Posted on 03/12/2015 5:52:08 AM PDT by Colehill1999
Meet Sling TV, an Internet-driven endeavor from DISH Network that is the first legitimate alternative to traditional cable TV. It’s a service that’s free of contracts and friendly of pricing, and it offers tantalizing flexibility to the tech-savvy user. The service needs some work before it’s ready to captivate the average user, but with evolution, it has the potential to be special.
The service is currently available on a handful of devices, including Amazon’s streaming devices, iPads and iPhones, Android phones and PCs and Macs. In the coming months (and Sling’s been working quickly), it will hit the Xbox One and maybe even Apple TV. Regardless, even in its current state, it’s easy to get Sling TV onto your HDTV; you’re just an HDMI connection away.
The most tantalizing number in Sling’s formula: $20, the starting price for a month of Sling TV with 17 channels (really 16, since Adult Swim and Cartoon Network are basically one), including ESPN, TBS, TNT, CNN and the Disney Channel.
(Excerpt) Read more at nydailynews.com ...
If you have a smart tv, just hook up a roku and watch thru there. Can also watch on smart phone and tablet. So far we enjoy it - mostly the home improvement, cooking, travel channels plus some of the movies on IFC. They showed Inglorious Bastards the other night - always good to see some good old fashioned nazi branding.
So have they hashed out contracts that kept other streaming television providers/manufacturers from legally meeting markt demand?
And Congress kept the public from being able to only pay for the channels they WANTED to buy for decades. Technology would’ve permitted it in the cable days.
If I could get local channels and the ESPNs, I would dump DirecTV. The service is fine, but they’re just too expensive.
The good news: streaming packages will likely cost less than traditional packages, if for no other reason than not having a need to “rent” set-top boxes, which pads the advertised cable rates in a hurry.
The middle news: Sling TV is still in its infancy, and needs to mature a bit before it’s viable for the majority of households.
The bad news: DISH seems committed to bundling channels in “packages”. While streaming is a better technical solution in the long term, allowing customers to choose what they want (and to not pay for/subsidize channels they don’t want) should be the consumer’s long-term objective.
"For $20 per month, subscribers will get access to ‘The Best of Live TV’ core package, with 12 top TV networks, including ESPN, ESPN2, TNT, TBS, Food Network, HGTV, Cartoon Network and Disney Channel delivered directly through the Roku platform. "
Well, I need Fox News and whatever channel Gold Rush is on or no deal. But nevertheless we are seeing the tip of the iceberg of the future of TV. DirecTV will have to do this as well if Dish succeeds.
Thanks Cole. I have had a Roku, combined with an antenna, for over three years loving every minute of not paying for cable TV. Have not put Sling on the Roku. Do they offer a free trial?
At last! The future is here! This is the way it should always have been!
There is really no need to pay for an entertainment service. There is so much free online and whats being put-out lately by wall-street/Hollywood is not worth paying to watch.
If a movie comes out that is really good, buy the dvd...
We set up an outdoor antenna and have a Roku with hundreds of free channels on it. Cost nothing after set-up. The set-up provides all the major networks, all their shows movies and what appears to be more then the basic cable programming for free.
The thing many seem to forget is virtually all of the streaming stuff is fungible, similar content across many providers. Most is free, whats wanted of the rare stuff worth paying for can be purchased as needed.
Yeah, its a little more work, higher up front cost but its free after that - no monthly payments. contracts etc.
I agree. The only reason I keep cable is for the ESPNs. I would dump it in a heartbeat for a streaming alternative.
yes, seven day free trial. It is my understanding they will uncouple stations and allow pay per channel some day in the future. We are almost there, getting nearer to free market.
I looked at the Sling website. It appears to be a mini-cable/satellite type channels feeder. That is okay, except that one has to basically purchase a tier with predetermined channels. Want more? Purchase another tier.
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If they really want to shake up the industry, they should offer ala carte and allow users to select ONLY the channels/networks they want.
I have Sling and its great. I also paid $5 more to get the SEC channel. For locals I use an antenna. I hooked that up to a Tablo box that acts as a DVR and streams all of the OTA content (with a guide) to my Roku. Works great.
All my locals in HD for free and ESPN + SEC for $25/month.
The ESPNs are what is driving the cost increases. The whole point of getting ala carte pricing is not to have to pay for channels you don’t want. Not everyone is a sports nut. I can get Netflix streaming for 8/month that allows me to load the software on unlimited devices, watch two devices at a time, in HD. Eight dollars a month!
It’s not 20/month. It’s 20/month Plush the required hispeed internet access fee. My internet is running me >60/month and there aren’t other options for me in my locale.
Much appreciated! Will put it on tonight and give it a spin.
You can get your local channels for free by putting a cheap digital antenna on your roof and connecting it to an extra HDMI port on your TV...or just use the existing threaded cable F connector. A rotor for the antenna would be a nice addition but not required. You should be able to get at least half a dozen channels...or more depending on your locale.
http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/11/playstation-vue-launch/
PlaystationVue offers more channels than SlingTV and covers all the channels I'm interested in all by itself. What is unknown is pricing which will probably be more than $20/month.
However, whether you like the looks of SlingTV or PlaystationVue or your own cobbled together FrankenTV web streams, the best news is that these services are happening at all.
Hopefully (fingers crossed) they are opening the floodgates to ala-carte style broadcast/network streams. I sincerely hope, with all my heart and soul, that this hastens each and every neighborhood cable monopoly to an agonizing death sooner rather than later.
Do they have an ACC channel?
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