Tag Archives: Streamer

"With 4K, Dolby Vision, Atmos and Chromecast, the Stream 4K offers a lot of value."

• Affordable

• Great remote control

• 4K, Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos

• Chromecast and Google Assistant integrated

• Only supports Sling for live TV

• Dolby Atmos support is inconsistent

When TiVo announced the Stream 4K at CES 2020, we were a little surprised. The company, which built its reputation (and arguably an industry) on the invention of the DVR, showed a device that could not record TV shows on a hard drive and could not even be connected to conventional TV sources such as cable, satellite, or free antenna broadcasts.

The Stream 4K is also a price departure from TiVo's past. With an introductory price of $ 50 and no additional fees, the Stream 4K is by far the cheapest TiVo product. But has the company sold its soul to harness the power of the streaming video revolution?

Let's take a look.

What is the TiVo Stream 4K?

Simon Cohen / Digital Trends

Before we go into the full test, let's discuss what the Stream 4K is – and what isn't.

Despite the TiVo branding, the Stream 4K has practically nothing in common with DVR devices such as the TiVo Bolt OTA and the TiVo Edge. It cannot be used in the same household as these other TiVo products to access your DVR recordings or conventional live TV (in case you hoped it could serve as a much cheaper version of the TiVo Mini). But one thing the TiVo believers will not miss: the fee for the TiVo service (since this is not a TiVo DVR).

Instead, it's a $ 50 streaming media dongle that is supported by the Android TV operating system. TiVo has added some proprietary software improvements, but for the most part, the Stream 4K should be viewed as an Android TV.

At an extremely affordable price of $ 50, the Stream 4K may be the best Android TV in the world right now. But it is definitely not a TiVo in the traditional sense.

design

Simon Cohen / Digital Trends

The Stream 4K looks like a cross between a Google Chromecast and a Roku Streaming Stick +. The main dongle is a small, rectangular device that is designed to resemble TiVo's latest DVR, the Edge, and has the same offset-square look.

TiVo knows a thing or two about remote controls. You could say it's one of the company's greatest strengths.

A flexible HDMI cable makes it easy to connect to the back or sides of a TV, and a standard micro USB cable is powered by the included power adapter. Although it is possible that an available USB port on your TV is used for the power supply, TiVo expressly recommends not to do so.

There is a USB-C port on the side, but it is currently only used to add a third-party Ethernet adapter.

What sets the Stream 4K apart from the streaming dongle competition is its remote control.

TiVo knows a thing or two about remote controls. You could say it's one of the company's greatest strengths. The Stream 4K's remote looks like someone took a regular TiVo remote and shrunk it in their laundry.

The classic peanut shape is retained and is pleasant to hold and use. It contains most of the expected keys such as volume, channel, a special number pad and even the famous TiVo key "Skip". Some of these buttons, like the "Skip" and "TiVo" buttons, work a little differently on the Stream 4K than on the PVRs, but overall this is a very familiar experience.

A notable exception is the Google Assistant button, which replaces the blue voice button. You use this for all voice-based commands.

The only button I wished for was a dedicated play / pause. As with some older Android TVs like the 2017 Nvidia Shield TV and earlier, the central D-Pad button is an "OK" function for menus and a play / pause button when streaming, but sometimes it has to be done twice pressed when you want to pause or play.

configuration

Setting up Stream 4K is easy with a step-by-step on-screen wizard. Usually, you have to create a TiVo account for TiVo devices as part of the activation process. However, since this is also an Android TV device, you need a Google account to download apps from the Google Play Store and use the Google Assistant.

The only difference from other streaming devices is TiVo's personalization step, which takes you through a range of A or B options using popular TV shows to set a benchmark for your personal taste.

After making about a dozen of these decisions, TiVo's personalization engine offers a number of suggested titles for your My Shows collection. If, like me, you are not particularly enthusiastic about the suggestions, you can always add your own shows and films to your "My Shows" library later.

In the last step you will be asked to select the streaming services to which you have access. Options include Sling, Amazon Prime, Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, HBO Max, Hulu, Disney + as well as Google Play Movies and TV.

Wondering what is the difference between Amazon Prime and Amazon Prime Video? Amazon Prime includes all of the content included in your Prime membership, while Amazon Prime Video is Amazon's paid program – shows and movies that you can only rent or buy.

If you're concerned that your preferred streaming service isn't one of the options, you shouldn't. This is simply the list of streaming services that TiVo currently has access to for its personalized streaming app, which we'll discuss next. In the Google Play Store, you can choose from a variety of additional streaming services. A notable exception is Apple TV +.

The TiVo Stream experience

Simon Cohen / Digital Trends

The TiVo Stream 4K is incredibly affordable considering that it has both Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos. However, TiVo would argue that the biggest attraction of Stream 4K is the included TiVo Stream app, and this is an argument with some value.

Much like Apple's TV app tried to create a curated streaming experience that collects content from multiple streaming platforms (including your own Apple TV + if you have a subscription), the TiVo Stream consolidates all of yours Services in a user-friendly interface.

All of the curated content is divided into well-known categories such as movies, TV shows, sports, and children (though strangely no "news" option), and each is divided into deeper categories like "superhero films". This is a great way to search multiple content sources from a single user interface. Equally valuable is the search tool, which, as the name suggests, allows you to search the entire curated content.

It's incredibly affordable considering that it has both Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos

The stream app is also home to the free, ad-supported live TV platform TiVo +, a collection of hyper-specific channels such as Unsolved Mysteries, Conde Nast Traveler and Food52. You can access these channels using the Guide button or by switching to the Guide view in the Stream app. If you have a Sling subscription, this will also be shown here.

TiVo regards the Stream app as the real “home screen” of the Stream 4K, although you can still access the normal Android TV home screen. In fact, each of these user experiences gets its own button on the remote control. The stream app is triggered via the TiVo button, which is located on the front and center of the remote control, while the Android TV start screen is accessed via a small circular button next to the Google Assistant button.

Do you find these dueling home screens confusing? First, yes. You'll likely stumble around a bit, especially if you've never used an Android TV.

However, you will quickly find that the Stream app is just like any other app in the bigger Android TV experience. It's there when you want it, as is the dedicated button, but it's easy to ignore if you don't find it valuable.

How valuable you find it depends on how many of the supported streaming services you subscribe to. If your only paid subscription is Netflix, the stream app can only offer you Netflix suggestions and everything it can find on its own TiVo + Live TV service.

This pales in comparison to Roku's The Roku Channel, which not only curates among most paid streaming services, but also finds the best free streaming options from a much wider range of services.

Made for Sling, somehow

TiVo

To get the most out of the Stream app, you need a Sling TV subscription. This is currently the only live TV service (except TiVo +) that the app supports. Sling TV effectively replaces the role that cable, satellite or antenna television plays on TiVo's DVRs by allowing the Stream app to access a variety of broadcast channels and broadcasts.

Without a Sling subscription, the Stream 4K is a powerful Android TV with some useful extras. A Sling subscription gets a little closer to the TiVo experience that made the company's DVRs so popular, but with some important limitations.

Sling channels are displayed in the Guide interface, where you can see what is currently playing and what is on the program. However, if you've subscribed to Netflix or another streaming service that contains the same shows as a Sling channel, clicking on future scheduled episodes in the manual will only allow you to watch them immediately instead of seeing the expected Sling recording option.

In a way, that's good. Why wait to record an episode when you can see it on another service now? But I think the guide should give you both options, not just one. The only way to trigger a sling recording of a "double" show is to switch from the Android TV start screen to the standalone sling app and use its instructions.

When you schedule a recording in the Sling app, the Sling manual shows that the recording has been scheduled. However, this information is not shown in the manual of the Stream app.

There is also no way to access your sling recordings via the Stream app. You'll need to return to the Sling app to find, view, and manage it.

performance

Simon Cohen / Digital Trends

Unlike Roku, Amazon Fire TV, or Apple TV, which all have tight control over the software and hardware that delivers their experiences, Android TV can feel a bit like the wild west, with some devices delivering a snappy performance while others feel sluggish.

Fortunately, the Stream 4K is one of the earlier ones, which switches quickly and quickly from app to app, and there was no noticeable delay in using the buttons on the remote control.

This is probably due to the internals of the Stream 4K. It has 2 GB of RAM and 8 GB of onboard storage and can wirelessly stream over 802.11 AC Wi-Fi. But I find the CPU, the Amlogic S905Y2, particularly interesting. This is the same chip that Google is using for its Android TV developer platform ADT-3, and probably the same chip that Google will be using in its upcoming Android TV device, codenamed Sabrina.

If you are an Android TV power user hoping for a cheap alternative to Shield TV, keep this in mind. TiVo does not offer some advanced options, e.g. B. Pass-through for Dolby Atmos or DTS HD. There is also no way to handle switching and exiting apps, a standard feature of most Android TVs.

Audio and video quality

If you have a 4K HDR TV, the contents of the Stream 4K should look great, and even more so if your TV also supports Dolby Vision. In a back-to-back test against an Apple TV 4K with a LG OLED TV, I found that the Stream 4K produced pictures that were just as detailed and colorful, whether I was from Netflix, Amazon Prime Video or Plex streamed.

I had problems getting one of the streaming apps to deliver Dolby Atmos to my A / V receiver or TV

I also managed to outperform my other Android TV, an Nvidia Shield TV for 2019 for $ 150, with slightly more vivid tones.

Oddly, there were some cases where the black bars at the top and bottom of the screen (which is the case when playing movies with a ratio of 2.35: 1 like Ford versus Ferrari) appeared gray and not black. However, this was inconsistent and may have been a bug with the Plex app rather than a problem with the Stream 4K.

I also occasionally encountered screen fades where the signal from the Stream 4K was temporarily interrupted, although this only happened while navigating the user interface and not while streaming video.

The audio quality is great, but Dolby Atmos fans are warned. Despite the fact that the Stream 4K supports a variety of audio formats such as Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, DTS, DTS HD and Dolby Atmos, I had problems getting one of the streaming apps to deliver Dolby Atmos to my air conditioner receiver or television.

TiVo's representative admitted that the Stream 4K has not yet received a software update to be compatible with Netflix's Dolby Atmos requirements, and said that this update will be available soon. However, I didn't get a clear reason why Disney + and Amazon Prime were in the same boat.

In a way, this shouldn't come as a surprise. TiVo has brought products to the market in the past – the TiVo Bolt OTA comes to mind – that promised functions such as 4K and HDR but did not have the necessary support for streaming services so that these functions work at least when started.

Since the Stream 4K is clearly Dolby Atmos compatible, it is now a waiting game to see when or if TiVo and the streaming services update their apps to activate it.

Integrated Google Assistant and Chromecast

Simon Cohen / Digital Trends

Two main advantages of choosing Android TV as a smart TV operating system are Google Assistant and Google Chromecast. Both work well with the Stream 4K, which means that this $ 50 dongle outperforms Google's own $ 69 Chromecast Ultra in every possible way.

I haven't tested the Stream 4K for performance with Google's Stadia game service, but the Chromecast feature was a spell for other tasks like initiating and controlling streams from YouTube or Plex.

Our opinion

Android TV may not be for everyone, but at $ 50, the TiVo Stream 4K is a compelling argument that you should give it a try. With the support of Dolby Vision and a curated viewing experience that should improve over time, the Stream 4K has a lot of potential. The company must keep an eye on its relationships with streaming providers to ensure that the potential is exploited.

Is there a better alternative?

If you're looking for an affordable remote-controlled media streamer, you have a wide choice. The Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K for $ 50 works with Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos, has an integrated Alexa function and a library with over 8,000 apps. However, not everyone loves the Fire TV interface, and there is no native casting option for Android or iOS devices.

The $ 50 Roku Streaming Stick + has one of the best smart TV interfaces we've ever used, as well as countless apps. However, Dolby Vision is not supported. Google Assistant or Alexa are not supported (although Roku has its own voice command system). Casting is limited to what you can do with the free Roku app.

Both devices are worthwhile alternatives, but given the unique features of the Stream 4K, I won't call them "better" for the time being.

How long it will take?

This is a difficult question. The hardware is solid, but when it comes to streaming devices, software support plays a much bigger role.

Google likes to update its software regularly and Android TV is no exception. If TiVo stays up to date with these Stream 4K updates, you're in good shape. However, if the Android smartphone world is an indicator, this support may only continue for one or two important updates.

If this is a problem, Roku and Amazon have excellent track records for updates. Nvidia has also remarkably taken care of its Shield TVs, which are updated five years after the launch of the first models.

Should you buy it

Yes. At an introductory price of just $ 50, the TiVo Stream 4K packs a lot of value into a small package. Even if you never use the signature stream app to manage your bingeing sessions, this is currently the cheapest way to get started on Android TV.

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