Cancelled my cable TV today.

[Shadowknight]

I haven't paid for cable since 1998. While it sucks that wherever I live, I NEVER get WB, UPN (before the two merged), or CBS, I get by with FOX and ABC in the (rare) instance I want to watch something. Frankly, I mostly watch DVDs of TV shows/movies anyway, so it was no big loss. What sucks is that I want to enjoy my HDTV, but mostly I get PBS, which is boring, or 2 stations that don't have much programming I'm interested in, aside from Grey's Anatomy.

 

[bennylong]

You get used to it. People think TV is a necessity, but you get used to being without it, just like everything. I even lived without the internet for 2 months when I moved last year.

 

[polm]

I plan on cancelling mine later today. I've always got the newsgroups and OTA for TV and movies if necessary.

 

[dainthomas]

Originally posted by: PaulNEPats
I would use OTA, but the DVR comes in too handy

Build a cheapo HTPC and run the antenna into that.

I'm actually adding HBO to my Dish lineup since Rome and Extras will be starting up soon.

 

[sciencewhiz]

My parents cancelled cable when I was about 12, and very rarely have I had a reason to get it on my own.

Having ESPN would be nice, but 75% of the sports I want to watch are OTA. I'd probably watch a lot of other things like the TLC, Discovery, History, etc, but nothing that's worth paying that much extra for.

 

[GTaudiophile]

I've been without for three months here in DC. I've toyed with the idea but Comcast is like $55/month here for their "enhanced" cable which is just one step above their most basic offering. I just don't think it's worth it. Too bad Congress didn't pass alacart cable last year. If Comcast would let me pay $25/month for the channels I want, then they would get $300/year from me. Instead, looks like they'll be getting $0 from me.

I just don't want to subsidize QVC, looney religious channels, Mexican TV, etc.

 

[Maluno]

I've never had cable tv in my life. Just don't watch anything for a few weeks, and the desire to watch it will disappear completely. Then again, you could say the same thing about using the internet for certain things..

 

[dullard]

Originally posted by: GTaudiophile
If Comcast would let me pay $25/month for the channels I want, then they would get $300/year from me. Instead, looks like they'll be getting $0 from me.

I just don't want to subsidize QVC, looney religious channels, Mexican TV, etc.

That is exactly what I said to the Time Warner rep when I cancelled on the phone. Crappy channels shouldn't be subsidized by the American public. They should be ended like they would end in any free market situation (where you weren't forced to buy their product just because you want other products).

If the channel is good, people will buy it. With the crappy channels weeded out, what is left will be good channels with programming that a lot of people watch. With that situation, advertising profits would soar and they should be able to survive with good programming an advertisements alone - lowering the cost per station for end users.

 

[dullard]

Originally posted by: sciencewhiz
Having ESPN would be nice, but 75% of the sports I want to watch are OTA. I'd probably watch a lot of other things like the TLC, Discovery, History, etc, but nothing that's worth paying that much extra for.

I'll miss ESPN during football season, but it will be TLC, CNN Headline News, and Discovery that I'll miss more. I'm willing to pay for those channels. But I'm not willing to pay $750/year for those few channels.

 

[weirdichi]

I've never had more than basic basic cable (locals + MSNBC + shopping). I'm thinking about cancelling cable internet and selling my desktop. I don't watch TV that often anyway.

 

[Hossenfeffer]

There is a TON of crap on TV, and that will become more and more evident as you catch glimpses from now on.

I've been without TV for going on 2 years, and I don't miss it. This coming from a TiVo fanatic...

Grab a subscription to "The Week" for a good overview of news, Netflix movies and/or TV series and you'll be just fine.

 

[Kyteland]

The last time I had a TV was five years ago. When I moved in to my apartment during my senior year of college the cable was still on from the last tenant. When it was finally shut off in December I didn't get it turned back on. I've never missed it. When I moved in to my first place after college I didn't have a TV, and I didn't miss that either. I found plenty of things to fill that time with.

And that's the key thing. I liked watching TV, but I just didn't miss it.

 

[tfinch2]

I'm getting closer and closer to canceling mine as well.

I'm paying 113.75 (after taxes) for Digital Cable + Road Runner.

I'm definitely not getting rid of the internet, but my GF and I hardly watch TV, and when we do it's usually on a local channel.

 

[foghorn67]

Originally posted by: dainthomas

Originally posted by: PaulNEPats
I would use OTA, but the DVR comes in too handy

Build a cheapo HTPC and run the antenna into that.

I'm actually adding HBO to my Dish lineup since Rome and Extras will be starting up soon.

What would be the best way to output to HD? Or record HD. I am HTPC newb.

 

[Scarpozzi]

If you have a good antenna, you can pick up a little football, but I have the NFL sunday ticket. I'm spoiled.

 

[djheater]

Originally posted by: DeadByDawn
I've been without for over 3 years, don't miss it. We just netflix movies we want to see and use the internet to read the news or find out what the weather is going to be like.

:thumbsup:

me too.. we had always limitied TV with our kids, when we moved into our new house, we just left the TV behind.

I would say in about 9 monhts you'll wonder where people ever find the time to watch TV.

My wife and I netflix an occasional film and will gorge on downloaded series like Lost or Bstar galactica every now and then...

watching television without commercials is a completely different and better experience.

 

[MrPickins]

Originally posted by: foghorn67

Originally posted by: dainthomas

Originally posted by: PaulNEPats
I would use OTA, but the DVR comes in too handy

Build a cheapo HTPC and run the antenna into that.

I'm actually adding HBO to my Dish lineup since Rome and Extras will be starting up soon.

What would be the best way to output to HD? Or record HD. I am HTPC newb.

I bought a Dvico FusionHDTV5 PCI tuner card (for OTA broadcasts, although I hear it does unencrypted QAM). The hardware is very nice but the software, although functional, leaves a bit to be desired.

Many video cards have a dongle that provides component out, but I prefer to use my TV's DVI input. If you don't have an HDTV, your PC monitor also should output close to the same resolution, and will look very nice.

For audio, I bought a 1/8" to RCA Y-connector similar to this.

If you plan on using the card's DVR functionality, make sure your HD space is up to the task. One hr of MPEG2-Transport Stream is something like 8gigs, IIRC.

 

[foghorn67]

Originally posted by: MrPickins

Originally posted by: foghorn67

Originally posted by: dainthomas
I bought a Dvico FusionHDTV5 PCI tuner card (for OTA broadcasts, although I hear it does unencrypted QAM). The hardware is very nice but the software, although functional, leaves a bit to be desired.

Many video cards have a dongle that provides component out, but I prefer to use my TV's DVI input. If you don't have an HDTV, your PC monitor also should output close to the same resolution, and will look very nice.

For audio, I bought a 1/8" to RCA Y-connector similar to this.

If you plan on using the card's DVR functionality, make sure your HD space is up to the task. One hr of MPEG2-Transport Stream is something like 8gigs, IIRC.

thanks for the linky.