MLB.tv

[Dreamscape]

I have yet to purchase this program. Most I did was get MLB Radio. But I am very, very tempted this year. I believe my internet connection will finally use it and I miss watching the games. If I go for it, it will be for premium to get the extra options.

Subscribers, what are the pluses and cons?

[Hobbes]

I subscribed to Premium last year and it really slowed down my computer (a laptop). I had problems with smooth playing also. My computer is getting pretty long in the tooth, so it may not be a problem with newer hardware. But I do have a decent bit of RAM and a fast connection, so I don't know what the problem was. Regardless, I'll be sticking with the standard version this year.

[OF&S]

I tested it a couple of years back when it first came out, and had streaming issues. It could have been partly to blame on my service (have had Comcast issues from time to time over the years), possibly that MLB.TV hadn't worked out the kinks at that point, and probably that my old laptop was on it's last leg.

I went the MLB Extra Innings package the next year, and that was great, though costly, and I haven't subscribed since. I get all the Braves games on top of the Fox, ESPN & MLB Network games. If I can't get my fill of baseball with that, then too bad for me.

[Lauren T.]

I use a friend's subscription occasionally (with her permission), and it works great on my home laptop (wireless mid-speed DSL, new Toshiba laptop, Firefox, no hiccups) but not so great on my work laptop (office wired internet, Dell laptop full of security and firewalls and files, using IE+7, lots of problems with streaming). If I was out of market, I would definitely purchase it but wouldn't hold my breath with trying to watch archived games at work. At home, no issues at all.

[Middle Man]

Have had standard version the last two years with no major problems, only occasional chopiness. I've had occasional problems logging in - appeared to be caused by my Firefox adblocker - when I temporarily disabled the adblocker, it worked. It seemed like it may have been a problem when MLB switched to new ads, but that might have just been my imagination.

[Devil Wears Prado]

It sounds like some of you guys are suggesting the standard is the best way to go instead of the Premium (which lags you)?

[Lauren T.]

My friend's subscription is Premium.

[JanShan12]

I subscribed to Premium last year and just renewed my subscription today. When the games are in HD, the quality is great. I bought a HDMI cord to connect my computer to my HDtv so I can watch the games in HD from the couch. It's wonderful, especially considering I live in St. Louis and it's my only way to see the games.

[Agent-X-]

Originally Posted by JanShan12

I subscribed to Premium last year and just renewed my subscription today. When the games are in HD, the quality is great. I bought a HDMI cord to connect my computer to my HDtv so I can watch the games in HD from the couch. It's wonderful, especially considering I live in St. Louis and it's my only way to see the games.

I second this notion. I'm a premium subscriber who subscribed for part of last season, too. The games look great in HD on an HDTV. I'm very happy with the service.

The only issue I've had was at work on my work laptop. I tried watching the game in HD and it was choppy with graphical artifacts. If this happens to anyone else, I have a hunch there is a software issue. The hardware is good enough to support it.

My suggestion is to do a bandwidth test. I think you want at least a 3 Mbps connection. I have 10 Mbps and at times it lags to below 5 Mbps. If it lags too much, obviously there will be hiccups in frame rate.

I LOVE being able to watch archived games, though. I never have to miss another game... Oh, and I caught some of yesterday's game while at work... TOTALLY makes my work days more enjoyable!

[Devil Wears Prado]

Not hearing good reviews on MLB.tv from some guys. They're saying that it's not working so well with Windows 7, and since I'll be buying a laptop with Windows 7 on it, I think this might be a bad sign. Anyone care to give some feedback on it?

[JanShan12]

Not clue about Windows 7...

but I wanted to add that this year's version of mlb.tv premium is better than last year's. For some reason, it is running much more smoothly and I have had no lag at all.

[Devil Wears Prado]

Before the free MLB Extra Innings trial runs out with my DirecTV, I'm going to buy MLB.tv, but I'm just trying to see how it is first... Is it possible to watch a game just to test it? Or is there no trials/testing? And is there really a difference between Premium and regular in terms of streaming (faster, slower, etc.)?

[Dreamscape]

I have Win7 Ultimate and it has worked fine on my computer. My connection isn't the best so I can lag and can't watch it at HD level, but that's fine. I'm merely happy to be watching baseball. Watched last night's game with no problem.

[Devil Wears Prado]

Originally Posted by Dreamscape

I have Win7 Ultimate and it has worked fine on my computer. My connection isn't the best so I can lag and can't watch it at HD level, but that's fine. I'm merely happy to be watching baseball. Watched last night's game with no problem.

Thanks. I don't even know what Nexdef does. Does it let you watch HD and use the DVR features? I'm like you. I'm happy to just see all the Braves games, but it'd be cool if I can watch it on HD or decent quality on my decent connection and slick Samsung monitor.

[Agent-X-]

I also have Win 7 Ultimate and have had no issues watching games in HD. The hardware requirements might be a bit higher for Windows 7 users.

I believe there is an MLB.tv test page to test your setup. I remember doing the video playback test. I believe it's there on MLB's website somewhere... last year's test was from the previous world series.