Playing back Channels on Chromecast or Android TV

Tango · November 11, 2019, 6:17am

I'm having problems finding a good, decently priced, device I can use on TVs in my house and guest house that will play Channels. Apple TV works, but it's $150 per device! I had a Roku I was testing out, but there are issues there and only a beta program on Channels. (There are other issues with Roku, too.)

I tried a Fire stick, but it turns out Amazon plays dirty with subscriptions. For instance, I have a BritBox subscription and I can't watch BritBox on Fire unless I subscribe to it through Amazon. (They said, "Cancel your subscription and add one through Amazon." I said, "Uh, I can't cancel it until it runs out in August, 2020. Do you really think I'm going to pay about twice as much as I paid for my Fire stick so I can watch a channel you won't let me watch because I didn't buy it through Amazon?)

So Roku is out. Fire is out because they try to control my subscriptions. Apple is out for most TVs (when the guest house is done, we'll have 2 in the house, 2 in the guest house, and maybe another in my workshop in the guest house) because it's too expensive to get that many units.

As best I can figure, that leaves two possibilities for streaming boxes that might handle Channels: Chromecast and Android TV.

I've seen questions and posts here about Chromecast when I did a search. What I did not find is if, specifically, I can run a Channels app on Chromecast? And does anyone have an Android TV device they can recommend that's not super-pricey that has enough power to handle the Channels Android app?

Macnbaish · November 13, 2019, 2:54am

I don’t believe Chromecast is supported. We are an Apple TV household, so I’m afraid I’m not much help for Android TV recommendations. I would add that a solid client is integral to a good experience. I understand Apple TVs are expensive, but you may have a hard time finding a cheap client that performs well. Typically the best budget choice is the fire stick 4K, from what I’ve read on the forums, but you’ve already ruled that one out. Hopefully somebody else might have some recommendations.

Tango · November 13, 2019, 4:47am

I can't be sure, but it looks like there is no Channels app for Chromecast. From what I can tell, apparently Chromecast does not have heavy CPU power. (I could be wrong on that.) I did look into and try an Android TV box. The remote is not something I expect to remain intact for very long and the UI is painful to use. I'm not clear, but, apparently, you can add a keyboard and mouse through USB or Bluetooth. I would hope so, because without them, it would be a pain to use.

So I'm just going to go on and pay the higher price for Apple TV for each TV. That way I don't have to keep track of different types of systems and I know what I get will work.

What follows is a summary of what I've found from wasting a hell of a lot of time testing different streaming systems. Part of it is for me (as a reminder, later), and it's also notes on this thread for anyone else who has the same questions.

The Fire stick has a major problem for me. One streaming service I use a lot is BritBox. This issue exposed a nasty side of streaming boxes: Some of them want to control all your subscriptions. I set up my BritBox subscription under Roku. Now I can't change the name on it until it runs out and I can change things after that and pay for another year.

But this is what was bad about Fire: They insist, if you want BritBox, you subscribe through Amazon. So there's no Fire app for BritBox and there is no way to add BritBox to Fire unless you subscribe to it through Amazon.

Apple TV, on the other hand, CAN handle subscriptions, but you don't have to. So you can set up a subscription to a service and add it to Apple TV.

I've bought a Tablo and found some issues (big one: No way to binge watch or use autoplay), and sent it back. I bought a TiVO and had issues, including them not wanting to take a return and not wanting to pay me for it. If I wanted to watch TiVO recordings in another room, I have to buy more TiVO hardware. So that's out. Roku? Weak CPU, problems playing local videos and playing videos recorded by Channels. Fire? It wants to control all your subscriptions, so you can't "take them with you." Android? Lots of boxen to choose from under Android. Make sure to read the reviews about the UI and the remote and try to be sure you can connect a keyboard and mouse to it in some way.

I think that's about it, so Apple is left.

I've spent a lot of time testing other things. Tossed out all the stuff above, tossed out Plex as a DVR, tossed it as a media server (went to UMS instead). Tried a lot of streaming boxes - just go with Apple TV. It works, it's easy to set up, it doesn't take over your subscriptions and has a good remote.