Extremely OT: Cut the Cable?

[Footslogger]

Hi Guys. I know this should go I the General Discussion, but I trust this forum's knowledge and expertise.

In addition, I consider you all my friends too.

My question is, have you guys cut the cable?

I'm on Comcast basic and paying $87 per month, just so my mom can watch The Food Channel. Crazy huh?

So I just found out about Sling TV. It has all the channels I want (includes The Food Channel) for just $20 per month through Roku, Amazon Fire TV, etc.

What internet speed is needed for 1080p? There are 2 smart TV's in the house that are capable of 1080p. Any ideas?

[Lowpe]

We got rid of cable 15 years ago. Don't miss it.

Amazon prime is all we have.

[Rising-Sun]

Yup and included the cable company as well. If you have stock up on dvd movies you like and Netflix is all you need. Don't remember what broadband you will need for 1080p, but if you don't have the right hardware, then it wont matter.

I have cable service (Timewarner) and I hated it, need it for broadband, but I don't watch cable tv, the old ladies live here does. So I cant argue with that, least they are paying for it and huge waste of money.

Depend on your areas, if you can have it or not. Comcast is really bad services and stay away from wireless connection, they aren't accurate at all.

[Anachro]

Yes, cut it. I get all my tv needs from amazon prime nowadays.

[Footslogger]

Okay guys. Remember if Amazon Prime does not have the Food Channel, that's a deal breaker. So I can't find a channel list on Amazon Prime?

[Lowpe]

Look for food shows on youtube?[&:]

Amazon prime has shows, movies, etc not channels, and in general they rotate.

Some TV stations air over the web anyhow...we just watched an episode of X-Files streaming from the Fox website for example.

[Footslogger]

Correction. It's the cable channel Food Network.

[wdolson]

I went with Dish Network in the mid-90s. I had to go back to cable for internet for a while, but I love being able to time shift cable programming. Most of the cable programs are the eastern feeds, so living in the Pacific time zone, prime time starts at 5 PM. I wish we could get eastern feeds for the networks too, but there are legal reasons they don't.

It's not the cheapest mode out there anymore and we find ourselves going to the internet more and more for programming. We have a computer connected to the TV for this. I may be downgrading or eliminating the satellite at some point because so much is available on the internet, though the satellite does make it easier to record programming for later.

I don't know how fast the internet connection has to be for 1080p, we have 50 Mbs so I never think about it.

Bill

[Lokasenna]

ORIGINAL: wdolson

I went with Dish Network in the mid-90s. I had to go back to cable for internet for a while, but I love being able to time shift cable programming. Most of the cable programs are the eastern feeds, so living in the Pacific time zone, prime time starts at 5 PM. I wish we could get eastern feeds for the networks too, but there are legal reasons they don't.

It's not the cheapest mode out there anymore and we find ourselves going to the internet more and more for programming. We have a computer connected to the TV for this. I may be downgrading or eliminating the satellite at some point because so much is available on the internet, though the satellite does make it easier to record programming for later.

I don't know how fast the internet connection has to be for 1080p, we have 50 Mbs so I never think about it.

Bill

Well... like many things, it depends. What is the bitrate? That will determine how fast you need your connection to be, and the bitrate can vary even among videos of the same visual resolution. But in general, I think you could get by with a reliable 10 Mbps or so (that's about 1 MB/sec), just as long as it always maintained at least that speed and you weren't clogging it with other stuff.

We're lucky enough in the mid Atlantic to have Verizon competing with Comcast, so both give fairly reliable service, although Comcast is the worse of the two to me.

[warspite1]

ORIGINAL: Footslogger

Hi Guys. I know this should go I the General Discussion, but I trust this forum's knowledge and expertise.

warspite1

Plus you don't want to be going to the General Discussion Forum alone - apparently its a "really scary place".... [8|]

Good Grief...

[JocMeister]

Who needs TV these days? Netflix and Youtube can do everything TV can but better. [:)]

[Bullwinkle58]

ORIGINAL: JocMeister

Who needs TV these days? Netflix and Youtube can do everything TV can but better. [:)]

In the US not live sports. They're by far the #1 reason people still have cable/satellite/OTA antennas.

And while I love Netflix for the old TV series, their movie selection is very B-grade. Movie licenses are bought strategically. Over here there are so many uncut-movie outlets it's very, very expensive to cover them all if you are a movie buff. Not only the classics like HBO and Showtime, but Hulu, Amazon Plus, Google, and a whole menu of tiny ones that might buy one or two AAA movie licenses every year. For example we wanted to watch "The Martian." We have all the DirecTV pay movie channels, plus Netflix. (We're canceling some of the satellite stuff this month; Netflix has taken over the available time.) But "The Martian" was only available on some lousy channel named VuDo or something. I just bought the DVD for ten bucks and we watched it that night.

TV is changing at speeds hitherto unseen. The dinosaur outlets like the old networks are not adjusting well. Sports is their last bastion.

[JocMeister]

ORIGINAL: Bullwinkle58
In the US not live sports. They're by far the #1 reason people still have cable/satellite/OTA antennas.

And while I love Netflix for the old TV series, their movie selection is very B-grade. Movie licenses are bought strategically. Over here there are so many uncut-movie outlets it's very, very expensive to cover them all if you are a movie buff. Not only the classics like HBO and Showtime, but Hulu, Amazon Plus, Google, and a whole menu of tiny ones that might buy one or two AAA movie licenses every year. For example we wanted to watch "The Martian." We have all the DirecTV pay movie channels, plus Netflix. (We're canceling some of the satellite stuff this month; Netflix has taken over the available time.) But "The Martian" was only available on some lousy channel named VuDo or something. I just bought the DVD for ten bucks and we watched it that night.

TV is changing at speeds hitherto unseen. The dinosaur outlets like the old networks are not adjusting well. Sports is their last bastion.

Ah, a bit different here with sports. Quite hard to explain though but usually the state run TV shows the major stuff like Olympics and World Championships. They usually share them with one of the private networks.

If I would like to see some Swedish soccer or ice hockey I could watch it over the internet from one of the sports networks. They usually sell packages or individual matches. You can then stream it directly from their site.

So at least in Sweden the old cable networks have adapted. One of the biggest (ViaSat) even have their own "Netflix/HBO rival".

[stretch]

Sports is what keeps me on Dish Network and that's it. For example.. on a Saturday in the fall here in the USA, college football is spread out at least among 4 major networks, 3 ESPN channels plus 2 alternate feeds, two Fox channels, and 3 Regional/conference specific sports networks. No telling which one your team might be on, and I watch more than my team.

Baseball/Hockey I can get online packages for, but my local team is blacked out on there so I'm forced to have a regional network to see those (legally)

Premier League football? Need cable/satellite if you want any real coverage at all, and there's not much to begin with.

If sports were not an issue, I would cut the cord in an instant. Sadly there's nothing over the horizon that will change this situation anytime soon.

[HansBolter]

Public television broadcast channels have just as many great food shows as the food channel without having to pay a dime more than the cost of a good digital antennae.

Been cable free for close to twenty years with a small hiccup for two years when my late brother moved in with me and absolutely had to have cable.

[Bullwinkle58]

ORIGINAL: stretch

Sports is what keeps me on Dish Network and that's it. For example.. on a Saturday in the fall here in the USA, college football is spread out at least among 4 major networks, 3 ESPN channels plus 2 alternate feeds, two Fox channels, and 3 Regional/conference specific sports networks. No telling which one your team might be on, and I watch more than my team.

Baseball/Hockey I can get online packages for, but my local team is blacked out on there so I'm forced to have a regional network to see those (legally)

Premier League football? Need cable/satellite if you want any real coverage at all, and there's not much to begin with.

If sports were not an issue, I would cut the cord in an instant. Sadly there's nothing over the horizon that will change this situation anytime soon.

Yeah, the quantity of live sports in the USA media markets is pretty unique in the world. Just having such a huge college realm makes it so, before the plethora of sports types. Just following basketball can be a full-time job. Baseball as well if you have an MLB package.

[Bullwinkle58]

ORIGINAL: HansBolter

Public television broadcast channels have just as many great food shows as the food channel without having to pay a dime more than the cost of a good digital antennae.

Been cable free for close to twenty years with a small hiccup for two years when my late brother moved in with me and absolutely had to have cable.

The Food Channel shows aren't about the food though. They're celebrity fests and/or reality competition shows. Not about the cooking so much.

Girl of the Prairie is over the moon on all types of real estate and DIY home repair/remodeling shows. They're the same way. Not so much how to swing a hammer as about a young, photogenic couple looking for a nest to start a family. And only a budget of $500,000 to work with. Boo hoo.

[kaleun]

Problem is you still need broadband, so you either get it from the cable provider, or the phone provider, or dish which is just like cable. Then you need the Roku subscription, and the premium (HBO etc) subscriptions so its 6 of one and half a dozen of the other.

[Footslogger]

So I did a lot of searching and found these two videos on YouTube.com. The first on is called Tiger Stream. So for all the sports fans out there, this maybe for you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1riuEXoDu0

The second is call Sling TV. Now Sling TV is put out by Dish Network. Now it currently $20 per month, but I have heard of constant buffering from reviews.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOy3gjKdago

Please tell me what you guys think. Honestly, I'm doing all this just to get the Food Network for my mom or mum if your English, otherwise it would be straight antenna.

[Bullwinkle58]

ORIGINAL: kaleun

Problem is you still need broadband, so you either get it from the cable provider, or the phone provider, or dish which is just like cable. Then you need the Roku subscription, and the premium (HBO etc) subscriptions so its 6 of one and half a dozen of the other.

We have DSL from the phone company in a triple-play with a landline and the satellite. Cuts the bill a bit. It's fast enough for Netflix via Roku and ChromeCast WiFi. (Have both.) No dealings with cable company since we got DirecTV.

There's no Roku subscription. (?)

You can now get HBO and Showtime as stand-alone subscriptions without going through either a cable company or a satellite. I think HBO is worth it for its back library. Not for movies anymore. But I gots to have my GOT fix. [8D]