Black Friday 2019

[CRussel]

Originally Posted by ApK

Unless that "add on device" is a computer. Hook up a laptop to the HDMI port and manage everything yourself. I did it that way for a while.

I still do that for a couple of things that aren't on Amazon Prime Video or its channels. A nuisance, but not a huge one.

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by ApK

It's not a question of content, it's a question of whether or not the devices need to check in with Roku to validate the active account or otherwise "phone home" in some way to function.

Plus you need the Roku account to access the Roku app store similar to how you'd need an iTunes/iCloud account to download apps for iOS.

Originally Posted by ApK

Unless that "add on device" is a computer. Hook up a laptop to the HDMI port and manage everything yourself. I did it that way for a while.

I used to build dedicated Mini-ITX HTPCs running Windows XP/Vista/7 with Windows Media Center. I did try streaming boxes such as the 1st gen Roku and Popcorn Hour but they were just too limited in terms of what formats and codecs/profiles they can play, and from what sources so I still had to go the PC route.

Nowadays, we've completely switched to streaming boxes. They're cheaper than a PC setup (even the AppleTV 4K) and a lot more capable compared to before.

[ApK]

Originally Posted by ilovejedd

Plus you need the Roku account to access the Roku app store similar to how you'd need an iTunes/iCloud account to download apps for iOS.

Yeah, but that could potentially just be a one-time set up. I'm curious about if, once it was set up, could the device continue to work without talking to Roku Inc at all.

Nowadays, we've completely switched to streaming boxes. They're cheaper than a PC setup (even the AppleTV 4K) and a lot more capable compared to before.

Cheaper, simpler, more convenient, and, since I've trans-coded my local media library to a compatible format, they play everything I needed them too. Definitely a good reason for a Roku account in my case.

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by ApK

Cheaper, simpler, more convenient, and, since I've trans-coded my local media library to a compatible format, they play everything I needed them too. Definitely a good reason for a Roku account in my case.

Didn't even have to transcode. Paired with the right app, it seems the latest streaming boxes have enough processing power for SD to 1080p brute-force/software decode when hardware decoding isn't available.

[cfrizz]

Originally Posted by OtinG

My 40" Sony Bravia is about 12 feet from where I sit and that is about the right size for me. Much bigger and I would have to turn my head from side to side to see everything. A 65" screen would be way too big for me. Much smaller than 40" and my old eyes would start to have trouble focusing on the text, although I really don’t care to read the million and one ways in which a pharmaceutical or modern day "snake oil" concoction can turn me into a zombie or worse. I would pay big money for a Big Pharma and Snake Oil advertisement blocking feature though!

I'm glad my Sony Bravia is still working great even though I bought it in 2008. It doesn't have any of the modern features like smart TV apps, WiFi, BT, or even a USB port, and definitely no 4K just 1080, but the picture blows away pretty much all of those new cheap sets I’ve seen. You do get what you pay for and I paid a king's ransom for my Bravia 11 years ago, but it still works all these years later. I’ve got a cheap 26" Vizio in my study and it is okay for occasional viewing but its smart TV apps are long since way out dated as most never get updated by Vizio, and I prefer to hookup a Fire TV dongle and Roku dongle to using the built in smart TV features. Personally, I think all that smart TV stuff is mostly gimmicky and I do better with plug-in Fire TVs and Rokus. The set top boxes and dongles can be upgraded to better models in years to come, but you are pretty much stuck with the processors/RAM/etc. that came on the smart TV, so if it sucks now with apps it will suck even worse in the future. But to each there own of course.

I will only buy Sony TVs, you are correct you do get what you pay for, and I would rather spend a little more for a better picture that Sony's always offer.

I went from a Sony 32" CRT, to a Sony 40" LCD, and I now have a 50" Sony in my livingroom and the picture is glorious, bright, and I can read the small print if interested. I have a Sony 32" in my bedroom. If I had the space I would have a 50" in there as well!

I use to be one of those that would justify the fact for settling for a smaller tv because of the supposed size of the room and the distance I was sitting from it. Not any more, the bigger the better! I will now only limit myself due to space restrictions.

Both of my tv's are Smart tv's, but I got a Roku stick for my living room set, and I'm happy with that, if I sometime become bed bound, I'm happy with the Netflix on my TV in the bedroom. What made the big difference there is getting a soundbar to replace the crappy tv speakers! My living room tv is hooked up to a 5.2 channel surround system so I can rock out to concerts and get blown away when I watch my movies!!!!

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by GtrsRGr8

I have a second toilet, and I live alone, so having just one working toilet is no big deal. Unless it goes out, then I'll be making a trip to the big-box (and no, I don't mean an outhouse. Although that would solve the problem . . . .)

Ditto, I live alone too and have a full bath off of a hallway and a half bath in the master bedroom. My half bath toilet started leaking water from the tank into the bowl, and this is not a huge issue as no water leaks onto the floor. However, with the tank slowly draining into the bowl all the time the float drops below the minimum water level and that turns on the water to refill the tank. No big deal other than it is occurring every 10 minutes are so which will drive up my water bill, and of course is wasteful and bad as far as water conservation goes. But it mostly is a nuisance as I can hear it when the water turns on to fill the tank, especially at night when I’m trying to sleep. So I did what you did, I shut off the water valve to it and only use the other toilet. I’ll eventually get the gaskets and parts for the tank to bowl fix, but I’m being lazy for now!

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by ApK

Yeah, but that could potentially just be a one-time set up. I'm curious about if, once it was set up, could the device continue to work without talking to Roku Inc at all.


Cheaper, simpler, more convenient, and, since I've trans-coded my local media library to a compatible format, they play everything I needed them too. Definitely a good reason for a Roku account in my case.

Well app updates can be crucial. If the Roku, Fire TV, etc. doesn't have an account then it won't allow the apps to update. Eventually tat might cause issues. Hulu for example, is constantly changing their app to add new features or to squash bugs. If one of the streaming apps a user is using gets a significant update and the user doesn't update to that version they might lose part or all of their service to that app.

Another good thing about having an account for a Roku or Fire TV, is that when you set up a new set top box you don't have to add all the personalization stuff again. Just sign into Amazon Prime or Roku on the device and all your universal setting, favorites, etc. populate the new device.

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by cfrizz

I will only buy Sony TVs, you are correct you do get what you pay for, and I would rather spend a little more for a better picture that Sony's always offer.

I went from a Sony 32" CRT, to a Sony 40" LCD, and I now have a 50" Sony in my livingroom and the picture is glorious, bright, and I can read the small print if interested. I have a Sony 32" in my bedroom. If I had the space I would have a 50" in there as well!

I use to be one of those that would justify the fact for settling for a smaller tv because of the supposed size of the room and the distance I was sitting from it. Not any more, the bigger the better! I will now only limit myself due to space restrictions.

Both of my tv's are Smart tv's, but I got a Roku stick for my living room set, and I'm happy with that, if I sometime become bed bound, I'm happy with the Netflix on my TV in the bedroom. What made the big difference there is getting a soundbar to replace the crappy tv speakers! My living room tv is hooked up to a 5.2 channel surround system so I can rock out to concerts and get blown away when I watch my movies!!!!

The one good thing about a smart TV like my Vizio is I can choose whether to use the built-in apps or just plug in one or more set top box. Its nice to be able to ignore the built-in smart functions if I want to, and on m Visio I definitely want to ignore them as they never worked that well and most haven't been updated by Vizio in a long time. Roku and Amazon both seem to provide frequent app updates whereas TV manufacturers don't always do that for that smart TVs.

[mlewis78]

I have the original Fire TV box (5 years old) and it worked most of the time, but sometimes there was no sound. I was able to solve that by rebooting the TV, but since about 3 weeks ago, the sound will not work at all. I suspect there is something wrong with the TV, or that the Amazon Fire TV is not completely compatible with it. It's a Sharp Aquos TV from about 2007 and it has just one HDMI port (cable doesn't go through HDMI and the TV works perfectly with cable -- sound comes through my stereo system).

Whenever I have called Amazon help, they have not been able to help, although they had me go through many troubleshooting procedures. I talked to them a few times after the most recent no-sound problem, but it is not fixed. Early last week, the Amazon help person said she was writing a ticket and would call me back once a day to check on this, but (of course!) she never called me at all. Amazon even conferenced me in with Spectrum to see if it was an internet problem.

I ended up getting a new Spectrum package. Spectrum did a bait and switch, gave me one monthly price and when they didn't send the new modem, I called and they cancelled what I signed up for and wrote a new one -- later a confirmation email gave me a monthly cost that was $51 higher. I called and complained, but they never resolved it. So I'm on a more expensive Spectrum plan that was supposed to have 400 gbpm but didn't deliver (it is usually under 100 gbpm when I test it). They sent a tech who wasn't able to make it faster than 200 something, but now it is back to below 100.

If you are still reading (thanks!): I have had to keep the Amazon Fire TV settings in audio to "dolby off" because my TV doesn't support it, but now even that nor rebooting the TV brings back the sound.

I was considering buying a smart TV, but i hate to toss out a flat screen Sharp TV that works perfectly with cable. It's 32" which is the largest that I can use in my small apartment (I'm about 6-7 ft. from the TV and the holder of the TV is a hutch that a neighbor gave me when he moved that fits on the (non-working) fireplace brick hearth.

If a new fire tv cube would work with this, I would buy one, but I suspect that it won't if the TV is the problem. I also have a fire tv stick from 2015 that I only opened recently to see if it would work and the problem is the same. Neither the box notr the stick are 4K (since they are 4-5 years old).

[Manabi]

Originally Posted by mlewis78

If a new fire tv cube would work with this, I would buy one, but I suspect that it won't if the TV is the problem. I also have a fire tv stick from 2015 that I only opened recently to see if it would work and the problem is the same. Neither the box notr the stick are 4K (since they are 4-5 years old).

If the Fire TV Stick does the same thing, it's definitely the TV. Since it works with cable my guess is it's the HDMI port that's the problem. If you really want to keep it and if the TV has composite inputs as well, you could try an HDMI to composite adapter. You could even run the audio part of that straight to your stereo system if it doesn't work passing through the TV. You can also get extractors that will give you HDMI and audio outputs separately. That way you could just run the audio straight to your stereo while continuing to use the HDMI port. Both will run around $20.

But if the HDMI port is failing, it may stop working with video eventually. The HDMI to composite option would be better long-term due to that, as long as you have those inputs and aren't already using them for something else.

[OtinG]

@mlewis78, Spectrum/Charter is a part of Big Cable and they certainly play the part. I had their cable TV and internet for a couple years, and I still have their internet service because they have and exclusive contract with the city I live in, so they are the only provider for internet. it is insanely expensive, but it has been fairly reliable and fast. Their cable was mediocre though, and even more insanely expensive. But that is typical of Big Cable companies. If their tech guy couldn't fix the issue with internet speed, then the only thing you can try is to reboot both the modem and the router whenever the internet speed slows way down. I usually get about 210 Mbps, but it occasionally slows down to below 100 Mbps, so I reboot and the speed goes back up to 200 Mbps. Here lately I need to reboot a couple times a month or so.

As far as your old Fire TV generation 1 and your 32" TV, that could be a lot of things including a bad port on the TV or the Fire TV, a bad cable, a Fire TV issue, a TV issue, a firmware issue, or other issues or combinations of issues. I’m not sure if Amazon still updates the firmware for the older gen 1 Fire TV, if not then maybe that has become an issue, though probably not. Getting set top boxes to work with TVs can be a PITA sometimes, but it sounds like it used to work fine, so the issue is probably a new issue. Amazon has a very generous return policy, so if you want to try a new Fire TV stick or the Cube to see if they resolve the issue, then you could do that and have 30 days in which to return the new Fire TV device if it didn't fix the issue.

Good luck, I hope you get it to work soon!

[mlewis78]

Thank you, Manabi and OtinG. You have worthwhile ideas.

I asked on facebook Amazon Echo speaker group if there was a way to pair my original Echo with my fire tv. I had tried to do this a few weeks ago but failed. I did not ask Echo to pair with bluetooth. Someone answered me and told me say Alexa, start bluetooth. I asked it to pair with bluetooth and it worked. At first it wouldn't connect, but I got it connected to the Tap. Tried again with the Echo and got it working. So now I am using my Tap for the laptop sound, since one speaker won't pair with two devices at one time.

The picture has been fine all along (not in HD with the old fire tv box, of course, but still very good), so I don't think the HDMI port on the TV is the problem (I may be wrong).

Next time there is a deal on fire tv cube (just missed one), I will probably buy it and see if it is better. I don't want to pay full price. Since I have a workaround with the Echo speaker for now, I'll watch with that connected via bluetooth.

Amazon still updates the fire tv software in mine. I check once in a while to make sure it is up to date.

[OtinG]

Many of us probably bought some nice Amazon goodies recently that came with free trial subscriptions like Audible, Kindle Unlimited, etc. This is just a helpful reminder to remember that you signed up for them and to cancel any of them you don’t plan on keeping.

I managed to forget to cancel my Audible free trial and was surprised this morning by a $16.18 renewal payment. I thought I had actually cancelled it but I guess I didn't. I usually set calendar appointments to remind me to cancel trial subscriptions a few days before they renew, but apparently I forgot to do that too! Oh well, I called Audible and they refunded the charge and cancelled the subscription for me, and they were very nice about it. I then checked to see when my Kindle Unlimited free trial was set to expire and went ahead and cancelled it to. (I’ve already read just about anything it offered that was of interest to me, and that was very little.)

I’ve noticed that most free trial offers allow you to cancel early on but then let you continue to use the service for the remainder of the trial period. So sometimes I cancel a day or two into free trial just so I don’t get a surprise like I did today. At any rate, with the holidays specials and free trials being offered by so many services, it is probably a good idea to go review those accounts and note when they will automatically renew.

[cc_in_oh]

I was surprised to see BF-ish prices on the Paperwhite last week, and today the Fire HD10 is back down to $100. I'm slightly tempted to get one now that the battery on my HDX7 is only giving me about an hour of use...

[ngrant]

I bit on the deal @ Amazon and traded in my 2017 (7th Gen) HD10 to get $30 credited to my Gift Card balance and 20% off the new tablet, with 5 monthly payments too. While reviews generally agree it is not must-have upgrade, the features that helped my decision were: 1. faster processor, 2. USB-C charging and 3. my awesome Fintie Tuatara Magic Ring case will fit the new HD 10!

I can't say enough good things about this case: built-in screen protector, ruggedized protection, handle on back can swivel and open to any angle needed to prop the tablet for comfortable viewing and can be used to carry the thing around. Those who like the light streamlined design of the tablet will probably not like this chunky case or its $40 price tag, but it works for me. And, the Navy color will match the Twilight Blue HD10 beautifully! (Not that the the tablet color will be visible anyway... but I'LL KNOW) Link