Now I don't blame TiVo or its competition from making money, but the subscription model for time-shifting TV is starting to get me down. There are a lot of free, open-source PC-based products that provide TiVo-esque options, as well as a lot of PCs being sold with media center functions. Heck, you could even dust off the VCR. All that's great, but in the end, all we want is to watch our favorite TV shows when we want to watch them. And many us don't want to take the time to set up such a system.
So here's my solution that should work for you, dear reader, with little or minimal cost. First, if you're willing (and able to get comfortable) watching TV on your computer monitor (or laptop) just do that. Go to hulu.com (NBC and Fox flash-based streaming video of the last 5 episodes of current shows--currently in beta) or any of the big network web sites and watch streaming shows to your heart's content. Yes, there are commercials, but a lot fewer than on broadcast TV. Some networks still only offer clips and not entire shows, but the tide is turning. I suggest using video.tvguide.com as your one-stop-shop to find free, pay, and clip content from TV shows.
Second, if you really want the TV experience, then plug your computer into your television and sound system. If you have a fairly recent model laptop, you probably have this functionality built in. Get your yellow RCA video cable, grab that wireless keyboard and you're ready to surf, channel surf. Your local electronics store will have a wire that'll convert your headphone jack into the familiar white and red RCA jacks for your TV or stereo. If you have a modern flat screen TV, you may be able to simply plug your computer video output directly into the TV. Granted, you might not have either of these free options to connect your desktop PC or laptop to the TV, but you can purchase a connector to go from DVI/VGA out (your computer's video output port) to your TV, which is still cheaper than a year's subscription to TiVo.
I won't go into any more technical detail here (write if you need help), but the point is you can enjoy the time-shifting revolution without that pesky monthly subscription fee, and you may already own all the parts you need.
- Hutch
