Killing cable

[mstrze]

One thing I failed to mention is that I plan to try various antenna's to the samsung...One being rabbit ears, then if that's too little/too weak - will look into mounting on roof the style (I hear great things about the roof version)

Even some Local HD hopefully!

Terk makes a terrific low-cost set-top model (rabbit ears) that works better than any other antenna I have tried. Avoid amplified ones, on the old analog broadcasts, they did the job, but somehow the amplification makes the digital signal worse in my experience.

Here's a link to the Terk I am talking about:

http://www.google.com/products/cata...og_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CEsQ8wIwBQ#

You will be blown away by the stuff you can get for free OTA. You will probably mave free music and movie channels and one or more weather channel. In Houston, we have 'This' which is a channel which plays movies from the 70s/80s generally...a local weather channel, one which just cycles a radar, a home improvement/well being channel, multiple Christian channels, tons of Spanish-language and even 1 or 2 Asian channels.

Some of the coolest sub-channel you might never know about without an antenna since many cable and satellite systems either don't carry them, or relagate them to very odd places on the 'dial'.

Have fun!

FYI...counting up all the channel that I can receive OTA...it numbers 30+ when all the subchannels are included! Even smaller markets will give you 10-15 options, easily.

 

[alent1234]

been doing the netflix streaming for 6 months now and it's sketchy. sometimes the content is there, a lot of times it's not. and in the case of scooby-doo which my son likes they lost access to a lot of the movies. used to be over 10 scooby-doo movies, now only 3

Hulu isn't much better. i'm seriously thinking of stopping with the streaming nonsense and just buy the DVD's

 

[dXTC]

You will be blown away by the stuff you can get for free OTA. You will probably mave free music and movie channels and one or more weather channel. In Houston, we have 'This' which is a channel which plays movies from the 70s/80s generally...a local weather channel, one which just cycles a radar, a home improvement/well being channel, multiple Christian channels, tons of Spanish-language and even 1 or 2 Asian channels.

Some of the coolest sub-channel you might never know about without an antenna since many cable and satellite systems either don't carry them, or relagate them to very odd places on the 'dial'.

I recently picked up a little 7" digital TV on sale, and discovered some of these little subchannels. WAVE-TV in Louisville has a 24-hour local weather subchannel. It also has 'This TV' on another subchannel, which I kinda dig; it's like a free cable superstation. Louisville's local KET station has KET2 on a subchannel so viewers don't have to flip all the way to channel 68.

There could be others, but then again this is just an itty-bitty TV with one of those telescoping antennas.

been doing the netflix streaming for 6 months now and it's sketchy. sometimes the content is there, a lot of times it's not. and in the case of scooby-doo which my son likes they lost access to a lot of the movies. used to be over 10 scooby-doo movies, now only 3.

I have no gripes with the availability of content on Netflix. I do, however, have a BIG gripe with stream reliability/buffering Netflix on my ATV2. I know my speed's kind of on the edge for HD streaming, but I even get problems (long start/buffer times, pauses, etc.) with standard def content. I know it's not Netflix, because my TV does Netflix too, with hardly any problem whatsoever (the TV's interface leaves much to be desired, though). Same problems with ATV and YouTube, especially since ATV seems to want to deliver the highest quality content for a given video, with no way for a user to force lower quality.

 

[alent1234]

can't help you there, most of my netflix is via the PS3 and while my trial x-box live gold membership is active i use that when i'm lazy. mostly the PS3 since the quality is a lot better than the x-box version

 

[cdavis11]

My two cents - from someone who's been cable free for a few months now:

I run an aTV 2G, a Roku HD XR and the Terk OTA HDTVi antenna. The three have done very well so far, the antenna is really necessary as it keeps you plugged into local news and other content...without that antenna I don't know if this ongoing experiment would still be a success.

Netflix is great. I run it on the Roku, as the aTV has been flakey lately. aTV is fine for my Itunes purchased content - kids movies and a couple of season passes for shows I don't want to adjust my schedule for. Netflix on the aTV has been hit or miss - the quality appears to have been degraded lately and sometimes audio/video will drop or fall out of sync.

Netflix on the Roku has been generally great. The video/audio quality is almost always better than the aTV and the viewing experience has been very good.

Hulu Plus on the Roku is another story. While video and audio quality is good *when* it's playing, it's been a stuttering, freezing mess lately. I've sent in several feedback emails and, to their credit, Hulu support has gotten back to me each and every time and informed me that it's a known issue and a fix is in the works. They've even issued credits to my account, which may keep me around a while longer.

On the antenna again - for me, it's a necessity. We started the cable free experiment with just the streaming boxes. I began to feel cut off from local stuff, and was longing for a little local news. Bought the terk indoor HDTVa and installed it - I don't get everything, but using the built in signal strength indicator in my TV, I was able to get the best few local channels.

The folks who say you'll be amazed by whats available OTA free are right - the quality of the OTA signal is generally better than what I got on cable HDTV. I can also second that comment about some weird/fun sub-channels showing up.

Overall, we're fine so far - losing the DVR has been a challenge, but we're okay with it. Netflix needs more content, Hulu Plus streaming is goofy at best right now, and the OTA antenna is a MUST.

Hope that helps, YMMV.

 

[alent1234]

I'm currently paying $99 plus DVR for cable/internet/phone

it's going to cost me $50-60 for internet/phone from Clearwire. that leaves $40 to $50 difference. netflix and Hulu plus is going to be $16 together. so now that is down to $24 to $34 in savings.

not sure if it's enough to make me kill cable. maybe if AT&T or VZ offered something that cost a little more on top of my wireless bill

 

[spice weasel]

I'm currently paying $99 plus DVR for cable/internet/phone

it's going to cost me $50-60 for internet/phone from Clearwire. that leaves $40 to $50 difference. netflix and Hulu plus is going to be $16 together. so now that is down to $24 to $34 in savings.

not sure if it's enough to make me kill cable. maybe if AT&T or VZ offered something that cost a little more on top of my wireless bill

I'd say that it's probably not worth cutting cable in your case, unless you find that a) you don't really watch much cable programming, and b) can get good OTA reception or can get unencrypted networks via QAM.

Cutting cable really only makes sense for people like me: I don't watch a lot of television (and hardly any cable shows), can get good OTA reception/QAM, and don't mind the offerings from Netflix. Otherwise, you'll find that trying to replicate the cable television experience can end up being almost as costly with a lot more hassle.

 

[JRoDDz]

Apple tv is a nice little gadget. But it's still a few yrs away from replacing cable completely.

It wasn't made to replace cable. It's an iTunes delivery device for your TV (with some added perks such as netflix).

 

[alent1234]

It wasn't made to replace cable. It's an iTunes delivery device for your TV (with some added perks such as netflix).

yep

with vudu (wal mart) being in most internet connected TV's these days apple needed something to protect itunes

my guess is that this year or next they will sell a full TV and that the current ATV is just a filler product to disrupt the market for roku and other devices/services

 

[Tilpots]

Overall, we're fine so far - losing the DVR has been a challenge, but we're okay with it.

Curious why you don't get a DVR solution for your setup? It's been one of the best, most necessary features in my household, and at $150 for a brand new device, the cost really was worth it.

 

[cdavis11]

Curious why you don't get a DVR solution for your setup? It's been one of the best, most necessary features in my household, and at $150 for a brand new device, the cost really was worth it.

Between Hulu and Netflix, I basically have a multi-room DVR. I can stop a Hulu or Netflix episode and pick it up on the Roku or aTV in my basement (mirrored the setup on my basement HDTV).

OTA, for me anyway, is just about local news and weather...here in Nebraska, USA, it's nice to have the weather on during the stormy springtime.

 

[cdavis11]

I'd say that it's probably not worth cutting cable in your case, unless you find that a) you don't really watch much cable programming, and b) can get good OTA reception or can get unencrypted networks via QAM.

Cutting cable really only makes sense for people like me: I don't watch a lot of television (and hardly any cable shows), can get good OTA reception/QAM, and don't mind the offerings from Netflix. Otherwise, you'll find that trying to replicate the cable television experience can end up being almost as costly with a lot more hassle.

I'll second that.

For us, it's not a gigantic savings...$60 a month. To me, it's more about not paying for 300+ channels of garbage I don't watch and getting the 5 or 6 shows I follow cheaply through streaming devices.

 

[alent1234]

on hulu plus how long do you have to wait for the big shows like glee, american idol, grey' anatomy etc?

i don't care, but my wife watches those

 

[spice weasel]

on hulu plus how long do you have to wait for the big shows like glee, american idol, grey' anatomy etc?

i don't care, but my wife watches those

Generally they are available the next day. I don't have Hulu Plus, but that's the way regular Hulu operates.

 

[Tilpots]

Between Hulu and Netflix, I basically have a multi-room DVR. I can stop a Hulu or Netflix episode and pick it up on the Roku or aTV in my basement (mirrored the setup on my basement HDTV).

OTA, for me anyway, is just about local news and weather...here in Nebraska, USA, it's nice to have the weather on during the stormy springtime.

I know all about the need for local weather in my neck of the woods!

The way you're using those sites is great, but I don't know if I could have cut the cord without a DVR. I think that each of us having the option of how we consume our shows... is one of the best parts of the deal.

 

[cdavis11]

on hulu plus how long do you have to wait for the big shows like glee, american idol, grey' anatomy etc?

i don't care, but my wife watches those

They're available the next day.

My wife does the same - Greys Anatomy is a biggie. Quality is great when it's working - but Hulu Plus is having some growing pains/streaming problems right now. Proceed with caution, imho.

I ran a test in my house for a few weeks - had cable in place, but unplugged it and ran the streaming boxes as a test. It worked well, my wife felt comfortable with the interfaces...so we both agreed it was time and turned the DVR and other set top box in.

It helped to get her buy in, and I don't have to hear about the weird interfaces or having the change forced on her. It also helped to have the cable safety net there, just in case.

The kids don't care - so long as the Pixar catalog and a few seasons of curious george, olivia and martha speaks are available on the aTV.

 

[cdavis11]

I know all about the need for local weather in my neck of the woods!

The way you're using those sites is great, but I don't know if I could have cut the cord without a DVR. I think that each of us having the option of how we consume our shows... is one of the best parts of the deal.

Thanks. I understand your point - the nice thing about being unplugged is the myriad options we now have, isn't it?

I've had good luck with my Terk HDTV antenna, but I think i'm going to order and try the Antennas Direct DB2 from amazon as a test. It's reasonably priced, and the reviews seem to say great things.

 

[eawmp1]

Curious as to what you are using for internet access. Where I live the cable company has the best bandwidth.

 

[thetruth1985]

My current setup involves 2 PS3s, 3 Xbox 360s, and 2 Apple Tvs. I have been living without cable for a couple of years now and I have not skipped a beat. I get my NBA games through ESPN 360 on the xboxs. I have not bought Hulu Plus yet but I do have a netflix account. For OTA tv, I have a eyetv hooked to my imac to record all my shows and I can then export them into itunes.

One thing that I hate about cable is the way they nickel and dime you for things that should be free IMO. An extra 10 bucks for HD content, 5 bucks a month an for extra receiver, 6 bucks for a DVR, and don't even mention HBO and Showtime. It is very easy to add a extra 30 bucks to an already overpriced cable bill.

 

[cdavis11]

Curious as to what you are using for internet access. Where I live the cable company has the best bandwidth.

True, and it's the same here - i'm still paying for cable internet as it's the best option in town.

In general, when people talk about dumping cable they're talking about TV programming. Not necessarily internet.

 

[aduteau]

Boy I wish we Canadians had as much choice to stream TV shows as you guys over in the US.

- Our Netflix Catalog is a real joke compared to you guys....
- Hulu or Hulu plus is nowhere seen over here ... and has no plans in the foreseeable future to let us use the service to let us stream TV shows here in Canada.

Right now I use Boxee software on my Mac mini in the living room. Boxee allows me to stream TV shows from our local Canadian TV channels.
Thank You Boxee !!!!

Its not perfect, but at least I get some TV shows for free

Wish Hulu would come over here soon !!!

 

[ctdonath]

If you move fast, retailers are dumping the >$250 Blu-ray Sony BDP-S570 for $150; it includes WiFi "N" built in, and streaming support for Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon VOD, and others. Heck, you can barely get a bottom-scraping BD player for $100, and for $50 more you get a really good one plus lots of streaming support. I just got one and am thrilled (but will still order an ATV2 in a few hours).

I dumped TV per se about 5 years ago. Netflix, streaming, etc. is more than enough to replace lowest-common-denominator high-price proliferation-of-ads cable/satellite TV. Only thing missing is live breaking news video; wish someone would pull that together for 'net streaming.

 

[Tilpots]

Only thing missing is live breaking news video; wish someone would pull that together for 'net streaming.

CNN does a decent job of covering live national news on the web.