[RemyM]

When I got the notice from Optimum that they were dumping CCs, I started speaking with a "Specialist- Executive Customer Relations." She told me they will send affected users an AppleTV if they didn't want to use their Google Streamer. I kept wondering why it never shipped. The specialist found out today that Optimum no longer sells AppleTV so I have to buy my own.

The rep at the store said the same thing, that Apple is no longer providing them with devises. It used to be $10 a month for 13 months then you owned it. Now you have to buy them yourself.

 

[JCMAN]

The key difference with Optimum / Cablevision / Altice Fiber (and Coax) infrastructure is that unlike FiOS, Cablevision {etc) relies on Utility power. If you experience a power outage in your area, service will go out. FiOS is powered from the headend so provided there is no break in the physical fiber cable, service works during a utility power outage provided that you have a generator or battery backup to power the ONT (Fiber Unit) and Router / TV / Phone.

Optimum does have battery equipment at certain points in the network, to the point where they rented cable modems with VoIP (f/k/a Optimum Voice, now Optimum Phone) that had slots with battery power that you could purchase. The battery (if purchased) a subscriber could put in their modem would provide eight hours of service on the eMTA interface of the modem (essentially, you could still make calls). That does have upstream power requirements as well, and the Cablevision/Optimum of many years ago was good at maintaining the batteries on the street. Not so much these days, although sometimes public utility commission complaints can get their ass in gear if you have an example where you had power (generator/battery) but service didn't operate.

FiOS indeed only needs power at the headend; at least the earlier ONTs they installed, those had sealed lead acid batteries (typical of cars, or in smaller formats, for alarm systems and uninterruptible power supplies for key equipment) in them. Of course, SLAs have a lifetime (generally about 4-5 years), and many people don't even know they're in there, or how to replace them (not hard). This can be a more economical solution to at least keep your phone active for emergencies if you have voice service on FiOS (or if you're not up for a whole home generator, in tandem with a UPS for your modem/router on FiOS, to at least have internet service during a power outage.)

(Also, comments on YouTube seem to indicate that Verizon replaces the SLAs in ONTs for free if you call/chat them that the alarm/light for it is going off on your ONT. In terms of disposal, at least in New York, any shop selling lead acid batteries has to take at least two of them for recycling free of charge, even if you didn't buy any new batteries from that store... I usually get the replacement batteries for my UPS on Amazon, and then recycle the old ones at Advance Auto Parts.)

 

[Neil Weinstock]

Now that the cable card-pocalypse has come and gone, I'm learning what I already knew: TiVo UX is/was so much better than these other services. sigh

Temporarily signed up for Hulu Live TV running on a Fire Stick. It functions but there are many UX problems, not really happy with it. Lack of a remote with lots of buttons is a big part of the problem.

So tonight I went to set up a bunch of Optimum Stream boxes and they seemed decent but I discovered they do not support live TV pause and rewind. In 2024. GMAFB. And the remote, which is otherwise better than the Fire Stick (numeric keypad!) doesn't have a "previous" button.

I feel like I'm back in the dark ages. TiVo was better than this in 2001 when I first started using it. WTF.

I'm almost certainly going to end up on Fios with their DVR service eventually, I just haven't been able to accommodate the installation yet.

(I should add that YTTV is not an option for me since they stopped carrying SNY).

We have ditched the Optimum Stream boxes and are staying with Hulu Live TV for now. In the future if we get annoyed with it we'll switch to FIOS. Oh and I upgraded my internet to 300 Mbps now that we're depending on it for multiple TV streams. I am using my own Wifi routers and it all works well.

Not exactly a happy ending, but we're muddling through for now. Since I do most of my watching on streaming channels these days, it's not terrible for me, but my wife still watches a lot of broadcast TV and she is not loving Hulu... but we'll see how it goes.

I miss the TiVO.

 

[Bbsfunhouse]

We have ditched the Optimum Stream boxes and are staying with Hulu Live TV for now. In the future if we get annoyed with it we'll switch to FIOS. Oh and I upgraded my internet to 300 Mbps now that we're depending on it for multiple TV streams. I am using my own Wifi routers and it all works well.

Not exactly a happy ending, but we're muddling through for now. Since I do most of my watching on streaming channels these days, it's not terrible for me, but my wife still watches a lot of broadcast TV and she is not loving Hulu... but we'll see how it goes.

I miss the TiVO.

I'm suffering right with you. It's only been a little over a month and it feels like forever. I'm using YTTV for now but when baseball season starts up, I will need pause and slow mo. TIVO spoiled us for 25 years.

 

[ADG]

I'm getting used to Optimum streaming (sort of). I also had a digital roof antenna installed and can record OTA network shows on Tivo, which makes for a better playback experience than the Optimum DVR.

 

[RemyM]

I'm getting used to Optimum streaming (sort of). I also had a digital roof antenna installed and can record OTA network shows on Tivo, which makes for a better playback experience than the Optimum DVR.

Identical situation for me. The Stream is an easier solution for the wife because it combines everything and the DVR is good enough for what she uses it for. She does miss skip mode though. Recorded sports are best on the TiVo but that is pretty much limited to football now. I did pretty well watching the Rangers game on the stream yesterday as the stoppages where you need the 30 second skip are more limited as opposed to between every play in football.

 

[SC42]

Stream user here also. It’s really not that bad.

 

[RemyM]

Stream user here also. It’s really not that bad.

My biggest complaint with the Stream DVR is that you can't get to the end of a show using the 30 second or 1 minute skip. It always only goes to XX:37 and you have to play the last 23 seconds before the option screen comes up to delete it. The other annoying thing is that after being paused for a few minutes it goes to the live TV in the background and sometimes that's the show you are watching on delay.

 

[ADG]

Well, there ARE a number of things I DON'T like about it though. For example:

• Terrible remote (no dedicated ff / rew buttons for dvr forcing you to use limited on-screen controls)
• Can't pause / rew live show
• Turning TV on brings up home screen rather than going directly to last channel watched on Optimum app
• "Live" tv isn't synced among boxes - if you have tv's in adjacent rooms tuned to the same channel, the sound is not synced - and that's just annoying when you can hear both
• Optimum's phone support has always been horrible
• "Now Playing" grid limited to current and future times - you cannot scroll backward
• You cannot move to a specific day (or move forward a day at a time) in the Now Playing grid - you have to scroll through all shows / days

You get the idea

 

[RemyM]

You get the idea

At least I don't feel anchored to them anymore. I was ready to make the wife use the TiVo hooked to the antenna and Roku for streaming services and the NEWS 12 app. Since they gave me a triple play price of $135 a month I am willing to stick with the stream for the next year see how she likes it and then I will reevaluate. I switched to Fiber internet with them but have Frontier available so I can still keep calling retentions every year for a reduced price. The only reason to have cable anymore, in my opinion, is non NFL local sports. The TV world is rapidly evolving, I think a lot is going to change in the next two years.