The Tulsa Forum by TulsaNow

http://www.reddit.com/r/cordcutters/comments/17ir41/sylver_dragons_quick_newbie_guide_to_a_tv_fool/

Here's the guide thread from the cordcutting sub-reddit. Explains how to get a report of what you should, theoretically, be able to get from a location.

Why dont you like sling.....???

Has anyone every tried this?

http://antennaweb.org/Address.aspx

Would this be a decent alternative or wouldn't there be clear reception? Would it work?

I tried a couple of those but most weren't real clear on indoor antennas.

Don't feel bad, Dback. At least you can get six channels. There are two available in my area.

Saintnicster, how many channels were you able to get with the box you got from Amazon? Did you get the three major networks and the weather channel? If so, I'd be good to go!

Indoor antennas, while better than they have been, still kinda bad for getting lots of channels.  They're generally passive and omni-directional, so they're the "jack of all trades" type.  You've still got to go through a bunch of walls to get the signal, and they're usually not that high off the ground, so have a disadvantage there.  Any other cables that are near the antenna will become part of the antenna, and you'll have extra interference depending on people walking through/standing in that room.

Since about 2009 or so, I've had this model in various apartments http://www.amazon.com/RCA-Multi-Directional-Digital-Indoor-Antenna/dp/B001GGAIIQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1427053558&sr=1-1&keywords=rca+flat+digital+antenna. 
Worked well enough, but was very susceptible to the wiring around the antenna acting against it.  I'd usually get maybe two of the "big three" local stations and a handful of other religious stuff, but nothing terribly reliable.


When I got my new house in Mayo Meadow, I found out that it had an old-school attic antenna up there. I hooked it into the existing coax cable (minus one jack for internet), and it is glorious.  995 of the channels are crystal clear, minimal digital artifacts (unless it's super cloudy/rainy).  I get basically everything through the red color.
http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=29&q=id%3df1f010bbd072b1

Really, the only thing I watch on the TV from broadcast is PBS and CreateTV.  The lady will watch some stuff on ABC, but most of the time she'll just watch it on her Hulu account a few days later.

Figured it might be good to put this all in one thread.

As mentioned in another thread, Cox is going to require boxes. I tried them and returned them today. They told me that in August you lose all channels Analog and Digital without a box. I am now trying out some antennas and so far am incredibly impressed. I am in Tulsa but get about 2 bars of cell phone reception because I'm in a valley yet I'm getting something like 36 channels with unpowered indoor antennas. That includes NBC, CBS, ABC, FOX, ION, CW, MyTV, PBS, MeTV, RetroTV, Escape, HSN, QVC, PBS Kids, Qubo, ThisTV, etc.

The two antennas I've tried so far are:

Mohu Leaf (30mile)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EWEHEL8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Amazon Basics (35 mile)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DIFIO8E/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I also have an Amazon 25-mile on order to try: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DIFIM36/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The Mohu is my favorite so far in build quality, mounting options, etc. The Amazon 35 is significantly larger than the Mohu 30 and has no mounting hardware. Both are flat as paper (except for the connector at the bottom), paintable, and have white and black sides to help hide them.

Am interested in others thoughts and experiences.

I remembered I had an attic antenna. On a whim tried it. got like 27 channels. Channel 8 was the main one missing.

Considering trying an outdoor. My indoor omni antennas work well, but I seem to get interference from some of the weirdest things. Charging an iPad made Channel 6 drop in one room for example.

So far I don't get 13 on any antenna.

Just did the annual call to get Cox to reverse the fee increase.

I'm pretty sure we're dumping cable.  I'm the last hold out in the house and I'm losing any reason to keep it.

Keep their internet and get with me about Direct or Dish. I've had a lot of calls after this latest round of increases. My Cox internet just jumped up to 73 dollars for the next 6 months and will go up another 10 after that.
They're giving us the option of High speed internet or Cable Television. It comes down to how old you are and what service of theirs is more important to you. Mine is TV. The kids its the Internet. I'm just waiting for them to move out. Then I can cut the last Cox cord myself.

I bought a $120 outdoor antenna for $50 from Mike's Liquidation at 41st and Sheridan. I can get Roger's State (35) if I point the right way, but then I lose the 44's. I switched it back since I don't really care about RSU. Everything else I get perfectly fine. Have it split out to multiple TVs with no issue. Have two more TVs to move to the splitter then I'm calling cox to cut my basic cable. Also probably returning most of the various indoor antennas I've tried.

I tried a few indoor antenna's at Harwelden, and with a westerly view I get 44, Christian and Hispanic station. No majors. Weird.

Scott....   If your TVs have digital tuners, Cox rebroadcasts all the local stations in the clear.

The 2009 DTV transition required all full-power TV broadcast stations to switch from an analog to a digital format. Cable companies were not required to make this change.

“Digital broadcast” refers to the method of transmission of broadcast signals over-the-air, while “digital cable” refers to the way in which some -- or even all -- of a cable company’s signals are transmitted through its cable wires or fiber.
Your cable company may offer cable channels in an analog tier and others in a digital tier, or it may have transitioned to all-digital service where all of its channels are transmitted using digital technology. The decision to carry channels in analog, analog and digital (sometimes referred to as a “hybrid” system), or solely digital is left to the cable company’s discretion. There is no government requirement for the way cable companies transmit their signals.
If your cable company moves some or all of its channels onto a digital service tier, it may notify you that you need to get “digital cable” equipment to continue receiving those channels. Your cable company may also require you to lease from them a digital cable set-top box or CableCARD, or to purchase at retail a set-top device or a digital cable ready TV equipped with a CableCARD slot. This digital cable equipment is different from the digital-to-analog converter boxes required to receive broadcast signals over-the-air. If you have a digital TV, you may be able to view broadcast stations through your cable system without additional equipment. You should ask your cable company about the equipment options that may be available to you, including any options to purchase equipment from a retailer.
Any analog television not hooked up to cable must use a digital-to-analog converter box to receive broadcast signals over-the-air.

Any updates on antenna choices?

I have a few friends clamoring that there is something home made that works as good as anything...I will see what I can find out.....

Does it involve your hat? 

Sorry, couldnt resist. ;D

Any updates on antenna choices?

Questions:
1) What are good alternatives to watching LIVE sporting events?

2) Will these magic antenna work when the big switch happens?

I broke down and got the Coxbox last weekend.  Using an HDMI cable, everything looks HD now.  Meh...still too may "paid programs" - making me pay to watch their ads.  Still disgusted.

Cancelling cox.......

DirecTV my friend. I'll beat Cox bill and give you a referral with another TN member who shall remain nameless.  ;D

May just do that sometime soon.  Still rebuilding from the tornado - one of my temporary landing spots is at a county fairground where I get about half the over-the-air channels from the area - when I get a more permanent temporary, will prolly call.  I find I don't really miss very much of it.  Except PBS - even that doesn't come in well.  May try one of the homemade antennas...

Thought you sold Direct and Dish?  Why Direct over Dish?

I have Direct because I'm a sports nut. If that doesn't really matter to you. Either one will do just fine. The Hopper DVR has all kinds of neat things you can do online with the built in Slingbox. Leo just loves all the gadget stuff about it. I'm more a watch TV kinda guy so all that stuff really doesn't interest me. Either way I'll get you a better deal than Cox. Good luck with all the rebuild. I'm sorry to hear that happened to you.

We cut the cord several years ago and will never go back.  

At the same time, we also cut our broadband package to the lowest speed offered.  Cox assured us this package would make streaming Netflix et al. unwatchable.  

Wrong.

We stream Netflix, HBO, Hulu, YouTube, etc. without buffering or problems.  

We combine a traditional antenna mounted in the attic with Apple TV, and have subscriptions to HBO, Netflix and Hulu.  

The biggest issue is sports.  Whoever cracks that nut wins.  

In the meantime, games broadcast on ESPN or Fox are still available, albeit from pirate sites hosted in foregin countries. So, if sports is your drug, you have a dealer.  You can also mirror the broadcast from your computer to most televisions so you're not anchored to a computer.  


 

Actually, ESPN and some other cable channels are now available to cord-cutters via Sling-TV. https://www.sling.com/ (https://www.sling.com/)

I don't have the service, so I can't vouch for its reliability and quality, and it comes at a price ($20/month), but that is much cheaper than our Cox service. If you are where you can get decent reception on the local channels (I am not), cutting the cord no longer sacrifices sports programming. Sling offers discounts on Roku and some other streaming boxes to ease the pain even more. I'd be curious about whether anyone here has subscribed, and if so, how well it works.

Sign of the times. I love it. They killed Blockbuster and they are trying to do the same to Cable and satellite TV. Now even the big dog has to raise their rates.
How soon do you think it will be before Hulu, Sling, Amazon, Blockbuster and all these other magical internet monsters do the same?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/09/netflix-price-increase_n_5294450.html

50 dollars or more for internet.
8.99 Netflix.
7.99 Hulu.
20.00 Sling.
9.99/14.99/19.99 Blockbuster all access.
8.33 Amazon.
50.00 playstation vue.
14.99 Tivo.
0.00 Local antenna.

Now I don't expect that everyone subscribes to all these services. But I do see that your cord cutting is not as cheap as you want to think it is. I deal with this kind of thinking on a daily basis and I understand the whole bundle frustration with the cost.
What mainly frustrates me is that people think by doing this they are saving so much money and act like it's all free because of an outside antenna.
There is my breakdown of what is available to all you cord cutters and you and I both know it's not free.

Also. Microsoft and Youtube will be introducing their brand of streaming soon and I'm sure there will also be a fee for those magical services too.
I'm sure most of you would take it personal too if there was a topic bragging about how great it is to be someone who is helping destroy the business you make a living in.

I haven’t even started adding up the equipment costs and lifespan of said equipment we’d have to do it.

Thanks for the tip re: ESPN.  $20 a month is steep.  Especially during sport-starved months like June-July-August. 

And for everyone else not familiar with Apple TV, it has an ESPN portal, you just need a regular cable subscription to gain access (which defeats the purpose of cutting in the first place). 

50 dollars or more for internet.
8.99 Netflix.
7.99 Hulu.
20.00 Sling.
9.99/14.99/19.99 Blockbuster all access.
8.33 Amazon.
50.00 playstation vue.
14.99 Tivo.
0.00 Local antenna.

I bought my Philips DirecTV TiVo the week before 9/11.

It is used every day, and runs 24/7.  Some stuff is built right.  +Linux.

The $15/mo kills it for me on that. You can do an OTA-only Tivo with 4 tuners for $50, but then it's $15/mo forever.

Assuming you have an extra PC and TV tuner card laying around, you can use Windows media center to "Tivo" for free.   It will also bring up menus and programming schedules.   

There are lots of open source alternatives as well.

Beware: When Windows 10 rolls out, it will have no Windows Media Center and no way to add it in. The codecs to play digital media will be added later in an update, but the extra bells and whistles will be gone. So hang onto your Windows 7. For $80 you can get SageTV, a dvr application that runs under Windows, Mac OSX, or Linux, or you can set up a Linux box with MythTV. GB-PVR looks good on paper, runs under Windows, and is free. I haven't run any of these and have no idea whether there may be security traps in there somewhere.

OMG! All that to watch TV. Count me out.  ::)

OMG! All that to watch TV. Count me out.  ::)

What would you do for a few thousand dollars? apparently not spend an hour on a computer.

That's my problem. I'm on a computer 55 hours a week. When I get home. The last thing I want to do is jack with a computer. But that's just me.

Only 55 hours? You must have quite the thriving social life :)

That's why Television is my primary entertainment. I feel I'm getting old. Lord help me if I start watching Lawrence Welk reruns. ;D

Could be worse - you could have had to watch them when first shown....live!

That's the deal. Every time we went to my Grandparents house on Sunday. He was live and in color. But he was wunerful, wunerful!

That's the deal. Every time we went to my Grandparents house on Sunday. He was live and in color. But he was wunerful, wunerful!

On a whim, we picked up an Amplified Indoor Antenna to see what we could get without cable. I've moved the antenna all over the place, pointed it different directions, and no matter what I do, I can't get channel 8! KTUL is even the closest station to us...their transmitter is on the hill, right? What the heck?

On a whim, we picked up an Amplified Indoor Antenna to see what we could get without cable. I've moved the antenna all over the place, pointed it different directions, and no matter what I do, I can't get channel 8! KTUL is even the closest station to us...their transmitter is on the hill, right? What the heck?

Maybe the biggest mistake I was making early on was assuming most of this was following the AppleTV model where hardware was tied to a dedicated subscription service.

AppleTV doesn't have a subscription service

AppleTV doesn't have a subscription service

I have a couple FireTV sticks and they lock up or need reboot more than Windows. I had one locked up and when I got it back on it would;t do anything. Turned out it kicked off a firmware update so I just couldn't use it for the next half hour.

On Hulu the video will stop but the audio will keep going, eventually the video starts going again. On Netflix and HBO all or part of the screen goes green static about every 5 or 10 minutes.

I have AppleTV, SmartTV and Tivo and I generally like the Apple interface better. They are getting smart search like Tivo but on Tivo it always gives me results for services I don't have and have turned off.

That is odd. I have one FireTV and 2 Fire Sticks. Never had an issues with any of them. We had an AppleTV but I recently gave it away. I haven't found a SmartTV interface I like at all as they all seem poorly implemented or clunky. To each their own....it is nice having choices.

That is odd. I have one FireTV and 2 Fire Sticks. Never had an issues with any of them. We had an AppleTV but I recently gave it away. I haven't found a SmartTV interface I like at all as they all seem poorly implemented or clunky. To each their own....it is nice having choices.

To me, the TVs are just lacking the processing power and well-defined OS. Java is crap and a CPU hog so trying to just say "make your thing work in Java" and then putty in a clunky linux OS running java on slow-for-2005 chips is going to be a poor experience for everyone. could be worse. could be Flash.

You can get a Roamio OTA for antenna and streaming for $50 at Best Buy today. The only thing this offers is some commercial-skip features that may kinda sorta work.

The TiVo Bolt is the successor to the Roamio, and is still rolling out features in the way of firmware upgrades.

http://www.digitaltrends.com/dvrs-digital-video-recorders-reviews/tivo-bolt-review/

If you have an older Roameo or TiVo Mini in another room, the Bolt is supposed to be able to stream to them as well.
The strength of TiVo is its interface, which is normally a monthly fee but the first year is free.  Worth investigating.

What do you all do for a DVR? Subscription required or not?

And how will I watch Bravo?

What do you all do for a DVR? Subscription required or not?

And how will I watch Bravo?

Good question on the DVR...I see some are using ROKU.

Since COX turned off my peripheral TVs and want me to install their "digital boxes" on them I am done.

I guess my dreams of not paying for content just are not quite ready yet.

plenty of piracy sites out there

$145.00/year subscription to Hulu Plus.

Cox Cable lies to consumers considering "cable cutting"

http://www.techhive.com/article/3012512/streaming-media/cox-communications-anti-cord-cutting-propaganda-is-as-sad-as-youd-expect.html?google_editors_picks=true

Jeeze, everything is an effing conspiracy, isn't it Vashta? #bored #movealong #getoverit

What do you all do for a DVR? Subscription required or not?

And how will I watch Bravo?

https://www.tablotv.com/

So, like a pricier Tivo with a lower chance of the company sticking around?

To Roamio OTA (meant for cord cutters) is $50 for four tuners but has it's own hard drive unlike Tablo.
Lifetime service is $200, occasionally on sale for $100

So Tivo is $150-$250 total.

Tablo at $280 + $150 service + hard drive (say another $100) = $530

Yeah, the service is portable, but the company is like 2 years old and it costs more than double.

That's assuming you are only going to watch content on 1 television. Between the wife, kids and myself we more often than not have 3 sets going at the same time.

The Tivo Mini gives you a full box for $149, there is NO additional monthly fee

The Tivo Stream lets you watch via multiple phones/tablets, including from outside the house, for $129. Also no additional monthly fee.

Even if you bought both, you're still cheaper than the Tablo.

Several months ago I left the disaster that is U-Verse and went back to Cox. I got a special locked in price for two years with 100mb internet and in order to lower the cost per month even more to something more reasonable instead of paying Cox's DVR fee and box rental fees I got a refurbished Roamio for I think $99 with a year commitment to Tivo and got two Tivo Minis for $120 each. So I spent about $350 for the whole house with a $15 monthly fee. Saves me about $50 net a month with Cox with a better guide and better box functionality.

The Tivo Mini gives you a full box for $149, there is NO additional monthly fee

The Tivo Stream lets you watch via multiple phones/tablets, including from outside the house, for $129. Also no additional monthly fee.

Even if you bought both, you're still cheaper than the Tablo.

For a Tivo setup I would need a Roamio at $199 and 2 Tivo Minis at $149 for a total of $497 on hardware. I would then have to pay $14.99 per month for the service which comes to $179.88 for a year.

So in total a Tivo solution would cost me $676.88 for the first year and $179 each year after.

The 4 tuner Tablo cost me $280 and since I already had Amazon Fire TV's on the televisions in the house that it would need to stream to I have no other hardware cost. I do have to pay $4.99 per month or $49.99 per year for the guide service.

So in total the Tablo solution cost me $329.99 for the first year and $49.99 each year after.

Year 1 cost savings = $346.89
Year 2 + cost savings = $129.93

The Tivo Roamio will stream to Amazon FireTVs as well. And lifetime service is $200 so a Tivo solution year 1 for you would be $398, year 2 and 3 would be $0. Slightly less if you did a Roamio OTA plus a Stream ($378 total)

Year 1: Tivo $378-398, Tablo $330 (only because you had the additional hard drive, otherwise roughly $430)
Year 2. Tivo $0 Tablo $50
Year 3. Tivo $0 Tablo $50

Okay, so to do a cord cutting you still need a high speed internet connection, then you need equipment for each TV, then you need DVR's of some type, and a subscription for those, and a subscription for a channel guide, and a Netflix, Hulu, Roku, Amazon Prime, and if you are a sports person you need something else to provide not only local, but national sports.

If you are truly cord cutting, then you need to go to over the air broadcast, and not receive anything from Cox/AT&T UVERSE/DirecTV/Dish, or any internet connection through them.

We currently enjoy Comet tv (8-2) and retro (8-3), then 23-2 for period sit-coms and drama. OTA and PBS offer fine programming. Of course we still get the local channels with their local crime and weather reporting so we're not totally out of the loop. I don't miss the 300 channels at all. Total tv budget is about $8 per month.

Our internet ($50/month) is still through U-verse and at&t is not happy about it either. I could buy a luxury car for what we pay them per month for cell service. Phones and tv used to take a small amount of consumer budgets. Somehow they have convinced the public that they need to be considered as important as utilities and carve out larger and larger chunks of household budgets. The pendulum will swing back.

Interesting point: We don’t get PBS on DirecTV.  Not sure what the issue was, but it’s no longer there.

Okay, so to do a cord cutting you still need a high speed internet connection, then you need equipment for each TV, then you need DVR's of some type, and a subscription for those, and a subscription for a channel guide, and a Netflix, Hulu, Roku, Amazon Prime, and if you are a sports person you need something else to provide not only local, but national sports.

If you are truly cord cutting, then you need to go to over the air broadcast, and not receive anything from Cox/AT&T UVERSE/DirecTV/Dish, or any internet connection through them.

Cord cutting refers to cutting bundled TV providers, not to cutting all cables. The TV uses power too and we aren't cutting that one.

I primarily use an Antenna and Netflix at a whopping $8/month on top of my $50 internet bill. I was paying Cox $200/month. I recently gave Tivo a try ($50+ $15/mo) but it's not required for cord cutting. While Hulu can give you much of the same content, they have a lot of ridiculous limits.

I could buy and subscribe to almost everything out there, and still pay less that Cox/AT&T/Directv/dish.

Cox launches high-speed Internet service in OKC, Tulsa

Cox Communications has launched its gigabit Internet service for residential customers in Oklahoma.

Marketed under the name "Gigablast," Cox now offers speeds 100 times faster than the average speed in the U.S. today.

“This is an important development for Oklahoma, adding another quality of life factor that will help lure more businesses, families and young people to our state,” Gov. Mary Fallin said at a press conference Thursday at the state Capitol to announce the launch of the new Internet service.

Cox is deploying residential gigabit Internet speeds in Oklahoma City and Tulsa residential areas and in Cox locations across the country. The service has already been available for Cox's business customers for some time.

The company is in the process of deploying the new service in Oklahoma City neighborhoods and Gigablast is already available in some neighborhoods.

Cox has already launched Gigablast in 10 states and will have gigabit speeds in all of its markets by the end of 2016.

Cox employs about 1,800 in Oklahoma, and its investment in adding Gigablast to Oklahoma is part of about $1 billion in infrastructure investments the company has made in the state over the past decade, Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett said at the press conference.

The service offers speeds as fast as 1,000 megabits per second that will allow customers to download an estimated 100 songs in 3 seconds.

“Cox has always had an evolving and dynamic plan to continue to advance our services to meet the growing demands of our customers,” Region Manager Percy Kirk said. “By bringing gigabit Internet speeds to the market, Cox is once again ensuring our technology readiness long into the future.”

Gigablast service is being offered to residential customers starting at $99 per month for a one-year deal, according to Cox's website. 

Internet providers have been in a race to bring gigabit internet service to the  Oklahoma City market. In October, Google said it was eyeing Oklahoma City for as a place to expand its super-fast Internet service and cable television platform called Google Fiber.

AT&T said in December that it plans to expand the availability of its GigaPower network in Oklahoma City in Tulsa beginning this year.

http://newsok.com/cox-launches-high-speed-internet-service-in-okc-tulsa/article/5471179

So right on cue I get a notice today of another DirecTV price increase effective the 15th of this month.

And now there’s this from Cox:

“This is an important development for Oklahoma, adding another quality of life factor that will help lure more businesses, families and young people to our state,” Gov. Mary Fallin said at a press conference Thursday at the state Capitol to announce the launch of the new Internet service.

Someone should ask her on camera to explain the speed differences and see how she does.

We dont have any DOCSIS 3.1 networks in the state, do we?   Maybe this was just some forward thinking projection vaporware to let some air out of at&t's drum-banging:

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/att-plans-to-launch-blazing-fast-gigabit-internet-speeds-in-oklahoma-city-and-tulsa-areas-300189211.html

They are all runners-up.  BTC (formerly known as Bixby Telephone Company) already has Gigabit in some areas.

Yeah, but then you have to live in Bixby.

Bixby wasn't too bad before it got Tulsafied.

In the 80's I remember Bixby as a bunch of mobile homes and angry opinionated non-voters attempting to hide their weed before going to church.

We dont have any DOCSIS 3.1 networks in the state, do we?   Maybe this was just some forward thinking projection vaporware to let some air out of at&t's drum-banging:

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/att-plans-to-launch-blazing-fast-gigabit-internet-speeds-in-oklahoma-city-and-tulsa-areas-300189211.html

Reading through this thread it's amazing how much has changed since it was first started.

Choices for cord cutters are pretty robust now, with several options that give you pretty much the same functionality as cable/satellite for a fraction of the cost.

I went from a $190 Cox bill to a $50 internet only bill
I have a Channel Master DVR that has tons of internet channels (mostly unwatchable) but gives you the same feel as the COX DVR.
HD antenna running though the existing coax with around 50 channels (mostly unwatchable)

If you need to watch Cable content:
Sling TV is $19.99 per month for around 30 channels (Disney, Cartoon Network, FoodTV, HGTV, ESPN, CNN, FreeForm etc)
Playstation Vue is $29.99 per month for 55 channels (all of the above plus MTV etc) and includes much more ON DEMAND content and the ability to record.
HBO Now $15.99 if like me you cannot live without Game Of Thrones.

Overall I am saving about $120 a month 

Interesting, I missed that Vue had expanded into Tulsa.

Ready to start considering our options.  After realizing AT&T had grossly over-stated how much up and down speed we could get, they got fired and we picked up Cox for internet and are getting really good speeds, within 4% of their claimed capability under our plan.  I streamed some content on an iPad last night just to get an idea how possible it is to leave DirecTV behind and I’m impressed.

Question for the others:

As far as a “hub” for television, I’ve seen Roku thrown out there, Apple TV, Amazon Fire.  Does it boil down to personal preference or are they all about the same?

Ready to start considering our options.  After realizing AT&T had grossly over-stated how much up and down speed we could get, they got fired and we picked up Cox for internet and are getting really good speeds, within 4% of their claimed capability under our plan.  I streamed some content on an iPad last night just to get an idea how possible it is to leave DirecTV behind and I’m impressed.

Question for the others:

As far as a “hub” for television, I’ve seen Roku thrown out there, Apple TV, Amazon Fire.  Does it boil down to personal preference or are they all about the same?

Ready to start considering our options.  After realizing AT&T had grossly over-stated how much up and down speed we could get, they got fired and we picked up Cox for internet and are getting really good speeds, within 4% of their claimed capability under our plan.  I streamed some content on an iPad last night just to get an idea how possible it is to leave DirecTV behind and I’m impressed.

Question for the others:

As far as a “hub” for television, I’ve seen Roku thrown out there, Apple TV, Amazon Fire.  Does it boil down to personal preference or are they all about the same?

Just checked and Amazon is now offering the Fire with an H-D antenna bundle for $109.95.  Anyone have experience with the indoor HD antenna?  Seems like there would be a lot of signal loss through the walls and roof.

Next question, since the Fire does not record, why would you want to select a 32gb memory card add on for $11.87?  It says it has 8GB on board storage already.

1. Amazon Fire TV (Smooth interface, speedy, has everything I need)
2. Roku (Nice interface, has HDCP handshaking problems on some TV's. Playstation Vue is not available and app interface for Amazon content is clunky and incomplete.)
3. Google Nexus Player or NVidia Shield (Would be #1 if Amazon and Playstation Vue were supported)
4. Apple TV (Typical Apple. It works but isn't anything special. No Amazon content or Playstation Vue)
5. Amazon Fire Stick (Same interface as Amazon Fire TV but is horribly under-powered)
6. Google Chromecast (IMO only good for streaming music)

Been looking at the TiVo Bolt for a DirecTiVo replacement, since im already addicted to the TiVo interface.
Neat thing about it is it treats OTA and streaming content the same, as far as searchability and program guides.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2015/11/04/review---tivo-bolt-stream-dvr-cord-shaver/75109560/

Just checked and Amazon is now offering the Fire with an H-D antenna bundle for $109.95.  Anyone have experience with the indoor HD antenna?  Seems like there would be a lot of signal loss through the walls and roof.

The antenna sucks...As do most of those type of antenna.....

One more question: what would be the most compatible DVR device or service with Amazon Fire or do they have a cloud type storage service?

I rarely will record shows and most of what is on our current DirecTV storage are classic movies we store to watch from time-to-time.  With what looks like on-demand movies from multiple sources, I’m trying to figure out if we really even need a DVR.

A DVR, IMO, it really that necessary. My wife argued with that so after some research I purchased a Tablo. The Channel Master DVR+ is also a good device with the one drawback it has being the fact it doesn't support multi-room viewing.

With the Tablo the FireTV becomes your go to device as you can access live TV and your recordings via the Tablo App on the Fire TV.

Yeah, but you have tinfoil in your attic...

Would you like it back...???

Serious note, would the signal improve if the crappy antenna were moved into the attic?

Serious note, would the signal improve if the crappy antenna were moved into the attic?

I really like my channel master DVR, not all over the air content is immediately available on demand. Plus with the DVR you don't need a HULU account.

I tried an indoor antenna and sent it back, Breadburner is right, there are tons of DIY antenna options on Youtube and a decent antenna is not that expensive at BestBuy. Put it in the attic or on the roof. My antenna reception and picture are much clearer than with Cox cable.
As Aquaman points out a storm can cause pixilation.

As soon as HBONow is available on PS3/PS4 then I am switching from Sling to Vue.

My father-in-law claims he’s getting great over the air reception in the rural area where they live near Shawnee using a regular old TV aerial on a 20’ post on his land.  He says as long as you have the digital reception box, it’s all good.  I’ve got an abandoned analog-era aerial in my attic, so that would work with a digital receiver?

Both Vue and Sling TV have sports packages as add on and you would still be at a price point below Cable.

The Fire box came in yesterday.  That was beyond stupid easy to set up.  Just need to get the two wire to coax converter for the aerial in my attic and I can tell DirecTV (aka AT&T) to suck it.

Yes, I lose my local channels and DVR, but for $95/month in savings, I can deal with it.

Get an antenna and a switch for local channels.

So, this got me to finally do it ...

https://directvnow.com/ (https://directvnow.com/)

The "Go Big" package for $35/month (actually $40, since I added HBO), with a free AppleTV (for prepaying for 3 months), was too good to pass up.  I had Uverse and it was costing me $135/month.  Yes, I lose my local channels and DVR, but for $95/month in savings, I can deal with it.

Edit:
I had Showtime, with Uverse, and will probably add it as a standalone on my AppleTV, for $11 per month.  So, I will be saving $84/month, instead of $95.

It says limited time pricing.  What is the fine print saying on the “normal” price.

The two antennas I've tried so far are:

Mohu Leaf (30mile)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EWEHEL8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Amazon Basics (35 mile)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DIFIO8E/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Cox cable is still not that competitive; they just keep offering "introductory" prices on everything to conceal how big the bill will really be.

Happy as a Clam with SlingTV.....

Be sure to call DirecTV and U-verse to complain that they havent raised their rates to pay for the higher cost of channels you can get free with an antenna.
http://hothardware.com/news/fox-abc-wsb-network-affiliates-outraged-attdirecttv-remove-them

Seriously, dont.  Get some rabbit ears if you cant live without Judge Judy.

Dish network as well....  Dish, which on Thursday lost the Bonneville-owned NBC affiliate in Salt Lake City due to a fee fight, last night lost two CBS affiliates, in Tulsa and Oklahoma City, due to a separate fee fight with their owner, Griffin Communications.
http://www.tvpredictions.com/fee120117.htm

Their ratings went up and they got greedy. 
Let them stew.

What I heard is that they increased the carriage fees by 300 percent.

I play around with various streaming services, but still living just fine without cable/satellite.

Same.

Except now my gripes come in the form of complaints about internet connectivity. The local cartel provides blazing service (intermittent at best) but outlandishly low data caps. 100 Mbps is entry level. 300 Gig data cap. So we have stuck with AT&T, which is somewhat more consistent, but has a habit of raising prices every 6 months by about $5. So now I'm paying primo money for plain jane DSL service. I have noticed the communications carriers seem to price things to make it as inconvenient as possible to have just internet. Every "good deal" involved television. I still resist.

who is doing data caps?

I thought most providers do data caps, at least in theory:

http://www.cox.com/residential/support/internet/article.cox?articleId=%7B2fd6ccb0-b13a-11df-4be3-000000000000%7D


Per AT&T:
https://www.att.com/esupport/article.html#!/u-verse-high-speed-internet/KM1010099
http://time.com/money/4353512/att-home-internet-data-caps/
https://www.engadget.com/2016/07/29/atandt-is-raising-data-caps-to-1tb-for-u-verse-subscribers-only/

I believe Cox has said their caps are more advise than limit.

Also, 1TB is pretty dang high. that is like streaming 30 movies a day.

SlingTV just gets better and better....

Cox added a new fee to my bill this month. Regional Sports Surcharge. I haven't added or changed anything. I feel the end for me is coming as well.

Has anyone tried Playstation Vue?

Has anyone tried Playstation Vue?

Is anybody using AT&T former UVerse internet plans? The "Internet 10" is the only thing available at my house and that sounds like a huge step down from my current 300 Mbps plan on Cox. Just curious if anyone can vouch for these lower tier AT&T speeds and how they hold up to streaming.

I have several people I know who dropped the directTV dish and just took the directtv now (streaming.)   They all like it, but are annoyed by the constant calls wanting to know why they dropped their service.

I don't know if the email is legit; I haven't gotten one of these.

Iffy.  The TiVo im using I bought a couple weeks before 9/11.  How many other appliances last that long?

Iffy.  The TiVo im using I bought a couple weeks before 9/11.  How many other appliances last that long?

Iffy.  The TiVo im using I bought a couple weeks before 9/11.  How many other appliances last that long?

My home air conditioner.  Lasted from 1976 (new house install) until 2015.  Furnace still going strong...

I don't know if the email is legit; I haven't gotten one of these.

Not saying anything about my A/C for fear of jinxing.

DirecTV pulled the plug on the Standard Definition satellites finally.  Time to put the TiVo that has been working flawlessly since the week before 9/11 out to pasture.

The cloud-based  DVR function on DirecTV NOW isnt quite the same as having a physical hard drive with your favorites patiently waiting to be browsed.

And in August Ill likely pull the plug on Directv

What happens in August (other than you pulling your plug)?

Now that at&t has trashed DirecTV they are talking about dumping it altogether.

https://www.engadget.com/2019/09/18/att-may-split-with-directv-satellite-unit

Glad I got out when I did...

TULSA, Okla. (KTUL) — Millions of AT&T U-verse, DIRECTV and AT&T TV NOW (formerly DIRECTV NOW) subscribers in 86 markets are at risk of losing access to 136 television stations (including popular ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, CW And MyNet-affiliates) and Tennis Channel, due to AT&T’s unwillingness to negotiate fair market carriage licenses with Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc.

Who wastes their data allowance watching local channels when compact antennas are cheap and plentiful?

Data allowance?   I have U-verse and don't have a data allowance.

I have U-verse internet and have a monthly data allowance.

I have U-verse internet and have a monthly data allowance.

Data allowance is supposed to be waived for $10 or free if you have TV service.

A follow-up:
Got rid of AT&T TV NOW and went with Sling for half the price AT&T was charging. 
Not as polished a DVR function and many channels dont allow pause, rewind or fast-forward.

Those credits the Agents promised? Never materialized. 
DirecTV was a good product, but there is no way I could recommend it now under the rule of Ma Bell.

AT&T is now selling DirecTV.