DirecTV NOW....A report

[rbertalotto]

DirecTV NOW.....A full report! Currently I have Comcast /Xfinity Cable at my house. I'm always searching for a way to cut the cable and be able to bring the various news shows with me and reduce my costs for internet and content at home. Xfinity offers a free service called "TV GO" that is supposed to allow you to watch whatever channels you are subscribed to on your personal device. But you have a 50/50 chance that it will be working when you want to use it. It is FREE only if you subscribe to the cable service at home.

DirecTV just launched DirecTV NOW this past week. Currently they offer a 7 day free trial service. And a promotional offer of 100 channels for $35 a month.

I signed up to give it a try.........So, to cut to the chase....in a word....FANTASTIC!

I used my Sprint HotSpot with only one bar of LTE, My Verizon MiFi with three bars, the Xfinity WiFi service (thousands of Xfinity WiFi hot Spots all over the country) and my TechnoRV ALFA 36 WiFi booster to my home WiFi router...........In all cases the performance was phenomenal! Takes a couple SECONDS to log on and begin seeing broadcasts. Picture quality is simply amazing for a streaming service.

I used AppleTV to "mirror" it from my Ipad mini to a 55" TV and video quality remained full HD.

To say I'm impressed would be an understatement!

But more importantly, I'm paying $69 a month for about 40 basic channels on my Comcast/Xfinity cable system. I would have cut the cable long ago, but we like Fox News, CNN and MSNBC and these were not available streaming reliably until now.

Now for the bad news. Using the "data used" screen on my Sprint MiFi unit, I used 86mB for 5 minutes of streaming.......That is about 1G an hour if my math is correct........You need an unlimited service or lots of Gigs if you are going to use this service remotely for any length of time. I'm not sure if AT&T, who how owns DTV, has a deal for this service? More research is needed.

Anyways...The future is now! Extreme high quality streaming with lots of selection for a reasonable price.

[Zulu]

Other reviews . . .

• DirecTV Now Isn’t The Cord-Cutting Solution You’re Looking For (TIME)
• Hands On With DirecTV Now, AT&T’s new streaming service for cord cutters (Tech Crunch)

Though TIME magazine kind of pans DirecTV Now (eg, CBS isn't offered), in passing TIME does mention that AT&T customers get their data "zero rated" -- which means whatever you stream over DirecTV Now does NOT count against your AT&T data limit.

That's a bingo!

[Mark and Dale Bruss]

Using the cost of various broadband usage packages trying to offset the cost of satellite TV is a false comparison. As an RVer, you cannot count on sufficient broadband capacity, regardless of the cost. You will not be in urban Internet systems any more.

[chiefneon]

Howdy!

 

I'm not familiar with DirecTV Now but we do have DTV premium package. We also have AT&T unlimited plan which is bundled with our DirecTV plan. Anyone know if we can use the DTV Now app without have to buy into it, as we are on DTV plan Now? I've tried to use DTV on my iPad and can acess movies and DTV shows, but cannot view TV channels. Would be nice to be able to do this with the DTV Now without have to buy into it. One problem I have totally cutting the cord with my DTV satellite is when we don't get a very good AT&T Signal. We have that problem at our homebase at the Escapees in Livingston.

 

"Happy Trails"

Chiefneon

[chuckbear]

You don't get local channels in most markets and no CBS anywhere. You can not record or DVR or use pause for more than 5 second. No fast forwarding or rewinding. There are no sports channels and many sports broadcasts are blacked out. The price will go up after the introductory offer and the number of channels will go down. To quote Mark and Dale, a very important consideration, "Using the cost of various broadband usage packages trying to offset the cost of satellite TV is a false comparison. As an RVer, you cannot count on sufficient broadband capacity, regardless of the cost. You will not be in urban Internet systems any more." I'll ask Roy the same questions I ask on the other forums he is posting his "report" on. Have you used this in other than your one location? How did it perform in other areas? How did it perform in fringe areas where weak or only 3G signals were available? You will need another device to get the signal from your phone or tablet to the TV. What happens when that device doesn't work as advertised? Your stuck watching TV on your smartphone. Can you get local network channels either where you are or anyplace you have traveled? Beware of all the marketing hype before you make any major decisions. Sitting in one spot and determining the performance of this new product is really not a true test. The true test would be to take it on the road since your posting your results on RV forums. Just because it works well sitting in Roy's living room doesn't mean it's going to work just as well for others under different circumstances. I'm not trying to put down your report, I'm sure it worked well for you. But others in different areas are going to have a completely opposite experience. Chuck

[chuckbear]

Chiefneon, You pay extra for this service. It isn't included with anything else. Chuck

[chiefneon]

Chiefneon, You pay extra for this service. It isn't included with anything else. Chuck

Howdy!

 

Church, thanks. It's all new to me about DTV Now. I'll have my LW check with AT&T as she is a retiree as they do offer some things to them.

 

"Happy Trails"

Chiefneon

[Biker56]

 

Now for the bad news. Using the "data used" screen on my Sprint MiFi unit, I used 86mB for 5 minutes of streaming.......That is about 1G an hour

So a Full Timer would need a Hot Spot that would have around 720GB a month available to stream 24/7?

 

Haven't seen any cell service advertise lately for a unlimited Hotspot.

 

With my Sprint Hotspot I can add 30GB for $110. So to get 720GB that would only be a extra $2,640 a month.

 

I think I will stay with my Trav'ler dish with DirecTV 155 channels, DNS both coast, HD, Whole Home and DVR service for much less a month.

And works at places that don't have any cell service.

[StarDreamers.us]

WOW! I wonder if some of the reports being posted on the web sites are real or just a sham poster?? In the past some seemed like an ad for someone's product. If it seems to good to be true, you decide.

 

Safe Travels!

[rbertalotto]

Folks...Calm right down now.....First, if you have AT&T or T Mobile phone this service does not count against your data use.

 

DTV is in negotiations with CBS for service. Just a matter of time. You can still use a OTA antenna for lots of local channels in many places.

 

Costs will go down not up as more and more competition enters the marketplace. Don't forget, with "streaming" the cost of entry is simply content. No bucket trucks, satellites, guys in shirts with names on pocket.........

 

You can kick and scream all you want, but streaming video is here and will dominate how you receive TV in the very near future.

 

I don't have a horse in this race, simply reporting what I know. I work in the video distribution field for Casinos, Hotels, Apt Buildings, College Dorm and anywhere else there are lots and lots of TVs that need content delivered to them. For the past 8 years that meant digital RF over a coax infrastructure. In the last year it has moved at lightspeed to a IP transmission protocol over CAT wire or fiber. This has happened so fast it was difficult keeping up being a manufacturer.

 

I work with DTV folks everyday as they are the prefered content providers in most of the facilities I deal with. They know this is coming and DISH Sling, HBO Now, DirecTV NOW, and dozens of others are only the tip of the iceberg. Get yourself an Amazon FireStick with KODI and just look at the plethora of streaming content providers operating just under the surface. There are hundreds of them. Sort of like the automobile industry in the 1920. There were hundreds of car manufacturers.......a few survived.

 

I have now used my DirecTV NOW service with a Sprint HotSpot and a Verizon HotSpot and on my phone and Ipad mini and at various service areas and restaurants that have free WiFi. While traveling from New Hampshire to southern New Jersey. All I can say is it is simply amazing how well it works. Last night my wife and I were out to dinner at a little restaurant with free WiFi and we watched Fox News at our table on the Ipad mini. Fantastic...I didn't even have to talk to her.....

[chuckbear]

While DirecTV apps will work on the T-Mobile network without counting against data under their binge plan, DirecTV Now is not yet included. Chuck

[RMD3819]

So a Full Timer would need a Hot Spot that would have around 720GB a month available to stream 24/7?

 

Haven't seen any cell service advertise lately for a unlimited Hotspot.

 

With my Sprint Hotspot I can add 30GB for $110. So to get 720GB that would only be a extra $2,640 a month.

 

I think I will stay with my Trav'ler dish with DirecTV 155 channels, DNS both coast, HD, Whole Home and DVR service for much less a month.

And works at places that don't have any cell service.

 

 

 

 

You can still buy a Verizon unlimited plan on the secondary market. I did and it is fantastic.

[chuckbear]

Everyone just needs to understand that this is NOT a replacement for your satellite system and WILL NOT give you the same services and options. If you don't need those services and options and are willing to accept the limitations and potential issues, it might work for you. If you happy with what you have and don't want to settle for less, stay with what you have. And feel comfortable in the fact that it will be around for a very long time. Chuck

[rbertalotto]

While DirecTV apps will work on the T-Mobile network without counting against data under their binge plan, DirecTV Now is not yet included. Chuck

I spoke to T mobile about this and they said since it operates off an APP, it does not count against data. The president and CEO of T-Mobile left a message on one of the forums voicing the same thing

 

Here is the T-Mobile CEO Tweet:

 

 

T-Mobile CEO John Legerre tweeted about AT&T's DirecTV Now announcement: "It’s an APP, people! Of course it’s better on @TMobile …and like ALL apps, use it data-free with #TMobileONE!!"