cord cutting

Well, yesterday was kind of a train wreck, huh? Believe me that I get just as frustrated as you when a vendor suddenly jacks up the price on a product, as TigerDirect did yesterday on the Vizio sound bar. It's worse than a sellout, because it smacks of bait-and-switch tactics (even though the company's own promotional e-mail showed it at the higher price, so that accusation doesn't hold water).

Anyway, I still feel bad about it, which is why I'm giving you five -- count 'em, five -- deals today. Without further ado:

1. Wal-Mart has … Read more

This is an update of a deal I posted a couple of months ago.

Finding out what all the "Downton Abbey" fuss is about. The arrival of movies like "Mission Impossible III" and "Team America: World Police" on Netflix. The early debut of shows on Hulu.

These are just a few of the reasons why you need a Roku. As I've noted before, I think these little boxes are the best way to bring streaming media into your living room. They sling not only Netflix, but also Amazon Instant Video, CNET, HBO Go, … Read more

Looking to cut that pricey cable-TV cord? Want to catch up on TV episodes and series you missed during the regular season?

You need Hulu Plus. Why pay for Plus when regular old Hulu is free? Simple: the latter forces you to sit at your PC. If you want access to the service on your Roku box, game console, Android phone/tablet, iOS device, or whatever, you'll have to pony up for a Plus subscription.

Normally that costs $7.99 per month, but right now you can get Hulu Plus free for two months. (Note that if you're … Read more

A Roku box is the single best way to bring streaming media into your home. It slings not just Netflix, but also Amazon Instant Video, CNET, HBO Go, Hulu Plus, MLB.tv, Pandora, and a host of other awesome channels.

For a limited time, you can get the refurbished Roku 2 XD for $59.99 shipped. That's a savings of $20, and the same price you'd otherwise pay for the lesser Roku 2 HD model.

Never mind that it's a refurb: it comes with the same 90-day warranty as new Rokus. (I'm a bit surprised that … Read more

Summer is a great time to catch up on the shows you weren't able to watch during the regular TV season -- or weren't sure would survive the year.

For example, Mrs. Cheapskate and I are planning to check out "Revenge," "Scandal," "Once Upon a Time," and perhaps "Grimm." Unfortunately, these freshman series have yet to show up on Netflix, so the only viable option for watching them on the cheap is Hulu Plus.

And for my money, there's no better way to pair Hulu Plus with your TV … Read more

Everybody wants to tell the cable or satellite TV company what to do with that three-figure monthly bill that pays for a lot of stuff you don't even want, right?

Today, thanks to Internet-delivered TV, you can actually put some teeth behind that. Know that it's not as simple as throwing a switch and cancelling an account. In this episode of Device & Conquer we show you what we've learned about the process and how you can do it. It might be right for you, it might not. But whether you do it now or do it later, odds are you'll do it eventually. … Read more

When people ask me if they should "cut the cord" and cancel their cable subscription, I tend to focus on negatives. You're going to miss a lot of sports, reality TV, and live TV events -- even if you get free, over-the-air TV using an antenna.

That's all true, but it's easy to forget that sometimes the cord-cutting experience is just flat-out better than having cable. I was reminded of this after reading a quote by former NBC executive Jeff Gaspin at the end of Bill Carter's recent story about declining TV ratings in The New York Times:… Read more

Remember when TV was free? All you needed was the airwaves to watch all your favorite network shows.

That's still true. In fact, with a decent antenna, you can tune in all your local stations in glorious high-def.

For many folks, that "decent antenna" has been the tough nut to crack. In my edge-of-suburbia neck of the woods, for example, I had to put a powered set of rabbit ears in my attic and run a cord through walls and floors to my TV -- hassle city.

Too bad I didn't know about the Leaf Indoor … Read more

It's tempting to think you can ditch your cable subscription, relying instead on a hodgepodge of content sources like Netflix and iTunes, but live TV is harder to replace. Many cord-cutters (including myself) get their live TV using free, over-the-air TV signals, but the hassle of dealing with an antenna and limited DVR options have left over-the-air TV as a niche (albeit seemingly growing) market.

Aereo is a startup looking to make over-the-air TV easier and in February the company announced its $12/month service that lets you stream live and recorded over-the-air TV using an iOS device or … Read more