I would also agree with additional choice “for life” subscription between $100 - $130. I would be willing to pay for it right away. Like some folks here, I am very hesitant to commit $8/mo model. Hard for me to justify given I am paying lots of monthly subscription on other apps already.
Since it’s app driven, I don’t think a lifetime subscription is the best business model to follow. Getting a discount by paying for years could be a good way to do it… the longer you’re locked in the bigger the discount. $80 for prepaying for a year, $150 for 2 years, $220 for 3 years, $290 for 4 years, etc.
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Between the web app and the apple tv app, Channels has completely transformed the way I use cable TV. If you don’t need a dvr then obviously don’t pay the $8/month, but I can’t believe anyone who uses this software more than a few times a week would complain about the price. Have you seen the silicon dust software for god’s sake?
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I think Channels DVR is a steal for 8 dollars a month. Here is why:
- Prior to channels my Comcast DVR bill was: $30
(10 dollars for HD box, 10 Dollars for DVR, and 10 dollars for 2nd room box) - You use an old PC, Nvidia Shield, Mac, or NAS to run the DVR.
- The commercial skip is not 100% accurate, but does a well enough job that it’s a usable feature.
- Developer support is 2nd to none.
- It’s Wife approved.
I would love for it to reduce to 5 dollars… but there isn’t enough competition out there to justify that change. Maybe if Plex ever develops a live TV/DVR product, then Channels will have to adapt to a competitive climate, but not today.
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@A.Leon Plex has DVR integrated for those that are signed up for their Plex Pass bundle ($5/mo.). It’s just not a very nice user-interface IMO, with no traditional guide, and no live TV streaming. It is the cheaper option some would like, but I am happy to pay the extra $3/mo. for the better interface and support. https://www.plex.tv/features/dvr/
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Absolutely agree with @A.Leon and @karlmitchell on all points. Channels DVR is the easiest, user friendly DVR solution available, bar none.
Ability to use web ui on almost every platform makes this solution the undisputed winner, imo.
I’ve not encountered any situation where the DVR records/retains more than I want. Playback is superb. Devs understand every request and are truly interested in making Channels the premier solution for all of our diverse requirements.
I’d much rather pay a few extra dollars per month to ensure continued support and improvements rather than settling for a second class solution which I would have to babysit or spend time developing workarounds.
Everyone in my non technical family can use Channels without my intervention. All 
️ Channels. This is the true test of functionality, imo.
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You have to look at the big picture and your own use case. All of these different services can stack up fast if you’re not careful.
For me, the priorities are DVR, commercial skipping/free, easy-of-use (the spouse test), and access to the shows (both in terms of ability to get, and ability to watch on the road). I also like to have the flexibility to watch a show soon after broadcast (next day), but not to have to do so (preferably weeks later, in case of vacations).
I divide TV viewing for the sake of simplicity between non-cable (e.g. ABC, NBC), cable (e.g. Syfy, BBC America), premium (e.g. HBO, Showtime, Starz) and internet (e.g. Netflix, Amazon, Hulu). The internet and premium channels cost more-or-less the same whatever; In fact, if you don’t mind some time investment you can get them cheaper by subscribing over Apple TV by getting discount iTunes cards and/or binge watching them with occasional one-month subscriptions.
So you’re left with cable and non-cable. The newer cable services that have sufficient basic channels to be worth considering for me (Hulu Live, PS Vue, DirecTV Now, Sling Blue) are in the $30-44/mo. range (including hidden DVR and commercial skipping fees). Furthermore, having tried most of them I’ve found that all of them have issues if you want to use them as DVRs (forced to watch commercials, no DVR functionality, missing channels, awful interface, unreliability, etc.). Only Playstation Vue ($40/mo.) offers both the full suite of channels that I personally want with dvr that you can fast forward through; I hate the interface, but it is functional, and I’m not a fan of DVR shows expiring after 1 month, but most of the time you can still watch them, albeit with commercials, in the individual channels’ apps. The rest require some sort of independent capability for the other channels or the annoyance of watching them with commercials (The CW’s Apple TV app for instance). So, $40/mo. is what I’m trying to compete with. At that cost, I figure Channels DVR sets me back maybe $8/mo. software, $8/mo. hardware (over 3-year cycle), leaving $24/mo. for iTunes season passes. At that rate I can buy season passes for around 8 cable shows/year and still come out ahead, which is actually more than I currently pay for (5-6 is more typical). You can also save money on iTunes passes by buying discount iTunes gift cards, which frequently are on sale for 10-20% off. If I was a sports fan, or had a larger family that watched more shows, this would probably work out very differently, though, so everyone should consider their own use case.
All in all, once you lump in Amazon Prime, Netflix, occasional Hulu and prime channel binge watching, Channels DVR, hardware costs, Plex Pass (a cheap luxury) and iTunes purchases, I probably end up paying $750/year all in for my TV, which is comparable with a fairly basic cable service to be honest ($60/mo. seems typical). But for that I get permanent copies of everything and the added value of being able to download/stream all of my content, and the original content of Amazon Prime and Netflix, as well as shipping perks and other effectively free stuff on Amazon. At that rate, the difference between $5/mo. and $8/mo. (so $36/year) seems a trivial amount to pay for better interface and support.
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Glad to see you join and test Channels. As you’ve already indicated, dev support is fantastic…and with so many of us requesting diametrically opposed requests I’m sure this is a nightmare for devs, but so far, somehow they have been able to accommodate.
Probably, at some point in time, they will have to request some compromises for certain use cases/users, but based on their track record I am willing to accept their restrictions/suggestions as Channels is the most user friendly, full featured DVR solution I have ever imagined.
Very glad to be a participant in this Beta.
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Plex just released their Live TV and DVR capability. At $5/mo Plex offers a full media center solution and shames Channels $8/mo. Plex also offers discounted annual and lifetime subs, free (no addl. charge) mobile apps, etc… I’ll be trying that out.
I’ve found that the interface with plex isn’t as simple as channels. But that could just be me. I’m not sure how plex handles multiple HDHR’s either.
Also, $8/m is nothing to be ashamed about. Cable companies and other solutions are at least $20 and some over $40.
I would be interested to hear about the Plex DVR. How does the live TV guide work? If I have two extends with different preferred channels, does it know to use the correct HDHR? Can I browse to see whats on my favorite channels while the current show is playing? Does it work on Apple TV?
I agree Channels is better than any cable offering.
But for a new cord-cutter who just bought an HDHR which is more enticing?
Channels: Live TV, Guide and DVR. $40 for TV and mobile apps + $96/year in fees
Plex: Full media center for all your movies, shows, photos, music, home videos, Live TV, DVR with free TV and mobile apps all for $40/year.
To me, Plex seems the most compelling.
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Try it and write a review. I have tried Plex several times over the years and it never worked properly for me.
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In my case, my Apple TV is my media center. I use netflix occasionally. My photos and music are stored in the cloud. I just want to get broadcast channels from my HDHRs on my ATV. And record them too, with a slick interface. I am pretty obsessed with Channels right now, but I might try out Plex Live in the future. I haven’t seen any real feedback of the Plex live interface though.
As far as a DVR solution, Plex isn’t even in the same ballpark as channels. My review of the Plex DVR was “total garbage”.
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Id do channels dvd for a lifetime of 100-150 but I am not into subscriptions. Have you guys considered a lifetime buyout? I always did that with my tivos and it would make me a happy camper.
Playing around with Plex today, it has issues with multiple tuners, but recorded fine as long as I didn’t do more than three (I have 8 total tuners, but it would error trying to record anything over three). The live TV integration just plain sucks. Still love it for all my ripped movies, but live TV/DVR I’ll be sticking with Channels. Once iOS integration comes around, and then being able to use that to watch things out of the house, I’ll have Channels for TV and Plex for Movies.
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I just tested Plex Live TV. To be honest, Plex Live TV implementation is very disappointing. Channels App allows you to stream directly from HDHomerun, and switching channel in Channels app is quite fast and responsive. For Plex TV, it looks like the stream goes to my Plex Media Server in my NAS first, then from NAS Plex Media Server to my Plex app on my phone. I verified that in my “Signal GH” app. That means it takes a long time for a stream to show up on my phone. My NAS is a quad core 3Ghz, I still have to wait for 4 seconds before video shows up on my phone. And if I switch to other channel (from CBS to NBC), it will take another 4 seconds. To me, Channel App is a much cleaner and faster implementation. I don’t understand why Plex would make the media server to be the middleman. Perhaps, they want to allow to watch Live TV and record simultaneously. That’s my guess right now.
@rog889 - The development path is kind of the opposite, Media Server -> DVR -> Live TV, whereas channels started with Live TV. The Plex approach seems to just be the one that requires the least amount of new code.