Cable-free (or satellite-free) peeps, come in please!

GrayGhost13

My DH shocked me by finally conceding that it may be worth at least exploring the idea of dropping our satellite subscription, but we do enjoy watching TV, so I'm trying to help him picture what our new set-up would be like. Would you mind telling me more about how your set-up works?

Where do you stream content from (i.e. Netflix, Hulu, Prime, etc.)?

Is there an app or website that can tell us where different shows are available for streaming?

Do you watch much first-run TV? If so, where do you stream from?

Are you able to stream live events (like the Superbowl or the Oscars or the State of the Union Address) online or do you have to wait until they're up on YouTube and the like?

Do you have a designated computer or other device set up all the time for streaming? Or do you just plug in your everday laptop when you want to watch?

Any other tips or pros and cons you can share?

TIA, everyone!!!

RockyTopVols

I used to run full streaming. But, we ended up getting Satellite so I didn't have to hassle finding sports I wanted to watch. 

Anyhow..

We streamed Netflix through my PS3. Many TVs include a built in app for streaming Netflix. The downfall of Netflix I think is that their streaming content is never new releases and are always at least (if not more) one season behind TV shows they do broadcast. 

Hulu is great for newer things. I enjoy the shows on there. I will admit- I didn't use it often.

Amazon Streaming is pretty awesome. You get it with Amazon Prime (free 2 day shipping), can opt to purchase brand new episodes of TV shows you want to watch that week (which can be cheaper than a cable/sat sub), etc. And their free streaming content with the Prime subscription is comparable to Netflix. They have an app for PS3 I used for this.

And, I may or may not have turned a laptop I have into a media center and streamed some torrented episodes of TV shows I wanted to watch as they came out.

It is doable but is a lot of work if you want to watch anything other than backlog content. Live sporting events was hard. 

So now I have DirecTV and honestly- it is 100% worth it.  

kj07

We haven't had cable for over a decade now but we weren't huge tv watchers to begin with.

We stream Netflix through our Wii onto our television.  I also watch current seasons of mainly ABC shows, either directly on my computer or through their app on our iPad.  Now that we have a laptop, it would be fairly easy to connect it to the tv, but it hasn't been worth it to me to make the effort to get that set up.  I sometimes also watch via Hulu on the laptop (the iPad app costs), but I don't pay for Hulu service so the options are limited.

Everything's at least a day behind for current seasons.  I know the ABC app is offering the Oscar's for streaming for a limited time, but again, it wasn't available til the day after.

The Roku box gives you more options for streaming onto your tv, but I've never explored it.

RockyTopVols

kj07:

The Roku box gives you more options for streaming onto your tv, but I've never explored it.

This. 

They are pretty awesome little devices.  

FairyDuster003

Netflix and Hulu we stream through the playstation but my mom just got a box called a roku and it streams Netflix, etc...

You can watch the local channels and the news without cable and sometimes you'll get live events. Get the bunny ears and converter box to use this.

And Hulu is awesome about keeping up to date weekly with new episodes. Generally they are a week behind cable.

GrayGhost13

Thanks, everyone!

Hmm, I forgot about the Roku. We were talking about buying a separate device anyway (maybe a Chromebox), but the Roku is cheaper and designed for this purpose, so maybe that would be a good fit. (Honestly, we could buy Rokus for both TVs and still have them paid for with two months of our satellite bill!)

If you have any other experiences or ideas to share, keep 'em coming. Much appreciated.

 

acaudill75

I actually stream a lot of tv shows through my ipad or laptop at work (don't tell the boss). Its the only way I really get to watch shows that DH refuses to watch (think anything that airs on ABC Family or CWTV). I have bought episodes on Amazon, but I find their ipad app to be faulty, Having said that, we still have ATT U-verse, and pay through the nose for it, I would love to lose that bill every month and invest the savings in a smart tv or something. But there are too many shows that don't stream that it would kind of suck. I don't care about Sports, so that wouldn't stop me. Plus, Showtime, HBO, Starz ... I would have to wait until the shows came out on Netflix for Spartacus, Game of Thrones, etc. I can't wait for that shiiit.

tlxh7

We have Netflix streaming. We mostly watch through our Wii on our family room TV, but I do watch on our computer sometimes.

We're not big on watching shows as they first air. We don't really care to be caught up with everyone else watching. We tend to wait until a show has a few seasons available, then start watching. Then we wait (im)patiently for the new seasons!

We don't really care about watching live events. Usually we just catch highlights online the next day. We could watch them on our computer, just don't feel the need.

I do really like Netflix because I think they have a good variety, with a good mix of TV shows and movies. However, it can take FOREVER (usually less than 3 months) for them to get new seasons of a show available for streaming. We got Netflix two years when I got put on bedrest with DD, and have been hooked ever since

boggs507

We haven't had cable during the 5 years of our married lives.  We have a dedicated pc connected to our tv that we have set up Windows Media Center on.  We can stream Hulu and Netflix through that or use the xbox for Netflix.  We don't pay extra for Hulu Plus so I can't testify to the content, but the standard version of Hulu doesn't offer many cable-tv shows.  I'm a news junkie, so that's been the only downside for me.  We get standard HD channels through a converter so I can watch local news, awards shows, SOTU, etc, but national news is not an option.

NativeFloridian

I don't give a fig about seeing things when they first air, so I don't mind waiting to stream them.  I primarily use Netflix, I've dabbled with Hulu (though I don't prefer it), I use YouTube for some things, and if I'm feeling particularly stubborn I may hunt something down and watch on a seedy video hosting site.  I never download anything unless I pay for it.

Friends are nice to have in this situation too, as some folks get an option with their cable providers to sign in and stream shows from their favorite networks online.  I have nice friends who give me their passwords.

For live sporting events (which I really don't care about) finding a get-together isn't difficult.  If I were invested in sports it wouldn't be hard to watch live because there's always a friend somewhere who's having a Let's Watch Sports party or who's looking for companions to head out to the nearest sports grille.  If I'm feeling so inclined I'll just buy myself a Coke and pretend to care about the game while I hang out with friends.

GrayGhost13

crystalbaby:

mbenit4:

I must be the only person who hates watching "TV" on a computer or laptop.

Nope. That's why we have the streaming player with wi-fi that hooks up to our TV. I hate watching TV on my laptop. I like to play on the internet while watching TV. It also hurts my eyes. 

Agreed. That's exactly why I'd like a separate device for streaming if we go this route. Right now, we connect my laptop to the TV with an HDMI cable, but I miss the ability to multi-task while viewing.

amykins1283

We just dumped cable. We never watched anything live so it really didn't matter how we were getting it. We use Netflix for movies, kids shows, and older seasons of shows we didn't watch before. We use Hulu for current seasons and are only off by a day there. We have an older laptop to stream web only content and we hook it up to the TV. We also got an antenna to pick up the basic networks. It's more work but so far it's not bothersome and it saves us 100 bucks a month which makes it worth it.

MidwestGidget

We cut out cable early summer, and we're big sports fans. We had every intention of signing back up during football season if it got too hard to watch the game, but honestly, live sports is just about ALL we watch these days--we found a couple good streaming sites and never had to go back.  I used to watch a lot of HGTV and Bravo just to fill time, but haven't done that as much lately.

If you're a team x fan, check to see if there are blogs dedicated to that team. Chances are you can find streaming sites that people have linked that day of the game.There are also several sites that are completely dedicated to every type of sporting event: just click through to find your game feed. My DH has missed precisely 1 basketball game of college hoops because the feed wasn't working. I loved watching the Olympics this summer with BBC announcers.

The downside: quality is only so-so: HD streams are few and far between, so it'll feel like you're back in the 90's watching a game. And your internet connection needs to be fast/reliable. But saving the $80/month has been really helpful for us.

Also, an HDMI cable connects the laptop to the tv. We use DH's old laptop and keep it next to the tv on our media storage cabinet.

ccm1203

We don't stream, well because for an 1.5 hr movie we would spend the same amount of time waiting for it to retrieve so 3 hrs to watch a movie, no thanks!  We don't get fast enough internet in our neck of the woods.    We have an antenna on our roof and get ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, Fox, ION plus those channels have a .1, .2 and some a .3.  So we have 12-15 channels and all we really watch is news and prime time stuff,  we get PBS kids and one of the ION channels is Qubo.   Plus we do Netflix DVD, much newer movies and we don't have to wait for it to retrieve.