Why is Sky Stream so bad?

[d2h]

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@SlenderRobert wrote:

@JulesFP 

Sadly it's the combination of under-spec'd hardware and server-based apps (nothing is stored on the box itself) which contribute to the latency and sluggishness of Stream.

I too find the apps just take far too long to open then yet more time for a stream to buffer up to full quality. I can open the iPlayer or ITVX app on my five year old smart TV and be streaming at full quality in a matter of seconds. It can take between 20-30 seconds on Stream. 

It just makes for a poor overall experience. 

The pucks themselves are the same hardware that was released when Glass launched in Sept/Oct 2021, though back then you could only get one with the Whole Home sub & a Glass TV. 

Who knows, maybe the rumoured 'cheaper' Sky Glass model will launch later this year with an updated puck, this time with more RAM and a USB-C port to allow the addition of Sky Live to non-Glass TVs?

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That always has been, and always will be, the major downside to using apps on Sky hardware. The experience would be instantly enhanced if they allowed users to download and store them locally. 

[bob1234]

@d2hI would settle for being able to store in the cloud at least that way we would be able to record anything.

[Mboiii]

The system just sucks. My old roku kicks it's **bleep**. Over-billed trash for forcing paid services down our throats. Seriously regret getting it but the kids were pestering for sky sports... 

[gmhaggis]

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@Mboiii wrote:

The system just sucks. My old roku kicks it's **bleep**. Over-billed trash for forcing paid services down our throats. Seriously regret getting it but the kids were pestering for sky sports... 

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For now I would just be happy to not have the sound cutting out while watching live TV and the content switches to or from adverts.  On when binging a Netflix series and the sound cuts out between each episode  😠

[TerryH1982]

I've cancelled my stream today. When asked why I was cancelling I replied because Apple TV is better! 

I've had stream since October 22 and thought it would improve over time but it's just not not fit for purpose at nearly £50 a month. 

[Fothergill1]

@TerryH1982 By coincidence I had this exact conversation with my wife earlier today.  Do we stay with Glass, investigate getting a dish and returning to Sky Q or moving to Apple TV (I already have the 4K box).

We have decided to remain with Glass for the time being.

[M3rk]

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@Fothergill1 wrote:

@TerryH1982 By coincidence I had this exact conversation with my wife earlier today.  Do we stay with Glass, investigate getting a dish and returning to Sky Q or moving to Apple TV (I already have the 4K box).

We have decided to remain with Glass for the time being.

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Have had a few iterations over the years with Sky ( including Now TV ), and have apple tv pucks in the house as well, my biggest issue, none apart from sky ( that I’ve used ) have live TV integration. May not seem like a biggie and we are a family or streamers, but just those extra button presses, picking up another control, to come out and into the TVs native TV guide just used to annoy me.

Sometimes I just want to see what’s on, flick through the channels, whilst still within one eco system, also we find the playlist function now more than usable, so everything is just visually there all under one roof. Don’t dismiss, even with the bugs that some have, the ease at which sky stream works in that respect.

…so “why is sky stream so bad”…it’s not …I my opinion… obviously … 😁

[JulesFP]

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@M3rk wrote:

Have had a few iterations over the years with Sky ( including Now TV ), and have apple tv pucks in the house as well, my biggest issue, none apart from sky ( that I’ve used ) have live TV integration. May not seem like a biggie and we are a family or streamers, but just those extra button presses, picking up another control, to come out and into the TVs native TV guide just used to annoy me.

Sometimes I just want to see what’s on, flick through the channels, whilst still within one eco system, also we find the playlist function now more than usable, so everything is just visually there all under one roof. Don’t dismiss, even with the bugs that some have, the ease at which sky stream works in that respect.

…so “why is sky stream so bad”…it’s not …I my opinion… obviously … 😁

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I agree with you on that. I resisted streaming entirely for quite a few years but now a lot of my viewing, probably just over 50%, is Netflix/Prime/Apple TV+ streaming. Having said that though like you I really like being able to go into the EPG and flick through to see what is on so for me, since I don't want a dish or an aerial (I'm in a bad FreeView reception zone and the communal dish for my flat isn't very good),  Sky Stream (or Glass if I was willing to also buy my TV from Sky) is the only game in town. I think BT also offers an everything-over-the-internet TV service but you need to switch your broadband to BT and I didn't want to do that so I was forced back to Sky's door.

My disappointment is maybe made worse because it is a mixture of disappointment and suprise. I had been a Sky customer for almost 30 years before switching to FreeSat for about 10 years and then jumping back to Sky as soon as it released the stand-alone puck. I had had such good experiences with the various Sky satellite boxes that I had used before that I really did expect Sky Stream to be more polished hence my disappointment that it isn't, at least in my experience, especially after having essentially the same softwere out in the field running on Sky Glass for about a year before I bought a stand-alone puck.

I'm hoping that Sky hasn't fundementally changed in the 10 years since I left and that it is just a matter of time before the system matures and most of the bugs are gone and the gaps and minor annoyances and ommissions (in my opinion) in the user interface are addressed. I'm definitely sticking with it for now in the hope that things will improve.

[JulesFP]

Correction - Sky customer for about 20 years not 30! Then FreeSat for about 10 years before returning to Sky with a Sky Stream puck about 6 months ago.

[gmhaggis]

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@Jon+Reeve wrote:

It works perfectly fine for some people. I'm one of them. The Glass is connected via WiFi and the pucks via ethernet.

I'd say none of them need unplugging and switching back on more than maybe once every two months or so. It's really weird how the experience varies so enormously for people.

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Would be interesting to know for those having issues, specifically with the audio cutting out, whether or not their puck is connected directly to their TV or into an AV Amp/Receivcer or soundbar.  In my case I have sound issues when puck connected into my AV Amp. (Still-having-audio-issues-with-Sky-Stream). 

When I do connect the puck directly into the TV, the issues seem to dissappear. Although, I dont see this is a solution.  Direct connection to the TV is not convenient for a start.

[gmhaggis]

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@FFU01 wrote:

@SlenderRobert , out of interest, can you watch live TV (such as BBC, ITV etc.) with the Apple box? 

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In a limited sense you can.  Most of the Freeview channel based catchup ups are available, but not all of those allow you to watch live TV.  Also, there isn't a single EPG app form whihc you can directly play all the live channels,

[Jporch316]

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@gmhaggis wrote:

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@FFU01 wrote:

@SlenderRobert , out of interest, can you watch live TV (such as BBC, ITV etc.) with the Apple box? 

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In a limited sense you can.  Most of the Freeview channel based catchup ups are available, but not all of those allow you to watch live TV.  Also, there isn't a single EPG app form whihc you can directly play all the live channels,

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There's the tv launcher app which gives you an EPG but still launches the relevant app directly into live tv .....

[ash12312312312313]

Yeah an awful product sold without full info on how much worse than sky q is can't believe they can get away with such a poor product 

[scoobtdoo6]

Was so disillusioned by the cumbersome nature and difficulty without recording that I rang to find out about reverting to my old system.

Very annoyed that they "couldn't" give me a price without immediately cancelling my service on Stream leaving me with no tv ? 
How on earth were they able to tell me the cost of my deal on Stream without immediately cancelling my Sky Q, sounds like they are haemorrhaging Stream customers !

[SlenderRobert]

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@scoobtdoo6 wrote:

Was so disillusioned by the cumbersome nature and difficulty without recording that I rang to find out about reverting to my old system.

Very annoyed that they "couldn't" give me a price without immediately cancelling my service on Stream leaving me with no tv ? 
How on earth were they able to tell me the cost of my deal on Stream without immediately cancelling my Sky Q, sounds like they are haemorrhaging Stream customers !

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Every part of Sky's internal IT system needs to be shut down, reformatted and started from scratch. There are so many failings in every part of it, from what should be a simple ordering process to the adding or removal of packages, to the return of hardware, the whole system is flawed. 

The Comcast takeover would have been the perfect time to do it but it only seems to have made things worse with several completely incompatible systems now having to be maintained on their inadequate IT platform. It's a shame really.