended months, and then yes, I go with their lower package until sister in law comes down for 8 weeks upgrades it, and pays for it!
So, Verizon looked to be the best internet solution before basically getting "baited and switched" on. But I simply dumped them completely, and will see if I want to turn them on come the spring, pending another solution (including just doing Comcast internet)....

We just switched to Playstation Vue ($40 a month for the base package +$5 a month for CSN, SEC, BTN, and a few others) It includes all local channels as well. No Pac 12 network yet, but we are saving about $50 a month over our old UVerse package. Aside from Pac12 Network, all the other channels we normally watch are included.

I'm very happy with it so far.

calbear289;842813658 said:

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We just switched to Playstation Vue ($40 a month for the base package +$5 a month for CSN, SEC, BTN, and a few others) It includes all local channels as well. No Pac 12 network yet, but we are saving about $50 a month over our old UVerse package. Aside from Pac12 Network, all the other channels we normally watch are included.

I'm very happy with it so far.

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I think this might be my next step as well. How much are you paying for ISP, if you don't mind sharing.

For anybody interested in Sling in the Bay Area: it's adding both Bay Area Comcast sports networks April 2.

https://tvanswerman.com/2017/03/02/sling-tv-to-add-nbc-regional-sports-nets-in-april/

calbear289;842813658 said:

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We just switched to Playstation Vue ($40 a month for the base package +$5 a month for CSN, SEC, BTN, and a few others) It includes all local channels as well. No Pac 12 network yet, but we are saving about $50 a month over our old UVerse package. Aside from Pac12 Network, all the other channels we normally watch are included.

I'm very happy with it so far.

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We are about to do the same but YouTube TV caught my attention because they are very similar. Vue gets very good reviews though.

How easy is the Vue interface to use? Have you found any drawbacks? I know about the 30 day limit for DVR'd shows and we have plenty of downstream data so I at not worried about either - but I am curious about any other things that you may not like about the service.

bear945;842813743 said:

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For anybody interested in Sling in the Bay Area: it's adding both Bay Area Comcast sports networks April 2.

https://tvanswerman.com/2017/03/02/sling-tv-to-add-nbc-regional-sports-nets-in-april/

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Wow, that's huge! Now you can get all the channels to watch Cal, Warriors, and Giants games with the Sling Orange + Blue ($40) and the sports extras ($10) for $50/month. That makes it a viable substitute for cable or satellite if sports are what you're looking for.

The great thing about this is you avoid the ridiculous Comcast add-on fees for local broadcast channels ($6.50/month) and regional sports channels ($4.50/month).

BeachedBear;842813672 said:

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I think this might be my next step as well. How much are you paying for ISP, if you don't mind sharing.

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About $50 a month. We get it though ATT. Not sure how fast it is.

Grimnebulin;842814251 said:

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We are about to do the same but YouTube TV caught my attention because they are very similar. Vue gets very good reviews though.

How easy is the Vue interface to use? Have you found any drawbacks? I know about the 30 day limit for DVR'd shows and we have plenty of downstream data so I at not worried about either - but I am curious about any other things that you may not like about the service.

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The interface is really easy to use. There's a guide that lists channels in alphabetical order.

The biggest annoyance so far is not being able to fast forward through recorded shows. We have had minimal issues with lag/buffering.

They offer a 7 day free trial, and it's easy to cancel. Definitely worth checking out.

calbear289;842815366 said:

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The biggest annoyance so far is not being able to fast forward through recorded shows.

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So you can't skip the commercials? That would be a deal-breaker for me.

I'm very interested in cord cutting but I just can't find something can provide me a similar value as XFINITY premier triple play for $159 a month (plus 2 additional boxes). That include full featured DVR, on demand, clearer picture than competitors, full mobile dvr/on demand, and pretty much all you can eat for premium channels

tommie317;842815429 said:

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I'm very interested in cord cutting but I just can't find something can provide me a similar value as XFINITY premier triple play for $159 a month (plus 2 additional boxes). That include full featured DVR, on demand, clearer picture than competitors, full mobile dvr/on demand, and pretty much all you can eat for premium channels

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there's definitely something to be said for actual TV service w/ a DVR. I just got Sonic Fiber installed (internet). Now I'm going to see what leverage (if any) that gives me with Comcast for TV service. If they blow me off, I'll cancel and go w/ a streaming solution or go with Dish. Dish has some good deals and I hear they have good DVR tech w/ place shifting and streaming options.

also, an interesting article about ESPN staff cuts

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/early-lead/wp/2017/03/06/expect-fewer-familiar-faces-on-espn-after-this-next-round-of-cuts/?utm_term=.351f73fb8262

rathokan;842816083 said:

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there's definitely something to be said for actual TV service w/ a DVR. I just got Sonic Fiber installed (internet). Now I'm going to see what leverage (if any) that gives me with Comcast for TV service. If they blow me off, I'll cancel and go w/ a streaming solution or go with Dish. Dish has some good deals and I hear they have good DVR tech w/ place shifting and streaming options.

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Diid Sonic run a new line to your house from the utility pole? I live off Hugo St. in the Inner Sunset where they undergrounded all the utilities but I just read that Public Works isn't allowing Sonic to microtrench for access to areas with underground utilities. Argh!!!

CaliforniaEternal;842816129 said:

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Diid Sonic run a new line to your house from the utility pole? I live off Hugo St. in the Inner Sunset where they undergrounded all the utilities but I just read that Public Works isn't allowing Sonic to microtrench for access to areas with underground utilities. Argh!!!

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yep... i'm way out near the beach in the outer outer. when I signed up for Sonic, they first did a "drop" where the run the line from the overhead wires to the house, then they set up a install appointment to do the rest.

calbear289;842815366 said:

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The biggest annoyance so far is not being able to fast forward through recorded shows. We have had minimal issues with lag/buffering.

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Go!Bears;842815400 said:

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So you can't skip the commercials? That would be a deal-breaker for me.

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I agree, no fast forwarding on recorded shows would be strange and quite annoying. Definitely makes me rethink the Vue solution.

EDIT: Looks like you may be able to fast forward if you hit pause first - may only apply to Vue via AppleTV. Try it or check out the Vue thread in Reddit.

They seem to be using FF here but do they also have a Fire TV box or AppleTV box?
http://community.us.playstation.com/t5/PlayStation-Vue-Support/Vue-performance-DVR-fast-forward-praise-post/td-p/45992549

But then, I am not actually using Vue yet so I may be way off mark here...

Anyone have any new and interesting cord cutting news, info, or advice? Still hanging onto DirecTv but not sure for how long....

Grimnebulin;842837310 said:

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Anyone have any new and interesting cord cutting news, info, or advice? Still hanging onto DirecTv but not sure for how long....

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I'm about to spend some time in the PNW in my new 'cabin' in the woods. The only ISP serving the area is Xfinity, but the cabin comes with DishTV antenna. I'm considering paying the freight to Xfinity for JUST the ISP (around $60/mo. - and I can keep all my family email addresses). And going with VUE on my PS4 and possibly connecting the DISHTV using their basic pack plus sports package.

So..... Any updates on cord cutting are greatly appreciated.

BeachedBear;842837432 said:

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I'm about to spend some time in the PNW in my new 'cabin' in the woods. The only ISP serving the area is Xfinity, but the cabin comes with DishTV antenna. I'm considering paying the freight to Xfinity for JUST the ISP (around $60/mo. - and I can keep all my family email addresses). And going with VUE on my PS4 and possibly connecting the DISHTV using their basic pack plus sports package.

So..... Any updates on cord cutting are greatly appreciated.

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Ah good luck! I upgraded my Xfinity internet to 100Mbps and have a PS4 and PS3 and I am about to signup for the free Vue trial to see how it is...I am curious about the sports packages but everything else sounds great about it, except for the 28 day DVR limit and so/so interface for the PS3 and other devices right now.

I dropped Comcast. My bill had skyrocketed up to $258/mo for internet and cable (good package w/ HBO, NBA TV, etc...). It was originally $99/mo on intro deal then gradually went up to about $150/mo the latter half of the 2-year contract. If they had just kept it there, I probably would have stuck with them, but they jacked it up another $100, and I didn't feel like doing the negotiation w/ them.

I'm on Sonic Fiber for internet now which is about $50/mo and very fast (max speed of ~900mbps vs the 40mbps on Comcast... not that that much speed is usable???). We have an average of about 10-12 devices connected to the internet at all times.

I also pre-paid 3 months of DirecTV Now @ $35/mo and got a free AppleTV 4 as part of the deal.

I'm actually pretty happy w/ DirecTV Now. I have my AppleTV 4 hard wired, and tuning in to a channel might be even faster than switching channels on a Comcast DVR. Picture quality is good but you do get some ghosting watching sports... and no DVR functionality yet. The ATV4 remote is clumsy for browsing the guide... part of this could be DTV's implementation, but sometimes also there is no substitute for hardware buttons.

I believe Sling TV has built in DVR functionality now?

Haven't installed KODI on the ATV4 yet... If I can get that on there w/ the HD Sports add-on, it will be quite slick.

The ATV4 is also a great device. Setup is really easy esp if you already have an iPhone, and it has some pretty seamless integration w/ modern TVs like automatically mapping volume functions to the remote.

Great input - thanks!