Just cancelled DTV after 9 years with them. Did PSV's trial this weekend and had no issues watching any of the games and we get 95% of the channels we watch. They tried to get me to stay by throwing every offer they could at me, but could only get to around $70/mo.

Not going to be able to watch the Astros, but I think I'll survive.

Signed up for both the PSV and DTV Now Free Trials today. Only spent a little time with each but I think I like the PSV service a little bit better.

We actually canceled DirecTV at the beginning of the summer and just last week tried free trials with both Sling TV and Playstation Vue on the 4th generation Apple TV, just in time for football season. I expected to like Sling TV best since it's the most popular but ended up liking Playstation Vue more.

Comparison:
Quality and reliability seemed the same to me (on 100mbs Spectrum Internet) which means it feels like 95-99% the quality of DirecTV. The prices were close, but the Playstation Vue service was a little cheaper for a package that included all the ESPNs, SEC Network, Fox Sports, NBC Sports, and all the local channels (including CBS).

But how Playstation Vue won me over was the app. It was just more intuitive to find the channels, shows, and recordings I wanted to see. Shows automatically have 'live recording' so you can rewind whatever you watch. The Guide has an easy-to-navigate traditional feel. You can also set up profiles (via the web) for each family member who can have their own favorite channels and recordings. Starting the app and switching channels is very fast, faster then Sling and way faster than DirecTV.

The Sling app was ok, but kind of weird. For example, you buy either the "blue" package or the "orange" package or a combination package, which is fine. But why do I care whether a channel is blue or orange in the app? It also mixed live and on-demand content together, so it was harder for me to just "switch to ESPN" than it should have been.

Playstation Vue Negatives:
- It's a little tricky to 'favorite' a channel, but you only have to do it once.
- The guide orders all favorites channels alphabetically left to right. It would be nice to specify the order. (No channels are numbered in this new world.)
- No ESPN 3, but I can get that on with the ESPN app (which accepts Playstation Vue login to watch).
- I noticed that some football games didn't list the actual teams playing, showing something like "SEC Football" instead. It may not be their fault, but they should know by game day who's playing. Maybe every provider had the same listing. I didn't check.

I wish I had good enough Internet to do this. The price of living in the country. Sorta.

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- I noticed that some football games didn't list the actual teams playing, showing something like "SEC Football" instead. It may not be their fault, but they should know by game day who's playing. Maybe every provider had the same listing. I didn't check.

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This is my primary complaint with PS Vue after my weekend of testing it. Given that's my only real complaint, I decided it was the direction we were going to go. The one thing I did was to pull up the game times on the ESPN app on my phone, which state which channel the game is on, then I just went from there. There are usually 1-2 games that I'm really interested in at each kickoff time, so the rest is just me filling in time during commercials or halftime.

I also agree with the rest of your assessment of PS Vue.

For those new to PSVue, there is a nice feature that allows you to select 3 channels to watch with 1 as primary (with sound) and the other 2 smaller. You can easily switch between these 3 channels or change what a specific view is showing. Made football easy on Saturday flipping between games. When the channel info is on the screen, scroll down to the icons and it is the "box" icon (far right on my PS4).

I know that there are people who don't live in Dallas/Houston/SA, so this won't work for y'all. But if you live in one of those cities, check out Youtube TV. It's a streaming service like PSVue/DTVNow/Sling, but at least in Houston the main draw it has for me is that it's the only one of the bunch that carries all the broadcast channels (abc/nbc/cbs/fox). Most of the other ones seem like they lack at least one of that set (normally cbs), which is a huge annoyance when aggie football is on.

PS Vue has NBC, CBS, ABC, and Fox locals in Houston. That was the biggest draw for us, along with a couple of channels the wife watches that YouTube didn't have (TLC and HGTV). Does YouTube now have all locals in Houston?

What frame rate does YouTube TV use? I tried out Hulu Live, and while they say they are working to get all content at 60 fps, it's only 30 fps for the time being. This makes football a little rough to watch.

Yeah, it has all the locals. The extended line-up is a bit sparse, but I don't really need the extras since I only use it for football season and it has all I need for that. The price is a bit cheaper - $35 for youtube vs $45 for the sports level of PSVue. If I were interested in all the other channels, Vue would be the better choice.

I honestly couldn't tell you off the top of my head. I'll try to remember and check when I watch a game this weekend.

Im on Month 2 of using SlingTV and I have not had any issues watching the games or shows I want. Outside of a restricted football game in Houston, which I just used r/nflstreams to watch it has been a great choice to drop DirecTV. When I left I was paying about $130 for 1 TV with the movie channels at half off and the middle package.

Cool. IIRC, when I was looking at which service I would try, CBS wasn't available on YouTube at the time...this might have been a month or so ago, so it may have been a recent addition. I really is a breath of fresh air for these services to come on board at reasonable prices. No equipment to rent, no BS, etc.

My bill was about $130/mo as well, which included 1 primary receiver and 1 other HD receiver. The package I had was about as basic as I could get and still get channels that I actually watch. If I went below that to the bottom package, there were some sports channels I lost. It was a no brainer for us. What I'll save this month alone will pay for my Fire TV that I bought, and the rest is just money saved. Add in I can watch on multiple TV's with Fire Sticks I already own, or on a mobile/tablet, and it's just icing on the cake.

My dad has had PS Vue for a few weeks as he travels 100% for work and the hotels don't always have what he likes to watch, so he just hooks up an old mobile phone via HDMI to the hotel room TV and gets his channels. The weird thing is that he also gets the Houston locals...he's been in Baltimore for the past month.

Tried YouTube TV and really like the app, but the biggest drawback is that there's no native Apple TV app (though the iOS app is fantastic) and it's missing the Turner networks.

I'm still grandfathered into DirecTV Now. Just wish it had better apps and a DVR. But I can also stream unlimited on AT&T Wireless.

millertyme said:

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For those new to PSVue, there is a nice feature that allows you to select 3 channels to watch with 1 as primary (with sound) and the other 2 smaller. You can easily switch between these 3 channels or change what a specific view is showing. Made football easy on Saturday flipping between games. When the channel info is on the screen, scroll down to the icons and it is the "box" icon (far right on my PS4).

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Assume this was on the PS4 interface? Anyone know if that is available on Roku or FireTV interface as well?

Don't see it on my FireTV.

I cut free of DTV back in 89 when I hit puberty.

If it makes you feel better I haven't watched an Astros game in my entire life and I'm okay.

aTm2004 said:

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Not going to be able to watch the Astros, but I think I'll survive.

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Way to make the switch. You can watch the Astros, but you need a Roku device to do it.

Set up a SmartDNS service for your network and set it to a city outside the Houston viewing area. It costs $5/mo. I use overplay.net. Attach the Roku to your TV. Download the MLB.tv app and pay for the subscription. I don't know how much it will cost you for the final two weeks of the season. It was $25/mo for MLB.tv premium per month. But, at the beginning of the season, you could get the entire single team season for $90. I don't think this plan works for Chromecast or Amazon FireStick.

TL;DR - Get a Roku, subscribe to SmartDNS and MLB.tv, watch Astros, profit!

ForeverAg said:

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Im on Month 2 of using SlingTV and I have not had any issues watching the games or shows I want. Outside of a restricted football game in Houston, which I just used r/nflstreams to watch it has been a great choice to drop DirecTV. When I left I was paying about $130 for 1 TV with the movie channels at half off and the middle package.

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I think the restriction has to do with NFL preseason game rights. The regular season should be no problem.

CoolaidWade said:

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I'm scared. I want to do what you are doing. But I need to wait until football season is over. Then I'm doing it. Maybe.

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My wife and I have watched any college football game we've wanted to watch on PSVue

littlebrotherag said:

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CoolaidWade said:

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I'm scared. I want to do what you are doing. But I need to wait until football season is over. Then I'm doing it. Maybe.

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My wife and I have watched any college football game we've wanted to watch on PSVue

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Exactly. I have the $45/mo package, and I get the following channels with football games on them on Saturdays and Sundays:

- NBC
- CBS
- ABC
- FOX
- ESPN
- ESPN2
- ESPNU
- SECN
- BTN
- FS1
- FS2
- NBC Sports Network
- NFL Network

The only channel that I had on DTV that showed a CFB game that I don't have is CBS Sports Network, which usually showed some AAC game that I really didn't care about.

Also, all of the streaming services offer you free trials from 5-7 days to try it out. I gave it a shot starting on a Thursday to see how it did for CFB and NFL games, and I had zero issues watching any of the games I wanted. My goal was to watch football as I would with DTV without turning on DTV, and I was able to do that all 5 days. Today is a week since I first tried PSVue, and I haven't missed anything nor have I had any issues with the service. I'll admit that the PSVue app is a bit slow on the Fire Stick, but that's what I have on TVs that don't get watched much. It's much faster on the FireTV hooked up in the living room...actually faster than the DTV receiver that seemed to hang up from time to time when switching channels or take forever to bring up the guide.

You could always give it a shot over a weekend to see if it will work for you before making the switch. You can make an educated decision on whether or not it will work for you at literally no cost.

My DTV is $68 per month...

We have also watched any college football game we were interested in with Hulu Live. They just added KPRC (Houston NBC) so they now have all local Houston channels. Only draw back so far is no ATT Sports channel so no Astros on Hulu. But I can access it on my phone via MLB.tv and chromecast it to the tv. Very happy with it for about $50 a month.

AggieDruggist89 said:

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My DTV is $68 per month...

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How? I call and get the discounts, but I still can't get them down that low! Do you have a DVR?

I have tried psvue, DTVN, sling, and youtube,

I am currently using YouTube and like it the most

I am looking to drop DTV right now. Irma brought down my satalite so now is as good of Tim as any.

I just ordered a fire stick bc cheap and gives me more options (will get the fire TV once I know what I want to do).

I am looking at either PS Vue or Hulu beta. The beta seems the better deal but I don't think it is running full steam yet (hence beta). I assume you don't have to have a PlayStation for each tv? I have a PS4 in living room so could use that there. I will try all the free trials but curious if people have experienced both. Haven't looked into sling but don't see me going that way.

Count Counterpoint said:

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AggieDruggist89 said:

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My DTV is $68 per month...

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How? I call and get the discounts, but I still can't get them down that low! Do you have a DVR?

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No crap. I was with them for 9 years and never had a late payment, and the lowest they could get me was just over $70/mo...and that was with discounts that would start expiring after 6 months. I had a DVR and a 2nd HD box.

FYI...PSVue runs slow on the Fire Stick. You'll get a feel for the interface, but don't let the speed be the deciding factor as it runs fast on a FireTV.

The firestick is good for travelling or to use on a kids tv.

Otherwise, I'd recommend not buying one.

Disclaimer: I own both a stick and two amazon fire tv's.

Amazon was out of the Fire TV this weekend as a FYI. Will be checking back in periodically. Vue did run rock solid for me on both Android & iOS app, casting to Chromecast. Wanting the Fire TV for more of a traditional remote experience.

If you're trying in a browser, use Edge. Chromecast & FF both were subpar for me personally.

Asked this over in another Vue thread that seems to be buried. Any insight?

For those of you in Texas, what have your PS Vue taxes and fees ran this year (percentage wise)?

Saw an article saying some markets added taxes & maybe FCC fees. Not a huge dollar amount, talking ~$50 total, just curious & it hits my savings spreadsheet :P

Oddly enough my Dish taxes are 7.7%.