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HBO NOW available NOW!

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Mixolydian said:
Could pretty much do that before with the HBO app. Just had to authenticate it with my cable company account.
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Was there a way to use the "HBO app" (do you mean HBO GO) without subscribing to HBO through your cable/sat provider? Pretty sure there wasn't.

This is the difference with HBO NOW
 
zinfamous said:
Was there a way to use the "HBO app" (do you mean HBO GO) without subscribing to HBO through your cable/sat provider? Pretty sure there wasn't.

This is the difference with HBO NOW
Click to expand...


No, there wasn't, I was just adding on to my previous point about the cost.
 
Still have a couple more months before Apple's exclusivity wears off.

Something I would sub to maybe 1-2 months per year. But $15/mo every month? That's laughable.
 
ch33zw1z said:
the point is that you don't have to spend $100+ with the cable company just to get the package that has HBO.
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So you don't need an internet subscription either? Just Apple TV by itself is enough? Because adding TV to an internet subscription is like $5. Adding HBO to that is ~$15. So if you still need an internet subscription, you aren't saving that much. Still nice, but nothing to go nuts over.
 
ioni said:
So you don't need an internet subscription either? Just Apple TV by itself is enough? Because adding TV to an internet subscription is like $5. Adding HBO to that is ~$15. So if you still need an internet subscription, you aren't saving that much. Still nice, but nothing to go nuts over.
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Well, yeah, Apple TV requires that you have an Internet connection.

You can't get HBO from the cable company without some kind of equipment lease. The channel is encrypted, so a TV by itself can't decode it...even if it has a digital tuner. You'd need to lease a cable box, DTA, or cableCARD from the cableco. My cableco charges $7 for a cableCARD to use with my own tuner (Silicondust HDHomeRun Prime) -- so $7 is the minimum equipment lease to get HBO from my cableco. Others might charge as little as $2 for a cableCARD. On top of that, the HBO subscription is $16 from my cable company. On top of that, to get HBO, it requires that you have the "Digital" TV package (formerly known as "Expanded Basic"). That's all the channels under 100 and the HD versions of those channels. About $62. Then you have various taxes and fees ($?.??). A mandatory $7.93 "broadcast TV surcharge" (separating the per-subscriber costs of the local broadcast stations). Most customers lease an HD DVR box for something like $14/month.
 
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ioni said:
So you don't need an internet subscription either? Just Apple TV by itself is enough? Because adding TV to an internet subscription is like $5. Adding HBO to that is ~$15. So if you still need an internet subscription, you aren't saving that much. Still nice, but nothing to go nuts over.
Click to expand...

yes, it's not magic. 😀

It's a step in the right direction. Although, I wouldn't subscribe all year. If they pushed this out now without the Apple requirement, I would buy it for the duration of GoT.
 
I have iTunes on my desktop PC with Win 7 and Intel CPU and it's great for HD movies. I was curious if I could get the HBO on it but no it's just iPad, iPhone and Apple TV I guess. Oh I can get HBO podcasts which are like previews but not iTunes full HBO movies on my desktop as far as I've been looking into it today.
 
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Sigh...it all cost too much.

Internet connection = $75
HDTV = $500+
Electricity = varies
Apple TV or Roku= $70+
Free Time = Never Enough

At this point I will never catch up to all the shows I have missed.
 
Sling-TV now promotes HBO LIVE and HBO on-demand, available for $15.
Sling TV is pretty cool, especially for those truly wanting got cut the cable wire, so to speak.
I signed up for sling TV only to get the free Amazon Fire TV Stick promo (however the "stick" was C R A P due to terrible WiFi connection issues, and the Amazon site product reviews for Fire TV Stick had some 1000+ people also having WiFi connection issues, so it wasn't just me).
I bitched to Amazon and they exchanged the FTV "stick" for the Fire TV "Box".
Amazon also re-applied the Sling TV promo for their FTV, plus Amazon also took off another chunk from the FTV box price, so in the end the Fire TV Box cost me a few dollars.
Sometimes it pays to be a bitch. 😉

The FTV "box" has much better WiFi connection reliability, but better yet has an hard wired ethernet connection port.
I use MoCa throughout the house, and just plugged in the Fire TV Box into my MoCa connected gb-switch, so the FTV box is using fast reliable hard wired ethernet to stream.

What is different with Sling TV, you can go back and watch previous aired programs and movies.
However, when you add in the monthly fee for sling TV, then add another $15 for HBO subscription to the Sling TV, you're getting up there close to the cost of cable or satellite.
Which defeats the whole purpose with saving $$$.

But at least folks now have more options available other than cable or satellite for getting HBO and the likes.
Especially those only feeding off free OTA TV, and streaming media like Netflix, Hulu, Sling TV, etc etc.
You have to figure in the total costs, but this idea of not paying a cable company or satellite company and still getting TBS, CNN, HBO, AMC, A&E, TNT, IFC, EPIX times 3, and sports, (& lots more), all off an antenna and streaming should sound pretty attractive for many of folks.

Subscribing to Sling TV thru the Amazon Fire TV box, and then using hard wired ethernet connection, is the only way to go for streaming those Sling TV channels.

If THAT is not a clear and present danger for the future of satellite and cable companies, I don't know what is.
Once the premium channels and cable TV channels become available on streaming devices, that will be the big time game changer.
N doubt the others premium pay and cable channels will soon follow.
.
.
 
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PlanetJosh said:
I have iTunes on my desktop PC with Win 7 and Intel CPU and it's great for HD movies. I was curious if I could get the HBO on it but no it's just iPad, iPhone and Apple TV I guess. Oh I can get HBO podcasts which are like previews but not iTunes full HBO movies on my desktop as far as I've been looking into it today.
Click to expand...

You need an iPhone.

If you really want it, you can go to an Apple Store, download the app on one of of their iPads, sign up, and then watch it at home.
 
I'm watching Game of Thrones and it's in high definition on my laptop but standard definition when I connect to an external display. Is this how it's supposed to work? 🙁
 
Rakehellion said:
I'm watching Game of Thrones and it's in high definition on my laptop but standard definition when I connect to an external display. Is this how it's supposed to work? 🙁
Click to expand...

Does the display support HDCP? Are you using a digital interface? (HDMI, DisplayPort, DVI)
 
Rakehellion said:
It's connected through HDMI. Does Flash support HDCP?
Click to expand...

I don't think Flash does. Not sure though.


Rakehellion said:
Is there an app that checks for HDCP compliance?
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NVIDIA Control Panel shows it for me.

A "Windows Vista Certified" monitor has HDCP. All HDMI inputs should have it. Presumably any Win7/8 certified display should also have it.

That said, I bought a defective Asus 24" LCD monitor with a faulty HDCP chip many years ago. The "Vista certified" HDCP thing was very new. I had to exchange for another of the same model. The replacement supported HDCP just fine. Used a cable box with HDMI-->DVI cable. Also used with Playstation 3.
 
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I get higher def through HBO GO in my bedroom, I have no idea about an I-Phone type of connection.

One of the reasons I built a HTPC in there, it's higher def then the cable box will run.

Streams 1080P.
 
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