What about something like YouTube TV, DirectTV Now, Sling or Hulu Live TV? I know they are not what this sub is about, but they provide the closest experience to a TV Guide and channel up/down. And most if all can do 3 streams plus cloud DVR.

Your best bet is to buy a dedicated box like a MAG, Dreamlink or Formuler box. Then, test out a few services to see which ones you like and are the most stable on the channels you need. You can make a "Favourites" group on the Formuler/Dreamlink boxes that would have all the channels your parents use and not much else, keeping it pretty simple and straight forward for them. They have the standard style full remote with EPG (guide) button you are looking for.

Good luck.

*right off the bat I expect this post to get downvoted A LOT. This sub is mostly full of people who are okay with the sub par video/audio and reliability (compared to cable) that all current IPTV provides because of the price point. I am only okay with saving money if I don't have to give up too much.... You will see a lot of people say Gears or Vaders has good service. Do yourself a favor in any case and get a free trial from either/both or others and try them out, because what most people call good I find to be pretty horrible. Like I won't watch it horrible.

An honest opinion from someone who has recently been researching the options :

A. Is not an IPTV reseller so I have no interest one way or the other

B. Is not someone trying to save money if it means I give up quality/reliability

C. Is not someone trying to save money if it means the other people in my household won't be able to use it easily/won't like it/will find it annoying or difficult/will need me to regularly "do it for them". (I'm grown with wife and kids... not the same as your situation but similar).

The closest thing hardware wise is probably going to be one of those MAG boxes, or a Formuler/MINIX type box that you can set up to boot Kodi on launch and pair with a familiarish media remote with air mouse capability maybe. You're gonna spend 150-200 bucks on good hardware with remote and ample storage to record/rewind/etc if that's a need.

The closest thing to cable quality service that I have found is King-box service. Don't waste time with Vaders or Gears or Reloaded or any service that resells their services. The video/audio quality is really pretty bad. Sure they are cheap. You get what you pay for. In this case King will give you better image quality for not a while lot more. * In ALL CASES you WILL be giving up image/audio quality and reliability compared to cable.*

Whatever you end up with you also want a good EPG. The Gears/Mayfair EPG combo is really good that way, but the Gears service is what kills it. The MAG box EPG is going to be much more approachable for a non-techie who "just wants it to work.

If you have smart TV's you might look into SMART-STB app which appears to give a Mag box type EPG but if you have a TV with the horsepower you wouldn't need to buy dedicated hardware like a MAG box, you would only need an m3u stream from the provider and set up Smart STB and use your TV's existing remote. No Kodi to manage, no recording, just a basic EPG that's easy to navigate.

...Another point to add (MORE GREED) are the prices of the sports packages which added another $420 a year to my cable bill. Despite paying these ridiculous extra fees, some sports still have "Blackouts". Why am i paying these extra fees then, My God! Then there are the channels that are only accessible from certain areas, countries.

...IPTV solves ALL of this and i appreciate it's there and have NO PROBLEM with some of it's shortcomings!!!

If You pay that much and You are in USA. I recommend Sling TV with DVR with all the addons needed, it'll be much cheaper and great quality.

Sorry forgot talking in wrong person !

try iptvsmart.org

it is so cheap and deliver good service.

good luck

Get a mag 254 or formuler z7+ with a service like ok2

Its 1:1 on the cable experience but for 13 bucks a month with a one time fee for the box

There are about 3000 channels, after editing my favorites list i ended up with about 200 channels and everything i could want.

Free trials Monday Tuesday Wednesday

https://m.facebook.com/groups/268275393785518

Try Flamingo Streamz for our viewing content , we might also be able to steer you to a low cost android box . We have old westerns and mlb, nfl, college . Hallmark regular ,Drama , and mysteries &movies . Every thing your looking for . Our price this month is $ 9.99 for 2 connections and we can work out the extra connection . Also have PS channels too . Contact us for a free trial

http://www.facebook.com/groups/238453086972341