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Leaving Directv? doing research...

Nufan

Nufan

Active Member
Hey All,
We are looking into leaving DirecTv and I have been researching streaming services and devices. I am new to this and looking to you all that have already gone this route.

I am a Amazon Prime member so I was thinking about this set up:
Amazon Fire TV, HBO added - $90 for box, HBO $15/mo
Sling TV - $25/mo - $5/mo 50 hours cloud storage - Sports pack $10/mo for college football season
Netflix (already have) $10/mo

=$65/mo ...less than half we are paying now

If need be later on adding Tablo OTA DVR.

Now, questions:
1. The Fire TV connects via HDMI and Optical; can only the HDMI send the video and audio to my receiver?
2. Will I need a Fire stick for the tv in the bedroom, or will my current chromecast work?
3. How is the sound and video quality? Assuming internet is working correctly
4. How does this set up look? Experiences with these services?
5. Any other thoughts/input?

Thanks!
 
I started a thread of my decision to fire Roku after about three years of working with them as my sole streaming box. I purchased a refurbished Amazon Fire TV box for $49 and work with it now. I like it. My less critical family room TV has a Fire TV Stick on it.

I pay for Hulu+, CBS All Access, and Netflix. I also have my Amazon Prime account and an Amazon Music Unlimited account. Then I recently fired Spectrum (formerly Time Warner) internet and upgraded to AT&T Fiber at 1Gbps speeds.

All in I pay right around $100 for all of my entertainment services (including my internet access, but not Amazon Prime).

I don't feel the need for HBO because all of those shows eventually end up on one of my other services within less than a year, and I don't see to see things as they happen. In fact, I very much prefer watching the very popular shows about a year or two after they have faded from the high attention spot in our culture - I enjoy them more when it is a personal relationship between me and the show without society interfering with how I interpret and enjoy them.
 
1. Yes, the firestick can send video and audio over the HDMI connection
2. Amazon services don't play well with chrom cast.
3. I've never done side-by-side comparisons but I'm sure they're all good
4. Of the ones on your list I only is Netflix on a TV
5. If I could get reliable OTA signal I'd do something similar.
 
You do not need a Fire TV to bundle services through Amazon, with the exception of Amazon Music. Their TV stuff works on Roku and the NVidia Shield Android TV box as well. The FireTV platform is decent, but there are two things I really dislike about it:

1. It is extremely Amazon-centric, which can be annoying when using other services (at least to me)
2. There is no way to watch UltraViolet videos on FireTV, as none of the services that provide them are available.
 
If you decide to go with the Tablo, look into SimpleTV and, if interested, send me a PM.
 
If DirectTV Now is still offering their intro pricing, it's a much better value than SlingTv IMO. Plus if you prepay 3 months in advance you have a choice of a free Steaming Box. I chose an AppleTV since that's my ecosystem of choice right now. I'm getting 70 channels and HBO or $40/mo. And I supplement that with Netflix, Hulu, CBS AA, and TiVo OTA. That all comes out to about ~$70/mo or so.
 
Botch said:
If you decide to go with the Tablo, look into SimpleTV and, if interested, send me a PM.
Click to expand...

Now is the Tablo for OTA only? I don't plan on running an antenna, just using the streaming services I mentioned. With Sling offering 50 hours for $5 a month, I don't even know if Tablo would be needed.
 
Nufan said:
Now is the Tablo for OTA only? I don't plan on running an antenna, just using the streaming services I mentioned. With Sling offering 50 hours for $5 a month, I don't even know if Tablo would be needed.
Click to expand...

Table is an OTA DVR. I almost never use mine, because I have support reception and more reliable method of acquiring content.
 
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