# Stream 4K, pretty dissapointed.



## John McGraw (6 mo ago)

I cut the cable last week and signed up for YouTube TV and bought 3 new Stream 4K players to put on all my TV's. After reading review after review which touted "full integration" into the YouTube app, I was confident that I was making a good decision. I have been a TIVO customer for more years than I care to admit, and have always been a big fan of the Tivo DVR.

As most of you know, the YouTube app includes unlimited cloud recording with their service, and this was another factor that steered me towards the YouTube TV app. I have always been a person who records almost everything and will watch at my convenience. It did not hurt that TIVO had the skip button. Now, I knew up front that the skip button was a thing of the past on the stream 4k. but figured I could live with that. What I could not live with and am absolutely amazed that with all the reviews I have read, nobody told me that you can not set a recording with the Stream 4K!
I figured that I was just stupid and had not figured out how to do it, so I contacted support for some help. They told me that no, I could not set a recording from the stream! How in the hell can you claim to be "fully integrated", and not be able to access such an important function. If you are lucky enough to have current "smart TV". it is no problem. You just run the app on the TV, and send the TIVO stream back for a refund. If you do not have a smart TV, you are just screwed and can not record shows. I am terribly disappointed in TIVO, and will send all 3 of my devices back tomorrow. Unfortunately, this is probably the end of a long, satisfied relation with TIVO, and will probably never buy anything from them again, unless they come out with a streaming device that will allow setting of recordings on YouTube TV. If I have to shut down my stream 4K and fire up the app on my TV every time I want to record a show, it really does not make any sense to have a stream 4K.


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## bpratt (Nov 20, 2004)

I agree. TIVO missed the boat with the Stream 4K.


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## solutionsetc (Apr 2, 2009)

The "free" Tivo Stream service never advertised cloud recordings. The $65/month YouTube TV service does. Your expectation that the former should provide the same level of service as the latter is mindblowing IMHO.


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## TonyTheTiger (Dec 22, 2006)

Tivi Stream is just that, a streaming device. It does not have a DVR built in. So, if you're expecting a fully functioning recording device, you've got it all wrong!


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## mdavej (Aug 13, 2015)

I find this very hard to believe. The Stream 4k has the Youtube TV app just like any other Android streamer, but that version of the app is missing the "add to Library" button? How can that be?


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## solutionsetc (Apr 2, 2009)

Are you a subscriber? I am… and have hundreds of hours of recordings in my library.


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## John McGraw (6 mo ago)

I am not asking Tivo record anything! I do know how you read that into my comments. What Tivo does not do is access a function that exists on the youtube tv app! If I access youtube from the app on my Sumsung TV. it sets shows in my library fine and records them. When I try and do the same thing from my stream, I can not. I contacted support because I could not believe that they would miss something so elementary in their interface. The support person told me that It would not. If some f you are telling me that you can record from youtube tv using the stream, please rlighten me how to do so. I would like nothing more than to keep the stream 4K players I have, if I could add shows to my library. Every single show on my guide says "not available for recording". I can't believe that some of you think I am asking TIVO to record anything! I am simply astounded that the stream can not add shows to my library within Youtube TV. If some of you are doing so I would love to know how to do so. 

Thanks


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## John McGraw (6 mo ago)

solutionsetc said:


> Are you a subscriber? I am… and have hundreds of hours of recordings in my library.


Yes, I am a subscriber, and yes I have recorded shows in my library. but all of them have been put there by the app loaded on my Samsung smart TV. There are none that were initiated by my Stream 4K, because I have not figured out how to do so, and TIVO support says they do nt support that function.


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## John McGraw (6 mo ago)

solutionsetc said:


> The "free" Tivo Stream service never advertised cloud recordings. The $65/month YouTube TV service does. Your expectation that the former should provide the same level of service as the latter is mindblowing IMHO.


No, Tivo advertises that they have complete integration with YouTube TV. I would think that being able to select shows to go to your library, is a completely understandable function. The app running on the stream 4K is the same app running on my TV, and the TV can add shows to my library, but the YouTube TV app on my stream will not. Once again, as I have said many times, I am not asking TIVO to record ANYTHING! I am simply looking for it to select shows to my library within the YouTube app. It clearly does not take much to blow your mind!


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## John McGraw (6 mo ago)

TonyTheTiger said:


> Tivi Stream is just that, a streaming device. It does not have a DVR built in. So, if you're expecting a fully functioning recording device, you've got it all wrong!


Yes, I know that! I never said that I expected TIVO to record anything, just select shows to go to "My Library" within the YouTube app.


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## osu1991 (Mar 6, 2015)

install the YoutubeTV app from the play store and forget about the tivo integration. just use the device as an Android TV device like it was intended. The YoutubeTV app works perfectly fine on the TS4K.


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## John McGraw (6 mo ago)

osu1991 said:


> install the YoutubeTV app from the play store and forget about the tivo integration. just use the device as an Android TV device like it was intended. The YoutubeTV app works perfectly fine on the TS4K.


Help me understand how to load any other app on my Stream other than the one that it loads during setup? If there is a way to be able to set shows to the library, I would gladly sacrifice the multiple app integration in the guide. To me, being able to set programs to record is way more valuable than seeing more then 1app on the guide.


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## pl1 (Jan 18, 2007)

John McGraw said:


> Help me understand how to load any other app on my Stream other than the one that it loads during setup? If there is a way to be able to set shows to the library, I would gladly sacrifice the multiple app integration in the guide. To me, being able to set programs to record is way more valuable than seeing more then 1app on the guide.


Hit the CIRCLE button on the TiVo S4K remote (just above to the left of the NETFLIX button). This brings up another home screen. On the left it says APPS. Select it and go to GET MORE APPS upper left. That is Google Play. Search for YTTV. Once it is installed, you can add it to your other home screen.


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## John McGraw (6 mo ago)

pl1 said:


> Hit the CIRCLE button on the TiVo S4K remote (just above to the left of the NETFLIX button). This brings up another home screen. On the left it says APPS. Select it and go to GET MORE APPS upper left. That is Google Play. Search for YTTV. Once it is installed, you can add it to your other home screen.


Thanks for the info! I would have thought that Tivo support would had offered that rather than just telling they did not support that function. So it is the integrated function app that has the problem, and the YouTube TV app will run fine and be able to add shows to my library?

Thanks!


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## pl1 (Jan 18, 2007)

John McGraw said:


> Thanks for the info! I would have thought that Tivo support would had offered that rather than just telling they did not support that function. So it is the integrated function app that has the problem, and the YouTube TV app will run fine and be able to add shows to my library?
> 
> Thanks!


Yes, just like all Android streamers. TiVo just complicated things with two home screens. As far as YTTV working with the guide, I have no experience with that. But, YTTV in its own app has its own guide and library.


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## John McGraw (6 mo ago)

Thanks, worked like a champ! Loaded the YouTube TV app and shut down the Stream 4K app. Comes up in the youtube app and sets recordings just like it is supposed to!😁 the guide button on the Tivo remote is now a do-nothing button, but I am a happy camper.


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## pl1 (Jan 18, 2007)

John McGraw said:


> Thanks, worked like a champ! Loaded the YouTube TV app and shut down the Stream 4K app. Comes up in the youtube app and sets recordings just like it is supposed to!😁 the guide button on the Tivo remote is now a do-nothing button, but I am a happy camper.


That's the way I use mine, I just ignore the TiVo button. I have four of them myself, since they are cheap 4K sticks. It really is a good deal.

EDIT: If you read more of the forum posts here, you can find ways to de-clutter the home screen, add apps like Button Mapper to modify the keys, change settings, and fine tune it the way you want. Although, it seems like some of the updates don't play nicely after the modifications, so just remember you might have to factory reset after an update.

EDIT2: And with Button Mapper you can make the Guide Button do whatever you want. I had mine set to do nothing in case I hit it by mistake. But I never hit the wriong keys now since I'm so familiar with the layout. The number keys are useless, so Button Mapper could be used with them.


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## obeythelaw2004 (Oct 27, 2013)

Yeah, I wish the "Stream" app intergrated a bit more closely with YTTV. However, I've just started using the actual YTTV app. Google has started releasing a more refined guide experience too within the YTTV app. I have it on my Roku stick but it hasn't made its way to any of my Tivo stream sticks yet. And it actually looks better than the Stream app guide interface. All in all, the Tivo Stream 4K stick is still one of the best Google TV streaming sticks and the remote is one of the best ones compared to all of the others.


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## Bradley Cavedo (Feb 18, 2018)

John McGraw said:


> I cut the cable last week and signed up for YouTube TV and bought 3 new Stream 4K players to put on all my TV's. After reading review after review which touted "full integration" into the YouTube app, I was confident that I was making a good decision. I have been a TIVO customer for more years than I care to admit, and have always been a big fan of the Tivo DVR.
> 
> As most of you know, the YouTube app includes unlimited cloud recording with their service, and this was another factor that steered me towards the YouTube TV app. I have always been a person who records almost everything and will watch at my convenience. It did not hurt that TIVO had the skip button. Now, I knew up front that the skip button was a thing of the past on the stream 4k. but figured I could live with that. What I could not live with and am absolutely amazed that with all the reviews I have read, nobody told me that you can not set a recording with the Stream 4K!
> I figured that I was just stupid and had not figured out how to do it, so I contacted support for some help. They told me that no, I could not set a recording from the stream! How in the hell can you claim to be "fully integrated", and not be able to access such an important function. If you are lucky enough to have current "smart TV". it is no problem. You just run the app on the TV, and send the TIVO stream back for a refund. If you do not have a smart TV, you are just screwed and can not record shows. I am terribly disappointed in TIVO, and will send all 3 of my devices back tomorrow. Unfortunately, this is probably the end of a long, satisfied relation with TIVO, and will probably never buy anything from them again, unless they come out with a streaming device that will allow setting of recordings on YouTube TV. If I have to shut down my stream 4K and fire up the app on my TV every time I want to record a show, it really does not make any sense to have a stream 4K.





John McGraw said:


> I cut the cable last week and signed up for YouTube TV and bought 3 new Stream 4K players to put on all my TV's. After reading review after review which touted "full integration" into the YouTube app, I was confident that I was making a good decision. I have been a TIVO customer for more years than I care to admit, and have always been a big fan of the Tivo DVR.
> 
> As most of you know, the YouTube app includes unlimited cloud recording with their service, and this was another factor that steered me towards the YouTube TV app. I have always been a person who records almost everything and will watch at my convenience. It did not hurt that TIVO had the skip button. Now, I knew up front that the skip button was a thing of the past on the stream 4k. but figured I could live with that. What I could not live with and am absolutely amazed that with all the reviews I have read, nobody told me that you can not set a recording with the Stream 4K!
> I figured that I was just stupid and had not figured out how to do it, so I contacted support for some help. They told me that no, I could not set a recording from the stream! How in the hell can you claim to be "fully integrated", and not be able to access such an important function. If you are lucky enough to have current "smart TV". it is no problem. You just run the app on the TV, and send the TIVO stream back for a refund. If you do not have a smart TV, you are just screwed and can not record shows. I am terribly disappointed in TIVO, and will send all 3 of my devices back tomorrow. Unfortunately, this is probably the end of a long, satisfied relation with TIVO, and will probably never buy anything from them again, unless they come out with a streaming device that will allow setting of recordings on YouTube TV. If I have to shut down my stream 4K and fire up the app on my TV every time I want to record a show, it really does not make any sense to have a stream 4K.


Thanks for this. I was going to buy a TiVo stream for the very reason that it integrates with YouTube TV. I can forget that now. Already have a fire stick and a Roku. And a smart TV . But the biggest disappointment is that the TiVo stream will not let you stream from your own TiVo. That’s crazy. They would rather us pay a fee to YouTube TV then to pay a fee to TiVo to let me stream for my own DVR. They’ve had the technology to do it for years. In fact they displayed it January a few years back at a tech show. I don’t get it.


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## John McGraw (6 mo ago)

I talked to a tech support guy at YTTV and got to the bottom of the problem. To get the integrated guide, you have to use the app that is supplied by Tivo, but YTTV does not share the portion of their code that accesses the recording function with 3rd party app developers, period. If you want to record shows, you MUST use the YTTV app, and they do not foresee a time in the near future, where they will share this portion of their code with 3rd party app developers. The Stream 4K is still a good device, and I am going to keep them for my non-smart TV sets. Unfortunately, the one thing that really put them ahead of the pack, the integrated guide that combines several services on to a common guide, does not now, nor does it appear that it will in the future, allow you to set a recording on YTTV. I will just load the YTTV app on my Stream 4K devices and shut down the Stream 4K app. I am sure that Tivo would access the record function on YTTV, if they would just give them access to that portion of their code. What amazes me is that I had to talk to at least 4 different Tech support guys, at both Tivo and YTTV, before I got the straight story!


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## mdavej (Aug 13, 2015)

Firestick also has an integrated guide for multiple streaming services and live TV that works similarly. It's great for channel surfing and watching live, but has not recording functionality (at least for streaming sources). So you have to use each streaming service's native app for full functionality. I agree it would be nice if the makers of these devices would let you know about the limitations so you don't beat your head against the wall, but at least you know now.


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## dlfl (Jul 6, 2006)

mdavej said:


> Firestick also has an integrated guide for multiple streaming services and live TV that works similarly. It's great for channel surfing and watching live, but has not recording functionality (at least for streaming sources). So you have to use each streaming service's native app for full functionality. I agree it would be nice if the makers of these devices would let you know about the limitations so you don't beat your head against the wall, but at least you know now.


Yep, the Fire device integrated guide may offer an advantage over the YTTV app’s guide (e.g., being able to skip forward a day at a time). But the inability to add shows to the library is a disappointment. And calling it “integrated” is questionable. But hype reigns supreme apparently!


John McGraw said:


> I talked to a tech support guy at YTTV and got to the bottom of the problem. To get the integrated guide, you have to use the app that is supplied by Tivo, but YTTV does not share the portion of their code that accesses the recording function with 3rd party app developers, period. If you want to record shows, you MUST use the YTTV app, and they do not foresee a time in the near future, where they will share this portion of their code with 3rd party app developers. The Stream 4K is still a good device, and I am going to keep them for my non-smart TV sets. Unfortunately, the one thing that really put them ahead of the pack, the integrated guide that combines several services on to a common guide, does not now, nor does it appear that it will in the future, allow you to set a recording on YTTV. I will just load the YTTV app on my Stream 4K devices and shut down the Stream 4K app. I am sure that Tivo would access the record function on YTTV, if they would just give them access to that portion of their code. What amazes me is that I had to talk to at least 4 different Tech support guys, at both Tivo and YTTV, before I got the straight story!


I’m more amazed that you actually got the story at all. Tech support people generally don’t know anything beyond the bare basics and nobody (including us consumers) is willing to put the money into the extensive training programs necessary to do better.


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## mdavej (Aug 13, 2015)

dlfl said:


> Yep, the Fire device integrated guide may offer an advantage over the YTTV app’s guide (e.g., being able to skip forward a day at a time). But the inability to add shows to the library is a disappointment. And calling it “integrated” is questionable. But hype reigns supreme apparently!


Integrated is my term not theirs. Do you have a better word to describe it? Aggregated maybe?

The inability to add shows to the library is entirely Google's fault, not Amazon's. So you're placing the blame for all the shortcomings in the wrong place.

Maybe your YTTV app is different than mine, but the Firestick guide is far, far better than the native YTTV guide. The Firestick guide goes out weeks instead of days, and has more information.


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## dlfl (Jul 6, 2006)

mdavej said:


> Integrated is my term not theirs. Do you have a better word to describe it? Aggregated maybe?
> 
> The inability to add shows to the library is entirely Google's fault, not Amazon's. So you're placing the blame for all the shortcomings in the wrong place.
> 
> Maybe your YTTV app is different than mine, but the Firestick guide is far, far better than the native YTTV guide. The Firestick guide goes out weeks instead of days, and has more information.


It was always described as integrated, long before you said it. I’m just saying it’s questionable to call it that, i.e., it’s not fully integrated. I didn’t assign blame to any particular entity. My choice of a better description would just be “partially integrated” or maybe “poorly integrated”.

I have the recently upgraded Fire device YTTV app UI. The YTTV guide goes out 10 days while the integrated guide goes out 13 days, not a huge difference. My recollection is that prior to the UI upgrade, the YTTV guide went out about the same number of days. However getting out 10 days is excruciatingly slow. There is no one-day jump and holding down the right-arrow (right side of the ring) does not auto-repeat. You have to wear out your clicking finger and patience to see something 5 or 10 days out.

I don’t see much difference in the amount of program info shown. Perhaps your YTTV guide is still pre-upgrade. The pace of pushing the upgrade out has been random and slow. They announced it months ago but my device just got it a few days ago.


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## mdavej (Aug 13, 2015)

dlfl said:


> It was always described as integrated, long before you said it. I’m just saying it’s questionable to call it that, i.e., it’s not fully integrated. I didn’t assign blame to any particular entity. My choice of a better description would just be “partially integrated” or maybe “poorly integrated”.
> 
> I have the recently upgraded Fire device YTTV app UI. The YTTV guide goes out 10 days while the integrated guide goes out 13 days, not a huge difference. My recollection is that prior to the UI upgrade, the YTTV guide went out about the same number of days. However getting out 10 days is excruciatingly slow. There is no one-day jump and holding down the right-arrow (right side of the ring) does not auto-repeat. You have to wear out your clicking finger and patience to see something 5 or 10 days out.
> 
> I don’t see much difference in the amount of program info shown. Perhaps your YTTV guide is still pre-upgrade. The pace of pushing the upgrade out has been random and slow. They announced it months ago but my device just got it a few days ago.


I guess Amazon does use the term integrated after all:





Introduction to Linear Television | Amazon Fire TV


Fire TV content can be explored through browsing, voice control, or searching. Linear Television (the focus of this page) is one prominent and easily discoverable type of conten...



developer.amazon.com





My Fire TV OS TVs are extremely slow to get upgrades and are still on the old YTTV guide that has always only been 2-3 days if I'm lucky, nowhere near 10.


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## bmaur34_8820 (4 mo ago)

I actually like the TiVo guide integration with you tube tv. I can add just my favorites channels, the TiVo guide also notes when episodes are new the you tube guide does not. Also from the TiVo stream app when I search on programs or movies you tube tv is included in the results so I can go right to you tube tv or Hulu or other apps I have to watch it. I’m satisfied with the integration.


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