Cheapest device for streaming online content to TV?

[zero]

Hook their computer to the tv with a $2 cable from mono price

[DavidS]

Fry's has one in the Sunday paper on sale for $49, marked down from $129. It doesn't specify the actual brand, only "major name brand."

[Forrest]

FYI with 3Mbps DSL service, you won't see HD quality from Netflix. You'll see 480p SD quality - slightly worse than DVD playback. Note Roku and most inexpensive streaming media devices won't work with most free sites. The free Hulu service requires a computer to stream. Hulu Plus ($7.99/month) works with Roku and others.

[Chakravartin]

rgG wrote: I was surprised that I didn't see any cheap previous generation Roku boxes on Amazon. I thought there would be plenty of them, since the new boxes start at $60, but I didn't see any.

If you're not in a hurry and you keep an eye out you should see a few pop up soon.

You just missed a Roku HD for $40 at deals.woot.

[Robert M]

rgC,

Price shouldn't be the only factor. Ease of use is an important feature. I've used several media players and one of the problems I found with the cheaper solutions is the user interface is horrid. So bad, that it out weighs the low cost.

Spend the bucks and stick with a known quantity such as the Roku or an AppleTV. I realize that lowest cost possible is the goal but you want to make sure you buy something usable enough that your daughters will in fact actually use it rather than get pissed and annoyed off each time they power it up.

One other thing... There are a slew of media devices in the sub-$50 range. I just checked. One of the issues you may bump across with them is most require that the user supply the media. They aren't like a Roku or AppleTV in that they can get content off the Internet. So, to use one, your daughter needs to be prepared to set up a DLNA server to provide content and/or directly attach a storage device with content to it. Just something to be aware of during your search.

Robert

[rgG]

Thanks all! I think I will just keep my eyes open and if a deal pops up, like the Woot deal that apparently I just missed, then I can get one, or not. I am not concerned about the quality of the video, they just got rid of a fuzzy old, small CRT that they had watched for a year, with no complaints, so they just want to be able to see a picture. They have a good DVD player for watching DVDs, so at least they will get a quality picture there. Again, thanks for the advice.

I was really hoping that they could get a few channels OTA, but when I hooked up a set of rabbit ears, none of the channels was strong enough to come in. A larger outside antenna might have pulled in something, but that would be far too much trouble and expense for only 9 months. And hey, they need to be studying anyway, right?

[deckeda]

rgG wrote:
[quote=davester]
The cheapest would be to get a DVI-HDMI adapter and audio cable for their laptops. That's how we have our TV hooked up to the mac mini. The downside is that you have to unplug it when you take your laptop somewhere, but otherwise there's way more content available through a computer than there is through one of those boxes.

Yeah, but I don't think that will work for them. This needs to be a stand alone solution. Their TV isn't in a good place for hooking up a laptop, and they need to be able to use their laptops while someone is watching the TV.
This is still achievable. Get whatever cabling you need and leave it connected to the back of the TV. Only connect a laptop as necessary. You can get long HDMI or whatever cables at monoprice, so that the laptop doesn't have to right next to the TV.

If the roommate has a PC with HDMI they're ahead of the game, as you'd have to spend at least $35 or so for a decent mini DisplayPort-to-HDMI adapter for your daughter's Mac.

Now, if you're saying they BOTH want use of their laptops while watching the TV, my suggestion can't overcome that habit. IMO at that point they aren't really watching TV anyway, it's background noise.

[Robert M]

rgC,

Just occurred to me. Maybe the issue is the rabbit ears you tried with the TV. Have you tried an amplified antenna? Something like this:



I also found instructions for making a home-made TV antenna booster out of cardboard or a pringles potato chip container.

I can't speak for how well any of these including the Channel Master work but you may want to give them a looksie. Heck, building a "cantenna" may be a nifty project for them.

Robert

[rgG]

dec,
They all have MacBook Pros, and yes, they like to sit with their laptops and multitask while they "watch" something. Also, I know it would be my daughter who would be the one having to hook her MBP up to the TV all the time, and she wouldn't go for that.

Robert,
That might work, but they are really far from any of the television stations, so I don't know if it would work or not. I think it would take a larger outdoor antenna to get a decent signal, and it might need a booster, too.

[Panopticon]

...will only be there for probably the next 9 months, and after that who knows what she will need or want...

So if you spend $60-70 now, after nine months you could still sell it on CL and
recoup $20-40. Assuming the girls don't trash it... :comp: