Advice on watching tv

[Johnny Cupcakes]

For the first time in my life, I'm living in a house that doesn't have any premium television. No cable....no dish.

Neither me or my wife are home much anymore and the price tag was way too much for the tiny amount of use that it got. Now I need some advice on what to do next. What TV services should we get? We have Netflix, but how can we watch weekly series that we would dvr before? I've heard Hulu or Amazon were decent options. Any input on them? Also, what should I do about football? I know I can get a digital receiver for the local channels, but is there anything out there that will allow me to watch the MNF games?

[BmorePat87]

You'd have to illegally stream ESPN for MNF.

[Johnny Cupcakes]

(06-27-2015, 10:44 PM)BmorePat87 Wrote: You'd have to illegally stream ESPN for MNF.

That's what I was thinking. I thought that there might be an app that I could watch it on though.

[BmorePat87]

(06-27-2015, 10:48 PM)Johnny Cupcakes Wrote: That's what I was thinking. I thought that there might be an app that I could watch it on though.

A lot of cable providers let you stream live channels, but you'd need a friend's log in.

[RICHMONDBENGAL_07]

(06-27-2015, 10:44 PM)BmorePat87 Wrote: You'd have to illegally stream ESPN for MNF.

(06-27-2015, 10:48 PM)Johnny Cupcakes Wrote: That's what I was thinking. I thought that there might be an app that I could watch it on though.

(06-27-2015, 10:56 PM)BmorePat87 Wrote: A lot of cable providers let you stream live channels, but you'd need a friend's log in.

Or go to the bar and make sure you have a ride home.

[Johnny Cupcakes]

(06-27-2015, 11:00 PM)RICHMONDBENGAL_07 Wrote: Or go to the bar and make sure you have a ride home.

I can't drink on weeknights, buddy....or this would be what I did.

[Harmening]

They make those digital antenna things too. That should get get you some networks.

[BmorePat87]

(06-27-2015, 11:28 PM)Harmening Wrote: They make those digital antenna things too.  That should get get you some networks.

They'll only get you over the air. I think that's what he is referring to when he says digital receiver. It comes in great though, but it's all basic TV with a few other channels based on your area and what the local FOX, NBC, ABC, and CBS affiliates broadcast.

[RICHMONDBENGAL_07]

(06-27-2015, 11:22 PM)Johnny Cupcakes Wrote: I can't drink on weeknights, buddy....or this would be what I did.

It's not a good idea to start drinking on Monday?

[CKwi88]

I've gone without TV for the better part of the last 5 years. I've got a few options I use.

1) Netflix for time-killing, casual shows and some exclusives (Orange is the New Black, House of Cards, etc.)
2) Online streaming. Usually works OK for sports, just don't click any ads or have a halfway decent firewall/protection.
3) Torrents are your friends.

[Johnny Cupcakes]

(06-28-2015, 01:01 AM)RICHMONDBENGAL_07 Wrote: It's not a good idea to start drinking on Monday?

It used to be...but now I spend the first 4 hours of Tuesday and Thursday at work in a conference room. If I were in my office or in the field, I wouldn't mind going in hungover, but that conference room is a brutal place for a guy that has bubbleguts and is sensitive to bright lights.

[RICHMONDBENGAL_07]

(06-28-2015, 02:15 AM)Johnny Cupcakes Wrote: It used to be...but now I spend the first 4 hours of Tuesday and Thursday at work in a conference room.  If I were in my office or in the field, I wouldn't mind going in hungover, but that conference room is a brutal place for a guy that has bubbleguts and is sensitive to bright lights.

I think it's safe to assume you knew I was kidding anyway.

[fredtoast]

Buy some good binoculars and watch your neighbor's TV.

[Arturo Bandini]

I sold my TV 2 years ago and I absolutely don't miss it.

[Donnyho]

Amazon Prime is decent. The $100 a year gets your free shipping for the year too, so that's a plus.

I don't have Hulu Plus, but I'm pretty sure it adds current programing the day after it airs live.

As for MNF, I believe that Verizon lets you stream games through their NFL app (whatever games are showing locally and SNF and MNF). There's also the ESPN app, but I'm not sure if it plays MFN (and you'd probably need a friend with cables username password).

[*jason*]

(06-28-2015, 04:34 AM)fredtoast Wrote: Buy some good binoculars and watch your neighbor's TV.

I actually did that during the 2nd half of the MNF game vs Denver last year.  The radio was ahead to the TV broadcast, so I knew what was gonna happen b4 I saw it.

[*Awful Llama*]

(06-28-2015, 04:34 AM)fredtoast Wrote: Buy some good binoculars and watch your neighbor's TV.

Or, if they're attractive, just watch your neighbors. 

[StLucieBengal]

Hey JC....  I am in the same boat.   I use Kodi...  You can get a box or hook up a pc to the TV.

I get any show, any movie, anytime. Can cost as little as nothing but I paid for streamline premium service.

Works on tablets as well .

[djs7685]

It really depends on how serious you want to get with it.

For some people, having an antenna for OTA channels and then subscribing to Netflix is enough.

Others use HTPCs, tuners, antennas, external hard drives, and a ton of other more DIY stuff to get it done.

After going back and forth with a bunch of crap, I now just use the 3 major streaming services and an antenna and it's more than enough for the small amount of free time my wife and I have with 2 kids. As mentioned by others, Amazon prime is $100 but I buy it annually for the shipping more than anything, it just happens to come with a streaming service and a decent new music service as well. Hulu can be had for free (Bing perks monthly) or for about $30 a year if you look hard in the right places. I'm grandfathered into the $7.99 Netflix price for a bit longer I believe, but if you're a new member it's $9.99 for the streaming service. A really good way to save a few bucks is to buy your own modem and router when Newegg has a combo special if you haven't already. Setting up your own home network is simple and saves you quite a bit over time (not to mention better performance than those shitty modem/router combos you get from most big ISPs). Comcast increased their price for modem rental to $9.99 a month, not sure about other places, but your own modem and router usually pays for itself within a year (and will last much longer 99% of the time) and then you're saving money right there. Also, I'm locked in to $29.99 a month for 25 Mbps down through my ISP for 24 months. Not a bad deal at all and I'm sure you can get close to that with any of the big providers if you're willing to get told no by enough customer service agents until 1 of them cuts you a deal.

Upfront costs - $120-ish for Motorola Surfboard and TP Link Archer modem and router, anywhere from $10-$50 for a couple of decent indoor antennas.
Yearly costs - $556 per year for 25 Mbps internet, Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime (free 2 day ship even on Sundays, streaming, + other perks). That's less than $50 per month for what is usually more than enough for most small households.

[Wes Mantooth]

On ESPN - You may have an internet provider that allows you access to ESPN3. Here is a list of the providers: http://espn.go.com/espn3/affList

I'm not sure if MNF is on there but it may be. You can get a lot of games on it. There is also the watchespn app. If you know anyone who has cable or satelite, and would be nice enough to let you use their account, you can set this up. This will give you full access to the programming they receive on their package. Ex- My dad gave me his Time Warner info. I set up a watch espn account with it. Boom, now I get ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, and ESPN3. It's great.

On Hulu - The regular hulu website, accessed through a computer, has pretty much everything Hulu Plus has. In fact, there are some things the free version has that the paid version does not, and vice versa. But for the most part, they have the same stuff. Both have commercials. I believe Hulu Plus gives you earlier access to some episodes too. The main thing you're paying for is the ability to use it on devices other than a computer. ie Roku, Tablet, Phone. If you have a laptop with an HDMI out I'd suggest hooking that up to the tv, and just using the free version. It wasn't worth for me to pay 8 bucks a month to skip that basic step.

HBO Go - Hopefully you can find someone nice enough to share their password. It's a freaking awesome. Oh, and don't feel too bad about it if you use someone's account either. http://nerdist.com/hbos-ceo-okay-with-hbo-go-password-sharing-gonna-share/

I'd suggest spending 50 bucks on a Roku as well. (Maybe the amazon stick instead, but I haven't used it) There's some pretty cool free apps on there. A good example is Crackle, they have some decent movies and some original content (Sports Jepoardy, Joe Dirt 2)