Products

Channel Surfer

Channel Surfer: Watch YouTube Like It’s Cable TV

channelsurfer.tv Entertainment & Media / Movies, TV & Streaming

AI Benchmark
Desktop
Mobile
Monthly visits
104.1K
Up117.0%MoMSep 2026
Public revenue
Undisclosed
No public revenue evidence yet
Entry price
Unknown
No monthly subscription pricing
Creators
Steven Irby
@stevenirby· 3,585 followersCo-created with kilroy123
Launched
8mo ago
2026-03-11 · Est.

Traffic

Last 12 months
Monthly visitsData through Sep 2026
Events1 change · 3 marketing moves

Marketing moves

Launches, search & content, referrals, promotions
  • Launched on Show HN (2 pts)Launch

    YouTube Roulette – one button, a random video

    Jun 7 · 5mo agoLaunch page

  • Launched on Product HuntLaunch

    Turn your YouTube subscriptions into a retro cable TV guide

    Mar 12 · 8mo agoLaunch page

  • Launched on Show HN (604 pts · 179 comments)Launch

    Channel Surfer – Watch YouTube like it’s cable TV — I know, it's a very first-world problem. But in my house, we have a hard time deciding what to watch. Too many options! So I made this to…

    Mar 11 · 8mo agoLaunch page

Third-party reviews & case dossiers

Acquisition breakdowns, engineer reviews & open-source metrics
Show HN
2026-03-11Source
Post excerpt:
I know, it's a very first-world problem. But in my house, we have a hard time deciding what to watch. Too many options! So I made this to recreate Cable TV for YouTube. I made it so it runs in the browser. Quickly import your subscriptions in the browser via a bookmarklet. No accounts, no sign-ins. Just quickly import your data locally.

Traffic sources

Sep 2026

Traffic breakdown

Channels

  • Direct55%
  • Organic Search29%
  • Social11%
  • Referrals4%
  • Other1%

Countries

  • United States62%
  • Brazil5%
  • France3%
  • United Kingdom3%
  • India3%

Search

Domain authority —Domain registered 2026-03-04

KeywordMonthly volume
random youtube video1,530
channelsurfer.tv880
channel surfer770
youtube surfer410
y other websiets like ytch.xyz400

Traffic data: Vaneform

Pricing

Pricing page not identified yet, or no public pricing listed.

Pages & changes

Tracked since 2026-03-12

Key pages

Weekly snapshots

Changes

  1. Nov 2 · 11d ago

    Homepage tagline changed to “Channel Surfer: Watch YouTube Like It’s Cable TV”Positioning

    Watch YouTube Like It’s Cable TV→Channel Surfer: Watch YouTube Like It’s Cable TV

Design

First-screen visual analysis & :root CSS

Retro & Nostalgic (Dark canvas, airy density) featuring centered headline + cta layout and illustration / character art visuals.

First-screen preview · click to zoom

First-screen pitch & conversion flow

“CHANNEL SURFER”

Centered Headline + CTA hero structure paired with direct input / instant try CTA and no explicit trust bar.

Conversion path: Centered Headline + CTA + Illustration / Character Art → Direct Input / Instant Try

Palette · click to copy

5-D design score6.0 / 10
Typography
6.0
Color & Contrast
5.0
Layout & Spacing
7.0
Craft & Polish
6.0
Distinctiveness
6.0

Structure

Fonts
Arial / Courier New
Primary visual
Illustration / Character Art
Social proof
No Explicit Trust Bar
Navigation
No Explicit Nav
Theme & density
Dark · Airy
Corners & depth
Sharp · Hairline borders
Preview full AI design brief (includes :root CSS variables & layout rules)Style tokens only; never copy brand names, logos, copy, or images
# Design Brief: Retro & Nostalgic (with Minimal Monochrome)

Pixel typography, classic OS window chrome, or warm vintage print palettes.

## Design Tokens

```css
:root {
  --background: #080808;
  --surface: #101010;
  --foreground: #aaaaaa;
  --muted-foreground: #343434;
  --accent: #606060;
  --radius: 0px;
  --font-heading: "Arial", ui-sans-serif, system-ui, sans-serif;
  --font-body: "Courier New", ui-sans-serif, system-ui, sans-serif;
  --font-mono: "Courier New", ui-sans-serif, system-ui, sans-serif;
}
```

Color area ratio: Background #080808 (~92%) · Surface #101010 (~5%) · Text #AAAAAA (~1%) · Muted Text #343434 (~1%) · Accent #606060 (~1%). Background and surface dominate the canvas; reserve the accent color for primary buttons and active states.

## Layout & Conversion Structure

- Hero layout: Centered Headline + CTA
- Navigation: No Explicit Nav
- Theme & density: Dark · Airy
- Border radius & elevation: Sharp; no drop shadows—separate layers with hairline borders and whitespace
- Primary visual medium: Illustration / Character Art
- Conversion CTA: Direct Input / Instant Try
- Headline hook: Brand Manifesto & Curiosity
- Hero components: Custom Illustration
- Spatial layout notes: Centered Headline + CTA hero structure paired with direct input / instant try CTA and no explicit trust bar.
- Visual summary: Retro & Nostalgic (Dark canvas, airy density) featuring centered headline + cta layout and illustration / character art visuals.

## Avoid

- Generic modern corporate gradients
- Inconsistent mixing of modern flat UI and retro chrome

Implement the UI following the design tokens and layout specifications above: use only these color variables, and reserve the accent color strictly for primary actions and active states. Adopt only this visual style—never copy any reference product’s brand name, logo, copy, or imagery.

Questions & evidence

How much website traffic does Channel Surfer get?
Vaneform estimates 104.1K website visits in 2026-09. Visits can include repeat visits; this estimate does not measure paying customers or revenue.Source

Related products in this category

Entertainment & Media / Movies, TV & Streaming

These products share a catalog category. Compare customer tasks, features and deployment requirements before treating them as alternatives.