TiVo Stream vs Apple TV for Channels DVR

Channels Android TV
#1

I’ve fence sitting between Apple TV 4K and Android TV to base all our TVs on for months. I’m familiar with both so that isn’t an issue. Our TVs are Sony and Android isn’t the speediest on them. Apple blows them away on performance but hate the remote experience there. I’m jealous about the TiVo Stream remote mapping with Channels. For those using a TiVo Stream familiar with Apple TV 4K, can you share the experience.

  • How is the speed and snappiness between them?

  • How does the Android Channels App compare to version 4 of Apple TV?

#2

I hope they are working on trying to add some of the features of the ts4k remote to the atv4k with a 3rd party remote. Maybe the harmony or sofabton. Then I can dust off my atv4k's and toss out the ts4k's

#3

So how do you find the TS4K performance?

#4

Sluggish compared to the firestick 4k or the firecube. It seems to get worse the longer it runs. My biggest problem with it is if I want to watch a recording not recorded with channels (imported) i have to change the player decoder from hardware to software then change it back to hardware for some TVE channels. I only get about a 30 minute buffer compared to 10+hrs with the atv4k. It is my least favorite device but you can't beat the added features of its remote.

#5

Have you stripped the TS4K of its Tivo stuff to boost performance? My only point of comparison for Android TV is my Sony TVs that are several years old. They are usable but sluggish. I guess I’ll need to buy one to get a read on it. I really want a better remote experience and it’s silly I’m using a $16 remote .

#6

I have 2 TVs with TS4Ks on them. I've removed all of the TiVo stuff so they're just generic Android TV sticks; I have no performance issues or haven't noticed any slowdowns.

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#7

Have you used Apple TV 4K to render a snappiness comparison with Channels?

1 Like
#8

No. But I was more speaking to the poster who said it was inferior in performance to the Amazon Fire Stick TV 4K; my personal experience is the opposite. (Plus, once the TiVo software is disabled and/removed, the experience is far superior to Amazon's incessant branding and horrible UX.)

#9

This is not a true or fair comparison.
It is like you are comparing a eco car, to a race car.
One is budget product, the other is premium high end class product.
Also, completely different platforms, so what your really asking is more so Android TV vs Apple TVos.

Nvidia Shield vs Apple TV is the proper comparison, as those are both in the same price range and feature,hardware class set overall.

The Tivo is a very good deal, at its lower price, $50 (atm), if all you want is a basic Android TV type dongle, to stream media. Not to be used for games or other resource intensive apps you can install via the Play Store.

Until Google releases thier own dongle, which may be fairly soon, (as there have been a few leaks on that) the Tivo Stream 4K (after u de-tivo it) is a quite fine for Channels DVR client device.

Also, no one really knows how things will be for those that ran the ADB debloat (remove the Tivo things) will affect future OS updates. It could end up that a update prevents the user from removing most or all of thier add ons, without rooting the thing and really messing with it....which is far more risk of breaking it, then with the current only user level permisisons currently needed to de-bloat the thing.

The remote is a bit smaller than i like, and is not backlit.
It is sluggish compared to my Shields. But i expected that.

Apple, I can only say what i have read from others, the remote sucks, very bad, most people hate it, even Apple fanboys hate it. IMO, only reason to consider it, is if you are already trapped on the Apple Ecosystem and can make use of you already existing itunes library etc.

I find the Android TV ecosystem far more versatile, powerful, and useable. Most Android mobile apps you can even side load on to Android TV. I also am a Google/Android user, cause it does what i need it to do, how i want it....Apple does not. (thats a different topic of course)

As far as Channels app experience, already have some of the new layout design UI by using the Alpha app for Android TV. Been using it for months now, since they put it out. works fine, has a few bugs that cause a crash sometimes, but very much useable as a daily driver.

It is only a matter of time before the full 4.0 GUI is on Android. So what is the Apple gets the newer version first, the terrible remote the thing uses, with stupid gestures that run amuck if u rub against the remote or sit on it, and lack of usefull buttons, ruins the useablity, imo. And since it has no usb port, and is locked down, u can't just get one of millions usb media remotes off Amazon, Ebay and hook it up. (i have a nice fully backlit media/keyboard/air mouse remote on my Shield pro). U also have no expandable storage on Apple things. I love having a large usb stick on my Shield, to store or transfer local files to watch on that in stead of my power hunger gaming desktop computer.

#10

I have removed and disabled all that can be. I've not gone as far as using adb to remove disabled apps. I only install Netflix, channels and emby nothing else. This is exactly what I do with the fs4k's. The ts4k is a great device for the price with a better remote then the rest. I grabbed 3 for the sale price $50. It is the most used device in my house because of the remote. What you said about your TV is what I think about ts4k "usable but sluggish". Example After watching a channel for several hours and hitting the back button to open the side menu there's a noticeable lag sometimes its several seconds. I don't get this with the fs4k and I get a 45 minute buffer with the fs4k. We switched from tivo after using that for maney years solely because the 30 minute buffer limit. There is no comparison to the picture quality and response when using the atv4k and There shouldn't be because of the price difference. When I started using channels and reading these forums, back then my impression was that people were having problems with the Nvidia shield. The atv4k was highly recommended at that time. So that's the direction I went. Looking here now I probably would have gone with the Nvidia shield and the harmony remote. That will be my next move if the support for a more full feature atv4k remote is not forthcoming. As always this is just my opinion.

#11

The adb script is not actually removing anything u cant do yourself manually. i think.
I just is a fast easy, and automated way to just de-bloat the thing as much as possible.
I had removed some apps, but missed a few, like the one that makes the Tivo home screen bar not removable.

#12

The main thing that is attracting me to try the TS4K is how users here have gotten the remote to work, and to save a few bucks over the Apple TV to replicate on all our TVs. I have Caavo and Harmony remotes, but we are reduced now to just the streaming boxes so don't want to deal with that overhead and cost. I want to keep it simple. Having been a Tivo user for many years, I like the Tivo remote form factor and the fact that its smaller is not a problem. We are using the One for All Streamer with the Apple TV and it is small. Its just that most of the buttons don't work because of the dang stupid Apple minimalist mentality. We have been using Sony's Android on our bedroom TV where my wife watches a lot of TV and Apple TV in family room and she's not complained about the Sony. I find it slow and sluggish, but use it. If the TS4K is somewhere in between them on speed, I'd be fine for tradeoff to get the better remote experience.

When doing side by side testing last night between Sony Android and Apple TV 4K on the same TV, using just Channels DVR, that the colors were so much more vibrant when playing Channels via AT4K vs. the Sony TV Android. That surprised me because I would have thought that was mostly driven by the TV's rendering... but guess not.

I guess I'll spend the $50 and order one to try it out from Amazon. It should only take me a couple of days to get a feel for if the performance is acceptable.

#13

I got one of those remotes, thought it would be nice, but could not get it to work with my Shield at all. no matter the mode it was set to. or to control the Shield via CEC through my Vzio tv, but when programmed to Vizio, the buttons did not match up, and would jsut act nutty when i manually programmed the IR options. very nice feel in the hand though. shame. (did not know until later, that it was an IR only remote, not RF/BT)

I prefer the remote on the Shield, i like the triangle stick feel. and the backlit buttons u can use the button mapper app to remap the Netflix button. i have it set for one press, Channels, double, Emby, tripple press, Philo, Long press, system settings.

The Tivo remote, i was expecting a typical large tvio remote, as i have had one of those before for one of their dvrs. but it rather dinky and too small for my hand and fingers. it is fine for my mother, and the only reason i got it was for her to use in her bedroom tv. i have a Shield tube setup in our living room. First thing she noticed, the tivio remote doe snot light up.

But, if u want numbers, and other buttons, i guess it great stock remote.
But like i said, look on amazon, ebay, there are a bazillion media HTPC, stream box remotes to choose from, usb, some Bluetooth, sure to be one that u like even better. The Shield pro has usb port. The Tivio has a usb c port, so, using a C to A adapter, i assume one could connect a usb remote to it.

#14

Speaking of talk on remotes....this article just appeared in my feeds.

#15

The issue with the Apple TV and the remote is not easily solved by just using another remote. You ultimately still need the Siri remote in arms reach. The reason being that the TV button, which is used for some important things, only works with Bluetooth. The other buttons can be handled with IR. Only Apple would be that idiotic. Why in the @%@%#$ would they make one button Bluetooth only, and one that is important. Thankfully, you can live without it in day to day operation. But worse than that, the trackpad is completely proprietary and some apps stupidly use it. Philo, for example, uses a down swipe to access info during playback, and that is where the Closed Caption menu is, record, etc. They could have quite easily coded it to work with the down arrow, but no... the developers used the down swipe. How about make it work with both? And the remote lacks very many buttons that could possibly be remapped. So the ATV4K remote situation is really a hot mess. But that is Apple. And some people like it... more power to them. For me, I buy a $180 streaming box and use a $16 Walmart IR remote.

I'm not interested in any of the fancier more expensive remotes because I'm only controlling a streaming box. I've got several that cost as much as the ATV4K, sitting in the closet. I actually configured a Roku remote to work with the Apple TV and that is not bad, but there is some quirkiness and you need to keep a Roku around to program some of it.

#16

Yea....glad i did not get the Apple....after reading about the remote and its touch pad.
I had the 2017 Nvidia Shield for a week, and that wafer stick remote had a touch panel for the volume controls, and it was terrible. would go off with the slight handeling of the remote. Very glad Nvidia released the new 2019 model a week later.

#17

If you have a Harmony remote (I have the Elite, for example) you can add the TiVo Stream 4K as a device and use some of the shortcuts now like "Guide"... Logitech has yet to add the TiVo button or Live TV & DVR buttons to their database, but hopefully that's coming... go here and up-vote/comment to make this happen: https://support.logi.com/hc/en-us/community/posts/360048772473--TiVo-Media-Player-profile-for-the-TiVo-Stream-4K-is-missing-DVR-Live-keys

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#18

I'm going to attempt to reprogram the remote based on the thread on here explaining how. My Harmony Elite has been in the box for a couple of years since I got the Caavo (which I liked a lot better), but both are retired now that we are down to basically a single streaming box and an occasional DVD. If I ever get around to ripping all of them, I'll be able to retire that too. I want something simple that I can put on all our TVs and not cost a fortune.

#19

I did go ahead and order a TS4K from Amazon that I'll have tomorrow and will test it out and see how it compares with the ATV4K and my Sony. Will report back here what I think.

#20

I tried adding the KEYCODE_DVR functionality using Button Mapper but it doesn't seem to work (I also could be entering it in the wrong place)... I wish it would work though as it's the final button I need on my Harmony. I got most other functionality working using the "Windows Computer" functionality and using Button Mapper to map most other things.