Going without cable/satellite

[dbhost]

A lot of the ones you listed, are CBS shows. I think it is a week after they have aired, that they are viewable on CBS's site. (done that twice)

I asked about Netflix before (Hank), but didn't find what I had hoped. The site I used to use is gone, and the two shows I watched, are not broadcast in this country. (one can be done via an anonymizing service then watching streaming from that country)
Since one is something like 5 weeks, when it is shown, I stopped watching it after version 5. (it has at times been on and off Youtube)
There is one show that I do watch, but am not going to pay for the higher end channel, especially since it doesn't have a regular season (Doctor Who). Easier to get the season DVD and cheaper then all those months of cable.
There are other shows, that I will watch when on, at someplace like Restaurants, family gatherings, etc. I make no special effort, to be "entertained" by them. (it shouldn't be work)


As you can guess, I am less about the DVR functions of things like Raspbmc and more about my music collection, or thinking of ripping the dvd's to a NAS and streaming. Vegetables are meant to be eaten, and becoming one from the tv, is a precursor to Soylant Green.

I have been ripping my DVDs to my DNLA server (DD-WRT based router with a 3TB Seagate USB 3.0 disk...) I have old TV shows not easily found on cable anymore, and impossible to find streaming anywhere.

I am not sure, but I think my Netgear NeoTV Max might have the CBS app on it... If so I might just be one step closer to ditching DirecTV...

[eccentrictinkerer]

I cut the cable cord 32 years ago when I came home from work and all three daughters were on the sofa watching MTV. I asked if all the homework was finished - negative.

We'd only had cable for 6 months and I was named "meanest dad on the block".

All three girls graduated HS with 3.5+ grade averages, two have advanced degrees. The two oldest girls have 5 kids between them and they decided 'no TV' two years ago. The grandkids are doing great.

I have an older Roku and Minneapolis/St. Paul are has at least 15 decent OTA stations.

Now I'm waiting for cable news to air live on the 'Net. I'm pretty sure it will happen eventually.

[JR]

Why internet? Why not just over the air (OTA)?

It's a significant bummer, but I don't get OTA signals at my house. I can't even get decent FM reception. I think it's a topographical problem.

Lots of good suggestions here. I'm still getting used to Netflix and I think I'll add Hulu+. I have access to Amazon and Mgo, but have so far not found them to add value to the lineup.

[JoeyGee]

Day 5 of cutting the cord. I thought it would be a lot rougher on the kids, but it really hasn't been an issue at all. We use Netflix, Hulu+ and streaming. I should have my Chromecast tomorrow, which will be nice.

We ave 3 kids under 12 and they haven't complained once--and they have been home since before Christmas due to 3 days of school closings.

As a disclaimer, LOML and I stopped watching TV about 4 months ago. It was weird--not a conscious decision, we just stopped watching. Haven't missed a thing.

Might invest in an OTA antenna, but have gotten along without it, so may not.

I LOVE saving the $90+/mo for the very FEW channels anyone in the house watched.

[lrr]

We have DISH, and would not switch because we are huge Glenn Beck fans, and DISH carries the BlazeTV channel. Had DirecTV prior and was glad to dump it in favor of DISH. But I do think about cancelling, due to the cost. My wife would throw a fit if she had to go online to find one of her countless dramas or reality series. Comcast we use for phone (at my wife's insistance that we keep it), and internet, but until they add BlazeTV, I've told them they are wastinf their time calling me.

We added a Netflix subscription about a year ago, and it is a love/hate relationship. Sometimes I want to cancel, it seems like nothing is of interest. Or all of a sudden it loads for a minute, then not again for the rest of the show. And forget rewinding, which is such a great feature with a DVR. But, it s only $8.30 a month with tax. Just when I was ready to give up on them, we started watching Breaking Bad in September. We were off work, and we watched the first four seasons in 6 days. That was something like 47 episodes, or the equivalent of about 15 movies. The dishes started piling up in the kitchen, the laundry room smelled, and we kept the blinds closed, so people thought we were gone. And of course, the phone was absolutely not answered. We have voicemail, so leave a message! We told the kids not to call, just send text messages and we would reply when we could. I think the show was as addicting as the blue crystals they were cooking up on the show ...

Just about the time I was ready again to cancel Netflix, I found that they had Battlestar Gallactica from about 10 years ago. My wife and I loved the campy old original, and the new one is definitely darker, and grittier. I think it is a pretty decent series. I am pretty much retired now, so when my wife leaves for work, my bird Raymond and I watch an episode together, although I am catching him sleeping during the show. We dim the lights, he tucks himself under my chin, silently cooing,and it is 46 minutes of uninterrupted time together. Yesterday I heard him say "Night-Night", and it was 730am. He is not really into the series as much as I thought.

After the episode is done, I head to the shop.

Life is good.

[RAV2]

You want to check out this thread:

http://www.bt3central.com/showthread.php?t=57837

.....…

TV:

We haven’t had cable here ever – over 21 years.

I live about 30 miles out of Boston and get great over the air reception.
I have a 120”, over 20 year old, antenna on the roof peak; with ‘home’ runs of good cable to 3 primary TVs and two more (media center PC and basement (gym) TV).

I get about 35 actual channels (including sub channels) and 18 of those are stations I watch on a regular basis. They recently added two movie channels in Boston – MOVIES! (a Fox sub channel) and COZI (as well as a new Bounce channel I haven’t got a good line on) - so there may be 19 key channels.

We’ve got You-do-it electronics here and they have everything an electronics aficionado could want. I bought a Harbor Freight cable tool and use it to terminate all my coaxial runs from the antenna. I also have a Zero Loss Splitter in the attic that splits the signal into non-degraded runs to all my TVs.

If you want to test your area’s reception, check TVfool.com or Antennaweb.org to start. Want to see something amazing, stick a piece of thin wire into the back of a modern TV (30 ga. bare buss wire for the technically competent), run the antenna scan, and see what you get for free with little effort – you’ll be amazed!

In summary, I get better – non-compressed Dolby 5.1 signals than many of my pals – ask them about the superbowl party we had with 3 OTA TVs running the same hi-def signals with surround sound in my house!

MOVIES/STREAMING:

We have had Netflix for years – since it’s inception. (I’ve also participated in early Roku beta testing but have backed off on this effort now). I’ve got Roku, Blueray players, PC’s, tablets, IPods, and smartphones on my Netflix account. All provide flawless performance. Could not find a better deal for $8 a month. I am not using my other $8 for disks as much as I should but the variety is endless.

Do you know that my kids watched every Adam-12 episode and loved them. Also Buffy, Emergency, Dragnet, and Hawaii 5 0.

I’m also a frequent Redbox renter at $1.56 per day for a blueray – for new releases.

PHONE:

There are 4 of us here, two teens, and we have 4 cell phones.
2 years ago, we dropped the land line. Notified the town and got our cell #’s on their systems (reverse 911) and I get all of the messages often before my landline neighbors.

Having 4 cell phones in the house, and 5 on my plan, I did not see a need for a land line. Similar to changing a phone #, you do some initial leg work and then the rest is ‘gravy’. I took a two phase approach.

My family is not so tolerant of bad cell reception (or other technical hiccups). I have a Verizon Femtocell in my house. My first one was purchased used (I checked with Verizon prior and they said no problem) and my second one (when I got some trouble) was $150 (down from $250 after negotiations). This ‘cell tower in my home’ is restricted to only the lines I assign to it and provides excellent reception that is shipped over my internet connection.

FYI – I have FIOS fiber to the home (15/5) and my internet meets the needs of the 4 of us – with lots of streaming – without issues.

Adding a XLink Bluetooth hub, allows me to have my cell phone connected to all of the wired lines in my home. Pick up a cordless phone in my house, and any of 3 Cell phones is connected. An almost perfect solution that provides a dial tone in the middle of the night. (See Amazon for reviews).

The best part of this is that no matter where I am, I have my phone, netflix, and often TV that I need. If you have a solid internet connection, you are ‘golden’. If not, then Redbox and limited cell use meet most of our needs.