DirecTV

[MJZiggy]

I have a TV that's only been turned on a few times since the season ended. It's costing me $57 a month to have the option of satellite programming. The only reason I keep it is for football. The Sunday Ticket costs $45 a month for 6 months. That's $270 a year to watch just the games that aren't on regular tv or picked up locally.

I'm not so rich at the moment, so I'm trying to think through my options. What do you guys think? How much is TV worth?

[Scott Campbell]

Re: DirecTV

I have a TV that's only been turned on a few times since the season ended. It's costing me $57 a month to have the option of satellite programming. The only reason I keep it is for football. The Sunday Ticket costs $45 a month for 6 months. That's $270 a year to watch just the games that aren't on regular tv or picked up locally.

I'm not so rich at the moment, so I'm trying to think through my options. What do you guys think? How much is TV worth?

IMO - the math doesn't work.

[SkinBasket]

You obviously just need to stop eating, then this isn't an issue.

[MJZiggy]

You're right. I've just added the whole thing up and it comes out to almost $950 a year to watch bad tv.

Time to start a Packer meetup to go watch it at the bar.

[Freak Out]

If the TV is new it has a digital tuner....OTA rocks now so ditch the SAT crap.

[GrnBay007]

Time to start a Packer meetup to go watch it at the bar.

Not so bad if you are by yourself and meet up with friends to watch a game...you can keep the cost as low as you'd like. Last year we went to a sports bar to watch a few games. The cost goes wayyyy up with a couple kids with you...esp. teens who are always hungry.

[retailguy]

Re: DirecTV

I have a TV that's only been turned on a few times since the season ended. It's costing me $57 a month to have the option of satellite programming. The only reason I keep it is for football. The Sunday Ticket costs $45 a month for 6 months. That's $270 a year to watch just the games that aren't on regular tv or picked up locally.

I'm not so rich at the moment, so I'm trying to think through my options. What do you guys think? How much is TV worth?

there are a lot of options to stream tv from the internet. Justin TV usually has broadcasted Packer games. (quality isn't great however) You can get recent shows on HULU or ABC or NBC.

For <$50 you can get a cable from your laptop to your TV if it's relatively new. I got an Svideo cable for 24.95 including shipping and stream movies from netflix to the TV all the time.

I have directv for the same reasons you do. I've thought about canceling it, but the only thing we watch is cable. discovery, HGTV, Food network, TRUTV. We don't watch broadcast TV AT ALL. Even news we get from CNN or Fox News Channel.

Tough call. I get it. But I'm paying the same $57 a month too.

[GrnBay007]

Re: DirecTV

But I'm paying the same $57 a month too.

I've been wanting to get it and have just kept putting it off. I think this will be the year though. Cable rate increase again and now paying something like $62 a month for cable.

[retailguy]

I'm hopeful that within the next five years, we'll start to have channel choices via broadband.

There are a few cable channels that I'd like to have, but very few. This cable/satellite monopoly is hopefully threatened in the next several years.

[Scott Campbell]

Re: DirecTV

For <$50 you can get a cable from your laptop to your TV if it's relatively new.

https://www.monoprice.com

[Partial]

Re: DirecTV

For <$50 you can get a cable from your laptop to your TV if it's relatively new.

www.monoprice.com

2nded.

[Scott Campbell]

Re: DirecTV

For <$50 you can get a cable from your laptop to your TV if it's relatively new. I got an Svideo cable for 24.95 including shipping and stream movies from netflix to the TV all the time.

I'm with RG - broadband content will soon begin eating away at cable and satellite subscriptions.

There are emerging options for streaming media content over your network to your TV's. Within the next 2 to 4 years, they should become fairly mainstream. If you're building a house or finishing a basement, make sure to run Cat 5 (or Cat 6) outlets to all your TV areas.

I use some devices called the Popcorn Hour, but can't recommend it for novices. It's incredibly stable, but setting it up involves tremendous amounts of brain damage. I also keep all my content on a PC running Windows Home Server - by far the best Microsoft product I've ever owned.

[MJZiggy]

For the moment I may just get a netfllix subscription...

[Scott Campbell]

For the moment I may just get a netfllix subscription...

We've done Netflix, Blockbuster - even the library which was surprisingly pretty good.



Speaking of saving a few bucks on utilities, how many here are using VOIP instead of the phone company? Which ones? Anyone dropped the land line altogether for their cell phones?

[MJZiggy]

My company uses VoIP. Works fine.