This week on TechHive: Is TiVo done with streaming dongles?
Last year, one of the most interesting new streaming devices came not from Roku, Amazon, or Apple, but from TiVo.
The TiVo Stream 4K was an ambitious attempt to make streaming simpler, combining sources like Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney+ into a single TV guide. For cord cutters, it was a welcome alternative to wading through a sea of app icons, and it also marked a new chapter for TiVo, which has been eager to break free of its legacy DVR business.
So I was bummed to read last weekend that TiVo might be abandoning the endeavor. Citing comments by the CEO of TiVo parent company Xperi, several sites suggested that the Stream 4K could be TiVo’s last streaming dongle as it focused more on embedding its software in smart TVs.
But according to a TiVo spokesperson, its foray into streaming hardware isn’t dead yet. The company says to expect new Android TV dongles from TiVo, that it will continue to improve the Stream 4K, and that it’s still in the hardware business.
You might take this with a grain of salt, given that TiVo has reportedly been bleeding talent on the product side of its business, but I hope the company isn’t lying. While the TiVo Stream 4K wasn’t perfect, it still had a lot of potential to change how streaming TV works. Read the full column on TechHive.
Weekly rewind
Roku Express 4K+ review: Also over at TechHive this week, I reviewed the new Roku Express 4K+ streaming player. At $40, it replaces the old Roku Premiere as the company’s cheapest 4K HDR player, but it fixes a lot of that device’s mistakes. The remote now has voice, volume, and power controls, the box supports dual-band Wi-Fi, and it’s a little faster to boot.
Still, Wi-Fi performance fell behind Roku’s $50 Streaming Stick+ in my testing, and I’m forever waiting in vain for some kind of unified streaming guide (akin to what TiVo put together) that never comes. I’d also like to see less drama between Roku and content providers, as we’re seeing now in its dispute with Google over YouTube TV.
Even so, the Express 4K+ feels like the budget streamer to beat right now. It’s reasonably fast, it’s loaded with nice little touches that make streaming more pleasant, and it undercuts other 4K streamers like Amazon’s Fire TV Stick 4K and the Chromecast with Google TV on price. While reasons still exist to consider other streamers, the Express 4K+ is an easy recommendation.
Roku and YouTube TV, continued: Right after I sent out last week’s newsletter about how to deal with the Roku vs. YouTube TV standoff, Google came out with a workaround of its own: Just open the standard YouTube app on Roku, and you’ll see a “Go to YouTube TV” option in the sidebar menu. In other words, Google has moved the entire YouTube TV experience inside standard YouTube, letting subscribers access the $65 per month live streaming service even if they haven’t installed the separate YouTube TV app.
Roku, which had pulled the YouTube TV app from its platform as negotiations fell apart, is predictably displeased about this, calling Google “unchecked monopolist bent on crushing fair competition and harming consumer choice.” But it knows the score: Pulling YouTube proper from its platform would cause a customer revolt. As of now, it hasn’t raised a finger against the workaround.
Free government internet money: In lieu of finding a way to make internet service more competitive and therefore less expensive, the U.S. government has started footing folks’ internet bills itself, at least for a little while. A new program, called the Emergency Broadband Benefit, pays up $50 per month toward home or mobile internet service for Americans who qualify. The program will last until six months after the government declares an end to the pandemic or until its $3.2 billion in funding dries up, whichever comes first.
The Washington Post has a thorough explainer on how it all works, but the gist is that Americans can get the subsidy if they lost jobs or substantial income during the pandemic, receive various kinds of other government assistance, or already quality for low-income internet service. You can check your eligibility on this website.
More catch-up
- “Can I Binge?” This website tells you how long it takes to watch a show.
- Paramount+ promises one new movie per week—in 2022.
- Comcast considers selling its Flex streaming boxes to non-Comcast customers.
- Walmart might sell a $30 Android TV streaming box soon.
- Roku will resurrect Quibi shows for free starting next week.
- ESPN+ is adding LaLiga to its soccer stable.
Save more money
While the new $40 Roku Express 4K+ might be the best Roku player for the money, the Roku Streaming Stick+ is currently on sale for even less. eBay has it for $37.38 with the code PICKSUMMER15 at checkout.
As I wrote in my Express 4K+ review, both devices have nearly identical remotes and performance, and they both support 4K HDR video, but the Streaming Stick+ gets better Wi-Fi reception and is a bit more portable since its HDMI plug is built into the stick itself. On the downside, the Streaming Stick+ doesn’t support HDR10+, so you won’t get per-scene changes to color output while playing compatible content if you have an HDR10+ TV. (At this point, it’s still somewhat of a rarity.)
Thanks for reading!
As always, I love hearing your cord-cutting questions, comments, and feedback. Get in touch by replying to this email!
Until next week,
Jared