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Streaming issues

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Daniel Noonan
New Member

Streaming issues

I am a Prime customer which means I have a 10GB anytime allowance and a 50 GB Bonus (21am-8am). Last month my wife decided to stream feelin.com movies on her computer. After watching 3 movies during anytime minutes she had used up the entire 10GB, meaning the remainder of the month we had to either work with a super slow internet connection or work on the computer between midnight and 8am. To try to troubleshoot this I ran a complete feelin.com 2 hr movie on my computer during bonus hours and monitored the GB usage. Sure enough, this movie utilized over 3GB. My question is simply "why"? Is it because the movie is being streamed on a computer rather than a TV (I can't see where that could be)? Is it because of some facet of feel.com streaming? Or is it simply the price of streaming. Hopefully not the latter, because it would be substantially cheaper just to buy the movie. Any suggestions?

Interestingly, I used to have Windstream internet service where I lived prior to this and the internet service and telephone (including long distance calling) was less than $60/month, we had no usage limits (or none that ever surfaced during our use) and the speed was maybe 5 times that of this HughesNet service. Unfortunately they do not service this area we currently live in. Cable is also not currently available to us, but has anyone out there compared this HughesNet to Dish or Direct? I recognize that HughesNet charges this absurd cancellation fee and even require you to pay for the return of their equipment, but if there is something better (and from my experience that would be just about anybody) then it might be worth the investment. To tell you the truth, I have never been associated with a company as inept and unorganized as HughesNet.
36 REPLIES 36
Geoffrey Leach
Sophomore

Question to the Hughes folks, prompted by this post. Does your user contract have warnings about the consequences of watching movies, playing games on line, etc?
El Dorado Netwo
Advanced Tutor

Hi Daniel, whether you're streaming video to a computer or to an Internet-enabled TV, it all comes through your Internet connection and can use roughly the same amount of data. A two-hour movie in standard definition can consume from 500 MB to 1 GB of data. The same two-hour movie in HD can consume anywhere from 2 GB to 6 GB.

Wait til 4K comes along and we're looking at 50 to 150 GB per movie.

If you are video consumers, you would be better served to get your video programming through Dish Network or DirecTV. Just avoid Video On Demand because you would need to connect your satellite TV receiver to your Internet connection to get it. Then you would be back to streaming video through your Internet connection again and using data.

Due to the extremely high costs to launch and maintain communications satellites 22,300 miles out in space, satellite-delivered Internet is simply a much more expensive delivery system than ground-based Internet systems. The trade off is that satellite service is usually available anywhere ground-based Internet systems are not.
El Dorado Networks |Diamond Springs, CA | eldoradonetworks.com
BirdDog
Assistant Professor

Thanks Alan, I just wasn't up for it. My typing fingers either.  🙂
Christopher San
New Member

Alan , when that 4K get's here i think i would be in trouble if my grand-kids figure out my passwords  !!!!   LOL  !!!
Gwalk900
Honorary Alumnus

Daniel,
Your former ISP didn't have spend a half a Billion dollars for a satellite with a life span of 12 to 15 years and then needs replaced.
Nor did they have to spend a few million more to launch and insure the thing.
Nor did they have to spend countless millions more to build the Earth side Network Operations Centers nor many milions more for gateway servers that are scattered around the US.

That satellite once built and launched can't be repaired and it can't have its capacity expanded.

Now if your former ISP or any other ground based ISP thought they could make money by expandind their "reach" into your area they would have done so.
The fact that they haven't should tell you something.

You will notice as you view and choose among the various Hughesnet service plan levels that they have different prices .... and they have different "numbers " linked to those different plan levels.
Whatever did you think all that meant ?

Also, did you know that the capacity of a single sided blu-ray DVD is 4.9 GB ?
A longer than standard (aprox 2hr) movie on Blu-ray requires a double layer disc.

You have THREE usage meters .....
The Download Status Meter desktop utility
The built-in always available meter that is inside the modems SCC found at browser address 192.168.0.1
And lastly you have the "at a glance " meter found on the main Hughes support site.

How could you not realize that you were on a capped plan and were using data ?
Daniel Noonan
New Member

Thanks to Gwalk900 and all others that took the time to reply to my post. Although not providing much of a resolution to my problem they were entertaining. I am quite aware of the cost of implementing this technology as well as its limitations. I am also now fully aware of the limitations of the plan I am on, although the HughesNet salesperson who originally sold me the plan either wasn't or didn't care to be. In my post I was not looking for justification of HughesNet pricing and limited capacities, but rather any potential modification(s) (technological or or alternative companies) that I might make to address my problems. Currently it would appear that it might be cheaper to have my wife buy her movies from Amazon rather than stream them on this technology. Hopefully competition and alternative networking technologies will spread to our area that will afford me better solutions to my concerns. Thanks again for your input and have a great day.

Snail mail Netflix DVD (or whatever they're calling it) is still cheap, check it out.

maratsade
Distinguished Professor IV

This is a very old thread --- I wonder if @Liz or @Amanda might lock it down...?

Christopher San
New Member

 if some one could show and tell  Purgatory how to change her system ,out of HD to  SD mode , i was able to but it's been 6 months and i forgot how i did it !!!     that is her first post in another's site  and was over looked   ,am i right in this Purgatory ?
Melissa6
New Member

Morning Christopher, Purgatory & everyone else 🙂 You can't just change your sysem out of HD mode as it's not a system setting that affects your data. It is more a STREAMING service setting.. Doing this all really all depends on the services you use to stream your videos.. If using netflix, go to the online webpage (netflix.com) and log into your account. You'll see a thumbnail profile icon to the top right. Hoover over it and goto Your Account. Scroll down the page till you find a section marked "My Profile"    In the list next to it select "Playback Settings" you'll be displayed with a menu like this:


Select the option that best suits you, for future reference .3GB is = to 300MB... hughes uses 1000 base which means there are 1000MB = 1GB (This is where most will get hungup on a data plan as the majority of users really have no idea how much data things on the internet actually use. Not that the internet makes it easy, I mean come on how many places do you come accross that say Hey be carefull this video/pic could consume boocoos of your data, SMH..)


If your using youtube and they also have a similar setting. If watchng you tube videos via facebook or anywhere else look for a little cog wheel to the bottom right. Clicking on this allows you to set viewing resolution Ex.. 720p      The smaller the better BUT the lower you go the worse your picture will appear . If you have a youtube online account you can also change this in your account settings.

Sign in click the profile icon at the top right and select the cog wheel which if you hoover over it, it tells it is your you tube settings. In the list to the left select playback and then select " I have a slow connection. Never play higher-quality video "     Note this only works if you are currently signed into youtube meaning not for facebook and it doesn't choose the lowest it chooses next best to HD (as youtube is based by speed of the system and not data available.

Amazon  streaming is strictly purchase/rental option it'll say something to the effect of view in SD or view in HD, I don't watch alot through them. Someone else might be better informed. As a final note there are MANY more streaming services than just those few so if I didn't cover your perferred streamin method tell us how you view and who knows there may be a tip or two 🙂
Christopher San
New Member

I liked your response,Melisa  as saying ,learning , but i did mine, in or on Facebook,just could not remember how i did it there !!!   Everyone have a great day !!!
Melissa6
New Member

Christopher it's been awhile since I checked Facebook settings they may have added something along those lines or you could be thinking of the Facebook Purity app that cleans facebook up fairly well and gives added control to some settings 🙂 Always nice to learn something new, Hope you have a great day as well!!
Christopher San
New Member

Melisa,  it was just an accident i even came across it , and really do not know how i did it, just saw the HD and Sd  and just clicked on it, LOL !!  and a good morning to you and will transfer your post to another file for future use  so i thank you on that part also !!!
BirdDog
Assistant Professor

Amazon SD uses about 800MB for 45 minutes which is quite steep. I only use it when I can't find something anyplace else and then download only during the Bonus time. I set their downloader to start, put the laptop to sleep, have it set to wake after 2AM and it resumes downloading. 🙂

The best thing is you can actually download and watch later unlike the streaming services.
Amanda
Moderator

Hi Geoffrey,

Our legal page explains the Fair Access Policy, but we also have another webpage that shows a breakdown of how much data popular activities actually use (2nd link)

I hope this answers your question

http://legal.hughesnet.com/FairAccessPolicyGen4.cfm

http://www.hughesnet.com/index.cfm?page=Plans-Options


Thank you
Amanda
BirdDog
Assistant Professor

I have no problems watching movies from Netflix and TV shows from YouTube I can't get over broadcast stations.
Very few movies I ever watch more than once. Dusty old DVDs on the shelf. 🙂
Gwalk900
Honorary Alumnus

Wow,

I took a bad turn then somewhere !

We have around 2000 DVDs and "sets"

Watching Miami Vice complete set now.

(also have Mr. Ed, Bewitched, Superman (the old TV series) among a boat load of others)

If you can't stream it then you have to own it.

One thing about getting old ... you can watch then again and its all brand new 🙂


BirdDog
Assistant Professor

Mr Ed, Bewitched, Superman?  OMG!
They have MeTV and This stations here that play that them constantly I don't care for that old stuff myself.
Batman......Pow! Bang! Zap!  LOL!
FireFoxxy
New Member

We do the same thing here! Buy what we want for movies and series. I just got CSI Los Vegas this year - we make the series our Christmas present as a ROT.  Last year it was NCIS. So all we have to do is add to those as they come out seasonal.

Purgatory I love the old series! You just can't beat originals..   🙂
Christopher San
New Member

Purgatory, if you really like NCIS    the you gotta get the movie  <The Presidio >  think you really like it .   A younger Gibbs