AT&T is a renowned brand and is the world’s largest telecommunications provider. They own several major services, including AT&T TV Now, a top-rated over-the-air IPTV service in the US.
As more people are moving forward to the online content streaming era, the cord-cutting community has seen significant growth in the last few years.
In case you have also decided to close down your cable TV subscription, then you are probably looking for an affordable streaming service that provides a decent streaming experience.
Now that you are interested in AT&T TV Now, you should definitely check out this review to learn more about the service.
What is AT&T TV Now?
AT&T TV Now is a rebrand of an existing subscription-based internet television service called DirecTV Now. The rebranding happened last year and rolled out slowly in different US territories.
As of the fourth quarter of 2019, AT&T TV Now had almost 20 million subscribers. However, it has seen a significant drop in subscriber count, with a loss of more than 1 million subscribers due to the recent price hike.
Currently, they offer seven subscription packages and a few add-ons. We have discussed them separately in the next section.
Packages
There are currently two features packages on AT&T TV Now, which are PLUS and MAX. Both of them have the HBO add-on pre-included. You can check out the table below for more information.
| Packages | Price (Monthly) | Features |
| PLUS | $65 | 45+ channels, including HBO suite, plenty of sports coverage (ESPN, ESPN2, FS1, NBCSN), 500 hours of Cloud DVR |
| MAX | $80 | 60+ channels, HBO and Cinemax suite, extensive sports coverage (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNEWS, ESPNU, ESPN SEC Network, FS1, FS2, NBC Golf, NBCSN, TBS, YES), 500 hours of Cloud DVR |
You will also find other packages, which are rebrands of AT&T TV Now’s old subscription packages. Here’s all of them:
| Packages | Price (Monthly) | Features |
| Entertainment | $93 | 65+ channels, including CNN, MSNBC, HGTV, TBS, Disney Junior, ESPN. |
| Choice | $110 | 85+ channels, with SCI, Game Show Network, YES, The Weather Channel, OWN. |
| XTRA | $124 | 105+ channels, including Oxygen, NBC Golf, FXM, Sundance TV, Discovery Family, and many more. |
| Ultimate | $135 | 125+ channels, featuring STARZ suite, Boomerang, etc. |
| Optimo Más | $86 | 90+ channels, including Spanish ones (ESPN Deportes, FOX Sports, ViendoMovies, Cine Estelar, and more). |
Other than these packages, you can opt for premium channels and sports add-ons as well. For example:
- Cinemax ($11/month)
- Showtime ($11/month)
- Starz ($11/month)
- Epix ($6/month)
- Movies Extra Pack ($5/month)
- NBA League Pass Premium ($40/month)
- Spanish and International add-ons (starting from $15/month)
Note that the availability of some channels may change depending on your location. You can visit atttvnow.com/#packages for the list of channels included in every package.
Supported Devices
AT&T TV Now supports a variety of streaming devices. Take a look at the list below to check if you are eligible to stream AT&T TV Now.
- Amazon Fire TV devices (2nd gen or higher): Fire TV, Firestick, Fire TV Cube, Amazon Fire TV Edition Smart TVs
- Apple TV (4th gen) and Apple TV 4K (5th gen)
- Chromecast (2nd gen or higher) and Android TVs with Chromecast Built-in
- Samsung Smart TV (2017-2018)
- All smartphones and tablets running Android 5.0 Lollipop (or higher) and iOS 11 (or higher)
- Chrome 58 and Safari 10+ (Update to the latest version for the best web-viewing experience)
About At&T TV Now Channels
AT&T TV Now offers plenty of entertainment, news, sports, and kids channels. The PLUS and MAX packages come with HBO, HBO Family, and HBO Latino, which has delivered some of the best TV shows of the last decade.
Besides, you will find your regular old channels, such as ABC, CBS, CNN, Comedy Central, FX, TruTV, National Geographic, NBC, TBS, TNT, Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, and many more.
Sports lovers will also find AT&T TV Now attractive due to its vast selection of sports channels. The NBA League Pass Premium add-on is a bonus addition.
AT&T TV Now: Is it Worth the Premium?
As you may have already noticed, AT&T TV Now is on the expensive side when compared to other live TV streaming services. We will try to go through some of the critical elements of AT&T TV Now to see if the premium subscription price is justified or not.
Stream Quality
Let’s start with the stream quality. In our testing, we found out that the stream starts in a lower resolution, then snaps to 720p or 1080p after a few seconds. This behavior has been noticed on all the devices we have tested.
It seems like it has been done intentionally to make channel switching faster. Other than that, there are no problems with picture quality, and the stream doesn’t buffer. However, it might vary depending on your internet connection. A 10mbps internet connection is required for a stable 1080p stream.
In terms of audio quality, there is no support for Dolby or SRS enhancements. It is maxed out at a stereo channel.
Cloud DVR
Previously, AT&T TV Now offered 20 hours of Cloud DVR recording to its subscribers. There was an upgrade path to 200 hours, but it added $9.99 more to the monthly expense.
This month, AT&T upgraded it to 500 hours for free, which is more than enough for most users. The recordings can be kept for 90 days too. It is available for PLUS, MAX, Entertainment, Choice, XTRA, Ultimate, and Optimo Más subscribers.
User Interface
The standalone AT&T TV Now app for streaming devices has a user-friendly interface. Whether it’s the web version or the Fire TV version, the UI consistency makes up for a seamless user experience.
The channel guide is just like any other TV guide. You can see a list of all the channels, even the ones that are not included in your subscription plan. It does make channel surfing quite frustrating though.
Excluding the minor inconvenience, you will be able to check the TV schedule and set reminders for programs. The search option is also there in case you want to tune in to a channel quickly.
The Discover section is a welcoming addition to find shortcuts to popular TV shows and sports events. You will even get recommendations based on your viewing activities.
If you can get past the price hike, AT&T TV Now is an excellent live TV streaming service. With the inclusion of premium HBO channels in the basic plans and 500 hours of Cloud DVR, it is definitely worth the price.
Wrapping Up
In this review, you will find all the details you need to know about AT&T TV Now streaming service. We have also included the pricing for packages so that you can proceed to cut the cord without any doubts. If you have any questions related to the service, you can ask us through the comments below.
