What about HDR?! Spatial audio, ie Atmos?
Apple should mandate all streams go h.265 on ATV 4K, for bandwidth efficiency!
Apple should mandate all streams go h.265 on ATV 4K, for bandwidth efficiency!
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DirecTV Now Reaches 1M Subscribers While AT&T Continues to Promise DVR, 4K, and More Coming in 2018
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Okay this is really good to hear then
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I haven't had trouble with pausing, but maybe this is similar: this weekend I noticed frequent issues with jumping back to the beginning of a live show. I saw Ant-Man was in the middle of the movie on TNT, so I jumped back to the start to have it on in the background, and at least 3-5 times the picture froze but the audio kept on going uninterrupted. I had to jump back to Apple TV home menu and re-launch DTVNow to fix it. On around the 5th time, it didn't pick up where I had left off, and resumed the live tv air time. Super super annoying.
Yep, that's the issue I have. The screen just sits there, but the audio keeps going.
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I'm currently using a shared account of YouTube TV. It's ok, but I'll probably jump onto the next provider that offers an AppleTV app.
I wonder how much the subscribers would DROP after the 4-month prepaid period for signing up and getting the AppleTV 4K
As long as I can keep the $35 Go Big promo and get free HBO (or $5/mo add on) I’ll keep DTVN.
They have a wide variety of apps to sign in so I don’t feel like I’m really missing anything. And at $35/mo it’s only $20/mo more than I was paying for HBO Now before. Well worth the difference.
They have a wide variety of apps to sign in so I don’t feel like I’m really missing anything. And at $35/mo it’s only $20/mo more than I was paying for HBO Now before. Well worth the difference.
I am going too. I only got DirecTV Now for a cheaper 4K Apple TV. I got it for $130 no tax but from Apple it would have been $175 plus tax. Come April I will drop DirecTV Now as they still did not fix many of the issues. Some channels are like TeenNick, CSPAN, Telemundo are still in horrible 480p SD. Navigating is a pain many times I keep changing channels. The channels are a mess not grouped by category. The worst is the constant HD to SD adaptdumb streaming.
I had direct tv now for 7months. Liked the free hbo, price and got an apple tv. I dropped it due to live events blacked out and lack of local channels. Went back to cable for about 5 bucks more. DTVN has potential. Well see in a year.
I've been a DirecTV Now subscriber since day one. Haven't looked back especially when we're getting 120+ channels for $35/month. While I am waiting for the DVR support, we don't watch enough TV to truly miss it. The addition of local channels has been awesome too; no more switching back and forth between our OTA antenna anymore. ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC are all there here in our market.
I also have buffering issue while watching NBC sports. May be it's NBC issue? I don't see buffering issue on any other channel.
HobeSoundDarryl
macrumors G5
I almost tried PS Vue. Then I realized none of the channels had anything better than stereo sound. So I assumed I could find Dolby Digital television programming on one of the others. Nope. Personally, I don't think saving $10 or $30 or so a month is worth the compromises like surround sound, limited or lack of DVR, etc.
So I thought I would stick with DISH because it seemed to have the best of all of the individual features I covet at a good price. However, since I also had the Comcast option (partially paid for anyway by being forced into the HOA fee), I looked into and discovered the combination of HD HomeRun boxes + the incredible Channels App on
TV. Long story short: Channels App brings the on-screen (unified) guide, a full-featured DVR and the CableCard option with one HDhomerun box getting me a full cable package with HD and surround sound without having to rent even 1 Comcast/Xfinity box.Attach
TVs to however many TVs I want in the house and I can share the Comcast channels (and DVR) with every TV (no lease boxes). Comcast does have a pretty good free app for streaming channels to mobile screens but Channels (app) also has theirs for iOS devices too. DVR is fully functional, whole home and has however much storage I choose to attach rather than being limited to some hard cap decided by DISH or Comcast equipment builders. Add HDHomeRun boxes and I can have however many tuners I want rather than being limited to the decisions of DISH or Comcast box builders. OTA channels merge with Cable channels in a single, unified guide instead of having to hop app-to-app to find programming.Savings appears to be about the same as the usual cord cutter claims without compromising video quality, sound quality, traditional DVR functionality, etc and/or the technical hurdles of hopping app-to-app (though the app options are also generally available with a Comcast subscription).
Lastly, since I'm using a cable subscription for the video instead of broadband, all that video doesn't count 1 byte against the broadband cap... and it's get me "triple play" discounts for the other services (broadband + voice), which makes it overall cheaper than going broadband only and then subscribing to something like this DirecTV NOW or PS Vue for television services and something else for VOIP/Phone... or even Comcast broadband + Now + (free) GoogleVoice option for phone (landline phone is needed for home alarm system connection).
Is this for everyone? No. But those longing for
TV boxes instead of cable or satt-company leased boxes but not wanting to compromise on basic niceties like surround sound might want to look into the same. I consider this option far superior to ANY of the current streaming service choices (because I care about picture & sound quality, full-featured DVR functionality, etc) and yet I don't perceive I'm paying much more than going that way. Yes, it still involves paying the dreaded Comcast (but most of the cord cutters are not actually cutting the cord anyway- still paying for broadband from the same entities).In this setup, I use Comcast video service without Comcast hardware (except a CableCard). Most of the cable fee is already in the HOA fee, though I do pay a little extra to get an additional tier of channels above the HOA choice. A DVR fee goes to the Channels App team. I get all the TV programming I desire (including live sports, all local channels, etc) all inside of a single app that feels like the traditional experience of using a good service like DISH.
It does take jumping through some hoops (getting Comcast to get the CableCard working right is the biggest) but once it is functional, it all works great: HD quality, Dolby Digital surround sound, full-featured DVR, unified guide (all of the locals + cable channels), etc. And this one app and this setup makes the
TVs in the home far more useful (and used).
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I am on at&t unlimited plus, I get HBO for free and also I have that 60 channels plus Comcast sports for 25$ a month. I don't care much about other channels as I have OTA. Only just basketball on CSN. Not a bad deal.
I've been with DirecTV Now for maybe a three weeks now and I received my Apple TV with it. I can't believe how much better the streaming is over my Chromecast. I thought I wouldn't really see the difference but its really refreshing not to depend on my phone for everything.
Anyway, I do enjoy the DirecTV service. My only real complaint is the that with some VOD, the adds skip so bad and stutter that it will sometimes cause the service to become unavailable. I notice that on my Chromecast, it does this more often. On my Apple TV, I've only seen this happen once and it almost seems as if the Apple TV PUSHED the video ahead to the next scene?
All I know is, I'm done with Comcast as far as TV services go. Its just not worth it for to me.
Anyway, I do enjoy the DirecTV service. My only real complaint is the that with some VOD, the adds skip so bad and stutter that it will sometimes cause the service to become unavailable. I notice that on my Chromecast, it does this more often. On my Apple TV, I've only seen this happen once and it almost seems as if the Apple TV PUSHED the video ahead to the next scene?
All I know is, I'm done with Comcast as far as TV services go. Its just not worth it for to me.
How did you manage to snag it for $130!?! Just signed up and waiting shipment of our ATV4K for @$150 but still cheaper than paying at Apple. Plus is that I get to try out DTVNow while we look to cut ties with money-hungry monopolozing Comcast!
At least they added the ability to stream via Safari (without having to use Silverlight) back with the beta platform, which means it should roll out along with their redesign/DVR additions.
Agree they need to fix the channel switcher and make it less sensitive, I change channels just by setting the remote down sometimes.
I'm also on the 35/mo Go Big and while it had a rocky start (first 3 months were full of errors), it has evolved into a pretty stable platform that I use daily on 2 TV's. For $35/mo, and the channel selection of Go Big, you can't really beat it, but it may be hard to recommend to new customers who get the smaller channel package, as PS VUE and Hulu/Sling seem like better options. But I'll be sticking to DTVNOW for the time being.
I took the DTV deal after seeing it posted on Mac Rumors, so here's my experience, for the benefit of other readers:
I got the ATV4k within a few days of subscribing. The timing of this deal was perfect, as I had finally talked the wife into letting me "experiment" with cutting the cable ($220/m.... no thanks Comcast). Reduced my Comcast bill to $80/m for 150Mbps, plus $35/m for DTV Now. Over $100/m savings AND a free Apple TV 4k? Sweet deal.
Until I tried to watch Sunday Night Football. Worst streaming experience I've ever had... and I've watched NFL games from Europe over shady, ad-ridden illegal streams. I had to quit the Direct TV Now app 5+ times to get the stream to resume. It frequently dropped to potato quality or buffered for 5-15 seconds. Now, I had tried streaming other shows at other times and on other networks without much issue (occasional reduced quality), but Sunday Night Football was a failure.
Seeing that others have reported a problem with this program in particular, it makes you wonder... is this a DTV network issue with handling a, presumably, popular stream? Is this Comcast (NBC) throttling the steam to me (or to DirectTV for that matter)? Is the Sunday Night Football feed delivered to DTV or my ATV differently in some way (different codecs, etc)? It's not my internet connection...
The interface on ATV stinks. As others have commented, you change the channel if you look at the Siri remote funny. Then you wait 5-10 second for the unwanted channel to start streaming. Not knowing if you went left or right, you can gamble another 5-10 seconds by swiping in one of those 2 directions, or pull up the menu. The menu is not horrible, though it takes some getting used to. I see the program I want, and it's live, but I cant click on the program to launch it (that just gives More Info), I have to swipe left to click on the network name (but not too far left, which is easy to do on the siri remote, or you'll be toggling the Favorite flag instead). Hopefully some improvements are rolled out soon. The browser interface is better, but still not on par with Comcast's.
So, as they say, you get what you pay for. I'm paying $35 for tv now instead of $140. I'm saving 75% and certainly getting more than 25% of the service I used to get. If it continues to be unreliable during the shows we REALLY want to watch (live NFL for me, other live events for my wife), we'll look elsewhere when the 4-month period is done.
I got the ATV4k within a few days of subscribing. The timing of this deal was perfect, as I had finally talked the wife into letting me "experiment" with cutting the cable ($220/m.... no thanks Comcast). Reduced my Comcast bill to $80/m for 150Mbps, plus $35/m for DTV Now. Over $100/m savings AND a free Apple TV 4k? Sweet deal.
Until I tried to watch Sunday Night Football. Worst streaming experience I've ever had... and I've watched NFL games from Europe over shady, ad-ridden illegal streams. I had to quit the Direct TV Now app 5+ times to get the stream to resume. It frequently dropped to potato quality or buffered for 5-15 seconds. Now, I had tried streaming other shows at other times and on other networks without much issue (occasional reduced quality), but Sunday Night Football was a failure.
Seeing that others have reported a problem with this program in particular, it makes you wonder... is this a DTV network issue with handling a, presumably, popular stream? Is this Comcast (NBC) throttling the steam to me (or to DirectTV for that matter)? Is the Sunday Night Football feed delivered to DTV or my ATV differently in some way (different codecs, etc)? It's not my internet connection...
The interface on ATV stinks. As others have commented, you change the channel if you look at the Siri remote funny. Then you wait 5-10 second for the unwanted channel to start streaming. Not knowing if you went left or right, you can gamble another 5-10 seconds by swiping in one of those 2 directions, or pull up the menu. The menu is not horrible, though it takes some getting used to. I see the program I want, and it's live, but I cant click on the program to launch it (that just gives More Info), I have to swipe left to click on the network name (but not too far left, which is easy to do on the siri remote, or you'll be toggling the Favorite flag instead). Hopefully some improvements are rolled out soon. The browser interface is better, but still not on par with Comcast's.
So, as they say, you get what you pay for. I'm paying $35 for tv now instead of $140. I'm saving 75% and certainly getting more than 25% of the service I used to get. If it continues to be unreliable during the shows we REALLY want to watch (live NFL for me, other live events for my wife), we'll look elsewhere when the 4-month period is done.
I've had 0 issues over the last, say, 6 months. So, the promises they have been putting out with fixes and such have been working. Quite well I might add.
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Also have 0 issues with pausing live shows. I paused the MNF game multiple times last night. Had no issues resuming right where it left off.
I’ve had it since it was released, and I’m grandfathered into the $35 all in package. I’m honestly the happiest customer of it. I get all my channels, live tv, a ton of on demand, all my hockey games are on it via fox sports go and the login. I get HBO, I get it all. This is hands down the way we should come to expect a cable cutters dream.
Atmos? Haha...I would gladly take an upgrade to 5.1 sound over the current 2.0 they stream now!
I'm pleased with service and the price.
Absolutely agree with the remote being too sensitive.
One thing I'd like to see, and I've reached out a few times, is the ability for the guide to show what's playing on sports broadcasts. Currently it shows "NFL" for example or "NBA game." I'd like it to say "Packers vs. 49s" or something to that affect.
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Absolutely agree with the remote being too sensitive.
One thing I'd like to see, and I've reached out a few times, is the ability for the guide to show what's playing on sports broadcasts. Currently it shows "NFL" for example or "NBA game." I'd like it to say "Packers vs. 49s" or something to that affect.
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Not in Memphis either.
I did some investigating into this, one solution is to purchase a previous generation Apple TV remote from Apple for $19; and then pair it to the 4th Gen Apple TV. This means you lose the track pad, and the TV button - but the essentials on the older Apple TV are there, and ALLEGEDLY work just fine with both the 32 and 64 GB 4th Gen Apple TV units. My wife was constantly irritated by accidental bumps to the Apple TV remote, so this is "my solution".
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I got in on the 3 month pre-paid, with the 4th Gen Apple TV free. Initially, DirectTV NOW would frequently freeze on all channels - it was a buggy product that was not ready to be released. But, to AT&T's credit; each update fixed more and more issues. Today, MOST channels seem to stream pretty well; we did notice that on the RARE occasions that we had family visit who wanted to watch football, there were screen freezes; however standard use seems to be pretty trouble free. We do have issues with the CBS App freezing; but I blame CBS for this, as it's a stand-alone app.
I would love to see DirectTV NOW add themselves to the Single Sign-On listing, so we could sign into the individual channel apps (which seem to offer more options for the individual channel than DirectTV NOW provides).
The other big issue for us is the sensitivity of the Apple TV Remote; which we have corrected by purchasing a the Gen 2/3 Apple TV remote from Apple for $19. You will lose the trackpad and the TV button (ie. closing apps); however daily use is now going to be far more trouble free.
Use the iPhone Apple TV remote. Much better and you can see what you are doing in a dark room.
I thought new UI was supposed to be out this year. Bummer, but I’ll wait patiently. That’s my only gripe w/ the service, is UI.
I have DirecTV Now only because I have an unlimited AT&T cell phone plan. Free HBO and I just pay $10 for access to a bunch of channels. I could just do the free HBO, but the discount on the base package seemed worth $10 to me. I definitely would not pay any more than that. I don't care for the user experience at all.