Channel Master Stream+ Media Player and OTA DVR $71.25

I'm still using my $30 Homeworx DVR and actually been using it more than my Fire TV 4k stick lately. It is cheap and works but the interface is cluttered, some bugs, storage is listed by channel/time (not title) and the remote stinks. Not terrible at all considering the price but I am considering an upgrade with my DVR. I am considering this Channel Master Stream+ Media Player and OTA DVR. For me, the main objective is its DVR capability and this appears to be an upgrade. I haven't tried Android TV but I hear good things. If you are interested, this also plays games. I believe a con is no netflix or prime but I have that with my fire tv devices.

Quote from Bflo23 : I'm still using my $30 Homeworx DVR and actually been using it more than my Fire TV stick lately. It is cheap and works but the interface is cluttered, some bugs, storage is listed by channel/time (not title) and the remote stinks. Not terrible at all considering the price but I am considering an upgrade with my DVR. I am considering this Channel Master Stream+ Media Player and OTA DVR. For me, the main objective is its DVR capability and this appears to be an upgrade. I haven't tried Android TV but I hear good things. If you are interested, this also plays games. I believe a con is no netflix or prime but I have that with my fire tv devices.

how much can we record?

Quote from Lilyly : how much can we record?

Need to supply your own hard drive. I have plenty of spare portable hard drives.

I am using a 500GB portable hard drive with my Homeworx DVR.... I record Dateline tv show (720p for 1 hour) and that is 3.7GB storage with my Homeworx DVR so that would be 135 hours at 720p. If you record in lower resolution channels, you will get more hours. For me, 500GB is plenty of storage. I have only used 200GB storage. I do not recommend microSD cards.

If you are wondering, it has 1 tv tuner in it.

Quote from jeffreyd00 : If you are wondering, it has 1 tv tuner in it.

Incorrect according to the website and their video commercial.... It has dual ATSC tuners.

"Record Your Antenna Channels
Schedule a single recording or an entire series
Watch one program while recording another
Record two shows at the same time."

My Homeworx DVR has only 1 tuner. When I record a tv show, I can't view another tv show. With this Channel Master, it has dual ATSC tuners.

I just bought the Channel Master Stream+ Media Player and OTA DVR.

Total price was $71.25... Free shipping and no tax charge.

The big selling point is Android TV and its nice user interface. My Homeworx biggest con is its interface and remote. It will be a big upgrade over my Homeworx as it seems more polished experience. I like how they integrate internet channel apps into the guide. I have been debating between TiVo, Fire TV Recast, Tablo and the Channel Master Stream+ for long time. They all have their pros and cons but with this sale price, I think I made the right choice. I really prefer direct connection rather than streaming OTA so Channel Master and TiVo were really my top 2 choices.

Android TV, built-in chromecast, push bluetooth audio to headphones or speakers, 4k support, direct connection DVR (most important reason for me), games and good value... Sold!

Quote from Bflo23 : I just bought the Channel Master Stream+ Media Player and OTA DVR. Total price was $71.25... Free shipping and no tax charge. The big selling point is Android TV and its nice user interface. My Homeworx biggest con is its interface and remote. It will be a big upgrade over my Homeworx as it seems more polished experience. I like how they integrate internet channel apps into the guide. I have been debating between TiVo, Fire TV Recast, Tablo and the Channel Master Stream+ for long time. They all have their pros and cons but with this sale price, I think I made the right choice. I really prefer direct connection rather than streaming OTA so Channel Master and TiVo were really my top 2 choices. Android TV, built-in chromecast, push bluetooth audio to headphones or speakers, 4k support, direct connection DVR (most important reason for me), games and good value... Sold!

sold.

however, its $99.00, not $71.25.

so its dead.

OP, quote me when its back to $71. i need 1 too.

The Channel Master Stream+ Media Player and OTA DVR is great for me. I have been using it a ton and recording so many tv shows. It is a big upgrade over my Mediasonic Homeworx.

Pros?
1) Excellent picture quality. It has a great tuner! The Channel Master tuner receives the same amount of channels as my Samsung television tuners. I get 78 channels but the picture quality is actually better than Samsung television tuner. The picture is crisper and lil bit more brighter than the Samsung tuner. Samsung and Channel Master both put out excellent picture quality but I give the edge to the Channel Master..... I am using a Winegard FlatWave Air FL6550A Amplified Digital Outdoor Antenna.
2) Great friendly user interface and the remote is very nice. Very fast performance and very easy for users to understand. This is a huge advantage over the Mediasonic Homeworx DVR that I was using. Mediasonic was a lil bit annoying and it had bugs. The Channel Master works perfectly and is set up cleanly. The remote looks and feels so much like my fire tv remotes. It is a smidge bit bigger but it performs similar.
3) Live Channels App has been awesome. I receive 14 day guide for FREE and it feels just like a cable guide that one would pay for. You could even add Pluto that would add another +200 channels to the guide. I read some bad reviews about Live Channels App but people were mostly having issues with the Shield and not the Channel Master. I have no issues at all with Live Channels App....... Plus, you don't necessarily need constant internet or strong internet. I first set it up without internet and it showed the usual OTA guide which is like 12-24 hours (similar to the Mediasonic). Later I set up with wifi and the features improved. If you connect to internet, it will show 14 day guide and save it so if you do disconnect wifi, the 14 day guide won't disappear back to the OTA 1 day guide. Internet will update the 14 day guide.
4) Chromecast ability is nice. It works nicely casting from phone with youtube and other apps including Netflix and Prime.
5) Bluetooth headphones! This is a nice feature that even the fire tv doesn't even have. Fire tv connects to bluetooth devices but it is for keyboard and mice. It doesn't recognize bluetooth headphones.
6) Lots of apps and games. I have lots of apps that my 4k fire stick has. I have the broadcast channel apps (cbs, nbc, fox, abc, cw and more) on my device so it is like on-demand where I don't always need to record. Also, pluto, tubi, kodi and plex but I am quite over Kodi. If an app isn't available with androidtv, you can sideload similar to a fire tv but I am not really into that as sideload apps aren't really optimized. Annoying to bring out keyboard. Androidtv is real nice and has improved a lot.
7) I noticed that the channel master would record shows with lesser storage vs the mediasonic.

Cons?
1) No manual record timer.... I have this on my Mediasonic DVR and it is quite useful. I haven't felt the need to use manual timer with the channel master yet but I am thinking about long baseball and football games in the future. I haven't felt the need to add another minute to a show.
2) No Prime or Netflix official app but it isn't big deal for me as it has chromecast. I just use chromecast feature from my phone to play my Amazon Prime and IMDB on the channelmaster. Start it with the phone, close the phone app and use your channel master remote.
3) It should have a faster fast forward option to speed through movies or the commercials. My Mediasonic can actually go faster in fast forward at 32x. I guess this is more a live tv channels app con than the channel master con. A skip commercial feature would be huge but this is a subscription free device with a low cost device.... TiVo has a skip commercial feature.

*** I give this Channel Master Stream+ a 4.7 out of 5 stars. I know some of the older Channel Master DVR+ users thinking that the older is better but I disagree especially when the Channel Master DVR+ costs $250 plus $40 wifi dongle. I think the DVR+ $399 included 1TB hard drive and wifi dongle. The Stream+ also has big advantages with chromecast, better androidtv interface, better bluetooth remote, bluetooth headphones ability, apps, games, etc... I don't think the DVR+ ability to start from the beginning a recorded episode is such a huge PRO especially when you look at all the Stream+ pros over it. I think I made the right choice over the Tablo and Fire Recast (I am a big Amazon fire fan too). I wonder about the TiVo Bolt OTA 1TB $250 sale (lifetime service) or Edge OTA 500GB $350 sale (lifetime service) or TiVo Edge 2TB with 4 tuners $599 with lifetime service but they are quite expensive even on sale. No way would I even consider a subscription service. I will update my review with more use. If I have issues in the future, I will bring it up but I have been really happy with the channel master stream+ so far.

Update.... Forget about sideloading Netflix/Amazon Prime on the Channel Master as the quality will be lesser, buggy and I find using a keyboard to be little bit annoying.... The Channel Master can play Netflix and Amazon Prime with good quality. It has built-in chromecast and it works great with Amazon Prime. It also works great with IMDB app on my phone. I watched Fringe from IMDB app on my Channel Master.

Once you start the show, you can immediately disconnect your phone (No need to waste phone battery) and still watch Amazon or IMDB tv show. You don't need to use your phone to control it either as the channel master bluetooth remote can still play, pause, etc.