Five Steps to Cut the Cable/Satellite Cord and stream, Stream, STREAM to your TV!

If you've already read my previous post about streaming and the cloud and thinking "I'm ready, but I need concise instructions" then this is the post for you.

1. Inventory Check

So what do you have so far?

Internet connected TV-check.

Internet connected blu-ray player-check.

Video game console -check.

Digital Media Center -check.

Laptop with Blu-ray & HDMI -check.

Um, you haz everything? whattayadoinhya? Go sit on the couch!

2. What do you care most about?

Movies (Tier1:2-3 months from theatrical release)

Amazon Video on Demand, BestBuy/Roxio CinemaNow, VUDU, Kmart-Sears/Roxio Alphaline Entertainment, EpixHD, iTunes Store, Zune Store, PSN Store

all these services allow you to purchase a movie, but the availability dates vary wildly

Movies (Tier2:2-3 months from theatrical release+shipping time)

Netflix (Blu-Ray Discs/DVD)

Movies (Tier3:1month from DVD/Blu-Ray release)

Netflix (streaming), Hulu/HuluPlus

TV Shows

Stream (Latest): Hulu/HuluPlus

Stream (Older): Netflix

Digital Purchase: Amazon Video on Demand, BestBuy/Roxio CinemaNow, Kmart-Sears/Roxio Alphaline Entertainment, iTunes Store, Zune Store, PSN Store

Sports

ESPN3, MLBTV

Premium Content

HBO Go (just of matter of time for this to be an independent streaming service)

3. Make the most of what you have

Already have video game console (Wii, Xbox360, PS3)? Services like Pandora, Netflix, Hulu/HuluPlus, VUDU, Amazon Video on Demand are already available on these devices. Give it a whirl. Subscribe for a month and see how you like it. With an Xbox360 and AT&T uVerse you can experiment with some semi-cut the cord-services.

Have a laptop/desktop? All these services are available on a computer and probably the best environment to do a test drive. If you have the necessary cables to put your screen on your TV, give it a go to see how it looks. You could even invest in something like Veebeam which wirelessly transmits your lcomputer screen to your TV. But keep in mind that the content on computers are different definition from the content on TVs. For example the if you rented the movie Inception on your computer's Amazon VOD site it would be in 480p standard definition (SD) whereas on the Amazon app on your TV/media device you are able to rent the (HD) high definition 720p/1080p version.

4. If you're already planning to buy a....

Video game console: Keep in mind that a Wii can play CDs, Xbox360 CDs+DVDs and PS3 CDs+DVDs+Blu-Rays.

Laptop: Get one with a blu-ray player and an HDMI output. That'll make it super easy to watch Blu-Rays and online streaming content directly on your TV with just an hdmi cable.

Digital Media Center: You have three great options; Roku, Boxee or AppleTV. GigaOM has an excellent article on trying to make this decision.

Blu-ray/DVD player: Get an internet connected one. If you can wait, then wait. Black Friday 2010 had internet blu-ray players at close to $50. The prices are definitely falling as streaming becomes more popular.

5. Baby Steps

Moving away from cable is hard.

Start with a Netflix subscription on your laptop, see how it works out. Amazon Video on Demand and VUDU typically provide you with around $5 credit just for setting up an account. You can rent an HD movie to see how you like the service. With a nice HD tv and surround sound system, that's about 1/10th the cost of a movie theatre date!

I have an internet connected TV with apps on it. As new apps get released, I can download it on my TV. I have access to Amazon Video on Demand, Netflix and VUDU to name a few. I also have an Xbox 360, so I have access to the same content plus the Zune Store and ESPN3.

There is a great article by Mark Glaser @ PBS MediaShift. It is a bit dated (Jan 2010) but still worth a click here, where you can read about how others went about to cut the cord.

Good luck, Wannabe Techie!

source(s): GigaOm, PBS

image: Mark. A. Hicks. http://school.discoveryeducation.com/clipart/clip/thinkingcapwhoa.html

4G hungry San Franciscans: December 28th, Save the Date

Sprint Newsroom has just confirmed with CNET that Sprint will launch their 4G WiMax (high speed internet on mobile phones) service on December 28th 2010, to complete their 2011 4G rollout in the United States, as expected in their roadmap.

This is tremendous news for EVO and EPIC users in the bay area and will start opening up some cool stuff we can start doing with this device -- especially using the phone as a wifi hotspot. With speeds of around 4Mbps, it is possible to use your EVO as an option to cut the cord.

Hang around with us and we're going to try using the EVO to stream HD Netflix on a 46" TV after 4G goes live in San Francisco.

Streaming and the Cloud: Is this for you?

What's this article about?

2011 is around the corner. You're thinking of cutting the cable. But you're not sure what that really means. You think that Hulu, Netflix and network sites like thewb.com are really for laptops and iPads. You say things like:

• I don't want to watch this 1080p movie on a 14" laptop. Hold on, what the heck is 1080p! Why does my home video look grainy on my TV? I don't want peas in my soup!
• iPads don't do gameday.
• I don't really want to connect my laptop to my TV with a thingamajigga mumbo jumbo to save a few dollars
• What's streaming? What is this cloud thing all about? I don't like clounds n e ways because they cause rain.

So let's tackle 'em one by one.

NTSC, PAL, SECAM and 1080p

Yeah, sounds like a whole load of baloney. Prior to purely digital content that we have today, there was really a whole bunch of baloney (complexity) around how TV content was distributed from the TV station to your home. That's the past. Fast forward to the present and the display technology in our computers are mirrored in our TVs. 480p (standard definition), 720p (high definition) and 1080p (high definition) are ways to describe screen resolution/quality.

Bullet points

1. 1080p is high end
2. Most US HD broadcasts are 720p. So naturally 720p is good enough if this is what your budget allows for
3. 480p is so yesterday

So if you have a "Full HD" TV, then you're pretty much hooked up. You're ready for the future. Back to the topic at hand. While a 480p video would look great on a laptop, it ends up being not that great on a 46" TV. So whatever thoughts that go into considering a video solution for your laptop, you need to rethink that for your TV.

Next you need to get your TV "connected". In addition to a broadband internet connection you will need one of these in order of ease for us wannabe techies:

• An internet connected TV like this Samsung LN46C series TV
• A network blu-ray player or sound system
• *Home media connectivity device like Boxee, Roku or Apple TV
• **Gaming system (limited streaming services)

*need more help? check out this post from GigaOM

**Wii - Netflix; PS3 - Netflix, Vudu, Content Store; Xbox 360 with $50 per year Xbox live subscription - Netflix, Content Store, ESPN3 (depending on internet provider)

iPads don't do gameday?

Just checking if you're paying attention. Well, I'm trying to make a serious point here. Sports fans, cutting the cord is probably not that easy. TV fans have Hulu/Hulu Plus, Movie buffs have Netflix/Vudu. Sports fans who need their dose of live Monday Night Football - cutting the cord is going to be hard. There is a little hope with ESPN3 on the Xbox 360 with Xbox live gold subscription but the quality is a bit behind.

Is this complicated? Is it hard to do? Am I going to stuck with expensive upgrades to save a few dollars?

Dear wannabe techies: with TV bills at around $60 per month for basic content, we're talking about the potential of saving $720 per year. What are the incremental costs? Were you planning on buying the equipment anyway (TV, media device or gaming platform). Let's assume you have an HDTV, will dish out $150 on a network blu-ray player, $199 on an Xbox 360 and $50 on an annual Xbox Live subscription. You still have $321 in savings and have upgraded the technology in your home. That's enough for a monthly Hulu Plus & Netflix subscription with Blu-ray in the mail discs and two HD on demand movies. We're only talking about those with basic cable packages. Those with $100-$150/month TV content, there is a lot more money in the pocket or in other investments.

What's this cloud thing? What's streaming?

Imagine a nearing future where there are no blu-ray discs and DVDs. Think about how we consume music now -- in the form of digital MP3. Now take that digital content and put it in a server in the internet (the internet is the cloud). Audio is streamed through music services such as Pandora, Zune and Grooveshark. Similarly, this is how Netflix distributed video to households using streaming technology. The movie resides in the internet and is ready to start playing when you request it.

OK, so what does this all mean for my cable-free media strategy?

As referenced in my previous post, the lines that used to separate Hulu (TV show heaven) and Netflix (movie buff land) are getting blurry. Hulu Plus provides access to some previous season content and is required to get access to Hulu on your TV. Give the service a single month whirl and see if it really better for you than using Hulu on your computer augmented with Netflix. ESPN3.com is something you should check out to see if it a) works with your internet provider and b) has the lineup of sports events that you are interested in. That covers most of the basic content.

Moving on to on-demand, there are a bunch of options to order a movie just sitting on the couch - Xbox Live, CinemaNow, Vudu, Amazon VOD and Apple iTunes Store

Inception just released a few days ago and I thought I'd see how the cost of on demand digital content stacks up against the competitive set.

	Xbox Live	Vudu	CinemaNow	Amazon VOD	iTunes Store
SD (480p)	n/a	3.99	3.99	3.99	3.99
HD (720p)	n/a	4.99	4.99	4.99	n/a
HD (1080p)	n/a	5.99	4.99	4.99	n/a
SD Purchase(480p)	16.99	9.99	15.95	9.99	14.99

Vudu advertises its 1080p service as HDX alluding to the blu-ray quality video and digital 5.1 HD surround sound. Formerly Vudu had an advantage here being the only digital on-demand provider to even deliver this content. Since around September 2010, CinemaNow and Amazon VOD are providing the same level of clarity for video and audio at their former 720p $4.99 price point. We wannabe techies will have to wait and see if Vudu will make any changes to their current price structure.

What's really interesting to look at is the cost of buying the digital copy of the movie. For select titles an HD version runs about $19.99. The inception DVD + Blu-Ray + Digital download is $17.98 at Walmart.com and $17.99 at Amazon.com. The prices are definitely converging and we're all living in a very exciting time.

Good night, wannabe techie!

ABC TV Shows on Netflix

Netflix is a game changer.

High speed internet in the home coupled with very affordable streaming solutions is making it very easy to cut the cable cord. For a lot of folks, that's savings of up to a $100 a month!

Sure, Netflix's massive streaming collection is mostly older movies and new movies can take upto 28 days to become available on streaming but at $7.99/month (streaming only) or $11.99/month for streaming + DVD + Blu-ray, it's a heck of a deal.

Despite all that stands for the Netflix business model (16MM subscribed households and a rocketing stock price), they're not going to sit on their pile of cash especially with rumours of Amazon and Vizio/OnLive intending to enter the streaming game. Whatever shakes out, it is nothing but good news for us wannabe techies.

In a press release from Dec 8th 2010, Netflix announced a deal with Disney-ABC that enables prior seasons of the following TV shows on the streaming service immediately, and current season airings to become available 15 days from the respective first air date. Exciting news! Here's the list...

TV Shows

• Grey's Anatomy
• Brothers & Sisters
• Desperate Housewives
• Lost
• Ugly Betty
• Scrubs
• Reaper
• Phineas and Ferb
• Good Luck Charlie
• Hanna Montana
• The Suite Life of Zack and Cody
• The Suite Life on Deck
• Wizards of Waverly Place
• Greek
• Make it or Break it
• Melissa & Joey
• The Secret Life of the American Teenager

ABC Family Movies

• High School Musical
• High School Musical 2
• Camp Rock
• Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam
• Beauty & the Briefcase
• Avalon High
• Revenge of the Bridesmaids

That's a very wide target audience. This is one of the big changes that is going to make the next couple of months a very interesting time for wannabe techies. What's the perfect home package? Should I get an internet connected TV? What about blu-ray? 5.1 HDMI 1.4 receiver? What does that even mean? Lot's of questions and we'll try to get all the answers for you, from today all the way to CES 2011 and beyond.

I'll try to talk about the components that can make a solid entertainment package, on a budget, in my next post.

Until next time... wannabe techie!

source(s): BGR