Cutting The Cord on Cable/Satellite TV Service?

epraz

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Oct 15, 2002
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YTTV has been getting more restrictive about using it out-of-area. It used to be that you just needed log in to the service from the home area every three months, and then you could watch the home area channels wherever you were. Now, you still need to log in from the home area every three months, but while you're out of area, you can't watch the home area channels live. You can watch recordings of the home area channels, but only after the recording finishes. So if you want to watch a Pats game that's only on in Boston, you need to wait for the game to be completely over. And, no NESN.
 

Time to Mo Vaughn

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Mar 24, 2008
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So I’m about to pull the plug in cable TV. I just got my internet from Frontier fiber and it’s way faster than Optimum cable.
So now I have to figure out how to get my live TV.
I live in Stratford CT, which has meant that I got both NYC and Hartford CBS affiates (but only NYC for Fox) so I got to see every Pats game (except if they were on Fox at same time as Giants). It seems that YTTV would give me only NYC affiliates for the networks which would kill my ability to watch the Pats.

I also own a house on Cape Cod. Could I call that my “home area” even though my billing zip code (I assume that’s tied to your credit card???) is CT?

Or should I look at Fubu or Sling instead?
Bonus if any of them would give me access to NESN.

At the moment, I wouldn’t be using this at all on the Cape, but that could change if I can get decent internet down there without cable tv bundled in (stuck with Xfinity now).
OTA antenna for Hartford affiliates?
 

begranter

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NESN is not going to come with YTTV, it's only through Fubu. I've been using Roku and YTTV along with the NESN app and a friend's login. It's a bit of a pain in the ass since every so often I have to log in to the NESN app which requires a few texts with my friend due to text confirmation codes to his phone, etc. PItA aside I did a 7 day trial with Fubu and I liked YTTV better. If you look through the thread you'll see some more in depth discussions of pros/cons of Fubu vs. YTTV.

If you're keeping the Cape with cable then you've got your NESN option covered and would be able to due the YTTV/NESN app option I believe.
I did the NESN app for a while for Bruins games and it has been such a bad experience I barely watch anymore. I've gone from watching pretty much every Red Sox and Bruins game to only the national broadcasts (and even not some of those, like the Bruins game on ESPN+ the other night??). I watch more Liverpool and out of market MLB.tv games than I do local sports. It's sad on some level, but there you go.
 

Van Everyman

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So I just bought a really nice Sony Bravia XR A80J Series TV and 7.1 soundbar for my basement ... replacing a TV on the other side of the room plugged into a cable box. Right now I pay for FIOS cable w HBOMax, and subscribe to Netflix, Prime, Disney+, Spotify/Hulu. I'm not opposed to cutting the cord, but am hesitant to try to cobble together a Boston sports package (baseball/basketball/football -- I live in Newton), doing a YTTV option or running an antenna. So I figured I would keep my cable for the time being and stream it to my TV. But lo and behold:

1) Verizon charges $20/mo to stream your cable package to your smart TV,
2) Verizon and Sony appear to be having some pissing match so the FIOS app is available on the Google Play Store but not for my TV without a 3rd party workaround (FireStick, etc.), and
3) My FireStick, which I bought last year, is too old to run their stupid app.

Another option is that Verizon has something called the FIOS TV one package ... which basically allows you to connect your cable box to your TV without a coaxial cable connection. That would actually be cheaper than the current package I'm paying for -- but would require me to plug in a box via HDMI (I was kind of hoping not to have 8 million things plugged into my TV).

What does SoSH think I should do?
 
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Jim Ed Rice in HOF

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So I just bought a really nice Sony Bravia XR A80J Series TV and 7.1 soundbar for my basement ... replacing a TV on the other side of the room plugged into a cable box. Right now I pay for FIOS cable w HBOMax, and subscribe to Netflix, Prime, Disney+, Spotify/Hulu. I'm not opposed to cutting the cord, but am hesitant to try to cobble together a Boston sports package (baseball/basketball/football -- I live in Newton), doing a YTTV option or running an antenna. So I figured I would keep my cable for the time being and stream it to my TV. But lo and behold:

1) Verizon charges $20/mo to stream your cable package to your smart TV,
2) Verizon and Sony appear to be having some pissing match so the FIOS app is available on the Google Play Store but not for my TV without a 3rd party workaround (FireStick, etc.), and
3) My FireStick, which I bought last year, is too old to run their stupid app.

Another option is that Verizon has something called the FIOS TV one package ... which basically allows you to connect your cable box to your TV without a coaxial cable connection. That would actually be cheaper than the current package I'm paying for -- but would require me to plug in a box via HDMI (I was kind of hoping not to have 8 million things plugged into my TV).

What does SoSH think I should do?
Buy a receiver and then front/center/back speakers with a subwoofer. Sell the soundbar. Run everything into your receiver then run one HDMI connection to your TV. No, this is not financially sound advice.

A more practical idea. If you have a Verizon option I assume you have Comcast as well. I'm a Roku guy at this point but does Comcast have a better way to do what you want? Upside is you can get some sort of cheap new customer deal for 12 or 24 months and then maybe in that time Verizon has come up with something better or at least you can switch back to them for a cheap rate. If I had both options I would have just done that switch every time I needed to and kept cheap cable.
 

Max Power

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Buy a receiver and then front/center/back speakers with a subwoofer. Sell the soundbar. Run everything into your receiver then run one HDMI connection to your TV. No, this is not financially sound advice.

A more practical idea. If you have a Verizon option I assume you have Comcast as well. I'm a Roku guy at this point but does Comcast have a better way to do what you want? Upside is you can get some sort of cheap new customer deal for 12 or 24 months and then maybe in that time Verizon has come up with something better or at least you can switch back to them for a cheap rate. If I had both options I would have just done that switch every time I needed to and kept cheap cable.
They do. The Comcast smart TV app is free.
 

Van Everyman

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Buy a receiver and then front/center/back speakers with a subwoofer. Sell the soundbar. Run everything into your receiver then run one HDMI connection to your TV. No, this is not financially sound advice.

A more practical idea. If you have a Verizon option I assume you have Comcast as well. I'm a Roku guy at this point but does Comcast have a better way to do what you want? Upside is you can get some sort of cheap new customer deal for 12 or 24 months and then maybe in that time Verizon has come up with something better or at least you can switch back to them for a cheap rate. If I had both options I would have just done that switch every time I needed to and kept cheap cable.
Re. the receiver, I have a receiver and surround upstairs for a projector screen TV that came w the house. FWIW, I'm a big fan of surround. I wasn't really game for installing a whole surround system right away downstairs (I love surround and have a bunch of records mixed in 5.1). The advantage of this soundbar was that I can wirelessly add on rears if I want.

Good call on the cheap cable thing. My inclination if I keep cable is to get a better FireStick (which I can hide behind the TV) and see if I can get them to give me the streaming app option for free/less.
 

cgori

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Re. the receiver, I have a receiver and surround upstairs for a projector screen TV that came w the house. FWIW, I'm a big fan of surround. I wasn't really game for installing a whole surround system right away downstairs (I love surround and have a bunch of records mixed in 5.1). The advantage of this soundbar was that I can wirelessly add on rears if I want.

Good call on the cheap cable thing. My inclination if I keep cable is to get a better FireStick (which I can hide behind the TV) and see if I can get them to give me the streaming app option for free/less.
FireStick 4K is $30 right now, 4K Max is $40. (Max has picture-in-picture, though probably only if you get the app to work? I've never tried FireStick P-i-P)
 

Van Everyman

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FireStick 4K is $30 right now, 4K Max is $40. (Max has picture-in-picture, though probably only if you get the app to work? I've never tried FireStick P-i-P)
Good call. I grabbed the $30 4K one and enabled the $6 streaming option for now. I'm gonna see if this works and go from there. My first thought is that it's not the world's greatest interface, which probably matters to my wife. As for the quality, the Celtics game on NBC SportsBoston I watched last night def. didn't look as sharp as some of the streaming stuff on HBO Max.

But probably the biggest thing I'm noticing out of the gate is how few things are streaming in 4K at this point. Basically, my the definition on my TV is too good for the signal coming in on a lot of things, which actually makes it look worse. Like, I was watching Gilmore Girls w my daughter last night and even after I upgraded to their ultra-premium plan it looked kind of crappy. But that Ridley Scott/Matt Damon/Adam Driver medieval thing on HBO Max looked incredible (the streamed version from my cable package looked so-so, so clearly not 4K yet). So I suspect it will take time for all the cable and streaming companies to not only catch up but have all their catalogues streaming in 4K.

A friend also suggested the Eero mesh network to boost my signal around my house. The new TV isn't having any problems so far, but with my bandwidth needs growing and a few dead spots in my house, I'm gonna do that as well.
 

jayhoz

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Fubo is moving to quarterly subscriptions rather than monthly for new subscribers. Guessing too many customers adding and dropping based on sports had something to do with decision.
 

ctsoxfan5

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I switched from You Tube TV to Fubo when YTTV dropped NESN. But now FUBO doesn't have the TBS stations anymore. I want to be able to watch all of the NCAA tournament games. Is the best solution to just re-subscribe to YTTV for a month to get the tournament games?
 

Yaz4Ever

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I'm looking at YouTube TV and Hulu Live. It doesn't appear that either of them will allow my son at Purdue to log in and watch. Is that correct? He's currently paying for Hulu Live for the Big Ten Network only. I haven't looked around enough to see if there's a cheaper option for him to get just that, but if we can allow him access I'll pick it up now that we've canceled Spectrum at home. Always nice to save a college kid a few bucks a month - or in this case, a lot of bucks. Didn't know he had signed up for it until recently. I don't believe YouTube TV has Big Ten Network, but if I can allow him access to that and convince him he doesn't need that network, even better.
 

johnmd20

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I'm looking at YouTube TV and Hulu Live. It doesn't appear that either of them will allow my son at Purdue to log in and watch. Is that correct? He's currently paying for Hulu Live for the Big Ten Network only. I haven't looked around enough to see if there's a cheaper option for him to get just that, but if we can allow him access I'll pick it up now that we've canceled Spectrum at home. Always nice to save a college kid a few bucks a month - or in this case, a lot of bucks. Didn't know he had signed up for it until recently. I don't believe YouTube TV has Big Ten Network, but if I can allow him access to that and convince him he doesn't need that network, even better.
You can use Youtube TV from multiple locations, simultaneously. The only caveat is that your son will have to log into Youtube TV at the home address with his device/phone/table at least once every 90 days. If he doesn't, he will lose access if 90 days passes and he would be able to get access again if he's back at home and signs in again.

3 months is a long time. You and your son should be fine. Note, Youtube TV has Big10 network. It has all the college sports networks.

edit - just one quick thing, the regular YTTV service allows only 3 streams at the same time. If you upgrade to the 4k,(I think it's 20 bucks more a month) it's unlimited streams. And you get some 4k stuff, which is awesome because there are like twelve 4k telecasts every year. :)
 

gtmtnbiker

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You can use Youtube TV from multiple locations, simultaneously. The only caveat is that your son will have to log into Youtube TV at the home address with his device/phone/table at least once every 90 days. If he doesn't, he will lose access if 90 days passes and he would be able to get access again if he's back at home and signs in again.

3 months is a long time. You and your son should be fine. Note, Youtube TV has Big10 network. It has all the college sports networks.

edit - just one quick thing, the regular YTTV service allows only 3 streams at the same time. If you upgrade to the 4k,(I think it's 20 bucks more a month) it's unlimited streams. And you get some 4k stuff, which is awesome because there are like twelve 4k telecasts every year. :)
I suggest creating an account just for YTTV so that both of you know the password. Then you login on the home network with your son's account every 2 months.
I also recommend logging in using the phone to have the least issues. Sometimes logging in on the computer/fire stick is not sufficient.
 

Ale Xander

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Netflix, Paramount+, and Disney/Hulu seem like a steal these days with some of the food prices I’m seeing.
 

Yaz4Ever

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You can use Youtube TV from multiple locations, simultaneously. The only caveat is that your son will have to log into Youtube TV at the home address with his device/phone/table at least once every 90 days. If he doesn't, he will lose access if 90 days passes and he would be able to get access again if he's back at home and signs in again.

3 months is a long time. You and your son should be fine. Note, Youtube TV has Big10 network. It has all the college sports networks.

edit - just one quick thing, the regular YTTV service allows only 3 streams at the same time. If you upgrade to the 4k,(I think it's 20 bucks more a month) it's unlimited streams. And you get some 4k stuff, which is awesome because there are like twelve 4k telecasts every year. :)
I suggest creating an account just for YTTV so that both of you know the password. Then you login on the home network with your son's account every 2 months.
I also recommend logging in using the phone to have the least issues. Sometimes logging in on the computer/fire stick is not sufficient.
Just to be clear, he can use the YTTV account in Indiana while I'm in NC, but needs to "come home" at least once every 3 months, but I can sign in as him at home in between visits to keep him active (he's home at Christmas and summer, so 2x/year). If he doesn't log in, does he get completely locked out?
 

johnmd20

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Just to be clear, he can use the YTTV account in Indiana while I'm in NC, but needs to "come home" at least once every 3 months, but I can sign in as him at home in between visits to keep him active (he's home at Christmas and summer, so 2x/year). If he doesn't log in, does he get completely locked out?
I think that's right. If you're going to be home and signing in then your son will be fine forever. I thought the 90 days was at the device level. I think it's at the account level. Frankly, that 90 day rule is odd if it's at the account level. That makes it easier to share accounts, not harder.

YouTubeTV is a pretty awesome product.
 

Yaz4Ever

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I think that's right. If you're going to be home and signing in then your son will be fine forever. I thought the 90 days was at the device level. I think it's at the account level. Frankly, that 90 day rule is odd if it's at the account level. That makes it easier to share accounts, not harder.

YouTubeTV is a pretty awesome product.
Thanks, man.

Are you at all familiar with Vidgo? I like the $55 price, but had never heard of it until yesterday. I was leaning toward YTTV, my wife was leaning toward Hulu (she already uses regular Hulu and our younger son watches Disney+ from time to time).
 

Yaz4Ever

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yes. your content will not be accessible until you sign in to the home area when a certain period has elapsed.
but he doesn't have to actually come home mid-semester. this is something I can do for him at home and he's good to go until he comes home at Christmas/summer, correct?
 

gtmtnbiker

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but he doesn't have to actually come home mid-semester. this is something I can do for him at home and he's good to go until he comes home at Christmas/summer, correct?
Correct assuming that you know his account password. Have my suggestion of creating a separate account just for YTTV. I wouldn’t want to be giving someone my normal gmail account info
 

johnmd20

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Thanks, man.

Are you at all familiar with Vidgo? I like the $55 price, but had never heard of it until yesterday. I was leaning toward YTTV, my wife was leaning toward Hulu (she already uses regular Hulu and our younger son watches Disney+ from time to time).
The thing about YTTV that elevates it above everything else is the DVR. It is incredible. It is so easy to record things, it is so easy to watch them, and you never have to worry about space. And it's versatile. For example, during the Olympics, you can set YTTV to record EVERY single Olympic event with one click. Literally, one click recoded like 1000 separate broadcasts. And then it's just there, you can watch what you want and just ignore what you don't. It also recorded the 4k stuff in 4k HDR, which did look good.(The Olympics are one of the rare things that is in 4k right now, but you do have to pay extra for that)

I am not familiar with Vidgo but I'm sure it's fine. The issue with these tiny companies and that some of them are going to go out of business. But I guess that doesn't matter while they work. I will say this about Youtube TV. It has never failed to work for me. It is never down and it's never jittery and choppy. I like the reliability. And versatility.
 

Red Averages

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Made the switch to YTTV for our second house and it is fantastic. We have 8 TVs and this has saved us $150 PER MONTH. And it's a much easier product to use than the cable box where no one knows the channels and we were limited to (gasp) TiVO which is a terrible product. Oh and I had to contact them for a simple question when I installed it (entirely because I'm slow) and they refunded me for 6 weeks because I was a new joiner. Impressive service.
 

Zomp

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Something worth mentioning with the caveat that others may have experienced the complete opposite.

In September or so I bought an Apple 4K TV for my new family room television, the Sony 85” X91J.

Up until a few weeks ago the thing worked great. Fast, picture quality, ease of use (important because my 70 year old parents babysit) was all A+. All my other streaming devices have been Rokus and while I have never had a complaint the Apple TV interface and remote just felt better.

A few weeks ago we updated my TV with firmware. After we did, the Apple TV had trouble displaying. Not sure what happened. I reset everything several times and it came back eventually but right away I realized the picture quality wasn’t what it was. 4K videos looked just ok. HD videos were pixilated. It was weird.

I figured the update messed with some of the tv settings but after going through everything I decided it was either the hdmi wire or the Apple TV because when I used the TV’s native YouTube app the picture immediately improved.

I brought my roku ultra from downstairs to the family room and the beautiful picture returned. Not sure why or how. I went to Best Buy, bought another roku ultra for my family room and the tv looks incredible again.

Something happened with the Apple TV. Just not sure what.
 

orgoman

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Something worth mentioning with the caveat that others may have experienced the complete opposite.

In September or so I bought an Apple 4K TV for my new family room television, the Sony 85” X91J.

Up until a few weeks ago the thing worked great. Fast, picture quality, ease of use (important because my 70 year old parents babysit) was all A+. All my other streaming devices have been Rokus and while I have never had a complaint the Apple TV interface and remote just felt better.

A few weeks ago we updated my TV with firmware. After we did, the Apple TV had trouble displaying. Not sure what happened. I reset everything several times and it came back eventually but right away I realized the picture quality wasn’t what it was. 4K videos looked just ok. HD videos were pixilated. It was weird.

I figured the update messed with some of the tv settings but after going through everything I decided it was either the hdmi wire or the Apple TV because when I used the TV’s native YouTube app the picture immediately improved.

I brought my roku ultra from downstairs to the family room and the beautiful picture returned. Not sure why or how. I went to Best Buy, bought another roku ultra for my family room and the tv looks incredible again.

Something happened with the Apple TV. Just not sure what.
This is something I have noticed while dealing with my mother's TV's. Whatever software is pre-installed on TV's generally sucks and doesn't get updated/debugged. So eventually you get frustrated and stop using it. With my mother's TVs, I finally convinced her to just use Roku's instead as they do a pretty darn good job of continually updating their software (despite their occasional feuds with apple/youtubetv).

I have two Roku's that are still chugging along after 5 years or so. Because of this, I actively tried to buy a non-smart TV when my last TV died a year ago. I couldn't, but I have not used the "smart" software installed in the TV and instead just use my old Roku.
 

Eagle3

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Has anything changed this season in terms of non-cable options for watching the Red Sox if you want to see every game? Is NESN on FUBO the only option?
 

StuckOnYouk

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I've got DirecTv Stream, and its' got NESN (here in CT it has NESN and YES). if you just get the basic package it will cost you about 70-80 I think. I get some kind of HBO/Cinemax package added for the wife and its about 100.
 

BigJimEd

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I've got DirecTv Stream, and its' got NESN (here in CT it has NESN and YES). if you just get the basic package it will cost you about 70-80 I think. I get some kind of HBO/Cinemax package added for the wife and its about 100.
I believe for NESN you need the Choice package from DirecTV stream.
 

Madmartigan

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I know that Fubo doesn’t allow simultaneous TV streams from different locations (they DO allow multiple locations if one is a TV and the other is a mobile device or browser). However, does anyone know if using FuboTV credentials to log into the Roku NESN app counts as a Fubo stream? Basically I’m wondering if my brother could be watching the Sox on Fubo in one state, while I’m watching with the same Fubo login on the Roku NESN app in another state.
 

ArttyG12

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I know that Fubo doesn’t allow simultaneous TV streams from different locations (they DO allow multiple locations if one is a TV and the other is a mobile device or browser). However, does anyone know if using FuboTV credentials to log into the Roku NESN app counts as a Fubo stream? Basically I’m wondering if my brother could be watching the Sox on Fubo in one state, while I’m watching with the same Fubo login on the Roku NESN app in another state.
I was able to do this last year, although all in MA. Haven’t tried this year yet. Also you can airplay to the roku if you have an iPhone/iPad.
 

88 MVP

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I’m having a technical issue and I’m stumped. I switched to YouTubeTV a few years ago, and lately the streaming quality has been awful, but I can’t figure out the cause.

I’m using the built-in YTTV app on my Sony TV, which runs an android OS. More often than not, the video stream defaults to an SD resolution and gets pixelated/grainy.

I don’t think it’s the TV hardware/software, because all of the other streaming apps (Netflix, Disney+, HBO, etc.) are working without issue. Ditto my internet connection - the TV is hooked directly to the router with an ethernet cable, and other apps seem to stream in HD or 4K to this device without issue. Speed tests don’t live up to Spectrum’s advertised speeds (getting 30-40mbps on tests), but should still be sufficient.

But YTTV seems to stream in full HD on my laptop… so maybe it is just an issue with the TV? I guess I can buy a separate streaming device for the TV, but figured I’d check here for any troubleshooting ideas first.
 

gtmtnbiker

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I guess I can buy a separate streaming device for the TV, but figured I’d check here for any troubleshooting ideas first.
buying a fire stick or Roku is the way to go. I had an issue with my smart TV with some apps hanging and just gave up. They’re not as well tested as the mainstream devices.
 

88 MVP

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I guess I have my answer, then, thanks. It’s annoying, because the rest of the native apps and the TV interface have been fine for a few years.
 

CR67dream

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I know that Fubo doesn’t allow simultaneous TV streams from different locations (they DO allow multiple locations if one is a TV and the other is a mobile device or browser). However, does anyone know if using FuboTV credentials to log into the Roku NESN app counts as a Fubo stream? Basically I’m wondering if my brother could be watching the Sox on Fubo in one state, while I’m watching with the same Fubo login on the Roku NESN app in another state.
I know that my son is able to log on to NBCSportsBoston for Celts games that way on Roku while away at college, but another thing he's also done is use an HDMI cable from a chromebook/laptop to his tv and use a wireless mouse to control the screen. I also do this when staying in hotels, and it's been great to take my whole lineup, especially the sports stuff, on the road and not worry about what the hotel offers. I should add that I'm talking about Maine and Mass here, so I'm not sure if access to a regional network like NESN would be blocked in States not in the regular viewing area on devices that are onto that stuff.
 
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Madmartigan

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I was able to do this last year, although all in MA. Haven’t tried this year yet. Also you can airplay to the roku if you have an iPhone/iPad.
I know that my son is able to log on to NBCSportsBoston for Celts games that way on Roku while away at college, but another thing he's also done is use an HDMI cable from a chromebook/laptop to his tv and use a wireless mouse to control the screen. I also do this when staying in hotels, and it's been great to take my whole lineup, especially the sports stuff, on the road and not worry about what the hotel offers. I should add that I'm talking about Maine and Mass here, so I'm not sure if access to a regional network like NESN would be blocked in States not in the regular viewing area on devices that are onto that stuff.
Thanks, I’ve been able to log into the NESN app on Roku without kicking my brother off Fubo, so this is a pretty nice workaround for Fubo’s restriction on streaming from TVs in multiple locations.
 

Humphrey

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On Cape Cod (Dennis), is internet service pretty much limited to Xfinity? The one 5g internet I've seen listed as an option (T mobile) isn't offered. Anything else that doesn't require a dish or the like?
 

Scott Cooper's Grand Slam

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I am so frustrated with Fubo. The UI and performance are hot garbage. I canceled my free trial after Tatum’s layup. It looks like DirecTV Stream (formerly AT&T Now) has NESN and my local channels. Their new cus sign up deal is enticing: $30 off your first 3 months and 3 months of HBO Max free. Does anyone use the service?

Edited to add: Took the plunge. I have it for the next 5 days at least. I hope I’ve found my year-round replacement for YouTubeTV

Second edit: The UI isn’t bad. The picture quality is better than Fubo ever was. I’m looking forward to the Sox tonight.
 
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LastTripleCrown

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Aug 22, 2006
277
I am so frustrated with Fubo. The UI and performance are hot garbage. I canceled my free trial after Tatum’s layup. It looks like DirecTV Stream (formerly AT&T Now) has NESN and my local channels. Their new cus sign up deal is enticing: $30 off your first 3 months and 3 months of HBO Max free. Does anyone use the service?

Edited to add: Took the plunge. I have it for the next 5 days at least. I hope I’ve found my year-round replacement for YouTubeTV

Second edit: The UI isn’t bad. The picture quality is better than Fubo ever was. I’m looking forward to the Sox tonight.
How do you like DirecTV Stream after a few weeks? After not being able to watch the Celtics last night on Fubo I am ready to make the switch. The thing that really annoyed me with Fubo is that it is 25 seconds behind other options. My friends would text about a play that has not even occurred yet so I had to train myself to ignore any text during games.
 

Scott Cooper's Grand Slam

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 12, 2008
4,231
New England
Stream >>>> Fubo. It might be the service to beat. The interface is slightly annoying, but the picture quality is great. It matches or surpasses YouTube.TV. The DVR is also on par with YouTube.TV: unlimited recordings for 90 days, record by team, and recordings automatically extend to catch the entirety of shows/games.

Stream is behind cable TV. I noticed it during the Sox game in Tampa where the Sox were no hit through 9, took the lead in the 10th, and ultimately lost. That's annoying, but I think it's the nature of the beast. I like Stream so much that I probably won't switch back once baseball season ends. It's improved big time since DirecTV Now.

Stream also makes it possible to channel surf -- i.e., channel up and down. That's not something I've seen a lot of from these over the top services. It's not something I use a lot, but it's nice for those who are craving a cable-like experience. Stream does make it easy to switch between recent channels/games. Switching between the Sox and Celtics last night was pretty easy.
 

edoug

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 15, 2005
6,007
Stream >>>> Fubo. It might be the service to beat. The interface is slightly annoying, but the picture quality is great. It matches or surpasses YouTube.TV. The DVR is also on par with YouTube.TV: unlimited recordings for 90 days, record by team, and recordings automatically extend to catch the entirety of shows/games.

Stream is behind cable TV. I noticed it during the Sox game in Tampa where the Sox were no hit through 9, took the lead in the 10th, and ultimately lost. That's annoying, but I think it's the nature of the beast. I like Stream so much that I probably won't switch back once baseball season ends. It's improved big time since DirecTV Now.

Stream also makes it possible to channel surf -- i.e., channel up and down. That's not something I've seen a lot of from these over the top services. It's not something I use a lot, but it's nice for those who are craving a cable-like experience. Stream does make it easy to switch between recent channels/games. Switching between the Sox and Celtics last night was pretty easy.
Glad to read this because I hated Direct TV Now. I'm glad it's better. I wish it wasn't owned by AT&T though. They seemed to go out of their way just to make their customers miserable.