Cancelled my cable TV service/Cutting the cord

Butterfly said:
You are confusing these so-called "android boxes" with Roku boxes. They are nowhere near the same. Roku does not "enable people to get TV they would not otherwise get." You get specific streaming services, legal ones, like Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc., that you sign up for. Nothing else. And you pay the service, not Roku.

The like above is talking about a whole different thing. Your article says:

"With added special software, the boxes allow customers to stream a huge selection of pirated content, including live sports, on their TVs — for free."

This NOT what Roku does. It allows you to have a vehicle to stream legal streaming channels to your TV. That's all. No pirated stuff or other cable channels -- just streaming channels like Netflix. There have been some of those Android boxes down here, too, but Roku is not one of them.
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I doubt that it will be stopped in the U.S. Canada is a different story. The cable companies want no competition of any kind and will spend money to stop it Roku or any other way to get television included. The devices are costing them money.

They have already been successful with injunctions. I don't fully understand the devices. I have an iPad and can get Apple TV for $250. That's not an android box and I don't know what it does. I don't watch movies. I have downloaded a free app simply called TV. I can watch quite a bit of stuff on it including old movies and documentaries. I will watch classic musicals like Oklahoma and Carousel. My favourite is South Pacific.

So for now I have cancelled my cable and playing the wait and see game. I miss Jeopardy.
 

Roku does not include TV, unless you have a cable subscription. Roku only is a way to stream streaming channels to your TV. Before I had my Roku I had a blue tooth device, but Roku is a lot faster. If I had a smart TV, I wouldn't need a Roku device, since I could stream directly to the TV. If Roku were streaming pirated cable TV, you can bet the cable people would be all over it here in the US.

I'm not sure all Roku programming is yet available in Canada, but I'm petty sure Netflix and Amazon are.
 
Sunny said:
This sounds tempting. I get "basic cable" free as part of my condo package, but have to pay extra for the better cable channels, and of course for HBO.

Outside of HBO, I mostly watch the streaming channels via Roku. Probably if I could get all the HBO programming via "HBO Now," I could cancel my cable service and never miss it. But I'd want to make sure I can get Bill Maher every week on HBO Now. Does anybody know?
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Sunny, according to my granddaughter, all HBO programs are available on HBO Now, but you should find their website where you can probably view their library.
 

Butterfly said:
Roku does not include TV, unless you have a cable subscription. Roku only is a way to stream streaming channels to your TV. Before I had my Roku I had a blue tooth device, but Roku is a lot faster. If I had a smart TV, I wouldn't need a Roku device, since I could stream directly to the TV. If Roku were streaming pirated cable TV, you can bet the cable people would be all over it here in the US.

I'm not sure all Roku programming is yet available in Canada, but I'm petty sure Netflix and Amazon are.
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A device, like a router or an amplifier is a device. Right?
 
Hooked up the Mofu Leaf antenna this evening. Great picture, sound is perfect. After installing, which was simple, you tell it to scan for channels. It found 47 digital channels and 1 analog; 5 of those are in Spanish and 3 are shopping networks...so, basically, about 40 watchable (for me) channels. With Netflix, that's plenty for as little as I watch. I've decided that if there's a TV series I really want to watch that I don't get on either, I'll buy the DVD set. Or, more likely, borrow it.

I'm pleased with it.
 
Cap'nSacto said:
Hooked up the Mofu Leaf antenna this evening. Great picture, sound is perfect. After installing, which was simple, you tell it to scan for channels. It found 47 digital channels and 1 analog; 5 of those are in Spanish and 3 are shopping networks...so, basically, about 40 watchable (for me) channels. With Netflix, that's plenty for as little as I watch. I've decided that if there's a TV series I really want to watch that I don't get on either, I'll buy the DVD set. Or, more likely, borrow it.

I'm pleased with it.
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You are lucky to be in an area where over the air is available with plenty to choose from.

in remote areas you would be lucky to get anything. It depends on the distance from the stations.

However for sports you would still be subject to blackout restrictions.
 
Camper6 said:
You are lucky to be in an area where over the air is available with plenty to choose from.

in remote areas you would be lucky to get anything. It depends on the distance from the stations.

However for sports you would still be subject to blackout restrictions.
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That antenna you have is restricted to a 50 mile range.

Thats why people pay for cable.
 
Butterfly said:
The Roku is just a device that you buy, like if you bought a radio. They are quite inexpensive, so even if you were "stuck with it" it probably costs less than a month of the cable thing (in my case it was way less than that). I don't think the cable companies could do anything about the Roku device. If they were going to take on anybody, it would be the streaming providers, like Netflix, etc., and we haven't seen anything like that.

The Roku isn't a "program" or a service. It is a thing. There's no monthly charge for having it. I think I paid $69 for mine. You just plug it in to your TV and then route streaming through it. If you have a smart TV, you don't need one, in my understanding, but my TV is stupid.

Of course, this is all US and I haven't a clue how things work in Canada.
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I have had Roku for about 3 years now, when I first got it alot of channels had free programs (History/Amer.Pickers etc.). Now you must have a provider for many of the popular Channels..But still many free stuff..
 
Another thing about Roku...I have 100's of photos stored on my tablet, there is an app on the Roku and one on the tablet and I can view the pictures on the TV wiresly...Works great for the MIL who has bad eyesight!!
 
Camper6 said:
That antenna you have is restricted to a 50 mile range.

Thats why people pay for cable.
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Yes, I live in Sacramento, Calif, and all the major network stations are located right here. I can access their programs online (including sports, which might be pay-per-view...not sure; I'll find out soon enough), but I have only a desk-top computer, and in the evenings, when I do watch TV, I prefer to watch from my recliner. I could get the Roku to bring the internet to my TV, but I'm good with the antenna.
 
Butterfly said:
Roku does not include TV, unless you have a cable subscription. Roku only is a way to stream streaming channels to your TV. Before I had my Roku I had a blue tooth device, but Roku is a lot faster. If I had a smart TV, I wouldn't need a Roku device, since I could stream directly to the TV. If Roku were streaming pirated cable TV, you can bet the cable people would be all over it here in the US.

I'm not sure all Roku programming is yet available in Canada, but I'm petty sure Netflix and Amazon are.
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With that simple app I loaded I can watch the Jimmy Kimmel show and the Colbert show and others. Not live. But so what. If that's not television, I don't know what is.
 
Cap'nSacto said:
Yes, I live in Sacramento, Calif, and all the major network stations are located right here. I can access their programs online (including sports, which might be pay-per-view...not sure; I'll find out soon enough), but I have only a desk-top computer, and in the evenings, when I do watch TV, I prefer to watch from my recliner. I could get the Roku to bring the internet to my TV, but I'm good with the antenna.
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If it's over the air television it's not pay per view. That's how the cable companies get their television stations and send them to the cable network. That's one of the complaints here by the local television stations. They want to get paid by the cable network if they pick up their station and send it over the cable. Fat chance of that happening. The airwaves are free just like radio. That's how television started out in the first place. There was no cable.

What's happening with NFL football in California. ? I'm hearing that attendance at the games is terrible. Can you pick up the games or are they blacked out?
 
Thanks, Cap'n. I looked up HBO Now, and the bottom line is that dropping cable and switching to HBO Now would come out costing me exactly the same thing ($15 a month). That's because my cable connection is free for residents in my condo building. I only have to pay for HBO.

I think I'll stick with what I have, as we have a good On Demand selection as part of the cable service.
 
Nothing on local TV that the wife and I like, switched on the Roku and watched HGTV/Househunters and Fixer upper..��
 
Over the air television is the only 'truly free' method of watching television. All you need is antenna and a television set.

Every other option costs money.

Even if I could get only a couple of stations that's the way I would go.

I just dumped my cable and the only thing I miss is Jeopardy.
 
Camper6 said:
Over the air television is the only 'truly free' method of watching television. All you need is antenna and a television set.

Every other option costs money.

Even if I could get only a couple of stations that's the way I would go.

I just dumped my cable and the only thing I miss is Jeopardy.
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Roku devise is a one time cost (under $100) you only pay more for the most popular channels like Hulu,HBO and Showtime....At one time they advertised over 2,000 channels to choose from..
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Camper6 said:
If it's over the air television it's not pay per view. That's how the cable companies get their television stations and send them to the cable network. That's one of the complaints here by the local television stations. They want to get paid by the cable network if they pick up their station and send it over the cable. Fat chance of that happening. The airwaves are free just like radio. That's how television started out in the first place. There was no cable.

What's happening with NFL football in California. ? I'm hearing that attendance at the games is terrible. Can you pick up the games or are they blacked out?
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To clarify; I get games that are televised locally. If I want to see games that aren't, I can pay to see them online or go to the sports bar or one of the big-screen restaurants here. I'm not a big sports fan, though I played league baseball til I was 38. Love baseball but it's not nearly as exciting to watch as to play. As for the NFL, I was living in Colorado when John Elway was in his rookie year and followed them until their last superbowl game...and I lived in Colo for only 3 years. I used to move around a LOT, so just didn't get very attached to the area's favorite. Broncos was the exception. Growing up, I was really into the Giants; collected their baseball cards and all that.

So, no, locally televised games are not blocked out.
 
Sunny said:
Thanks, Cap'n. I looked up HBO Now, and the bottom line is that dropping cable and switching to HBO Now would come out costing me exactly the same thing ($15 a month). That's because my cable connection is free for residents in my condo building. I only have to pay for HBO.

I think I'll stick with what I have, as we have a good On Demand selection as part of the cable service.
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I will miss On Demand.

Yeah, $15/mo isn't worth it to me, either. And I'm not sure Sling or Hulu or any of those would be. I really don't watch a lot of TV, and I can always find something else to do. I'll probably be reading a lot more.
 
Cap'nSacto said:
To clarify; I get games that are televised locally. If I want to see games that aren't, I can pay to see them online or go to the sports bar or one of the big-screen restaurants here. I'm not a big sports fan, though I played league baseball til I was 38. Love baseball but it's not nearly as exciting to watch as to play. As for the NFL, I was living in Colorado when John Elway was in his rookie year and followed them until their last superbowl game...and I lived in Colo for only 3 years. I used to move around a LOT, so just didn't get very attached to the area's favorite. Broncos was the exception. Growing up, I was really into the Giants; collected their baseball cards and all that.

So, no, locally televised games are not blocked out.
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I played baseball as well. Loved the game. I was a pitcher. It's a great game and you make a lot of friends through baseball. I still run into people who say they remember watching me or played against me.

I played hockey as well and football. Not nearly as much fun as baseball and you make enemies instead of friends.

As for watching. We recently held in my city,the world championships for junior baseball 18 and under. There were 12 teams from all over the world. The Americans were first class and won it. I could see why. Great pitching and great hitting and great coaching.

My favorites were the Italians. I got a team picture and had it autographed by them. They actually lined up to sign it when their last game was over and they were going to their transportation.

If I lived in a major league city I would have a season's ticket to the game. What a great way to spend an afternoon.

Baseball is all anticipation. If you played the game you would understand it better and it would be more enjoyable.

You can also second guess the coaching and the umpiring. I also umpired for awhile because we would be short handed. I ran the junior baseball program in my city when I stopped playing. I hated umpiring. I never got the play at first base right and even now watching I think the runner is safe and they rule him out.

They keep changing the rules as well. I don't like that and I don't like the designated hitter rule either.
 
Camper6 said:
I played baseball as well. Loved the game. I was a pitcher. It's a great game and you make a lot of friends through baseball. I still run into people who say they remember watching me or played against me.

I played hockey as well and football. Not nearly as much fun as baseball and you make enemies instead of friends.

As for watching. We recently held in my city,the world championships for junior baseball 18 and under. There were 12 teams from all over the world. The Americans were first class and won it. I could see why. Great pitching and great hitting and great coaching.

My favorites were the Italians. I got a team picture and had it autographed by them. They actually lined up to sign it when their last game was over and they were going to their transportation.

If I lived in a major league city I would have a season's ticket to the game. What a great way to spend an afternoon.

Baseball is all anticipation. If you played the game you would understand it better and it would be more enjoyable.

You can also second guess the coaching and the umpiring. I also umpired for awhile because we would be short handed. I ran the junior baseball program in my city when I stopped playing. I hated umpiring. I never got the play at first base right and even now watching I think the runner is safe and they rule him out.

They keep changing the rules as well. I don't like that and I don't like the designated hitter rule either.
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Oh, man, I hate the rule changes, too! Not sure, but it seems they do a lot more of that in football than baseball (national leagues). Baseball as a spectator who's played can be frustrating...maybe that's why I don't watch it much. It's a game of strategy, but I find that today's players have such amazing technical skills, it's almost boring, do you know what I mean? That said, Orel Hershiser (might have spelled that wrong) gave me goosebumps.

I played shortstop and 3rd base, and was also catcher for a couple of seasons. I went as far as the triple-A league and quit the following season...being in baseball is time-consuming. My family had a problem with that.
 
Cap'nSacto said:
I am considering Roku, primarily so I can watch Netflix from my recliner - I have a bad back. In fact, I'm scheduled for surgery on Nov 21st.
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It also has an oldie channel..Westerns,Sitcoms... Mostly all those are free..They have a great search feature where you type in an actors/movie name and it brings up many choices..
 
Ken N Tx said:
It also has an oldie channel..Westerns,Sitcoms... Mostly all those are free..They have a great search feature where you type in an actors/movie name and it brings up many choices..
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I've never been into westerns and sitcoms but the search feature sounds cool. Especially if I could enter the name of a producer or director; for some reason I can remember those better than titles, and starring actor's names often elude me as well.

Thanks, Ken.
 
Check this out!! For the money you can't go wrong!! Should give you hours of entertainment!!
.https://www.amazon.com/
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Well Ken here's the problem with an old guy like me. I have an old T.V. set. There's nowhere on the set to plug it in.

I would get a new t.v. if I could get one that fits in the cabinet. See I would have to get rid of the cabinet and I would have to get a new t.v.

Now. You just can't buy a t.v. and plug the stick in and expect it to work. You have to have the internet connection.

So I just sit here and say. For all the t.v. I want to watch. It's just not worth the hassle.

And I absolutely, absolutely, hate having to force myself to throw something out that is working just fine.

I think that about humans as well. What a waste of talent when intelligent, talented, people are forced to retire just because they are old.
 

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