PlayOn Cloud reliability

I used Windows Media Center for many years. There once was a "plugin" called PlayOn which enabled "recording" from streaming services such as Netflix. The video quality was not great, but the biggest problem I had was that it was unreliable. Netflix would make a change to their interface, and PlayOn would stop working until the developer updated the software.

Is PlayOn "Cloud" reliable?

I tried PlayOn Cloud for Monday Night RAW and it looked absolutely terrible quality compared to when I was recording over TVE but now since it’s gone because USA is DRM. I am using a CamLink 4K and manually recording the live show from my Apple TV that I’m not using anymore. Just using it for this now and it turned out really great HEVC 1080p.

The video quality was terrible back when PlayOn was a plugin for Windows Media Center. My main concern is whether or not it is reliable (e.g. does it break often?).

I assume when you wrote "USA is DRM", you are talking about channels that are owned by NBC (USA network), instead of USA = United States of America???

Correct USA Network.

It seems reliable but I haven’t put a lot to the test. There is a Reddit page for PlayOn cloud to get ideas from my can’t pay money to get that terrible quality. Can only go up from here not backwards.

Well, I'm planning to move out of the United States. I'm planning to setup my router so that it connects to a VPN server in the USA (a server which will be controlled by me, rented in "the cloud").

I'm interested in being able to "record" stuff from US streaming services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, etc. The idea is to only subscribe to one or two of the streaming services each month, and then use Channels DVR + PlayOn Cloud to "record" the shows I would like to watch at some date in the future.

I don't want to subscribe to EVERY streaming service simultaneously. That would be ridiculously expensive. The streaming services have made it so that it's cheaper to pay for cable TV service in the USA instead of paying Disney+, Paramount+, Netflix, Amazon, etc. every month!

If the video quality isn't too terrible, I'm ok with that. I just remember that the PlayOn plugin for Windows Media Center was very unreliable.

Has the reliability improved?

EDIT: I built my own router so that it can handle full gigabit upload/download, even when connected to a VPN. Most store-bought routers can only handle less than 10 megabit via a VPN because they don't have enough processing power. Mine has hardware-accelerated encryption/decryption built-in.

1 Like

I'm voting with my feet.

i have found PlayOn Cloud integration with Channels DVR to be very reliable. And very convenient.

Thank you for the feedback.

Please tell me more. It sounds like using an HD Fury to record the output from another device.

I've thought about doing that. I actually wrote a plugin for EventGhost to control a Roku device. If the Roku was plugged in to a device like the HD Fury, it would be possible to "record" streaming TV services. I also have a Hauppauge device that can record HD TV video and digital audio.... but it's probably buried somewhere in my storage unit.

Speaking of Eventghost... where did they go? The website doesn't seem to exist anymore.

OMG, it seems to be dead. You can still find the software on github here:

But, WTF?

Eventghost was/is the most robust home automation software ever created.

Using an Apple TV HD laying around, plugging that into my Elagto CamLink 4K device. It’s just a HDMI capture device. Opened OBS streaming software but I’m recording only. Then basically started the record about 5 mins before the event starts and then there is a timer I have set for 3 hours. Which that setting is built into OBS.

For those of you having quality issues with Play On Cloud, the default is 720p. You need to change the setting to 1080p and the quality will be as it should be. This will cost 3x as much for the recordings, still reasonable.

Yes, I routinely switch that setting back and forth, based on what I'm recording. Some shows are perfectly acceptable at 720p and others I'd prefer to watch/save at 1080p.

All that said, PlayOn Cloud is certainly reliable as a service tightly integrated with CDVR, and I'd much rather use it as a solution over manually recording anything via old hardware.