CuriosityStream
Web and SaaS
video streaming service
SHOW HN2016
129points
113comments
#276of 2,264 in 2016
Top 13%of 2016 by points
How HN took it
MixedNo clear lean
12 positive, 28 neutral or asking, 7 mixed, 15 critical, out of 62 comments about the project. Thread score -0.07.
Design: 4 for, 5 againstPerformance: 1 for, 5 againstIdea: 3 for, 2 againstPricing: 2 for, 1 againstPrivacy: 0 for, 2 against
The thread, comment by comment
Each row is a top-level comment and its replies, in HN's order. Select a cell to open that comment on HN.
positive neutral or mixed critical about another commenter or something else the maker
What HN said
What people liked
Good price for the content
From 3 comments
I signed up for this and can say the product is good for the price. I wish they had native Chromecast support. You can cast the tab with chrome, but it lags sometimes. I…
phasnox on HNJust signed up (it was the vertical farming episode + reasonable price point that sold me). The $2.99 price is perfect for a sporatic watcher like me. One suggestion: please make…
hotcool on HNThe product looks great, I am a huge fan of documentaries myself and have always wanted a service like this. I have always been interested in small streaming sites and how they…
sawyerjhood on HN
Strong documentary library from BBC, NHK, PBS
From 1 comment
Well we have tons of big budget and high quality pieces from producers like BBC, NHK, and stuff that's been on PBS. Feel free to check out and preview our library…
MPetitt on HN
Objections
Landing page lacks legitimacy signals and unlinked press mentions
From 3 comments
People recommend "documentary streaming sites" to me all the time that are illegal / grayzone. When I first saw your landing page, I kind of thought it was something like that. I…
mbrock on HNLooks like an interesting proposition. Two pieces of feedback: * Alarm bells ring when a company says where they are mentioned in the press but fail to link to any articles. * I…
kitbrennan on HNPet peeve: apps/services that have a section that says "As featured in..." followed by a bunch of media outlet icons that aren't links. Why would you NOT link to press coverage…
shrikant on HN
Pricing plans unclear
From 2 comments
Looks like an interesting proposition. Two pieces of feedback: * Alarm bells ring when a company says where they are mentioned in the press but fail to link to any articles. * I…
kitbrennan on HNYou might want to consider naming your pricing plans differently. There is a plan offering standard definition streaming called "Basic", and a plan offering high definition…
polytap on HN
Video quality and bitrates too low for HD
From 2 comments
Why are the bitrates so painfully low? 720p has a whooping 840Kbps and the best 1080p stream is just 6000Kbps. Your streams are way too over-compressed IMO.
need2sleep on HNThat's understandable. But you can't offer HD with a bitrate that's too low even for proper SD. There are simply too many compression artifacts. I for one would not subscribe to…
need2sleep on HN
Tracking scripts and blank page without ad trackers
From 1 comment
Looks interesting, took some time to figure out the connection to Discovery but now I know. I think I´ll be holding out until 4k/UHD has been added. Space documentaries in 4k…
Zalos on HN
Requests
HTML5 player support
From 1 comment
When I went to watch my first video, I got this: -- html5: Unsupported video format. Try installing Adobe Flash. http://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/ -- Flash is dead. How long…
rocky1138 on HN
Native Chromecast support
From 1 comment
I signed up for this and can say the product is good for the price. I wish they had native Chromecast support. You can cast the tab with chrome, but it lags sometimes. I…
phasnox on HN
Apple TV and Roku apps
From 2 comments
How far off are native apps for Apple TV and Fire TV? This looks right up my street, but I hate AirPlaying.
drcongo on HNWhat about support for Roku? I love my Roku 3.
ajtaylor on HN
Subtitles and translations
From 1 comment
Subtitles are definitely in the works, and we're eventually hoping to source as many translations as possible. We even recently added our first spanish documentary!…
MPetitt on HN
4K/UHD content
From 1 comment
Looks interesting, took some time to figure out the connection to Discovery but now I know. I think I´ll be holding out until 4k/UHD has been added. Space documentaries in 4k…
Zalos on HN
Questions
What content is available and in which countries
From 3 comments
Looks cool, but could you guys list some of your content? Like is this just a bunch of low-value videos of tree frogs or are there some decent documentaries? Hard to tell from…
jgh on HNIs there any geo-blocking? Can I subscribe to this from my country (Germany)?
vmp on HNWhat share of your content is available globally?
MelmanGI on HN
Whether playback speed controls exist
From 1 comment
Does this offer playback speed controls? I watch a lot of non-fiction video content, but a lot of it is too information-sparse to watch at 1x.
seanb on HN
Alternatives named
Netflix
From 2 comments
People recommend "documentary streaming sites" to me all the time that are illegal / grayzone. When I first saw your landing page, I kind of thought it was something like that. I…
mbrock on HNYeah, Netflix is notorious for cringeworthy bitrates, you shouldn't look up to them. :-) In a perfect world, streaming services should thrive to provide the same quality as their…
need2sleep on HN
YouTube
From 2 comments
quick question: is there something that is not on youtube?
hathym on HNI love documentaries. I am currently a subscriber to bunch of services like fandor.com, docclub.com ect. But all of these are too America focused. I want to travel the world, see…
dominotw on HN
Fandor and DocClub
From 1 comment
I love documentaries. I am currently a subscriber to bunch of services like fandor.com, docclub.com ect. But all of these are too America focused. I want to travel the world, see…
dominotw on HN