Cutting the cable cord

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My TV Cable provider has basically reached my limit of greed tolerance with their rates now. I phoned and vented at their loyalty dept last year and good a good 1 year promo that just expired and now rates are ridiculous again and they're not so cooperative this time. So I'm looking for non cable company alternatives and was wondering what seems to be the best/most reliable/most professionally made internet set top boxes these days? Like Roku type stuff.

 

[JRDroid]

My TV Cable provider has basically reached my limit of greed tolerance with their rates now. I phoned and vented at their loyalty dept last year and good a good 1 year promo that just expired and now rates are ridiculous again and they're not so cooperative this time. So I'm looking for non cable company alternatives and was wondering what seems to be the best/most reliable/most professionally made internet set top boxes these days? Like Roku type stuff.

I've been cable free off an on for about 5 years, with the last year being completely cable free. My primary set top box is a Chromecast. I subscribe to Hulu+ and Netflix. I'm an Amazon Prime member, so I have access to their instant video library as well, but I almost never use it. I have an antenna for live events (Superbowl, awards shows, local news, etc.). Invest in a decent one. I had a cheap RCA and it was a frustrating experience. Upgraded to a Mohu Leaf 50 and I have no regrets, totally worth the $40. I buy shows on Google Play from time to time. For example, I love Archer so I bought a season pass for season 5 and was able to watch it the next day. My biggest struggle was HBO. We are big Game of Thrones fans. For this, I use a relative's HBO Go account that they do not use. HBO has gone on the record as saying they are okay with sharing HBO passwords, so if you know someone with HBO, that could be a solution, even if they want you to kick in $5 or so a month for access to the password.

 

[Hamp]

I too have been cable free for 3 years now. Like jdevenberg, I have a Chromecast, susbscribe to Hulu Plus, use my sister-in-law's Netflix account (rarely) and use a digital antenna for live events (sports, local news, etc). I don't really watch any "regular" TV shows, I barely tune in using the OTA antenna. I have a Samsung Galaxy SIII. My primary set top box is a WDTV Live Streaming Media Player. I search YouTube for documentaries, shows and the like and stream those using the Chromecast (worth the price). I also use torrents and store any video onto external hard drives which are connected to the WDTV mainly or I can use them on my desktop PC (23" Lenovo Ideacenter C540). Even with all the separate sources, the cost savings compared to cable or satellite is huge! I can watch what I want, when I want without paying for channels or services I really won't ever use. I pay for premium internet services and that's it. My mobile phone is my primary like so many other people but I do have a home phone (still makes sense to have one, just in case).

 

[xchange]

Thanks guys, I think I'm going to give the Roku 3 a shot