Cutting the cord

[nodakfan17]

I’ve had the same basement exercise setup for 10 years.

 

I’ve watched The Office, Parks & Recreation, 30 Rock, How I Met Your Mother, Veep, King of Queens, and Married with Children multiple times on DVD. It’s been a great run.

 

Just this week, we stopped getting Laff over-the-air, which ran a lot of syndicated comedies around my bedtime. Watching an episode of That 70s Show had become my end of day reward and now I’m lost without that silly channel.

 

I’m a simple, frugal guy who has gotten by just fine with OTA TV and old DVDs for years, but I think it’s time to join the rest of the world. I can afford $9.99 per month for some new content.

 

Thanks again for the feedback, everyone.

[nate82]

I'm also still running a tube tv in my basement for the treadmill. It's 19 years old.

 

We just play DVDs on that tv, so not a big deal. The TV still works perfectly, so I'm just going to remain stubborn on that TV set up. lol

 

You may have to go to a digital signal or just use DVD as the coax cable is almost dead. Cable companies are going with wifi boxes now with no coax option.

[TURBO]

I'm also still running a tube tv in my basement for the treadmill. It's 19 years old.

 

We just play DVDs on that tv, so not a big deal. The TV still works perfectly, so I'm just going to remain stubborn on that TV set up. lol

 

You may have to go to a digital signal or just use DVD as the coax cable is almost dead. Cable companies are going with wifi boxes now with no coax option.

 

No box, no cable, nothing.

 

Just have a DVD player hooked up to the tv itself.

 

The only thing we play on that tv is dvds...

[Vgmastr]

I’m a simple, frugal guy who has gotten by just fine with OTA TV and old DVDs for years, but I think it’s time to join the rest of the world. I can afford $9.99 per month for some new content.

 

If you want some free content to stream, check out the Pluto TV app. There are a ton of channels on there with a lot of old shows. My favorite is an entire channel that plays nothing but old episodes of Price is Right hosted by Bob Barker 24/7.

[rondoman]

I’m a simple, frugal guy who has gotten by just fine with OTA TV and old DVDs for years, but I think it’s time to join the rest of the world. I can afford $9.99 per month for some new content.

 

If you want some free content to stream, check out the Pluto TV app. There are a ton of channels on there with a lot of old shows. My favorite is an entire channel that plays nothing but old episodes of Price is Right hosted by Bob Barker 24/7.

 

Pluto and Tubi are 2 great free services for streaming TV and movies.

[zurch1818]

The only downside to Roku right now is there is a major dispute between them and Google. YouTube TV has been pulled a while ago from their channel store and there is talk of also pulling the YouTube channel soon too...but I don't think that has happened yet. I was lucky enough that on both of my Rokus that I have them both channels downloaded already, so I am in the clear. I believe Google added a way to get YouTube TV to work through their YouTube app (which I believe is why they want to pull the YouTube app from their channel store too).

 

Since I am a subscriber to YouTube TV, over the summer they gave me a "free" Chromecast with Google TV. It is true that I didn't pay anything for it, but I'm sure I paid for it somewhere in my $65/month subscription. I will say that the experience on that device is nice. I've got two minor gripes with it. First, I tend to watch a lot of documentaries with closed caption on and some of the channels have the words cut off and I can't figure out how to fix this. It's not bad, but sometimes I have to pause to figure out what the first and last letters are. Second, I miss Roku's go back 10 seconds button. There is a way to kind of have it work that way, but it is more clunky. But overall, it is a pretty neat little device. It's basically a Chromecast that has a remote control and an actual "home" screen. Anyone that uses a Roku probably wouldn't notice that much of a difference. The remotes are nearly identical in size and functionality. There is even a volume rocker in the same spot.

[LouisEly]

The only downside to Roku right now is there is a major dispute between them and Google. YouTube TV has been pulled a while ago from their channel store and there is talk of also pulling the YouTube channel soon too...but I don't think that has happened yet.

That's why I went with an Amazon Fire Stick. Amazon is big enough where Google can't bully them around.

 

The Amazon Fire Stick can go forward or backwards 15 seconds using the remote. Right now you can get one half price for $20 on Best Buy.

[RobertR]

I'll just add that a lot of DVD players have inputs if you don't have room on the tv.

[BrewersSuperCollector]

My two cents...

 

I have been using the fire stick at least 5 years and have it on multiple TV's

 

I did the YouTubeTV for a two week trial when the Brewers playoffs were happening. The one major omission I seen was they don't have the History channel.

 

I first started setting up a VPN today. I've been thinking about it for years and did it today. I went with Surfshark. Holiday deal expires today. I have an idea its working on my home PC, but not sure on my Fire Stick yet.

[FVBrewerFan]

My two cents...

 

I have been using the fire stick at least 5 years and have it on multiple TV's

 

I did the YouTubeTV for a two week trial when the Brewers playoffs were happening. The one major omission I seen was they don't have the History channel.

 

I first started setting up a VPN today. I've been thinking about it for years and did it today. I went with Surfshark. Holiday deal expires today. I have an idea its working on my home PC, but not sure on my Fire Stick yet.

 

If you don't use YTTV, what do you use for content? Firestick is just a hardware device.

[BrewersSuperCollector]

….

[BrewersSuperCollector]

My two cents...

 

I have been using the fire stick at least 5 years and have it on multiple TV's

 

I did the YouTubeTV for a two week trial when the Brewers playoffs were happening. The one major omission I seen was they don't have the History channel.

 

I first started setting up a VPN today. I've been thinking about it for years and did it today. I went with Surfshark. Holiday deal expires today. I have an idea its working on my home PC, but not sure on my Fire Stick yet.

 

If you don't use YTTV, what do you use for content? Firestick is just a hardware device.

 

Cinema

[logan82]

The only downside to Roku right now is there is a major dispute between them and Google. YouTube TV has been pulled a while ago from their channel store and there is talk of also pulling the YouTube channel soon too...but I don't think that has happened yet.

That's why I went with an Amazon Fire Stick. Amazon is big enough where Google can't bully them around.

 

The Amazon Fire Stick can go forward or backwards 15 seconds using the remote. Right now you can get one half price for $20 on Best Buy.

The problem is if Amazon and Google get in a tiff, Youtube and Youtube TV disappear from Firestick. Same with Chromecast and Amazon Prime. You will get teh "no longer supported" from them.

[MrTPlush]

The only downside to Roku right now is there is a major dispute between them and Google. YouTube TV has been pulled a while ago from their channel store and there is talk of also pulling the YouTube channel soon too...but I don't think that has happened yet.

That's why I went with an Amazon Fire Stick. Amazon is big enough where Google can't bully them around.

 

The Amazon Fire Stick can go forward or backwards 15 seconds using the remote. Right now you can get one half price for $20 on Best Buy.

The problem is if Amazon and Google get in a tiff, Youtube and Youtube TV disappear from Firestick. Same with Chromecast and Amazon Prime. You will get teh "no longer supported" from them.

 

Not completely true. Many times if you have it downloaded it stays on. When Roku dropped Youtube TV nothing happened on my end. I know there have been other instances where you are basically grandfathered in.

[CheezWizHed]

I have a Roku TV (TCL) and Tivo setup in my living room and love it except... Roku's remote stinks. Yes, it is simple, but a bit too simple. There are fixed shortcuts to launch Sling, Netflix and a couple other apps I don't or rarely use. And they only have a skip forward button, no skip backwards.

[igor67]

I just got a Firestick, and was wondering if anyone had any ideas on why it might be doing noticeably worse on a Speed Test than my laptop? I'm using it primarily to stream Sling and my over the air channels via an AirTV anywhere device. It definitely appears to be Firestick specific because I have an Xfinity box and it doesn't give me the buffering issues I first noticed. I'd just use that for Sling, but it's not compatible with the Over the Air parts. I tried restart it and clearing the cache, and It doesn't quite seem to make a difference. It's only 3-4 ft from my router.

[Baldkin]

I just got a Firestick, and was wondering if anyone had any ideas on why it might be doing noticeably worse on a Speed Test than my laptop? I'm using it primarily to stream Sling and my over the air channels via an AirTV anywhere device. It definitely appears to be Firestick specific because I have an Xfinity box and it doesn't give me the buffering issues I first noticed. I'd just use that for Sling, but it's not compatible with the Over the Air parts. I tried restart it and clearing the cache, and It doesn't quite seem to make a difference. It's only 3-4 ft from my router.

 

Is it running the latest OS? Is it overheating?

 

https://www.firesticktricks.com/fix-firestick-buffering.html

[igor67]

It tends to be noticeable right away, so I don't think overheating is an issue. OS is definitely up to date. My Network strength is high as well. I tested it the other night I could stream Disney+ just fine through my Xfinity box, but not without buffering on the firestick.

[TURBO]

lol

 

That past couple of pages have not convinced me in the slightest that people who go through all the streaming, equipment, different services, etc,etc, etc have it any better than those of us who are over paying for cable.

 

I will be checking into TDS as soon as it becomes available in my area, which will be pretty darn soon since they have been digging up the neighborhood the past week.

 

Before making the switch, I of course will be giving Spectrum one last chance to come down in price, which will then have them politely telling me to go pound sand.

[MrTPlush]

Love streaming services. Smart TVs combined with streaming services for the win. Can put a TV anywhere and get logged in…boom TV. Stick TV out on the patio in the summer, boom. Put a bunch of TVs on the wall for the home bar, boom. Put TV anywhere in the room and not have to worry about where the cable hook up is, boom. In almost two years I have never had to call YouTube TV and they never send someone to come in my house to fix things. No scam first year pricing and no massive price hikes.

 

The only downside is no Brewers, but thankfully I have someone close enough to me to share their login information.

 

I guess I’m just not attached to my TV shows and specific stations to need to bow down to cable to have everything. The Brewers are the closest thing, but I wouldn’t even consider paying cable prices to watch it on TV. Id just watch the national games and go to a handful in person…I’d be perfectly fine. I think I could do with an even cheaper option, but the wife demands Big Ten Network which I couldn’t care less about.

[SeaBass]

lol

 

That past couple of pages have not convinced me in the slightest that people who go through all the streaming, equipment, different services, etc,etc, etc have it any better than those of us who are over paying for cable.

I don't think you're any less susceptible to equipment issues or technical difficulties with cable than using streaming services. So again, this falls short of being a relevant point to me.

[adambr2]

There isn't any right or wrong answer, it's just a matter of personal preference. There's many factors that go into it, with the two main ones probably being what you're willing to pay, and what kind of content you're looking for. Straight cable or a streaming type of live TV will work fine for some, others wanting to watch specific shows may only find them available on Netflix, Hulu, Paramount, Peacock, etc.

[TURBO]

So again, this falls short of being a relevant point to me.

 

Ok, but it is relevant to me, so...

[DuWayne Steurer]

lol

 

That past couple of pages have not convinced me in the slightest that people who go through all the streaming, equipment, different services, etc,etc, etc have it any better than those of us who are over paying for cable.

 

.

 

a smart tv and a laptop. or a fire stick

 

or just the smart tv and 5 minutes to set it up. you're convinced there's all this crazy next gen gear required, and there just isn't.

 

but hey.... everyone do what's best for them

[OldSchoolSnapper]

Cable is sadly the optimal choice for anyone whose top priority is watching every single local sports game they can. I don't have cable and I know there is a lot of resistance to this idea but in my opinion it is the truth. It's not relevant to me because I'm simply not sitting down to watch 150 Brewers and 65 Bucks games for a multitude of reasons. If you're dropping in a couple times a month, it's an enormous price gouge. The rest of the service is awful. In my experience of saving a few dollars with other options, you do sacrifice some quality. When I've had cable, I can count on one hand the number of times I couldn't see what I wanted. With streaming there are issues much more frequently. I'm in a weird Spectrum pocket where the Internet service is $17.99 a month, so the VPN/streaming route is a massive savings for me. But I still end up not using it enough to justify YouTubeTV or something.

 

Personally I would rather read a book or go snowshoeing/hiking than watch TV that often, but if someone is dead-set on catching all the Brewers they can, without a bunch of annoying flopping between junk, cable still wins. Unfortunately.

 

I'm experienced in piracy and it's wonderful for me, but my Dad is simply never going to use a firestick and a laptop to see the Brewers. It just won't happen.