This week on TechHive: In defense of streaming bundles like Sling TV and PlayStation Vue

Whenever I write or read about streaming TV channel bundles, such as Sling TV and PlayStation Vue, inevitably the following criticism comes up: Why bother? It’s just the same old TV bundle with a different delivery mechanism.

But that’s not really true. Sure, they’re not the a la carte plans that everyone dreams about, but they are a step in the right direction, with several advantages over the traditional cable bundle. Read more on TechHive.

Weekly Rewind

Counter-point: Wondering why I feel compelled to defend streaming bundles? Because they’re regularly being put down by people who seem overly particular about how cable works. This New York Times article is the latest example, in which author Brian X. Chen concludes that neither Sling TV or PlayStation Vue are “an adequate substitute” for the cable bundle.

Chen makes some fair points along the way, noting that PlayStation Vue’s DVR function has a 28-day limit, and that Sling TV doesn’t have a DVR feature at all. But he also reaches for some criticisms, claiming that PlayStation Vue requires a game controller (not true, if you’re using it on Roku, Fire TV, or Chromecast), and bemoaning the 30-second delay in sports broadcasts (which would only be an issue if you’re hovering over Twitter while watching).

Bottom line: Cord-cutting is still a trade-off, not a magical way to duplicate cable for less money.

Watching the news without cable: If you’ve never checked out Haystack.tv, now might be a good time. The streaming video app, which sees itself as news station for cord cutters, now offers local news from Meredith Corp., whose stations serve about 12 million U.S. households. Haystack also pulls clips from major news organizations, and remixes them into a personalized broadcast.

Aside from smartphone and web apps, Haystack is on Apple TV, Android TV, Chromecast, and Amazon Fire TV. For more sources of cable-free news, check out this roundup I wrote for TechHive last year.

More Catch-Up

ABC is revamping its streaming video apps, offering dozens of classic TV series on-demand, and experimenting with short-form original series on the web.
More bad news for ESPN, the bellwether of cable bundle success: It just lost another 453,000 subscribers.
Comcast is expanding its weakly-justified, anti-innovation data caps to more markets.

Save More Money

Microsoft’s Xbox One can be a solid streaming solution for cord-cutters, especially if you pair it with TV tuner for over-the-air broadcasts. Right now, the Microsoft Store is selling a 1 TB console bundle for $300, which is $50 off the regular price. It includes Halo 5: Guardians, Gears of War: Ultimate Edition, Rare Replay, and Ori and the Blind Forest, plus a $50 Microsoft Store gift code, which you could use to stock up on movie rentals. (Microsoft’s redesigned Xbox One S, which supports 4K and HDR video, will also sell for $300 next month, but won’t include as much storage or any bundled games.)

Help a cord cutter out

Have a cable-free success story you’d like to share? Need advice on streaming services or hardware? Drop me an e-mail and you could be featured in a future newsletter. Thanks for your feedback and support!

-Jared