Cutting the Cable Cord, need suggestions

from your description a simple.tv device would probably fir the bill when it becomes available?

HTPC is the most versatile and flexible. I don't think you can store videos from those subscriptions due to DRM anyway.

I know how you feel,after figuring out just exactly what I like and don't like to watch and doing some research i bought a Roku XS2 and dropped my sat.subscription.This move isn't for everybody!!,but for me it's perfect because everything i like to watch is available on the net,ie;movies and old tv shows.With netflix streaming/mail,Amazon,Crackle,Hulu+and about a 20 other channels that i programmed into my Roku,plus rent/buy new releases of movies,and an antenna for local OTA reception,and more than 700 movies i recorded over the years,hundreds of Eps.of tv shows recorded from OTA and sat. tv,plus several box sets of "complete series"of tv shows that i've liked through my life,i have more than enough to keep me happy...AND i am saving the 96 bucks/month i used to pay Dish.But If you like to watch sports,or the latest,greatest tv shows on network/cable/sat.,then keep your subscription,you need it. BTW,if you drop Comcast you'll lose HBOGo.
AFA recording, i use a DVDR and record to its HDD and so far i have not run into CP problems.
Edited by greaser - 7/17/12 at 3:14pm

TiVo

I did the same thing a few months ago...it felt really good to drop off my cable box and cablecards at the Comcast office.

My current solution isn't the best, but it works well for me and I have access to almost all of the content I care about.

• Tivo HD - I use it to record the major networks and other local stations using my Leaf antenna
• Apple TV - I bought the newer 1080p version and it's a great device for all things available via iTunes and some streaming
• Xbox360 - I use it a lot for Netflix and HBOGo

I haven't tried a HTPC yet, but it sounds like it might be a more integrated route.

We've been using playon for over 3 years..now with WD Live boxes. It is a really convenient way to stream content from the web to your tv.

How do you get HBOGo without a cable/sat subscription?

HTPC would work, but Hulu and HBOGo might not be the most user-friendly.

I don't think you can get all of those in one box. If you drop the terrestrial TV requirement, there are lots of media streamer boxes that would fit the bill.

Went down to the basic package and showed the family how it's still is a rip off but they are stubborn. Then D* gave us $20 off for a year.....so now it'll be even harder to cut it. Doh!

First. The most abysmal, cringe-worthy phrases, circa July 2012:

3. "Not so much."
2. "Cutting the cord."
1. "It is what it is."


Please avoid all three of them like they're toothless, drunken, zombies barreling down the road in a dump-trunk.

Boy, I have a $75 monthly DirecTV (for 2 rooms, whole-home DVR) that allows me to see ALL of my local sports teams in addition to other broadcast and cable programming that is nowhere to be found elsewhere.

By the time you add in the cost of the devices, PPV's, consider the quality of what's out there, and tally what you will no longer be able to view, I get less and less enchanted with the idea of dumping cable/sat service.

That may be just me though, perhaps Comcast is as insufferable as you claim.

Good luck.

James
Edited by mastermaybe - 7/19/12 at 6:19am

"Went down to the basic package and showed the family how it's still is a rip off but they are stubborn. Then D* gave us $20 off for a year.....so now it'll be even harder to cut it. Doh!"

I'd like to learn how it's a rip off? Are we really getting to the point where people assume they'll buy a $99 box and watch a comparable quality/volume of programming for free (or at a substantially lower cost)? The fact that it's (the decision to leave) been made more difficult by DirecTV cutting another $20 should say something to you.

No, I'm not a shill for DirecTV or any other cable/sat provider, this stuff sounds great to me, but I always ask: what's walking out the door?

Where/how do you watch local sports...basketball, football, baseball, pro and college? Millions upon millions seem to value this.

What about programming not available online/through other providers? Yes, there's TONS of this out there...and much of the stuff that IS available comes at a cost, not surprisingly of course.

I'd REALLY like to see what the REAL bottom line of this is for most people. I'm certain it "works" for a percentage, but what are you REALLY saving and what are you REALLY losing?

James
Edited by mastermaybe - 7/19/12 at 6:20am

This is true. If you really want to watch your local sports teams, you'll either need a pay-tv package or find a live stream (which usually looks like crap). But if you just want to watch sports, the major leagues do have online subscriptions available and those streams are in hd (local teams are blacked out).


Sure cord-cutting isn't for everyone, but there is enough out there to make it a viable alternative to a fair amount of people. The thing is you have to be ready to use multiple services and buy your own equipment. And most people aren't ready for that experience.

I think most of this is motivated by people getting financially squeezed and looking for the lowest hanging fruit to cut -- when the choice is between cable and the outrageous costs of a smart-phone, looks like cable is the greater evil. No question, you have to be willing to give up a huge amount of programming to drop pay-TV and go OTA. There will be some up-front hardware costs for DVR and Internet media streamers and you will be on your own for any problems. Cable content will still be available as long as you are willing to wait for the series to finish its season and come out on DVD -- paying $2 per episode to watch it on-line the next day can get costly very quickly.

And of course I completely agree with your point: for the millions and millions of sports junkies, there is absolutely no alternative to pay-TV. If they get strapped and have to cut costs, cable will be the last thing they drop.

Maybe he was talking about it while he had ComCast cause I'm sure as you know if you don't have the cable you don't get the HBO no matter what.

The ONLY thing keeping me connected to D* is HD NCAA Football.

The solution we found, my family suffers only a little bit until they realize hulu/netflix/itunes is sufficient, is to turn off our subscription from the end of NBA basketball to the start of NCAA football. D* will allow you to pause your service with NO monthly cost twice per year. Maybe your cable company can do something similar? We go from whenever the Spurs lose in the playoffs to the Opening weekend with no TV. It saves us roughly $350/year and gives me the $$$ break I need to suffer through D* giving me save offers the rest of the year.

You know Boxee Box is beta testing a Live TV dongle to go along with there Box and they have alot of channels including NetFlix and Hulu. They do offer some Sports channels but some of the content is somewhat limited like say The Speed Channel. With the exception of the Live TV Dongle which isn't out yet you could always go to your local retailer and try one out.

Maybe I am missing something on the antenna...but you could just hook an antenna up to your TV right? Did you want to record network shows?

Sounds like a PS3 with a good HD antenna is just what you're looking for. The ps3 will stream netflix and hulu, as well as provide storage capacity for anything you'd want to download or burn, through your PC. Ofcourse an HTPC would do the same thing but getting a PS3 out of the box and running in under 5 minutes sounds like a bonus.

You're right that it's unavailable without a Comcast subscription, the login continued to work for a couple of weeks after I canceled, but now has stopped.

I was offered the basic Comcast service for $29.99/mo and HBO for free for 6 mo. That might be worth it in order to have access to it again. I just don't want to write them a $100 check each month...and HBO is definitely worth $15-20/mo for me...that last $10 makes it hard to justify.

Well lets see.
Dropped Dish,savings:$96.xx/month/~$1152.00/YEAR
Roku XS2 refurb.Cost:$75.00 one time fee
Netflix:$8.00/month
Hulu+:$8.00/month
All other Roku channels FREE
SAVINGS:$80.00/month

Don't care about sports or any of the latest,greatest prime time tv shows on cable/sat. and i'm not missin' a thing!!!
Edited by greaser - 7/19/12 at 12:27pm

Fair enough. I just think many tend to view it quite heavy-handed and rarely do they really take a good look at what they'll be giving up. Really, for me, it's simply knowing how (or having the spleen to) deal with these "people' (read TW, CC, and DirecTV).

I learned very quickly that nothing D* markets is set in stone. Spend the time and do the leg work and you'll quickly discover that you can spend $60-$80 a month and get a TON of programming while not giving up any local news/sports AND retaining the PPV options.

I suppose if you cannot afford $60 a month this is not an option for you, period. But again, I'd like to total up the devices, apps, and "rentals" and see where most end up, monthly.

Respectfully,

James

Right. You would be amongst the very small percentage I alluded to. Show me how many red-blooded American males can go without PRO/college football, baseball,basketball, and hockey. Now throw in those prime time cable and network shows no one in your household (seemingly) watches.

You are an outlier. I'm happy it works for you and I have nothing inherently against it. I just caution people to examine it carefully.

James

That is the crux of the issue. People considering going this way("cutting the cord" and using streaming devices) must carefully examine just exactly what is is that they like to watch,not watch,and what they can survive w/o. I did that and found that i can find almost everything i like to watch on the internet. For those very few things that i can't find on the internet,or from Netflix, i can either rent or buy. For local news/weather/Me-TV i have a small antenna. At work we have Comcast tv which lets me to keep up on national/world news. BTW, i live alone so i don't have to worry about what somebody else might want to watch.

As for sports,i 'used' to be a fan of MLB and Ice Hockey,my favorite team was the Philadelphia Flyers,but that was a looooong time ago,back in the days when the "Flyers" won the Stanley Cup TWO times in a row!!! yea man.....GO FLYERS!!!!. They tried for a 3rd. yr. in a row but IIRC the "Canadiens"?? won it.Damn Canucks! But for certain reasons, i became totally disinterested in sports and haven't watched it for years.
Edited by greaser - 7/19/12 at 2:19pm

American's pay that much for TV? Fascinating! I'd never pay for any subscription, seeing as I never watch anything on TV anyway. If I want news, I'd Google it. The only use my TV has is its screen.

Well no not really. There still is the free channels if that's your choice but if you want channels say The Food Network or The History Channel then you usually have to go with either a cable or sat. company. I cut my TV cable awhile back cause what I was paying vs what I was watching was not worth it at all and besides most companies air there episodes on the Internet now after a certain amount of time after it's been shown on TV. Unless your the kind of person that has to see it right away when they come out with a new episode.

The WD TV Live Hub will stream netflix and hulu but not HBOGo. It comes with a 1 tb hard drive. The Roku has all three but no storage.

I have a Tivo Premiere DVR which I paid $82 for and opted for the Tivo antenna service which costs $9.95 a month. It works better than any cable DVR I have ever used. I have a simple roof antenna and receive all the network channels and the PQ is much better than cable. I also have the WD TV Live Hub and three Roku boxes. The better Roku boxes stream in 1080P and DD 5.1 which is awesome.

For myself and I'm confident others it's not about the cost because I can afford a $200 cable/internet/phone (not counting mobile). It's about the whole cable business model (I have cox). It's always peeved me that I have to pay to rent boxes (2 plus a cable card) and pay for 200+ channels when I only want 20-30. I have over 19 1/2 years payed the cable company roughly $1700 for equipment rental when if allowed to buy it could have been sold to me at a profit for $500-$600. Let me pick the channels I want and buy the equipment I want or need.

I finally pulled the plug and I miss quite a bit of live sports I would love to watch, but I'm sticking to my guns. After I cancelled everything but internet a few weeks ago they offered me a deal that actually seemed reasonable to me price wise, but I turned them down because the business model sucks. Of course the government doesn't help because all the laws favor the cable/satellite companies. I write congress about many things and always include a rant about the cable/satellite monopolies and how virtually all the laws are anti consumer in that space.

I'll just live without it and I read more books and have more "relations" with the wife instead.

If I'm not mistaken didn't they pass a law that you didn't have to use there cable box? You could buy your own?

The cost of the channels should bother you cause it's over priced and for what you actually watch vs what you have it's crazy. I finally dropped my cable TV cause for the amount I was paying and what I actually watched it was nuts the amount of money that I was paying that was going to waste on channels I never watched but in order to get the channels I do want I had to take these others. Heck even the price of local channels they offer is crazy. I mean local channels are freaking free and yet they want to charge me for it just so it's run thru my cable. Now I know that some of the charge is just for running the signal thru my cable but still the price for it is crazy.

I don't even bother with there phone service, just use the cell phone. All I pay from Cox is Internet.