Sling TV quietly added DVR support and expanded its selection of 4K broadcasts to ESPN Networks.
ESPN3 streamed the Clemson at Georgia game on Aug. 31 in 4K. That was followed up with four more college football games in 4K, four of which were on local FOX stations.
Sling TV says that sports fans can “expect major games, playoffs, and championships” from college football, NFL, NBA, college basketball, U.S. Open Tennis and MLB Postseason to be offered in 4K in the coming months.
The MLB World Series, which begins on Oct. 25, will be offered in 4K as well.
For cord-cutters, it’s notable that Sling TV is expanding its 4K broadcasting at no extra charge. The live TV streaming service is already the lowest-priced option for sports fans who want access to ESPN Networks and other cable sports networks.
Sling TV subscriptions start at $40 per month and include select 4K streaming. YouTube TV costs $72.99 per month, but you need to get the 4K Plus add-on, which costs an additional $9.99 per month. Fubo offers select 4K streaming with the Elite package, which usually costs $89.99 per month.
There is a major caveat to all the 4K coverage offered by live TV streaming services that matters to any and all sticklers for true 4K resolution. In a November 2023 interview with Sports Video Group News, ESPN’s Michael Sullivan explained that the network is, for now, focusing on offering an upscaled 4K instead of native resolution.
“Ultimately due to a variety of factors including UHD distribution [issues], we have decided to focus on 1080p HDR this year [on Saturday Prime] and also 1080p SDR across the board,” said Sullivan, the network’s operations specialist.
The decision came after ESPN shot some college football and basketball games in native 4K in 2022, and encountered a number of challenges.
Sling kicked off its 4K coverage on July 16 with the MLB All-Star Game on FOX. It was followed up by events from the 2024 Paris Olympic Games that aired on USA Network.
Support for 4K streaming on Sling TV is, for now, limited to 4K Roku and Amazon Fire TV devices.
That means you will need to use a Roku Stream Bar, Roku Ultra, Roku Express 4K+, Roku Streaming Stick 4K+, 4K Roku TV; Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K, 4K Max, or the Fire TV Cube. You will also need a 4K-compatible TV with at least one port that supports HDCP 2.2.
“This is essential for playing protected content in 4K resolution. Additionally, use an HDMI 2.0a or newer cable to connect your streaming device to your TV. This type of cable supports the high data transfer rates required for 4K streaming,” Sling advises on a help page.
You should also have an internet connection with 20 Mbps download speed. Sling says that more 4K streaming devices will be supported in the future.
