Contemplating Going "No Cable/Satellite" At Our House

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SpaceBooger
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Re: Contemplating Going "No Cable/Satellite" At Our House

Post by SpaceBooger »

I'm looking into playon. It costs $50 and streams from the net to your game console. This would include espn... but not local supports.
Anyone use playon and would that be a good alternative?
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Re: Contemplating Going "No Cable/Satellite" At Our House

Post by Zing »

I am not a sports fan, so I have survived on strictly usenet and BitTorrent for over ten years. The only sports I watch are the eurocup and World Cup soccer, as well as the Super Bowl. All are easily available online for free.

I've been using an HTPC since 2002, back when I would literally record my own shows from my landlord supplied cable. The current incarnation is a Mac mini running Plex with a Harmony remote. I've set up a similar system for a few people. Even the elderly in laws are able to use it.
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Jmustang1968
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Re: Contemplating Going "No Cable/Satellite" At Our House

Post by Jmustang1968 »

I have thought about doing it, but my wife likes her travel channel and comedy central shows. Sometimes it isn't the same if you have to go through another service and selectively pick something to watch. It is easy just to browse channels...

I am a sports fan, and avid football watcher especially. I am one who usually dislikes watching games at bars or in crowds. People cheer and freak on every play, even the insignificant ones. It is like they have to compete with other fans on who can be the biggest fan and cheer the loudest. Then you have the boisterous people who don't know what they are talking about and say ridiculous stuff about what is going on in the game. I like sports best on my couch and with access to my computer to check pickems/fantasy.
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Re: Contemplating Going "No Cable/Satellite" At Our House

Post by SpaceBooger »

SpaceBooger wrote:I'm looking into playon. It costs $50 and streams from the net to your game console. This would include espn... but not local supports.
Anyone use playon and would that be a good alternative?
I'm installing the HD antenna today and we will be UVerse-less by next week. I am worried about sports (NFL will be on local CBS that that works, I would rather listen to Indians on the radio, I still am not sure what to do about the Cavs).
We are looking at our options. We have Netflix and Amazon Prime and are debating on Hulu Plus.
The whole PlayOn thing looks good but I cant find reviews that I trust. Many say the love it some say the quality is off... so does anyone here use the service?
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Re: Contemplating Going "No Cable/Satellite" At Our House

Post by bmoc »

I have been using PlayOn with my PS3 for a few years now. I mainly use it for watching Hulu, SyFy Rewind, and Crunchyroll. I am pleased with it but sometimes Hulu turns on closed captioning for no reason and I haven't found a way to turn it off. That is probably an issue with Hulu changing their code around it takes a while for PlayOn to fix the bug. However, with a new baby in the house, I haven't used it in a few months so I can't speak to its quality recently.
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Re: Contemplating Going "No Cable/Satellite" At Our House

Post by J T »

The fact that I don't like sports and I don't drink has saved me lots of money. However, when you combine that with the fact that I don't eat meat, I don't get invited to a lot of barbecues or parties.
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Re: Contemplating Going "No Cable/Satellite" At Our House

Post by SpaceBooger »

bmoc wrote:I have been using PlayOn with my PS3 for a few years now. I mainly use it for watching Hulu, SyFy Rewind, and Crunchyroll. I am pleased with it but sometimes Hulu turns on closed captioning for no reason and I haven't found a way to turn it off. That is probably an issue with Hulu changing their code around it takes a while for PlayOn to fix the bug. However, with a new baby in the house, I haven't used it in a few months so I can't speak to its quality recently.
Was the quality decent on a hdtv when you were using it?

For $50 (one time fee) I don't think it would be that huge of a risk since that is what I am saving a month for no cable.
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Re: Contemplating Going "No Cable/Satellite" At Our House

Post by JoeAwesome »

Streams for sports. Not always hd, but I get to watch my Bayern and Chelsea games with ease. I can't imagine what it'd cost to view them in the States otherwise.
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Re: Contemplating Going "No Cable/Satellite" At Our House

Post by bmoc »

SpaceBooger wrote: Was the quality decent on a hdtv when you were using it?

For $50 (one time fee) I don't think it would be that huge of a risk since that is what I am saving a month for no cable.
The quality is fine for me. I'd say DVDish quality or better, but my hdtv is only 40". Not sure if it makes a difference on a larger tv.
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Re: Contemplating Going "No Cable/Satellite" At Our House

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J T wrote:The fact that I don't like sports and I don't drink has saved me lots of money. However, when you combine that with the fact that I don't eat meat, I don't get invited to a lot of barbecues or parties.
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