Thinking about cancelling cable

[quote name='mang9432']Here's my cable-free setup that myself (and my wife) are extremely happy with.

Custom built PC Running Windows 7
With 2TB USB Drive
2x 500gb internal Media Drives
Hauppage PCI HD Tuner Card
HD Antenna
Hooked up to our 40 inch LCD via HDMI.

Windows Media Center is the main frontend, where we schedule OTA recordings for all the network shows we watch (How I met your mother, modern family, simpsons, family guy, house, bones etc)
with Boxee installed as a selectable app to switch to for streaming / general media and netflix playing, along with Hulu Desktop/XBMC. Air Video runs on the PC as well to steam all the video files to our iphones from anywhere.

Everything is controlled with our harmony remote, very easy to use and wife friendly.

Built the computer for about $430 (minus the 2tb usb drive, cause i had this before i bought the PC, along with the harmony remote and antenna)

So all in, it's probably a $650 investment, which if you are paying $60 a month for cable, you make up in less than a year.

I can't recommend setting up a HTPC enough, if you have a little bit of patience to work out the kinks, it can be really fantastic.

The only thing else we have is an original Roku hooked up to a crt tv in the bedroom for netflix only and my wife mostly uses this when i'm playing videogames or before we go to bed. She loves it.

The hole in this setup is sports. I don't watch any sports so it's not a real issue. I have fios so i get ESPN 3 on 360 and PC, but I never use it. Any sporting events that i end up watching are always on network (super bowl, world series) so it's not a concern for me, but I can see how you can get boned if you are a sports fan, although, a lot of the sports have streaming services now so that's something.[/QUOTE]

Again, I just dont understand how people are not getting great deals on cable/internet. If I were to write a big book of being a Cheap Ass Gamer tips I would put this under newbie as one of the easiest things to get deals on.

Hell even if you completely botch the negotiating part the first time you can hang up and call back, get a different rep and try again. I only pay 60 bucks for all the stuff I have.

Not to be a dick because whatever is best for you is the "right way" but damn that seems like a huge waste of time and money to go through when all you have to do essential is say, "lower my bill," to get it dirt cheap. Plus you said it yourself that you cant get sports (as well as many things that are not stream-able legally) so in reality you get about 1/4 of TV programing.

I am not saying that is not a good setup, its actually sounds fantastic but its not comparable to cable when you could get every channel, every show, a DVR to watch them whenever high speed internet for dirt cheap.
 
[quote name='Soodmeg']Again, I just dont understand how people are not getting great deals on cable/internet. If I were to write a big book of being a Cheap Ass Gamer tips I would put this under newbie as one of the easiest things to get deals on.

Hell even if you completely botch the negotiating part the first time you can hang up and call back, get a different rep and try again. I only pay 60 bucks for all the stuff I have.

Not to be a dick because whatever is best for you is the "right way" but damn that seems like a huge waste of time and money to go through when all you have to do essential is say, "lower my bill," to get it dirt cheap. Plus you said it yourself that you cant get sports (as well as many things that are not stream-able legally) so in reality you get about 1/4 of TV programing.

I am not saying that is not a good setup, its actually sounds fantastic but its not comparable to cable when you could get every channel, every show, a DVR to watch them whenever high speed internet for dirt cheap.[/QUOTE]

Negotiating cable/satellite is very YMMV, isn't it? And not everybody likes to lie/negotiate.
 
[quote name='2DMention']Sports is the kicker for a lot of people, but if you just watch your local team and major sports, OTA TV is just fine.

My Dad can't do that, because he watches the Big 10 channel and I don't think you can stream that.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, that's the big issue is a lot of people don't live near all their teams. Particularly if they're into both college and pro sports.

I'd never live in WV again, so I need the satellite sports packs (or the ESPN pay packages) for WVU football and basketball. And growing up in state with no pro sports I have a weird assortment of pro sports teams I root for--Atlanta Braves, Orlando Magic and Oakland Raiders.

So the ESPN networks, regional sports channels, TNT for NBA etc. area must for me. Some can be streamed, but I'm not a cheap ass and don't mind paying to watch them in HD on the big screen.

[quote name='2DMention']Negotiating cable/satellite is very YMMV, isn't it? And not everybody likes to lie/negotiate.[/QUOTE]

It can be YMMV, but not too much. I had great success at the last couple of places I lived before here by threatening to switch to Dish--and both times I was in places I couldn't have dishes due to having no patio/balony to mount them on.

Just call and ask for customer rention and threaten to leave. They aren't going to check up and see whether you can really get satellite or not.

But yes, some people are meeker and don't like playing that game. But it's kind of silly to pay more because of not liking to bargain for those that do want to keep cable for whatever reason.
 
This is one of those things were I just have to throw my hands up and say I dont get it. YMMV? Its a phone call, they bring everything to you. I guess your fingers will do some work searching for providers on the internet but thats it. Just ask them for a better deal, no lying involved.

This honestly is the number 1 reason why people can not make it in my career field. The inability to negotiate even the simplest transactions so that its beneficial for both sides. You dont have to cheat but its ok to not just throw money away.

Different strokes for different folks I guess.
 
I'm already a cord cutter and loving it. Pretty much just watch Netflix/other methods (i.e. Hulu, library, etc.), and for sports I just go to the casino/bar. I typically have something on the game anyway, so it makes it more intriguing. Gonna read through the rest of this thread to see what others have said, but yeah, I'm pretty happy just with Netflix right now and the occasional DL/Redbox.

And honestly, who the fuck needs Disney Channel/QVC.HSN/Fox News/Spanish channels/TLC/MTV/etc. etc. etc.
I'm sure 100%, without a doubt, that if I had al a cart channels selection, that it would come out to be cheaper than whatever is the cheapest basic package and that is why the cable companies don't offer it and are scared.
 
[quote name='hiccupleftovers']I'm already a cord cutter and loving it. Pretty much just watch Netflix/other methods (i.e. Hulu, library, etc.), and for sports I just go to the casino/bar. I typically have something on the game anyway, so it makes it more intriguing. Gonna read through the rest of this thread to see what others have said, but yeah, I'm pretty happy just with Netflix right now and the occasional DL/Redbox.

And honestly, who the fuck needs Disney Channel/QVC.HSN/Fox News/Spanish channels/TLC/MTV/etc. etc. etc.
I'm sure 100%, without a doubt, that if I had al a cart channels selection, that it would come out to be cheaper than whatever is the cheapest basic package and that is why the cable companies don't offer it and are scared.[/QUOTE]

I'm surprised at the lack of people extoling the virtues of OTA TV.

It's weird though - when I lived in the city in an apt. years ago, analog OTA TV was terrible. We get way better reception out here in the sticks, but we use an RV antenna that looks like a toilet seat.
 
[quote name='Soodmeg']This is one of those things were I just have to throw my hands up and say I dont get it. YMMV? Its a phone call, they bring everything to you. I guess your fingers will do some work searching for providers on the internet but thats it. Just ask them for a better deal, no lying involved.

This honestly is the number 1 reason why people can not make it in my career field. The inability to negotiate even the simplest transactions so that its beneficial for both sides. You dont have to cheat but its ok to not just throw money away.

Different strokes for different folks I guess.[/QUOTE]

The YMMV is that sometimes it doesn't work.

My brother didn't have luck the last time he tried. He called 3 different times and they basically called his bluff and refused to lower it for him.

But yeah, I agree everyone should try, and I've never had problems getting a deal extended etc.
 
This is one of those things were I just have to throw my hands up and say I dont get it. YMMV? Its a phone call, they bring everything to you. I guess your fingers will do some work searching for providers on the internet but thats it. Just ask them for a better deal, no lying involved.

This honestly is the number 1 reason why people can not make it in my career field. The inability to negotiate even the simplest transactions so that its beneficial for both sides. You dont have to cheat but its ok to not just throw money away.

Different strokes for different folks I guess.
Click to expand...

For me, it would be lying, because we have no intention of cutting the cable cord or switching to Dish.
 
Very jealous of all of you guys who get all those sweet deals from your providers. I live in a location where Cox has a complete monopoly on the internet and cable TV offerings. Cox cable internet is the ONLY option, period. As for cable TV, I suppose I have the option of DirecTV or Dish.. but Netflix, Hulu, Bittorrent, etc. do the trick for the girlfriend and myself.
 
[quote name='2DMention']For me, it would be lying, because we have no intention of cutting the cable cord or switching to Dish.[/QUOTE]

Neither did I when I did it, but I had no qualms lying to save myself $50+ when promos were up.
 
I don't like to lie either. Instead you can always word things in a way that means pretty much the same thing but you're not lying. You don't have to say "I'm going to cut cable right now." if you don't really mean it. You can say, "I wouldn't hesitate to switch over to Dish unless you can get me a better deal than they can." Or "I'm looking into to trying other options to get a better deal." since you can legitimately consider other things without actually doing it. I'm sure many of you are more creative and can come up with better ways to say it without lying.
 
Well for me those were still lies as the places I did were places I couldn't have a satellite (no balcony or patio to put it on) and had no other cable options.
 
[quote name='mis0']Very jealous of all of you guys who get all those sweet deals from your providers. I live in a location where Cox has a complete monopoly on the internet and cable TV offerings. Cox cable internet is the ONLY option, period. As for cable TV, I suppose I have the option of DirecTV or Dish.. but Netflix, Hulu, Bittorrent, etc. do the trick for the girlfriend and myself.[/QUOTE]

at the very least you could use the "threat" of moving to dish as leverage for lowering your cable bill. It's worth a shot.
 
I canceled cable a year and a half ago, and the ONLY thing I miss is live HD sports broadcasts. With sites like atdhe.net and justin.tv and others, you can find streams of most sports games. But the quality is fairly poor. Because ESPN has moved so much good content off of ABC and to ESPN, Plus I'm a big hockey fan, it can be frustrating when I want to watch a BCS bowl game or my NHL team.

But, and I say this with zero hesitation: GO FOR IT. I save a sheeat ton of money on a monthly basis, and I still watch almost everything i want to see from TV. One of my best financial decisions of the millennium.
 
[quote name='Soodmeg']
Not to be a dick because whatever is best for you is the "right way" but damn that seems like a huge waste of time and money to go through when all you have to do essential is say, "lower my bill," to get it dirt cheap. Plus you said it yourself that you cant get sports (as well as many things that are not stream-able legally) so in reality you get about 1/4 of TV programing.

I am not saying that is not a good setup, its actually sounds fantastic but its not comparable to cable when you could get every channel, every show, a DVR to watch them whenever high speed internet for dirt cheap.[/QUOTE]

The problem is that even "dirt cheap" @ $60 a month, still adds up to be a lot over time. That's $720 a year which is already over what I spent on my setup. And a bunch of the shows that I enjoy watching are on premium channels (Showtime / HBO). So add another $20-$30 a month for a premium channel subscription. The bottom line (for me) is that purchasing those 1 or 2 shows a-la-carte via amazon VOD or itunes, is a cheaper, more flexible solution.

Also, there's really nothing that's not stream-able legally that I am wanting for, so I'm not missing the 75% of garbage programming that is on cable, and therein lies my biggest qualm with cable, you're paying for so much crap you don't want to watch. Picking and choosing everything I want OTA/Streaming/ iTunes / Amazon VOD is 100% a better/cheaper solution for me. My recurring costs are 8.99 a month for streaming netflix, and whatever shows I buy a la carte, which has netted less than $10 a month in the past 6 months.

I'm just saying, just cause cable is easier, doesn't mean it's better for everyone. I think it's a fucking ripoff, at any price i've seen.

Of course I'd never claim that building a custom home theater PC and setting it up to record OTA HD and stream video over the internet is for everyone, I'm just saying it's a totally viable cable replacement for the right kind of consumer.

And WMC7 is a freaking cakewalk to setup HD OTA scheduling/recording, ESPECIALLY compared to freaking mythTV or something like that.
 
No one is saying it's for everyone. Just that those who do want it are silly if they don't at least try to knock it down when their promos run out etc. rather than paying full price.

If you're not into sports, there really isn't much reason to have cable or satellite in this streaming video age and with things like Netflix.

I'd probably still keep it even if I wasn't a sports not as I like the convenience, I'm not really a cheap ass, and $50-60 a month isn't much to me and I'm not one to hassle with things like HTPCs, not being able to watch things if the internet is down or slow etc.
 
[quote name='mang9432']The problem is that even "dirt cheap" @ $60 a month, still adds up to be a lot over time. That's $720 a year which is already over what I spent on my setup. And a bunch of the shows that I enjoy watching are on premium channels (Showtime / HBO). So add another $20-$30 a month for a premium channel subscription. The bottom line (for me) is that purchasing those 1 or 2 shows a-la-carte via amazon VOD or itunes, is a cheaper, more flexible solution.

Also, there's really nothing that's not stream-able legally that I am wanting for, so I'm not missing the 75% of garbage programming that is on cable, and therein lies my biggest qualm with cable, you're paying for so much crap you don't want to watch. Picking and choosing everything I want OTA/Streaming/ iTunes / Amazon VOD is 100% a better/cheaper solution for me. My recurring costs are 8.99 a month for streaming netflix, and whatever shows I buy a la carte, which has netted less than $10 a month in the past 6 months.

I'm just saying, just cause cable is easier, doesn't mean it's better for everyone. I think it's a fucking ripoff, at any price i've seen.

Of course I'd never claim that building a custom home theater PC and setting it up to record OTA HD and stream video over the internet is for everyone, I'm just saying it's a totally viable cable replacement for the right kind of consumer.

And WMC7 is a freaking cakewalk to setup HD OTA scheduling/recording, ESPECIALLY compared to freaking mythTV or something like that.[/QUOTE]

Again, there is no wrong or right way here but I do have to ask you. Is your internet free or something? Its impossible to have only $9 of recurring cost via netflix since you have to have the internet for nextflix.

And I am only slightly busting your chops because when people are hell bent on not having cable they usually list a elaborate plan of how they came to get by without having it. Which is completely fine but when they tell you the price its always something that is simply impossible.

When I say I pay 60 bucks its for every single channel out there AND the highest internet speed provided from my ISP. So your 720 figure is now 360 (talking about just cable alone) and now I need to know how much you pay to be able to stream all of your content at a enjoyable speed in order to really figure out your savings.

The speed required to stream to multiple devices at a reasonable rate I can only assume is about 50-70 bucks a month. Which is about 600 on the low end and 840 on the high end which would actual put you over what I pay for both.
 
I wouldn't go that high on ISP costs. At least not if you're in a metro area with competition. You can usually get 6MPBS or more (which is plenty for even netflix HD) for $20-30 a month without having cable.

But yes, people shouldn't ignore that cost when talking about price of streaming instead of cable. Though maybe the full cost shouldn't count as most people would have internet even if they don't stream anything to use for browsing, e-mail, work/school etc.
 
[quote name='Soodmeg']Again, there is no wrong or right way here but I do have to ask you. Is your internet free or something? Its impossible to have only $9 of recurring cost via netflix since you have to have the internet for nextflix.

When I say I pay 60 bucks its for every single channel out there AND the highest internet speed provided from my ISP. So your 720 figure is now 360 (talking about just cable alone) and now I need to know how much you pay to be able to stream all of your content at a enjoyable speed in order to really figure out your savings.
[/QUOTE]

Yes my fios 20/5 internet is $57 a month. But if I got the channels I wanted with fios tv and internet, my bill would be well over $100 a month, even with promos, i've tried haggling with CSR's, and the cheapest I can get is a year with BASIC tv from them for like $74.99 and i'm not using the internet for video exclusively, I consider high speed internet a utility at this day in age.

So you are saying you pay $60 a month for the highest tier cable package and your ISP's highest bandwidth... You must be a haggling god. Kudos to you man. I'd probably keep cable if it was that cheap too.
 
[quote name='mang9432']The problem is that even "dirt cheap" @ $60 a month, still adds up to be a lot over time. That's $720 a year which is already over what I spent on my setup. And a bunch of the shows that I enjoy watching are on premium channels (Showtime / HBO). So add another $20-$30 a month for a premium channel subscription. The bottom line (for me) is that purchasing those 1 or 2 shows a-la-carte via amazon VOD or itunes, is a cheaper, more flexible solution.

Also, there's really nothing that's not stream-able legally that I am wanting for, so I'm not missing the 75% of garbage programming that is on cable, and therein lies my biggest qualm with cable, you're paying for so much crap you don't want to watch. Picking and choosing everything I want OTA/Streaming/ iTunes / Amazon VOD is 100% a better/cheaper solution for me. My recurring costs are 8.99 a month for streaming netflix, and whatever shows I buy a la carte, which has netted less than $10 a month in the past 6 months.

I'm just saying, just cause cable is easier, doesn't mean it's better for everyone. I think it's a fucking ripoff, at any price i've seen.

[/QUOTE]

I have to agree with everything said here.
 
[quote name='mang9432']Yes my fios 20/5 internet is $57 a month. But if I got the channels I wanted with fios tv and internet, my bill would be well over $100 a month, even with promos, i've tried haggling with CSR's, and the cheapest I can get is a year with BASIC tv from them for like $74.99 and i'm not using the internet for video exclusively, I consider high speed internet a utility at this day in age.

So you are saying you pay $60 a month for the highest tier cable package and your ISP's highest bandwidth... You must be a haggling god. Kudos to you man. I'd probably keep cable if it was that cheap too.[/QUOTE]


When I moved to ATL, my deal (that I already posted) was $60 after tax and everything for 12MBPS internet, full digital cable with HD, HD-DVR and HBO for a year.

Before that I was usually paying $70-75 a year after haggling in the DC area.

Both with Comcast. Verizon I've heard isn't as haggle friendly since they've spent (and are still spending) so much to install the fiber optic wires etc.
 
The other thing I find, which is purely personal, is that I watch a hell of a lot less TV when I don't have cable, because I have to actively say "I want to watch this" I don't just sit there and watch whatever is coming on. Not a flaw a cable, but a flaw of my laziness more than anything :)

Both with Comcast. Verizon I've heard isn't as haggle friendly since they've spent (and are still spending) so much to install the fiber optic wires etc.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I talked to 3 different reps and none of them were having it with me saying "i'm going to move to another provider" they were just like, go ahead, they don't have the internet speeds we have anyway. Which is totally true. FIOS is my only real option for above 5Mb speeds in my area.
 
I dont know if I am a god, I thought it was pretty common to pay about 70 bucks after haggling. I guess I would chalk it up to luck then.

Although, haggling is 90% of my career (Freelance Production) so maybe I just have more experience with it.
 
[quote name='Soodmeg']I dont know if I am a god, I thought it was pretty common to pay about 70 bucks after haggling. I guess I would chalk it up to luck then.

Although, haggling is 90% of my career (Freelance Production) so maybe I just have more experience with it.[/QUOTE]

Well... either way, well done.

Also, I like tinkering with stuff, and making it work on my own as opposed to paying someone else to do it for me, makes me feel good and like a man, even if i'm not saving much or any money.
 
About $70 is typical with cable companies from my experience and that of friends and families.

But it can be YMMV--Verizon seems less amenable to it as noted, and sometimes you get shafted if there isn't much similar competition in the area like in mang's case.
 
I pay 25 for my internet for 20/5, plus 11 for Netflix. The 20/5 is a promo price, but like everyone said, I'll haggle to make sure it stays at that price. I can stream to my pc, tv, and projector at the same time with no slowdown.
 
As far as cable TV + internet goes:

Just calling and saying you'll switch to dish or to one of the phone companies doesn't work unless their rates are actually lower AFTER the 6 month to 1 year promotional discount.

In my area my non-dish choices are TimeWarner or AT&T U-Verse. They're both almost the exact same price for basically the same services once the promo deals expire. TimeWarner knows this, so they're not willing to play ball on haggling.

I've seen people have some luck by adding landlines through the cable company to get a new promotional rate, then once that rate is up, calling to cancel the phone portion. Cable companies are desperate to have your phone business to try to fight off the competition from AT&T and/or Verizon, so they're more willing to cut you a deal then.
 
It's pretty easy to call and say "I see I can get DirectTV/Dish for $30 for two years where as the cable portion of my bill is now $XX."

I never had any problems getting promos extended etc. with comcast, even though I lived in places where I couldn't install a dish. The satellite promos are always cheaper than cable, so you always have that leverage to use in my experience.
 
I had done the bundle promotion and then got the bill...it was higher than what was on the TV ads. So I called and and told them I couldn't afford the bundle and thought their ad was misleading....they fixed it so that my bundle is now what was advertised for. Heck, they even credit last month's payment towards this month and now the bill is HALF!!!
 
I've thought about this many times but the lack of a clear line of site to an HDTV antenna and the lack of access to sporting events/news really kills it for me. Frankly, I hate cable but there really aren't many other choices.
 
Posted a couple pages back that i've been considering it forever but i'm now officially going off the tv grid for awhile. Ordered a antenna from Amazon for $10 with good reviews, already tested a shitty wire only antenna and I already get 3 of the big networks clear. $85 a month in my pocket and i'm going to follow you guys lead and call next month and bluff about dumping my internet. I'll just throw that money in the house fund every month! :D

I fully expect it to be weird at first but i've already got 1 dvd Netflix plan and I watch alot of tv seasons on their already. Going to check out the 1 week trial on Hulu Plus to see if it's worth $8 a month to me. I am a 2 minute drive from a Blockbuster Box + a Redbox so all my enertainment needs are easily covered. Tons of great info in this thread and I looked on iTunes and worst case scenario I just pick up my couple must have shows from there. Although there are many other options.

Gonna look into Windows 7 Media Center as a OTA DVR or another option is i've got a dvd/vcr combo and saw a $40 converter box on Amazon that it supposed to be THE box as it's one of the few that you can schedule to be vcr friendly.
 
i got rid of cable over 6 months ago. I built an htpc, put wdtv live boxes in all the other rooms and have never looked back. My next purchase will be a boxee box.
 
[quote name='daphatty']I've thought about this many times but the lack of a clear line of site to an HDTV antenna and the lack of access to sporting events/news really kills it for me. Frankly, I hate cable but there really aren't many other choices.[/QUOTE]You might want to look into one of these for a TV tuner option:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815327005

It's a dual-tuner box that sits on your network, with an Ethernet jack on it. As long as you can put it on your network somewhere and have good HDTV reception with an antenna, you should be able to work past the "clear line of site" issue.

I'm debating about getting one, since my would-be-HTPC is in the basement and the nearest window is about 15-20' away.
 
[quote name='shrike4242']You might want to look into one of these for a TV tuner option:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815327005

It's a dual-tuner box that sits on your network, with an Ethernet jack on it. As long as you can put it on your network somewhere and have good HDTV reception with an antenna, you should be able to work past the "clear line of site" issue.

I'm debating about getting one, since my would-be-HTPC is in the basement and the nearest window is about 15-20' away.[/QUOTE]

I cut the cable (well, DirecTV) several months ago, and this box is just what I was looking for. Thanks Shrike!
 
Only thing I'd really miss without cable is HBO. I would have missed Boardwalk Empire, the upcoming Game of Thrones, Real Time etc.
 
Can always wait and rent most of those from Netflix. That's what I do with the paid channels shows as I don't subscribe to any of them.
 
There are lots of great suggestion in this thread. If I lived solo, I wouldn't need satellite but my bro likes having it for whatever reason. I only find myself watching the simpsons, family guy, Triple D and MvF. I just bought a 3D tv so it's going to get used for blu-rays. My brah pays the bill but I called in to see what he pays and it turns out he pays $86 a month after taxes. Tsk tsk. I'm going to call back and renegotiate for him. He's the kind to just pay what is asked and leave it at that.
 
Lol at this thread, sucks to be me. I never had cable until my wife. Shes addicted to it and no way would let me get rid of it. Internet is not a very big option for me, though. My internet speed is.... get ready.... 700k. It's not awful but clearly streaming anything is a big challenge unless you like 480i on a 50" plasma. The one thing I dislike about living in the country. But otherwise everything else is worth it.
 
I am very close to canceling Direct. They keep going up and between my wife and myself, we watch maybe a total of 4-5 channels.
Trying to decide between AppleTV and Roku.
Already getting Netflix and Hulu via the BR player.

For fucks sakes, we can get Blockbuster Online, Netflix, AND Hulu (and the occasional Apple Store/Amazon rental) for less than what we pay for Direct. :(
If I can make it easier for her, Direct is gone.
 
Watched tonights college championship live on ESPN on the 360. Great picture and no regrets about dumping cable. I've yet to dip into Hulu Plus they've got alot of good stuff on the freebies site. :D
 
[quote name='$hady']Watched tonights college championship live on ESPN on the 360. Great picture and no regrets about dumping cable. I've yet to dip into Hulu Plus they've got alot of good stuff on the freebies site. :D[/QUOTE]

You'll want to hook up your PC to your TV. I did the free week trial of Hulu Plus watching through the PS3 and the majority of shows aren't cleared to be viewed through anything but the PC. So I cancelled the trial but then found a DVI-HDMI cord that was long enough to reach my tv from my PC. So I might decide to subscribe after all.
 
Yay for this thread! Got my 1st bill in the mail yesterday minus the premium cable and DVR package I had..... $87 a month savings in my pocket!

Don't miss it at all, between Netflix and Hulu i'm mostly set. Also watching alot of popular stream sites that I won't mention as mods got mad last time I said it and deleted post. Plus someone on the trading boards here was selling $25 in Amazon Video on Demand credits for $3 so I grabbed some of those andbeen checking out alot of movies that way. Have yet to use iTunes but it's always an option and no way i'll spend $87 a month there! :)
 
[quote name='shrike4242']You might want to look into one of these for a TV tuner option:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815327005

It's a dual-tuner box that sits on your network, with an Ethernet jack on it. As long as you can put it on your network somewhere and have good HDTV reception with an antenna, you should be able to work past the "clear line of site" issue.

I'm debating about getting one, since my would-be-HTPC is in the basement and the nearest window is about 15-20' away.[/QUOTE]

Just wanted to check back and say I got this, and it works great!! It's nice being able to watch TV from any PC or laptop on the home network. I'm using Win7 Media Center and streaming to my main TV though my 360. Next I'll be setting up an app on my girlfriend's iPad. The dual tuners are a definite plus. As I told my friend, I don't need Tivo, because now I have FreeVo! Haha...
 
I have had pretty good luck in getting AT&T to lower their internet price for me, as well as just recently getting DirecTV to give me $10 off per month for a year (I called and complained about the new price increase, and the fact that they are potentially taking our Fox channel away). The lady initially only gave me $5 off for 6 months, but I pressed harder and got a better deal.

PS - What's the advantage of having AppleTV if you're already streaming Netflix through your Blu-Ray player?
 
Apple TV and the other set top boxes (Roku etc.0 will give you more sources for streaming video usually (iTunes, Hulu and other's ). Some Blu Ray players have more apps that just Netflix already though,

So it's probably not worth it unless you want access to iTunes video store or if you're interested in some of the other streaming services they have that your BR player doesn't.
 
Bumping this thread, because I'm about 75% of the way to quitting Comcast Cable TV. I've been debating this for a while, but I think I'm finally ready. Has anyone had any regrets?

I just picked up a Sony BD-BX37 for my bedroom, and it's got a bunch of streaming services, including Amazon, and a nice Crackle.com app (which also runs on my PS3 in the living room). The one thing I was concerned about was watching hockey, which I NEED, but I can do that through the app on the PS3, but I'll have to get a year of PSN+ to do so (or just pay $10 for the app).

I've never subscribed to Netflix, but maybe it's time to do so. I'll bump my internet up to the premium tier, cancel my TV and phone, and buy a nice Antenna and cable from Monoprice for local HD.

Also, not that I already don't torrent...but
http://lifehacker.com/#!5771670/how-to-turn-your-computer-into-an-internet-personal-video-recorder

I mainly watch shows on USA (Burn Notice, In Plain Sight, Royal Pains), Comedy Central (south park, tosh.0), FX (Rescue Me) and the major networks (free OTA HD, can torrent or record through Windows), and then stuff like Top Chef, Iron Chef, Chopped!, and lots of Hockey.

Also, does anyone know of a site that indexes popular shows and tells you where you can stream them (like legit stream)?
 
[quote name='Ronin317']Bumping this thread, because I'm about 75% of the way to quitting Comcast Cable TV. I've been debating this for a while, but I think I'm finally ready. Has anyone had any regrets?

I just picked up a Sony BD-BX37 for my bedroom, and it's got a bunch of streaming services, including Amazon, and a nice Crackle.com app (which also runs on my PS3 in the living room). The one thing I was concerned about was watching hockey, which I NEED, but I can do that through the app on the PS3, but I'll have to get a year of PSN+ to do so (or just pay $10 for the app).

I've never subscribed to Netflix, but maybe it's time to do so. I'll bump my internet up to the premium tier, cancel my TV and phone, and buy a nice Antenna and cable from Monoprice for local HD.

Also, not that I already don't torrent...but
http://lifehacker.com/#!5771670/how-to-turn-your-computer-into-an-internet-personal-video-recorder

I mainly watch shows on USA (Burn Notice, In Plain Sight, Royal Pains), Comedy Central (south park, tosh.0), FX (Rescue Me) and the major networks (free OTA HD, can torrent or record through Windows), and then stuff like Top Chef, Iron Chef, Chopped!, and lots of Hockey.

Also, does anyone know of a site that indexes popular shows and tells you where you can stream them (like legit stream)?[/QUOTE]

the closest thing i've found legit is boxee. which I find is pretty good.

not at all legit: http://watchseries.eu/
 
[quote name='keithp']Just wanted to check back and say I got this, and it works great!! It's nice being able to watch TV from any PC or laptop on the home network. I'm using Win7 Media Center and streaming to my main TV though my 360. Next I'll be setting up an app on my girlfriend's iPad. The dual tuners are a definite plus. As I told my friend, I don't need Tivo, because now I have FreeVo! Haha...[/QUOTE]

I'm jealous, I got the HDHOMERUN but my HTPC is near the window with the antenna, and my router is across the apartment, and the wireless is not fast enough to stream HD. Ended up returning it and getting a single tuner pci-e card. works fine, but it would be great to have dual tuners and network access for the other rooms.

Maybe when i move eventually i'll upgrade.
 
Oh, I know about sites like that...but I'm looking for something I can stream to either the PS3 or Xbox. Apparently the PlayOn app may work nicely...
 
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