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pros/cons of dropping cable TV service
Mysterioii:
Yeah I was going on the assumption that if a show was available on Hulu online for free then SURELY I'd be able to watch it on my internet-enabled TV or Roku box with a paid Hulu Plus subscription, only to find out recently that that's not the case... I'm sure it's a big tangled mess of licensing agreements but it sucks that the PAID service lets you see less than the FREE service (just on more devices).
ChrisK:
Streaming and gaming shouldn't be a problem if you've got a fast connection. I forget if ours is 3mbit or 5mbit, but I have no problems.
Last time I checked you could stream more than one Netflix stream simultaneously, but they keep changing this (officially and unofficially) so test for yourself. We dumped Netflix a couple months ago cause we don't use it much anymore.
We have a computer in our living room and use Hulu (not Plus) to watch shows. We have a Roku too, but don't use it for Hulu because you need Plus.
My wife and I both have two computers at our desks, so we have no problem gaming and streaming simultaneously. I wouldn't try a full-screen modern game with a stream on the second monitor, however. It's not likely to work well.
I got a powered antenna for our upstairs TV. Rabbit ears wouldn't cut it in the valley we live in, but this powered antenna works great: http://www.amazon.com/RCA-ANT1450BR-Multi-Directional-Amplified-Digital/dp/B001GE6T9A/ref=pd_cp_e_1
These days we watch a few shows on Hulu, but our TV use has declined DRAMATICALLY the past year as we, in quick succession, stopped watching car racing, had a baby, canceled cable, and canceled Netflix. On the other hand we now do a LOT of SiriusXM streaming, but that fits with the whole baby thing a lot better than TV does anyway. With music the kid dances. With TV she turns into a slack-jawed zombie.
When/if my daughter gets old enough and hooked on specific TV shows I figure I can just BUY DVD box sets as needed, or get back into Netflix by mail. $70/month cable can pay for a LOT.
We're both very happy we canceled cable. $70/month saved and we watch a LOT less junk, but still see the things we want (except I DO miss ALMS and the Rolex series). Then we canceled our phone landline for another $30/month, replacing it with a cool Panasonic phone handset that links to our cells via Bluetooth. Then we canceled our Netflix for another $15/month and replaced it with Hulu and the occasional Redbox rental.
My only regret is that we didn't do it all sooner. That's $115/month we're saving, and when I multiply that out over the past five years I feel kind of nauseous. I could have commissioned God to build a MAME cab for me and deliver it in a solid gold Ferrari for what I've paid for this junk. ;)
(Caveat: this may all change in a year or three as the media companies get fed up with cable cutters and tighten the screws on streaming services.)
Donkbaca:
We have a 60inch smart tv. It rocks. Cut cable a month ago when I realized that it was mostly on just to be on. I have a NAS with a built in bittorrent client and my TV is networked, so I can pull media off it no problem. I can remote in to my NAS and add torrents to it, and have it download stuff without my PC being in. That makes getting content easy.
The TV has pandora, so now when we aren't watching tv and want background noise, we stream music.
basic cable is included with our internet connection, so we get the local channels in HD for free, and get about 60 other channels in SD.
I am a big sports guy, baseball and football mostly. Most football games are on the nework channels anyway, so I will still get that in HD. Every year we would get the MLB package from the cable company, the online package is CHEAPER and WAY better, all the games are in HD, my TV has a MLB app. Plus, with the MLB.tv subscription, I can stream games from any connected device - My ipad, phone, pc. Its great. I like the UFC and you can get the PPV's on your PC now, or on the Xbox. I am sure there are probably online basketball and hockey, maybe even racing apps to do the same.
We have Hulu+, I like it. We also have netflix. Seriously thinking about dropping netflix since their streaming selection is abysmal. The only reason I keep it around is for our girls, but I think I am going to rip some blu rays and DVD's to my network storage and have that stuff on demand locally for them, if I ever get around to it. Though, we might just drop it and rent the occasional movie from Vudu.
My daughter loved sprout too, but for one: we don't let her watch much tv, and 2: I am not shelling out that money to put pre-school programming on my TV.
Really the only thing I miss is ESPN HD, and that's pretty much it. Its almost liberating turning on the TV to specifically watch things, it seems like i have more time now to read and stuff like that. I don't think I am ever going back to cable unless they FINALLY develop some sort of cheaper a-la-cart pricing like they have promising for the last decade
GameOver:
--- Quote from: jrose78 on April 11, 2012, 01:41:21 pm ---Since you have fios I am not ever sure if you have a cap on your data? .If you stream a movie it will use at most 8 mbps and your connection is prob like 12-20 mbps so you should be fine.
--- End quote ---
I googled that seems that FIOS doesn't have a usage cap at the moment. I will ask them to confirm. BUT - since I would be a 'new' Comcast customer if I switch to their service I would only pay $30/mo first 6 months, then $45/mo. after. I think the equivalent FIOS internet is $75/mo. So...if I do this I may just go with Comcast to get the extra savings.
--- Quote from: CheffoJeffo on April 11, 2012, 02:03:39 pm ---
--- Quote from: GameOver on April 11, 2012, 01:27:14 pm ---Also dont believe two people could watch 2 different TV's and both use Netflix or Hulu at the same time?
--- End quote ---
We often run Netflix on 2 or 3 different devices at Casa Cheffo without problem.
--- End quote ---
Good to know thanks! I presme when you run Netflix on 2 or 3 different devices it's all using the same Netflix account?
--- Quote from: Mysterioii on April 11, 2012, 03:08:57 pm ---I am really close to dropping it, I love my TV in general but there is so much crap on now, it just pains me to pay what I'm paying.
--- End quote ---
Exactly.
--- Quote from: pinballjim on April 11, 2012, 03:33:46 pm ---There's at least 50 threads about this here already.
--- End quote ---
Now there's 51!!!!
--- Quote from: ChrisK on April 11, 2012, 04:11:32 pm ---My only regret is that we didn't do it all sooner. That's $115/month we're saving, and when I multiply that out over the past five years I feel kind of nauseous. I could have commissioned God to build a MAME cab for me and deliver it in a solid gold Ferrari for what I've paid for this junk. ;)
--- End quote ---
AMEN!
Thanks to all for taking time to respond & share your experiences!
ChrisK:
Good luck cutting the cable! Feed yourself plenty of video rental methadone when you get withdrawal pains and you'll forget all about it quickly. :)
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