By Phillip Swann
The TV Answer Man –Follow me on X.
TV Answer Man, my question is should I get the Sling TV Blue plan or the Orange plan? What is the difference? — Marsha, Trenton, New Jersey.
Marsha, Sling TV, a live streaming service owned by Dish, offers both the Blue and Orange plans for the regular monthly rate of $40 each. You can purchase both of them for $55 a month combined. (With its current $10 off promotion, you can get either plan for $30 for the first month and Blue and Orange combined for $45 for the first month.)
What Is Sling TV’s Blue Plan?
The Blue plan provides more than 40 channels including the three major cable news networks, CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, as well as leading ‘basic cable’ networks as FS1, Bravo, The Cartoon Network, AMC, TNT, TBS, and your local Fox and NBC affiliates in select markets.
What Is Sling TV’s Orange Plan?
The Orange package only offers more than 30 channels so you might think Blue is better. But hold on. Orange includes ESPN, ESPN 2 and ESPN 3, which are must-haves for many sports fans. In addition, the Orange plan has CNN, Comedy Central, TBS, TNT and AMC.
As you can see, the biggest difference between the two plans is that ESPN is in Orange while Blue offers more channels, Fox-owned channels and your local NBC and Fox affiliates in certain markets. (Blue also offers three simultaneous streams, meaning you can watch the Blue lineup on three different devices at the same time; Orange allows only one stream at a time.)
So which one you buy depends upon which programming is most important to you. And if you can’t decide, again there’s the combined package for $55 a month and $30 for the first month. You can review the lineups for Sling Blue and Orange here.
Marsha, hope that helps. Happy viewing and stay safe!
Have a question about new TV technologies? Send it to The TV Answer Man at swann@tvanswerman.com Please include your first name and hometown in your message.
The TV Answer Man is veteran journalist Phillip Swann who has covered the TV technology scene for more than three decades. He will report on the latest news and answer your questions regarding new devices and services that are changing the way you watch television. See the bio for Phillip Swann here.
