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Apps How to watch live TV on the Apple TV
- Thread starter Che Castro
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I think it is called Insta Pro but I don't use it anymore. I am on FIOS and use the FIOS Mobile App. If I were on TWC I would use that. On others there is usually an App. Right after retuning my FIOS DVR's they added Recordings playback in the App.
If Channels decides to create an iOS version then I would use that since they plan to support my DVR.
If Channels decides to create an iOS version then I would use that since they plan to support my DVR.
Maybe it by area but I get all that I subscribe too. But most are only inside the home which is the same if using a HDHomeRun App.
I've used nPlayer for the last three years (on WiFi). I don't know if they support cellular, also the price has increased to USD 8.99. Best to have a fairly powerful iOS (ipad 4+) device or you will have to watch in SD.
If you have EyeTV software on a MAC, the EyeTV iOS app will play HD streams, both WiFi and cellular.
Some of the ios DLNA clients have support for the channel streams, so you might check those out. Since audio is AC3, the ios player has to include support for AC3 (Dolby license), the cost is passed to you from the developer, in the app price.
None are as elegant as Channels. Just a straight stream from one channel, exit to switch channels. No pause rew/ff.
NPlayer auto discovers servers and plays most file types. I can watch HD DVR recordings (wtv or mpg) from WDMyCloud, or any networked server.
Quote
Hey everyone, 1.4.1 just got released to the App Store.
Here's some notes on what's new:
New - Shake your Siri Remote to mute and unmute.
Improved - Smoother and more traditional rewind and fast forward.
Fixed - Timeline could show up repeatedly when auto-resuming after buffer fills up.
Fixed - Guide images would sometimes fail to appear.
Fixed - Adding and removing Favorites would sometimes not work correctly.
Hey everyone, 1.4.1 just got released to the App Store.
Here's some notes on what's new:
New - Shake your Siri Remote to mute and unmute.
Improved - Smoother and more traditional rewind and fast forward.
Fixed - Timeline could show up repeatedly when auto-resuming after buffer fills up.
Fixed - Guide images would sometimes fail to appear.
Fixed - Adding and removing Favorites would sometimes not work correctly.
I have both the EyeTV app (if running EyeTV on a Mac) and the InstaTV app. We also just got the Channels app for the new Apple TV (have not tried it yet, but price going up from $14.99 to $25 any day now so wanted to get it).
I mainly use the InstaTV Pro app on my iPhones / iPads and it works great. I can watch live OTA TV on over 30 channels in my area (Nashville). I have not been able to get the Guide feature to work on it though. I am using it with 2 of the older HDHomeRun units (HDHR3-US) picked up on eBay for about $35 each.
I use a MythTV back-end and MrMC with the MythTV PVR add-on as the front-end. If you've got the time and inclination (plus hardware) to set things up, I think this is the way to go.
It is no longer 14.00. Now it's a whopping 25.00! What a joke
Correct, but you do NOT need a
TV to make it work. All you need is a HDHomerun and a antenna to get local channels.For example, I have my Mac mini set up on my TV through HDMI. I click on the EyeTV app and HDHomerun automatically turns on and boom, local channels are displayed. All the apps you need are free. The channels app is a nice idea but it is a total rip off at what they charge for it.
HDHomerun does not need
TV to run.The two tuners are so that you can record one show while you watch another. You'll need a splitter/amp to connect more than one TV to HDHomerun. Amazon carries them.
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The OP asked How to watch live TV on the Apple TV. Not how to watch live tv on a Mac Mini. You also say the HDHomeRun does not need ATV to run but that was not the OP Question. Of course you are right there are many options for the HDHomeRun but those options are not on the Apple TV. This is not A post about all the options for the HDHomeRun, it is about the Apple TV Options. And regarding the cost. All I have to say is you get what you pay for. If you want the very best experience you may want to spend a little money. I understand the $25 may seem high for someone that is not at all familiar with the experience or the future of the Channels App (FULL DVR Integration) but it is well worth it. I would have preferred they waited for the price increase until after the DVR integration. But to be clear I would buy it at $25 even without the DVR.It is no longer 14.00. Now it's a whopping 25.00! What a joke
Correct, but you do NOT need a
For example, I have my Mac mini set up on my TV through HDMI. I click on the EyeTV app and HDHomerun automatically turns on and boom, local channels are displayed. All the apps you need are free. The channels app is a nice idea but it is a total rip off at what they charge for it.
HDHomerun does not need
The two tuners are so that you can record one show while you watch another. You'll need a splitter/amp to connect more than one TV to HDHomerun. Amazon carries them.
How to watch live TV on the Apple TV
I understand, but to fully help people you need to be completely upfront and honest with them. If someone is going to spend additional money for a HDHomerun, then they should be given the option, because if all they care about is "getting live TV" then the channels app is simply NOT needed.
Not in this instance. Having the channels app does not give me any additional features, and since EyeTV already comes with a built in DVR, I can record programs tonight and not have to wait for anyone to integrate anything into an app. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad you're happy with your app, but for those just looking for a live TV solution (while they own a Apple TV) my post gives them both and saves them 25.00. In any event they can always try the free option, and if they so choose they can always add the 25.00 option at a later time, but I doubt they will.
In your example you are using the EyeTV app on your Mac Mini. Where are you getting that for free? I see it listed for about $80.
I bought the Channels app for $14 and it is very worth it. I'd say it is worth it for $25 also. It integrates very well with those who have a new Apple TV.
I also have the InstaTV Pro app for my iPhones / iPads. It is great for live streams directly from my HDHomeRun and I prefer it over the EyeTV software (which I also have) on the Mac / iOS as I don't need to have the Mac turned on & running EyeTV to stream it to the EyeTV iOS app.
I do like the EyeTV software for its recording features.
EyeTV (Mac only) software costs $80. After the first year it costs $20/year for guide data. IOS app is $5.
SiliconDust has a FREE View app for Mac, Windows, and low cost for Android $1-$2.
There are also various apps for APPLE ATV 4 which can utilize the HDHR hardware at $0, $2, to $12. Lower cost apps do not support TV Guide.
Channels, at a one time cost of $25, is the only app which supports pause, rewind/ff of Live TV. Also, it is the only app that allows channel surfing, change channels without exiting tuner, etc. The developers are actively supporting and adding to functionality of this app.
So yes, you do get what you pay for.
SiliconDust has a FREE View app for Mac, Windows, and low cost for Android $1-$2.
There are also various apps for APPLE ATV 4 which can utilize the HDHR hardware at $0, $2, to $12. Lower cost apps do not support TV Guide.
Channels, at a one time cost of $25, is the only app which supports pause, rewind/ff of Live TV. Also, it is the only app that allows channel surfing, change channels without exiting tuner, etc. The developers are actively supporting and adding to functionality of this app.
So yes, you do get what you pay for.
Elgato included it as a bundle.
Thank you for the tip. I'll look into that app.
Yes, it works very well.
Yes, at times you could get a HDHomeRun unit with the EyeTV software bundled with it. I don't know how much extra they charged to bundle it.
If you keep an eye on eBay you can find one of these units for sale that includes the EyeTV software. I picked one up last month (older HDHomeRun HDHR3-US model) for $50 but it included the EyeTV3 software / activation codes so it was worth it. I will have to upgrade to a newer HDHomeRun unit if I want to use the soon to be released DVR features on the Channels app for the Apple TV as mine does not have the hardware to support it.
I also have the EyeTV Software and it is a full featured DVR for the Mac. My problem was that it did not support the HDHomeRun Prime with CableCard (at least fully - I used the Dual with it over ClearQAM). It could be because they did not want to support DRM which with some providers like TWC you have more channels with DRM. For those using OTA then you are fine since you do not have that problem. Using the Mac as the DVR is not a bad choice but you are limited to that choice. I decided to use the HDHomeRun DVR because I can run it on a NAS Device. Even though it works it is certainly still in a "pre-Beta" as far as I am concerned. I think we may be another 90+ days for this to get much better. But I am limping a long with it for now. Again, in the long run I feel the Apple TV Channels App with a NAS DVR will be an extremely solid and polished solution.
Regarding cost. I was renting 2 DVR's and 2 STB Clients from FIOS for $67 +tax/month. And that only covered 4 or my 8 TV's. The other 4 did not get Live TV. It was extremely important to my wife to have a Live TV that worked at least as good as our STB's (DVR was a secondary issue for her). Anyway, for the $14.99 I paid for Channels App (at the time) I now only have Apple TV's (1 UI and 1 Remote) and the ROI is pretty easy to calculate. I did add an additional HDHomeRun Prime and second CableCard for a total of 6 Turners. And I bought a 4TB NAS (DVR) for about $160. But we are very please with our current setup.
It is no longer 14.00. Now it's a whopping 25.00! What a joke
Correct, but you do NOT need a
For example, I have my Mac mini set up on my TV through HDMI. I click on the EyeTV app and HDHomerun automatically turns on and boom, local channels are displayed. All the apps you need are free. The channels app is a nice idea but it is a total rip off at what they charge for it.
HDHomerun does not need
The two tuners are so that you can record one show while you watch another. You'll need a splitter/amp to connect more than one TV to HDHomerun. Amazon carries them.
Are you a developer? You know how much work they put into this product that you should dictate what they should charge?
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I'm a big fan of Channels as is meets my needs and I think it is well worth $25 (although I paid $15).
I tried InstaTV Pro, but it doesn't include a channel guide and has not been updated since 2014. I am not a fan.
Even if I did have the EyeTV software, which is also not free, I would have to hook up my Mac to my TV. and that's pointless IMO. Apple TV + Channels is the smoothest, simplest, most full featured setup and will include DVR functionality shortly. That being said, as others have posted, DVR functionality is not as crucial with OTA. Chances are you will be watching live and, if not, I can catch the episode later in the week on the NBC/ABC/Fox app.
I tried InstaTV Pro, but it doesn't include a channel guide and has not been updated since 2014. I am not a fan.
Even if I did have the EyeTV software, which is also not free, I would have to hook up my Mac to my TV. and that's pointless IMO. Apple TV + Channels is the smoothest, simplest, most full featured setup and will include DVR functionality shortly. That being said, as others have posted, DVR functionality is not as crucial with OTA. Chances are you will be watching live and, if not, I can catch the episode later in the week on the NBC/ABC/Fox app.
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Channels (Beta) has added more features; the most notable, doubled the buffer size to 4GB (for pausing, then rew/ff), timeline improvements, mute. Just keeps getting better.
Watch for update to production version. (Note: dev's haven't submitted yet).
Watch for update to production version. (Note: dev's haven't submitted yet).
And now 8gb (still in beta). That is about 90 minutes of HD Video. I was only getting about 45 minutes with the 4gb Buffer. Really happy with this App.
Dang, may think about channels/HDHomerun again. I'm guessing you can't leave the app with the video paused or it drops the cache?
Right. You have to keep it active in the foreground. As soon as you leave or switch channels it is gone. Would be nice if it run in the background.