Author Topic: Cordcutting Thread (Read 175265 times)

Wingnut · « **Reply #250 on:** February 13, 2019, 03:11:57 pm »

Quote from: bigheadfred on February 13, 2019, 03:01:58 pm

We have Prime and Netflix. We use Roku. Netflix is the premium plan--4 screens. Besides me and the wife, both our kids and my mom have access to my Netflix. And the grandkids can access it on their tablets if they get permission, content is parental controlled for them in person. So 4 households for one small phenomenal fee.

Same for us with Netflix. Son, Grandkids and MIL can watch it from their homes. Only once did I get kicked off. Seems everyone was watching at the same time. So I go WTF....that is 4 people I'm cool. Come to find out The Wife was streaming The Ranch on her Fire! I pay the bill but I gets bumped!

Idiot · « **Reply #251 on:** February 14, 2019, 11:42:59 am »

Quote from: The Ghost on February 13, 2019, 02:48:54 pm

I use Roku. Pay for Netflix, Hulu and CBS all access. NBC is free but has a 7 day delay for new releases but it has a treasure trove of old shows with limited commercials. So my net expense per month is now less than $25 bucks. My Direct TV bill was well over $110. And for what? 500 channels that I never watched. Screw em. If you need a Sports fix get the $25 Sling package that included ESPN.

After about a month after I cut the cord my Romote control surfing withdrawal ended. I have never looked back.

If Direct TV and Dish were smart (and they are not) They would offer a one rate flat fee plan that would let you pick your channels alacart.

Exactly.....

jmyrlefuller · « **Reply #252 on:** February 14, 2019, 01:06:01 pm »

Quote from: The Ghost on February 13, 2019, 02:48:54 pm

If Direct TV and Dish were smart (and they are not) They would offer a one rate flat fee plan that would let you pick your channels alacart.

A lot of the reason why they don't is the channels themselves.

Right now, you have seven companies controlling all but a few channels: Disney (ABC/ESPN), Redstone (CBS), Murdoch (Fox), Roberts/Comcast (NBC), Newhouse (Discovery), Dolan (AMC) and Turner. Almost all of them require some level of bundling. If you offer one channel to a customer, you have to offer this other one at full price, too... or if you're offering a competitor's channel, you have to offer our more expensive channel on the same tier or we won't offer it to you at all.

Wingnut · « **Reply #253 on:** February 14, 2019, 01:15:04 pm »

Quote from: jmyrlefuller on February 14, 2019, 01:06:01 pm

A lot of the reason why they don't is the channels themselves.

Right now, you have seven companies controlling all but a few channels: Disney (ABC/ESPN), Redstone (CBS), Murdoch (Fox), Roberts/Comcast (NBC), Newhouse (Discovery), Dolan (AMC) and Turner. Almost all of them require some level of bundling. If you offer one channel to a customer, you have to offer this other one at full price, too... or if you're offering a competitor's channel, you have to offer our more expensive channel on the same tier or we won't offer it to you at all.

Well, regardless of their agreements with the big players, it is evident that it is a failed business model. Even their new so called "Streaming" option is loaded with hidden fee's and taxes. I remember the hell AT&T put me thu on the phone trying to cancel my Direct TV subscription. I swore I would never ever do business with those bleep again.

roamer_1 · « **Reply #254 on:** February 14, 2019, 01:43:16 pm »

Quote from: The Ghost on February 14, 2019, 01:15:04 pm

Well, regardless of their agreements with the big players, it is evident that it is a failed business model. Even their new so called "Streaming" option is loaded with hidden fee's and taxes. I remember the hell AT&T put me thu on the phone trying to cancel my Direct TV subscription. I swore I would never ever do business with those bleep again.

More than that, now that I am weaned off of it, there ain't a damn thing on there I want to watch at all. Going back and looking at it now, it's all crap.

Wingnut · « **Reply #255 on:** February 14, 2019, 01:45:53 pm »

Quote from: roamer_1 on February 14, 2019, 01:43:16 pm

More than that, now that I am weaned off of it, there ain't a damn thing on there I want to watch at all. Going back and looking at it now, it's all crap.

Amen.

Elderberry · « **Reply #256 on:** February 14, 2019, 02:14:53 pm »

I hardly ever watch anything new anymore. Right now, I catch an episode of Gunsmoke every now and then. I'm currently viewing season 7.

roamer_1 · « **Reply #257 on:** February 14, 2019, 02:26:46 pm »

Quote from: Elderberry on February 14, 2019, 02:14:53 pm

I hardly ever watch anything new anymore. Right now, I catch an episode of Gunsmoke every now and then. I'm currently viewing season 7.

Oh, I still watch a bunch... While I am here at my bench there is always something going on the tv... or if it is particularly interesting, I will ship it over to my right side monitor... But it is almost invariably Youtube... Either a documentary of some kind, or a music playlist. I still watch the news, maybe once a day, and I have Netflix for the odd movie now and again... But I am hard pressed to find anything in MSM that is worth watching. I am invariably disappointed when I go looking.

truth_seeker · « **Reply #258 on:** February 14, 2019, 02:51:29 pm »

Quote from: The Ghost on February 14, 2019, 01:15:04 pm

Well, regardless of their agreements with the big players, it is evident that it is a failed business model. Even their new so called "Streaming" option is loaded with hidden fee's and taxes. I remember the hell AT&T put me thu on the phone trying to cancel my Direct TV subscription. I swore I would never ever do business with those bleep again.

The highly aggressive, deceptive phone sales practices are the industry standard.

In our area Verizon Fios became Frontier. My BIL wanted to change. they gave him a huge run around.

Brings back memories of AOL internet in the CD days. You could start for free. They would extend you for free. But they would resist cancelling you.

The name "AOL" was damaged. AOL-Time Warner dropped the AOL part, due to the lousy service reputation.

roamer_1 · « **Reply #259 on:** February 14, 2019, 02:55:06 pm »

Quote from: truth_seeker on February 14, 2019, 02:51:29 pm

Brings back memories of AOL internet in the CD dis days. You could start for free. They would extend you for free. But they would resist cancelling you.

Error 404 (Not Found)!!1

bigheadfred · « **Reply #260 on:** February 14, 2019, 03:09:30 pm »

Cableone is $55/month. Amazon Prime. Hulu basic. Netflix.

I mostly watch Youtube.

Amazon Prime is worth it in our case. My MIL lives 45 miles away, by herself. My wife does a lot of shopping on Amazon for her mom (her mom pays for those items). That saves my wife extra trips to help take care of her mom. And the free shippiing is great.

If it weren't for my mom on my Netflix account I would drop it.

But by and large, our tvs are off most of the time.

truth_seeker · « **Reply #261 on:** February 14, 2019, 03:30:53 pm »

Three in my family.

Me. Almost entirely youtube

Wife. Almost entirely local antenna programs.

Daughter. Amazon Prime, Netflix.

We did have Sling. I told my daughter to pay, if she wanted it. She declined.

roamer_1 · « **Reply #262 on:** February 14, 2019, 03:45:42 pm »

Another free option is PlutoTV... That is pretty good, and set up sorta like what cable does.

bigheadfred · « **Reply #263 on:** February 14, 2019, 04:21:43 pm »

Quote from: roamer_1 on February 14, 2019, 03:45:42 pm

Another free option is PlutoTV... That is pretty good, and set up sorta like what cable does.

We have that. Just talked to family. I'm dropping Netflix. They are or did raise the price which is a big turnoff. I think their content sucks anyway.

Wingnut · « **Reply #264 on:** February 14, 2019, 04:31:25 pm »

Quote from: bigheadfred on February 14, 2019, 04:21:43 pm

We have that. Just talked to family. I'm dropping Netflix. They are or did raise the price which is a big turnoff. I think their content sucks anyway.

I only keep Netflix for the grand kids so they have kid stuff to watch. I too have grown weary of the price increases. Not to mention their left leaning political stance with their original content BS.

roamer_1 · « **Reply #265 on:** February 14, 2019, 04:57:55 pm »

Quote from: The Ghost on February 14, 2019, 04:31:25 pm

I only keep Netflix for the grand kids so they have kid stuff to watch. I too have grown weary of the price increases. Not to mention their left leaning political stance with their original content BS.

We have Netflix split between 5 houses. Costing each house about 60 bucks a year.

I think they have a 'three person' plan, or a 'five person' plan. we have the five. One administrator, one password for all... If you have greater family around you, you might consider that.

bigheadfred · « **Reply #266 on:** February 14, 2019, 04:58:46 pm »

Quote from: The Ghost on February 14, 2019, 04:31:25 pm

I only keep Netflix for the grand kids so they have kid stuff to watch. I too have grown weary of the price increases. Not to mention their left leaning political stance with their original content BS.

It is done. Now is the time. My account will run until the end of my billing cycle--Feb. 17th. I signed up for kindle unlimited last month. If the grandkids are here they can download a book. We still have Prime anyway for movies, etc. My wife watches antenna tv more than anything.

Sighlass · « **Reply #267 on:** February 14, 2019, 05:41:21 pm »

Have a PC computer, have a good adblock program like Ublock Origin. Don't have a good adblock program and have no clue what I am talking about then perhaps this is not for you.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UBlock_Origin

Here is how to watch a lot of movies/tv shows free...

Just gonna show mostly via pictures...

Go to website

Enter what you want to view in search (or you could just browse around to see if something grabs ya). Hit enter to search.

Pick your movie if more than one shows up to choose...

If this is movie you want... then great scroll down a little futher on the page

You should see this (orange "Watch Movie")... click it

Website will give it's generic instructions (two or three versions of this page, just navigate to the "I understand" button and click it.

Do you want to download the movie (to watch anytime) or do you want to watch now... I usually download but you decide what you want to do... If you want to download then I will have futher instructions below... if just want to watch we are done here.... to Download click "disable embedding"....

More Download instructions if you choose that option... after disableing embedding the screen will reload with this... a direct link... below that (not shown) is other places you can download from... I always pick O P E N L O A D because it usually works and it just seems a solid place to download from with your adblock program enabled... often other places other than O P E N L O A D are hard to get to work.

Once it opens at O P E N L O A D then you can again watch it there or click "download"... I usually download so that is what I pick...

If Downloading... click here (may have to select it twice

Eventually you get here and can save to your selected download spot on your computer... If you have "save selected" (instead of just play now)...

Couple of different web sites I like that work like this... PM me if you want few other places to try...

Remember... a GOOD adblock program is a must and it doesn't hurt to always have a good anti-virus program up and running of course.... Stick with O P E N L O A D and odds are you will have no problem...

If none of the above makes sense, again I advise you not to try it...

Idaho_Cowboy · « **Reply #268 on:** February 18, 2019, 11:24:30 am »

Our family has found that Amazon prime and the prime stick works quite well. The wife and youngins have been working through the old Star Trek series. I'm easily amused so you tube has a fair amount of regular entertainment. There are several channels on you tube I think are more informative than the history channel which was the big thing I missed about having cable. If you are into the history of tanks, swords, or firearms there is a fair amount out there. Add in the occasional old western on sale on DVD amazon and we are made in the shade.

sneakypete · « **Reply #269 on:** February 18, 2019, 03:39:09 pm »

Quote from: Idaho_Cowboy on February 18, 2019, 11:24:30 am

Our family has found that Amazon prime and the prime stick works quite well. The wife and youngins have been working through the old Star Trek series. I'm easily amused so you tube has a fair amount of regular entertainment. There are several channels on you tube I think are more informative than the history channel which was the big thing I missed about having cable. If you are into the history of tanks, swords, or firearms there is a fair amount out there. Add in the occasional old western on sale on DVD amazon and we are made in the shade.

@Idaho_Cowboy

Lonesome Dove seems to be playing on both Amazon Prime and Netflix all the time,and westerns just don't get any gooder than that one. Pure gold!

Come to think of it,"Deadwood" is about as good as it gets too,but maybe not quite as "child friendly".

Applewood · « **Reply #270 on:** March 31, 2019, 02:07:03 pm »

Apple and Netflix and Hulu, oh my! â€˜Subscription fatigueâ€™ sets in among streamers

Quote

Appleâ€™s entry into the streaming-video business Monday gives consumers another impressive choice for online movies and TV shows â€” a high-profile, deep-pocketed competitor for the likes of Netflix, Amazon and Hulu.

t also is sure to prompt some people to rethink which services they want to keep paying for.

https://www.latimes.com/business/lazarus/la-fi-lazarus-apple-streaming-service-subscription-fatigue-20190325-story.html
***
A good read. I had more services, but now I just have Netflix, Prime and Sling TV. If I paid for all of the services out there, I'd be paying as much as basic cable and Wi-Fi.

Idiot · « **Reply #271 on:** April 01, 2019, 10:11:29 am »

Quote from: Applewood on March 31, 2019, 02:07:03 pm

Apple and Netflix and Hulu, oh my! â€˜Subscription fatigueâ€™ sets in among streamers
https://www.latimes.com/business/lazarus/la-fi-lazarus-apple-streaming-service-subscription-fatigue-20190325-story.html
***
A good read. I had more services, but now I just have Netflix, Prime and Sling TV. If I paid for all of the services out there, I'd be paying as much as basic cable and Wi-Fi.

Anyone have any suggestions?

I cut the cord probably 10+ years ago and have never looked back. All I had are local channels. Within the last few years I tried Netflix, but was surprised with the real lack of content. I tend to like 70's & 80's shows/comedies/sitcoms, etc. and of course local channels for news.

So basically all I really need are:
Local Channels, which I get by antenna.
Some way to watch older shows, sitcoms, etc.
Some sports
Love DIY shows, HGTV, Fox News
The newer shows or movies....I could really care less about.

Any suggestions since I'm really clueless on how to access these.

Elderberry · « **Reply #272 on:** April 01, 2019, 10:34:28 am »

You could try torrents. Its a crapshoot on what you will find. I don't much care for sitcoms, but I did download some "Laverne" and "That Girl" for my daughter. She got a big kick out of them. I mostly went after the westerns and old movies.

roamer_1 · « **Reply #273 on:** April 01, 2019, 11:14:05 am »

Quote from: mrpotatohead on April 01, 2019, 10:11:29 am

Anyone have any suggestions?

[...]

Some way to watch older shows, sitcoms, etc.

@mrpotatohead

Try Hulu or the free PlutoTV... Some of the older ones are free on Youtube.
For instance: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=columbo+season+1

**NOTE: You really need an ad blocker like AdBlock Plus or UBlock added into your browser or youtube ads will drive you completely nuts. With an ad blocker, you get no ads at all.

Quote

Some sports

No help from me there... Can't stand sports, other than NASCAR, and I really don't do that anymore. They've wrecked it for me. I keep up with mud and offroad on youtube.

Quote

Love DIY shows, HGTV,

Youtube... And really, subscribe to any number of actual user channels on the subject - WAY better than the TV shows, by far.

Quote

Fox News

https://www.arconaitv.us/ Arconai is a weird duck... It's all streaming all the time. You can watch Game of Thrones, for instance, but you'll have zero control over the episode, start or finish... But don't let that get you down. For LIVE FEED, it's got a lot of the majors, CBS, Disc, NatGeo, CW, SyFi, etc. to include FOX news and FOX Business.

So for regular channels, if you know when something is playing, just tune into the feed. For FOX, which is the only thing there I care about, the when of it really doesn't matter. At least not to me.

Quote

Any suggestions since I'm really clueless on how to access these.

A ROKU would give you a whole lot of options. If your TV is newer and a smart TV, it may have ROKU capabilities built right in. Otherwise, if you have HDMI ports, a ROKU can be added (about $50-75 one-time expense, though many channels require $ubscription)

As to the links I am giving you, I have an actual computer hooked to my TV (My TV starts up on a Windows desktop)... I don't know how you get there with a TV otherwise.

jmyrlefuller · « **Reply #274 on:** April 01, 2019, 12:59:51 pm »

Quote from: mrpotatohead on April 01, 2019, 10:11:29 am

So basically all I really need are:
Some way to watch older shows, sitcoms, etc.
Some sports
Love DIY shows, HGTV, Fox News
The newer shows or movies....I could really care less about.

Any suggestions since I'm really clueless on how to access these.

Older shows and sitcoms... it depends on the show. If you're willing to subscribe, CBS's "All Access" has official streaming from quite a few of the shows in its library.

For a few of the really old shows, the ones that have lapsed into public domain, there's the Internet Archive:
Classic TV : Free Movies : Free Download, Borrow and Streaming : Internet Archive
Those are the ones that have probably been rerun ad nauseum for decades because they never bothered to hold onto the copyright, but they're totally free and you can do whatever you want with them legally.

A few distributors have official Youtube channels. Plus, if you have an antenna, you probably have access to MeTV, Antenna TV, and/or the Retro network, which all have lots of those older shows.

There's also CHCH, which is a television station out of Canada. They're hit-and-miss on the shows they stream live, but they do carry some of the classic sitcoms:
http://www.chch.com/live

Another idea is to look up old DVD sets on eBay or some other secondhand site. You'll pay for the discs, but they're physical copies and yours to keep.

Sports:
This one's tough. If you're looking for the big events, you're going to be limited to what is on antenna unless you resort to piracy. That kind of stuff, because the networks pay so much in rights fees and want to recuperate as much as they can, is simply never going to be legally available for free online. Besides, once you factor in network lag, you're probably better off listening to a radio broadcast anyway.

Fox News:
They actually offer an audio-only feed of their prime time shows for free.
https://radio.foxnews.com/player-files/radio.php

The DIY stuff, I can't really answer that.

Hope this helps @mrpotatohead

Idiot · « **Reply #275 on:** April 09, 2019, 02:16:44 pm »

Thanks for the help! I finally got some time to do some research on these ideas. Thanks all!

jmyrlefuller · « **Reply #276 on:** April 24, 2019, 08:19:04 pm »

Netflix Reportedly at Risk of Losing 'The Office' (and a lot of other shows)

Though it brings us no joy to say this, it is our duty to inform you that Netflix is reportedly at risk of losing the proven mood-lifting collection of smiles known as The Office.

A harrowing report from The Wall Street Journal Wednesday, contains the news, with the given reason of NBCUniversal's impending launch of its own streaming service. According to the report, "internal discussions" have already started about getting the American adaptation of the Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant-created comedy off Netflix when its licensing contract runs out in 2021.

The report also includes data on the viewership behind shows like The Office, whichâ€”as IndieWire points outâ€”currently stands (by an incredible margin, mind you) as the platform's most-streamed program.

https://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2019/04/netflix-at-risk-of-losing-the-office?utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=complexmag&utm_source=twitter.com

(The original Wall Street Journal source for this is, alas, paywalled.)

sneakypete · « **Reply #277 on:** April 24, 2019, 08:32:18 pm »

Quote from: jmyrlefuller on April 24, 2019, 08:19:04 pm

Netflix Reportedly at Risk of Losing 'The Office' (and a lot of other shows)

The report also includes data on the viewership behind shows like The Office, whichâ€”as IndieWire points outâ€”currently stands (by an incredible margin, mind you) as the platform's most-streamed program.

@jmyrlefuller

I have watched both the office and friends,and while they are ok,I have a hard time believing they are the most watched series on Netflix. I just don't get it.

Idiot · « **Reply #278 on:** April 25, 2019, 11:38:56 am »

Quote from: jmyrlefuller on April 24, 2019, 08:19:04 pm

Netflix Reportedly at Risk of Losing 'The Office' (and a lot of other shows)

Though it brings us no joy to say this, it is our duty to inform you that Netflix is reportedly at risk of losing the proven mood-lifting collection of smiles known as The Office.

A harrowing report from The Wall Street Journal Wednesday, contains the news, with the given reason of NBCUniversal's impending launch of its own streaming service. According to the report, "internal discussions" have already started about getting the American adaptation of the Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant-created comedy off Netflix when its licensing contract runs out in 2021.

The report also includes data on the viewership behind shows like The Office, whichâ€”as IndieWire points outâ€”currently stands (by an incredible margin, mind you) as the platform's most-streamed program.

https://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2019/04/netflix-at-risk-of-losing-the-office?utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=complexmag&utm_source=twitter.com

(The original Wall Street Journal source for this is, alas, paywalled.)

I never liked The Office. No great loss....

Absalom · « **Reply #279 on:** April 25, 2019, 01:31:44 pm »

Quote from: Idaho_Cowboy on May 03, 2017, 07:06:52 pm

Books, read books, lot's of books. All I have is antenna and having been away from watching TV for so long I really don't like it any more. Too much to do and books are more convenient. I'm a fast reader so the information transfer is much slower listening or watching than reading.

----------------------------------
Reading provoked reflection which then provoked the Wisdom of Ancient Greece!
And they had neither degrees nor tee-vee; the poor unfortunates. So sad!!!
Truth is direct and simple. Moderns are full of crap, pretentiousness and pomposity!
Exhibit A. Our Founders (and first 5) were Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Madison
and Monroe. Now compare them to our last five and laugh hysterically!!!

jmyrlefuller · « **Reply #280 on:** May 02, 2019, 10:18:25 pm »

So, um...
These channels are probably outside most of your demographic, but... MTV, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr. BET and Comedy Central were just made available for free.
https://variety.com/2019/digital/news/viacom-newfronts-pluto-tv-channels-originals-slate-1203200042/

That's kind of a big deal. For cable networks to offer a free model is a sign of a big shift.

Ghost Bear · « **Reply #281 on:** May 03, 2019, 11:50:54 am »

Quote from: jmyrlefuller on May 02, 2019, 10:18:25 pm

So, um...
These channels are probably outside most of your demographic, but... MTV, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr. BET and Comedy Central were just made available for free.
https://variety.com/2019/digital/news/viacom-newfronts-pluto-tv-channels-originals-slate-1203200042/

That's kind of a big deal. For cable networks to offer a free model is a sign of a big shift.

All of those channels are owned by Viacom, and Viacom bought Pluto TV earlier this year. So it's a matter of Viacom using it's just-purchased streaming service to offer free versions of the channels that it also owns.

jmyrlefuller · « **Reply #282 on:** May 03, 2019, 07:20:34 pm »

Quote from: Ghost Bear on May 03, 2019, 11:50:54 am

All of those channels are owned by Viacom, and Viacom bought Pluto TV earlier this year. So it's a matter of Viacom using it's just-purchased streaming service to offer free versions of the channels that it also owns.

It makes you wonder if any other Big Cable names will do the same any time soon, even if it is simply a reduced plate the way Viacom is doing with Pluto. I know Discovery already has syndication deals with Pluto that predate Viacom buying it.

Right now, the only other big TV name trying the free model is Sinclair. They launched Stirr, which is their own Pluto-like free service... but they're a broadcast network and so they've always had their product out there for free to an extent.

truth_seeker · « **Reply #283 on:** May 03, 2019, 07:57:00 pm »

Quote from: Ghost Bear on May 03, 2019, 11:50:54 am

All of those channels are owned by Viacom, and Viacom bought Pluto TV earlier this year. So it's a matter of Viacom using it's just-purchased streaming service to offer free versions of the channels that it also owns.

A source that I like says the cable TV cos. and cell phone cos. use a model he calls "Confusopoly"

He figures many folks get frustrated when dealing with those purchases.

Remember years ago, trying to cancel AOL? Had any similar recent experience negotiating with your current services?

Having to threaten cancelling, to have bad charges removed?

It employee or you.

It is the business/pricing model.isn't the company, or the

truth_seeker · « **Reply #284 on:** June 19, 2019, 10:26:57 pm »

How To Destroy CNN, Survive Without Cable TV, And Save Lots of $$$

Snip

https://www.dailywire.com/news/14832/how-destroy-cnn-survive-without-cable-tv-and-save-john-nolte

Weird Tolkienish Figure · « **Reply #285 on:** June 25, 2019, 10:34:22 am »

The wife is finally getting on board with this. We both are disgusted by the news and by media in general. Time to cut it out of our lives.

sneakypete · « **Reply #286 on:** June 25, 2019, 11:20:29 am »

Quote from: Weird Tolkienish Figure on June 25, 2019, 10:34:22 am

The wife is finally getting on board with this. We both are disgusted by the news and by media in general. Time to cut it out of our lives.

@Weird Tolkienish Figure

I did this a couple of years ago,and not only have more shows to view now than ever before,but I also have more reliable and better reception. Snow storms or rain don't interfere with my signals.

I bought a 35 dollar RCA (made in America) High Definition antenna from Amazon and pull in 43 channels with it alone. Keep in mind I live in a rural area and the closest tv station to me is 54 miles away.

The big expense was buying a Channel Master tuner from Amazon so I would be able to record multiple shows while viewing another one,and so I would have TIVO. IIRC,that cost me about 250 bucks.

I ended up buying a 2tb western digital hard drive to plug into the back of the Channel Master to store recordings until I have the time to watch them.

The ROKU was maybe 30 bucks,plus I had to buy cables to connect it all.

I get Amazon Prime for free because I was already an Amazon Prime member for the free shipping,and I pay a fee to subscribe to Netflix and a couple of others. I pay all my subscription fees through ROKU so I only have one bill coming in and so I don't have to put my banking or credit card info out there to a dozen or more places. Truth to tell I could get by with just the roku freebies,netflix,and amazon prime and not really be missing out on much because no matter how much entertainment out there that there is to watch,I only have 24 hours in a day and I also have other stuff to do on good days.

roamer_1 · « **Reply #287 on:** June 25, 2019, 05:39:18 pm »

Quote from: Weird Tolkienish Figure on June 25, 2019, 10:34:22 am

The wife is finally getting on board with this. We both are disgusted by the news and by media in general. Time to cut it out of our lives.

Bravo!
It will take a month or two... but you will not go back, I can almost guarantee.

kevindavis007 · « **Reply #288 on:** June 25, 2019, 08:52:13 pm »

Quote from: Weird Tolkienish Figure on June 25, 2019, 10:34:22 am

The wife is finally getting on board with this. We both are disgusted by the news and by media in general. Time to cut it out of our lives.

Congrats!! Trust me you won't miss a thing.

Applewood · « **Reply #289 on:** September 26, 2019, 01:58:40 pm »

Ok, boys and girls. My "Smart TV' is on its last leg and I've been thinking for some time that instead of getting a new one, I would like to just scrap the tv and do any tv watching on my laptop. I'm the only one in this house and I don't entertain, so why do I need a tv? My laptop is wide and big enough to run any tv programming (including local news).

Right now I have Comcast (Xfinity) for tv and Wi-Fi. I would like to ditch the tv service and just have Wi-Fi, but I don't believe Comcast (Xfinity) will allow it. They are already unhappy because I discontinued the phone service a few years ago. With these guys, everything is a "bundle." Those packages make the cable companies a lot of money.

So now my question: Has anyone had experience with a standalone Wi-Fi and if so, what companies are best? In my neck of the woods, Comcast (Xfinnity), Verizon, Viasat, Hughesnet and Toast are listed as the only providers. Toast is DSL, so no to that one. Hughes and ViaSat are satellite providers, Verizon is fibre and Comcast is cable. I hate Comcast. Verizon is overly aggressive in their sales approach, plus they probably are scammers like Xfinity where you sign up for some low introductory price, but after the intro price expires, the regular price just goes up and up. So that leaves ViaSat and Hughes.

Anyone have any experience with ViaSat or Hughes? Neither has the speeds of Comcast or Verizon, but I'm not so sure I need all that. Presumably both will work for streaming on one device, uploading and playing entertainment and some gaming. I'm not much of a gamer except for solitaire and I can get by with one device at a time. I would like to have reliable streaming without the annoying buffering.

Any help you guys can give me would be appreciated.

Wingnut · « **Reply #290 on:** September 26, 2019, 02:16:00 pm »

When I cut the cord I kept my internet service with Centurylink but upgrade to their 50Megs for $50 bucks for life. Then I signed up for HULU TV which costs about $47 0r 48 bucks a month with taxes. With HULU TV I was able to eliminate my TV antenna because with HULU I can stream all my local TV stations plus it will store 50 hours of programing on a DVR. Hulu has a good assortment of bundled channels. Lots of sports options. I also cancelled Netflix because they are sleeping with the Obama's. I replace it with Amazon Prime. Hulu TV will let you try it out for one week free. Just a note here there is another Hulu option for 5.99 per month so don't confuse the two services.

All of this is funneled thu my Roku Ultra box that I bought during prime days for an 85 buck one time cost. It has a nice voice search feature and an ear plug hole for private listening. So for about 110 bucks a month I have everything I need.

sneakypete · « **Reply #291 on:** September 26, 2019, 02:18:00 pm »

I used to watch some tv programs all the time on my desktop,when there was a conflict with recording the ones I wanted to watch later on my DVR/ROKU/Plasma tv.

That way I could watch a program I would have missed otherwise. I quit doing it when a kitten chewed through the speaker wires,and realized I was watching so many shows I didn't have time to do anything else.

Verison is my cable provider,and I use a ROKU to pull in streaming tv,and a HD antenna to pull in broadcast tv. I use a Channel Master DVR to store videos on that I record. Seems like CM no longer makes the type I have,so I can't recommend either it or the newer versions they are currently selling.

roamer_1 · « **Reply #292 on:** September 26, 2019, 02:28:34 pm »

Quote from: Applewood on September 26, 2019, 01:58:40 pm

Any help you guys can give me would be appreciated.

First of all, I cannot be a lot of help because your service providers are not out here.
But I was on Spectrum, on a phone, TV, and internet bundle, and when I cut the cord, nothing changed at all - I simple told them I wanted out of the TV programming, but would keep the phone and internet, and except for a pretty hard sales play to keep me on the TV, when I insisted, they simply took the TV out of the package, at a savings of $70/ mo right off the bat, and another $75/mo when I returned their TV hardware (which was why I quit in the first place - their recently rejiggered system suddenly required the hardware decoders for each TV, for a banging big increase equal to the TV service itself)...

So my first recommendation would be to inquire with the service you currently have and cut a new deal. For me, the phone was required if I was to retain the internet... which is no worry for me, as it is my business phone anyway.

Sanguine · « **Reply #293 on:** September 26, 2019, 02:33:29 pm »

@Applewood I have Hughesnet, and I'm not a fan, but it's our only option out here. You are aware that it's metered, right? I have one of the medium-sized plans and I usually get about 2 weeks before I run out and am throttled down. And, I don't do any streaming - it's too slow for it and it eats up too much bandwidth. I do sometimes download youtubes and watch them later, but I frequently have to try several times to get them to download. YMMV.

roamer_1 · « **Reply #294 on:** September 26, 2019, 02:51:02 pm »

Quote from: Applewood on September 26, 2019, 01:58:40 pm

My "Smart TV' is on its last leg and I've been thinking for some time that instead of getting a new one, I would like to just scrap the tv and do any tv watching on my laptop.

Another thing... What is wrong with the tv? If it is just the Smart part, plug your laptop into an hdmi port and forget about the smart. I purposefully disable the smart by giving it an invalid IP, and run the tv as a big ol monitor, with a computer attached to each one.

I really like having the TV. I have a big ol' 50-something inch TV in my front room, and that big ol girl is excellent, as my eyes are problematic... I can easily see the crawl on the bottom of a news channel now, and movies and such are much more enjoyable.

I started with an old Vista era ACER that I bought for hardly nothing used... Plugged it into the then 36" TV I had... It had an hdmi-out port and wifi built in, so all I did was literally plug it in, give it a wireless keyboard/glidepad combo KB I bought at wallyworld for $30, set it up to connect to the wireless, and viola!

That whole rig is still running in my bedroom... Now I have a pretty powerful Dell running the show out here against that big TV, as it serves as a media server for the rest of the TVs - music and movies...

And btw, I bought that big TV used fr 200 bucks, maybe 5 years ago... and all the computers were used and cost me hardly nothing.

And any of that - ALL of that, doesn't really matter, because the nearly $150/mo in savings from ditching the TV service, pays for just about anything I would do in a matter of months.

Wingnut · « **Reply #295 on:** September 26, 2019, 03:09:15 pm »

Roamer reminded me of another thing. I too just us my plasma tv as a monitor now. Also I hate smart TV's. I don't trust them to not be spying on me. I'll never buy one. Anyway, My roku plugs into my stereo AV/receiver via hdmi cable, along with my DVD/CD player and turntable. I also have a spare HDMI cable hooked up to the receiver so If I need to hook my laptop up I can view it on the big screen. On more thing, The Roku can be wireless but with so many other things fighting for bandwidth I ran a Cat 5 cable to it. Besides Cat 5 gives you faster connections and less buffering

roamer_1 · « **Reply #296 on:** September 26, 2019, 03:24:32 pm »

Quote from: The Ghost on September 26, 2019, 03:09:15 pm

[...] I ran a Cat 5 cable to it. Besides Cat 5 gives you faster connections and less buffering

Yeah that's REALLY high on my list of ToDos... All my media machines are running wireless. To fix that I need to get cat5 to a switch in the mechanical room, and then go scuba-diving under the house to provide cat5 to the media center and both bedrooms... Which sucks. As big as I am, and as little as the trap is going under the house, I gotta have somebody there to poke me down that hole with a stick.

So I keep on kickin the can.

Wingnut · « **Reply #297 on:** September 26, 2019, 03:30:19 pm »

Thankfully this house was built when they put those multi media connection outlets in every room. I see in some of the newer homes they don't do it anymore because everything is blutoothed or wireless. All the give you now is a couple USB slots in every outlet!

roamer_1 · « **Reply #298 on:** September 26, 2019, 03:39:21 pm »

Quote from: The Ghost on September 26, 2019, 03:30:19 pm

Thankfully this house was built when they put those multi media connection outlets in every room. I see in some of the newer homes they don't do it anymore because everything is blutoothed or wireless. All the give you now is a couple USB slots in every outlet!

The dumb part is, I built this place, about 7 years ago... Well, nearly so... A remodel interior out to the studs and a remodel exterior in to the studs... It's all new. to include wiring and plumbing.

And I am a tech guy. I fix em for a living. It's just that at the time, I was running the tvs with the cable, which IS delivered everywhere... I didn't need cat5 anywhere except between my desk and the test bench, and a line going out to the shop. It was only after I dumped cableTV that cat5 everywhere became an issue.

Not terribly far-seeing of me, I know... But I am a bit of a luddite, believe it or not.

Sighlass · « **Reply #299 on:** September 26, 2019, 04:10:47 pm »

I have free air antenna and an internet connection... very little I can't watch with a little looking around... I like to download movies/shows and burn them to DVD disk... I probable have 3000 movies now on disk (I can fit anywhere to 5-7 movies on a disk). They ain't dvd quality, but better than old tv reception most the time. There is only so much HQ at my age a person needs... I don't have to see the freckle on some young lady's breast to get the idea it is time to skip ahead a minute or so.

I can find rare stuff (example: Polish anti-communist movie called Roza yesterday) and I am not limited to some plan that only carries this or that due to contracts. I search the net for good movie lists and when I see something interesting I hunt it down. I find some server that stores it and run a good adblock program and click download. Often if I find more than one movie at a time, I will download it in the background while cruisin TBR... or I will put it on download overnight when I am asleep. Youtube has a few movies that certain websites will let you download ((example flvto(dot)biz))... I figure I have enough movies to forget and watch again if needed...