Faced with the never - ending onslaught of commodious cordcutting root from contender , Comcast has decided to take a new tack . The ship’s company justannounced Xfinity Flex , a footling boxwood that lets you stream 4 K HDR mental object ( including some liberal cognitive content ) from your favorite line through a excerption of apps . you could even apply vocalisation controls like “ Play Game of Thrones . ” The service costs $ 5 a calendar month . And if that sound a lot like a crappier variant of Roku , that ’s because it is a crappier rendering of Roku .
Well , there is one huge remainder . for use the unexampled Xfinity Flex table service , you ’ll not only have to pay $ 5 a month to engage the ironware and yield for the service of process . You ’ll alsoneed to usean Xfinity xFi Gateway , the modem Comcast will also charter to you for a monthly fee , which will probably beabout $ 10 a month . As an added bonus , Comcast says the voice remote control that comes with the Xfinity Flex will also let you control other connected devices in your household — cameras , security systems , Xfinity mobile phones — as long as Comcast sell or rented you those gadget .
So that works out to at least $ 15 a calendar month for this new cordcutting solution that actually keeps you restrict to the biggest cable caller in the country . But wait , there ’s more . “ Flex also will provide client the power to seamlessly and instantaneously elevate to an X1 video service right from the guide , ” Comcast told us in an email . In other words , you could soon get roped into enjoying even more capacity for even more money .
Now is a good time to channelise out that virtually all of the features offered by the Xfinity Flex system already exist on Roku , Amazon Fire TV , and Apple TV . These twist do not come with a monthly service fee . you may in reality bribe a Roku Premiere , which also streams 4 kilobyte HDR content ( some of which is free),for a one - time payment of $ 40 . And then you own it ! Heck , evena $ 180 Apple TVseems cheap compare to a $ 15 monthly fee until eternity .
This is n’t to paint a picture that the Xfinity Flex is a john , of necessity . family line who are already vest in the Xfinity ecosystem might not take care paying a little redundant money to get an Xfinity set - top corner that ’s specifically tuned to work with the rest of their Xfinity products . This might be a bang with , as Comcast Executive Vice President Matt Strausssaid in a statement , “ sure client . ”
Could they do things like see Game of Thrones or control a nursing home photographic camera without ante up a monthly fee ? Absolutely , and that ’s what ’s so exciting about the DoS of connected technology mighty now . you’re able to purchase a piece of hardware , like a Roku , and customise it to your heart ’s content . Some apps , like HBO , need a subscription , but you’re able to still do a heck of a good deal with the machine for nothing more than the price of the box . It ’s probably deserving flag here that Comcast will still point you surplus for HBO content , even though you ’re already paying a fee for the machine that will deliver it .
We have n’t essay the Xfinity Flex scheme , so will reserve further judgement until then . In the meantime , we have reached out to Comcast to find out exactly how the new Xfinity Flex is unlike than a Roku , Amazon Fire TV , or Apple TV . We also asked about the selection of apps and whether client could just buy the Xfinity Flex corner and use it like a standard set - top corner . The company did n’t really answer our doubtfulness , but a spokesperson did say it will “ proceed to add free and subscription streaming computer programming choices to the overhaul . ”
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