eggzlot Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 Hulu or Youtube using C4 is there a way to create custom buttons or commands or maybe even Alexa commands (least favorable) to select specific channels? i cant think of any because it’s really not supported by the platforms but maybe I am overlooking something? we had been using Hulu for 6 months and minus their glitchy app that was my wife’s biggest complaint. We started a 15 day trial of YouTube tonight which has better channels for us and less money but again that’s the feedback I am getting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eggzlot Posted December 10, 2019 Author Share Posted December 10, 2019 Anyone have experience with ATT TV Now (Former Direct TV) re: integration with C4? I was messing around this morning and stumbled on this article which gives me reservations about ATT TV Now https://www.cordcuttersnews.com/att-tv-now-may-shut-down-according-to-moffettnathanson/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msgreenf Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 Att now is having another price hike in January. That is 3x in one year... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msgreenf Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 I am personally not a fan of cord cutting. Doesn't ever seem to actually give a better experience or save money. You end up buying 2-3 subs to replace cable and then you end up only saving a few dollars a month for a much worse experience Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brownbatsbreath Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 I had Attnow only because of a few channels I couldn’t get anywhere else. They’ve dumped a lot of channels and keep raising prices. Also their app was terrible, navigation sucked. Try Sling, I used them before ATTnow, really liked the app. They kept making improvements making it easier to navigate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eggzlot Posted December 10, 2019 Author Share Posted December 10, 2019 35 minutes ago, msgreenf said: I am personally not a fan of cord cutting. Doesn't ever seem to actually give a better experience or save money. You end up buying 2-3 subs to replace cable and then you end up only saving a few dollars a month for a much worse experience Well Altice TV + Fios Internet is very expensive. Altice Internet is substandard. Fios really limits your ability to use your own hardware, you can easily get Double NAT or there are workarounds but then you start to lose On Demand services or ability to use the Fios Apps, etc msgreenf 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
therockhr Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 If you have Charter Spectrum already for internet, their streaming service is the best deal going. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eggzlot Posted December 10, 2019 Author Share Posted December 10, 2019 2 minutes ago, therockhr said: If you have Charter Spectrum already for internet, their streaming service is the best deal going. dont have spectrum - altice or Fios Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAV Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 Recent cutter and was a charter member with Tivo. 1. No direct channel access, it's not C4 it's the services, their interface is specifically tailored to an Apple type remote. 2. Dropped ATT Now (charter DirecTV Now member when it started at $35 now $60) for YouTubeTV. a. ATT DVR sucks. Price Hikes. Dropped Channels. Poor GUI. Poor Favorite Channels Guide implementation. AT&T. b. YouTube TV has the best DVR of all of them, decent line up, OK interface, pictures been good, no dropouts. 3. VS Cable. In the end, if you fight for price with your Cable Co. The cost difference comes down to hardware rental fees and BS taxes and fees. Cutting you buy your streamers, Cable pay monthly. 4. Cable still wins with channel flipping, direct access, locals, regional sports, and most importantly, one service. There's no way to have the same lineup without multiple apps. For one, nobody has PBS, that's an app, and likely a 'contribution' fee. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LollerAgent Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 I *really* wish you could select channels with Hulu. That would allow programming like "turn my TV on to NBC at 7am." But, alas, you cannot. My opinion on cutting the cord: I had been a happy Dish Network customer for nearly 10 years until I moved into my new home. I didn't want a Satellite mounted anywhere near my house, and I didn't want the crappy DVR experience that Spectrum has in my area. We chose Hulu Live which has been fairly decent minus a few hiccups. Their guide initially sucked, but it's recently gotten better. The real winner for me is that I can have a TV anywhere in my home and not have to worry about the expense of DVR's/boxes or the presence of RG6. I would have to have 8 Hoppers/Joey's in my home for all of my TV's.. and that expense just adds up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eggzlot Posted December 10, 2019 Author Share Posted December 10, 2019 12 minutes ago, RAV said: Recent cutter and was a charter member with Tivo. 1. No direct channel access, it's not C4 it's the services, their interface is specifically tailored to an Apple type remote. 2. Dropped ATT Now (charter DirecTV Now member when it started at $35 now $60) for YouTubeTV. a. ATT DVR sucks. Price Hikes. Dropped Channels. Poor GUI. Poor Favorite Channels Guide implementation. AT&T. b. YouTube TV has the best DVR of all of them, decent line up, OK interface, pictures been good, no dropouts. 3. VS Cable. In the end, if you fight for price with your Cable Co. The cost difference comes down to hardware rental fees and BS taxes and fees. Cutting you buy your streamers, Cable pay monthly. 4. Cable still wins with channel flipping, direct access, locals, regional sports, and most importantly, one service. There's no way to have the same lineup without multiple apps. For one, nobody has PBS, that's an app, and likely a 'contribution' fee. Yeah I figured no direct channel access due to the Roku/Shield/Apple TV type remotes. I just wish there was a way to "favorite" them then maybe a way to trigger favorites with a standard remote - not really a C4 thing per se, what if you used a Harmony remote, etc? Know what I mean I signed up for the 14 day trial last night for YouTube TV 10 minutes ago, LollerAgent said: I *really* wish you could select channels with Hulu. That would allow programming like "turn my TV on to NBC at 7am." But, alas, you cannot. My opinion on cutting the cord: I had been a happy Dish Network customer for nearly 10 years until I moved into my new home. I didn't want a Satellite mounted anywhere near my house, and I didn't want the crappy DVR experience that Spectrum has in my area. We chose Hulu Live which has been fairly decent minus a few hiccups. Their guide initially sucked, but it's recently gotten better. The real winner for me is that I can have a TV anywhere in my home and not have to worry about the expense of DVR's/boxes or the presence of RG6. I would have to have 8 Hoppers/Joey's in my home for all of my TV's.. and that expense just adds up. I had used Hulu for about 7-8 months. 2 price hikes without 1 service added and at least weekly technical issues. Lots of random Error messages with cryptic codes, and the worst, I paid for ad free but I'd constantly see that Ad yellow box in the corner. Heck I'd be watching Jeopardy and while Alex was interviewing candidates I could not fast forward because it was an "ad" - WTF. I'd call, they would look at my account say oh you are add free, let me make a change and reboot your device. That call would happen every 2-3 weeks. Hulu also cuts off every sitcom for 10 seconds to go so you miss those last few sketches that are funny - they do not offer a way to extend your recording by 1, 2, 3 mins, etc. So at this point, I'd rather not go back to Hulu and I'd explore YouTube. My wife likes to go direct to channels. But her office IT Dept wants her to have Fios not Altice due to bandwidth constraints, yet Fios if you use their Internet + TV it is very hard (if not impossible) to use your equipment plus not lose services like on screen guide, on demand, the Fios Apps, etc. so I am stuck between a rock and a hard place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zaphod Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 Sports are really the thing that keeps me from cutting the cord. The thing to remember is that if you mainly watch the main networks, like ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, PBS, that you can get them for free, with better quality, via OTA. And there are some OTA DVR units available. So you could cut the cord and keep OTA plus use services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc. That could work for a lot of people. But not sports watchers, unless you sub to stuff like NBA League Pass,NHL Live, etc. And sometimes there isn't the flexibility that you want, like time-shifting while games are still live, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eggzlot Posted December 10, 2019 Author Share Posted December 10, 2019 1 hour ago, zaphod said: Sports are really the thing that keeps me from cutting the cord. The thing to remember is that if you mainly watch the main networks, like ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, PBS, that you can get them for free, with better quality, via OTA. And there are some OTA DVR units available. So you could cut the cord and keep OTA plus use services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc. That could work for a lot of people. But not sports watchers, unless you sub to stuff like NBA League Pass,NHL Live, etc. And sometimes there isn't the flexibility that you want, like time-shifting while games are still live, etc. my wife likes diverse content - its not even like its weekly shows - she gets enjoyment out of finding bad 80's movies or sitcoms she watched years ago to watch again for mindless entertainment. so her span of channels is large. Basically I think its a no win game - stick with Altice and suffer internet issues, move to Fios and lose some service and do an unsupported set up or go streaming and wife isnt happy. There is really no clear cut winner. Though price is a factor, some of this is also hardware/IT related and not just how many channels can I get for the cheapest price. I am a sports guy but for months I had Hulu and did not realize I do not get MSG - maybe because the Knicks and Devils are so bad. But the funny part, the Theater at MSG is called The Hulu Live Theater! Yet Hulu does not have MSG channel - go figure. Anyways the point is I can even deal with less sports - I just find myself watching less and less. So it is a balancing act to keep the wife happy with the service she is used to having but also not messing up our network by using crappy ISP hardware. msgreenf 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zaphod Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 To each his own, and I don't have a wife (anymore) - just me and the kids and they don't really watch TV other than stuff that I have recorded for them in the past and watch Youtube and streaming services. If you are into movies then subscribe to Criterion. They have great classic movies and have an app on the popular platforms like Roku, FireTV, etc. Here in Canada I can subscribe to the two main sports networks, Rogers Sportsnet and TSN for $25/month each with a streaming only service. But I think that has some limitations around time-shifting games. And I am paying $50/month for those services so I don't save a ton vs. what I am paying today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyanE Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 1 hour ago, zaphod said: Sports are really the thing that keeps me from cutting the cord. The thing to remember is that if you mainly watch the main networks, like ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, PBS, that you can get them for free, with better quality, via OTA. And there are some OTA DVR units available. So you could cut the cord and keep OTA plus use services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc. That could work for a lot of people. But not sports watchers, unless you sub to stuff like NBA League Pass,NHL Live, etc. And sometimes there isn't the flexibility that you want, like time-shifting while games are still live, etc. I'd probably just do OTA/DVR if there weren't a stinking honkin' huge mountain in between me and Farnsworth Peak (where the 'big 5' stations transmit from here in Utah). But since I have cable, I do like getting college sports. RyanE msgreenf, c44me and therockhr 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILoveC4 Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 4 hours ago, LollerAgent said: I *really* wish you could select channels with Hulu. That would allow programming like "turn my TV on to NBC at 7am." But, alas, you cannot. My opinion on cutting the cord: I had been a happy Dish Network customer for nearly 10 years until I moved into my new home. I didn't want a Satellite mounted anywhere near my house, and I didn't want the crappy DVR experience that Spectrum has in my area. We chose Hulu Live which has been fairly decent minus a few hiccups. Their guide initially sucked, but it's recently gotten better. The real winner for me is that I can have a TV anywhere in my home and not have to worry about the expense of DVR's/boxes or the presence of RG6. I would have to have 8 Hoppers/Joey's in my home for all of my TV's.. and that expense just adds up. I have 7 TV’s, 1 hopper and 1 Joey. This is where video distribution is the bees knees. sonic30101 and drro 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
therockhr Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 6 hours ago, ILoveC4 said: I have 7 TV’s, 1 hopper and 1 Joey. This is where video distribution is the bees knees. I have a Dish Hopper and 3 joeys but I wish that Dish would come out with a Roku or Apple TV app that would replace the Joeys and could talk locally to the Hopper. drro 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILoveC4 Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 2 hours ago, therockhr said: I have a Dish Hopper and 3 joeys but I wish that Dish would come out with a Roku or Apple TV app that would replace the Joeys and could talk locally to the Hopper. That would be nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jderks Posted December 12, 2019 Share Posted December 12, 2019 On 12/10/2019 at 7:54 AM, msgreenf said: I am personally not a fan of cord cutting. Doesn't ever seem to actually give a better experience or save money. You end up buying 2-3 subs to replace cable and then you end up only saving a few dollars a month for a much worse experience AT&T jacked their prices by us, and really for the cost I could get a subscription to YouTubeTV and Disney+ and have a lot left over. The wife has some music account for traveling, and that covers Hulu. We have Prime, so we get Prime Video and Prime Music automatically. She even got the Disney+ on a deal for the next 3 years or something. Granted, we do tend to limit our subscriptions by choice. We canceled Netflix last year and HBO Now a couple months back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vince Conroy Posted February 10, 2020 Share Posted February 10, 2020 On 12/10/2019 at 6:42 AM, RAV said: 4. Cable still wins with channel flipping, direct access, locals, regional sports, and most importantly, one service. There's no way to have the same lineup without multiple apps. For one, nobody has PBS, that's an app, and likely a 'contribution' fee. YouTube TV just added PBS and keeps adding more channels all the time (no HBO yet but you can get it with Amazon Prime as an add-on or HBO Direct). I love YouTube TV for its super ease of use and access from anydevice and unlimited cloud DVR. I have been using it from when it first appeared and have had very few issues ever, even when I had only 3-5 Mbs internet service at times and still got HD-quality at least at 720p. C4 works great with Roku and the C4 Mini-port driver so I can create direct links to YouTube TV in the Navigators (which you can't do with an Apple TV as there are no miniport drivers for it yet .. if ever). However... I wish I could create Favorite Channels in YouTube TV like you can with Cable, Satellite and Broadcast sources... and my customers are starting to ask for that. It's probably a YouTube issue not a Roku or Control4 issue. phantomgordon 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAV Posted February 10, 2020 Share Posted February 10, 2020 22 minutes ago, Vince Conroy said: However... I wish I could create Favorite Channels in YouTube TV like you can with Cable, Satellite and Broadcast sources... and my customers are starting to ask for that. It's probably a YouTube issue not a Roku or Control4 issue. You can customize the guide, using a browser, log into your account. You can select which channels AND what order you want. Which is really great, all networks together at the top, than sports, etc. Then when in "live" mode, you can go upper left to toggle between custom list and default list. Library and search don't care and work across all channels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steelermedallion Posted February 10, 2020 Share Posted February 10, 2020 Does it matter which Roku model (with the C4 Mini-port drive)? Just switched to YoutubeTV (from DIRECTV) (and using Apple TV) connected to my EA-3. I am missing the direct access to YouTubeTV - so thanks for the suggestion. Have thought about using broadcast antenna to be able to access the favorites for local channels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msgreenf Posted February 10, 2020 Share Posted February 10, 2020 No. They all work the same Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phantomgordon Posted February 23, 2020 Share Posted February 23, 2020 On 2/9/2020 at 5:58 PM, RAV said: You can customize the guide, using a browser, log into your account. You can select which channels AND what order you want. Which is really great, all networks together at the top, than sports, etc. Then when in "live" mode, you can go upper left to toggle between custom list and default list. Library and search don't care and work across all channels. That's great. But can you then have a direct link from, say, NEEO remote to CNBC in YouTubeTV instead of just YouTubeTV? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phantomgordon Posted February 23, 2020 Share Posted February 23, 2020 Whoops! New to these forums and forgot to click "Notify Me of Replies" in my first message. Just did it here so please reply to this post. Apologies for Noob mistake! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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