Cutting the cord soon. Opinions on setup?

General Discussion
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I’ve been digging around and have found the combination of services I want to have available when we cut the cord.

  • Netflix
  • HuluPlus
  • Amazon Prime
  • HBO Now
  • Plex

The only device that seems to support all of those at the moment is FireTV.

On top of that we would like to have DVR capability for over the air channels that don’t immediately share their newest episodes with the streaming services. We have 3 TVs so from what I can tell Tablo is the only box that can stream to more than one client.

While my Tablo isn’t working yet, do you think I’m heading in the right direction? Over doing it?

Would there be a better combination of hardware/software?

Thanks.

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The Roku platform supports all of those apps now, plus much more. HBO Now was added today.

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I was looking at the Roku 3. It’s not that much more than FireTV and from what I’ve read it’s UI is much smoother and faster than Fire.

4

Roku 4 is coming out this month, so you may want to consider that.

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I recently cut the cord and went with a 4 tuner Tablo (I watch way too much TV), supplemented with Netflix, Hulu Plus and Sling TV. There is a special deal on Showtime subscriptions if you also subscribe to Hulu, but I haven’t felt the need for either Showtime or HBO. Of all the services you noted, they’re all available on the Roku, plus tons more.

In my setup, I have the 4 tuner Tablo, plus 4 TVs, each with a Roku stick, that allow me to watch live or recorded content from Tablo on any of the 4 TVs. I can even access Tablo content remotely on my phone or tablet, once they’ve been paired with the Tablo on my home network.

So it looks like you’re going in the right direction. Fire TV is a good choice, especially if you’re also an Amazon Prime subscriber. I went with Roku because at the time I decided to cut the cord and go with Tablo, I already had one Roku device, and after everything was proven in to my satisfaction, bout additional Roku devices for the other TVs.

Once the new Fall TV season kicked in, I’m finding that because I’ve recorded a lot of new premiering and returning shows, that the ability of Tablo to record all these programs has outstripped my ability to watch them. I seem to have a constantly building backlog, so if I was worried that I might not have anything to watch after cancelling DirecTV, those worries have proven unfounded. With my Tablo backlog, as well as streaming services to which I’ve subscribed, I’m never at a loss for something to watch.

Two important considerations to keep in mind are getting the best antenna you can for the channels available in your area, aim it properly, and if possible, do not go through a splitter… connect directly to Tablo for the strongest signal and best user experience. Also, do not skimp on your router,… the TP Link Archer C7 is the one I have, and it’s an outstanding router for the money. These 2 things are really important, from what I’ve seen, in maximizing you chances of success with Tablo.

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I’d wait for the Roku 4 with wireless AC and quad-core precessor. If you still want the Roku 3 look for it to be discounted.

7

Get a good cable modem too. I have Zoom 5341J but would not get it now.i would get the one I posted elsewhere.

8

the new Apple TV comes out this month too, an Amazon Prime app surely isn’t too far behind.

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I wouldn’t get your hopes up. Amazon stopped selling the Chromecast, Android TV, and Apple , stating that they wouldn’t sell something that didn’t provide a good experience for Amazon Instant Video. Unless these companies strike a deal, you won’t find Amazon on Apple TV or Android TV. I havent ever found anything on Amazon Video worth watching over Netflix or Hulu, so I don’t care at all.

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The new Apple TV will have an AppStore that anyone can write for… The old Apple TV used partnerships rather than and open AppStore

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Yup, nothing wrong with having a good modem… Mine’s a Motorola Surfboard Docsis 3 cable modem. Coming up on 5 years old now, but has worked perfectly for me since the day I installed it.

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It wouldn’t surprise me to see a lawsuit against Amazon, either by the companies whose products they stopped selling, or possibly some class action suit for restraint of trade. In fact, it did surprise me when Amazon announced they’d stop selling those products. They’re one of the first places a lot of people go to when looking to buy something, so the lawsuit can’t be far behind.

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How does this affect whether or not there is an Amazon Instant Video app? The only company who can write an app for Amazon Instant Video is Amazon, and they have stated they have no intention of bringing Amazon Instant Video to Android TV or Apple TV.

I don’t blame them, they didn’t want to give Google and Apple 30% of all purchase revenue from their platform. It’s their right to pick whatever they want to sell.

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I don’t care to argue but Amazon has stated the prime video is coming to the new Apple TV.

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I refuse to buy anything else from Apple. 3 iPod touches, 1 fell out of my pocket on day 2 and split the case open. So sorry, have to buy another $300 iPod. Then batteries started dying, but you can’t replace them…anyway…

My Tablo finally decided to wake up. Sounds like there was an issue with the Tablo servers and didn’t have anything to do with my hardware or my network. We’ll see how it goes over the next week. We’re cutting the cord in December, but I wanted a jump start on trying things out so we have our routine down before DirecTV goes away.

I have noticed already that the FireTV Stick UI is pretty slow. I’ll give the Tablo time to format the hard drive and download the rest of the schedule. Maybe it’s just to busy at the moment.

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Sorry, I’m not trying to argue, just trying to state the facts so that OP makes the right decision on which streaming box to invest in. Based on what Amazon recently did, I don’t think they have any intention of releasing Prime Video to anything other than Roku, Xbox, and their own Fire TV. It would be odd to ban all sales of Android TV, Chromecast, and Apple TV, then un-ban them a month later when an app is released. I would be happy to be proved wrong though!

Here’s a good article on Amazon’s recent decision: http://www.theverge.com/2015/10/2/9439281/amazon-ban-apple-tv-chromecast-why

If I’m missing something please let me know.

Edit: OP I should add my recommendation. If you own an Android phone, or invested in Google’s ecosystem I would get an Android TV (this is what I have). If you are heavily invested in Apple’s ecosystem, you pretty much have no choice other than to get an Apple TV.

If you have a 4K TV, your choices are either the new Roku 4, the new Fire TV, or Shield TV (an Android TV box). Apple TV won’t have 4K support (probably next year, to get people to upgrade I’m guessing.)

If you aren’t invested heavily in ANY ecosystem (or you really want Amazon Instant Video), I would pick the Roku over the Fire TV, but I would wait for the Roku 4. The Roku 3 is very good, but it’s performance is somewhat lacking compared to other streaming boxes, and it doesn’t run Tablo as well either (I used to own 2 of them). That being said, it probably has the most diverse app selection out of all of them. I think the Roku 4 will likely be a huge improvement.

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I’m only a couple months into cutting the cable, so my experience is limited. We’ve had a roku for years that we watch netflix on so the fact that we could watch tablo on it was a huge factor in getting it. We went from Uverse 450 that included all the movie channels except Epix. Now we have just the Tablo and Sling TV, which gives us a few cable channels like ESPN, AMC, Lifetime, and History Channel. We tried a free week of Hulu plus and were not impressed. The OTA shows they have I can get through Tablo and a couple shows we tried to watch required us to be verified through a cable provider. If we can’t watch cable network shows on hulu unless we have cable, what’s the point? Anyway, went from a $136/mo uverse tv bill to $20/mo sling bill. It won’t take long to break even on the upfront cost and we may add Showtime or HBO after that.

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@Mark1030 That’s pretty much the direction I’m headed.

@getcashmoney I’ve only invested in the Tablo and FireTV Stick so far. I’m not really tethered to anything, but I wont go Apple. All of our phones and tablets are Android, including 2 Kindle Fire.

Next up on the purchase list I think will be a Roku. Since it’s not that far off I think I’ll wait (or pre-order) the 4 and see how that goes.

What I would love to see is a device that can pull all of the listings from all of the services and display them in a coherent format. All the streaming services are like walking through a library where books are somewhat categorized, nothing is organized, and there are duplicate books scattered throughout. Then when you do find a weekly show that you like, you have to remember what service it was on. #1stworldproblems… :smile:

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You know you can add the EPEX channels for additional money to Sling