Rick Dangerous Posted June 27, 2019 Share Posted June 27, 2019 So....it seems like consoles are a poor investment to use as multi-media boxes. It looks like as soon as they are no longer supported, streaming companies are pulling the plug very fast on their support for them. Which is crazy because cheap 10 year old blu ray players will still work just fine. So far I have stumbled across: Wii: Netflix Wii U: Hulu PS Vita: Hulu What others have you encountered? Does anyone else find this to be a bit of a joke/frustrating? It takes away some pretty major functionality from these machines. Just more of the joys of modern gaming/media i guess. I should probably feel lucky the OEM's don't add firmware updates bricking their ability to play DVD's/Blu Rays once they are no longer supported. Thoughts? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonGrafx-16 Posted June 28, 2019 Share Posted June 28, 2019 Jokes on them my Blu-Ray player isn't even hooked up to the internet lol 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrMaddog Posted June 28, 2019 Share Posted June 28, 2019 Had the same problem on the 360 because the hardware was no longer supported. Either apps get pulled and stopped working on the ones that are still current (like YouTube) act very wonky. At least with the Xbox One the games and apps (both streaming & Windows 10) will still be supported on the upcoming next-gen version, so I feel comfortable using it as a HTPC. If worse comes to worse, I'll just get a cheap Roku... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn Posted June 28, 2019 Share Posted June 28, 2019 PS2: Netflix 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flojomojo Posted June 28, 2019 Share Posted June 28, 2019 15 hours ago, travistouchdown said: Does anyone else find this to be a bit of a joke/frustrating? No. Not in a world where can get an Amazon Fire stick for $25. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boxpressed Posted June 28, 2019 Share Posted June 28, 2019 Xbox 360 and PS3 dropped HBO Go support this year, so I replaced them as streaming boxes with a used Xbox One. I also have a 4K Fire Stick, but I like the optical audio out of the consoles. A few years ago, a used Xbox 360 Slim was about $70, and now a used Xbox One is about $80-$100. So it's annoying but not the end of the world. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesD Posted June 29, 2019 Share Posted June 29, 2019 Same thing happened with some smart TVs. I deleted the remaining apps from my "smart" TVs, and picked up a couple ROKUs for free with SlingTV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flojomojo Posted June 29, 2019 Share Posted June 29, 2019 The Amazon and Netflix apps on my 2012 Panasonic screens were such hot garbage right from the start, I never used them. I wonder if they even work at all now. Did is you guys catch the "news" stories about Samsung's deleted tweet that said you should run antivirus checks on their so-called smart TVs? ? i assume it's now safe to drop the "smart" prefix for any internet connected device, right? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krslam Posted June 29, 2019 Share Posted June 29, 2019 I hope the Amazon Prime app keeps working on my WiiU. It's about the only way I can do streaming on my old non-HDMI gaming TV without upgrading several other components. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flojomojo Posted June 29, 2019 Share Posted June 29, 2019 28 minutes ago, krslam said: I hope the Amazon Prime app keeps working on my WiiU. It's about the only way I can do streaming on my old non-HDMI gaming TV without upgrading several other components. I wonder if the old Roku devices with analog connectors are still cheap and easy to find? And working/supported, of course. Edit: looks like they make something for exactly this purpose. And it's cheap. https://www.roku.com/products/roku-express-plus 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesD Posted June 29, 2019 Share Posted June 29, 2019 FWIW, I have a ROKU express that is a few years old, and it works pretty well. The one disadvantage, is that if you have a lot of apps on it, there isn't enough built in memory to hold them all. If you access an app that isn't in storage, it has to download the app again. The newer ROKU express has a lot more internal storage, so it's not much of an issue. My ROKU 3 lets you plug in an SD card, so that's never an issue on it. I haven't tried any of the models that support composite. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesD Posted June 29, 2019 Share Posted June 29, 2019 BTW, I have VIZIO tvs, and the company got caught tracking users, and selling the data without telling people they were doing it. Or something like that anyway. I still use the weather app but that's about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krslam Posted June 29, 2019 Share Posted June 29, 2019 9 hours ago, Flojomojo said: I wonder if the old Roku devices with analog connectors are still cheap and easy to find? And working/supported, of course. Edit: looks like they make something for exactly this purpose. And it's cheap. https://www.roku.com/products/roku-express-plus That looks perfect. Thanks for the tip. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrMaddog Posted June 30, 2019 Share Posted June 30, 2019 11 hours ago, JamesD said: BTW, I have VIZIO tvs, and the company got caught tracking users, and selling the data without telling people they were doing it. Or something like that anyway. I still use the weather app but that's about it. That's easy to fix, just go into settings and turn off the ACR. And as long as you do not use their smartphone app you should be ok. I never smart TV apps since A.) the interface is slow compaired to other devices and B.) they never get updated unless it's for spying purposes. The only "use" I have for a smart TV is for casting YouTube videos from my phone onto the larger flatscreen... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+-^CrossBow^- Posted July 3, 2019 Share Posted July 3, 2019 Had a decent Sony Blu-ray player that was cheap from Sams Club a few years back that we used for watching HBO Go and Netflix in the bedroom. About a year after we got it, Netflix would give some crazy error. Looked it up and found lots more people complaining about it. Turned out, Sony and other manufactures were having to pay some licensing to keep the apps running on their devices. As a result, Sony in this case decided to not renew that license for the netflix app on this particular blu-ray player model as it wasn't a strong seller for them I guess? I've noticed it started to do the same with my 2015 Sony Bravia 4k TV as well. So yeah...the online apps through smart TVs and the like can and will likely be cut off without notice once the companies behind them don't want to pay to have the apps usable on said devices. Luckily we replaced that 2015 TV about 6 months ago with a 2018 model so it should be okay for a while and although it was slower to use, my 2017 Oppo Blu-ray player's apps were still working at last check I just needed to sign back in since we had changed our passwords since using them last. 2 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanooki Posted July 4, 2019 Share Posted July 4, 2019 Speaking of this, related, yet not console based. This has been also reaching its clutches out into the world of wifi enable blu-ray and dvd players too. As of July 1st, Hulu has put a push out to disable and when possible ERASE their app from players from 2016 and before, even some as new as 2018 depending on the internal hardware makeup of the device. We just cut the cable here 3 days ago, and went have gone antenna + Hulu (I got Sling for myself out of pocket) and we retained Netflix and due to Prime, their video too. When I went to enable Hulu on 2 different Samsung players from 2016 and before on the 30th they worked and showed up that evening. On the 1st one player (mine in here) ERASED the entire tool completely while at first redirecting to the next tile (VUDU) so I erased that too, and the older one it just disabled it and it kicks an error. I got confused, went google digging and learned about the cut off (amazing timing, made me think something was broken.) Had to make an unexpected Fire Stick HD pick up for the back room over that crap. >:\ 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eltigro Posted July 4, 2019 Share Posted July 4, 2019 About four years back, I got a Roku for my girlfriend so she could watch her Netflix and such on her TV instead of having to use her phone or computer. She loved it. Flash forward to about two years ago, she gets a new smart TV (Vizio I think)... she still uses her Roku. She's gotten used to the Roku's remote and menus or whatever and prefers it over the TV's. There are times when the Roku is acting up, though and she is forced to use the TV. lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pacman000 Posted July 4, 2019 Share Posted July 4, 2019 On June 28, 2019 at 5:01 AM, Flojomojo said: No. Not in a world where can get an Amazon Fire stick for $25. Ah, but if you expected the ap to continue to work as long as the hardware does that's still an extra cost. Especially for the Wii U. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pacman000 Posted July 4, 2019 Share Posted July 4, 2019 Don't most of these services have a web-based version? Couldn't an enterprising device maker just provide a browser with bookmarks leading to major streaming services? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flojomojo Posted July 4, 2019 Share Posted July 4, 2019 23 minutes ago, pacman000 said: Don't most of these services have a web-based version? Couldn't an enterprising device maker just provide a browser with bookmarks leading to major streaming services? That's pretty much what most of the streaming services are, a video stream in a custom front-end wrapper for authentication and maybe a little copy protection. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn Posted July 7, 2019 Share Posted July 7, 2019 On 6/29/2019 at 10:47 AM, Flojomojo said: I wonder if the old Roku devices with analog connectors are still cheap and easy to find? And working/supported, of course. Roku 2 XS has both composite and HDMI outputs. I have one and it still works like a champ. It supports both wifi and ethernet connections too. Micro SD card slot for extra storage space to boot. I have 10 or 11 channels\apps on it (including Netflix and Amazon) plus a couple games. The built in storage covers all that just fine. I have a micro SD sitting around for it just is case I ever need it but I don't see that need coming up anytime soon. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Omega-TI Posted July 8, 2019 Share Posted July 8, 2019 On 7/4/2019 at 2:21 PM, Flojomojo said: That's pretty much what most of the streaming services are, a video stream in a custom front-end wrapper for authentication and maybe a little copy protection. What's copy protection? A good cheap screen grabber like <<THIS>> will copy EVERYTHING you can watch... in real time with a decent computer. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick Dangerous Posted July 9, 2019 Author Share Posted July 9, 2019 My 2012 Samsung Blu-Ray player is still my primary Netflix/Hulu box, so i got lucky with that one. And as someone mentioned the Amazon Prime app on Wii U still does work. But basically; it doesn't make any sense to invest in the "Smart" side of a device, be it a TV or a Blu-Ray player, or Game Console, because they are going to stop working sooner rather than later, mainly due to licensing and low consumer, etc. Seems like for streaming; a cheap Roku, Fire Stick, Chromecast etc is best, and when it stops working in 5 years (if it does even) then another 25-$50 for a new one isn't that big a loss. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krslam Posted July 24, 2019 Share Posted July 24, 2019 And I just got a notice from Amazon that they won't support the WiiU as of Sept 26, so it's a good thing I bought that Roku. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted July 24, 2019 Share Posted July 24, 2019 On 6/27/2019 at 2:50 PM, travistouchdown said: So....it seems like consoles are a poor investment to use as multi-media boxes. It looks like as soon as they are no longer supported, streaming companies are pulling the plug very fast on their support for them. Which is crazy because cheap 10 year old blu ray players will still work just fine. So far I have stumbled across: Wii: Netflix Wii U: Hulu PS Vita: Hulu What others have you encountered? Does anyone else find this to be a bit of a joke/frustrating? It takes away some pretty major functionality from these machines. Just more of the joys of modern gaming/media i guess. I should probably feel lucky the OEM's don't add firmware updates bricking their ability to play DVD's/Blu Rays once they are no longer supported. Thoughts? I still have my Netflix disc for the Wii. I wonder if that will be worth anything in the future? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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