A few days ago, I witnessed the second death of our Uverse set-top box/DVR in a month. Getting it replaced again would have meant getting another appointment to get a tech out or waiting two business days to get one shipped to me. Instead, I added Hulu Plus to our streaming options and mentally hoisted a single-finger salute to the billing department at ATT. I think the il d00d family is officially done with cable.
So far so good. Between it and Netflix, I have a fairly good (depending on your viewing habits) selection of old and new shows, along with a spotty selection of movies. Netflix has tons of documentaries, and Hulu plus appears to have every title in the Criterion collection. This will keep me going for at least a year. If you watch sports, you are basically SOL - I don't, but had been involuntarily paying for the channels for years.
What I miss already is the DVR - there are some shows I just don't want to wait until the next day to watch on Hulu Plus, if they are there at all. Anyone use an OTA DVR setup? I am looking to avoid any Tivo products and their monthy charges. Any recommendations on good, small antennas?
Also, there are some interesting options in the pipe for anyone not quite ready to give up the convenience of cable- not sure if this is vaporware or not, but it looks promising www.whitehatt.com (//http://)
You've adjusted the cord, not cut it.
Stop watching that shit-it's a waste of time.
I thought this was going to be a gnarly childbirth experience share
Me too. [popcorn]
hi everyone. my name is herm....
i haven't had TV for 3285 days.
Quote from: herm on February 16, 2012, 04:35:08 AM
hi everyone. my name is herm....
i haven't had TV for 3285 days.
switched to FaceBook? [cheeky]
Ditched cable a couple years ago. At one point we had the full shebang. Now I just HDMI from laptop to the telly. So many networks show full episodes on their websites these days, there's almost no need for cable. I do Netflix streaming, ESPN3 for live sports, and MotoGP subscription for race season.
And I don't think TV is the soul sucking demon people make it out to be. Much of what's out there is garbage but there are still some quality shows in the mix.
In the past 20 years we have had TV and cable may for a total of 3 years. That was only because the rental house came with free cable. It used to be vcr then dvds for us a couple times a week.
We now use the laptop hooked up to a 20 inch monitor to watch Netflix; dvd or streaming. Most shows show the next day online. PBS has a good selection of documentaries online too. I go out to watch football.
I cut it last August. There are days when you just want to plop down and numb your mind, but for the most part I do not miss it. Still watch movies every now and again.
Use my Samsung Blu-Ray for Netflix, Hulu, and Pandora streaming.
also have an HDMI laptop plugged to the TV for those things not avail on Hulu+
run hulu desktop and boxee on that.
the blu-ray gets used more as it is easier to use the regular remote instead of a remote mouse.
also bought a OTA HD antenna, but realized i dont really want to watch anything on regular TV.
missus complains that i watch more TV now than when i did with cable/tivo
[evil]
We cut the cord about 18 months ago. The cablebox was sitting, disconnected, in front of the TV for 3 months before I returned it, "just in case I changed my mind". And I haven't really looked back since.
We started with Netflix on the XBOX, added HuluPlus when that came out, and just after this past Christmas I added a Roku 2 XS to the mix.
We frickin' love our Roku. With our Amazon Prime account, Netflix, and HuluPlus, we have access to a ton of programs. We also get to stream recent releases in 1080p right from Amazon for $5 a pop. Amazon Prime opens up tons of movies that would normally run $1-$2 a piece, and aren't available on Netflix/Hulu.
I've done the "HDMI from laptop" route, and still have a spare HDMI hooked up to the TV for those times when I want to throw a YouTube video up on the TV for whatever reason.
The only thing I do miss is sports. None of the major leagues are up to speed on the whole streaming thing, so unless I go to a friends house or bar, I'm stuck with the semi-live box score updates via ESPN/whatever.
I occasionally watch a movie on DVD but apart from that haven't watched TV in years. Don't miss it either.
Quote from: RAT900 on February 16, 2012, 01:33:03 AM
I thought this was going to be a gnarly childbirth experience share
I am going to a bris tommorrow...I was hoping I was going to learn something....
Quote from: zooom on February 16, 2012, 12:37:54 PM
I am going to a bris tommorrow...I was hoping I was going to learn something....
that's not the cord they are cutting, dude.
Quote from: zooom on February 16, 2012, 12:37:54 PM
I am going to a bris tommorrow...I was hoping I was going to learn something....
you will ...........I call it pagan ritual genital butchery ;D
Quote from: ducatiz on February 16, 2012, 12:45:05 PM
that's not the cord they are cutting, dude.
was thinking of the Robin Williams "A Night at the Met" skit from the early 80's about when his son was born and the whole ambilical cord thing....sorry....it didn't translate from my head through the keyboard into a rational thought...
I'd be willing to cut the cord, but then my wife would cut me...with a rusty kitchen knife. [laugh]
She likes to watch all that crap that women like. You know what I'm talking about...Teen Mom Kardashians of New Jersy, or whatever. I could live without the TV, as long as I can find F1 on the internet somewhere. Although, I do like watching the local news in the mornings while I drink some coffee [bacon]
If we didn't have cable, we couldn't get local news "over the air"....too far from the city.
We are both tv junkies. The wife more then I.. being a cable guy I pay close to nothing for tv.. but we moved and this location isn't TWC.. I refuse to pay cable vision. So we watch local tv with converter box and good antenna. Wife really doesn't like netflix but we use a free account.
My boxs are in my moms where im just gonna hook up a slingbox and watch.. all internet is through our phones which have hdmi connections so we can hook ot up to the tv or tether (mines free) to a computer.
TV is a waste of time.
That's the point.. when u have time to waste..
Amazon streaming has a decent selection as well, and a bunch of stuff is included if you have an Amazon Prime subscription. They also have a list of devices with Amazon Streaming built in that includes a couple that also have DVR capabilities
Quote from: cokey on February 16, 2012, 05:23:25 PM
That's the point.. when u have time to waste..
I wish i could say that.
As of Saturday, B and I will only have internet... maxing out FiOS Quantum internet and dropping the tv programing.
We are looking to build/buy a dedicated tower to use for streaming off the web.
We know good video card and modem capaible of our download speeds, what else?
Sold my TV in '99.
Spent a few years w/o anything (Reading books, building stuff, etc).
Now I've got a borrowed NetFlix account hooked through the Wii (daughter insisted I get a game console) to a free TV I got from a friend all ran through a neighbor's WiFi (again, free but w/permission).
So, I'm catching up on season 4 of Trailer Park Boys and the occassional Mythbusters or Ren & Stimpy.
Mostly I'm running around crazy all the time so TV time is a luxury. I don't regret my decision back in '99 at all.
We canceled our DirecTV account about 4 months ago and just get 3 Netflix movies at a time in the mail.I miss sports and news but that's about it.I was paying $75 a month for to many commercials,constantly flippin'. Yeah,I know I could have recorded and fast forwarded past commercials but make the beast w/two backs it!
Quote from: Ducatamount on June 26, 2012, 01:02:40 PM
We canceled our DirecTV account about 4 months ago and just get 3 Netflix movies at a time in the mail.I miss sports and news but that's about it.I was paying $75 a month for to many commercials,constantly flippin'. Yeah,I know I could have recorded and fast forwarded past commercials but make the beast w/two backs it!
I was extra tempted to cut it with the advent of this new Speed2.com...until I found out you had to have a cable/sat subscription login to use it. I'd happily throw them and espn a few bucks a month and say FU to dish. One day, I hope, one day.
I found a work around for local chanels. We bought a roku for neflix streaming in the back room. I loaded it with an app that supplies expat tv for americans...so I have all the big networks through that. They aren't my "local" ones...but it's all the same programing, minus the news.
BTW, if you haven't looked into the roku...it's AMAZING.
App name?
Quote from: Duck-Stew on June 26, 2012, 10:49:22 AM
Sold my TV in '99.
Spent a few years w/o anything (Reading books, building stuff, etc).
Now I've got a borrowed NetFlix account hooked through the Wii (daughter insisted I get a game console) to a free TV I got from a friend all ran through a neighbor's WiFi (again, free but w/permission).
So, I'm catching up on season 4 of Trailer Park Boys and the occassional Mythbusters or Ren & Stimpy.
Mostly I'm running around crazy all the time so TV time is a luxury. I don't regret my decision back in '99 at all.
Season 4 is the best [thumbsup]
It has everything good. Conky, The Green Bastard, and Steve French
Bubbles befriends a dope-addicted mountain lion that has been eating weed from the Boys' marijuana fields.
Doesn't get much better than that
Quote from: lazyjinglin717 on June 27, 2012, 03:04:22 AM
Season 4 is the best [thumbsup]
It has everything good. Conky, The Green Bastard, and Steve French
Bubbles befriends a dope-addicted mountain lion that has been eating weed from the Boys' marijuana fields.
Doesn't get much better than that
/threadjack/
Yup! Just finished Season 4... Onto 5 now!
/end threadjack/
Quote from: cokey on June 26, 2012, 04:06:07 PM
App name?
Give me a day or so. When I get back home I'll find out the name for you.
I do spend more and more time on Netflix and read online news to stay informed. But I do still watch local news to keep myself connected to current events and what matters to my community. Oh and I watch sporting events on TV, too.
Thanks for all your input. [thumbsup]
For now, we've picked up a Roku.
We'll see how it goes once it gets here.
Quote from: il d00d on February 15, 2012, 10:28:28 PM
What I miss already is the DVR - there are some shows I just don't want to wait until the next day to watch on Hulu Plus, if they are there at all. Anyone use an OTA DVR setup? I am looking to avoid any Tivo products and their monthy charges. Any recommendations on good, small antennas?
If you have a spare computer and Windows 7, the Media Center add-on will suffice. There are good Linux alternatives if you like to roll your own.
I don't watch much TV and I refuse to pay for cable. Plus I'm a technerd, so it was a fun project for me. I grabbed an antenna from this guy (ton's of great info there) http://www.dennysantennaservice.com (http://www.dennysantennaservice.com). Antenna's in my attic to keep things simple and it gets pretty good reception. You'll need a TV tuner for the PC to pull in the antenna signals (add-on card, I grabbed one by Hauppage). They have relatively inexpensive USB options now, too. The PC has HDMI that I run to the TV.
There are Netflix, Hulu, and other plug-ins for Media Center so you can access content from within Media Center. Or you can just pull up a web browser and play content like normal. I also rip my DVDs to the PC hard drive so I don't have to screw around with discs.
Quote from: DesmoDiva on July 03, 2012, 06:34:41 PM
Thanks for all your input. [thumbsup]
For now, we've picked up a Roku.
We'll see how it goes once it gets here.
BTW--
the app to get all the US over the air network channels is USTV. It's one of the ones that you have to get the code, and then type it in on the PC, but it's free. I think all the channels are local to NY or LA...can't remember, but you get the programming just the same...just not local news to your area.
Also, the nowhereman app has a TON of content. And if you like soccer and/or cricket, download the ustream and justintv...someone is always rebroadcasting sports from their local TV [laugh] (quality varies, as does language!)
Received and set up our Roku.
So far not that impressed. Everything that we want to watch we have to buy a subscription for. How is that any different than paying for cable/Fios service?
Quote from: DesmoDiva on July 08, 2012, 04:54:44 AM
Received and set up our Roku.
So far not that impressed. Everything that we want to watch we have to buy a subscription for. How is that any different than paying for cable/Fios service?
When I got my Roku, I already had a subscription for Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime. I haven't added any additional subscriptions, but those three together are far cheaper annually than my cable bill used to be.
Watched UFC on Saturday via Roku. Worked great, HD quality and only $45 directly from UFC instead of $55 from Verizon. Plus, could stream the weigh in, pre and post fight press conferences.
I haven't completely cut cord. I went from two HD boxes with Verizon and most movie channels, home phone, and 35/15 Internet at about $250 a month to a TiVo with a Verizon cable card, three rokus, a Netflix and Amazon Prime accounts, and 75/35? Internet at about $150.
I guess I am on about month six of cutting the cord. I still don't miss cable, but I am having to resort to less than strictly copyright-friendly ways of keeping up with a couple of my shows. On a completely unrelated note to HBO: I would very happily pay for HBO Go as a standalone service.
I do miss Sunday morning PBS - I'd like to be able to record OTA, but I am unwilling to shell out more than a couple hundred dollars to do it.
My only regret is not getting a Roku - my WD live in the spare bedroom and my PS3 work fine for Netflix, Hulu and now (yay) Amazon, but Roku seems to have more development efforts behind it. Also, I am having to update the PS3 just so I can get to Netflix every couple months or so. Pisses me off.
Quote from: D3vi@nt on July 04, 2012, 09:08:21 AM
If you have a spare computer and Windows 7, the Media Center add-on will suffice. There are good Linux alternatives if you like to roll your own.
....
I thought about this before I canceled cable - this is a good option for some, but I want a minimum amount of fuss. I didn't want to have to rip things, keep keyboard in my living room, have another PC to maintain, etc. I run Ubuntu at home, but I don't want to have to drop to a command line to restart xwindows... so I can gelatinize my brain. When I get a rare opportunity for mindless entertainment, I just want to mash buttons with my fist and have moving pictures appear.
Quote from: DesmoDiva on July 08, 2012, 04:54:44 AM
Everything that we want to watch we have to buy a subscription for. How is that any different than paying for cable/Fios service?
Are you talking Netflix or movies (Vudu and the like?). It was a big different in cost for me. I am saving about 100/mo even with subscriptions to everything I can get on the PS3. Something like $25/mo for Netflix, Hulu Plus and Amazon vs about $125 for basic cable, HD, box rental, and one premium channel...
You guys are still connected to cable with using there modem, no? Unless your in asia where the get free wifi/t1 service to their huts...
Cutting the cord generally means canceling cable TV service.
http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2012/02/your-guide-to-cutting-the-cord-to-cable-tv-updated-2012-edition052.html (http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2012/02/your-guide-to-cutting-the-cord-to-cable-tv-updated-2012-edition052.html)
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203550304577138841278154700.html (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203550304577138841278154700.html)
Quote from: il d00d on July 10, 2012, 09:40:05 PM
ut I am having to resort to less than strictly copyright-friendly ways of keeping up with a couple of my shows. On a completely unrelated note to HBO: I would very happily pay for HBO Go as a standalone service.
QFT and +1 [thumbsup]
Bought Game of Thrones on Amazon on DVD when it was listed and got it the day it came, even though I had already watched all the episodes from Season 1...