home theater, cord cutting, video streaming, a/v tech, and more!

[skullman80]

Verizon FiOS and NBC solved their spat in the Pittsburgh area and NBC is back.

[mac5155]

If only this had WiFi.

Wait, what does this do?

I have ethernet at all televisions, and 4 in my main area.

[Viva la Ben]

It’s a box with 4 OTA tuners and 1 TB of DVR space. You connect the antenna to the box and then the box to your router via wired ethernet. You’d use apps on your devices to stream all yer locals.
https://www.silicondust.com/product/hdh ... be-quatro/

[mac5155]

It’s a box with 4 OTA tuners and 1 TB of DVR space. You connect the antenna to the box and then the box to your router via wired ethernet. You’d use apps on your devices to stream all yer locals.
https://www.silicondust.com/product/hdh ... be-quatro/

Why would I need 4 OTA tuners, out of curiosity?

[dodint]

DVR multiple channels at the same time.

[mac5155]

Ah.

Honestly, I've never DVRd much of anything.

[NTP66]

You bumpkin.

[NTP66]

https://mspoweruser.com/samsung-announc ... -bezel-tv/

Samsung has officially announced the 2020 QLED 8K TV (Q950TS) at CES 2020. The main highlight of the 2020 QLED 8K TV is its infinity design that eliminates the screen bezel completely.

[willeyeam]

Oh wow

[blackjack68]

That’ll take some getting used to for me...not that I’ll be getting on anytime soon.

[Viva la Ben]

Ah.

Honestly, I've never DVRd much of anything.

The non DVR version is $150....4 tuners would be for 4 different devices steaming simultaneously.

Today is the last day my AttTV now is active.

[NTP66]

It’s cool and all, but maybe fix your **** smart tv software first?

[eddy]

https://mspoweruser.com/samsung-announc ... -bezel-tv/

Samsung has officially announced the 2020 QLED 8K TV (Q950TS) at CES 2020. The main highlight of the 2020 QLED 8K TV is its infinity design that eliminates the screen bezel completely.

Pretty. With 4k media still just a small slice of the pie, I wonder if we'll see 8k as streaming only?

[NTP66]

Man, we only have a handful of 4K streaming options right now with little content. 8k is a pipe dream.

[AuthorTony]

8k streaming would likely be inferior to 4K physical media, right? I understand that streaming is convenient but every time I rent a 4K movie on Amazon and see pixelization, etc, I'm reminded why I still buy discs. I don't see the point in buying bigger TVs with higher resolution, etc. when the streams are so mediocre.

[NTP66]

It all comes down to compression. More compression will negate some of the benefits. I’ve got gigabit fiber-based Internet. Lower the compression drastically and let me enjoy content.

Have multiple versions of content available and allow users to opt in for uncompressed streams should they choose so.

[eddy]

Sounds like Vizio is getting into the OLED game as well

[mac5155]

Ah.

Honestly, I've never DVRd much of anything.

The non DVR version is $150....4 tuners would be for 4 different devices steaming simultaneously.

Today is the last day my AttTV now is active.

So basically what I'm looking for is one of those silicondust HD homerun things?

It'll allow me to plug into it with coax/antenna and an ethernet, then connect to it wirelessly from other connected (to my wifi network) devices?

[Viva la Ben]

That is correct sir.

[mac5155]

Sweet, thanks!! Do they go on sale often? I don't need a 4-tuner 1.5TB DVR model.

[NTP66]

TiVo just announced their very first 4k streaming stick. Years too late, IMO, and there's no mention of D+ being available on it. I love my TiVos, but they have been stagnant for so long in this arena.

[DigitalGypsy66]

Weird thing with Netflix yesterday. The third season of Occupied came out last Friday - it's a Norwegian show set in the near future where Russia invades Norway to take control of the gas/oil production (which was shut down by a Green party newly elected Prime Minister). Well, Russia issued a statement during the first season damning the show and saying it was unrealistic and so on.

So I watched an episode at lunch, and the show was gone from Netflix at dinner. Gone from my recent shows, but a titlecard was still available with no play features. Evidently, someone flipped the switch to off for the US (it's a Netflix production, so it should always be available). For some viewers, it shut off mid-episode.

Anyway, it's back this morning. Very odd. I've never seen that kind of thing before.

[Dickie Dunn]

Interesting (and IMO smart) move from Verizon.

Verizon is changing how it sells cable and internet by getting rid of annual contracts and letting customers pay by the month for the cable and internet plans they want, the company announced Thursday. Previously, customers could buy internet or cable separately but were often kept inside a contract to get the best prices. After the contract expired, prices often increased.

Under the new pricing tiers, customers mix and match internet and TV plans.

There are three internet plans that range from $39.99 per month to $79.99 per month, depending on the speeds available where you live. Three cable TV plans range from $50 per month to $90 per month and vary on how many channels you want.

Under the most expensive cable-TV plan, Fios customers get access to more than 425 channels. Verizon is also offering YouTube TV as an option, which costs $49.99 per month after a one-month free trial and offers more than 70 channels.

The changes are an attempt to prevent customers from moving away from traditional cable-TV and turning to cheaper streaming services that don’t lock consumers into contracts.

Verizon still charges customers for things they don’t have to pay for with streaming services, though, like a monthly cable box rentals that start at $12 per month per box and are required if you sign up for one of the Fios TV services. Customers who sign up for YouTube TV don’t have those fees, however.

[NTP66]

I'm wary of this because my FiOS price has gone up less than $20 over 7+ years via contracts.

[Viva la Ben]

I still have a year on my contract with Fios internet only...I’m paying 59.99 for 100/100...I’m curious to see what you get for 39.99