AlexDorneles Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 I miss american TV programming. I rented an apt and didn't even bother getting cable tv since I don't understand thai. The only site I know is rentadrone but they only have news channels. Does anyone know of any other sites that stream live TV? HULU and Netflix do not work outside the US. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KeyserSoze01 Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 You can get NetFlix if you use a proxy server located in the US. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HardenedSoul Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 You can use unblock-us which negates the requirement for a VPN for things like Hulu, Netflix etc. If you want to watch the shows on your TV rather than on your PC, you can use Playon. The one warning with Unblock-us is that, if you use True Internet, they use some kind of transparent proxy which makes the service unreliable. It works fine if your IP address begins with 58.xx.xx but if the IP changes (for example when you reboot your modem/router), you'll lose the ability to watch US TV. I had to bin it for this very reason. Instead, I use a VPN and PlayOn - works very well but is dependent upon decent bandwidth of not less than 2 Mbps They do, however, give you a 7 day trial during which you can establish its suitability. If it works reliably for you then it costs $4.99 per month. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigt3365 Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 Let's try this over in the technology forum. Also, have you tried torrents? Topic Moved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
negreanu Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 Reference 58.x IP on True you could pay for a static IP on 58.x they will do this but have not checked the cost. I have changed to Sickbeard and SABNZB streaming to XBMC on apple tv. Google it for info takes a bit of setup but god it works so so good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
farang000999 Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 just get a vpn for 10-20 usd a month. it is very simple. it makes it look like ur IP is inside the USA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OccamsRazor Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 just get a vpn for 10-20 usd a month. it is very simple. it makes it look like ur IP is inside the USA. You're getting ripped off if you are paying that much. StrongVPN is $55.00/year as are many other good VPN services. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bonobo Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 I ahve been watching USTVNow for free, but as I just sold my US house and no longer can Slingox programs to me, I signed up for the expanded channels plus DVR for $44/month. Now if I can hook up my new Apple TV, I will see how well it works. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigt3365 Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 I ahve been watching USTVNow for free, but as I just sold my US house and no longer can Slingox programs to me, I signed up for the expanded channels plus DVR for $44/month. Now if I can hook up my new Apple TV, I will see how well it works. Are you talking about True? I have the DVR and it's nothing but problems. Plus, the interface sucks. Nothing like DVRs back home! I also dumped True. I miss my Tivo! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thaigreg Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 http://www.ustvnow.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HardenedSoul Posted February 20, 2012 Share Posted February 20, 2012 Reference 58.x IP on True you could pay for a static IP on 58.x they will do this but have not checked the cost. I have changed to Sickbeard and SABNZB streaming to XBMC on apple tv. Google it for info takes a bit of setup but god it works so so good. Yes I asked True for a static IP but when they told me the price, I nearly fell over. At the mo, I've got a 14Mbps connection with them on a dynamic IP for 1,899 per month. For the static IP at 12 Mbps, they wanted 8,000 per month. Needless to say, I declined. Given up with UK VPNs. Tried StrongVPN and expat shield - both far too slow and unreliable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
negreanu Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 Go with Sickbeard and SABNZB. Plenty of setup guides on the net. In my opinion it is the best way to get current episode and previous season tv here now in thailand. Everything happens behind the scenes on your computer and new episodes simply show up on XBMC without you having to do anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallGuyJohninBKK Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 Go with Sickbeard and SABNZB. Plenty of setup guides on the net. In my opinion it is the best way to get current episode and previous season tv here now in thailand. Everything happens behind the scenes on your computer and new episodes simply show up on XBMC without you having to do anything. It seems our local Mr. Unblock-US fan has had a change of heart and service....after voraciously recommending the former service here in countless posts... Hmmm.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
negreanu Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 (edited) It seems our local Mr. Unblock-US fan has had a change of heart and service....after voraciously recommending the former service here in countless posts... Hmmm.... hmm....Unblock-US yup still good. But when something better comes along you use that right?? duh! If it makes you feel better. I am still using unblock-us for BBC iplayer and netflix as well as sick beard. Also Couchpotato does a good job for movies Edited February 21, 2012 by negreanu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallGuyJohninBKK Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 I ahve been watching USTVNow for free, but as I just sold my US house and no longer can Slingox programs to me, I signed up for the expanded channels plus DVR for $44/month. Now if I can hook up my new Apple TV, I will see how well it works. USTV Now is a good option in that no proxy or VPN is required... The service is aimed at and intended for those living abroad. They offer an entirely free plan (no strings or catches) that will give you real time streaming access to the major over the air networks... ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS, Fox and CW, I believe. Then they have paid plans that add on the various cable channels... all over the Internet...no hardware required. The one downside is their cable stream originates from Pennsylvania...so the channels you get are based there, and the local timing of the programming is EST...meaning about 12 hours opposite of the local time in Thailand. For example, their 8 pm program is live here at 8 am the next morning. As Bonobo mentioned above, they do also offer an online DVR service on their packages, but that's at an extra price. That's for commercial TV... For the various streaming services like Hulu and Netflix and the various pro sports services, the best option I've found is to get PPTP plan with Witopia.net, and don't use the PPTP, which is slower...but use just their private proxy server which also gives you a U.S. IP address... Just enter the settings into your web browser and you're done. In the tests I've done here, their private proxy service is considerable faster than either their PPTP or SSL VPN services, which encrypt the data and thus slow the stream some...where as the proxy doesn't encrypt the stream but does still give you the needed U.S. IP address. $50 a year for their personalVPN™ (Basic), which includes access to their private proxy. https://www.witopia.net/products/ The basic version of our VPN service includes PPTP, Cisco IPsec, and L2TP/IPsec and is an excellent option for customers desiring a basic VPN service. Use of our delicious software for Mac or Windows is still included, as well as unlimited bandwidth, and real-time switching between all cities and countries in the WiTopia network. http://wiki.personalvpn.net/wiki/Using_Your_WiTopia_Proxy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigt3365 Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 Go with Sickbeard and SABNZB. Plenty of setup guides on the net. In my opinion it is the best way to get current episode and previous season tv here now in thailand. Everything happens behind the scenes on your computer and new episodes simply show up on XBMC without you having to do anything. Sounds great...but for us non-techies...sounds complicated. I don't have a PC hooked up to my various TVs. I guess I could, but torrents are so easy to deal with. Just download, put on USB drive and plug into the TV. Pretty easy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
negreanu Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 (edited) Sounds great...but for us non-techies It is a little bit but once you get it setup and running it's basically totally invisible just add the shows you want. Here is a couple of guides: http://www.jetshred....on-mac-os-10-6/ http://www.davidthur...sp?CategoryID=2 http://christopher-w...nd-couchpotato/ If you follow the first 2 guides slowly and step by step it is relatively straightforward Edited February 21, 2012 by negreanu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallGuyJohninBKK Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 (edited) Except, Negreanu, the OP was asking about live streaming...whereas the solution you're now suggesting appears to be torrent downloading... Not quite the same thing. And of course it does nothing to give the OP access to Netflix or Hulu as he was inquiring about (although admittedly, some of the same programming content would be also available as torrents). Sick Beard does not download actual TV episodes, it only downloads .torrent/.nzb files. In order to automate your downloads you need to also configure SB to communicate with your favorite download program. Torrents: SB will place torrents in a "watch folder", you should then configure your torrent client to pick up torrents from that same folder. NZBs: If you use SABnzbd or NZBGet Sick Beard can send NZBs directly to your download client, just fill in the necessary settings. If you use another client you can configure a "black hole" folder (aka watch folder) as described for torrents above. http://sickbeard.com/config.html Edited February 21, 2012 by TallGuyJohninBKK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
negreanu Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 (edited) Not exactly torrent but it has limited support for them - mainly works on NZB's. Live streaming to Thailand is always hit and miss as you can see by the amount of times VPN / Slingbox / Unblock etc. comes up for threads on here. Live streaming I personally feel is not really worth the hassle and the time difference issues. Where as sickbeard the shows are usually downloaded within the hour of airing then sorted metatagged, graphics added expanded even repaired and ready to view on xmbc or your preferred client whenever you are. It even notify's your iPhone when an new episode is ready to watch. Tells you what date and time the next episode of your show is going to air also and therefore downloaded automatically. Even show's that you have added that the season has finished will automatically start downloading the next season when it starts again without user input. It really is a good option and i think superior to live streaming (To Thailand). Most people I know especially here with crappy internet love it - It's worth a go for the cost (You need a usenet provider) but pretty sure once you get it up and running there is no turning back. Most usenet providers upto 1256days retention now so really all tv is there for the last 3-4 years. (not including reposts) but had 100% success with all tv shows that i missed so far. Most of it in HD (You can specify HD / SD or Any in the config). TallGuyJohninBKK - I am giving people alternatives and suggestions that they may wish to try instead. Some people may appreciate the information where as most of your posts are out to antagonise and criticise alternative methods that are not the ones you use - not exactly productive posts...... Edited February 21, 2012 by negreanu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallGuyJohninBKK Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 hmm....Unblock-US yup still good. If it makes you feel better. I am still using unblock-us for BBC iplayer and netflix as well as sick beard. Works fine... except when it doesn't... The one warning with Unblock-us is that, if you use True Internet, they use some kind of transparent proxy which makes the service unreliable. It works fine if your IP address begins with 58.xx.xx but if the IP changes (for example when you reboot your modem/router), you'll lose the ability to watch US TV.I had to bin it for this very reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
negreanu Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 Works fine... except when it doesn't... That is not really a fault of Unblock. But once again down to the state of Thailand ISP's and their underhand tactics with invisible proxies that they deny However alternatives are change ISP, Reboot your router until you get 58.x (Once or twice usually) or purchase a static IP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallGuyJohninBKK Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 (edited) I have a 10 Mbps True cable and 7 Mbps True DSL connection in BKK (which is a lot slower than the True packages that Negreanu has reported using himself in the past) and I rarely have any problem streaming Netflix, Hulu or USTV Now in standard def.... Witopia proxy/PPTP service is $50 a year (about $4.20 a month on the year plan). Hulu Free is free. Netflix streaming is $8.65 a month. But as pointed out above, streaming from the U.S. is contingent on having not necessarily a very fast Internet connection, but at least having a decent one that is reasonably stable. And the outcomes on that can vary widely based on a person's location and particular ISP provider. The only way to know is to try and see... This year, I watched the entire Super Bowl live on USTVNow, which streamed the live NBC network feed. And it played flawlessly. One other thing I'll point out about streaming is the local time/network congestion issue... If someone is live streaming in Thailand in the morning here/night in the U.S. hours, the connection is likely to be pretty good. Same with the late night hours here... But if you're streaming in prime time hours Thailand time / morning hours in the U.S., you're more likely to run into Thailand network congestion (because that's when more Thais are home and online using the Internet). Edited February 21, 2012 by TallGuyJohninBKK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigt3365 Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 That's my problem. Internet where I am is unreliable. Screaming fast one minute, and slow as a turtle the next. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallGuyJohninBKK Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 (edited) Yep... sometimes there are better/rival internet providers available in a particular area... sometimes not... Basically, for most of the main streaming content from the U.S., your ISP needs to be able to maintain an average stream speed of at least 400 Kbps (and higher of course is better). Netflix, Hulu and most of the others have individual player settings that allow the user to change either the stream speed or video frame size to fit different kinds of Internet connections... But the lowest end settings usually work out to around 400 Kbps. Edited February 21, 2012 by TallGuyJohninBKK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlexDorneles Posted February 21, 2012 Author Share Posted February 21, 2012 Many thanks to you all. Thaigreg's post " http://www.ustvnow.com/ " is just what I was looking for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallGuyJohninBKK Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 Re USTVNow, free is always good... And although they've had periodic service outages in the past, by and large, they're pretty stable... And have been offering the same service to expats for quite some time now...and have continued to offer their free plan...which is great. For non-techies, it's good because there are no proxies or VPNs involved... Just your computer and a decent Internet connection. And if your PC or laptop has any kind of video-out port, it's relatively easy with the right accessory cable to connect the PC and its USTVNow stream to the video in of a nearby TV... I've only been a free member with USTVNow up to the present... But lately, I've been getting emails from them pretty regularly offering introductory three-month promo discount offers on their basic cable package... Right now, I see for members they're only offering ONE month introductory discount plans. Their all channels (including cable channels) package is regularly $29 a month, but they're offering a one month introductory price of $19. And their all channels package with online DVR is regularly $49 a month, but they're offering a one month introductory price for that of $29. Best bet is to sign up first for their free plan, and check to see how their service streams to your home. And if everything is OK, then you can easily upgrade online with them to one of their paid packages as fits your needs and budget. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigt3365 Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 That UStvnow is pretty cool. But, I keep getting connection errors. Some channels work great, others don't. I seem to have good bandwidth now, but somethings not right. Also, for recording, I use Replay Media Player. Captures streaming media, also does scheduling...so you can record shows whenever you want. Works fairly well...I'm guessing my problems with it are more bandwidth related. A bit in the boonies where I am now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallGuyJohninBKK Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 (edited) Craig, they do sometimes have problems with one random channel out of their lineup.... But if the other channels are playing fine on your PC, that would be their problem, not yours. But if you're having overall problems, one thing to check and do is make sure your Adobe Flash player and plug-in are the most up to date available... Same with the version of the browser you're using, whether it be IE, Firefox or other... I've also found, for some reason I can't explain, that some Flash streaming seems to work better when played thru Internet Explorer compared to Firefox...even though I use Firefox for all my other web stuff. Anytime I've having non bandwidth related streaming issues, I'll always give IE a try. Edited February 21, 2012 by TallGuyJohninBKK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigt3365 Posted February 21, 2012 Share Posted February 21, 2012 Craig, they do sometimes have problems with one random channel out of their lineup.... But if the other channels are playing fine on your PC, that would be their problem, not yours. But if you're having overall problems, one thing to check and do is make sure your Adobe Flash player and plug-in are the most up to date available... Same with the version of the browser you're using, whether it be IE, Firefox or other... I've also found, for some reason I can't explain, that some Flash streaming seems to work better when played thru Internet Explorer compared to Firefox...even though I use Firefox for all my other web stuff. Anytime I've having non bandwidth related streaming issues, I'll always give IE a try. Funny you should mention that. Flash just crashed while working with another app. Just updated it, so will see how that works. And yes, I use Chrome, FF and IE. Some sites only work with IE. Maybe I'll try that. Pretty cool website!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigt3365 Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Just an update. I use rentadrone for my news source. Usually with replay media catcher to record it so I can watch it later. Tried today, and with Chrome, it was stuttering pretty bad. So, tried IE. Working fantastic! Thanks for the heads up on this John!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.png.3b3332cc2256ad0edbc2fe9404feeef0.png)
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now