Hidden streaming remote tricks

Plus: My DirecTV Stream review

Apr 29, 2023

This week on TechHive: Your streaming remote’s hidden features

A few weeks ago, a reader reached out about an unusual Apple TV annoyance.

They had purchased the complete series of Everybody Loves Raymond through Apple, but couldn’t get those purchases to load through the “Up Next” row in Apple’s TV app. Instead, selecting an episode kept bringing up a sign-up prompt for Paramount+, effectively blocking the reader from the content for which they’d already paid.

Nefarious or not, this issue had a simple, albeit hidden, solution: By pressing and holding the remote’s Select button, one can bring up a menu of playback options in Apple’s TV app, including a way to view all episodes, and from there, a way to choose playback sources other than Paramount+.

I bring this up not just for the presumably small number of folks who’ve run into the exact same problem, but to illustrate how a long-press on a remote control button can be a source of hidden functionality on smart TVs and streaming players—for better and for worse. Once you know to look for it, you’ll discover all kinds of new tricks.

Read the full column on TechHive →

Weekly rewind

DirecTV Stream review: Also on TechHive this week, I’ve got a freshly-updated review of DirecTV Stream. While it’s not cheap at $75 per month and up, it does have an excellent grid guide. And unlike some other services (ahem, YouTube TV), DirecTV Stream’s menu system maintains clear boundaries between DVR recordings and on-demand videos, so there’s never any confusion about when you’re allowed to skip through ads.

On the downside, the DVR has a confounding 30-episode limit for each show, and the experience is markedly worse on Fire TV and Google TV devices, where DirecTV Stream fails to show a visual preview while fast forwarding through commercial breaks. Read the full review for more details.

YouTube TV’s quality bump: Those who’ve bemoaned YouTube TV’s picture quality may soon get some relief, as Google says it’s testing out changes to how it transcodes video. In particular, YouTube is looking to bump up its bitrates for 1080p content on devices with VP9 support. (That should cover most streaming devices released in the last six years or so.)

To get a bit geeky for a moment: I looked into the picture quality complaints last month, and couldn’t discern any difference between YouTube TV and its rivals. That said, my tests were limited to channels that streamed at 720p. A small number of channels—most notably, some local broadcasts—air at 1080i, which YouTube TV then deinterlaces to 1080p. Given that some readers have griped to me about local channels in particular, and that YouTube is specifically calling out 1080p channels for improvements, that might explain the discrepancy.

YouTube says if all goes well, it’ll make the bitrate bump permanent by this summer, which hopefully will put any outstanding complaints to rest.

More Sunday Ticket details: Over at TechHive, I’ve updated my explainer on YouTube’s Sunday Ticket packages with a few important details:

If you subscribe via YouTube TV, then decide you don’t want YouTube TV, you’ll be able to contact customer service to change your package to the standalone YouTube version.
YouTube TV will offer DVR for Sunday Ticket games, but YouTube will not.
But, as Phillip Swann reports, those who subscribe via YouTube will be able to sign into the YouTube TV app and record games there.

To make things a little clearer, I’ve added a comparison chart to the story as well. That should help you decide whether to pre-order the service—YouTube’s offering a $100 discount if you do so by June 6—and which package to get if so.

More catch-up

Amazon Prime Video gets an AI-based dialog boost option.
Walmart+ subscribers can now watch some Pluto TV shows without ads.
Those free Google TV channels I mentioned a couple weeks back? They’re actually available now.
Report: Netflix lost a million users in Spain after cracking down on password sharing.

Save more money

As I’ve mentioned the past couple of weeks, Peacock is currently offering a $30 discount on the first year for new subscribers, bringing the price to $20 for a year of the ad-supported plan. What I didn’t realize, however, is that this deal also works with Peacock’s ad-free tier. Just use the code N2TEWDZZ at checkout, and you’ll get a year for $70 instead of the usual $100.

Peacock seldom offers discounts on its ad-free tier, so this is well worth considering if you’re averse to commercial breaks. The deal is available through July 8.

Other notable deals:

Still want a TiVo? The over-the-air model is down to $249 with lifetime service.
The Fire TV Stick 4K Max returns to $35.
The latest Paramount+ codes: DRAGRACE, STALLONE, and NWSL2023. Learn how to get it for free.
See all the ways you can save on the Cord Cutter Weekly website.

Thanks for reading!

Got cord cutting questions for me? Just reply to this email to get in touch.

Until next week,
Jared

Cord Cutter Weekly