DirecTV Now extends free Apple TV 4K offer with 3 months of prepaid service

AppleInsider · April 2, 2018 8:16PM

DirecTV has extended its popular free Apple TV 4K promotion with three months of prepaid DirecTV Now service. Plans start at $35 per month, making the 32GB Apple TV 4K with service as low as $105.

Proving to be a popular deal, DirecTV has extended the promotion, which offers new users a free Apple TV 4K with three months of prepaid DirecTV Now service. Plan start at $35 per month, making the total out of pocket cost as low as $105 plus tax for both the Apple TV 4K and three months of programming.

Considering the 32 gigabyte Apple TV 4K retails for $179 alone, this deal is $75 cheaper than paying retail, without even factoring in the included programming. Back in November, DirecTV required four months of service to secure the free Apple TV 4K, making this offer $35 cheaper than the previous holiday deal.

The streaming platform provides users with a variety of popular cable channels, including properties owned by AMC, Discovery, Disney, NBCUniversal and Viacom, among others. In November 2017, AT&T struck a deal with CBS to carry streaming and on-demand content from CBS News, CBS Sports Network, The CW, Pop and Showtime.

Along with Apple TV, DirecTV Now supports a wide variety of internet-connected devices including Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Stick, iPhone, iPad, Android hardware, Chromecast, and Google Cast-enabled LeEco ecotvs and VIZIO SmartCast Displays. Subscribers can also access programming through web browsers.

AT&T's offer is available throughout April (while supplies last), and devices ship out within two to three weeks of placing an order.

fasterquieter · April 2, 2018 9:17PM

I suspect this is Apple's covert way of getting Apple TVs into the marketplace without tarnishing their brand with a cheaper product. If it is, it is working. The only reason I have one is because of this deal.

supadav03 · April 2, 2018 10:17PM

fasterquieter said:

I suspect this is Apple's covert way of getting Apple TVs into the marketplace without tarnishing their brand with a cheaper product. If it is, it is working. The only reason I have one is because of this deal.

Doubt this has much to do with Apple. More like ATT’s way to promote their service while eating the loss of giving Apple’s device away. They have run similar offers (and a bunch of competitors have as well) offering different streaming devices for free (Roku, Fire Sticks)

Folio · April 3, 2018 12:23AM

It’s one of many deals available. I joined today and switched from t mobile, so DTVnow will just cost $20 month plus Free HBO for life. (Will see if that holds up if merger fails) Another factor is the big boys ATT and Verizon will differentiate again in service with 5G in as soon as less than a few years.

Folio · April 3, 2018 12:30AM

PS I’ve never tried DTV Now, so don’t want to lead anyone astray if that comes across as endorsement.

DCJ0001 · April 3, 2018 1:26AM

fasterquieter said:

I suspect this is Apple's covert way of getting Apple TVs into the marketplace without tarnishing their brand with a cheaper product. If it is, it is working. The only reason I have one is because of this deal.

The only reason that I have three Apple TV 4k is because of this deal.

steveau · April 3, 2018 6:12AM

Dear AI, you forgot to say "Only available in the US."

paulthewolf · April 3, 2018 11:48AM

Has AT&T fired their entire app staff and started from scratch? Because the DirectTV NOW app was a hideous piece of hot, steaming garbage. Non-functional search with results that didn’t return if you tried one of their random results (search for this exact tearm “Dr. Who” and see what this turd returns). It was not even alpha software when I first took the plunge - that, and their actual ability to stream was non-existent. 2-10 minutes for a show to start-stutter-stop — and that was only at what looked like maybe 720p. I seriously was ready to cut Hulu+, Stars, HBO and Showtime and let DirectTV be my one and only - but Crackle has better usability, and I haven’t read anywhere above the massive improvements that would be required to get me to take another look.

redgeminipa · April 3, 2018 12:47PM

paulthewolf said:

Has AT&T fired their entire app staff and started from scratch? Because the DirectTV NOW app was a hideous piece of hot, steaming garbage. Non-functional search with results that didn’t return if you tried one of their random results (search for this exact tearm “Dr. Who” and see what this turd returns). It was not even alpha software when I first took the plunge - that, and their actual ability to stream was non-existent. 2-10 minutes for a show to start-stutter-stop — and that was only at what looked like maybe 720p. I seriously was ready to cut Hulu+, Stars, HBO and Showtime and let DirectTV be my one and only - but Crackle has better usability, and I haven’t read anywhere above the massive improvements that would be required to get me to take another look.

I've been using the beta versions for iOS and tvOS since they came out, and they're massively improved. Even the DVR features are working well. I'm patiently waiting for them to come out of beta. You can tell they're focusing the majority of resources on the new apps, and it shows.

redgeminipa · April 3, 2018 12:49PM

DCJ0001 said:

fasterquieter said:

I suspect this is Apple's covert way of getting Apple TVs into the marketplace without tarnishing their brand with a cheaper product. If it is, it is working. The only reason I have one is because of this deal.

The only reason that I have three Apple TV 4k is because of this deal.

Yeah. I jumped on the original ATV 4 deal, then used a different email and mailing address to get the ATV 4K when it came out. I'm tempted to jump on another, but I only have one 4K TV at the moment... LOL Did you use a different email and mailing address to get the other two?

zroger73 · April 3, 2018 1:27PM

paulthewolf said:

Has AT&T fired their entire app staff and started from scratch? Because the DirectTV NOW app was a hideous piece of hot, steaming garbage. Non-functional search with results that didn’t return if you tried one of their random results (search for this exact tearm “Dr. Who” and see what this turd returns). It was not even alpha software when I first took the plunge - that, and their actual ability to stream was non-existent. 2-10 minutes for a show to start-stutter-stop — and that was only at what looked like maybe 720p. I seriously was ready to cut Hulu+, Stars, HBO and Showtime and let DirectTV be my one and only - but Crackle has better usability, and I haven’t read anywhere above the massive improvements that would be required to get me to take another look.

These are my sentiments as well. For the first few months after launch, the service remained practically unusable for me. I ended up getting a full refund despite their "no refunds" policy and the free Apple TV. A year later, I signed up again only to get the "reduced-price Apple TV 4K". I used the service for a few minutes - just long enough to see that most audio still wasn't DD 5.1 (is it still the 1980s?), on-demand content was spotty, still no DVR, and the interface was still frustrating. Oh, and there seem to be more commercials than anything, which reminded me of why I ditched "live" TV a couple of years ago.

fallenjt · April 3, 2018 4:15PM

paulthewolf said:

Has AT&T fired their entire app staff and started from scratch? Because the DirectTV NOW app was a hideous piece of hot, steaming garbage. Non-functional search with results that didn’t return if you tried one of their random results (search for this exact tearm “Dr. Who” and see what this turd returns). It was not even alpha software when I first took the plunge - that, and their actual ability to stream was non-existent. 2-10 minutes for a show to start-stutter-stop — and that was only at what looked like maybe 720p. I seriously was ready to cut Hulu+, Stars, HBO and Showtime and let DirectTV be my one and only - but Crackle has better usability, and I haven’t read anywhere above the massive improvements that would be required to get me to take another look.

DTV Now streaming quality just sucks on every level. My internet is 180 Mbps and guess what? I'm buffering forever. Once, it's buffered enough, it give me the quality of analog TV in the 90...cloudy ass quality. The reason I kept it because it grandfathered in the $35 for 100+ channels, but seriously, after this NBA season, I'll let it go.

dcgoo · April 3, 2018 4:51PM

fallenjt said:

DTV Now streaming quality just sucks on every level. My internet is 180 Mbps and guess what? I'm buffering forever. Once, it's buffered enough, it give me the quality of analog TV in the 90...cloudy ass quality. The reason I kept it because it grandfathered in the $35 for 100+ channels, but seriously, after this NBA season, I'll let it go.

Its sounds like you have other network problems. DTV Now has been flawless for me. Solid 1080P. And my SP is Comcast, so go figure. Te most I have seen it pull is around 6 Mbps.

studiomusic · April 3, 2018 6:40PM

Same for me - the only reason I have one is this promotion. Which I cancelled right after receiving the ATV 4K due to previous DirectTV experiences.
This has been the buggiest Apple TV yet! All of my older models are great, solid devices. The 4K freezes, reboots, and sometimes gets caught in a loop and can only be rescued by unplugging it and plugging it back in.
I'm taking it to Apple this weekend to see what's up with my unit.

22july2013 · April 4, 2018 5:15PM

Can I use a VPN to get access to this US-only content?

fallenjt · April 4, 2018 5:17PM

dcgoo said:

fallenjt said:

DTV Now streaming quality just sucks on every level. My internet is 180 Mbps and guess what? I'm buffering forever. Once, it's buffered enough, it give me the quality of analog TV in the 90...cloudy ass quality. The reason I kept it because it grandfathered in the $35 for 100+ channels, but seriously, after this NBA season, I'll let it go.

Its sounds like you have other network problems. DTV Now has been flawless for me. Solid 1080P. And my SP is Comcast, so go figure. Te most I have seen it pull is around 6 Mbps.

Didn't you read? If network is the problem, it should happen to every app in my Apple TV. No, only Direct TV Now app doesn't work right. My other apps like Itunes movies in 4K HDR, Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Video, SlingTV and independent TV apps like Disney Now, HBO, CNN, CBS or such works absolutely fine. Google it and see that everyone has the same issue.

fallenjt · April 4, 2018 5:21PM

studiomusic said:

Same for me - the only reason I have one is this promotion. Which I cancelled right after receiving the ATV 4K due to previous DirectTV experiences.
This has been the buggiest Apple TV yet! All of my older models are great, solid devices. The 4K freezes, reboots, and sometimes gets caught in a loop and can only be rescued by unplugging it and plugging it back in.
I'm taking it to Apple this weekend to see what's up with my unit.

First of all, when you use 4K HDR at 60fps, make sure you use quality high speed HDMI cable. Mine was flicked with iTunes 4K HDR movies until I replaced the damn HDMI cables. Never got an issue again. Still, when I switch it back to Directv Now, the quality just sucks.

moreck · April 5, 2018 4:22PM

paulthewolf said:

Has AT&T fired their entire app staff and started from scratch? Because the DirectTV NOW app was a hideous piece of hot, steaming garbage. Non-functional search with results that didn’t return if you tried one of their random results (search for this exact tearm “Dr. Who” and see what this turd returns). It was not even alpha software when I first took the plunge - that, and their actual ability to stream was non-existent. 2-10 minutes for a show to start-stutter-stop — and that was only at what looked like maybe 720p. I seriously was ready to cut Hulu+, Stars, HBO and Showtime and let DirectTV be my one and only - but Crackle has better usability, and I haven’t read anywhere above the massive improvements that would be required to get me to take another look.

Yeah, it was garbage about a year ago, but it’s MASSIVELY improved now.

potatoleeksoup · April 5, 2018 4:43PM

Not a bad deal! Ordered just now. Was already about to add a second Apple TV; this clinched it.

Daekwan · April 6, 2018 9:51AM

I have three ATV's because of this deal (one is the older 4.. the other two are the newer 4K). Its by far the cheapest way to buy an ATV4K.. basically $105 all taxes and shipping included.

That said DTVnow is straight garbage. I have FIOS gigabit service and even with my ethernet connected ATV4K's.. I run into streaming issues. Both the regular and beta app constantly give issues like buffering, channels not working, errors saying I need to logout/login or just feeds dropping. It also doesnt help that the layout just sucks! I cant help but wonder has anybody developing these streaming cable tv apps EVER used a standalone cable box before? By far the most important (and what should be most visible) button is the GUIDE. Not only does DTVnow make getting to the guide an effort (it requires a couple of clicks) but scrolling up and down the guide the highlighted entry hops around so much its pretty common to click on the wrong show.

While I technically pay for DTVNow because of the free ATV4K deal.. I still greatly prefer PSVue or YouTubeTV. And PSVue has been the best streaming experience for the past few years.. but YTTV is quickly catching up. YTTV nails the guide, features and user experience.. the only real gripe I have is that its still lacking major channels like HGTV and Food network. But for those of you have jumped on the DTVnow deal.. I challenge you to give a PSV or YTTV a try.. and I can pretty much guarantee you won't ever switch back to DTVnow.

fallenjt · April 6, 2018 4:44PM

Daekwan said:

While I technically pay for DTVNow because of the free ATV4K deal.. I still greatly prefer PSVue or YouTubeTV. And PSVue has been the best streaming experience for the past few years.. but YTTV is quickly catching up. YTTV nails the guide, features and user experience.. the only real gripe I have is that its still lacking major channels like HGTV and Food network. But for those of you have jumped on the DTVnow deal.. I challenge you to give a PSV or YTTV a try.. and I can pretty much guarantee you won't ever switch back to DTVnow.

Sog35?

DirecTV Now extends free Apple TV 4K offer with 3 months of prepaid service

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