Direct TV Stream for Sony/LG and FF/RW/Pause Live TV

I guess I probably need to clear up the fast-forward/rewind option. It appears this can be done on Amazon’s Fire Stick, but not Apple TV 4K. 

When I accessed the app through the Fire Stick, I could fast-forward/rewind. 

Thanks for your response; however, the Directv Stream Device is a non-starter.

@michele5389, we understand your point.

To answer the specific questions actually asked :

No one "out here" would know what future changes are planned.  I would guess support for Bravia (Android TV) is likelier than support for Vizio.  However, they've had plenty of time to release an Android TV app (especially since they have Android and FireTV apps, and their own device runs Android TV) and they haven't, for unknown reasons - but the reasons seem like they'd have to be non-technical.  As a workaround, many people have sideloaded versions of the FireTV app, apparently with good results.  You can search for info on that if you are interested.

I was unaware that pause/rewind/FF of live streams didn't work on AppleTV - it works fine on iPhone/iPad (iOS/padOS).  If it's not there yet for TV (tvOS), I'd hope it would be soon.  (They've been adding it incrementally to the different apps.)

WRT recording all episodes - be aware that it usually does the right thing, but not always.  It's unclear whether that is due to problems in their code or errors in the EPG info they get from a third party.

Thanks for your comments. I apologize - I thought there was a Directv admin that could answer the question on what may be in ths pipeline. 

The @DIRECTVhelp reps are official (though not forum admins), but they are generally useless for technical issues, and in any case I doubt any Support rep would have visibility into futures.  (At one point in the distant past - when it was AT&T - they did announce some future plans.  When what was announced either didn't show up until much later than expected, or didn't show up at all, the reaction was not good.  So they stopped saying anything until new things actually arrived...)

@DIRECTVhelp So how many are provided at no cost?  I have 6 TVs in my home. 

I am always nervous about provider equipment. Similar to Comcast, the equipment ALWAYS starts free and then they start charging….small at first, and then you look up and you are paying $5-8/month.

If you are asking about the DirecTV Stream streaming device, none are provided free.  They don't lease them, they sell them.  You can buy a new one outright for $120, or get them on time, at $5/month for 24 months.  Note that if you leave before they are paid off, they will require a balloon payoff.  The devices supposedly can still be used for other streaming apps if you cancel your subscription, but I haven't seen reports whether that is true or not (and they are expensive streamer for that).  They reportedly also sell used certified units (with warranty) for $50.  (I can't say for sure since I have a very old - no longer offered - subscription, and they don't offer the devices at all to people with the subscription I have.)

As I thought. Thanks!

You can get up to 20 streams across different devices on your home network with Directv Stream all at the same time and you get 3 on-the-go streams of which 2 can be TVs outside your home wifi network!  The boxes do cost money to buy as stated above but after the initial cost of purchase, you pay nothing more other than what you choose to stream through them there are no extra fees like you would have with Cable/Sat. and if you choose to no longer subscribe to Directv Stream and you canceled your subscription then you will still be able to stream any app that you would have downloaded on the box.  They are a bit expensive but in the long run, if you plan on staying with Directv Stream for a while then they are worth the price as they have a much better user experience than streaming through other devices!

Understood - thanks. If I am going to invest money in a streaming device, it would be a device that is more widely adopted. 

Hence, the purpose of a SmartTV - to minimize these types of cost. 

Unfortunately SmartTV companies often don't keep their streaming apps updated as well as stand-alone streaming devices, like Roku or FireStick.