5 ms·
> It’s for people that want to pretend they’re cord-cutting while buying the exact same thing from a streaming company. It legitimately is way better than cabl
by saltminer 5y ago
> It’s for people that want to pretend they’re cord-cutting while buying the exact same thing from a streaming company.
It legitimately is way better than cable, though. Ignoring the disputes over fees, I once tried Spectrum's TV Android app (probably 3-4 years ago, I gave up on getting it to work), and this is what I experienced:
* Refuses to work if a VPN is on
* Must disable developer tools (doesn't matter if you changed any settings in there or not)
* Root check
* Must be from a Spectrum home IP (and remember, you can't VPN to your home network to use this app)
* Must allow access to all contacts, all texts, etc or the app would close itself (there is no legitimate justification for this, unlike potential contract stipulations requiring no root, etc - it's purely for selling all your data)
* Didn't even work after I installed it on a totally stock Android device on my home network
* No web interface; if you can't run the app, too bad
Compared to that, YT TV's app is a breath of fresh air. But ignoring the streaming convenience, you also have:
* No ads in the TV guide (which is also more responsive than any DVR I've ever experienced)
* Unlimited DVR is nice (and it's not utter dogshit hardware that would've been considered unimpressive in the 90s)
* You don't need a cable box - just a Chromecast (which is absolute tiny by comparison) or a TV with Chromecast built-in
* The pricing is much easier to understand
Of course, I don't actually pay for it. My mother does, and she put my Google account as an allowed user. I just use it to watch hockey.
It's true that you're paying for the same product, but it's delivered in a package that doesn't scream "fuck you, pay me."
- sixothree 5y agoThe interface is awful. Just awful. And slow on any hardware I have available. They are lowering the price when one channel leaves but you can’t pick which channels you want. Lastly YouTubeTV doesn’t solve any problems. For instance local channel access is limited to one location.
- CryptoBanker 5y agoYou’re just saying words now. The app runs smoothly for me even on a Kindle tablet (which can barely run a browser without lag). Any semi-modern device is more than capable of running either YouTube app
- chenxiaolong 5y agoBack when I still had Spectrum, I was happy to find out the way those checks are implemented in the Android app was (thankfully) as poorly done as the user experience. With adb or any app that can launch hidden activities, it is/was possible to enter the debug menu and disable every one of the client-side checks. No reverse engineering required :) I stuck with that for years until fiber was available in my area since a threaten-to-cancel call got my TV price down to $0/month (on top of internet).
- yissp 5y agoIf their TV app is anything like their "My Spectrum" app for managing your internet service, my god, I don't have high expectations for these types of apps but having the gall to ship something that low-quality is legitimately impressive.
- xxpor 5y agoOn the other hand, 65 bucks a month is more expensive than my local Comcast package with the premium sports channels (which yttv doesn't even have the option for), plus Comcast has 4k live channels and surround sound. I think their feeds are also less compressed.
- 8ytecoder 5y agoAnd the YouTube tv interface is legit the worst possible interface to watch TV on TV. I’ve tried it in at least 3 different platforms and it’s a hot mess. The DVR offering is unbeatable. But again, they remove the ability to skip ads after a few days and replace regular TV ads with targeted ads. Pretty much the worst of all worlds.
- saltminer 5y agoYoutube TV does have sports channels you can add-on, but I'm assuming you're referring to a specific bundle which has no equivalent. I checked the Spectrum website, and the cheapest TV-only package they have is $77.11 for the first month, $66.40 for the next 11, and $98 thereafter. (First month has $9.99 self-install fee - you already pay every month for the cable box and install it yourself, but they charge you even if you pick it up from the store!) But that's "Mi Plan Latino" - no sports channels. The cheapest with sports, TV Select, is $87.71 for the first month, $77.10 for the next 11, over $110 thereafter. I'm sure I could get better rates by calling them, and I have some competition in my area so I know I could actually get them, but I value my sanity too much for that. Spectrum also doesn't have any 4k, not even through their app, though they say "we're working to add it soon" [0]. Also no surround [1]. For me, it would make no sense to go with Spectrum even if the alternative was me paying for Youtube TV. [0]: https://www.spectrum.com/cable-tv/apple-tv-faq https://www.spectrum.com/cable-tv/apple-tv-faq [1]: https://www.spectrum.net/support/tv/spectrum-tv-app-troubleshooting/ https://www.spectrum.net/support/tv/spectrum-tv-app-troubles...
- enos_feedler 5y agoWhat premium sports channels are you missing?
- 5y ago
- josephcsible 5y agoIf Google actually cared about users, any of those first five bullet points would be grounds to ban an app from the Play Store.
- limeblack 5y agoThe Spectrum Roku app is solid because I use it as an alternative to cable. Roku has a no 3rd party tracking policy(according to the roku rep and from my testing.)
- _-david-_ 5y agoThey may not have 3rd party tracking, but they sure have a lot of first party tracking. Multiple times a minute I see requests coming from my Roku.