AT&T TV Live Streaming Service Launches Nationwide With Set-Top Box and Two-Year Contract

[choreo]

I am at wits-end with AT&T too. I have had AT&T phone service since 1973 with the same phone number. I have been with DirecTV every month since 1993! All they do is keep jacking up charges and every time I need anything done (even with their maintenance contract), they make me re-sign a contract for another 2 years!!! Almost 30 years with DirecTV and they still are insecure about my loyalty - my service should be "free" at this point! Instead they spend all their time thinking of more ways to add on charges for everything. I have lived alone my entire life and they still charge me $10/mo to have TV's in additional rooms!!! I can only watch one TV at a time - next rate hike, I am gone!

 

[DEXTERITY]

I am at wits-end with AT&T too. I have had AT&T phone service since 1973 with the same phone number. I have been with DirecTV every month since 1993! All they do is keep jacking up charges and every time I need anything done (even with their maintenance contract), they make me re-sign a contract for another 2 years!!! Almost 30 years with DirecTV and they still are insecure about my loyalty - my service should be "free" at this point! Instead they spend all their time thinking of more ways to add on charges for everything. I have lived alone my entire life and they still charge me $10/mo to have TV's in additional rooms!!! I can only watch one TV at a time - next rate hike, I am gone!

Sounds like you should move in with someone

 

[ignatius345]

Consumers: “We want to unbundle channels and tailor our programming as we see fit, taking advantage of our internet connection and cutting the cable cord.”

AT&T: “Great! How about a literal cable box and a contract for a bundle of channels?”

 

[npmacuser5]

So done with Contracts. No interest here.

 

[AFDoc]

ugh - another set top box and remote to deal with

Yeah first world problems and all......

 

[hippie2]

I been testing this box for a while now. I really like it. it is so simple to setup. no more Disc on roof. just connect ethernet cable and a little setup and you are done. It is DirectTv and Android box in one. You can install Kodi and do streaming from your own movies, all in one box. You can play games on it . It is great deal. Just wish it had whole house feature.

 

[jayb3]

"Our customers told us what they want from their TV service and we built AT&T TV around that," said Thaddeus Arroyo, CEO of AT&T Consumer."

Yeah, I'm pretty sure we didn't say we wanted to pay $135 for your crappy box running on the internet service I already pay for.

 

[avanpelt]

One of the things AT&T touted with this new service was how great it was that they didn’t have to roll a tech to your home — yet they still charge a $19.95 “activation” fee. That’s the first of many miscellaneous fees they’ll be adding to the bills of the poor people who sign up for this, I’m sure.

 

[TomaxXamot]

Sounds like a desperate Hooli Box IV. Is Gavin Belson the CEO of AT&T?

 

[cylack]

This will be DOA. Youtube TV doesn't require a device, can be shared with 6 family members, and no contract either. I buy Youtube TV only for college and NFL and cancel right after football season is over every year. I only watch tv shows from Netflix and Amazon prime.

 

[beanbaguk]

Set-top box? So old skool....I guess AT&T are going for the "retro" hipster appeal?

 

[Black Belt]

The price is outrageous. Didn’t they get the memo? People are cutting the cord from crap like this

 

[secryt]

As a current U-Verse customer, I was beta testing this box for the past couple months. I have to say there's nothing unique or magical about it. It works, but I experienced buffering on it and the picture was abnormally dark. If I'm being honest, I felt that my janky 1080i U-Verse box provided a better experience and I mostly used that.

Also: "1Gig" is laughable as the most I can get from AT&T is 75Mbps.

 

[robbietop]

Or you could go with Hulu Live and get all that but cheaper.

 

[Smith288]

Why cant it just be an app for various smart tvs, apple tvs or other HDMI interfaced components? Why a 2010 style set top box?

 

[NachoGrande]

what exactly do I get for signing a 2 year contract.

 

[Beyo]

Don't use term "nationwide". Macrumors is global portal and is read all-around the world.

 

[2010mini]

The remote is OK. We've been beta testing the box off and on over the last year. They sent out this new refreshed remote a couple of months ago. The original had the same shape, but the button layout was horrible.

As far as the service goes, it is the exact same experience as one would get using the app on their AppleTV. Guide is the same. Library feature is the same. Only difference is you do get access to the Play Store so apps like YouTube Kids and such can be downloaded.

thanks for the feedback.


this service is via internet right? How are they planning to price this in markets where they don’t offer Internet service? This would mean a more expensive package to couple with a cable ISP.
[automerge]1583274009[/automerge]

what exactly do I get for signing a 2 year contract.

you get joy of being AT&T’s favorite b****.

 

[Beelzbub]

I cancelled my DirecTV last year and tried the ATT TV Now app, and it sucks so very much. Can't rewind or even pause reliably. Signed up for YouTube TV and holy crap is it so much better. Seamlessly watch from device to device to device. The only advantage I can see with ATT TV is that it has HBO, which YouTube TV does not. But the interface is so awful and the quality is soooo bad that it's not even worth it.

HBO is coming as an ad on to YouTube TV.

YouTube TV getting HBO in spring, HBO Max in May

Game of Thrones fans will be able to watch HBO through the YouTube TV service this spring (not winter, as you might expect).

www.cnet.com

 

[Fiestaman]

The remote is OK. We've been beta testing the box off and on over the last year. They sent out this new refreshed remote a couple of months ago. The original had the same shape, but the button layout was horrible.

As far as the service goes, it is the exact same experience as one would get using the app on their AppleTV. Guide is the same. Library feature is the same. Only difference is you do get access to the Play Store so apps like YouTube Kids and such can be downloaded.

I also have been beta testing this box for about a year or so now and the first remote was absolutely horrendous. The trackpad was easily the worst I’ve used.

You are correct in that the service is the same, but one slight correction on the guide. For some reason, AT&T doesn’t allow you to sort by channel numbers on anything except the set-top box. AppleTV app only allows sorting by name which is annoying. When you can sort by channel number, news channels, sports channels, local channels, etc. are all grouped together. Alphabetically makes the guide an absolute chore to deal with. That alone drives my use of the set-top box far more often than AppleTV or Samsung smart TV app.

I’m still hanging on to my original DirecTV Now subscriptions for the $5 HBO and $5 Showtime even though they keep jacking up the prices of the Big package they used to have.