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CES 2015 - Sling TV

Looking for opinions on what everyone thinks is the best Roku model to buy? I'm not gonna play games or use the headphone jack on the Roku 2 or 3, but is there a noticeable difference when watching apps like SlingTV, Netflix or Hulu between each model?

I'm leaning toward buying the Roku Stick, but if I could get some insight or opinions that would help.
 
jbhtexas said:
Just curious how everyone's experience was last night watching the OU game.

We got our invite last weekend, and watched a number of shows without trouble (PC driving HD TV). However, the game feed was choppy last night, and there were a couple of freeze-ups with a duration of about 30 seconds. Picture quality was very good though. My internet speed seemed fine with SpeedTest, and we had no choppiness problems with Amazon Prime.
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I had two freeze-ups. One about 5 seconds and the other I waited about 20 before I closed the app and went back in. This is on a very good wired connection. They just went public, so I'll give them a pass. But, if it's a continual problem, I'll definitely be contacting them.

The strange part is I watched ESPNU for the Baylor game, and used it last weekend and didn't have any issues. I'm going to guess it's a growing pain since they likely had a lot of new users yesterday. We'll see what happens!
 
I used it last night for the Duke game and your game. Had a few freezes and "catching up" issues, but nothing too bad. All the other channels worked flawlessly. Like Huntt said, they get a pass from me since it was their first public day, I'm sure we will see some kinks getting ironed out for a bit. Using a Roku3 on a wired connection, BTW.
 
huntt26 said:
I had two freeze-ups. One about 5 seconds and the other I waited about 20 before I closed the app and went back in. This is on a very good wired connection. They just went public, so I'll give them a pass. But, if it's a continual problem, I'll definitely be contacting them.

The strange part is I watched ESPNU for the Baylor game, and used it last weekend and didn't have any issues. I'm going to guess it's a growing pain since they likely had a lot of new users yesterday. We'll see what happens!
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Kind of what I was thinking myself. Hopefully it clears up...
 
PeterCatfish said:
Looking for opinions on what everyone thinks is the best Roku model to buy? I'm not gonna play games or use the headphone jack on the Roku 2 or 3, but is there a noticeable difference when watching apps like SlingTV, Netflix or Hulu between each model?

I'm leaning toward buying the Roku Stick, but if I could get some insight or opinions that would help.
Click to expand...

I don't own a Roku, but here's a link to their blog http://blog.roku.com/blog/2015/02/09/sling-tv-now-available-in-the-u-s-channel-store/

It says you need a current generation Roku to use the service. Looks like that includes Roku 1, 2, 3, LT, Roku TVs from Hisense and TCL, Roku Streaming Sticks, HS, XS and XD.

I would guess you'd be fine using the stick - but if possible, for any video streaming it's good to get a device that you can wire up to your network for the most dependable connection. Again, I don't have a Roku, but if I did, I would pick the Roku 2 or 3. Here's a comparison https://www.roku.com/products/compare then you can base it on your specific needs.
 
any updates on this? is it worth it right now? the deals are pretty good but not sure i want to shell out the scratch for a crap product.
 
Firefighter4Cy said:
any updates on this? is it worth it right now? the deals are pretty good but not sure i want to shell out the scratch for a crap product.
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It's worth it, especially for the free Fire TV stick that was posted. I've had a few, minor hiccups while watching. Nothing that has me even considering stopping service.
 
I'll wait to see what kind of audio quality comes along with this.

Currently, on any streaming audio source I can hear the compression on the file.

Then again I have custom build speakers with 2" compression driver and 15" woofers. They are hyper-sensitive and display every sound with clarity.

Listening to Netflix audio is like listening to a 128k mp3 through those speakers.
 
Gorm said:
I'll wait to see what kind of audio quality comes along with this.

Currently, on any streaming audio source I can hear the compression on the file.

Then again I have custom build speakers with 2" compression driver and 15" woofers. They are hyper-sensitive and display every sound with clarity.

Listening to Netflix audio is like listening to a 128k mp3 through those speakers.
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Here's the technical details I found online. Hopefully this helps you out. You can also do a free trial of the service if you wanted to try.

[h=2]ESPN 1 & 2[/h]
  • Resolution: 1216 x 684
  • Framerate: 59.94fps
  • Target Bitrate: 4.5Mbps
  • Profile: Level 4.0 High
  • Reference frames: 4
  • B frames: 3
  • CABAC: yes
  • x264 Preset: Medium
  • x264 Tune: Film
  • Audio: 192kbps 48KHz stereo AAC
[h=2]TNT, TBS, HGTV, Food, Travel, CNN, CN/AS, ABC Family, Galavision[/h]
  • Resolution: 1280 x 720
  • Framerate: 29.97fps
  • Target Bitrate: 3.5Mbps
  • Profile: Level 4.0 High
  • Reference frames: 4
  • B frames: 3
  • CABAC: yes
  • x264 Preset: Slow
  • x264 Tune: Film
  • Audio: 192kbps 48KHz stereo AAC
 
Is anyone who is using this also using it with Google Fiber (5 mps speed)? I plan on switching from my Uverse connection of 6mps to the free google fiber that my apartment is getting. I am interested in this service and want to know if the google fiber would be fast enough.
 
SCNCY said:
Is anyone who is using this also using it with Google Fiber (5 mps speed)? I plan on switching from my Uverse connection of 6mps to the free google fiber that my apartment is getting. I am interested in this service and want to know if the google fiber would be fast enough.
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I wouldn't want to try it with 5mbps. I believe Netflix recommends a minimum of 5mbps for HD content.
 
SCNCY said:
Is anyone who is using this also using it with Google Fiber (5 mps speed)? I plan on switching from my Uverse connection of 6mps to the free google fiber that my apartment is getting. I am interested in this service and want to know if the google fiber would be fast enough.
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You have access to Google Fiber and you don't pay for the Gigabit!?!? But no, 5mbps is probably not fast enough to do it reliably.
 
Gorm said:
Yep...the compression will be there. Lets be honest though, there probably isn't enough room for uncompressed audio yet on streaming...
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Yeah, maybe someday! The data network infrastructure needs a lot of help in the United States.

The best audio quality I've found is from the OTA antenna. Do cable and dish companies compress quite a bit from their boxes?
 
Anyone have a recommendation for either the Fire TV stick versus the Roku stick? Not an Amazon prime member, but interested in interface/performance/other available content.
 
Cyclone711 said:
Anyone have a recommendation for either the Fire TV stick versus the Roku stick? Not an Amazon prime member, but interested in interface/performance/other available content.
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I think they're basically the same as far as I know.
 
Cyclone711 said:
Anyone have a recommendation for either the Fire TV stick versus the Roku stick? Not an Amazon prime member, but interested in interface/performance/other available content.
Click to expand...

They're fairly similar interfaces - I think I read the Fire Stick has much better performance than the Roku stick.
 
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