Cut the Cord!
 

We’ve had Directv for more years that I remember and in the past I’ve been able to “talk them down” when my monthly bill jumped up but I was surprised to see it jump $30 this month! I called and talked with two people and they would not budge so we are considering cutting the cord. I spent all day trying to get a trial of Hulu + live onto our 4 televisions. I was having the most difficulty with my Samsung Smart Tv. I could see the Hulu app but not the Hulu+live. Finally found some small print that the live is not available on some Samsung TVs, only Classic Hulu. This would not be satisfactory for us. I think I discovered that I would probably need an internet upgrade to do all that streaming. What experience has others had? Our current internet is 25 mpbs for $45 per month.

If you have a spare HDMI input on the Samsung tv, just buy a Roku streaming stick for about $50 and plug it into the TV. The Roku will have HULU plus, and it will allow you to add any other streaming apps from the internet to the Roku. Make sure you get a Roku that has volume controls on the remote. Also, I would upgrade the internet speed to about 100 mbps, and you should have everything you need.

Retired Guy is right, a ROKU is the medicine for an outdated TV. Another option besides Hula Live is youtube.tv. From what I've been reading, they have slightly more channels than Hula for about $50 a month, I think it's 70 channels. You can try it for week after you get the ROKU. The only channels I didn't see listed on youtube.tv that I would want were A&E and NFL Network. I don't think Hula has them either. I believe you can add some channels separately from the network you desire with another app, the ROKU would be better for doing that. The thing about a ROKU is it's a one time fee, no monthly fees later. I saw ROKU Sticks on QVC or HSN recently going for $35, check their website.

To JohnW and Retired: I have a very old, but very good, Sony TV in a spare bedroom. When I switched over to streaming I thought I would be able to just purchase a Roku stick and use the TV. Unfortunately, it does not have an HTML port and I have no idea how to use it. Do I need to just let it go, or is there a way to rescue it.

Thanks for any help you can give me.

Oh boy, your tv is indeed old. Go to Best Buy or Sams and get a current tv. They are unbelievably inexpensive and come with smart features. Or do as suggested and get Roku or an Amazon Firestick. Way better quality and simple to install. 25mbs will hack it but if you have lots of devices in the house a faster internet would be handy.

Oh I forgot. Look into Youtube tv. About $49 for everything you need

Well, kinda snarky ............. but. Yes I KNOW it comes out of the ark, but the room gets used maybe for two weeks a year, if that. I know I can buy TVs, even a Roku TV for cheap money, but I am from the generation that fixed it before throwing it and I am wondering if there is a gizmo available to make this TV work.

Addendum to above: How to Stream Video on an Older TV - The New York Times

So this is the information I need.

To the OP: you can get an antenna for the house and still watch TV the old fashioned way. It just won't be as reliable and the number of stations you can see with it are limited. But it'll work, and there's no cost beyond the initial purchase of the antenna and installation (if you don't install it yourself).


We have a Roku stick with YoutubeTV. We also have all the free channels loaded, such as SlingTV, RokuTV, tubiTV, PBS, and more. If you don't care about watching live network news and don't mind waiting to see your usual favorite weekly shows for a few more weeks after they air, you could probably get away with never paying for any of the streaming services. Or you could get all the freebies and just add something like CBS All Access for $6/month with commercials, and $10 for the commercial-free version. You only get all the CBS-owned programming with that though.

Theoretically, you could get an hdmi to composite convertor to connect the Roku to the TV, but I don't think it would work very well. You really need to buy a new TV, which are very inexpensive now. Most new tvs are smart tvs that don't require a streaming stick.
Good luck.

I don't know the size of your current BR TV, but a 43" is a decent size. You can find off brands for under $200, but I'm partial to LG or Vizio, forget Samsung, too many problems. Right now today at Walmart on 466 you can buy this LG 43" TV for $228. It has all your apps, and if there is any missing, you can get the ROKU stick.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/LG-43-Cla...odel/869782571

Unfortunately, without an HDMI port on your old TV, you will not be able to use the Roku stick on that TV.
For the old television you will need what is know as a composite "RCA" type connection (that is the red/white/yellow jacks to plug into the TV. That's the older analog type.

All is not lost for you though. SOME older Roku boxes have connections for either HDMI or RCA type wiring. It will say "works with virtually any TV"

The "Roku 2 XS" box that I have is one of those, but has been discontinued by Roku. I see on Amazon that some are still available for $50 I think I saw. (I paid $75 for mine in 2013)

The video I've linked here shows that model and around 5:13 shows the cable and connection.

Roku 2 XS 1080p Streaming Player Unboxing - YouTube

I commend you in your struggle of trying to learn the new technology and cutting the cord. You seem to be moving ahead nicely! Good luck.

You have basically hit on my problem - size. This bedroom is the smaller of the three and I only have a small area for a TV and right now the dead one in there is 32", too small for normal watching, but watchable if you are just visiting for a few days. I can get a Polaroid TV 32" for $109 today in Walmart and I think I am going to have to go that route.

Thanks for all the suggestions and help.

Good morning HiHo and thanks for your input above. On reflection the difference in cost between an adapter and a new smart TV is so minimal that I probably should go with a new TV.

As for streaming, once I got it into my head that streaming is merely a computerized TV, it was simple, but to the beginner understanding streaming is a nightmare. I have worked with computers going back further than I care to admit so I have no problem with that technology, it was marrying it to getting TV that blew my mind. Now, when I want to watch a particular movie or program I just do a search on the computerand find out who is streaming it and add it to the Watch List. Plus, my wifi does not go down in bad weather!

I would suggest that you consider one of the 32 inch Roku TVs at either Walmart or Best Buy. They are about the same price as the Polaroid, but it has a Roku device built into the TV. That way, you will not need to buy a Roku streaming stick, which costs about $50. In my opinion, Roku makes the best streaming devices for user friendliness and flexibility to add apps.

We have Century Link for Internet. Initially we had 25 MPBS and had a lot of problems when we cut the cord (we also had Direct TV for many years until we got tired of constant price increases) and started streaming. CL techs assured us 25 MBPS was enough for our 3 fire sticks. But neighbor suggested upgrading to 100 and sure enough that did the trick! And price did not increase too much. So my suggestion is to go with 100 MBPS.