1 Year without cable TV

It has been 1 year now since our family decided to ditch DirecTV.  We replaced our set top boxes with Internet TV boxes and subscribe to Netflix and Hulu for $14/mo.  An over the air antenna gets us the local channels and live sports and news.  Everything we watch is available online or over the air.  We rely much more heavily on our Internet connection from RTC now which was upgraded to 25meg.  No regrets and I calculated that we have saved $600 this past year.  This isn’t for everyone but I suggest you consider it too.  To find out more...read some of my previous blog posts.

Tivo does Internet TV?

      Tivo has been around for years (since 1999) and is a house hold word.  When the word “Tivo” is mentioned, most think of a smart DVR as it learns from your viewing activity and makes suggestions on what you should watch and record next.  I personally consider the brand “Tivo” as positive and think most folks do as well.  But didn’t the cable company kill Tivo?  Every cable and dish provider has their own DVR box you can buy or lease and Tivo has been on the decline ever since.  Right?

     Enter Tivo Premier.  A box starting at $99.  It is designed to replace your cable box.  It combines traditional pay TV with Internet content from Netflix, Hulu, Blockbuster, Amazon, Youtube, and Pandora.  You can schedule recording remotely with your mobile phone too.  It records up to 45 hours of HD quality as there is a hard drive inside.  But it appears this product is designed to complement your cable TV not replace it.

     The problem I have with the box is the subscription price of $19.99/mo.  While it can replace an existing cable set top, you are still paying a net of $10 - $15 per month for this box.  Plus, if you subscribe to Netflix, that is an additional $7.99/mo on top of your cable bill.  But I am probably going about it all wrong.  This isn’t about cost savings it is about additional content.  So, if you can’t get enough content onto your regular cable box or through Dish Network, then ok, this box is worth looking into further as it combines pay tv with internet tv.  But here’s the thing; most folks I talk to have more content than they can consume and feel they pay way too much for it.  So, I don’t think the Tivo Premier is for the masses or at least the folks I hang around.

So, how would this box do as a dedicated over the top internet tv solution?  Let’s see how it compares:

Tivo

$20/mo for Tivo service

$8/mo for Netflix

$8/mo for Hulu

$36/mo plus $100 up front fee for the box

Dish Network

$37/mo  Dish 120 (1^st 12 months then $50.99/mo after)

Free Installation

So with Dish Network, you get more content and pay no up front fee.  With Dish, that monthly cost would also include TWO boxes both of which are HD DVR.

In sum, I can neither recommend the Tivo premier as a complimentary service or as a dedicated iTV solution either as the economics doesn’t make sense due to the $20/mo Tivo subscription.  You might as well buy regular dish TV instead.  It is a better bang for the buck.

email from Netflix

Dear John,

It is clear that for many of our members two websites would make things more difficult, so we are going to keep Netflix as one place to go for streaming and DVDs.

This means no change: one website, one account, one password…in other words, no Qwikster.

While the July price change was necessary, we are now done with price changes.

We're constantly improving our streaming selection. We've recently added hundreds of movies from Paramount, Sony, Universal, Fox, Warner Bros., Lionsgate, MGM and Miramax. Plus, in the last couple of weeks alone, we've added over 3,500 TV episodes from ABC, NBC, FOX, CBS, USA, E!, Nickelodeon, Disney Channel, ABC Family, Discovery Channel, TLC, SyFy, A&E, History, and PBS.

We value you as a member, and we are committed to making Netflix the best place to get your movies & TV shows.

Respectfully,

The Netflix Team

Pandora now has Unlimited Free Listening

There are so many better alternatives to listing to music on the radio these days.  Many of us use a MP3 player like the iPod but sometimes our music collection gets stale and we want to listen to something new.  Pandora is internet radio with a twist.  You create the channel using your own preference in music as a start.  Pandora learns what you like and don't like to create a perfect station for you. 

Just recently, Pandora announced they no longer cap a free pandora account to 40 hours per month.  It is unlimited again.  So check it out here.

3 steps to cut your cable bill by 90%

Link to Article

$800 - 750" OLED TV

In my last blog post, I wrote about how LEDs are an improvement in technology and good for the environment.  Here is an application of LED technology in a way you probably have never seen before.  Sony has launched a virtual 750” headset TV.  Read more about it here.Video here. Website here.

The future of lighting….LEDs.

If you haven’t noticed already, LED technology is taking over the traditional light bulb and fluorescent light.  But this transition isn’t because it is considered a ‘green technology’ and the politics not the solution propel it forward.  LED’s are actually a better alternative and consumers tend to agree.  Some examples:

Automobiles

LED lighting in tail lights, turn signals, and even police cruiser light bars have been used for years now.  Next time you come to a stop light, look around and you’ll see what I mean.  A super bright light bulb is simply not needed in a tail light.  It can be difficult to design a tail light in such a way to where the bulb can be easily replaced.  Bulbs are bigger than LEDs.  You can easily design a compact 3^rd LED tail light high above the back glass near the roof line for additional safety.  None of the LEDs will ever need to be replaced as their run time is measured in tens of thousands of hours versus hundreds of hours in a traditional light bulb.  However, headlights in your typical auto are using some form of incandescent bulb.  Really good headlights use Xenon or HID but while both of these technologies are very good, they still use the older technology and consume much power and are fairly inefficient.  Some of the newest generations of LEDs are bright enough to be used as head lights.  German manufacterer Audi uses LED lighting in some of their vehicles and I suspect this will trickle down to other vehicles as the technology and economics develop.

Flashlights

If you think Maglite is the best that flashlights have to offer you are certainly mistaken.  For example, a traditional 2 “D” cell Maglite will emit about 40 lumens of brightness.  A Thrunite Catapult using LED technology will emit 900 lumens of brightness.  It is also smaller and has longer run time than the Maglite.  The quality of the beam and throw of the light is night and day difference as well.  LEDs are clearly superior.  Maglite has recognized this and is starting to incorporate LEDs into their newer line of flashlights.  

Home Lighting

A couple of years ago I went to my local Home Depot to buy some spare bulbs for lamps and various lights around the house.  I noticed a few bulbs that used LEDs we’re also available for lamps.  But the pricing of these bulbs was 10 times higher and efficiency was not that much better than a traditional bulb.  However, today, these bulbs have come way down in price and efficiency is way up.  For example, for comparable brightness a 5 watt LED can give off similar brightness of a 60 watt bulb most of us have in our lamps today.  Everyone wants to lower their electric bill right?  Multiply that by 20 lights in your house and you could see a real savings on your next bill.

Display Devices 

Next time you buy a TV or computer monitor look for LED back lit technology.  For example, LCD monitors still use florescent lamps to light the display.  However, you can now find LEDs that light the same technology.  DLP as well.  Again, it is not unusual for LEDs to last 20,000 – 50,000 hours before failing.  They last longer, require less power, and have a very vivid image quality especially contrast and color definition.  It is a no brainer.  Also, if you are a theater buff like me, ceiling mount projectors for home theater are starting to use LEDs.  In the past, a projector bulb would only last 3,000 – 5,000 hours before having to be replaced.  These bulbs cost $300 - $500 to replace keeping many consumers to stick with large TVs sets instead.  Now, we’re seeing theater quality LED lit projectors above 500 lumens at affordable prices.  Check out the Optoma ML500 if you are interested.  There are several entering the market this month that are very affordable and last 20,000 hours plus for around $650.  A 100” TV set for this price is a bargain.  Never replace a projector bulb again.

Billboards

While you are at the stop light looking at who has LEDs in their auto’s tail lights, take note at billboards using LEDs.  That’s right.  Paper, Vinyl, and Trivision billboards are slowing being replaced by LED billboards that give off similar quality in the day and look terrific at night. 

In sum, LEDs are all around us today and will become even more prevalent in the future.  LEDs are good for suppliers and consumers lowering the cost to brightness ratio all at the same time consuming less energy.  It is refreshing to see a technology that is both ‘green’ and economically viable.