So Long Dish...We Had A Good Run

[Batman]

Finally after months of deliberation, procrastination and a bunch of hemming and hawing....I finally dumped Dish network. I just couldn't take one more month of $175+ subscription TV given what Joanna and I truly enjoy watching on a regular basis. While I will miss the whole-home and HD features of the Hopper and Joey combination those conveniences couldn't entice me to keep paying that kind of dough. What really pushed me over the edge, was an email containing an Amazon Deal of the Day with RF and IR refurbished TiVo Minis for nearly 1/2 off.....so I purchased 2 IR models and one RF model giving me, in total, one OTA TiVo Roamio DVR and 4 TiVo minis, accessing the Roamio DVR, at other remote locations throughout the house. I will pull in OTA signals for ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, WPHL, and The CW....the Roamio supplements these channels with built in apps for Netflix, Hulu +, Amazon Prime and YouTube.....I also serve the home with all my personal media with AppleTVs in many of the same locations as the TiVo minis. There are some redundant features on the Appletv and I subscribe to Netflix, Hulu+, HBO and Showtime thru iTunes and will get billed for all 4 services on the same day of the month on one charge. Aside from missing ESPN, there is one show that I can't find on this combo of services that Joanna watches. I'm sure at times there will be some additional channels I'll miss....NFL Network immediately comes to mind...but the monthly savings will be worth it. After a couple of months I will decide if I want to add or subtract to my subscriptions. After nearly 15 years of Dish and REALLY loving the Hopper setup it was a hard call to make but it had to be done. They didn't go down without a fight either, offering me the option of either $40/mo off for 15 months or $25/mo off for 24 months with no commitment. But even those short-term savings couldn't offset the long term gains.....I'm still getting almost 100% of what we actually watch anyway. Using this new setup which pretty closely emulates the outgoing one, I've whittled down my TV viewing cost to exactly $65/mo. I'm stoked about that!!

 

[jomari]

can the roamio mini work independently?

I have to start learning more about OTA again... man cable is expensive after reading your post bats.

 

[Botch]

Congrats Chris!
Do you track your monthly power bill? I've read the TiVo units really consume the electricity, but maybe the Hopper is no better (which I have). I've tried to go OTA but no longer get decent reception here (I've posted about that earlier). My "TV only" Dish bill was $50 the first year, then jumped to $76, then $86 a couple months later, where it is now. I've read that DirecTV may go under this year, and more and more content is available over the 'net; it's going to be a different landscape a couple years from now.
Anxious to hear how it goes for you.

 

[Batman]

can the roamio mini work independently?

I have to start learning more about OTA again... man cable is expensive after reading your post bats.

The Roamio has 4 tuners so the Mini(s) and Roamio combined allow viewers to watch 4 different things, I assume they can independently access streaming apps as well....I haven't hooked up a Mini yet.

 

[Haywood]

Those are very, very nice. The interface is great and they have a lot of the streaming services not only baked in, but integrated deeply with the program guide.

 

[Batman]

Also to clarify the makeup of my monthly Dish bill.....I had 2 Hoppers and 4 Joeys (2 running to and accessing DVR content on each Hopper), Dish Platinum programming with Philly locals, HBO, and Showtime, and insurance which has come in handy 3-4 times over the 14+ years I was with Dish....I loved the equipment. I just don't want to turn someone off to looking at Dish. I think their receivers are the best in the business and tech support and customer service was always excellent. This was a decision based on $. If I were to go back to a TV content provider Dish would be the first provider I'd look at.

 

[Barney]

I remember years ago it seemed I was the only one with OTA. Alot of snid remarks about me & not having ESPN (which I now have with SlingTV & use my Sling credentials to get WatchESPN).
Batman, it takes a while to get use to the OTA. You might get surprised with all the sub channels of all your networks, my CW has two neat sub channels that just started broadcasting, Fox has two, PBS has 4.

 

[Batman]

If a better solution doesn't come along, I'm thinking I may pick up Sling TV during the NFL season to get ESPN credentials and be able to watch MNF and other programming. There's also talk of Sling TV adding an app to Appletv. I'm still not sure that'll make me pick it up permanently as I really want to be disciplined about not allowing the monthly cost to creep back up.

 

[Barney]

I hear you. I only have Netflix ( haven't upgraded to their 4k plan yet even though I have a SUHD & Roku 4), Amazon Prime, and SlingTV. Use Vudu.

 

[Yesfan70]

I remember years ago it seemed I was the only one with OTA. A lot of snide remarks about me & not having ESPN (which I now have with SlingTV & use my Sling credentials to get WatchESPN).........

Yep, I was probably one of those guys that made a remark or two. My apologizes for my stupidity.



My wife and me have been talking back and forth on whether to keep or ditch Dish. My health insurance has changed for the (much) worse, so I'm going to have to make some forced changes. If there is a way I can watch NCAAF and NFL games and watch shows on AMC, then that's all I really need to let Dish go. The wife doesn't care and the kids watch Netflix more than anything. Does SlingTV have AMC? If not, what are my options?

 

[Yesfan70]

Amazon has TV passes for Better Call Saul, Moonshiners, Walking Dead, etc. How does the TV passes work? Is it a one time purchase for that season? Can you streams at once (like DD on Netflix) or are you only able to watch one episode per week as it debuts?


How does the Roku 4 compare to the Roku 3? I think the thing I worry about if I make the switch is I'm not saving any more money if I add on Amazon TV passes, Hulu+ while bumping up my internet speeds. I'm paying $100/mo for a Hopper and two Joeys and AT200.

 

[Batman]

^ SlingTV does have AMC, I personally am unfamiliar with any generation Roku...

 

[heeman]

Nice move Chris!

Keep us updated on the Pro's and Con's over the next few months!

 

[Barney]

I have a Roku 4. But Sling has big time issues on the Roku 4. No matter what channel ( ESPN, History, etc) every 15 -20 minutes the video starts to degrade, freeze or go blank with a bar graph and a buffer "circle". I have to press the OK button on the remote 4 times to return to the program. I keep Sling because you can use its credentials to get WatchESPN app, which has no issues, and I love the History channel. Roku is working on firmware (just got one, which addressed other issues).
Some folks don't have much issues on other Roku's. If you have a Roku 1, 2, or 3 or Roku stick, Sling has a free 7 day trial. If it works fine then Yesfan you should add the SEC sports channel next football season ($5 a month extra).
I don't rent movies/tv shows because that adds up fast. Netflix & Amazon Prime keep me very happy.....right now I'm binging on Vikings on Amazon Prime, has two seasons right now.

 

[Towen7]

I think the thing I worry about if I make the switch is I'm not saving any more money if I add on Amazon TV passes, Hulu+ while bumping up my internet speeds.

I was going to say that we are on the verge of a major shift but I think that shift is already well underway. A LOT of people in our demographic have already made the change and most of us hold-outs are seriously considering options. So the existing subscriber base is shrinking. The younger generation have not and will not pay into the old model. So the base of new subscribers is also shrinking.

The only thing that is keeping the old TV model alive is what Yesfan mentions; delivery and content. the cost/complication of subscribing to a bunch of individual channels and the need/cost for increased bandwidth. On the delivery front... I work for an ISP so I can say with absolute certainty that they are all working feverishly to get fast speeds deployed. There are pockets of the population that are harder and less profitable to serve but there are efforts there too. Regarding content... I'm hopeful that ISPs can strike deals with the content companies for OTT (over the top) streaming packages that allow subscribers to choose streaming "channels" ala carte. Call me old fashioned but I don't like paying Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, HBO, Sling, MLB, and everone else separately.

 

[Batman]

Call me old fashioned but I don't like paying Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, HBO, Sling, MLB, and everone else separately.

With exception of Prime (which I was paying for regardless) this is why I subscribed to 4 services through iTunes, it gives me the benefit of syncing the charges to a once-a-month occurrence. But up to this point, several monthly charges, was a reason I was dragging my feet.

 

[Towen7]

Keep me honest... You can't access Prime through the ATV, right?

Is your plan to use the TiVos as the primary interface and only switch to ATV for iTunes and or Stream2Me?

 

[Batman]

Yeah I can only access the Prime content through the TiVos...I see my self using the ATv more often, the interface is more polished. I consider Prime a nice bonus since I'd have had it either way.

 

[Haywood]

We use Netflix, Amazon, Hulu (Ad Free) and OTA (Tablo Quad-Tuner) and it works very, very well. If there is a show we cannot get that way, we can buy a season pass on Amazon or Vudu (I use Vudu). Amazon has a really good deal where you can subscribe to a wide range of other streaming services through them at discounted prices and enjoy an integrated program guide through Amazon Video. I have not bought in yet, but I might at some point. Right now, I can get everything that I want for about $42/mo (includes Drama Fever and Funimation).

I am a huge Roku fan and have three Roku devices in my house. Unfortunately, the Roku 4 is a total train wreck with heat and noise issues, lip sync problems, red push issues and other quirks. That is why I'm using the Android TV client built into my Sony for 4k streaming from Netflix and Amazon. Roku is releasing a new box later this year with an integrated OTA tuner. I am hoping they will resolve all of the problems with the 4 in the upcoming product. I considered going with an NVidia Shield, but there is no Amazon client available and no resolution in sight. It is a shame, because the Shield is the most powerful streamer on the market and can even handle 1:1 Blu-Ray rips with lossless audio. The new Samsung 4k Blu-Ray has a smart TV interface with clients for all of the major services, but I am hearing that it is not their nice new Tizen OS, but the older one from 2014 (which is not great). On the plus side, that Samsung does have an HDMI 1.4 compatible audio-only HDMI output to help out people with older receivers. It is an awkward transitional moment and I am not sure what I'm going to do yet.

 

[Yesfan70]

Bummed about the Roku 4. I was hoping it would much improved over the 3. I've had some hiccup issues with the 3 when using Netflix.

What about the Amazon Firestick? If it has Netflix, YouTube, and SlingTV, I may just go that route. I really don't want to sink $100 on a new device and start having streaming issues after I ditch Dish.