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Shaw Ignite TV App discussion (BlueCurve)

59K views 88 replies 40 participants last post by  ExDilbert 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
EDIT by Dr.Dave: Ignite TV App - Frequently Asked Questions.

This will be the official 'Freerange' thread for discussion.

You can find downloads on both Apple and Android stores. Search for Freerange. All you need is a Shaw account or email and you are set to go after installing on your favourite device.

I'm brand new to this new 'service' so I'm just working though it as I can get time. Feel free to post what you think about it, good and bad.

I already have a complaint and that is Season 4 of Homeland is still missing. Why put up S5 if you still don't have rights to S4. Fail. Also, I don't see any real use for this for me but I suppose somebody will like it.

Until I can view recordings from my PVR (Gateway in my case), this is just another streaming service with the small added advantage that you can download a few shows, maybe. My iPad mini is the 64gig version so I now need to see how much I can get on there. Next, I need to figure out what I might want to watch while traveling and then hope I have time to download it before being out of internet range. The list never ends with me, does it?

Sorry but I am hyper critical. Let's see how many people find it useful and can put a positive spin on it.

Oh, and I would have called it 'TVtoGo' but maybe that name was already taken.
 
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#2 ·
Live streaming works even on a rooted phone, but I have a feeling On Demand doesn't. I get an error when selecting any of the on demand options.

(that doesn't surprise me - much like Shomi won't work on rooted devices, it's just something to note)

Sent from my LG-H812 using Tapatalk
 
#4 ·
My Note4 isn't rooted nor is my iPad unlocked, or whatever that's called, and all I can get is some basic streaming. None of the menus will fill in and I do get error messages on the phone but not on the iPad. It seems there are issues in the system.

I have a list of items that are seemingly all 'fails' but I'll wait until I can actually confirm them when it at least works better.

Have fun playing with what little is working so far. I'm off for the night.
 
#5 ·
Good morning. Something that has been pointed out to me is this is not an 'Official' launch of the service but rather a 'friends and family' type thing. They know it has issues but this is a 'non-trial trial'(my words)... go figure.

I had a hiccup this morning but still playing with it to see if it was finger trouble on my end or with the app.

It turns out there is very little 'portable' content at this time. It looks like only kids programming is downloadable, presumably all content from Corus, Shaw's wholly owned source. Not very impressive but this is still in 'trial' mode so I will try my best not to rag on them for this.

Anybody else having time to explore this?
 
#8 ·
I asked what the icon is supposed to be over at the Shaw Community forum and it is apparently supposed to be like a 'weather vane'. Looks more like a chicken pirate flag but whatever.

Downloadable content is supposed to increase in time but who knows how long that might take.

Something I was hoping for was at least a small 'buffer' like my PVR so I could rewind 'live' shows like news for when I don't quite catch things. With my medical condition affecting my brain, I often find myself skipping back one or two 7 second periods with my Gateway(drives my other half crazy) and this is at least possible with the VOD content but there is no buffer for streaming content. No idea if that is something they plan to add or not.
 
#12 ·
Really GamerGuy? I see it as the very first app in the list from the link in your post.

Now I can see the 'weathervane' thing too. I didn't notice it last night when I downloaded and started playing with it.
 
#14 ·
I'm not the target audience since I'm not all that interested in streaming on the go. Maybe the kids will like to download some shows for viewing on the road.

What does interest me though is that this seems like a significant break from the locked in STB model of cable delivery. If they can provide this service to Apple and Android devices through internet, could it be possible to provide cable service to non-Shaw smart devices through normal coax (i.e. smart TVs, media players, etc.)? That would be something interesting. I would love to see a time when we can subscribe to whichever TV provider we wanted (Shaw, Telus, anybody) and just hook up coax, twisted pair, whatever to our own smart device and not be tied buying/renting a STB that doesn't work the way we want it to. Perhaps I'm dreaming but the argument against this in the past has been about protecting content but it seems they have addressed that for internet streaming.
 
#15 ·
After reading through some of the info in the link Shaw Champ provided, it talks about doing away with channel numbers and having to remember where different show are by putting it all into one service. I never did have much success with the different 'Go' apps and always have trouble figuring out which Canadian channel is carrying what network shows from the States. This really helps but I'm not going to watch on my iPad or phone when I have a 55" HDTV and surround sound at home.

Still, I could see it being handy if I could access my favourite shows and download so I can watch while I am away. That much doesn't seem to be very handy yet either but hopefully that gets better with time.
 
#16 ·
Has anyone else noticed the message on the bottom of the 'Settings' page?

This has to be a nod from Comcast meaning it is X1, or at least very closely related.

Oh, and only the 14th iteration, so far.:wink
 
#18 · (Edited)
Kudos to Shaw on a very comprehensive FAQ. It's a little repetitive, but that means if you jump to a specific question, you will likely see all the relevant info.

You can only watch content included in your TV subscription.

Pause and rewind is available for all on-demand networks, fast-forward is available for most. You cannot pause, rewind or fast-forward live TV.

It looks like only kids programs can be downloaded.

The mobile licence prohibits connecting an HDMI cable or using Airplay, etc. (which is probably why rooted devices aren't supported.)

I wonder if that's a free-range chicken in the logo ;)
 
#19 ·
Here's an interesting article about X1 in the States.

http://www.fastcompany.com/3036546/...ideo-streaming-x1-dvr-looks-pretty-impressive

It indicates there may still be hope for access to our own DVR recordings but I'm not liking the possibility it may mean yet another change in hardware. I am NOT spending any more money after being burned by Shaw and the failure to activate DLNA after promising they would.

The only way I would change is if they offer a hardware exchange.

Still, it is interesting they are talking about 'Cloud DVR' so that may take care of it and make hardware much less important. That would be really nice for a change.
 
#20 ·
Streaming not so 'smooth' after all

I'm just trying to show the Mrs. how this works and it's failing miserably. It keeps freezing while it is presumably 'buffering'. We have BB50 and a gigabyte router so I'm quite certain it isn't a problem on my end.

It was working just fine this morning so maybe there is yet another issue to be addressed here? Just saying, clearly this hasn't been perfected yet but why should Shaw change how they do things now?
 
#21 ·
Interesting announcement.

Just downloaded the app. Tried streaming a few channels. Seemed acceptable. I will reserve first impressions for a bit later once I get home from work and have some time to play with the app a bit.

Is it possible to have access to the free range service through a laptop (web portal) or is this limited to phones and tablets?
 
#22 ·
From the Shaw FreeRange FAQ page:

What devices will support FreeRange TV at launch?


  • At launch, Shaw FreeRange TV will be available on iOS devices (iOS 8 or newer) and most Android (Ice-cream Sandwich 4.0.3 or newer) devices.


What devices are compatible with Shaw FreeRange TV?


  • The app works with iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch as well as Android Tablets and Smartphones. Apple devices must have iOS 8.0 or later and Android devices must have OS 4.0.3 or later.
  • Shaw FreeRange TV does not support Chromecast, AirPlay, gaming consoles or the Android equivalent of Air Play at this time.
I'm therefore concluding that no, it won't work on laptops. Since laptops aren't listed, there's a good chance it only works on smaller devices.
 
#25 ·
Streaming tests in my home tonight on Broadband 50 have yielded excellent results. Some early observations:

* So refreshing to be able to change channels within the same app. I have been hoping for something like this for a long time when compared to individual "go apps" for each individual network.
* Streaming video quality (only tested at home) seems very good.
* App controls are intuitive. I especially like the little recently watched button to go back and forth between channels. Surprisingly responsive.
* Missing a volume control button within the app. This need to be added in a future update, hopefully soon.
* Very little content available for download. Almost makes this "download to go" claim sound gimmicky.
* Would like a "Use cellular data" button to be behind the built-in parental controls. There's no way my teenagers are getting this app as my already crazy phone bills will sky rocket due to data costs (perhaps Wind Mobile - now Shaw-owned - is in our future as I know they have unlimited data plans).

Overall, a solid start, especially considering I didn't expect something like this. I will be spending several days out of town between Xmas and New Year and this will come in handy!

Would love the possibility of accessing my Gateway recordings. Come to think of it, this app could also incorporate functionality of the Gateway app to set and manage recordings. If all of this were possible within the same app, I would be one happy camper.
 
#26 ·
Haven't tried on-demand content, but live TV is quite sharp on my LG G4 Phone. Haven't had any issues streaming live TV on my home Internet (Internet 60).

This is the first app I've seen that actually disables screenshots though, so we can't show people what it looks like (at the very least when a video is playing). Yes, I realize that one is probably in the FAQ but it's worth noting you'll get a toast message indicating such if you try.

Sent from my LG-H812 using Tapatalk
 
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