[rrm2244]

can i receive the same over the air broadcasts as i am now with the cable company. I have to pay a large sum each month and the $13 a month sounds good but will i still get sports like the actual espn channel. it looks like you can in the picture of the the DTVPAL DVR but im asking just to be sure. I would perfer to get the tivo box anyway cause i would not need to connect to a computer. Next question is if i dont have a hd tv can i get the lesser expesive model of the tivo box TiVo Series2 and still get the same over the air tv? thank you for any imput on the matter....maybe i should just stay on the internet watching on hulu

From http://www.pcworld.c...nternet_tv.html

This post has been edited by rrm2244: 18 September 2009 - 03:23 PM

[Rommel]

rrm2244, on 18 September 2009 - 03:19 PM, said:

can i receive the same over the air broadcasts as i am now with the cable company. I have to pay a large sum each month and the $13 a month sounds good but will i still get sports like the actual espn channel. it looks like you can in the picture of the the DTVPAL DVR but im asking just to be sure. I would perfer to get the tivo box anyway cause i would not need to connect to a computer. Next question is if i dont have a hd tv can i get the lesser expesive model of the tivo box TiVo Series2 and still get the same over the air tv? thank you for any imput on the matter....maybe i should just stay on the internet watching on hulu

From http://www.pcworld.c...nternet_tv.html

Hi,
I don't know where you live but the national standard in the north east is to broadcast in HD. I am not current with the lastest up to date info on this.

Anyway, I am watching the Phillies right now on PHL17 in crystal clear over the air HD. The picture doesn't do it justice. If your HD TV has a tuner it is ready.
However signals can be blocked by broadcast distance, trees, buildings.

My over the air scan has given me only about 20 HD channels. too many of them I have no interest to watch.

So yes you can receive HD but what is availiable in your area needs looked into.
I seriuosly doubt you will get the most of the channels you want.



I use a simple antenna/cable switch.
Cable in antenna in and an out to the TV.

This post has been edited by Rommel: 18 September 2009 - 04:56 PM

[Slik]

I have a somewhat new Toshiba laptop with HDMI output (cables to my new Dynex/Toshiba 32" flat screen TV). Cox Communications keeps increasing its monthly basic cable (70 channels) TV rates (currently ~$60.00 per month, just killed 2 channels) and offers mostly self-advertisement and informercials for, eg. Extenze, Girls Gone Wild, Cialis, Levitra, Viagra and various self-help schemes to get rich on the Internet and improve disgusting bodily functions.

I would really like to see ala-carte TV where one pays just for the channels wanted/used. No chance.

I just bought an extension ethernet cable to go from my AT&T DSL modem to my laptop, at my recliner in front of my TV. (I thought of experimenting with WiFi, but I know the ethernet cable works.) I've determined that with this setup, plus Internet runs of the SciFi, A&E, Discovery, History, local news, ABC, CBS, NBC et al and the 5 international cable news channels, plus Hulu.com and Crackle.com (Sony's competition to Hulu), I will be able to flush Cox Cable services and see what I want to see, when I want to see it. Thus my own ala-carte TV. I have also found that I can go on-line under IE 8 and not log-in to AT&T and still see everything except my E-mail. I do not plan to screw-over AT&T; they have provided excellent service. I have yet to figure out how to use my laptop's 320 Gbyte HDD as a video recorder. I also must figure out what to do if I fall asleep in my recliner and dump my laptop on the floor. Perhaps I can teach my 55 pound Chow dog how to watch Animal Planet while I am asleep.

This post has been edited by Slik: 18 September 2009 - 05:46 PM

[Rommel]

Slik, on 18 September 2009 - 05:39 PM, said:

I would really like to see ala-carte TV where one pays just for the channels wanted/used. No chance.

I have yet to figure out how to use my laptop's 320 Gbyte HDD as a video recorder.

I agree with your thinking about channel choices. It would be nice to have more control of the channels we want.

As far as using your HDD as a video recorder, have you considerd a USB TV tuner?
Some have DVR functions.
If I didn't misunderstand your comment, here is a link to some at www.newegg.com

http://www.newegg.co...on=usb+tv+tuner

My pci tuner doesn't have that function nor is it vista or w7 compatible.

Rommel

[Slik]

Rommel: Thanks for your quick reply. I've read other of your posts on other subjects and found you to be intelligent, forthright and no spewer of BS like, perhaps myself, and other opinionated blowhards on subjects ranging from anti-virus suites to the "best" web-browser and operating system(s). My current goal in the cable TV wars is to flush Cox Cable (= $60.00 per month, and then maybe to buy a discrete Video Recorder using the $$$ saved.)

[Rommel]

Thank you Slik for the kind words.
They meant a lot.

Rommel

[LincolnSpector]

Hi, rrm2244.

I'm going to guess that your question is in response to my article, Ditch Cable and Satellite for Free Internet TV.

When you give up cable, you will lose most of your channels, including ESPN. The broadcast stations are at the bottom of the dial (up through about 100, I think), and have call letters that start with K or W (depending on your geographic location).

Tivo doesn't offer any sports content via the Internet. I'm not sure if Windows Media Center does. You might want to check it out to see if it offers anything worth your while.

You can't buy a TiVo without HD, anymore. Now that all over-the-air broadcasts are digital and a lot of them HD, that would be pointless. You can connect it to a standard TV, and the TiVo will convert HD stations to SD.

Lincoln

[Slik]

Mr. Spector: I value your opinions greatly and also enjoy your columns in PCWorld magazine, both on-line and in hard copy. The thrust of the subject article seems, in part, to have been toward over-the-air broadcasts. I intend to get all of my news, information and entertainment via the Internet. My comments in my post above relate to what I have since found to be so: namely, that the information and entertainment content available on-line meet almost all of my requirements, except as you noted, for immediate sports telecasts. Noting the channels I listed in my earlier post, if one does not require to see a program while action is in progress (eg. sports), the programs are generally available, in full and commercial free on the Internet. This includes archival program footage, such as on the History Channel and SciFi channel. Hulu.com uses unobtrusive advertisements, as I suspect also does Sony's Crackle.com. All-in-all, the Internet is a gateway to the world. With the powerful search engines currently available, one can easily fill up 12-15 hours on-line and be entertained in any reasonable context desired. My local cable provider has, out of about 70 basic channels, at least 5 ESPN type sports programs, covering collegiate and pro sports, plus NASCAR and outdoor sports. I have not checked these for old and recent archival footage, but I suspect a dedicated viewer can find some sort of good programming to satisfy his appetite.

Thanks for your good advice and keep up the great work.

[LincolnSpector]

I admit that, since I am not a sports fan myself, it didn't occur to me that this would be a problem. If you want sports coverage live, and you want more than what your local broadcast channels provide, you'll probably need to keep cable (or give up a major enjoyment in life).

Lincoln

[smax013]

rrm2244, on 18 September 2009 - 03:19 PM, said:

can i receive the same over the air broadcasts as i am now with the cable company.

It all depends on what over the air stations your cable company offers and what ones you can pick up by way of an antenna.

For example, where I live, I get most of my network stations from cable from Toledo, OH, but I get a few from Detroit, MI. If I were to drop cable and go with an antenna, I would potentially have more difficulty getting the Detroit stations, but likely should get the Toledo stations...all depending on the antenna I use.

Generally speaking, you should be able to get the same major network stations by "over-the-air" as you do by cable, but it may not always completely match up.

Quote

I have to pay a large sum each month and the $13 a month sounds good but will i still get sports like the actual espn channel.

The one definite area that Internet streaming video is lacking is live sports. It is getting better (I believe you can get MLB and Pro Football live games online now...and some college football). Thus, if you decide to go to over-the-air and drop cable and supplement that by using the Internet, then you will likely be missing the likes of ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN News, Fox Sports, etc.

The other things you will miss generally are the other "live" type shows such a news shows on the cable news networks, etc.

If you only care about series, then you have a rather sporting shot of finding them online somewhere. BUT, not all series TV shows are available online (at least not legally).

Quote

it looks like you can in the picture of the the DTVPAL DVR but im asking just to be sure. I would perfer to get the tivo box anyway cause i would not need to connect to a computer. Next question is if i dont have a hd tv can i get the lesser expesive model of the tivo box TiVo Series2 and still get the same over the air tv? thank you for any imput on the matter....maybe i should just stay on the internet watching on hulu

From http://www.pcworld.c...nternet_tv.html

As previously noted, all currently available TiVo models are capable of HD...at least to my knowledge. About the only way to get a non-HD TiVo would be to buy used.