Re: Why is it so difficult to cut the Cable?
My opinion:
Hulu quality is terrible. Yeah. It is really that bad and blow it up to 65″ and it is worse. I don’t mind the commercials because there are only a few of them, but OMG it looks bad.
Netflix streaming is great. I catch up on a lot of shows on Netflix, the ones available in HD look as good as the Cable broadcast, and I can watch them all in a row. It is perfect for watch a whole season of a show at once, but their selection doesn’t include a lot of shows I watch.
Netflix movie rental is a big part of my TV experience. I like quality, so I like to rent seasons of shows on BD or DVD and watch them at my convenience. Shows on HBO eventually make it to BD and I can wait. I’m waiting to see the Pacific when it comes out on BD. I also wanted for Life on BD because the Discovery Channel is too compressed to appreciate the quality of the cinematography. I don’t think I am alone in waiting for Life either…I ended up buying the whole set. The problem with Netflix for most consumers is that you have to watch what they give you. You have 2 or 3 or 4 or 5 movies at a time, and often times that’s a whole season of a show so you don’t get to watch anything but that.
Bit Torrent. I’ve tried it on a few shows like Lost early on. The quality wasn’t great, it was hit or miss on 5.1 surround, and it was really time consuming trying to find a good rip. I’d rather spend my time watching for TV than searching for TV. I still use it on occasion when something goes wrong with my system and I miss an episode of the Bachelor. The wife hates it when that happens. She thinks it is only her shows that sometimes miss, but it happens fairly often for one reason or another.
Cable. The quality is very good when compared to a lot of streaming. You get the news, sports, and other shows that never end up on DVD or streaming. I record a LOT of shows I never watch and I have a large library of casual shows recorded and ready to watch at any time. I can’t live without cable, but I also can’t believe how much I pay for basic HD service. It is ridiculous.