On the advice of someone in the comments the last time I posted on the subject, I finally revisited YouTube TV, and discovered it is indeed now available in Atlanta and is compatible with Roku.
I signed up for the seven-day free trial yesterday. Fifteen minutes later, I cancelled my Hulu subscription.
It was a close to a no-brainer as I’ve had in a while: more channels to my liking, a superior user interface, a more robust DVR function and better signal quality. Basic package channels includes several of the ESPN listings, the SEC Network, Fox and a couple of random options from NBS and CBS. All for five bucks a month less.
A pleasant surprise.
Get The Picture 
I love the DVR function of YouTube TV.
And for anyone considering it, they’re raising the price by $5/mo on March 13th but if you sign up before then, the lower price will be locked in. (Currently $35/mo, going to $40/mo on the 13th).
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Bluto, are they still running the free Chromecast promotion? When I signed up, once you made your first monthly payment after the trial period, they sent you a Chromecast.
I still like Roku better overall than the Chromecast, but I like the Chromecast more and more over time, and it’s perfect for any extra tv’s in the house if you already have one of the other streaming devices.
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I didn’t see a Chromecast promotion when I signed up.
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Gotcha, must have ended that promotion.
That being said, if you have any extra tv’s you need to stream to, you can’t go wrong with the Chromecast. I still prefer my Roku on my main tv, but for bedroom tv’s and so forth, I really like the Chromecast.
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Is it 60fps for sports?
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According to this piece, 60fps is currently limited to ESPN channels, Fox and Fox Sports channels, and the Big Ten Network.
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Ah, ok. Thanks for that. I can’t get it in my area and they are also missing Discovery channels. So I’ll just stick with PS Vue for now.
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Wow. Thanks for sharing. Checking it out today.
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The extra $5 would be for all of the other content you get with Hulu TV, though. For instance, Hulu is the only place you can watch ER and Seinfeld in their full uncut forms (syndication excises minutes, and sometimes entire plots, per episode), as well as so much other in older TV that makes for great binging, like Cheers, Frasier, 30 rock, The Golden Girls, Battlestar Galactica, Community, Cougar Town, Parks and Recreation, and so much more.
Besides, I’m not comfortable with the way YouTube uses insanely biased groups like SPLC or Snopes to censor and demonetize videos. While they’re a private business and welcome to do what they want, they say they are a platform open to all ideas and viewpoints, but they’re not. When they start demonetizing videos by people who, 20 years ago, would be considered liberal because they’re not in line with the company’s internal far-left ideology, that means they’re breaking faith with their customers. If they were honest, it would be one thing, but they’re not. They’re dishonest because they know they need clicks from everyone, even those whose viewpoints they loathe, and so they lie. Not for me.
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Fair point on your first paragraph. That stuff isn’t a high priority for me, but it may be for others.
On the other hand, someone in this thread asked about 60 fps, and right now Hulu is behind the competition on that when it comes to live sports. Trust me, it was noticeable yesterday when I compared the two.
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Don’t know much about this kind of thing. Any ideas for someone in rural south Georgia. I have Dish at the moment
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How good is your internet service? If you are rural and don’t have strong internet, I’d probably stick with Dish for now. Streaming tv plus whatever other internet devices you may have will put a strain on it. I have a friend who is cheap like me and uses YouTube TV even though they’re on DSL internet that isn’t that strong. They have to reset their modem/router at least once a day, as the tv can get laggy. For him, it’s still worth the savings. But if you value performance and convenience, you probably want to stick with Dish.
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Thanks. Yes, I have DSL.
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Yeah, it’ll work, but not necessarily work well. Especially if you’re ever trying to run more than one tv at a time.
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If your DSL is in the 60Mbps range or higher, you will be good for streaming. Anything less, then yes, hold off.
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I have a DSL with 24mbs and have no problems. I have been streaming for 4 years and have no plans to change!
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That’s good to know. My options are either 6M or 60M so good to know something smaller works if needed.
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My Mom lives on the outskirts of a small town in Southwest Georgia. While she has Dish for tv/cable, her internet provider is a community telephone/cable company. Although she has no data caps, the current DSL internet plans offered are extremely low throughput and too highly priced. Also, she has to pay for a landline to have the option to receive her DSL. Their current monthly plans/pricing are listed as follows:
Up to 768 Kbps @ $29.95
Up to 1.5 Mbps @ $41.95
Up to 3 Mbps @ $48.95
Up to 5 Mbps @ $69.95
Up to 10 Mbps @ $89.95
Her other internet options are via Dish (data caps & expensive) or use her Verizon smartphone as a personal hotspot (data caps & crazy expensive). AT&T does offer some limited DSL service in her area but when I called the customer service person told me that they (AT&T) had no available nodes (i.e. no new customers until another customer quit using AT&T).
I understand the supply/demand side of the argument, but I gotta say that the rural folks are definitely under-served and over-priced.
If anyone has any suggestions on any internet alternatives, I’d love to here them.
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Raleigh, I live in the mountains, thirty minutes to the nearest small town, so I know isolation. We will never get cable here so I am on Direct TV with internet from a phone supplier via DSL. Fortunately, I can stream Netflix, Amazon Prime, YouTube, etc., but just barely above the buffering line. So I feel lucky, but basically trapped.
Last month I learned that the government gave a grant to some rural phone companies to underwrite improvements to improve the internet service they are able to provide. We are in one of those areas, and the first areas have already been completed. The first phase is to be completed by June, and the 2nd phase by early fall. Friend of mine said his speed quadrupled.
All to say that help may be on the way. Not sure how many phone company’s have this, or what areas of the country are involved. I believe it involves both federal and state contributions, Georgia is in so she may be covered. Only involves a couple of counties up here, and not all customers.
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Thanks for the info, Mac.
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Which roku device is best for live sports?
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I don’t think the device matters as much as which service you use on it – Hulu, YouTUbe, etc.? But I could be wrong. I’m on a Firestick.
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Yeah, I’ve had my eye on youtube TV for a while now. Have signed up for notification whenever they finally get to Columbus, GA.
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I’m a recent convert to YouTube TV myself (thanks to some of the posters on this blog). Good channel lineup, very good sports channel offerings, easy interface, half decent price (for a few more days ). Now if I could find an Internet provider I don’t have to negotiate with every year or two, I’d be satisfied, for a while. Even in the larger cities, there’s a dearth of good high-speed Internet providers. Maybe that will be the next streaming breakthrough.
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I wish Google and Amazon would stop their pissing match so I could get YouTube TV on my Firestick. Don’t really want to buy another streaming device.
Also the Firestick is great for “movie streaming” your thing.
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You may also want to check out PlayStation Vue. They have different tiers that include a few more channels than Youtube TV, depending on what you watch, and quality/features are just as good, if not better.
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