Streaming HD video off the internet, yes/no

scottmandue · 10-22-2015, 12:41 PM

Wife is pushing for high speed internet at the house on the premise that we can use our Amazon prime & netflix accounts to watch video content.

I have heard mixed reviews about watching TV and Movies with services like Netflix and Amazon... one lady at work says the upload time is a pain... and some movies stop in the middle to upload the second half of the movie.

I'm also running 5.1 surround and 1080 HD... my wife doesn't know what that is but she knows it when she sees it.

So bottom line is live streaming all it is cracked up to be? Anyone using it and happy with the results? Will I be giving up any audio/video quality?

Thanks in advance.

stomachmonkey · 10-22-2015, 12:48 PM

It's fine.

You may encounter some buffering with Netflix starting around 7 in the evening when peak viewing time starts but that is also somewhat dependent on a couple of factors like your bandwidth, your provider, how congested your neighborhood / general geographic location is.

Personally I like Netflix. Have Amazon as well but find discoverability of content to be annoying and their app ecosystem could use some help but if you are already a Prime member why leave money on the table by not taking advantage of it.

I don't recall when but it's soon, Netflix will be going up $1.00 a month for new subscribers so jump on board at the current rate if you can.

So far Netflix has been pretty good about grandfathering rates.

Rot 911 · 10-22-2015, 12:48 PM

I watch streaming movies and tv from Amazon and Netflix all of the time. Never a problem with either. And you don't even need high speed like the internet providers claim you do. If you go to either Netflix or Amazon you will find out that a download speed of 3mg is sufficient. I've never had internet that slow when watching, but when I first started, my download speed was 10mg and I never had a problem.

stomachmonkey · 10-22-2015, 12:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rot 911

I watch streaming movies and tv from Amazon and Netflix all of the time. Never a problem with either. And you don't even need high speed like the internet providers claim you do. If you go to either Netflix or Amazon you will find out that a download speed of 3mg is sufficient. I've never had internet that slow when watching, but when I first started, my download speed was 10mg and I never had a problem.

Netflix provides several streams of varying quality depending on your detected bandwidth.

They recommend 3 mbps for SD and 5 for HD.

Whether or not that suffices is somewhat individual, what else does the customer have in the house. Hint, the more kids you have the higher the bandwidth you should get.

https://help.netflix.com/en/node/306

gtc · gtc's Garage

+1 to all this.
It's also nice to have youtube on the TV for stuff like /DRIVE.

Quote:

Originally Posted by stomachmonkey

It's fine.

You may encounter some buffering with Netflix starting around 7 in the evening when peak viewing time starts but that is also somewhat dependent on a couple of factors like your bandwidth, your provider, how congested your neighborhood / general geographic location is.

Personally I like Netflix. Have Amazon as well but find discoverability of content to be annoying and their app ecosystem could use some help but if you are already a Prime member why leave money on the table by not taking advantage of it.

scottmandue · 10-22-2015, 12:59 PM

Just the wife and I... we currently DVR a half dozen network shows like NCIS and Big Bang Theory, will I lose those? And ESPN (Monday night football) Sunday afternoon football? (My on excuse to sit on my bum half the day and do nothing).

and can anyone promise me my wife won't spend all day surfing the internet and looking a cat pictures?

stomachmonkey · 10-22-2015, 01:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scottmandue

Just the wife and I... we currently DVR a half dozen network shows like NCIS and Big Bang Theory, will I lose those? And ESPN (Monday night football) Sunday afternoon football? (My on excuse to sit on my bum half the day and do nothing).

and can anyone promise me my wife won't spend all day surfing the internet and looking a cat pictures?

That all depends on what your plans are for your current TV package.

You can keep what you have and add a streaming service or scale your current package back.

You can drop to basic and get all the network stuff like NBC / CBS etc...

In fact NBC has a really nice live streaming app for iOS and android devices.

I suspect the others will follow soon enough.

For football check NFL.com for a streaming subscription.

stomachmonkey · 01:40 PM

Oh and, you don't find cat pictures, cat pictures find you.

Nostril Cheese · 10-22-2015, 01:30 PM

Amazon prime is well worth the money.

GH85Carrera · GH85Carrera's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nostril Cheese

Amazon prime is well worth the money.

I agree.

I watch prime moves often. Never a problem with buffering.

flipper35 · flipper35's Garage

Check your device or app for your Amazon and Netflix if you want to use 5.1. If you stream through a computer you need the app and windows 8.1 or newer and not all the movies are 5.1. I believe some of the gaming consoles will stream in 5.1 but I am not sure.

Shifter · 10-22-2015, 02:39 PM

What device are you planning on using to stream the video?

The device that you use can make a huge difference. I had a samsung bluray player that I was streaming through and it was terrible. Constant buffering and a low quality picture.
However my samsung smart tv works great, as did the roku. All three devices were hardwired to a bridged router.

Just recently I picked up a chromecast and it works pretty well also.

scottmandue · 03:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shifter

What device are you planning on using to stream the video?

The device that you use can make a huge difference. I had a samsung bluray player that I was streaming through and it was terrible. Constant buffering and a low quality picture.
However my samsung smart tv works great, as did the roku. All three devices were hardwired to a bridged router.

Just recently I picked up a chromecast and it works pretty well also.

Oh duh, totally forgot about the device... the Sony Blu-Ray we have is not working so great so I am planning on a new smart Blu-Ray player... which opens another big can of worms (We are using dish network now for just TV-DVR)

Not a fan of Sony because the one we have is just a few years old and sporadic (yes, I have done the software upgrades)
Sad to hear you don't like your Samsung, I'm a big fan of their products, was kind of thinking of getting one of their smart Blu-ray's (flat screen is Samsung but not a smart one).
Also a big fan of Panasonic, maybe one of their smart BD players?
I have heard good things about Roku (we have a bunch of their SSVP here at work) but as I said would like to upgrade the BD player and seems like they all have built in browsers now.

scottmandue · 10-22-2015, 03:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flipper35

I believe some of the gaming consoles will stream in 5.1 but I am not sure.

This is another option, I believe last time we had this discussion the gaming console idea was kicked around and sounds like an option... however we don't play video games and a medium grade smart Blu-Ray is about half the cost of a game console.

willtel · 10-22-2015, 03:34 PM

I don't know about the newer Samsungs but mine won't do Netflix with 5.1 audio. It summed the channels into stereo. Because of that I picked up a Chromecast and use the PC to stream to it and into the home theatre. Browsing for content is much easier on a laptop than on the TV.

PorscheGAL · PorscheGAL's Garage

Roku just announced the release of a new box that will be capable of streaming 4K if the providers have it.

We only have a Roku, no cable or satellite. Up until a month ago our internet service only provided 12mps speeds and we never had issues with the streaming of Netflix or Amazon.

craigster59 · craigster59's Garage

I have a Roku stick and it works great.
http://www.amazon.com/Roku-3500R-Streaming-Stick-HDMI/dp/B00INNP5VU/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1445556131&sr=1-1&keywords=roku+streaming+stick+hdmi

scottmandue · 10-22-2015, 04:45 PM

We got our Samsung TV for cheap at Sam's club and therefore it is a dumb TV... not sure it will even take a USB.

Guess I have been using Dish network for over a decade and I'm just nervous about changing the interface.

stomachmonkey · 10-22-2015, 05:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scottmandue

We got our Samsung TV for cheap at Sam's club and therefore it is a dumb TV... not sure it will even take a USB.

Guess I have been using Dish network for over a decade and I'm just nervous about changing the interface.

Samsung should have USB even if it's not a smart TV.

Been fairly standard for 10 years now.

Usually on the right side of it.

Better off with a dumb TV anyway.

Less poo to break and more flexible.

Losing Dish is not a requirement, you can keep it.

willtel · 10-22-2015, 05:55 PM

Most of the "streaming stick" devices (Google Chromecast, Amazon Firestick, Roku) are HDMI. As long as you have a free HDMI port and Wi-Fi you don't need USB. In the case of the Chromecast you can power it off a USB port on the TV or it comes with an AC adapter too.