Frndly TV gets even more friendly

According to reports, Frndly TV has added more channels to their lineup. And, these are some good channels that many people enjoy.

A report on Cord Cutters News says that Frndly TV has added Ion TV, Grit, and Ion Mystery. Sure enough, those channels are listed on their schedule now.

It's true that these channels are often available over the air on secondary local channels, but these channels do carry a lot of family friendly content that people like.

As of now, the count of channels and networks offered by Frndly TV stands at 46:

• A&E
• BabyFirst
• BYUtv
• Circle
• Cowboy Way Channel
• Crime & Investigation
• CuriosityStream
• Decades
• Dove Channel
• Dove Family Movies
• Dove Kids
• FETV
• FMC
• FYI
• Game Show Network
• GetTV
• Great American Family
• Great American Living
• Grit
• Hallmark Channel
• Hallmark Drama
• Hallmark Movies & Mysteries
• Hallmark Movies Now
• Heartland TV
• Heroes & Icons
• The HISTORY Channel
• INSP
• ION
• ION Mystery
• Lifetime
• Lifetime Movie Network
• Local Now
• MeTV
• Military HISTORY
• Movies!
• Outdoor Channel
• Pixl
• QVC
• Recipe.TV
• Sportsman Channel
• Start TV
• StoryTV
• UPtv
• VICE TV
• The Weather Channel
• World Fishing Network

Frndly TV has been a favorite of mine for some time. And the $7/month price is fantastic. I actually use the $9/month plan. And it's available on Roku, Fire TV, and Apple TV. Frndly TV has been a part of my Streaming Life for quite some time. And it may be worth looking into for you as well.

New Netflix sharing rules

Netflix has introduced new rules to prevent password sharing. The company has been testing ways to stop users from sharing passwords in some South American countries for a little while now. The USA is now reaping the benefits of that testing.

If this is a surprise to you, you have good reason to be surprised. Netflix itself had once, around six years ago, tweeted "Love is sharing a password." That sentiment has changed.

Netflix posted new rules, or guidelines, about what they're doing to make it difficult to share passwords.

When someone signs into your account from a device that is not associated with your Netflix household, or if your account is accessed persistently from a location outside of your household, we may ask you to verify that device before it can be used to watch Netflix. We do this to confirm that the device using the account is authorized to do so.

To verify a device:

1. Netflix sends a link to the email address or phone number associated with the primary account owner.
2. The link opens a page with a 4-digit verification code.
3. The code needs to be entered on the device that requested it within 15 minutes.
• If the code expired, you will need to request a new verification code from the device.
4. Once successful, that device can be used to watch Netflix.
5. Device verification may be required periodically.

If you suspect unauthorized use of your account, we recommend you reset your password immediately. You can also sign out of all the devices connected to it.

The idea is to make it difficult to share passwords. None of these steps will stop password sharing, but it may make it more difficult to use a shared password.

I don't share Netflix passwords. Heck, I rarely use Netflix myself, and I don't share my Netflix password with others. Does that make me a bad person? Actually, quite the opposite. The fact is that Netflix is simply enforcing rules that others have ignored for years. Even Netflix ignored the rules, as that tweet from 2017 indicated.

Some will still share passwords and go through the process to verify access, but Netflix is hoping people will just get their own Netflix account. You know, like they should. What will happen, I think, is that it will make it more difficult for legitimate users. Well, for some, at least.

Will it make users of shared passwords get their own account? Maybe. Probably not. Some will simply stop using Netflix. Others will jump through the new hoops. People have a way of reacting in unexpected ways. Netflix is an important part of many people's Streaming Life. However, they may about to upset a lot of those people.

New Walmart streaming device coming

You may have noticed that the Walmart brand ONN Streaming Device and Stick have both been hard to find lately. Maybe you haven't.

Some people seem to love the devices, and others are more "meh" about them. I'm in the "meh" camp.

As posted a couple of months ago, the devices were disappearing from shelves, with some speculation that Walmart was discontinuing the device altogether.

I had thought this was possible because of the deal to carry the new Xumo player from Comcast and Charter. Or that it was simply the older line being discontinued to make way for an updated line. It now appears the updated line is on the way, according to a tweet from @AndroidTV_Rumor:

Looks like @Walmart is planning to release a new 4K #AndroidTV Dongle this year.

The ODM is @SDMCTECH (model DV6105Z) and it's more than likely using an #Amlogic S905Y4.

Not sure when this year it might hit the shelves.

Maybe the device will have enough of a bump in specs to change my mind about the line. Previously, I said the box was okay but the stick was awful. It would be nice if the devices were upgraded and made a viable alternative when looking for a Google TV device to use in your Streaming Life.

Dish going after pirate's house

Dish Network won a large lawsuit against a pirate TV service, and is trying to get the house of the pirate running the service.

Back in 2021, Dish sued Nitro TV, a pirate IPTV service, and won a $100-million judgement. After the banks complying with the judgement reported little of the money the pirates made, Dish decided to go for the service owner house. 

Torrent Freak reports that the pirate is fighting the seizure, citing a Texas law that protects homes:

In a motion to alter or amend the judgment "to prevent a clear error or manifest injustice," counsel for Alex Galindo explained that his client bought the house in Friendswood in March 2020 and declared it his home.

"The Texas Constitution provides special protections for the homestead separate and distinct from protections afforded other types of property," the motion reads.

"Because constitutional homestead rights protect citizens from losing their homes, statutes relating to homestead rights are liberally construed to protect the homestead."

DISH evidence linked 99% of the house purchase price to sales of illegal IPTV subscriptions. The company argued that homestead protection is not available when a property is purchased with wrongfully acquired funds.

It's unclear how this will shake out. But for a streamer, it's another reminder that IPTV services are often, and probably, illegal. Keep the out of your Streaming Life.

Fire TV Sticks need lots of attention

I like the current batch of high end Amazon Fire TV Sticks (commonly called "Firesticks"). I don't like all the current ones, but the higher end Fire TV Sticks are pretty good.

My biggest issue with the previous Fire TV Sticks, and the low end current models, is that they slow down and are practically unusable after a while. Of course, there are ways to fix that, but to me, it shouldn't have to be fixed. The newer higher end (meaning more expensive) models don't need that much attention. That is, not as often.

That has to do with the specs, and a little bit with how the operating systems works. You can't do much about the OS -- I'll talk more about that in just a bit -- but the specs require some attention on the user's part more often. Tablo has an article that explains about this:

 Unlike many other streaming TV platforms, Fire TV devices require some periodic maintenance to keep them running at peak efficiency. This is due to a buildup of cached data which can clog the device's already small amount of storage.

Regularly clearing the cache of apps giving you trouble and removing old apps you don't use anymore is a good start. If that doesn't do the trick, a factory reset can also help.

If the device is more than 3-5 years old, go ahead and get a newer one, and a higher end one. They go on sale often enough that if you keep an eye out, you'll find a bargain and save some money.

The other issue that you can't really address is the operating system. The way the Fire TV Sticks (and every other device except Roku) handles onboard storage means you can run out of space if you have many apps installed. You have to choose which apps to remove to install new ones, after a period of time. Roku doesn't require that. It has a good way of managing the apps that the other devices don't.

But for the issue of slowing down performance, that tip should help improve your Streaming Life.