I Got the Television Blues

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One of our commenters, Pope Leo, requested we have a discussion on TV, streaming, etc. I promised him I would put this up yesterday. Promises are made to be broken. So, here it is.

Myself, I’m not really searching for a change, I’m still riding with Dish Network. Of course, I have several streaming services in addition to that. Mainly because my 90-year old father shares all the subscriptions I have and he watches a lot of TV. Once the good Lord decides it is time for him to come home, I will be eliminating almost all the subscriptions I have. At this point in my life, about all I watch on TV is sports. I’m a cranky old man that just doesn’t enjoy modern TV programming anymore.

But, that aside, please provide your recommendations to others that are looking to make a switch due to the E$PN/YouTubeTV debacle.

One point I would like to touch on is syncing radio with TV in order to avoid the E$PN idiots that get assigned to our games. I have been using a SportSync radio made by Motorola. It can be delayed up to 60 seconds to sync up with the TV. It worked great when synced up with satellite or over-the-air-antenna. Syncing with a stream is much trickier. Not many people notice or even realize but streamed sports are not consistent timewise. The stream will shift ahead or behind and soon your radio is out of sync and you have to adjust through the game to stay in lock step. Plus the delay in streaming is ridiculously long as most everyone is aware.

Sadly my radio is on its last legs, they are no longer available and so I have found a replacement. I found this on eBay recently. I ordered one Saturday, I am supposed to receive it by Monday of next week, I’ll report back on how well it works. But, I’ll give a brief description of how it works. It began life as a portable radio. Some smart guy, that goes by the handle part_stasher on eBay, gutted it, and turned it into an audio delay device (it is NOT a radio). The device has 2 ports on it, one for an audio input from a radio or any other audio device that you want to delay. It does have a built-in working speaker but, the second port is an audio output that you can connect to a stereo receiver, a self-powered speaker, or heck, you can probably by a bluetooth adapter with an audio input jack and bluetooth it wherever you want. It can delay up to 160 seconds which should cover any broadcast/stream you watch.

I’m not going to get into details here on the blog but, I also recommend you look into sideloading apps on a Firestick, there are numerous tutorials online and it doesn’t require a degree in rocket surgery to understand it. I will also mention IPTV. A commenter on a Dawgs forum I read, recommended Uzzu. You can subscribe to most everything for $130 annually. They have apps for Android TV, Firestick, FireTV, Roku, TV Box, Chromecast, Xbox & Nvidia Shield. You can also subscribe for a week for $8.99. Which is probably what I am going to do just to check it out. If it works really well, I might just get an annual subscription. If not, I’m out 9 bucks.

So, have at it in the comments. What services do you use? Got any inexpensive recommendations to replace the overpriced fees that just keep going up and up for Big Streaming?

EDIT: The guy behind the Delay of Game device sent me this YouTube link that explains the device in more detail:

Go Dawgs!

42 thoughts on “I Got the Television Blues”

  1. BLESS you for taking care of your Dad.
    I use YouTube TV & simply signed up for Direct TV until this dispute is over.
    I have read that you can get ESPN & the SEC networks for $5.99 on a days pass at Sling.
    Would be interested in your audio delay device & experience.

  2. YOU MEAN YOU DON’T LIKE JOE TESSITORE?

    WHAT? I CANT HEAR YOU. JOE’S BEEN SHOUTING ABOUT AN OFF TACKLE PLAY FOR A THREE YARD GAIN.

  3. I’m like you Otis, except my main one is Direct TV. However, I have a wife and grandchildren so I also have Hulu, Disney plus, Espn, Prime, Roku, Netflex and just cut FUBO. I’d rather pay the price than my wife and grands not be able to see what they want.

  4. I went with Fubo last week so I could watch the game. I got their sports-only package, which will save me $20+ per month over YouTube TV. I’m cancelling YouTube tomorrow right before my next payment. I was going to give them time to figure things out, but it doesn’t look like they will any time soon.

  5. We were early adopters with streaming. We still stream, though judiciously. The family shares several accounts so the costs are spread out. I am able to see everything I want and still pay less than I used to pay for cable. Unfortunately, that’s getting harder and harder to do though. Streaming has simply adopted the old cable strategy of tiered pricing. To get that one really fantastic show you desperately want to watch you need to subscribe to something new. We only rarely give in. But adding one means dropping another. As various services hike their prices we move to lower cost options. It’s not too difficult to switch. There are no phone calls to moronic customer disservice representatives or in person visits to brick and mortar locations to switch out equipment. I know most of that never happens anymore even with Comcast/Xfinity put the PTSD from years of previous torture is real.

  6. I switched from Cable TV to FuboTV a few years ago when my provider dropped the regional sports channels that carried the Braves. Funny part about that is I worked for the provider and didn’t even have to pay for my video service. So I really had both until I quit working there.

    I still use FuboTV, but we also have several other streaming services like Netflix, Peacock, Paramount+, and ESPN+. I got ESPN+ years ago because I like watching SEC baseball and despite the fact ESPN requires providers to carry the alternate SECN channel they rarely have content on it which is baffling and could be used to show more college baseball. I actually got Peacock and Paramount for sports reasons originally also. Both those services had different names back then, but I got them for English Premier League and Champions League matches way back when.

    Like others here I mainly watch sports with the only network TV show we watch being Survivor. Everything thing else are series from streaming services or documentaries.

    Streaming basically costs as much as Cable TV now. I know my cost is high because we have so many of the services, but still. If you have FuboTV and one or two other services you are paying $130 or more per month. I do like Fubo’s functionality with recording games. You can choose to record based upon a team and it will record that team’s games no matter what channel the game is on which is nice.

    That is probably much more than anyone wanted to know about my viewing experience…lol.

    -Sanford222view

  8. I had been on YouTube tv since around 2018, but I switched to Fubo before the cocktail party & I actually like it better, so I plan to stick with it even after the ytv Mickey dispute gets sorted. More plan options, better multiview, regional sports networks, etc.

  9. I have recently seen a few blurbs on the web saying that Amazon will soon be blocking all side-loaded apps. One of the nice things about the Firestick, FireTV, etc was that you did not have to jailbreak the damned things to load an app from outside their “store.” Not sure if that will be true going forward. Anyway, I ran with YoutubeTV the last few years and split the cost with family. I just canceled it and had to pay Mickey directly for the next month. Good lord the ESPN app is such trash. I am hoping YoutubeTV gets Disney back. I don’t trust the pay-for illegal streaming apps for various reasons, so doubt I go down that route.

    • I would recommend checking out a free trial of FuboTV. The tier that is one step up from the bottom tier of service will get you all the sports channels to see anything you want (unless it has changed since I signed up a f ew years ago.) If you only need it for college football you can cancel after the season since it doesn’t have a contract locking you in for a year or anything.

    • One thing I didn’t think to mention, if you go down the Firestick rabbit hole and decide to explore the sideloading options, look into the VPN sideloads as well. I use IPVanish on mine. Hadn’t heard they were looking to shut that down. Will be a lot of unhappy people if they do.

  10. Now that life has slowed down a little my wife and I watch a lot of TV. I’m pretty sure we have all the streaming services except for Netflix, which we cancelled as none of the programs there interested us. I watch CFB on Hulu and the skycast option makes it worth the money.
    Slow Horses on Apple is a current favorite. Pluribus is promising.

  12. Xfinity is the devil I’ve kept knowing streaming would eventually cost the same or more. It’s hardly perfect but at least they’ve added multiview (but they set the 4 games, not the user). I stream Netflix and a few others through them as well.

    I’ve synched streaming radio with TV for years. The Georgiadogs app is streaming so I can delay it by simply hitting the pause button (rarely needed) or delay TV (most often) which the DVR does and just listen for the opening kick GO DAWGS to time things up.

    Long term it appears everything will be streaming app driven. The Xfinity equipment model is far too expensive of an infrastructure to maintain. AI in new TVs will be like Alexa/Siri and deliver whatever content you want, probably unbundled but with dynamic costs for what you choose. Like other industries the big players will soak up all sources of content so we’ll just choose from Disney, Apple or Amazon. More useless selection for a higher price! Then again, our AI robots will watch for us and deliver a summary. 🤪

  13. Antenna + HDHomeRun tuner; connects your antenna to your network, which you can then access via the HDHomeRun app or Plex.

    For ESPN/other broadcasts, I support SlingTV’s day or weekend pass. It’s the most consumer-conscious product we’ve seen in this space in a long time (which is also why Disney is suing them).

    We don’t watch much TV at all, mostly just Netflix & CFB on Saturdays. This setup has been great this year; I’ve only had to pay $18 to watch 3 Saturdays of football. Antenna has been great since the SEC moved to ABC.

    • SlingTV weekend is $10/weekend. That is $40/month. Why not just subscribe to ESPN+ for $30/month for football season and save $10??

      • I’ve been waiting for 2 years for ESPN to go DTC, and they finally did and Sling TV stole their thunder.

        The Day Pass ($5-6) works for me because I only need it a few days per season.

      • ESPN+ (now known as ESPN Select) doesn’t broadcast any of the content on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SEC Network , ACC Network, ESPN News. ESPN Select also doesn’t let you fast forward or rewind, and has limited replays of games. If you want to watch too 25 teams, get ESPN Unlimited which is $30/month and there’s a special offer of Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Unlimited for $30/month being offered right now. My main gripe is that there are too many commercials.

    • Yep. I can watch a whole season of UGA football for about what a month of Youtube TV costs.

  14. What has me interested in youtube and thinking ESPN maybe singling them out is there split screen options where you can have 4 channels on at once. Do the other streaming apps have this?

    I have streamed radios off of wsb on the Tuned In app on a music streeamer. I am in metro Atlanta and it may take loading the station a time or 2 to get the game broadcast, spuppose it is what server I hit. I have also streamed directly off WSB’s website using a 3.5mm to RCA conversion wire to my Home theater. Streaming often puts the radio broadcast behind the TV. So, I can delay the TV a couple of seconds and more less line up.

    • I haven’t seen any of the other apps/services with the multi-view. It’s one of those things that I never thought I needed, but I love it now.

  15. Cancelled YouTubetv on Saturday and got a $82 refund. Signed up for DIRECTVstream which will eventually be $90 a month after the trial price. It comes with espn unlimited. I could probably find something cheaper but I like the convenience.

    • That’s a good move for now but this will eventually happen to DIRECTV (and actually has not that long ago). I think that what makes Disney want to single out YTTV – in addition to the old contract being up which is their opportunity – is that YTTV has been cheaper than other full service streamers, and is more reliable and with more features such as multiview (see OTTO,below) and recordings that are available for 9 months which I have enjoyed during the off season. The mouse is now a rat in my book.

      • PIcture in picture was a thing in the 90s but then faded away. It is nice to see it make a comeback.

        I used to keep 2 TVs on. My primary game on a TV streamed through a PC logging into Comcast and then channel surf on the normal cable box and TV. I’m just not interested in that many games these days with the devalued regular season.

  16. If my keyboard skills were better I could write a book on this topic. But for right now, the thing that brings this up is the Disney/YouTubeTV fracas. I have loved almost everything about YTTV and am not moving yet because I have a couple of workarounds for our games that are a pain in the ass but doable as long as they are temporary.

    The only reason this situation exists is because Disney owns everything and they are holding carriers hostage like they are old school Standard Oil Monopolists. The only reason they can do that is because Greg Sankey sold the SEC TV rights to ESPN. I wouldn’t gara about this kerfuffle if CBS still did our games. FU Greg.

  17. I pay for a few other streaming services, but I’ve trimmed back in recent months. I only pay for YouTubeTV during the football season. I used the DirectTV free trial to watch the WLOCP, then cancelled it right after and used the SlingTV one day pass to watch the Miss St game. I’m thinking I’ll go with the SlingTV one day option moving forward. It beats paying $80 or $90 a month.

  18. I was an early adopter of YTTV when it was only $40 month. Ditched my Direct TV and saved over $100/month at the time. I am hesitant to give up on YTTV because I like the product I am able to share the account with my kids and save them $83/month. I also like how I can watch it on all of my devices, even while travelling. The golden lining of this mess is that it makes you take a look at what you actually use. I would be fine if YTTV dropped the Disney channels and adjusted the cost accordingly. I am also good with the one-day passes during football season because I have realized the only live programming on ESPN I really can’t do without is SEC football, and maybe FI (which is moving to Apple anyway). ESPN has some nice live events, but nothing that justifies the expense and endless price increases. Everything else on the network is screaming, gambling bullshit, and endless hot takes from people who are just trying to aggravate people.

  19. I’ve been streaming for almost 20 years now. Got tired of my DirectTV dish dropping signal in the spring and summer when the leaves came in or the wind blew. Started on Sling then moved to YTTV when it was $29/mo. – so a great bargain over DirectTV or Cabletown (Xfinity) at the time. Suffered thru the many price increases so that difference has disappeared.

    Only thing that’s kept me from dropping YTTV is it took about a year to teach the wife how to use the damn thing and she’s comfortable with it. I did test HuluTV a few months ago and their guide sucks. Did the free trial for Fubo and wasn’t overly impressed given their cost.

    May have to look again if YT doesn’t get Mickey sorted. Definite Iran/Iraq war situation: It’s a shame they both can’t lose.

  20. I have had Youtube TV about 10 years and loved it. the Multiview football games are great. When Disney went into attack mode, the only reason I had a hard time is we are not close enough to a major city to use a antenna to get ABC. My wife loves some of their shows and so I had to go for a bundle that got ABC. Got HULU+ Live tv but only put a pause on Youtube TV until they figure it out.

  21. I am old and don’t do computers and streaming devices well. I pay $116 a month for Dish. ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, ESPN- 2 -U, SEC Network, ACC and B1G ( I don’t watch them) Networks. As long as there is no rain all is good. 300+ channels and I watch Survivor, News and college football..Life is good.

  22. I do the firestick side load thing. I pay $120 a year for live tv. It can be a bit cumbersome at times but at that price I can deal with it. I set one up for my dad in NC so he can watch Falcons games. There is a lag though so when a game is close someone might text you a score while you’re watching. Think GA/TN this year and our 8 OT game with Tech last year. I got a “finally!” before the ball was snapped on the last play. Lol. Really about the only thing I don’t like is the lack of a DVR. We still have Netflix and Apple TV. Also, I use a service called Cinema HD to watch series that aren’t on either of those services (Land Man, Yellowstone, etc) and movies.

  23. I switched from yttv to Hulu Saturday morning. Hulu ain’t that damn user friendly. It’s a bit of a learning curve to figure out how to navigate between games. And I can’t figure out how to hide cartoon network and own so I don’t have to see all that stuff. Also I want to reorganize the channels to something that makes sense.

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