Gwenny Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 My dh has agreed to ditch the cable. Shocking news since he lives for all things football. We have an antenna and get about 20 channels with it. How might we be able to watch more on the TV. I don't really care about watching anything, but I'm afraid my hubby will plunge into a deep depression without it. Any way he can watch football games you might normally only see on cable? Here's what we have: flat screen TV playstation 3 high speed internet It seems we should be able to use these to watch something on the TV, but don't know how. Also, there is no way to hook our computer up to the TV easily. Will one of those Roku boxes be good for us? One more thing. Can our second TV be hooked up to the antenna in the attic as well? Gwenny Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gwenny Posted May 20, 2011 Author Share Posted May 20, 2011 Just thought of another question. How do you know what's on TV without hitting the guide button on the cable remote or reading the titles on the bottom of the screen? Do I subscribe to TV guide or get the newspaper? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LauraGB Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 It seems we should be able to use these to watch something on the TV, but don't know how. Also, there is no way to hook our computer up to the TV easily. Will one of those Roku boxes be good for us? Gwenny The roku has been the thing that made the transition easy for us. You can stream Netflix, Amazon and Pandora with it, and that seems to satisfy the men in my house. But, can't you do the same with playstation? I think you might be able to...I'm sure someone who knows more than I do will chime in about that. Connecting the computer to your tv - why is it not easy? Do you have a desktop? I'm asking because there are different length hdmi cords you can buy that might make it easier if that is the problem. We were considering hooking one up the desktop in the office, running it under the floor (through the basement) and up behind the tv and just leaving it there permanently (kind of like cable of old), but we have found, for the most part, the roku takes care of most group watching things, so we didn't do it; we just hook the laptop up if we need it. Congrats on your choice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cortana Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 The only football game we miss is if our team(s) play Monday on ESPN. Otherwise, we watch all of them on the local channels. The only time it would be a major issue is if your dh is a fan of a team that doesn't get their games shown regularly on your local channels (i.e. if my dh was a fan of an east coast team, he wouldn't have much luck watching many of the games here on the west coast). You may be able to watch some games online with the computer but I'm not entirely sure. Our family is having more of an issue with Nascar races as so many of them are on cable-only channels, so far we've found no alternative. :( For finding out what's on, you can get the TV Guide or newspaper or you can look up local listings online. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cortana Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 The roku has been the thing that made the transition easy for us. You can stream Netflix and Amazon with it, and that seems to satisfy the men in my house. But, can't you do the same with playstation? I think you might be able to...I'm sure someone who knows more than I do will chime in about that. Yes, you can stream Netflix on PS3. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elfgivas Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 dh found the first season a little tough without football. so we hooked up the antenna for the rosebowl. by then, he was so used to real life that he found the commercials really, really, really horrible. and that was the end of that, as they say..... congrats - its a whole new world! ann Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gwenny Posted May 20, 2011 Author Share Posted May 20, 2011 Connecting the computer to your tv - why is it not easy? Do you have a desktop? I'm asking because there are different length hdmi cords you can buy that might make it easier if that is the problem. We were considering hooking one up the desktop in the office, running it under the floor (through the basement) and up behind the tv and just leaving it there permanently (kind of like cable of old), but we have found, for the most part, the roku takes care of most group watching things, so we didn't do it; we just hook the laptop up if we need it. We have a desk top, but don't see how to connect it. The TV and computer are on exact opposite sides of the house. We live on concrete slab, so no under the floor for us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geo Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 (edited) We dropped typical cable/satellite over 3 years ago. Since we live in the mountains...antennas just don't cut it. We do subscribe to Netflix for $14.99 a month, which includes DVD's by mail AND a satellite access through our Wii (Playstation 3 & Xbox will work) and the internet. We're finicky about what we watch as a family, but the price is right and gives us some choices. It also has a parental control feature. Geo Edited May 20, 2011 by Geo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarolfromIL Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 Just thought of another question. How do you know what's on TV without hitting the guide button on the cable remote or reading the titles on the bottom of the screen? Do I subscribe to TV guide or get the newspaper? Seriously? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Running the race Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 Get Netflix instant streaming either on your PS3 or get a Roku. We have never had Cable and don't run out of things to watch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4ofus Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 We stream Netflix as well. ALSO, to satisfy my husbands cravings for college football, we pay for an xbox live gold membership (I think it's $50/yr) & he can stream all games played on ESPN thru the xbox. The $50/yr plus $10/mo for Netflix is still WAY cheaper than cable. We also get local channels thru antenna. I really think we could drop Netflix even. We really just basically stopped watching tv. It only comes on for video games or sports (just football season). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pippen Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 We stream Netflix on a blue ray DVD player that is Netflix compatable and have an antennae on the roof that picks up a few network stations and PBS.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 I think you can go to tvguide.com and figure out what is on. I will miss the guide as well. We are ditching satellite too and haven't had regular/antenna TV in about 14 years! Sad, but true. I am not even sure we can get over the air TV where we live, but I am going to try. We also just purchased Roku boxes and I have to say I am very pleased with the selection on Netflix and HuluPlus. Dawn Just thought of another question. How do you know what's on TV without hitting the guide button on the cable remote or reading the titles on the bottom of the screen? Do I subscribe to TV guide or get the newspaper? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brenda in FL Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 Just thought of another question. How do you know what's on TV without hitting the guide button on the cable remote or reading the titles on the bottom of the screen? Do I subscribe to TV guide or get the newspaper? It's all on the Internet now and you can set it for your local stations. You can even get a free app for tv listings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 We bought a computer which is dedicated to our TV. No Wii or other device. We haven't even watched local TV in months (we don't care about sports). We can watch most major network shows on the networks' Websites, on our own schedule, so it doesn't matter what times they are broadcast. The only one that we can't watch that way is the Mentalist. We also have Netflix. We either stream things via the Internet or we get the DVDs. We're thinking we might just get our favorite series on DVD from Netflix (including the Mentalist); then we don't have to watch even the brief commercials that are shown on the Internet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 We have Netflix, and order TV shows and movies from them on DVD, plus watch their instant shows. Also, many TV shows can be watched on various sites on the internet, including Masterpiece Theatre shows. You can get a cable that hooks your computer up to your TV; we got ours at Target. You can have more than one TV connected to an antenna in an attic. You may need to purchase a special part to attach to the antenna in order to do that. In our small town, we get only one actual TV channel clearly -- PBS. That plus internet and Netflix have taken care of most of our movie/TV show cravings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vonfirmath Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 Seriously? You can get TV guide listings online. http://www.tvguide.com/Listings/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magdalene Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 We don't have cable and I'm a huge hockey fan. Hockey is rarely on network TV. Every year my DH gifts me with an NHL Gamecenter subscription. I can watch just about every game, as long as it isn't restricted (local team, being nationally televised). This works, since the team I root for isn't local. I'm not a football fan so I'm not sure if the NFL offers anything similar to this, but if your DH is desperate for football, that could be an option. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twoforjoy Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 We haven't had cable in probably 7 or 8 years. We got very few channels for a while, but since the switch to digital (we have a converter box), we get ABC, NBC, CBS, three PBS stations, FOX, and a bunch of local stations. We have a Wii, which we can stream Netflix through. (I think you can also stream through the PS3, but I'm not sure.) We can hook up our TV to our computer and watch things (like Hulu) that way, but we rarely do that. If we want to see what's going to be on TV, we just check TV Guide online. But we get few enough channels that it's pretty easy just to flip through. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shinyhappypeople Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 Just thought of another question. How do you know what's on TV without hitting the guide button on the cable remote or reading the titles on the bottom of the screen? Do I subscribe to TV guide or get the newspaper? We hit the "guide" button on our tv remote and it shows the channel lineup for the next 24 hours on whatever station we're on (you have to scroll down to see it all). I guess they're able to do this because the signals are all digital now. We pay about $16/mo I think for netflix (streaming + 1 DVD out) and hulu plus. I don't miss satellite ($50++/mo) at all. We have a Roku, but doesn't PS3 do the same thing? It's worth checking into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shinyhappypeople Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 I am not even sure we can get over the air TV where we live, but I am going to try. If you're thinking about getting an antenna for OTA signals, go to antennaweb. It will show you what stations you will probably get with different types of antennas based on your address. It's a very conservative estimate. We get PBS, which we shouldn't according to the results on the site. But, it's a good place to start. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 We have checked that out, but our issue is our trees. We live on a hill and have trees everywhere (TALL trees!) Technically we should get everything, but in a test with an antenna I have here, we don't.....they go in and out and are spotty. Dawn If you're thinking about getting an antenna for OTA signals, go to antennaweb. It will show you what stations you will probably get with different types of antennas based on your address. It's a very conservative estimate. We get PBS, which we shouldn't according to the results on the site. But, it's a good place to start. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 Ok, I have ordered an antenna and will try to see if it works (individual TV type) with an amplifier. DH really doesn't want to deal with an attic or rooftop if he doesn't have to, so we will see if this works. Dawn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gwenny Posted May 21, 2011 Author Share Posted May 21, 2011 Dawn, My husband also bought an antenna and amplifier and first tried them inside the house for a dry run, just to see if he could get any channels. He didn't get much of anything inside the house, but got about 20 channels when it was in the attic. He's going to attempt the roof next. Gwen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kchara Posted May 21, 2011 Share Posted May 21, 2011 I think the NFL has a program that you can pay to watch the games during the season. The MLB does, DH got it, it was like $40 a month, but football season is significantly shorter and much fewer games, so it might be cheaper. And, he'll get access to all the games, not just whatever is on the local stations. DH thinks it's called NFL Live or something like that, but he's not 100% sure. He's much more into baseball. ETA: You'd watch them on the computer, and hook the computer up to the TV. ;-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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