YouTube TV - unlimited cloud dvr, etc.
 

https://youtube.googleblog.com/2017/...e-for-you.html

It's probably not for the die hard SageTV power-user. But it appears to offer a great user experience with fewer trade-offs of the other streaming TV offerings. And I'd rather trust a platform that serves a billion hours of video content per day.

• SlingTV: DVR in limited beta with 100 hour limit
• PlayStation Vue: only 28 days on recordings, geo-locked to your home IP
• DirecTV Now: totally blows

Wonder if any of Jeff's tech is running the cloud dvr.

This looks really promising if they can get Turner channels.

Interesting to see how all of this will play out. A year from now we should see some pretty solid offerings.

Hulu still has to release their streaming service. We'll see how it compares.

If I could rig it as a hardware tuner for SageTV to play with, I'd give it a shot.

I'd consider switching ASAP if they had two options:

1. I can fast forward throgh recordings; including commercials
2. I could import my existing video library (or at least have some way of accessing it through the service)

The busier I get the less appetite I have for running a server and HD-PVRs, etc.

That's how I feel, too, Will.

Supposedly you will be able to skip through commercials, although I'm sure it won't be automated.

I can't imagine they'd let you upload your own video files to the service. But, Plex works reasonably well for local files.

The big thing I missed when I first read about this is that recordings will only stick around for 9 months. That's not terrible, and I recognize it can't be forever, but I wish it was a bit longer than that. At least a year (basically, long enough to watch the previous season again before watching the next season).

The other question is do you need a traditional TV offering over the internet with a DVR add-on, which is what these services are, or can you get the content that you want from other places - like TV network web pages, mlb.com, etc.

There was another service that tried to stream OTA content and was shut down. This makes me think you will need a cable subscription to access network TV.

There have been a few but they tried to use loopholes. You are probably thinking of Aereo, or if you want to go way back - iCraveTV

But these companies are doing it by the book and paying the stations to carry their channels. In many cases these are incumbent media companies that don't want to disrupt the status quo too much. These services are essentially cable TV delivered over the internet rather than a traditional coax service or satellite.

That sucks; I often record a series but don't get around to watching it for a few years. A lot of weeks we only have enough time to watch maybe one or two episodes; not enough time in the day for everything.

This is definitely heading in the right direction but it looks like I'll need SageTV for a few more years at least.

And before anyone says "isn't that what (fill in service) is for..." I've seen a lot of shows disappear off Netflix or Hulu. The licensing deals are business friendly not consumer friendly.

Agreed. The only way to ensure you will be able to watch it when you want is to have a copy locally or in a digital vault.

And it is interesting to see that Playon is trying to make a business out of this sending you an email saying "The following movies/TV shows are disappearing from Netflix on March 1".

I took a quick look at the articles/details about YouTube Tv and came away pretty much the same as all of the other streaming services. Each one seems to have some big (for me) gaping hole in the channels/networks they offer. And once you put in all the "add on" packages to get a more robust channel offering you start to approach Cable/Satellite pricing. And of course there are still those networks/channels that you don't even have the option of getting.

Believe me, I'd love to stop paying Comcast big $$ every month for TV, but *for me* none of the other options would work.

Streaming is doable right now, but as 4k content starts to become more available anyone like myself that watches much TV would quickly hit their ISP cap. (Comcast in my area still hasn't rolled out the 1tb/month cap)

I will say their initial offering in the DVR capabilities are head and shoulders above the other services offerings. Then again, nobody has seen their DVR in action yet. But since they are so heavily into streaming media through their years of YouTube service I'd bet it will be one of the best DVR's right out of the gate.

Another "elephant in the room" for me is COMSKIP, TV without COMSKIP is a non-starter! :nono:

This looks like the best plan I have seen so far. I can get the local stations with an Antenna and really only need sports from a Cable\Satellite solution. (ESPN\FS1\NBCSN) Anything else is just a bonus. Between local Networks, Netflix, Amazon and Hulu I have more good TV than I can really watch.

I am sitting on the $35 DirecTV Now deal right now but without the DVR it is not a long term replacement. (The $5 HBO also makes it compelling) I tried PlayStation Vue before DirecTV and I just can't stand the interface. I plan to try Dish and Hulu when they come out as well. YouTube TV sounds good but the interface and what devices I can put it on will make all the difference.

Ultimately I think that Plex DVR with one of the online services will replace SageTV for me. I can live with not having every show available to me immediately and they all seem to show up on one of the online options sooner or later.

FYI Sling is what Dish is putting out unless there is something else on the horizon. Hulu is the one I'm the most interested in, but it looks like viacom isn't interesting in streaming TV.

This is a pretty good article that I think sums up all of our reasons for sticking with sage.

Youtube TV / DVR
 

http://www.theverge.com/2017/4/5/151...iption-service

* merged *

It's disappointing that they still haven't said anything about an Android TV app. Given lackluster adoption of Android TV, it would surprise me if they ultimately create a Roku app but ignore Android TV (since they seem to think castings is good enough).

But I still think this looks promising. If this rolls out in the DC area, and they create a Roku and/or Android TV app, and they get Turner and Viacom channels (at least TNT, TBS, and Comedy Central), I think there's a good chance I'd drop SageTV. Those might be big ifs, though.

I just got an email from Google that it is available in my area.

I just sent in a support ticket asking about Android TV. Their app is not supported on my Nexus Player, Mi Box, Asus Tablet, or Sony Smart TV. My only option would be to use my Samsung Phone and cast it to my TV. :thumbdown

I will let you know their response.

I think this will ultimately be the failing of this service. Google not only needs to get the Android apps out there for existing Android devices, but it also needs to be working on iOS and Roku options as well.

Personally, this is where I think Netflix should be offer "as-a-service" additional TV offerings... ie, if I already pay for netflix, networks should be paying Netflix a cut to allow them to deliver their content over Netflix's infrastructure, as an add-on (ie, netflix bills me $35 and takes a cut of that from the networks). Netflix has figured out the content delivery problems, and they have players on every device imaginable. TV is their core business. For Google and Apple, TV is just another distraction, and I suspect google will throw in the towel on this as well.

In Canada, "Shomi" was a network TV offering that started up by one of the big 3. It was meant to compete with Netflix, and it cost the same. But, you could only watch it on your phone or computer, or cast it to the TV. No TV player support and they weren't interested in creating that either. They eventually shut down, which was a surprise to no-one except many Shomi. If there was a "Shomi" app for AndroidTV, I would have subsribed, since it has lots of shows that I couldn't get on netflix. But I wasn't going to subscribe to watch it on my laptop.

Device support is crucial for any of these types of services to survive and you'll quickly be able to see how serious google is with this by the number of devices they start to support.