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We've cut the cable (6 Viewers)
- Thread starter Addai's Adidas
- Start date
Doug B
Footballguy
True. And at this time, most markets won't get any streaming local channels anyway. Although, it looks like it's basically the top 20 U.S. TV markets plus several more that are getting local ABC, NBC, CBS, and Fox via streaming ... so population-wise, it might be more than half of Americans.
JoeSteeler
Footballguy
roku has several hidden/private channels that are useful...https://www.rokuguide.com/private-channelsDragons said:
USTVNOW - Appears to be free CBS, NBC, ABC, FOX for those "living outside" the US. It asks you what country you "live in" when you sign up. http://watch.ustvnow.com/guide
XTV - has multiple free streaming channels and free on demand content including movies https://www.rokuguide.com/private-channels/xtv
CHANNEL PEAR - gives you the option to add several channels, some work better than others. MLB network works great, other channels (ESPN, NFL network, FS1, FS2) are hit and miss https://channelpear.com/
Politician Spock
Footballguy
Here is my channel lineup on my Tivo connected to an antenna in Columbus, OH
- 4-1 NBC
- 4-2 Me TV
- 4-3 ION TV
- 6-1 ABC
- 6-2 This TV (lots of movies)
- 6-3 Antenna TV
- 10-1 CBS
- 10-2 Decades
- 23-1 Bounce TV
- 28-1 FOX
- 28-2 Get TV
- 28-3 American Sports Network
- 32-7 Cozi TV
- 34-1 PBS
- 34-3 Create TV (like a poor man's HGTV)
- 34-4 PBS Kids (for our 9 year old)
- 53-1 The CW
- 53-2 Charge
- 53-3 Comet TV
There are other channels I get, but leave out of my guide such as:19-1 & 2; 23-2; 32-1 thru 6 & 8; 34-2; and 51-1 thru 5. They are either government, religious, or foreign speaking channels that I would never watch.
So we watch 19 out of the 35 channels being broadcast in our area (obviously some more than others). If we were to just watch the local channels the streaming services include, we would only get 4 of them (ABC, NBC, CBS and FOX).
Thus I highly recommend anyone looking to cut the cord to get an antenna.... unless you are so far away from a city that you can't tune in any of all this free content.
ghostguy123
Footballguy
Doesn't Sling TV just work for one TV for each device?
MattFancy
Footballguy
ghostguy123
Footballguy
ghostguy123
Footballguy
Talking about Sling.
Trying to clarify what previous guy was talking about
As for the rokus/firestick/chromecast stuff, can you watch live TV with that, and if so, what can you get?
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Dragons
Delusions of Grandeur
Doug B
Footballguy
... is this as simple as "lying" to the Roku box? Nothing is cross-checked with billing records or anything?
JoeSteeler
Footballguy
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Doug B
Footballguy
This is service-dependent (DirecTV Now, Sling TV, PlayStation Vue, etc.) rather than device-dependent (Roku, FireStick, etc.).
I can only answer for DirecTV Now: right now, viewers in large markets (~Top 20) can see their local network channels through their service. In my market, we don't get our local channels through DirecTV Now -- we have to get them over the air with an antenna. This is supposed to change in the near future ... we'll see.
Uruk-Hai
Footballguy
Doug's right - it's service/market dependent. I have a Sling package and can get my local NBC & Fox stations. CBS & ABC have yet to get on board in my area. But I don't use Sling - at this point - for my locals; I still have a basic (just locals) cable package because I'm too far out to use an OTA antenna and I'm not giving those channels up. CBS seems to be loosening up a little for skinny bundles, so we'll see.
Doug B
Footballguy
Yeah, AT&T and CBS just came to an agreement last week ... so DirecTV Now will have on-demand content from all the major national networks, plus the CW (unless we count the CW as a fifth major).
Nathan R. Jessep
Footballguy
The main thing I have noticed since dumping Comcast cable is that I just don't watch much TV any more. I read, listen to music, and only occasionally turn on Kodi, Mobdro or Netflix now.
Shutout
Footballguy
It looks like the thread title should be "We've cut the cable...down...a bit".
Somewhere along the way we morphed from eliminating cable to streaming slightly cheaper cable-like services. I don't think we are talking about truly cutting an overpriced service anymore. It's more like kicking cocaine but then picking up weed: cheaper but we aren't coming clean here.
I'm still proud of what we've done in this thread and appreciative of the thread (it helped me cut the cable a couple of years ago and I couldn't be happier with my OTA Leaf antenna, some Netflix, AP, and a couple of streaming boxes) and the timing was really great. I think we in this thread were really on the forefront of the big cutting cable push that has occurred the past few years. But at this point in the game we've gone from giving the man the finger to telling our buddies its okay to hook up with the fat chick as long as nobody sees us do it.
Somewhere along the way we morphed from eliminating cable to streaming slightly cheaper cable-like services. I don't think we are talking about truly cutting an overpriced service anymore. It's more like kicking cocaine but then picking up weed: cheaper but we aren't coming clean here.
I'm still proud of what we've done in this thread and appreciative of the thread (it helped me cut the cable a couple of years ago and I couldn't be happier with my OTA Leaf antenna, some Netflix, AP, and a couple of streaming boxes) and the timing was really great. I think we in this thread were really on the forefront of the big cutting cable push that has occurred the past few years. But at this point in the game we've gone from giving the man the finger to telling our buddies its okay to hook up with the fat chick as long as nobody sees us do it.
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Tick
Footballguy
...except that the fat chick saw that we weren't interested and lost 20 lbs. Now we can get a single month of streaming with no hookup fees or contracts, and cancel online... all without talking to customer service that feels like a punishment.
I'm good with where we are for now - I have Prime and Netflix only, plus Kodi/USTVNow/Mobdro here and there. I watch very little TV, my kids don't understand commercials, and if there's a World Cup or Olympics, I can pay $40 to get streaming coverage for a month. Meanwhile, I'm saving over $1k per year.
Others will find their own balance.
I need to read up on, and catch up on my options here. I'm definitely paying way too much for XFinity, and have all of the channel's. I watch the same movie's over and over when I'm flipping. I would need to have all of the sports options (ESPN, ESPN2, NBA Channel, MLB Network, local sports). Is that possible?
More questions as I think more about this, but I need to start basic. What does the Amazon Fire Stick do? (I know, I'm a dinosaur).
More questions as I think more about this, but I need to start basic. What does the Amazon Fire Stick do? (I know, I'm a dinosaur).
MattFancy
Footballguy
Correct. If you, your wife, and your kid, all want to watch say Food Network, you can. You would need 3 devices to watch it on though. However, if you, your wife, and kid all tried to watch something on ESPN, only one of you could do that.
But to use Sling, you either need a PC, tablet, phone, FireStick, FireTV, Apple TV, Roku, etc.
If you have any other questions, feel free to shoot me a PM.
otb_lifer
Footballguy
same
and now when the TV is on, it's not just mind-numbing surfing ... have an endless supply of quality content from all over the world, and choose nothing but what i/we want to view. on our terms. with a bill slashed from $167 to $62 (high speed/jacked 'net, and RealDeb account).
my daughter gets roughly an hour a day (after dinner) and she follows three series at a time - then the gf and i do our binge schtick.
it's quite a wonderful setup - best move i've made in regards to home entertainment.
Nathan R. Jessep
Footballguy
In general terms, it's a device that plugs into your TV's HDMI port (there are other devices such as the Amazon Fire TV box -which is a little bigger and has more horsepower- and the Roku, that do the same thing basically) that contains apps that lets you interface with various streaming and on-demand services.
Chaka
Footballguy
Okay I am taking another baby step towards cutting the cable and I need help.
I got an ArrisTG2472G yesterday, which functions as a modem and router (I guess). I want to connect my old modem (Motorola SB6121) and router (Cisco E4200 v2) in our downstairs flat where our signal is still weak. We have Cox high speed and there is an active coaxial cable that I can plug the old router into downstairs.
I can Google well enough but I honestly don't know the proper terms to use for the search. Am I "bridging", "extending", "meshing"? Do I need additional components (I think I need a coax splitter so the modem and cable box can both be connected (until we officially cut the cable)?
Any info that would help refine my search is greatly appreciated.
Thanks
I got an ArrisTG2472G yesterday, which functions as a modem and router (I guess). I want to connect my old modem (Motorola SB6121) and router (Cisco E4200 v2) in our downstairs flat where our signal is still weak. We have Cox high speed and there is an active coaxial cable that I can plug the old router into downstairs.
I can Google well enough but I honestly don't know the proper terms to use for the search. Am I "bridging", "extending", "meshing"? Do I need additional components (I think I need a coax splitter so the modem and cable box can both be connected (until we officially cut the cable)?
Any info that would help refine my search is greatly appreciated.
Thanks
mr. furley
Footballguy
already pretty annoyed with Sling
the guide feature is all but worthless. half the channels are off air, some don't say a program but something like "click to see more". the guide won't say specifically what the event is if it's sports... instead it says "Baseball". which could be college, MLB, could be little league.. and who knows which teams are playing.
can't channel up or down from the show you're watching, gotta back out to the guide.
programs take... a minute? to load.
we're a month in and if i watch a half hour of tv a night it's a surprise.
the guide feature is all but worthless. half the channels are off air, some don't say a program but something like "click to see more". the guide won't say specifically what the event is if it's sports... instead it says "Baseball". which could be college, MLB, could be little league.. and who knows which teams are playing.
can't channel up or down from the show you're watching, gotta back out to the guide.
programs take... a minute? to load.
we're a month in and if i watch a half hour of tv a night it's a surprise.
otb_lifer
Footballguy
MattFancy
Footballguy
Since I ditched my cable company's modem/router, everything with Sling loads so much faster now. The guide and shows pop up just as fast, if not faster than it did for me with DirecTV.
You can channel surf and watch at the same time if you hit the down button on your remote. It puts a list of the channels and current shows at the bottom of the screen.
matttyl
Footballguy
You should only have 1 modem. You can have multiple routers. You'll want to connect the two routers together by ethernet cable (cat5e or cat6) if possible, or wirelessly if not possible. You'd be "bridging" the routers (you'll also have to adjust the settings of the router not connected to the modem directly).
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Chaka
Footballguy
Shutout
Footballguy
if you can't physically connect the routers via ethernet cable, there are devices such as the Extollo lansocket which can use your home's electrical wiring to carry the signal. They work extremely well, IMO.
You want to avoid extending or repeating if you can as it will reduce your signal strength.
Chaka
Footballguy
Thank you I have been looking for workarounds to that conundrum, before I started cutting holes in my walls. I have a cable box downstairs that has an ethernet port, do you know if that would that act as a bridge to the second router?
Shutout
Footballguy
I am not sure of that. I would say your best setup for least amount of signal loss is your modem to best router and then an Ethernet cable or box as I describe directly to second router
Politician Spock
Footballguy
We cut the cable back in 2012. It was a few years before the first streaming service for cable channels came out (Sling TV). During that time the only thing I missed was ESPN. If there was a game I wanted to watch that wasn't on antenna, I went to a sports bar to watch it.
These new streaming services are nice in that they are cheaper than cable/satellite, but I'm not happy that prices of them are already starting to increase (PS Vue). I'm pretty close to giving the new streaming services the middle finger too. I like going to the sports bar. And to be honest, the college football coverage with just an antenna is pretty decent. Perhaps I'm getting close to cutting the stream too.
Otis
Footballguy
SkyRattlers
Anti-aliai
Yeah but this is the trap. They get you "addicted" again but then there won't be a new product for you to switch to next time.Otis said:
For all the major telecoms companies all this "cable cutting" is just going to be a transition period as they get you signed up to their new services and they'll spin it like it was all their idea all along.
When I cut the cable back in 2011 all I did was call and cancel. No new box, the only streaming services I use is Netflix and NFL Gamepass. Embrace it gentlemen!
Chaka
Footballguy
I don't see an answer for the question below in the Extollo user manual so I thought I would ask you.
Okay so I plug this thing into the wall, plug the router into it and connect an ethernet cable. Then I plug the second Extollo in the desired location away from the primary router...can I then use this to connect a secondary router in bridge mode (I presume it has to be bridge mode) or can I only plug it directly into a device I want specifically hardwired at that moment?
I know you are not my personal IT support so no worries if you can't answer, or even if you just don't feel like it.
sho nuff
Footballguy
I keep considering this.
But it ends up being a tiny bit cheaper overall for me to get what I want vs. Direct/ATT and Comcast.
The cost of internet from those companies when you don't bundle everything...plus something like Sling ends up being very close to the prices I can get them down to.
Plus I have more up front costs if I want a DVR and a good antenna
And it seems going this route...while interesting...is more of a pain the ###.
But it ends up being a tiny bit cheaper overall for me to get what I want vs. Direct/ATT and Comcast.
The cost of internet from those companies when you don't bundle everything...plus something like Sling ends up being very close to the prices I can get them down to.
Plus I have more up front costs if I want a DVR and a good antenna
And it seems going this route...while interesting...is more of a pain the ###.
Politician Spock
Footballguy
Yep. The only reason I signed up for Sling TV when it came out, and then switched to PS Vue, was for the sports.
Sports and breaking news are the only content that needs to be broadcast anymore. All other content is better on demand. I don't think these streaming cable services are a transition. I think broadcast channels are dying. The only channels that will survive will be sports and breaking news channels. For everything else, on demand content is where movies and shows will go for first release.
Shutout
Footballguy
No problem. Happy to help.
It will go: Line-in to home ->Modem->router->[Ethernet cable to Extollo]. Plug in Extollo.
Go to the desired location and plug in another Extollo. [Ethernet cable to 2nd router]. Set up 2nd router in bridge mode. Signal loss should be minimal as long as you don't have old wiring, etc.
A not to mention: This usually is never a problem but if you do live in a house that is wired odd (sometimes also in older homes with built-on areas), you need to make sure both electrical plugs you use are on the same circuit for your fusebox. Very rare it won't be but it does happen.
Also, if you buy more than two Extollos, they all will act as if they are in the same network, assuming your house wiring is all wired and not separated as mentioned above. This is pretty handy and flexible. For example, I have 4. One runs off the router and the other thee all pick up on the other end (so you don't have to have one transmitter and one receiver in each setup. So I have one upstairs pushing the signal out. Then I have receivers in the dining room, basement, and living room and all three pick up almost the exact same signal strength.
Hope this helps.
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Shutout
Footballguy
Yes, this is pretty much where I was going with this. It seems like just a year ago or so we could sit in here and say "Man, only thing missing is sports or ESPN and I can get that for $15-$20..Nice!. Now, I noticed not long ago that PS VUE is basically locking people into $45/mo in order to get the level of plan that will have the sports people want. $10 more for a "sports" package that is Red Zone plus 12 garbage satellites (I'm sure they aren't garbage but point being that 90% of the people aren't interested in this package if RZ isn't in it...doesn't that feel like the cable tactics of the 90's where you get 40 channels for $20 but if you want ESPn, well that's in the next tier and the price is not $79.99?).
So here we are one year down the road into a good thing and the price is, for all intents and purposes, already half of what cable was. Plus, in order to really effectively use these services, you need devices (that's ok) and you also need pretty good Internet (some will argue they would have that regardless and don't mind paying more for more speed but where are the savings when you are locked into cable-lite, Internet, Netflix, Hulu, etc, etc.
NutterButter
Footballguy
CletiusMaximus
Footballguy
I agree and I think many others do as well. My PSVue goes up in early October and I'll be ditching it sometime between now and then, mostly just based on principle, less so on the additional $10/mo. While I agree its starting to feel more and more like cable (especially the PSVue channel bundles as you mention), there are a couple points I would note. First, its nice to be able to move about month-to-month whenever I want. Long term contracts for television and phone are already a somewhat comical distant memory for us. Secondly, I don't think my kids will ever "channel surf". New converts always complain about the guide interface, as I did, then after a few months forget about it completely. Other than sports, which are live events, we watch what we want to watch when we want it. Its never a matter of, "I wonder what's on tv tonight?" I don't think my kids will ever think about television that way. That's not necessarily better or worse, just different.
sho nuff
Footballguy
That is where I am at. To get the sports I want...+ the channels/shows my kids want...+ internet good enough to stream and run the devices we have. Im looking at barely any savings per month, and more complicated than having it all from one box from ATT/Direct or Comcast.
Sort of maybe, but, you've forgotten a few things you used to pay for on your cable bill: Contacts, strings attached, taxes, hd fees, equipment rental, service fees, rate hikes with no notice, it goes on and on. Plus it's not a monopoly any more.
Even if I paid $70 for a top of the line streaming service (which I don't) i'd still have half the monthly cable bill that I used to.
Chaka
Footballguy
Yeah. I listen to a lot of NPR and they did a story about cord cutting and it turns out that cord cutters report higher levels of dissatisfaction with their entertainment viewing than people with cable, and the principal reason was convenience. No one wants to back into-and-out-of different apps constantly to get all their content and they certainly don't want to switch inputs on top of it to get the local OTA stations.
I am in the process of trying to make my home "smart" (got my Ring doorbell and a Ring outdoor camera motion sensor light yesterday and an Echo* on Prime Day) but the more I research it the more I am thinking that I am just going to downgrade to a basic cable channel package and back-fill with content with apps.
*I am not sold on the Echo and may switch to the Google home thingy particularly after watching this voice recognition comparison between Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri.
Otis
Footballguy
otb_lifer
Footballguy
anything that's on Kodi can also be found streaming on the inberwebz ... Kodi (and it's addons) just compact it into (somewhat) neater packages, for one stop shopping.
how many times do i see "where can i stream the game??!?!?" during football season .... and then links are provided?
same difference.
Otis
Footballguy
I thought Kodi was just a way to get free TV programming without having to pay for it, and presumably without the consent of the providing of the programming. Not true?
