Best set top box that has the TVNZ and Threenow freeview apps?

Forums › Home Theatre (including HTPC and EPG Collector) › Best set top box that has the TVNZ and Threenow freeview apps?

Baboon

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#284176 5-Apr-2021 17:36

Hey all.

I'm trying to save my parents a lot of money by finally convincing them to dump Sky in favour of streaming, now they're about to get fibre in their country town.

I like the Apple TV for how well it works and it having the two big NZ TV network apps. But of course, it has an awful remote. The worst set top box remote I've ever had. Bad UI, bad design, and fragile too (which is a worry, cause my stepdad drops stuff a lot).

Now the terrible remote isn't a big deal for me and my own Apple TV, as I'm a geek willing to learn and deal with poor UIs. But my parents are another story entirely. They still struggle with their Sky remote for anything but changing channels.

So...are there any other decent options for streaming local channels, Netflix, and with a decent remote?

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#2686758 5-Apr-2021 17:40

I find the remote fine, but there is another option, the iOS Remote app. Its bigger (based on the iPhone screen size) and most of all the typing in a search is much easier. As its keyboard based.

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#2686772 5-Apr-2021 17:45

Vodafone TV Gen 2 sounds like it would be ideal. Even gives them the chance to subscribe to SKY if they don't take to streaming.

Live FTA, limited recording, Apps for TVNZ and Three, Netflix, YouTube.

Baboon

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#2686774 5-Apr-2021 17:48

tdgeek:
I find the remote fine, but there is another option, the iOS Remote app. Its bigger (based on the iPhone screen size) and most of all the typing in a search is much easier. As its keyboard based.

I agree, though only my mum uses a smartphone, and her model is a cheap Android handset.

"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us."

- Calvin and Hobbes (Bill Watterson)

Baboon

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#2686780 5-Apr-2021 17:50

Senecio:
Vodafone TV Gen 2 sounds like it would be ideal. Even gives them the chance to subscribe to SKY if they don't take to streaming.

Live FTA, limited recording, Apps for TVNZ and Three, Netflix, YouTube.

As much as I usually dislike Vodafone... that actually looks like it could be a winner. Though the remote looks a bit fragile? Not glass, at least.

"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us."

- Calvin and Hobbes (Bill Watterson)

alasta

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#2686795 5-Apr-2021 18:47

As someone who moved from a Vodafone TV to an Apple TV, I can honestly say that the Apple TV is vastly superior from a non-technical user's perspective. The Vodafone TV just has too many glitches and workarounds as you'll see if you look at the thread dedicated to that subject.

If you don't like the Apple TV remote then I'm sure you could get a third party remote that would work with it.

Baboon

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#2686801 5-Apr-2021 19:22

Yeah - https://support.apple.com/en-nz/guide/tv/atvb0410f604/tvos (Use other remotes to control Apple TV)

One problem I have with my parents is perceived difficulty. I'm not sure I can win them over by immediately making them buy a third party remote, as that would - to them - signal trouble. Though if I do go with Apple TV, I think I'll have to cross that bridge.

"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us."

- Calvin and Hobbes (Bill Watterson)

antoniosk

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#2686809 5-Apr-2021 19:46

Be careful.

on Apple TV you are constantly switching between apps... it’s not the simple channel up/down most of the world is trained to follow. Quite why apple has never sorted out this ability for the appletv function in nz is beyond me, as it’s technically available now and has been for several years. Perhaps the need to login to TV3 or TVNZ is the barrier.

vodaTV is a simple channel up/down and wins enormously for this capability alone. connect over Ethernet rather than wifi and you’re away.

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#2686822 5-Apr-2021 20:37

Vodafone TV 2nd Gen.

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Baboon

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#2686841 5-Apr-2021 20:46

I'm also considering a cheap SBC (anything with the right connectivity, software support, hardware acceleration in the web browser, and value - e.g. RPi 4/400) running Linux, paired with a wireless KB/trackpad combo. Or KB + wireless mouse on their living room coffee table.

I could build that for less than an Apple TV, and my parents already know how to use a web browser. So, it would be a familiar UI.

The downside is I fear my stepdad would pick up the wireless KB and drop it off the sofa onto their hardwood floor. He is pretty fumble fingered...

Maybe he could be trained to not pick it up.

"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us."

- Calvin and Hobbes (Bill Watterson)

alasta

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#2686842 5-Apr-2021 20:53

Your other option is to wait for the next generation Apple TV which is rumoured to have a redesigned remote control.

Baboon

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#2686865 5-Apr-2021 21:38

That would be excellent, but it would have to arrive sooner than seems likely.

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- Calvin and Hobbes (Bill Watterson)

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#2686866 5-Apr-2021 21:40

Baboon: I'm also considering a cheap SBC (anything with the right connectivity, software support, hardware acceleration in the web browser, and value - e.g. RPi 4/400) running Linux, paired with a wireless KB/trackpad combo. Or KB + wireless mouse on their living room coffee table.

This is too complicated for a TV. Seriously, consider the Vodafone TV 2nd Gen.

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Baboon

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#2686870 5-Apr-2021 21:55

Yeah, but once setup it's just a computer hooked up to their TV. Not _that_ complicated. And web browsing on desktop computers are the tech they currently know best. In the case of my stepdad, it's basically the only tech he understands well enough to use, heh.

If not a SBC running Linux, then there's always a Chrome box or compute stick.

"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us."

- Calvin and Hobbes (Bill Watterson)

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#2686871 5-Apr-2021 21:58

As soon as you put a keyboard and you need a mouse it is complicated. You might not think so but your users might think otherwise.

A TV or STB remote control is a completely different UX.

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michaelmurfy

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#2686877 5-Apr-2021 22:25

Baboon: Yeah, but once setup it's just a computer hooked up to their TV. Not _that_ complicated. And web browsing on desktop computers are the tech they currently know best. In the case of my stepdad, it's basically the only tech he understands well enough to use, heh.

If not a SBC running Linux, then there's always a Chrome box or compute stick.

Try this and watch their eyes glaze over. I think you're actually making things more complex for them.

Sky still does have its place. If they're happy to pay and it works for them is fine - my parents still like live TV and my father still watches the weather every night at 6:50pm on TV1 despite him having a smartphone that can tell him the same thing.

You're trying to re-invent the wheel on something that works for them. The Apple TV is great to complement Sky but is not a replacement for Sky especially if they like to record shows etc. The remote isn't actually as fragile as you think (I, too use an Apple TV) and can have a fair bit of abuse but if that bothers you then a Logitech Harmony universal remote can control their Sky, their Apple TV and their TV fine.

If you want the best replacement for them then the Vodafone TV is great provided they have good broadband.

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