Cord cutters - What's your favorite streaming services?

[shadow puppet]

Just cancelled Netflix yesterday. Will now only sign up for a month here and there to binge, then drop. Currently considering signing up for Peacock Premium's 1.99/mth or $19.99 for a year since local news and MSNBC is included. The Peacock premium offer ends tonight. Then I can drop Sling which is costing me $35/mth and I'm not thrilled with the direction CNN is going.

 

[lizkat]

Netflix still teetering on the brink for me... I guess I'm coasting on laurels of having cancelled an annual re-up via Apple subscription to HBO Max which was gonna ding me for $150 or so in mid-October, so I'm feeling flush enough to let Netflix dangle over the abyss for a little longer.

 

[gollum]

Opinions on Direct TV streaming as a replacement for cable?

 

[Cmaier]

Opinions on Direct TV streaming as a replacement for cable?

we pretty much just use direct tv streaming now. Put my satellite subscription on long-term pause last week (have to cancel it outright before it automatically turns back on in june). We’ve had both services overlapping for more than a year. I haven’t used the satellite in a very long time, but it took awhile to get my wife to switch over.

Main downside is not being able to easily skip over commercials, and not being able to save different favorite channels for each family member. But everything else has been fine.

we also have YouTube tv (Which i use to watch NY baseball games by spoofing my GPS). It is also fine.

One thing to keep in mind is that if you care about 4K and 5.1 audio you may or may not find what you’re looking for in these other services.

 

[Eric]

we pretty much just use direct tv streaming now. Put my satellite subscription on long-term pause last week (have to cancel it outright before it automatically turns back on in june). We’ve had both services overlapping for more than a year. I haven’t used the satellite in a very long time, but it took awhile to get my wife to switch over.

Main downside is not being able to easily skip over commercials, and not being able to save different favorite channels for each family member. But everything else has been fine.

we also have YouTube tv (Which i use to watch NY baseball games by spoofing my GPS). It is also fine.

One thing to keep in mind is that if you care about 4K and 5.1 audio you may or may not find what you’re looking for in these other services.

YTTV is our main go to, the unlimited DVR is entirely worth it to us.

 

[Huntn]

Opinions on Direct TV streaming as a replacement for cable?

Never. Over the decades we have friends who have delved, then abandoned it. Reception is effected by heavy rain and snow Is the worst especially when it builds up on the dish.

 

[Roller]

Anyone have experience with Hulu + TV? We tried YouTube TV a few years ago, but switched back to AT&T’s TV service because YTTV didn’t include a few channels and I found the UI a bit clunky.

Seems like someone could make a lot of money with an app that lets you pick the networks, channels, and shows you want and tells you the most cost-effective way to get them.

 

[Eric]

Anyone have experience with Hulu + TV? We tried YouTube TV a few years ago, but switched back to AT&T’s TV service because YTTV didn’t include a few channels and I found the UI a bit clunky.

Seems like someone could make a lot of money with an app that lets you pick the networks, channels, and shows you want and tells you the most cost-effective way to get them.

Tried it for a month and it was horrible IMO. YTTV has some bugs on the Fire Stick so we decided to try it, the main issue is their live guide and the way you record shows is completely nonsensical, you have to save things a certain way and navigate all over the place to simply see your saved shows, etc. I was hopeful but it sucks hard, I wouldn't recommend to my worst enemy.

 

[Edd]

Anyone have experience with Hulu + TV? We tried YouTube TV a few years ago, but switched back to AT&T’s TV service because YTTV didn’t include a few channels and I found the UI a bit clunky.

Seems like someone could make a lot of money with an app that lets you pick the networks, channels, and shows you want and tells you the most cost-effective way to get them.

Tried it for a month and it was horrible IMO. YTTV has some bugs on the Fire Stick so we decided to try it, the main issue is their live guide and the way you record shows is completely nonsensical, you have to save things a certain way and navigate all over the place to simply see your saved shows, etc. I was hopeful but it sucks hard, I wouldn't recommend to my worst enemy.

I had Hulu Live for a couple of years maybe. I agree with Eric about some of it. Once I got used to the UI I liked about 80% of it. It’s certainly pretty. The DVR is the worst part of the experience, just bizarrely non-intuitive. However, so much of the content is on-demand anyway so it largely makes the DVR redundant.

I eventually talked my wife into dumping it, leaving us with no live TV options except the small amount on Peacock Premium. We’re not sports fans so live TV just is not necessary IMO. Cable news is trash and one of our many, many subscriptions is PBS Passport which gives us quality nightly news when we’re in the mood.

 

[Cmaier]

Never. Over the decades we have friends who have delved, then abandoned it. Reception is effected by heavy rain and snow Is the worst especially when it builds up on the dish.

Directv streaming is an internet service, not to be confused with directv satellite.

 

[Cmaier]

Anyone have experience with Hulu + TV? We tried YouTube TV a few years ago, but switched back to AT&T’s TV service because YTTV didn’t include a few channels and I found the UI a bit clunky.

Seems like someone could make a lot of money with an app that lets you pick the networks, channels, and shows you want and tells you the most cost-effective way to get them.

I tried Hulu live tv for awhile and the interface was pretty clunky.

 

[Roller]

I tried Hulu live tv for awhile and the interface was pretty clunky.

Thanks to you and everyone for replying.

It’s frustrating that none of these services seem to be able to or care about coming up with a good UI, including watching and recording. It shouldn’t be difficult to offer several UI versions in one app.

 

[Eric]

Thanks to you and everyone for replying.

It’s frustrating that none of these services seem to be able to or care about coming up with a good UI, including watching and recording. It shouldn’t be difficult to offer several UI versions in one app.

Have you taken a look at YTTV lately? Their interface is really friendly and simple to use, may be worth seeing if your channel is there now as well, they've added a bunch over the last couple of years.

 

[lizkat]

Have you taken a look at YTTV lately? Their interface is really friendly and simple to use, may be worth seeing if your channel is there now as well, they've added a bunch over the last couple of years.

I have tried both Hulu+live and YTTV. Preferred the latter for interface and DVR ease of use. I can't justify either one except for something like an Olympics or the World Series, so I shell out for a month to get the access and just prowl around during the remaining time, then kill it off again.

 

[DT]

Never. Over the decades we have friends who have delved, then abandoned it. Reception is effected by heavy rain and snow Is the worst especially when it builds up on the dish.

DirectTV Streaming is an internet based service, no sat dish involved.

 

[DT]

We still don't have any "Live TV" type service, though a few of our other services do have live options (like Paramount+ has several live streams including CBS network/news/sports)

We do have an antenna (with an HDHomeRun) for the occasional network show, but most of that we catch on Hulu (post-broadcast).

 

[Huntn]

Directv streaming is an internet service, not to be confused with directv satellite.

Is it owned by the same company? Just wondering…

 

[DT]

@Huntn

Sorry about that, I didn't notice someone had already commented about Sat vs. Streaming, but to answer your question above, yes:

DirecTV (trademarked as DIRECTV) is an American multichannel video programming distributor based in El Segundo, California. Originally launched on June 17, 1994, its primary service is a digital satellite service serving the United States. It also provides traditional linear television service delivered by IP through its U-verse TV brand and a Virtual MVPD service through its DirecTV Stream brand.[2] Its primary competitors are Dish Network, traditional cable television providers, IP-based television services, and other over-the-top video services.

And they're majority owned by AT&T.

 

[rdrr]

Haven't cut the cable yet, I so want to but I get HBO Max and Netflix in with my Xfinity bundle.

Other than that my top Choice is;

Apple TV (Mostly because you can use it as a hub for the other services)
Disney+
Prime
Discovery+

 

[Chew Toy McCoy]

Just cancelled Netflix yesterday. Will now only sign up for a month here and there to binge, then drop. Currently considering signing up for Peacock Premium's 1.99/mth or $19.99 for a year since local news and MSNBC is included. The Peacock premium offer ends tonight. Then I can drop Sling which is costing me $35/mth and I'm not thrilled with the direction CNN is going.

I got an email about the Peacock offer but it is for the ad supported version only and after almost a year of having Hulu with ads for $1 a month I think I’ll pretty much pass on any ad supported services that aren’t completely free. Of course if you want to go with the version that doesn’t have ads then it’s substantially more and a lot of times not worth it to me. With so much competition I think anything that is more than $10 a month is insulting.