Expat TV Options?

[VintageTQ]

Hey all,

 

Could anyone advise on what the best options for expat tv packages are, including set top box and or just streaming?

 

I signed up to PulseTV about a month ago and really like their channel selection but there is just too much buffering for me and even though I have tried everything to solve it (including changing internet providers) I just cannot get a steady reliable feed. I also know of TVmucho but they appear to  be having similar buffering problems.

 

Any other good alternatives anyone can recommend?

 

Cheers

[ezzra]

Get an android box something like Mecool MK9 android 10.0 get a yearly subscription of IPTV app from Aliexpress that has like 13,000 channels fro a many countries around the world, it will cost you all up about 2,500 baht and you are good to go...

[Crossy]

Are you looking for live TV only or need catch-up too?

 

This looks like a good option for live streaming (seems to work well in BlueStacks emulator too) https://livenettv.bz/

 

For a paid option I've been recommended this for USD 70 per year including catch-up on 700 channels. I have NOT tried it yet.

 

[VintageTQ]

40 minutes ago, Crossy said:

Are you looking for live TV only or need catch-up too?

 

This looks like a good option for live streaming (seems to work well in BlueStacks emulator too) https://livenettv.bz/

 

For a paid option I've been recommended this for USD 70 per year including catch-up on 700 channels. I have NOT tried it yet.

 

Yes live tv with a catch up option would be great. Will look into this one thanks

[Crossy]

5 minutes ago, VintageTQ said:

Yes live tv with a catch up option would be great. Will look into this one thanks

 

Oops, for some reason my link didn't post correctly (possibly finger trouble), for the paid option with catch-up try IPTVeros

 

 

[Susco]

19 hours ago, ezzra said:

Get an android box something like Mecool MK9 android 10.0 get a yearly subscription of IPTV app from Aliexpress that has like 13,000 channels fro a many countries around the world, it will cost you all up about 2,500 baht and you are good to go...

 

Isn't this your post of a few weeks ago?

 

Mobdro probably also working great for you?

 

[ChakaKhan]

18 minutes ago, Susco said:

 

Isn't this your post of a few weeks ago?

 

Mobdro probably also working great for you?

 

Sadly Mobdro seems to be done for.....has been down for awhile as I was using it.... ????

[KannikaP]

I pesonally find it so pointless when a TV package advertises 17000 channels or similar. It takes longer to choose which channel from which country via which server you are going to use, than it does to watch the actual program.

Similar thing with VPNs which say 3000 servers in 500 countries. I only want one so I can watch UK TV, or you for your own country.

Express VPN on my normal PC gives me the ability to watch any UK or USA channel, some with catch up ie iPlayer or ITV Hub, or the footie on NBCSports via ustvgo.tv.

 

[brewsterbudgen]

20 hours ago, VintageTQ said:

Hey all,

 

Could anyone advise on what the best options for expat tv packages are, including set top box and or just streaming?

 

I signed up to PulseTV about a month ago and really like their channel selection but there is just too much buffering for me and even though I have tried everything to solve it (including changing internet providers) I just cannot get a steady reliable feed. I also know of TVmucho but they appear to  be having similar buffering problems.

 

Any other good alternatives anyone can recommend?

 

Cheers

I'm surprised you've been having problems with PulseTV.  I've been a subscriber for over 3 years (two boxes running simultaneously) and buffering is very rare.  The problem is likely to be your internet connection.  I have you checked the speeds?

[pattaya1234was]

I think it is very difficult to get 'free' expat TV here. Yes, you can get reception with buffering.

I have mentioned what I use on previous occasions but expats seem unwilling to pay. I use AirTV Extra. This app costs about 5500 baht per year-much more expensive if you pay by the month. You will get a free 3-day trial before you part with any money and I have been using this app for about 4 years without any problems. You will first need to buy an android box, either from Lazada or from Tukcom-. I use a Minix Box and these can be bought for various prices up to 6,000 baht-you get what you pay for here-you can get one for 2,000 baht.

AirTVExtra provides you with just about every Sky channel and Sports program. It also has catch-up for 5 days and you can see program listings for 5 days in advance.

The picture quality is superb and there is very, very little buffering-watching a whole day of Test cricket it may buffer once during the day.

By the way I have nothing to do with the company which provides the app. Just Google AirTVExtra-the Extra gets you the catch-up.

[longball53098]

I have been using IPTV services for at least 3 or 4 years now. They pretty much are all the same. I want USA live channels mostly be it sports or news. They all seem to be about the same in quality and buffering issues and price. Never subscribe more than 3 months at a time due to the possible loss of the service. I am on one now    https://www.hiveiptvhome.com/

Its been OK but maybe not for everyone

[CrunchWrapSupreme]

Anyone got a source for the BBC? Easyview has been broken for awhile.

 

For US news, LiveNewsNow has been great.

[VintageTQ]

1 hour ago, KannikaP said:

I pesonally find it so pointless when a TV package advertises 17000 channels or similar. It takes longer to choose which channel from which country via which server you are going to use, than it does to watch the actual program.

Similar thing with VPNs which say 3000 servers in 500 countries. I only want one so I can watch UK TV, or you for your own country.

Express VPN on my normal PC gives me the ability to watch any UK or USA channel, some with catch up ie iPlayer or ITV Hub, or the footie on NBCSports via ustvgo.tv.

 

Yes , to be honest, a provider offering thousands of channels is more a minus than a plus for me. I'd rather have something similar to what pulse-tv offers which is a good but select choice

[VintageTQ]

56 minutes ago, brewsterbudgen said:

I'm surprised you've been having problems with PulseTV.  I've been a subscriber for over 3 years (two boxes running simultaneously) and buffering is very rare.  The problem is likely to be your internet connection.  I have you checked the speeds?

Yes my speeds are ok. Maximum in my condo bldg is 50 mbps downloads speed, i've checked the speeds and i'm always over 40 mbps. I spoke to pulse and they say i need only 14 mbps to have buffer free streaming so i really don't understand why i have such a problem. Don't get me wrong sometimes it is ok but then sometimes it's almost unwatchable. 

[brewsterbudgen]

4 hours ago, VintageTQ said:

Yes my speeds are ok. Maximum in my condo bldg is 50 mbps downloads speed, i've checked the speeds and i'm always over 40 mbps. I spoke to pulse and they say i need only 14 mbps to have buffer free streaming so i really don't understand why i have such a problem. Don't get me wrong sometimes it is ok but then sometimes it's almost unwatchable. 

I feel for you.  I'd be lost without my Pulse. Are you using wi-fi or a cable.  I have two Pulse boxes, and the one that connects via wi-fi has more buffering, but only in the evenings. The other one is fine pretty much all of the time.  A few years ago we used True Online and the buffering was worse.  Since moving to AIS it's been fine.

[Surelynot]

Never bothered with TV or TV package....there is enough free TV (certainly from the UK) on my laptop to keep my tiny mind occupied

[VintageTQ]

2 hours ago, brewsterbudgen said:

I feel for you.  I'd be lost without my Pulse. Are you using wi-fi or a cable.  I have two Pulse boxes, and the one that connects via wi-fi has more buffering, but only in the evenings. The other one is fine pretty much all of the time.  A few years ago we used True Online and the buffering was worse.  Since moving to AIS it's been fine.

I'm currently only wifi through my pc. I got it wifi only to start with so I could test it with a view to getting the set top box after a month. But with my having so many issues I'm just really not sure I want to fork out the 4500 for the box in the hope it might work better.

I've tried everything because when it works its a great service. I switched from True to AIS in the hope they might be better but still the same problems ????

[dddave]

22 minutes ago, VintageTQ said:

I'm currently only wifi through my pc

Try using an Ethernet cable between your router and PC, not wi-fi.  When I did that, buffering mostly disappeared. 

[zzzzz]

22 hours ago, CrunchWrapSupreme said:

Anyone got a source for the BBC? Easyview has been broken for awhile.

 

For US news, LiveNewsNow has been great.

https://www.newslive.com/united-kingdom/bbc-world-news.html

worked yesterday, today ..nope  ;-(

[tlcwaterfall]

USTVGO channels list - USTVGO.TV

[Andrew Dwyer]

On 2/19/2021 at 9:39 AM, KannikaP said:

I pesonally find it so pointless when a TV package advertises 17000 channels or similar. It takes longer to choose which channel from which country via which server you are going to use, than it does to watch the actual program.

Similar thing with VPNs which say 3000 servers in 500 countries. I only want one so I can watch UK TV, or you for your own country.

Express VPN on my normal PC gives me the ability to watch any UK or USA channel, some with catch up ie iPlayer or ITV Hub, or the footie on NBCSports via ustvgo.tv.

 

Ditto.

Use ExpressVPN for the U.K. channels, fmovies for other stuff and have the option of the torrent sites to search for harder to find movies and series, also a good source for music.

[Susco]

23 hours ago, VintageTQ said:

Yes , to be honest, a provider offering thousands of channels is more a minus than a plus for me. I'd rather have something similar to what pulse-tv offers which is a good but select choice

 

Ever considered that there are people from any of the other 194 countries as yours, and they also like to watch TV from their home country?

 

23 hours ago, VintageTQ said:

Yes my speeds are ok. Maximum in my condo bldg is 50 mbps downloads speed, i've checked the speeds and i'm always over 40 mbps. I spoke to pulse and they say i need only 14 mbps to have buffer free streaming so i really don't understand why i have such a problem. Don't get me wrong sometimes it is ok but then sometimes it's almost unwatchable. 

 

An internet provider speed test, test over a multi thread connection (similar to a download manager) to a server inside Thailand. Doesn't really make much sense, if you consider that the IPTV servers are most likely at the other side of the world, and with a video stream you only get 1 connection.

 

The only reliable speed test for this purpose is testmy.net testing to a server in Europe or the US. Your test result will be a fraction of that 40 Mbps.

 

16 hours ago, VintageTQ said:

I'm currently only wifi through my pc. I got it wifi only to start with so I could test it with a view to getting the set top box after a month. But with my having so many issues I'm just really not sure I want to fork out the 4500 for the box in the hope it might work better.

 

 

Maybe you could start with hardwiring your PC to your router, because Wi-Fi, regardless how close your router and strength of your signal, will always give you a lower speed and be unstable. For live tv, which is different from recorded content like movies,  you need a constant speed.

 

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/wi-fi-vs-ethernet-how-much-faster-wired-connection-paul-zdzitowiecki

 

Wi-Fi vs Ethernet: Interference and reliability

An Ethernet connection experiences less interference and is more reliable than Wi-Fi. Things like your home’s layout, your modem, your neighbours’ networks, and the number of connected devices will interfere with wireless connections. This can result in a number of issues, including:

• Sometimes your devices will lose signal completely.
• Higher latency. Interference can increase latency.
• Slow speeds. Interference can also slow down speeds drastically.

 

[longball53098]

On 2/18/2021 at 4:22 PM, Crossy said:

 

Oops, for some reason my link didn't post correctly (possibly finger trouble), for the paid option with catch-up try IPTVeros

 

 

On your recommend I subscribed for a month to see what kind of service this is. My current IPTV provider is having issues and I cannot put up with it as the buffering now is horrible. And the plan is almost finished now so time to look at others again.

[Crossy]

Just now, longball53098 said:

On your recommend I subscribed for a month to see what kind of service this is. My current IPTV provider is having issues and I cannot put up with it as the buffering now is horrible. And the plan is almost finished now so time to look at others again.

 

Do let us all know how you get on. 

 

I'm currently using AirTV-Extra but eros is a lot cheaper (and permits multiple devices [one active at a time]), worth a swap IF it performs as well!

 

[longball53098]

3 minutes ago, Crossy said:

 

Do let us all know how you get on. 

 

I'm currently using AirTV-Extra but eros is a lot cheaper (and permits multiple devices [one active at a time]), worth a swap IF it performs as well!

 

AirTV would not be for me as I only use Windows and m3u players or devices. No Android or others

[bolt]

I use a firestick and I use the iViewHD+ on my TV, its not cheap but for LIVE and Catch up TV stupendously good

 

But the most important part is you Internet connection, it must be stable, for iViewHD you DON’T need any vpn

However its mostly UK TV

 

watching TV on a Laptop or Tablet is NOT for me, Big TV is way more relaxing 

[Crossy]

20 minutes ago, longball53098 said:

AirTV would not be for me as I only use Windows and m3u players or devices. No Android or others

 

Yeah, I run it on my tablet and cast to the TV via Chromecast if I'm allowed to watch on a bigger screen.

 

[bolt]

On 2/20/2021 at 7:45 AM, Susco said:

Wi-Fi vs Ethernet: Interference and reliability

An Ethernet connection experiences less interference and is more reliable than Wi-Fi. Things like your home’s layout, your modem, your neighbours’ networks, and the number of connected devices will interfere with wireless connections. This can result in a number of issues, including:

• Sometimes your devices will lose signal completely.
• Higher latency. Interference can increase latency.
• Slow speeds. Interference can also slow down speeds drastically.

 

Do you know that almost ALL 2020 TVS have a 100mb LAN connection, so the WIFI is actually faster then Ethernet.

I know it sounds crazy, but for some reason TV manufactures’ have not updated the LAN port, its still on 2010 speeds

 

the best option is to have a dedicated WIFI for your TV signal only, this will reduce LAG

Edited February 21, 2021 by bolt

[Susco]

16 minutes ago, bolt said:

Do you know that almost ALL 2020 TVS have a 100mb LAN connection, so the WIFI is actually faster then Ethernet.

I know it sounds crazy, but for some reason TV manufactures’ have not updated the LAN port, its still on 2010 speeds

 

Yes I know that, and it is because there is no need for faster speed, because even a real uncompressed 4K live stream need only about half of that 100 Mbps

 

Over a 1000 Gbps connection you will have no better stream than over a 100 Mbps connection.

 

19 minutes ago, bolt said:

the best option is to have a dedicated WIFI for your TV signal only, this will reduce LAG

 

Wireless will always increase lag, there is no way around that. Do a latency test to the same website over wired and wireless, and your latency will be considerable higher over wireless.

 

Other than that, I already explained the other issues that wireless has, as for example interference, even from your tv screen.

 

Those people in the link I posted are experts in their field, so I think I go with their findings.

 

 

 

 

[Will27]

2 hours ago, Crossy said:

 

Do let us all know how you get on. 

 

I'm currently using AirTV-Extra but eros is a lot cheaper (and permits multiple devices [one active at a time]), worth a swap IF it performs as well!

 

Same here Crossy.

Thanks for that mate, got it yesterday.

So far so good.

 

I'll only use it for sports so as long as I get that, I'm happy.

I've been getting the cricket via Kayo Sport in Australia so need a VPN.

 

So at around 500 Baht per month, it's less than half of what I was paying.