Roku?? and cutting DirectTV

[hsmamato2]

I watch Sherlock on PBS,local stations thru antenna- I thin you need a box per tv..... and an antenna per tv,unless you can split it, which isn't ideal...... other shows you can google to see other watching options.... many are played elsewhere too

 

[pennyg]

We cancelled our cable 7 years ago. Since then we have used our Roku for Netflix and Hulu (but Hulu does not stream well on the Roku). In another room we have a Sony blu-ray that can also stream everything the Roku can and Youtube, which Roku can't. If I can't find it on Netflix, Hulu or Youtube, I feel I don't need it. The only thing we do tend to do is pay for episodes of Walking Dead on Amazon since we can't wait for those. My kids watch a lot of Disney shows on Netflix, but shows are a year old so you have to not mind that. The kids do not notice. They also can watch PBS kids on the tv as it comes in through the antenna.

We also have the luxury that our local public library loans out DVDs of many shows we watch like Sherlock and Doctor Who as well as recent movies (anything PG-13 and under). I get to watch more movies through the library than waiting for them to ship through Netflix, all for free with my library card.

We pay $65 for cable internet (and 12 stations that we don't watch), $16 for Netflix, $8 for Hulu (so we can watch it on the tv) all monthly and an additonal $26/year for Walking Dead. Compare it to the $180 my sister pays for cable/internet including the family package for Disney/Nick but no premium channels. Then she does Netflix on top of that.

 

[cseca]

I'm really thinking this is the way I want to go but I have a few questions, if someone doesn't mind answering them.

The 4 favorite shows in our house are:
Doctor Who -- airs on BBCA
Sherlock -- airs on BBCA
Broadchurch -- airs on BBCA
The Walking Dead -- airs on AMC

Other than that we (DH, DS13 and I) really don't follow any other shows. The TV is always on if DH is home but he flips channels quite a bit. Which of the streaming services (Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon Prime), if any, carries those shows?

I think we would probably get a Roku since we sold our Wii last year. Had I known then what I know now, we probably wouldn't have.

Of course that all depends on what DirecTV says when I call. I mentioned in another thread that DH thinks we are 1 year into our 2 year contract and he doesn't think it can be broken without a significant penalty. Again, had I known then what I know now.

Also, we have an antenna on our roof. It probably still works, I just don't know how to use it.

I guess the other question, we each have our own TV. Would we need a Roku for each one?

Thanks!!

Check out huluplus.
I think the first 2 is on there. The other 2 I'm not sure.


Just a warning for those ditching cable, CBS does not have an agreement with any of the streaming companies (without paying). That's why we ended up getting playon.
That's the only program that will get us CBS content and we splurged for the lifetime membership. Now we can record the shows and watch it anytime we want.

And all the poster who says just get antenna for the shows, remember if you can't watch the show right at show time you'll have to figure out some sort of a DVR system that would work with your tv...

Other than that, I'm quite ecstatic with our set up.
The initial start up cost is pretty high but after that waaaaaay cheaper than $100+ cable/mo. Then again we already subscribe to prime even before we drop our cable. So that's not an additional cost.

For initial set up I think we ended up with $100 roku + $80 apple tv + $8 huluplus + $60/lifetime playon + $? antenna (that we don't really use... LOL!). Plus the latest $30 sofia and $30 doc mcs from itunes.
We've been cable free for 3 months and we are good. Kids aren't complaining, parents aren't complaining.
Also another plus is no more background tv noise for us...

Monthly cost: $8 huluplus

Per our calculation we will get break even within 3mo of being cable free. So we're there already... woohoo!
Everything after that will be savings.

Oh one more thing, check out your tv itself.
If you have a smart tv, you might already be able to stream huluplus and amazon (with subscription of course).
We have 1 tv that can do that already, and we didn't even know it until a month after we got our roku.

 

[SGMCO]

We have Roko and love it, ditched cable and not going back.
Antenta.
We have Basic Netflix ($8.00) Hulu PLus ($8.00) Tivo for life (can record off of regular antenna tv) but Hulu has latest shows we subscribe to. They also have alot of BBC Series programs that I watch.

 

[crisi]

I'm really thinking this is the way I want to go but I have a few questions, if someone doesn't mind answering them.

The 4 favorite shows in our house are:
Doctor Who -- airs on BBCA
Sherlock -- airs on BBCA
Broadchurch -- airs on BBCA
The Walking Dead -- airs on AMC

Other than that we (DH, DS13 and I) really don't follow any other shows. The TV is always on if DH is home but he flips channels quite a bit. Which of the streaming services (Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon Prime), if any, carries those shows?

I think we would probably get a Roku since we sold our Wii last year. Had I known then what I know now, we probably wouldn't have.

Of course that all depends on what DirecTV says when I call. I mentioned in another thread that DH thinks we are 1 year into our 2 year contract and he doesn't think it can be broken without a significant penalty. Again, had I known then what I know now.

Also, we have an antenna on our roof. It probably still works, I just don't know how to use it.

I guess the other question, we each have our own TV. Would we need a Roku for each one?

Thanks!!

Broadchurch is done with - no new episodes. They've been talking about a maybe another - it being well received, but I don't think anything official yet (and where would they go with it?) It was on Amazon for $1.99 - it hasn't been off air long enough to show up anywhere free yet.

Netflix has Sherlock and Doctor Who on delay - i.e. you have to wait for the season to be over. Amazon has them on delay for free with Prime, but $2 an episode if you want them "real time." Both have short seasons, so it isn't a huge investment. (Downton Abbey the other PBS/BBC/BBCA show that a lot of people watch is the same deal - free if you are willing to wait for the season to be over, paid if you want it real time). Walking Dead I know is on Netflix under the "when the season is over" deal because my son was watching it for a while - but I haven't looked for it on Amazon.

All contracts are subject to change - which can be really annoying - you are in the middle of watching the back episodes of a show for free - and it disappears.

 

[tarheel618]

We cancelled our cable 7 years ago. Since then we have used our Roku for Netflix and Hulu (but Hulu does not stream well on the Roku). In another room we have a Sony blu-ray that can also stream everything the Roku can and Youtube, which Roku can't. If I can't find it on Netflix, Hulu or Youtube, I feel I don't need it. The only thing we do tend to do is pay for episodes of Walking Dead on Amazon since we can't wait for those. My kids watch a lot of Disney shows on Netflix, but shows are a year old so you have to not mind that. The kids do not notice. They also can watch PBS kids on the tv as it comes in through the antenna.

We also have the luxury that our local public library loans out DVDs of many shows we watch like Sherlock and Doctor Who as well as recent movies (anything PG-13 and under). I get to watch more movies through the library than waiting for them to ship through Netflix, all for free with my library card.

We pay $65 for cable internet (and 12 stations that we don't watch), $16 for Netflix, $8 for Hulu (so we can watch it on the tv) all monthly and an additonal $26/year for Walking Dead. Compare it to the $180 my sister pays for cable/internet including the family package for Disney/Nick but no premium channels. Then she does Netflix on top of that.

So you just buy each episode of WD? How long before it is on Amazon? NOt covered by prime right?

 

[crisi]

(You can only get to the last Amy Pond episode on Prime - and that will still cost you $2. All of the previous season is available.)

http://www.canistream.it

 

[pennyg]

So you just buy each episode of WD? How long before it is on Amazon? NOt covered by prime right?

Nope, not included with Prime. It is $1.99 an episode but they usually only have 13-14 episodes a season. Once we buy them they belong to us. We can watch on anything that can play Amazon video. We do not spring for the $2.99 HD versions though. They are available on Amazon the day after air.

 

[nunzia]

I like my Roku best for how well it streams. I will dump Amazon Prime when it comes due, since it seems like more and more items I want on Amazon that I would need the Prime for are listed as 'add ons' and so I still need to spend 25 to get free shipping. We have reduced our channels on Direct (and 90% of them still suck) but since we watch a lot of news haven't found an equivalent on any of the services that works for us.

 

[sandynd]

Does anyone watch Discovery, TLC, HIstory, H2, DTour, Family Channel on these services? I really want to cancel my satellite, but these are the channels we watch most often. If I could do the States versions of Hulu and Netflix, and get an Apple TV or something similar, it would save me a ton of money! But without those channels it wouldn't work for us.

 

[crisi]

Does anyone watch Discovery, TLC, HIstory, H2, DTour, Family Channel on these services? I really want to cancel my satellite, but these are the channels we watch most often. If I could do the States versions of Hulu and Netflix, and get an Apple TV or something similar, it would save me a ton of money! But without those channels it wouldn't work for us.

It isn't channels, its shows. And for the most part - with the exception of Hulu plus - or buying a subscription through Amazon for a show, its the previous season. A channel will sign a contract with one or more service, but it may or may not be for all shows on that channel.

 

[pennyg]

Does anyone watch Discovery, TLC, HIstory, H2, DTour, Family Channel on these services? I really want to cancel my satellite, but these are the channels we watch most often. If I could do the States versions of Hulu and Netflix, and get an Apple TV or something similar, it would save me a ton of money! But without those channels it wouldn't work for us.

I agree with previous poster about this. You will have to check the service to see if the show you want is on it, but that does not guarantee it will always be there. Shows and movies come and go from Netflix all the time. Just recently Dora and Blue's Clues disappeared from our Netflix streaming, much to our children's disappointment. They have already found something new to replace it.

 

[nugov2]

I have google tv. Through it I have 1 channel and tv portal apps which are streaming apps that has all shows within a few hours of airing. I also have hulu and Netflix for the kids to stream in the toy room through their wii. I also have an antenna to watch locals. You couldn't get those other apps though roku. I liked roku, but returned it for that reason. Don't miss Directv at all.

 

[nugov2]

I agree with previous poster about this. You will have to check the service to see if the show you want is on it, but that does not guarantee it will always be there. Shows and movies come and go from Netflix all the time. Just recently Dora and Blue's Clues disappeared from our Netflix streaming, much to our children's disappointment. They have already found something new to replace it.

The playon app has some programing, but the apps I posted about have every show shortly after airing...even had shark week

 

[bjgonzo]

We got rid of directv last winter and haven't missed it. I did pay a cancellation fee, but it was much, much less then I thought it would be. We have both Roku and Apple TV, along with a PS3 and antennas. If you had one on your roof, there is a way to hook it in where the dish hooks into the house and you hook your tv into it via the wall outlet to get local channels on all TV's. We opted for a cheap, flat antenna for the rooms we wanted local channels in. A lot of the big networks have full episodes on their websites now or their apps if you have a tablet/smart phone. I use airplay to stream from my iPad or Mac to the Apple TV boxes. We have Netflix and amazon and PBS Kids on the Roku boxes and my kids haven't had a problem finding content. There are also a few websites that I have found that have current episodes, 2 that I use are putlocker and couchtuner We have bought episodes of shows that we can't find, but we are still saving a bunch by ditching directv.
I would try streaming before I upgraded my internet to see if it was really necessary.

 

[HHSTigerFan]

So nothing out there for the sports lover to do this? Anything on the horizon?

 

[crisi]

So nothing out there for the sports lover to do this? Anything on the horizon?

Not unless the leagues change their business model - it isn't a technical issue, its a contract issue. The cable channels (say Fox Sports) have the contract.

 

[bjgonzo]

So nothing out there for the sports lover to do this? Anything on the horizon?

I know some colleges offer streaming of all their sports for a fee. Apple TV has an espn app, but we don't watch sports so I haven't checked it out. I'm not sure sports wise what channels Roku offers.

Just an FYI, Apple TV also has MLB, NBA, NHL, and MLS channels. No idea if you can watch games/matches/whatever through them, but it did show where you can purchase something through iTunes for them.

 

[dawnhaze]

All the sports channels on the Apple TV require subscriptions, as far as I know. I believe they're also subject to blackouts for certain full games.

 

[nugov2]

So nothing out there for the sports lover to do this? Anything on the horizon?

My husband has the nfl app on his phone and plugs his phone into our tv to watch all games(but he is using his friend's password who has NFL sunday ticket) and we also use a sports website that streams all sporting events, but we have to plug our laptop in. So he still gets all the game just an extra step. The picture is HD, but b/c you are taking a small picture and blowing up onto the tv it is a little fuzzy(I don't notice much of a difference though).