Privacy phone, part 2

I posted last weekend about my foray into a privacy phone, trying to use a Teracube 2e phone running /e/OS I bought from Murena. And it didn't go well with the first two carriers.

Briefly, I put a working Tello SIM in, and it worked for texting and phone calls, but the data didn't do well, because I'm in an area where T-Mobile is very weak. I need Verizon or AT&T.

Next I tried Cricket, since that runs on AT&T. Data worked, but it wouldn't send or receive calls or texts.

So, I tried an AT&T carrier that their Website says will work. Yeah, I shoulda done that to start with, right? Well, I didn't. But now I did. Only, that didn't go well either.

Red Pocket runs on AT&T and says they are supported. Red Pocket support says the phone works with their setup. Only, it didn't. Data? Fine. Texts? Fine. Calls? Not so good. In fact, it won't send or receive calls.

I worked with Red Pocket a couple of days on this. The testing went poorly. I ended up putting it in a Google Pixel 4a device I have, and the same thing happened. I then put it in an iPhone 12. Same thing. Everything worked except sending and receiving calls.

Red Pocket's solution was to change the GSMA SIM (AT&T network) to a GSMT SIM (T-Moble network). Well, T-Mobile service here is awful. And the phone I'm wanting to use doesn't work with Verizon.

So what's next? Honestly, I don't know. I'll try another AT&T carrier, other than AT&T -- the cost of AT&T is the problem -- I think. But heck, I might just try AT&T itself just to see. I mean, it could be that the phone is bad. But the fact I'm getting similar results on a Google Pixel 4a and an iPhone points to the carrier, or the SIM.

I'll try another AT&T carrier, maybe even AT&T itself, and try again to get it to work. But, if it doesn't, I still have two other options.

I have been considering a Pine Phone. Those run a mobile version of Linux. Yes, I know, Android is built on Linux, an iOS is built on BSD, a cousin of Linux. But an actual Linux phone may be something I want to try.

There is one further option, and that's installing an OS, such as LineageOS, on my Google Pixel 4a phone. Not sure if I'm comfortable with that. I'll kick that can down the road a bit and try another carrier or two before I risk that.

I'll end up with a privacy phone when it's all said and done. I just hope it's worth all this aggravation.

TiVo to launch its own streaming platform?

A story kinda went under the radar recently. At least, I didn't notice it until late this week. And it may be a big story. We'll see. So, what is the news?

Xperi has purchased Vewd.

Okay, I can hear the collective "huh" right now. So let me explain why this might matter.

Xperi owns a company called TiVo. Yes, TiVo. You certainly know who that is. And TiVo is more than just a DVR for antenna or cable. The TiVo Stream is an Android TV based streaming device, though the interface looks like TiVo.

What about Vewd? Never heard of them? Well, maybe you have. And maybe you've used it, but under its old name of Opera TV.

I've used Opera TV with some early smart TVs. A lot of smart TVs used to use Opera TV. At one time, Sony, LG, and Samsung used Opera TV. My new Sony now uses Android TV. LG now uses webOS, and Samsung uses Tizen. So Opera TV lost a lot of TV brands it was on. I must say that I was never particularly impressed with Opera TV. Whether it's the hardware or the OS, I don't know. The overall experience was poor. Roku was a welcome change for me.

Well, Opera TV is now Vewd and Vewd is now owned by the same company that owns TiVo.

Does this mean that TiVo will be dropping Android and moving to its Vewd OS? I don't know, but unless there's simply some technology it wants to get to by gutting Vewd, I expect they'll try to launch a fifth major platform. Or more accurately transform Vewd into one of the top five streaming platforms. I think they'd do better to attempt to get on equal footing with Tizen and webOS first, then shoot for the stars.

If TiVo does decide to move to its own Vewd platform, I'm not holding out hope it will be a success. TiVo Stream is an inferior product to Chromecast with Google TV, despite running essentially the same OS. They may be better serviced getting it on a better piece of hardware.

Either way, I'll give it a look when it comes out. Whether or not it turns into anything more than "a look" I don't know. If it succeeds, I'll have another option in my Streaming Life. If it doesn't, then it's business as ususal.

Grubhub for free? Well, kinda.

I saw a promotion that Amazon is running that really caught my eye. They're including a year of Grubhub+ with a Prime account.

Grubhub+ is normally $10/month, so that's a pretty darn good deal. Well, for those in a service area. You see, I am not in a service area. Well, my house isn't. I can't get Grubhub to deliver to the house. Door Dash, yes. Grubhub, no.

But, if you are in an area served by Grubhub, and if you are an Amazon Prime member, you get that benefit for a year.

You have to activate it. It's not automatic. But, it's easy to activate. Here is a link.

By the way: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. I just want you to be know that. But, it's still a good deal. If I didn't think it was, I wouldn't post it.

So, why would i be promoting something I won't take advantage of myself. Well, I will take advantage of it. I said my house isn't in a Grubhub service area, and that's true. But, there are places I am that are served by Grubhub. So I will be taking advantage of it. Just not every day.

What does this have to do with your Streaming Life? Apart from the fact that Prime Video is also a benefit of Amazon Prime? Well, not much. Except now you don't even have to go get food to eat while you watch your streaming television. You already had options for ordering food. Now you have another. And pretty darn good one at that.

More free family friendly content

GAC Media, a family friendly media company, has added a free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) service. Great American Adventures is GAC Media's first foray into FAST content. They have other channels that are available via some pay services.

GAC Media has GAC Family and GAC Living, both of which are available on Frndly TV ($7+/month), Philo ($25/month), Sling TV (Orange [$35/month], Blue [$35/month], Orange+Blue [$50/month], with Heartland Extra [+$6/month]). GAC Family is also available on Hulu+Live TV ($70/month plus Entertainment Add-on [+8/month]) and DirecTV Stream Choice ($90/month).

This new service, Great American Adventures, as noted, it is the first venture of GAC Media into FAST programming.

"Great American Adventures is a perfect fit as a FAST channel on XUMO," noted Stefan Van Engen, SVP of programming and partnerships at XUMO. “It’s always the right time to enjoy and celebrate the kind of everyday American traditions we all know and love. Great American Adventures delivers the high caliber content that allows us to engage millions of viewers across our network.”

Great American Adventures joins GAC Family and GAC Living as part of GAC Media’s growing stable of media brands.  The new FAST channel will continue to roll out with additional apps and connected devices in the coming months.

Xumo has long been a favorite of mine. While Pluto TV is still king of the FAST services, Xumo is a great alternative. This is a big win for Xumo in the family friendly TV market. For those of us that want quality family friendly content in our Streaming Life, this is a big deal.

Why people stay with cable or satellite

Every now and then, I get reminded that my experience and ways of looking at things is way different than others. This week, a big reminder happened.

I was talking with a coworker. She's a streamer --- sort of. Well, yeah. But she's not exclusively a streamer. She streams some content, but also has satellite TV.

She lives in an area that is serviced by Windstream, Comcast/Xfinity, and AT&T. Windstream isn't available where I live, but Comcast and AT&T are.

I mentioned that I had a conversation recently with a technician from Windstream, and she asked about their pricing. I didn't know, and told her that. I mentioned the speeds and prices of Comcast and AT&T, and she mentioned how much she was paying for Dish network. It was a lot.

We talked about getting local channels via antenna, and some live streaming services, and the costs involved. It was simply curiosity on her part. We've actually had these discussions before, and she said each time that she would save a lot of money by dropping Dish and streaming content instead. But, she hasn't. I never pressed her for way. I'll give information, and will help in any way I can, but I'm not going to presume to tell her "You need to do this" or "You need to do that."

She did finally mention why she hadn't and probably wouldn't make a change. There is a family member that really likes Dish and is used to that. She's putting that family member's wants above the financials. It's not like Dish network is causing them to go hungry or anything. She can certainly afford it, but she would to pay less money if she could.

She can, but she won't, because family member would be unhappy losing Dish. And, to her, she'd rather just sick with Dish for now.

I understand that. She's a nicer person than I am, because I would make the change. Heck, I did make the change. But, she's not me, and I'm not her. She's making the best decision she feels she needs to make. I did that too, though my decision was a different one.

She still enjoys her Streaming Life, limited as it is. I believe she'd enjoy it more if she went full streaming, but she's doing what she feels she needs to do. And that's the right thing to do.