[PCWorld]

Post your comments for Ditch Cable and Satellite for Free Internet TV here

[ToddDiroberto]

Interesting article
ToddDiroberto
http://www.tmcnet.co.../19/4234138.htm
http://www.merchantc...uct-Line/274342

[Shtihl]

another possible way to port internet to tv is to use the s-video port on video card using the s-video to RCA yellow video that came with the video card and run a RCA yellow video cable to it from the yellow RCA input on your tv or VCR. the quality is not great but it's not horrible either. it will do well for netflix play now movies from web. just dont try to read a text document like that and i suggest you dont use that method as the primary display. extend the desktop to it and viola;)

[wmcoverdale]

My computer does not have a HDMI outut, but it does have a VGA and DVI output for video and a optical output for digital sound.
I connect my computer monitor with the VGA cable, and bought a 25' DVI to HDMI cable which I run under my house to my 50" HDTV. When I want to watch any computer video on my TV, I merely clone the TV screen to the computer for a 1080i display. Streaming video works perfectly and the quality from my computer is equal in quality to that streamed directly from my Dish DVR.
I use a 25' optical cable to connect my computer to my AVR to receive Dolby Digital sound. The sound syncs perfectly with the video and allows my to listen to Pandora music on 5.1 sound system while browsing the internet. My music is all stored on my computer and the quality of music is equal or superior to the Sirius music I play from Dish.
My system is limited by my optical connection that will not carry the quality of sound offered by an HDMI cable, which carries the newer more advanced Dolby sound quality.
If you have a notebook or desktop computer with an HDMI output and an AVR with an HDMI input a single HDMI cable to the AVR and a 2nd HDMI cable from the AVR to the HDTV with muted sound is the best solution.

[rrm2244]

i have a question if i dont have an hd tv can i get the less expense tivo box the TiVo Series2™ DT DVR. Will still receive tv over the internet. another thing what stations does it support espn? Comedy Central?

[KStrawn]

This is a classic example of "alternatives". I agree with this article 100%, and yes, I have actually read the printed equivalent of this in the October 2009 PC World Magazine. It is a very interesting article. And it certainly demonstrates the very idea of free TV. I don't know why fiber-optic TV didn't reach its full potential, either. IPTV was supposed to essentially be the Internet in your living room. Not the case, according to AT&T and Verizon. The only company that actually is deploying true IPTV is Microsoft, and not widespread, either. I don't know why Microsoft promised to put IPTV on the XBOX 360 and didn't, either! It was supposed to happen. Where did that innovating idea go?

[KStrawn]

PCWorld, on 24 July 2009 - 10:06 AM, said:

Post your comments for Ditch Cable and Satellite for Free Internet TV here

Here is my idea about that: http://forums.pcworl...the-lost-dream/

[KStrawn]

Come on, see my new thread, "IPTV: The Lost Dream", in the HDTV and Home Theater forum. I want to know what you think.

This post has been edited by KStrawn: 19 September 2009 - 07:55 AM

[Slik]

Kstrawn and others: Rommel and I had a similar discussion yesterday on this forum on a thread of this same title. Our take is that you can indeed flush your monthly cable TV at a considerable monthly cost savings (in my own case approx $60.00 USD per month) AND wind up with a much better choice of viewing selections tailored to what YOU want to see. (Our version of TV ala carte). In NW Florida, USA, the dominant cable provider gives spotty service and spends a great deal of on-air time in self advertising and self promotion, often over-riding both channel content and ads I would really like to see. I've had both satellite and cable TV. Even satellite TV is preferable to my local service, in that satellite TV does not self-promote and overide desirable programming. It is my feeling that if your cable TV service also provides your internet service (is your ISP) you have less of a chance of flushing them than if you have a separate ISP (I use AT&T DSL with no complaints regarding technical service, cost, reliability, UL and DL speed). I would be curious to read other's comments and viewpoints on this issue. Like Rommel, you, Kstrawn, have a good and valuable point of view on many of the issues affecting the utilization of the Internet to enrich one's life experiences. Keep up the good work.

[navic99]

I'm open to ditching cable except for live sports...that is something I can't live without!

[KStrawn]

navic99, on 28 September 2009 - 08:57 AM, said:

I'm open to ditching cable except for live sports...that is something I can't live without!

Unless I can get my dose of "Hannah Montana" and "Jonas", no can do.

[toddlorensinclair]

Easiest setup I find is a laptop with hdmi and at least vista home premium (which includes media center.) You can add a media center remote or your harmony remote and a usb ir adapter and you'll be watching hulu desktop like regular tv .. navigating menus, changing volume , etc with the remote control or just get a bluetooth mouse and navigate from your coffee table.

[fjw1]

On page 96 of the article, column two states: " (in the world of digital broadcasts, you can't time-shift with a VCR) ... . Not quite. If you have a device that converts the ATSC digital signal to the NTSC standard, you can use a VCR to time-shift. The $40 government converter boxes all do this. They provide two sorts of analog outputs: a single connector that combines audio and video, and red, white, and yellow RCA cables for separate channels of stereo audio and video. Even the DTVPal DVR described on page 98 has both sorts of outputs, though as long as the hard drive is working there is no need for a VCR.

You can't buy a stand-alone VCR anymore. Manufacturers now bundle a VCR with a DVD player and you have to buy the combination. I already have two DVD players. I don't need a third. What I need is some VCRs to replace the DTVPal DVR units that have proven to be junk.

I acquired two DTVPal DVRs directly from Dish in January 2009. Both were defective right out of the box. They constantly rebooted or froze so completely you had to pull the plug to get them working again. I finally got return merchandise authorizations to ship both of them back. I sent back one. Its replacement would not receive Channel 3. After I got the next unit in late June, I sent the other one back. I did not receive its replacement until late August. This unit died completely in early November, less than 10 weeks after I received it. The unit I received in June is now (early November) very, very sick. It again spontaneously reboots, and has now developed Alzheimer's disease. It forgets what I want to record, or records it at inappropriate times. I expect it will totally fail soon.

The DTVPal DVR is by far the worst piece of consumer electronics I have ever bought. Fortunately, DISH his stopped selling it. They have transferred their inventory to Sears, and Sears offers an extended warranty for an extra charge.

Don't buy this product.