Update on Cord Cutting (Cable TV) 2017 - 2020

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REWahoo said:
... and enter your zip code here to check: https://www.hulu.com/live-tv
Click to expand...

There is no free lunch. I clicked on the link that REWahoo provided which led me to the Hulu website. "Great!" I thought. But then, almost immediately, ads for Hulu showed up on my screen, replacing my Victoria's Secret ads. Now I need spend the rest of the day (and perhaps most of tomorrow) on the Victoria's Secret website clicking on the scantily clad models to right the wrong that I've be done.
 
I just learned about this service today. Looks interesting.

(Link removed due to possible scam.)
 
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I don’t think it’s that unusual a deal. Direct TV Now is $35, I think for 70 channels but no local programming on the network chAnnels.
 
davebarnes said:
Cutting the cord (one month in)

What we had and what we paid:
1. Comcast cable - “Digital Start + Digital Preferred” with 220 channels for $130/mo
2. HBO Now - current HBO channels for $15/mo
3. Netflix - $11/mo

What we have now and pay:
1. Hulu with Live TV - basic (no add ons) with 50+ channels for $40/mo
2. HBO Now - current HBO channels for $15/mo
3. Netflix - $11/mo
4. Two (2) new Apple TV boxes at $5/mo/each. Amortized over 3 years.

What we gave up:
1. Two local PBS channels - I know I can solve this with an OTA, but the wife’s aesthetic objection to the “unsightly” indoor antenna might be a problem. I was able to put a Mohu Leaf antenna in our basement and now we get one of the two PBS channels. We do have RMPBS Passport because of our annual donation.
2. DIY and Cooking
3. BBC America
4. TLC
5. A whole bunch of channels we don’t care about. Home Shopping Network, anyone?

How much we save each month:
1. $80/mo

What is different about our viewing habits:
1. We seem to be watching a greater variety of programming. More fiction, less “house/food porn” from Discovery.

P.S. And, we lost the electrical vampire known as the cable box.
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Have an attic?

My Tivo upstairs is fed from a large UHF antenna installed in the attic.
 
An OTA antenna in the attic works for the vast majority of folks - unless they are rural.

Specifics can be obtained at tvfool by ones address.
 
ncbill said:
Have an attic?.
Click to expand...
Nope. Flat EPDM roof.
3968_Vrain_20180701_01%20FrontPatio.jpg
 
ncbill said:
Have an attic?

My Tivo upstairs is fed from a large UHF antenna installed in the attic.
Click to expand...

We basically have this setup.

An antenna on our ground floor only picks up one channel. But up on the second floor we get all the major channels in our area.

So we have the TiVo Bolt upstairs and a TiVo mini downstairs streaming its content from the upstairs TiVo.
 
mpeirce said:
We basically have this setup.

An antenna on our ground floor only picks up one channel. But up on the second floor we get all the major channels in our area.

So we have the TiVo Bolt upstairs and a TiVo mini downstairs streaming its content from the upstairs TiVo.
Click to expand...

How does your Bolt connect to the Mini?
 
I used the existing coax wiring we have in the house. TiVo supports Ethernet over that (MOCA is the standard), it works great.

Regular Ethernet is also an option. WiFi isn’t - my brother tried that and had really poor results. It was unusable.
 
mpeirce said:
I used the existing coax wiring we have in the house. TiVo supports Ethernet over that (MOCA is the standard), it works great.

Regular Ethernet is also an option. WiFi isn’t - my brother tried that and had really poor results. It was unusable.
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So can I use my coax to feed the antenna signal to the TVs in my house and to distribute the TiVo recordings to those same TVs as well?
 
NoMoreJob said:
So can I use my coax to feed the antenna signal to the TVs in my house and to distribute the TiVo recordings to those same TVs as well?
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I'm not 100% sure since that's not my setup.

And I'm not sure why you'd want to do that either. My TiVo BOLT has 4 tuners. Each TiVo mini can watch watch live TV using the BOLT's tuners. So, for example, you could watch live TV on the TV attached to the BOLT and three other TVs attached to minis - and still watch a recording on you iPhone/iPad/etc.

Still, if you want to use the Coax cable for multiple uses you should be able to - as long as they are using different frequencies that don't interfere. Here's a article discussing some of these setups and issues:

https://support.tivo.com/articles/Installation_Setup_Configuration/MoCA-Networking-Help

A lot depends on the specifics of the splitters and filters you use.
 
Don't you have to pay a monthly fee for your Tivo devices?
 
Carpediem said:
Don't you have to pay a monthly fee for your Tivo devices?
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You pay for the guide information. Either monthly or up front as a lifetime thing. Often, when they are on sale the lifetime guide data is priced pretty reasonably.

Over the years we always buy the lifetime guide data. It sticks to the device and they last a pretty long time.

Also, the TiVo mini's don't require you to pay for the guide data. They piggyback off the main device.
 
mpeirce said:
I'm not 100% sure since that's not my setup.

And I'm not sure why you'd want to do that either. My TiVo BOLT has 4 tuners. Each TiVo mini can watch watch live TV using the BOLT's tuners. So, for example, you could watch live TV on the TV attached to the BOLT and three other TVs attached to minis - and still watch a recording on you iPhone/iPad/etc.

Still, if you want to use the Coax cable for multiple uses you should be able to - as long as they are using different frequencies that don't interfere. Here's a article discussing some of these setups and issues:

https://support.tivo.com/articles/Installation_Setup_Configuration/MoCA-Networking-Help

A lot depends on the specifics of the splitters and filters you use.
Click to expand...

I have fiber optic internet so only use my existing coax for OTA TV. All of my TVs receive the signals directly from the antenna through my coax network. I have my TiVo Roamio 1TB OTA DVR on my main TV but would like to distribute the recorded content to my other TVs. I don't know if I even need the filters since my coax network carries only TV and my internet is carried over a separate Cat5 network. I don't use my TiVo for streaming but instead have streaming devices (mostly Chromecasts) on all TVs for that.
 
Here's a very thorough explanation of why PBS is not on any of the live streaming services like Sling, Direct TV Now, Playstation Vue, etc. It's a complicated mix of programming rights, technological limitations, and donation considerations.

PBS and stations working on first ‘skinny bundle’ OTT agreement

The good news is that PBS is trying to resolve these issues by end of this year. They very much want to be available on these fast-growing platforms. Unfortunately, in the beginning, it might not be the actual local member station feed, but some combination of the National PBS feed supplemented with local and syndicated programming as the streaming rights are obtained. Apparently the streaming services don't even want the local feeds, just the national programming. But without actual local feeds, member stations are concerned that donations will dry up.

I already get the national stuff via the PBS app and my Passport subscription. It's the local and syndicated programming that I want, plus NewsHour at 6pm. I'll be very happy when this gets done.
 
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