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I have been hearing that sling TV was a good replacement for cable tv. I looked into it and they had some cable channels I like a few shows on. (AMC, A&E, History channel) I figured I would try it out with the free 14 day trial offer.
I don't think it is ready for "prime time" yet.
1) They lack video on demand/DVR system. Some channels will allow you to go back a few days to watch others will not. I was disappointed that AMC does not have ANY previously aired shows available. I am a fan of the walking dead and was hoping to watch on Sling TV. If I want to watch ANY walking dead shows I would have to watch when it's aired. It's almost like watching TV in the 1970's.
2) Of the other channels that do allow you to watch past shows they don't seem to work well. Constant freezing and stuttering. It wasn't my internet connection since shows on the air at the time streamed perfectly.
3) Not a very good menu layout. I would like to see each channel have its own page and then a list of shows available from which you could select episodes. The way they have it set up is all channels on one screen and then you scroll trhough them by time.
4) No obvious way to control bandwidth use. I would like the option of reducing picture quality from within sling tv.
I think the big killer for me is the poor video on demand/lack of DVD. I only watch an hour or two of television at night. I am not always up when good shows come on.
I am probably going to cancel when the free trial is up. It is a great idea if they could just get it right.
I'm pretty sure if they "got it right" according to your wants, the price wouldn't be what it is.
20 bucks a month is a lot for what they are offering. Since you can sign up for Dircect TV for 20 dollars a month (for the first 12) and they have a dvr included I don't see how Sling is going to be the "pay TV killer" they say it will be.
For 20 bucks a month you would think they could at least get the services they say they offer to work properly.
At least I am not paying for 25 shopping channels and 25 religious channels that I never watch. Satellite and cable providers need to offer a la carte channel selection or face ever decreasing viewership.
At least I am not paying for 25 shopping channels and 25 religious channels that I never watch. Satellite and cable providers need to offer a la carte channel selection or face ever decreasing viewership.
I agree. Even with sling tv they offer 5 channels I would never watch. I am not a sports fan and have no use for espn. I don't speak spanish either so the spanish channel is a waste. (Why would they have a spanish channel? Are spanish speakers going to sign up for one channel?)
Thanks for the feedback. We are really close to cutting cable and wondered if this would fill some of the gaps. Right now we have Amazon Prime, Netflix, and Hulu along with CBS All Access. That covers about 80% of what we watch. Sounds like for now it might not be worth the $20 a month, but as all things new, I'm sure there will be improvements over time.
To be honest, I wouldn't mind so much paying for cable - my Extreme Internet along with a decent cable package is $109 a month, but my bill ends up being $155 with the box rentals, DVR service, taxes and fees. That's what makes me crazy!
Thanks for the feedback. We are really close to cutting cable and wondered if this would fill some of the gaps. Right now we have Amazon Prime, Netflix, and Hulu along with CBS All Access. That covers about 80% of what we watch. Sounds like for now it might not be worth the $20 a month, but as all things new, I'm sure there will be improvements over time.
To be honest, I wouldn't mind so much paying for cable - my Extreme Internet along with a decent cable package is $109 a month, but my bill ends up being $155 with the box rentals, DVR service, taxes and fees. That's what makes me crazy!
It will probably improve over time. They do offer a 14 day free trial. BTW- They add sales tax to the 20 dollars per month so it would be more like 22 dollars.
I have netflix right now. If Sling worked as well as netflix I would be happy.
I like Sling. But I don't watch a whole lot of tv. 20/month is cheap considering you get ESPN. And then you can use WatchESPN with sling credentials. But again Sling kind of hit a sweet spot with my esoteric preferences. I like old Kung-fu movies and adult cartoons.
My only gripe is they don't have a Chromecast app yet.
But Sling + Chromecast was more than enough for me to ditch cable.
Sometimes I buy a Netflix gift card, but Netflix is a totally different service than Sling. Different programming. Different targets. Different type of content.
I signed up twice to use Sling. First time to watch the NFL draft, the second time to watch a pre-season football game I wanted to see. Each time I paid for one month only before getting rid of it. The content just doesn't interest me. And one of the reasons I got rid of cable was because I hated paying ESPN over $6/month soon to be going up to over $7/month, so I definitely don't want to pay $20 plus tax just to watch Mike & Mike in the morning, and an occasional game I may want to see. ESPN is highly overpriced on cable.
The other stations on Sling did not interest me. CNN - hah, no thanks. I used to enjoy the History Channel which they have on Sling, but the programming is much different than it used to be. And some of Sling's channels block certain shows from being shown.
They have corrected a lot of the technical glitches they had back in April/May, but the content isn't that attractive.
Since I cut the cord I've been happy with Netflix ($9.64/month), Acorn TV (if you like British tv, $4.99/month), and over the air television using an amplified Mohu antenna and also using a cheap PVR to record one show at a time with.
The PVR's I have are not a great option, but for recording shows I just have to see and can't stay up for, or because I want to keep the show, it's priceless when it actually records and doesn't drop scheduled recordings. Most of the time it works ok, but if I can I make sure to set it to record an extra 15 minutes because a couple of times it stopped recording early. I have both a Homeworx and iView PVR purchased on Amazon for less than $40 each. They've both had issues at different times so I've switched from one to the other a couple of times, and whatever problem one was having it self-corrected once I hooked it back up after a month or so. They are basically the same technology with a different casing. If I didn't mind paying about $15/month I'd consider getting a Tivo so I could record more than one show at a time, and because it's much more convenient with the tv guide, etc. But I got rid of cable to save money so I don't feel like spending a couple or a few hundred bucks on the device then $15/month afterwards. Very steep.
Also have Roku 3. That's what I watch Netflix and Acorn TV on, and also (a free channel) Sky News to watch, what else, the news headlines or live news.
I stand corrected on some of my objections to Sling TV. I decided to try it on my PC and it works A LOT BETTER than the roku version.
You can adjust bandwidth use easy on the PC app version.
The DVR/playback works a lot better on the PC app version.
Menu layout is a lot better on the PC app version.
I might just keep it. I still don't like that AMC doesn't have dvr. I also don't like commercials (I guess I am spoiled from netflix)
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