Getting rid of cable

Brewer's Friend 728
Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
D

dyennie

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 28, 2011
Messages
81
Reaction score
18
Location
chesapeake
OK, I'm fed up with the high prices for services that I really don't want/need. I'm cutting the cord and going to put an antenna on my TVs. I'll have internet and will use netflix/huluplus to stream as I want. I still want a DVR to record over the air TV and looking at the Channel Master DVR+. Does anyone here have one or something else and how happy are you with it???
 
I hear you on high prices for TV providers. If you watch Sports though, it's tough because you need cable or satellite to get live sports. I have found though that for myself, since I really only watch football, I just go down to a bare bones package from Jan-September and that helps cut the cost significantly. I have Dish Network.
 
I would get the OTA antenna set up, but I would hold on the DVR. You many find that between the limited channels OTA sometimes delivers and what is available on netflix/hulu/etc that you may not bother to record much any more.

Keep in mind that DVR were invented because networks aired things on their schedule, and viewers wanted to watch them on their schedule. With streaming you watch what you want, when you want.
 
Tivo and Netflix. Dropped my cable TV a few months ago. Even at $15 a month for the Tivo and $8 for Netflix, knocking $80 off my cable bill means more money to brew.

edit:
Tivo box is a four DVR recorder and gets OTA TV and sports.

This is the box I went with. $50
 
I cut the cord 3 years ago. The one down side for me was the loss of live sports.

I put an antenna in my attic, to get it up i the air a bit for better reception. Then i ran coax from that down into my basement - where the cable amplifier and splitters were. I just put the coax from my antenna in where the cable came in and the while house was fed off the one antenna.

I have a hauppage tv tuner card on my pc i bought for about 80 bucks. This is receives the antenna feed. I the use windows media center to record shows.

I use plex to play what is on the pc to my tvs. I do not have smart tvs, but i use roku for the netflix and for plex.

I find i watch less tv, which is a good thing. But when i want to watch it i gave plenty if options. My kids don't even know what cable is. Hah!

Good luck!
 
Haven't had cable in over a year. Just use Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Antenna. Still paying $50 a month for just Internet. Adding TV would add $70 to the bill and tahts with a discounted deal. Dont really miss TV at all. i also torrent so i can always get what i want to watch if need be.
 
broadbill said:
Keep in mind that DVR were invented because networks aired things on their schedule, and viewers wanted to watch them on their schedule. With streaming you watch what you want, when you want.
Click to expand...
No. DVRs were invented to replace VCRs. Providers just decided to seize control of the DVR market so they could maintain data for their advertisers and make additional money off the rental/selling of the hardware.
 
I cut the cable nearly 4, maybe 5 years ago. Bill was up to $350 a month for phone/cable/iNet. I still pay out the nose for iNet but at a fraction of what I spent before. Keep one thing in mind. Your iNet service may have a hard or soft data use limit. Once you cut the cord, your data use will go up dramatically. Between 2 tablets, a desktop PC, 3 Roku, an Xbox, VOIP, and 2 cell phones we use almost 350GB of data a month. Yes, we are continuously over 300GB each month.

Look into an application called PlayLater. Will turn your PC into a DVR. Despite the advantage of streaming being when you want, PlayLater can be set to record series episodes when they become available on the network stream.
 
I haven't paid for TV since before I was married so at least 17 years. We don't watch a lot of TV anyway so it may have been easier for us than for others. I live at the top of a tall hill and get 62 channels with a homemade antenna in my attic. I built a MythTV DVR from an old desktop computer and a couple of HDhomerun receivers. I have a decent DVD collection, we borrow movies from the library, stream Netflix, Amazon, Google Play, etc., and have no complaints. The best part is I never have to watch commercials.
 
edroberts said:
No. DVRs were invented to replace VCRs. Providers just decided to seize control of the DVR market so they could maintain data for their advertisers and make additional money off the rental/selling of the hardware.
Click to expand...

uh ok...so VCRs were being used to record show because people didn't want to watch them when the networks were airing them and the technology improvements lead to the DVR. Thank you for the non-sequitur, our lives have all been enriched by your comment.
:cross:
 
AnOldUR said:
Tivo and Netflix. Dropped my cable TV a few months ago. Even at $15 a month for the Tivo and $8 for Netflix, knocking $80 off my cable bill means more money to brew.

edit:
Tivo box is a four DVR recorder and gets OTA TV and sports.

This is the box I went with. $50
Click to expand...

I'm glad to see TiVO finally got it together enough to stop selling $300-400 boxes in the age of $35 roku/chromecast/fireTV etc....but $15/month just for an updated channel line up? That's another no-go for me. Frankly, I'm surprised TiVo is still in business.
 
broadbill said:
....but $15/month just for an updated channel line up? That's another no-go for me. Frankly, I'm surprised TiVo is still in business.
Click to expand...
Yeah, that was a hard sell for me, but in my desperation to bail on cable it was way easier to swallow than my cable bill. If / when there is someone else providing this service for OTA TV (is there?) the price would come down. It is a nice user friendly format, just not worth $15/mo.
 
AnOldUR said:
Yeah, that was a hard sell for me, but in my desperation to bail on cable it was way easier to swallow than my cable bill. If / when there is someone else providing this service for OTA TV (is there?) the price would come down. It is a nice user friendly format, just not worth $15/mo.
Click to expand...

MythTV appears to run on a service called Schedules Direct, which costs 25/year, open source, etc.

The nice thing about TiVO is that their service is all pretty, integrated etc. I agree, if you want the plug/play, set/forget option...TiVO is the way to go.
 
Sling TV just came out for 20 a month. It has ESPN and some others. Looks like a way to get our sports and still cut the cable.
 
We did it 3 or 4 years back. We have an old school antenna since we live rural plus Netflix, no complaints, never felt like I was missing much. Even great shows like It's Always Sunny, Mad Men, end up on Netflix.
 
I cut my cable a year ago. I'm a big hockey fan and get a yearly pass to watch all the games. Football, I watch on regular TV and get most of the games in HD online for free. If you have a friend/family member with cable, you can get access to many online sites (HBO, Showtime, AMC . . . etc.).

Good luck with your decision! Hopefully you're not canceling Xfinity . . . they'll keep you on the phone for an hour. LOL
 
I cut the cord about 1 year ago after going to basic cable (local channels) 2 years ago. We have all the local channels in HD/Dolby Digital with our antenna, and Netflix.

Just this week I bought a cheap digital tuner that has DVR functionality. I don't need the tuner, as my TV has one, but since it has one, I run the antenna into a splitter, then one out to the TV and one to the tuner that has basic DVR functionality via my 64 GB USB drive. That way I can watch one channel and record at the same time if I need to. Could also use a USB external hard drive. It's pretty basic, but allows me to record American Idol for my daughter, which is all I'm really looking for. It was only $35, records in HD/Dolby Digital. Still experimenting with it, but for $35, it fits my needs.
homeworx hw180stb
 
I've been stealing cable from my neighbors for a couple years now. I must say it's a lot less expensive than paying for it yourself. I've been dropping hints for them to upgrade their premium package, but so far, nothing. Some people's neighbors, am I right?!
 
dyennie said:
OK, I'm fed up with the high prices for services that I really don't want/need. I'm cutting the cord and going to put an antenna on my TVs. I'll have internet and will use netflix/huluplus to stream as I want. I still want a DVR to record over the air TV and looking at the Channel Master DVR+. Does anyone here have one or something else and how happy are you with it???
Click to expand...

My town does not have a cable company.

We were using Netflix, up until a month ago, when we finally dropped it.

No OTA TV here either.

Some of our neighbors have satellite dishes. I do not.

There is plenty online for free.
 
I'm a 'victim' of cable. Or should I say, a victim of my own ignorance. As the technology and choices increase, I am too technologically-inept to keep up. I'm sure a lot of cable customers are much like myself, unaware of other options and how to access them, and so we acquiesce to the vast array of mindless and costly trash included in the package just to get Wheel, Jeopardy and the occasional football game.
 
SWMBO and I cut the cable about 3 years back. I built a media server, burned our DVD library to it and show it with Plex fed through a Roku box. We have Netflix and Amazon as well and I use a program on our media server called Sickbeard to see current TV shows. We're not sports fans so the lack of ESPN doesn't bother us although I just saw an ad saying that you could get ESPN on a Roku now so that's no longer an issue for those who want it.

Side benefit...any BBC shows such as Sherlock or Downton Abbey? I see them a year early. It's kinda fun to listen to people saying how much they can't wait to see the next season of whatever and then see the look on their faces when I tell them I've already seen it...and then pull up the mobile Plex app on my phone and prove it to them. Bwa-ha-ha-ha!!!!

One weird thing for us though is when we're traveling or visiting someone and we see commercials on TV. I haven't watched a commercial in my house in 3 years.
 
jcoxen said:
SWMBO and I cut the cable about 3 years back. I built a media server, burned our DVD library to it and show it with Plex fed through a Roku box. We have Netflix and Amazon as well and I use a program on our media server called Sickbeard to see current TV shows. We're not sports fans so the lack of ESPN doesn't bother us although I just saw an ad saying that you could get ESPN on a Roku now so that's no longer an issue for those who want it.

Side benefit...any BBC shows such as Sherlock or Downton Abbey? I see them a year early. It's kinda fun to listen to people saying how much they can't wait to see the next season of whatever and then see the look on their faces when I tell them I've already seen it...and then pull up the mobile Plex app on my phone and prove it to them. Bwa-ha-ha-ha!!!!

One weird thing for us though is when we're traveling or visiting someone and we see commercials on TV. I haven't watched a commercial in my house in 3 years.
Click to expand...

Thank you for the sickbeard mention. My wife adores british drama/romantic comedy. I will look into this for her. We've been able to get her fix through other means but they have been inconsistent.
 
GilaMinumBeer said:
Thank you for the sickbeard mention. My wife adores british drama/romantic comedy. I will look into this for her. We've been able to get her fix through other means but they have been inconsistent.
Click to expand...

Sickbeard is available here. It works with a program called SABnzbd to find the shows, download them and then pass them to Plex which catalogs them and plays them either via an app on your PC or whatever or through a Roku.

There are bunches of different "How To's" around the internet that will walk you through the setup.
 
dyennie said:
Just went there and it looked like malware tried to load onto my computer. Have you had this as an issue???
Click to expand...

Nope..I have some pretty stout anti-malware software loaded up on my machine as well as pop-up blockers/anti-virus software running at all times. Keeps that additional crap they have on there from loading up.
Been using it for the last 6 months with no issue. I do watch it more on my iPad and Xbox One than on a PC though.
 
I'm still paying for cable each month... $120, not including the additional fee for internet. Then on top of that, I'm paying for Netflix. I have wanted to cut the cord for a while now, but I don't know enough about technology to make an educated decision on what to do.

The only thing I watch on cable television religiously is NFL football every fall. Everything else I can watch on Netflix.

With that being said, is there a way I can cut the cord, still be able to watch football since it's on basic cable stations? I don't want a dish either .... I have a bad experience with DirectTV. I do have high-speed internet and wifi in my house. My television is NOT wifi, but would gladly buy a new TV if it would eliminate the need for my $120 cable bill per month. Hell, after a few months of not having a cable bill, the new TV would pay for itself!

What are my options?
 
CraigKing said:
I'm still paying for cable each month... $120, not including the additional fee for internet. Then on top of that, I'm paying for Netflix. I have wanted to cut the cord for a while now, but I don't know enough about technology to make an educated decision on what to do.

The only thing I watch on cable television religiously is NFL football every fall. Everything else I can watch on Netflix.

With that being said, is there a way I can cut the cord, still be able to watch football since it's on basic cable stations? I don't want a dish either .... I have a bad experience with DirectTV. I do have high-speed internet and wifi in my house. My television is NOT wifi, but would gladly buy a new TV if it would eliminate the need for my $120 cable bill per month. Hell, after a few months of not having a cable bill, the new TV would pay for itself!

What are my options?
Click to expand...

I'd recommend a Roku. There are 4 different models - all with WiFi. You get the one that has the appropriate connections for your TV so you don't have to upgrade your TV if you don't want to. The most expensive one - Roku 3 - is for Hi-Def HDMI input flat screens and costs about $100. The least expensive one - Roku 1 - is for older picture tube style TVs and costs about $50. Compare them all here.

BTW, I assume that the ChromeCast and Apple TV solutions (and others) will do the same but I'm familiar with Roku and have been using them for years so that's what I recommend.

Keep your high-speed internet, disconnect the cable. There's a Netflix channel on the Roku - it's a free app. There's also an ESPN channel - description here.

That's all you need for what you said you watch.

Hope this helps.
 
I second the Roku3. I have 2 of them in my house. Easy to set up and use. My friend just got a amazon fire tv stick, and from what I have seen, and from his comments it is less than impressive. He also has a chromecast and it appears to me to be a happy medium. Having seen the fire tv stick, chromecast, and roku3. I certainly think the Roku 3 is wrth the extra money.

I purchased one of my Roku3 via amazon new, and picked the second up at a pawn shop really cheap.
 
The only reason why we have cable right no is because Comcast gave it to us free for one year with the internet package. It recently should have expired but we still get cable. There was a small (~$10) increase in my bill so maybe I'm paying for basic (SD) cable now? I'll definitely drop it though once it gets more expensive.
Netflix and Amazon prime are all we need really.
 
Ok, so the million dollar question is, if I get a Roku 3, will I still be able to watch football next fall when it's televised on networks like ABC, CBS, Fox ? Or ONLY when it's on ESPN?
 
CraigKing said:
Ok, so the million dollar question is, if I get a Roku 3, will I still be able to watch football next fall when it's televised on networks like ABC, CBS, Fox ? Or ONLY when it's on ESPN?
Click to expand...

Get an antenna. I have an antenna for broadcast sports and a Roku for ESPN and everything else.

Anyone know anything about this Sling channel Roku sent an email about recently?
 
I have an antenna in my attic...picks up roughly 60 channels but many are educational...its great for locals. Also have dish but so want to dump it.
 
My list of demands. Find me a solution and the DirecTV box gets it!

1) I want one "box" at each TV. Only one box. Not a box and a Chromecast. Not a Roku and a Amazon Fire TV Stick. One box. No changing inputs.
2) It has to be easy to use. If it's not easy to use, my wife will *NOT* allow me to get rid of DirecTV.
3) It must play saved movies (either on its own storage or streamed from a NAS).
4) It should be able to record OTA channels (I will buy an antenna as needed).
5) Preferred to be able to playback Amazon Prime Video and Hulu Plus.
6) Preferred to be able to playback Sling TV.
7) Ideally the "main" box at the primary TV will be able to stream video to the "clients" at each other TV. However, if I have to go to a single server (NAS/etc not connected to TV) and then each TV is purely a client, I can do that too.

I think that's about it. I've been playing with XBMC (now known as Kodi), but it doesn't support Amazon and Hulu. Yes, I know I can get access to basically ANY content through potentially less-than-legal streaming via XBMC add-ons, but frankly I'd rather use a simple interface like Hulu or Amazon because it's easier for the family, and because I feel better about it anyway.

My original goal was a mini-PC at the main TV, and then an Intel Compute Stick at each of the other TVs, all running XBMC. But since Amazon and Hulu won't work, I'm not sure where to go...

Thoughts?
 
I did some research and thanks to the local topography, there aren't any channels floating around that an antenna will be able to get me.
 
Got rid of cable 3-4 years ago, use netflix mail order and streaming and a few internet services. Maybe miss TV at first, but after a while you realize how much time you were just sitting there watching total crap.
Sports are a challenge, if you are a tv sports addict then keep cable.
Now I read more, study things that interest me, rent movies I want to see, and enjoy doing more than being a couch potato.
 

Similar threads

I
SS Brewtech InfuSSion Mash Tun Custom Heater
Replies
7
Views
1K
Indian_villager
I
Rodent
Starlink - anybody finding this the best internet solution for where you're located?
2
Replies
77
Views
5K
Rodent
Rodent
Hop
Ongoing Review: BrewHardware Premium Recirculating BIAB Package
Replies
4
Views
1K
Bobby_M
Bobby_M
eestisiin
Off Flavour that I cant get rid off!?
Replies
31
Views
3K
eestisiin
eestisiin
A
BrewPiLess esp32 Build
Replies
4
Views
801
DuncB
D
Williams Brewing 300

Latest posts

Back
Top