I used a Fire Stick as my main device for almost a year. It's a tad slow to boot up everything but once it does, it's fine. I'd recommend one to anyone to start with (of course it's a lot more useful if you are into the Prime thing). Once you've used a Fire Box you can't really go back, but otherwise, it's more than serviceable And that was before they updated it with the quad core processor (haven't used the latest version).
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AT&T Unveils 'DirecTV Now' Streaming Television Service
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I used a Fire Stick as my main device for almost a year. It's a tad slow to boot up everything but once it does, it's fine. I'd recommend one to anyone to start with (of course it's a lot more useful if you are into the Prime thing). Once you've used a Fire Box you can't really go back, but otherwise, it's more than serviceable And that was before they updated it with the quad core processor (haven't used the latest version).
Is this website not working for anyone else? It's just a sign up page. When I enter my information, I receive no visual confirmation that anything was sent. It looks like a broken form with marketing speak that might appeal to teens in the year 2000. I've been really looking forward to this service and want to know whether or not it will include CBS. I just looked it up earlier today and saw a story from a week or so ago about how they were having trouble securing the rights to CBS content. I just want to be able to watch football without getting blacked out!
Just want to re-iterate that if they are offering the "New" FireTV Stick it is extremely faster than the previous gen.
Amazon did good on its most recent update to the FireTV Stick a lot of people are quick to knock it and don't even know a new version is out, but it is a good device.
It's just like AT&T to mess up something so simple like having their website live after their press release goes out. I mean honestly, I work on a much smaller marketing team and we've got our crap together better than these multi-billion dollar companies! It's ridiculous.
When thousands of people are flooding your site **** happens, however, this may not be something you experience since you do indeed work for "a much smaller marketing team".
Give it time...
Last I read on USA Today a few minutes ago there's still no CBS or Showtime. Still in talks I guess.
NFL is kinda why this has peaked my interest a little as well.
So... you can sign up for AT&T and add this package and stream all your content on your Apple TV via your iPhone hotspot? And cancel home Internet service, then? Is that the idea? If so, this is potentially very cool.
- Also streamable on iOS, Android and your laptop.
- DVR's are dead, archaic, insecure (recent DDOS attacks.)
- No more renting a DVR from your cable/satellite provider.
- AppleTV, Roku, etc. are immensely more useful than just streaming TV. Most of us will use a device we already have and use every day.
- Yes, we already have a 'cord' for the Internet, so cable/satellite adds another 'cord'. This halves the number of cords needed to watch TV.
- I haven't read the fine print, but Playstation VUE allows multiple streams from the same account, meaning your kids watch Sesame Street on their iPads in one room while you watch Deadpool in the livingroom. No need for a DVR/device in every room, hooked up to an actual TV.
- The list goes on ...
Based on what you said, it sounds like you may have misread something. First, the set top box is completely optional and is not provided by AT&T, so I am not sure about your concerns there. If you own an Apple TV, then it is an app just like Netflix. Also, if you prepay for 3 months up front, they will give you an Apple TV, which is arguably not the same as getting a set top box (considering everything it can do). Second, it gives you instant access on the go with ease, again, like Netflix. These services are available already but they require having a costly subscription, and often a contract. This leads to the final point, this is a month by month fee, no installation costs, no deposits or credit checks, just a simple pay monthly and you have access, or kill the service and you don't. This is overwhelmingly different than a standard cable subscription and a big shift that hopefully the rest of the industry will start to compete in to lower costs even more. Based on your initial statement on cord cutters, there is no such thing as cord cutting. Netflix, Hulu, HBO Now, etc are all products that need internet and are a subscription to a content provider. Whats the difference here?
Except if there are hills between you and the broadcast antennas that are 50+ miles away....OTA is not an option without a bigass mast mounted antenna.
I found this screenshot online for wherever it is that the website is actually working. Not a full list, but gives you an idea. Noticed the fine print at the top says "Local broadcasts included in select markets" so that sounds interesting. Not sure if the $35/mo is locked in forever.
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Except that everybody already has an Internet connection, with or without TV. Maybe you cheapos will have to upgrade to 20 megabit for five extra dollars a month, but nobody is suggesting that someone that doesn't already have the Internet is going to save any money by cutting the cord. We're just using what amounts to a utility that we already pay for.
So yeah, if I'm a person that has a decent Internet connection already and I'm a cable/satellite customer, $50 less a month for TV seems like a pretty good idea.
Some questions remaining, but first this is a no brainer to try for 3 months for the free Apple TV alone. Questions:
- Will this allow access to network apps on Apple TV
- What if a second family member signs up? Will this allow 4 streams?
- What areas get local channels?
- How is the video quality?
Hah, found the AT&T employee? If so, you have my condolences.
Well—it's not that the website isn't working. It's that they didn't switch out the placeholder "sign up" page for the new site, lol. Maybe they did in some areas, but the CDN or something isn't propagating to all regions. I'm midwest.
Disagree, really depends on what channels you watch and how the market (competing channels) react. If ESPN loses half its subscribers, its price could double or ESPN may cutback on some programming. For me that is still cheaper than paying for all off the channels out there. Some channels would die, since they wouldnt have the subscriber base.
Sports rights fees are crazy, competition would cause them to drop since their would be less subscribers paying ala cart. There is a ton of content produced now that isn't needed. There is a reason that cable and satellite packages have become so expensive.
I'm tired of prices continuing to increase while I watch around 10 channels of the zillion I get and I still pay extra for HBO and Showtime. Those two are ala cart and it has worked for them. I'd be happy to live ala cart and see real competition for my TV dollars
Very interested in this for my mother-in-law, who stays with us a few months a year and has vision problems. Last time we set up an apple TV 4 with a small TV in her room, and set it up for Sling TV for her. Sling TV provided some basic voice over support, and she was generally able to find stuff to watch by herself. But it was still kludgey because of the way it read certain things and had a strangely modal interface that sometimes got her confused, and a couple of times she left it streaming when she left the room for a long time, and nothing in the app does a "hey, you still there? gonna stop streaming now since it's been a few hours without feedback" sort of thing. If this provides a cleaner interface (with voiceover) would certainly use it instead of Sling TV.
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Local broadcasts are in markets where the network owns the channels (e.g. NY, LA, SF, etc.) Same as many other services.
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Local broadcasts are in markets where the network owns the channels (e.g. NY, LA, SF, etc.) Same as many other services.
We have a couple of the latest integration for secondary TVs (have the full FireTV on our 4K TV in family room) and while the original models are pretty slow, the new ones are quite snappy. Alexa voice control works quite well too. And they offer the added benefit of something you can't get on Apple TVs (have those as well)---Amazon Prime streaming.
I used to think I wanted A la Carte channels, but even that is "backward" thinking. What I really want to watch are specific shows, not specific channels.
- I want to watch Star Trek, not CBS.
- I want to watch Walking Dead, not AMC.
- I want to watch Westworld and Game of Thrones, not HBO.
The ultimate TV interface just displays all movies and shows from all providers, makes them available on day 1 same as anywhere else, doesn't have commercials, has a single login/account, charges a fair price for what I watch, and has great UI for search, organization, reviews, etc.
I think that is what Steve Jobs hinted at what he was working on, and where Apple is still trying to get to. He was absolutely right--the current interfaces we use are absolute garbage.
With things like universal search, we are taking steps to get there--but they are baby steps.