Watching TV/Sports/Movies without a TV
I'll be cancelling my dish soon, so what's the best way to watch stuff on the Tele, without using a Bell/Rogers/whatever receiver.
Obviously this means using the computer but I would know everyone's opinion on Netflix (US or Canada?), Apple TV, and whatever the hell you people use to download shows and stuff. How much data would you average a month? Average cost?
I'm not keen on illegally downloading, and I've heard it's getting harder to do so anyway.
Discuss.
Obviously this means using the computer but I would know everyone's opinion on Netflix (US or Canada?), Apple TV, and whatever the hell you people use to download shows and stuff. How much data would you average a month? Average cost?
I'm not keen on illegally downloading, and I've heard it's getting harder to do so anyway.
Discuss.
Comments
Download utorrent program then go to pirate bay or eztv to download shit.
No idea how much bandwith this uses as I've never been on a capped plan anywhere.
Of course I ignore..
This is primarily because I download from Pirate Bay which Hollywood (not our Hollywood) monitors and can determine my IP. They can only see I'm on Cogeco so send them a form letter which Cogeco dutifully forwards on to me.. I think this is primarily to cover their asses' since here in Canada they don't have to reveal customers IP's without a court order..
If you are using one of the more private downloading sites they never know.
As for how much, it really depends on how much you are downloading and whether or not it's high def, etc.. I typically average 80-120GB per month...
Then I have a wd tv live to stream any content on the computer onto the living room tv wirelessly
eztv, torrentday for HD (and the latest WSOP stuff in 720p).
Utorrent.
There is really no need for HD with most of those files, I have a 46 inch Aquos and as long as they are at least 480p they look better than what is being broadcast to me by rogers.
Basically, think of it this way. A half hour of programming is approximately 175mb, an hour 350mb and a typical movie would be in the 700mb range....or 0.7 gigs.
Doing the math 100 hours of TV at regular definition would take about 35 gigabytes. Most people's plans are at least 60+ gigs a month. Basically unless you are a TV addict, any reasonable internet plan will allow you to download far more TV than anyone should need to watch in a month.
Newer TV's usually have a USB port on them also, and my Aquos recognizes every file type there is (wmv, mkv, mp4, avi etc)....so you just put it the stick and plug it into your tv, so you don't have to watch anything on a computer.
If it wasn't for my significant other I'd have cancelled cable long ago.
Seriously, just check out kickasstorrents and search for a show you like. A good example is 'The Amazing Race Canada' (quite a good show for Canada btw)....it's always there within a few hours of being broadcast...and as I say the quality even in the lower definition is better than what is being fed to me by Rogers. Or if you really love high def and have the data available go for it, the shows are almost always available in HD too.
This is all theoretical of course. Downloading internet content is naughty.
Things you need
- TV
- Sony internet player (aka google box) - See it here - Generally hovers around the $180 price point.
- Internet connection / home network (Wifi preferred).
- Several apps (<$15-20 total, one time fee)
- Optional subscriptions to other services
- HDMI cable
So, basically, the TV and Sony player can do it all. I have an xbox also hooked up that I like to use for Netflix / Centre Ice / At Bat (more on that later).
Anyways, the Sony Internet player (SIP), connects to your wifi and connects to your tv via HDMI cable. This unit connects to the google play store, and offers a tonne of apps (the above pasted review notes you have to wade through a lot of them). But, what works for me is setting that up and downloading the following apps
ViMu: An app for streaming content from your also-connected PC's / laptops / etc)
1channel: a great app for streaming television & movies, fails on things like news programs and 60 minutes, but basically connects you to all the sources that projectfree.tv and those other streaming sites use. Quality varies from standard cable to HD.
Navi-x: User generated streaming movies, many in HD quality (main reason I use it). Also offers current-run stuff (Wolvering and Pacific Rim would be there for sure), but shaky-cam quality.
Now on the the subscription stuff.
Netflix: Must have, you know what it is. Like $8 a month
Unblock-us (or another similar service): Quick change on your router settings for DNS #'s (easy follow instructions available), and you're suddenly getting USA quality Netflix, web browsing, sports broadcast (more on that in a minute). Basically whenever you've seen "This video can't be played in your country", it's gone. About $8 a month
Sports package of your choice: The big four sports all have a subscription based service that very likely can be downloaded on this unit (I tend towards the xbox m'self). They range in price depending on the time in the season you order it, and what you get. I assume they go for about $150 - $200 / season. Now normally, this eliminates your local games for broadcast rights reasons (no leaf / canadiens / senators games), but with the unblockus thing? All games, regardless available.
I'm sure there must be apps out there to stream sports, but I haven't spent the time trying to find them. However, this unit also comes with Google Chrome, which as you should know is one of the better web browsers. This can go to sites like firstrowsports.com and stream as well.
Mark
http://atdee.net/
this was especially awesome during the Summer olympics. Got to watch all the obscure stuff that they don't show on tv
^^^^^ probably just scared most that were considering cutting their cable into keeping it :-\
sky sports live streaming | sky sports 1 live stream | sky sports free streams | free sky sports | sports streaming | nfl live stream | watch free sports | sky sports 1 stream | sky sports 2 stream | sky sports 3 stream | sky sports 4 stream | f1 liv
Connect your computer to your tv. Download shows and movies via torrents (piratebay and isohunt are my sites of choice). Use VLC player to play the files.
Canadian laws have recently changed. Some info on file sharing in Canada: File sharing in Canada - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Montreal firm monitoring Canadians' downloading activities: Montreal firm monitoring illegal downloading for court cases - Canada - CBC News
Get an old fashioned antenna for your tv. They still work and depending where you are, you will be able to get several channels.
http://www.antennaweb.org/default.aspx
Anyone in KW needs setup help, I can give you a hand.
Netflix / Unblockus is the best $15 I spend a month, and the sports things? $200 for a season is paid off in what, 3 months of cable savings?
Mark
Not disagreeing, I guess it all comes down to your movie/tv watching habits frequency. Anything and everything and far more than what is available on the Netflix/unblockus combo for $15 a month, is completely free on torrent sites, which have everything anyone could ever want, from old seasons of Star Trek or Seinfeld, to whatever season or episode of the latest reality show....Amazing Race, Hells Kitchen etc, to the movie Pain and Gain or Heat just released to blue ray....to every obscure movie you remember from your childhood. It's all there. I do agree that sports could be an issue for big sports fans, but otherwise for someone actually wanting to cut expenses to nothing (other than internet bill) who really don't rely on TV/movies as a mainstay (or even if they do actually) a simple torrent site and a 16 or 32 gb usb stick are all that are needed. Again, I don't watch that many movies or much TV though, but I'm thinking most that want to cut their cable are probably in the same boat and are tired of all the junk on TV and shitty movies anyway. The other night I watched my first commercially interupted episode of Breaking Bad on AMC.....oh the horror
This is all theoretical of course. Downloading internet content is naughty.
Fair enough
But for the less technically minded, the SIP is a great solution. One time cos tof ~$200 and you're set up.
Mark
I'm not a big fan of bittorrents and other illegal downloading platforms. IMO, it's too much of a risk for viruses and a huge hassle DLing a good quality file.
only takes a few minutes if you have decent internet speed these days
Yeah, I was gonna say it really isn't any hassle at all. One or two clicks, viruses are unheard of in mainstream downloads by known uploaders, and for me much higher quality than my cable broadcast provides, with all the commercials perfectly edited out. I'd also question the 'illegality' of downloading television programs, and have never heard of anyone even remotely getting into trouble for this.