Breezeline TV Review

Breezeline offers a classic cable TV experience, but the signal comes through your internet connection rather than over coaxial cables. The prices are high for what you get, and you can’t get TV service unless you bundle it with an internet plan. Then, you must pay extra for a set-top box for every TV you want to use, plus even more for Cloud DVR.

Breezeline wouldn’t be my first pick for live TV service, but I like that there aren’t any hidden fees, like a sports or broadcast fee, and that you aren’t locked into contracts. Plus, your monthly bundle price is guaranteed for up to two years (depending on where you live).

How good is Breezeline TV service?

Breezeline TV works over the internet, which puts it in league with live TV streaming services like Hulu + Live TV, Fubo, and YouTube TV. Those third-party streaming services will be a better pick for most people, but it comes down to personal preference.

With Breezeline, you have to rent at least one set-top box for your TV for $5 per month. When you have it, you can watch on that TV or on phones or tablets, but not on desktop or laptop computers.

The cheapest plan may save you a bit of money every month compared to other streaming services, but you’ll have far fewer channels to choose from. If you go with the higher-priced Breezeline plan, you’ll pay a lot more than you would for competing services.

Add-ons like HBO® and STARZ® cost extra, and there are no free trials. The add-ons are competitively priced relative to other cable TV services, which is nice if you’re accustomed to cable TV. But you have few options and won’t save much money compared to buying third-party streaming services such as HBO’s Max or Paramount+.

If you want a simple TV solution with a no-frills remote and just one bill to pay, Breezeline TV might be for you. But it pays to shop around if you don’t mind buying your own equipment and juggling multiple subscriptions.

Pros

• Simplified remote and set-top box
• Easy bundling options
• No hidden fees

Cons

• Set-top box required
• High prices for relatively few channels
• Limited, expensive add-ons

Breezeline TV deals

Breezeline doesn’t often offer TV deals across its service area, but you might be able to get $5 off every month when you bundle services. Other deals might be available during checkout or when you call to order, so keep an eye out.

Prices can vary quite a bit based on where you live, so check your broadband nutrition label during checkout for specifics.

Breezeline TV packages

Breezeline offers three TV packages, and they’re additive. Here’s a look at what you get with each tier:

Locals+: Get cable standbys and local broadcast favorites, including your local FOX, NBC, and CBS affiliates.

Locals+, Variety+: Get everything in Locals+ and a selection of cable favorites such as TBS, CNBC, CNN, ESPN, and ESPN2.

Locals+, Variety+, Family+: Get everything in lower tiers plus extras, including Nat Geo WILD, SEC Network, ACC Network, the Smithsonian Channel, ESPNews, NFL Network, and CBS Sports Network.

Channel availability varies greatly based on where you live, so check your channel lineup during checkout. You’ll find a small link to your local lineup below the TV package options.

Breezeline TV package tiers

Breezeline TV add-ons

You can get a standard list of cable TV add-ons with Breezeline TV at the following prices:

Max from HBO: $19.99/mo.

SHOWTIME®: $10.99/mo.

CINEMAX®: $9.99/mo.

STARZ: $9.99/mo.

MGM+: $6.99/mo.

MoviePlex: $1.99/mo.

These prices are close to what you pay for third-party streaming services like HBO’s Max and Paramount+. In fact, you can buy those services separately and watch them through your Breezeline set-top box by adding them as apps (along with apps like Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu).

Given the limitations of Breezeline’s streaming services on computers and the fact that you won’t save much money, most people will be better off choosing their own streaming device plus a few streaming services instead of purchasing these add-ons from Breezeline.

The only way to get Breezeline TV is to start with an internet plan, so you won’t find big savings for bundling.

However, your TV price won’t increase after your promotional period like your internet price will.

Lucky for you, Breezeline doesn’t tack a bunch of extra fees onto your final bill like some of its cable TV competitors do. Excluding local taxes, the advertised price is the price you’ll pay.

Breezeline TV tech

Breezeline requires you to rent at least one of its set-top boxes when you sign up for TV service at $4.99 per month. From there, you can use the Breezeline TV app to watch on your phones, tablets, Apple TV devices, and Fire devices (but not Roku or Android streaming devices, laptops, or PCs).

The Breezeline Stream TV set-top box is built on TiVo tech, with familiar controls and the option to add streaming service apps. The box lets you do the following:

• Pause and rewind live TV
• Customize your home screen
• Bookmark favorites to watch later
• Search across streaming apps for a particular show
• Search with your voice or a keyboard
• Watch a miniplayer while you search for a new show or channel
• Set parental controls
• Watch shows on-demand
• Record on Cloud DVR (Contact +1-888-536-9600 to upgrade)

Read the Breezeline Stream TV User Guide for more information, or visit TV help resources in the Breezeline library.

You get five simultaneous streams per account, and you can sign into a total of 10 devices (not counting your Breezeline Stream TV boxes).

Picture quality

Your Breezeline Stream TV picture quality will depend on the quality of your internet connections, your streaming box, your TV, and the channel you’re trying to watch.

If you’re using an HD TV, your fast Breezeline internet connection, and your Breezeline Stream TV box, you’ll get the best picture quality channels offer, for example.

On the other hand, if you’re streaming on an older cell phone when you don’t have access to high-speed data, your picture quality will likely suffer.

Breezeline works best on HD TVs, but its channel lineups don’t mention the availability of any 4K content. Most of the time, the decision of whether to broadcast in HD or 4K is left up to channels (like ESPN or NBC) rather than TV service providers (like Breezeline).

DVR

You have to pay extra to make DVR cloud recordings on your Breezeline Stream TV. The prices are as follows:

Cloud DVR: 150 hours: $10/mo.

Cloud DVR Max: 300 Hours: $19.99/mo.

No free DVR is a bummer, especially when you’re required to rent a streaming box. Plus, you can’t download anything to watch offline.

But it’s not all bad. You can record as many simultaneous streams as you want as long as you pay for the storage and access a lot of your DVR content on your phone or tablet.

Remotes

Breezeline offers a simplified remote that works primarily through images on the screen, similar to an Apple TV or Google TV device. If you don’t like Breezeline’s mini remote, you can order a big remote with fast-forward, play, and record buttons for a one-time charge of $15. (Bonus: it lights up in the dark.)

Parental controls

With Breezeline Stream TV, you set parental controls one device at a time. If you’re using the set-top box, you can set these controls through the TiVo home screen. Once you unlock the controls, they’ll remain unlocked for four hours.

The only parental controls available on other streaming devices depend on the capabilities of those devices. There’s no way to block or restrict channels across all signed-in devices.

Breezeline TV installation

Breezeline TV is easy to install and free for most customers. Just plug your streaming box into your router, your TV, and a power source, and you’re good to go.

You may also need to program a remote, but it’s a snap.

Once you have at least one functional set-top box, you can sign into the Breezeline TV app on your phones, tablets, and some third-party streaming devices. Requiring one set-top box is a weird flex for Breezeline, but I like that you can save money by relying on other streaming devices and smart TVs you already own.

My verdict

I don’t live in a Breezeline market, but if I did, I wouldn’t sign up for Breezeline Stream TV. I’m turned off by the required internet bundling, the mandatory $5 rental of a set-top box, and the inability to stream from a browser or computer.

Other customers might not like the simplified remote or the fact that you have to pay extra for Cloud DVR, especially when many competing live TV providers offer unlimited DVR for free.

Unless you want just a few local channels and don’t mind paying about $50 for the privilege (on top of paying for internet), I’d encourage you to shop for other streaming services and cobble together a package of your own.

Breezeline TV FAQ

Disclaimers