Worth streaming video on consoles?

[EricBall]

I'm not a streaming subscriber, I find I already have enough content. However, IMHO your best chance of a long term solution is a device running Android TV (not just a reskinned / modified version of Android) with the Google Play store. My logic is then the software is provided by the streaming company, not the device seller; and the software is not specific to the device - meaning a larger user population. Hopefully this means the software will be updated to support new features etc for a longer time.

[spacecadet]

I'm not a streaming subscriber, I find I already have enough content. However, IMHO your best chance of a long term solution is a device running Android TV (not just a reskinned / modified version of Android) with the Google Play store. My logic is then the software is provided by the streaming company, not the device seller; and the software is not specific to the device - meaning a larger user population. Hopefully this means the software will be updated to support new features etc for a longer time.

 

It's actually kind of the opposite in my experience, though it probably depends on the specific device itself. But consider the fact that most Android TV's have literally a one year product cycle (that is, they're replaced with new models every year), so there's no incentive for the manufacturer to keep updating the OS. Most get about 2 years at most; just enough to make sure it doesn't hit their reputation (which would prevent people from buying a current TV from them).

 

I have an Android TV right now (a Sony XBR900XE). It's not getting any more OS updates; I'm pretty sure that's actually been announced publicly. So the problem then is that the app makers stop supporting that version of the OS at some point, and usually more quickly than you would think.

 

Android TV is the same as Android itself when it comes to app support; the app requires a certain version of the OS to run. If you have an older Android device, then you know a lot of apps won't run on it. I also have an Android TV stick that's only a few years old, and it supports the Play store; nothing runs on it anymore. I mean, none of the major streaming apps. So I stopped using that. I also have a couple of older tablets; same thing. ("Older" being relative; like 3-4 years old.)

 

Game consoles at least have a 5-6 year lifecycle, so they have support for longer. And you can usually get a couple years beyond that out of them for app support. My PS3 still runs Netflix fine last I checked, for example. I strongly doubt that'll be the case for my TV 12 years after its release.

[MrMaddog]

Here's my update...

 

I got an Xbox One for Christmas and it's great for streaming. It uses the same apps from the Microsoft Store (like the Weather app) and no problem using YouTube or Vudu. Plus having a cable box hooked in lets my watch news programs quickly w/o messing around with the TV input button.

 

I am trusting MS to still support the apps & games in future Xbox consoles, and if not then I'll just a Roku stick. But for now I don't no complaints about using the Xbone as a HTPC.

[derFunkenstein]

Up until we got a smart TV (basically a requirement if you want 4k) we used consoles for 100% of our streaming needs. Now not so much, since the smart TV is running the Roku OS and the apps are good.

[EricBall]

It's actually kind of the opposite in my experience, though it probably depends on the specific device itself. But consider the fact that most Android TV's have literally a one year product cycle (that is, they're replaced with new models every year), so there's no incentive for the manufacturer to keep updating the OS. Most get about 2 years at most; just enough to make sure it doesn't hit their reputation (which would prevent people from buying a current TV from them).

 

I was referring to Android TV devices like the Nvidia Shield rather than TVs with Android / Android TV built in. I agree with you that "smart" TVs often have short lifespans when it comes to streaming.

 

However, I didn't realize that Android TV was first announced back in the summer of 2014; and it doesn't look like there has been much recently - not a good sign for a long term plan unfortunately.

 

Yeah, Android (and Google Play Services) does suffer from upgrade obsolescence. I'd recommend an Apple TV - except it's not supported by all streaming content providers.

[0078265317]

Actually we still got till 31st.

 

https://www.cnet.com/news/no-more-netflix-on-wii-nintendo-shuts-down-streaming-for-the-console-in-january/

[Hyper_Eye]

Here's my update...

 

I got an Xbox One for Christmas and it's great for streaming. It uses the same apps from the Microsoft Store (like the Weather app) and no problem using YouTube or Vudu. Plus having a cable box hooked in lets my watch news programs quickly w/o messing around with the TV input button.

 

I am trusting MS to still support the apps & games in future Xbox consoles, and if not then I'll just a Roku stick. But for now I don't no complaints about using the Xbone as a HTPC.

 

If you are using an Xbox One you might want to try out YouTube TV. You should be able to watch your news programs and potentially save some money compared to that cable bill. I dumped DirecTV last year and am using both YouTube TV and Philo TV though I would be content with just YouTube TV.

Edited January 9, 2019 by Hyper_Eye

[power]

consoles suck way too much juice to be a viable streaming machine. unless nintendo open up more streaming apps for switch i'd be using a different machine.

 

current best streaming device is the shield tv

 

https://www.nvidia.com/en-au/shield/shield-tv/

[NinjaWarrior]

I have no working PC right now

 

Twitch is broken on my PS3, So I can't use that

 

I only could use YouTube and Netflix on my PS3

[Games Retrospect]

I use YouTube and Plex on my Xbox One. It's fine and I'm pretty sure there are better ways to experience those sites. The thing that kills me though is that you never know for how long you'll be able to use them. If Microsoft ever discontinues those apps, I better find a Roku or something.

[Tanooki]

The only reason I even have a Playstation 3 or 4 anymore is streaming video and using blu-rays(and a few dvds) at this point. They work great for netflix and amazon prime video, and the optical players in both are fantastic.

[TheCoolDave]

You can use a 360 with Windows Media Center on a PC...and you can watch live TV, recorded DVR and lots of other things with a remote.... (you do need a Windows 7/8.1 PC that has Windows Media Center and a TV tuner etc.)