This is part of a 3 post series which I will dedicate to saving money by spending money on technology. I consider my blog a personal finance blog with a fusion of many areas of interest that promote good finances, learning, and happiness. I hope these posts are not too tech-y and help a few of you out!
Post 1: Save Money by Connecting Your Computer to Your Television
Post 2: Save Money and Make Your Xbox 360 Wireless for $20
Post 3: Save Money by Streaming Television & Movies Through Your Xbox 360 or PS3
Yesterday I mentioned how I got rid of cable @ $60/month and saved $720/year. I can honestly say I haven’t regretted that decision once. I have more time to spend with family and friends, I play with my dog more, I read more, and I don’t get sucked into mindless reality TV anymore!
Then… What’s the Point?
However, I still occasionally stream a few shows off of the internet. I will watch them (House, Dexter, True Blood, and a few more) as I wind down for the night.
I have taken this one step further and actually output this stream onto my TV so that I can lay in bed and see them in their full 32” HD glory.
Tools needed:
- Internet browser capable of running Hulu.com (Any one that has flash installed, really, but I use Firefox)
- A slight technology know-how
- A computer with a video card output and a TV or receiver with a video input
- A corresponding cable with that output
Procedure:
1. First lets configure your computer to be able to play television shows and movies… even if you can’t hook it up to your TV most people have at least a 19” monitor nowadays anyways!
2. If you use Firefox type about:plugins in your address bar. Do you see a reference to Shockwave flash? If yes, skip to step 4.
3. No flash? No worries! Go here and download and install the flash player. Restart your browser.
4. Now that we have flash installed and ready to go, visit Hulu and browse their selection of television shows and movies. Choose one that interests you and see if it plays correctly. If not, troubleshoot accordingly. Feel free to leave comments about your specific problem and I will try to help out!
5. Now let’s see if your computer can output the signal and your TV can receive the signal.
6. Check the ports on your desktop or laptop; they should have one of these ports. The one on the top is HDMI. The one on the bottom is an example of a card that has VGA, S-video, and DVI. If your desktop has only ONE port then it will be connected to your computer monitor and you can not hook up your TV without unhooking your monitor. This, obviously, is not the same for laptops… one port will do!
7. Check your TV or receiver and see if it has the input from above. The TV below accepts HDMI, DVI, and S-video inputs. Let’s proceed with HDMI. (Note: If the inputs do not match up, do not be discouraged! If your computer outputs DVI and your TV only has HDMI… you can buy a cable for that, too!)
8. Go to monoprice.com and find a cable that suits your needs. For the above HDMI setup, assuming your desktop is within 10 feet of your TV you could buy a cable like this for $4.74. If it is a laptop and you need less… you could save a dollar :p.
As mentioned… If you have a DVI output on your computer and a HDMI input on your TV there are cables that do the conversion for you. And they only cost $5.64.
9. Really, get creative. Mix and match based on your needs. You now have “On Demand” television shows on your TV… for free. And you watch less advertisements, too!
Not to worry…
This solution may not be the most convenient for everyone… but I have two more posts coming that may be better for your situation! Leave comments, suggestions, or questions as always!
I'm MLR. After graduating from college debt free, I decided to write a blog encouraging people to adapt responsible and sensible personal finance rules.
March 3rd, 2009 at 3:49 pm |
We do this all the time, with one laptop or another. Just a reminder that Mac laptops will probably need an adapter in order to hook in any standard cable, such as VGA.
Hulu is great! There are even some full-length movies on there. Just the other day I was watching Dragonheart on Hulu!
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March 3rd, 2009 at 4:55 pm |
Stephanie –
I saw that when I was browsing the movie selection, haha. I remember that movie from wayyy back!
As for the Mac laptops… definitely. I think most of them use a Mini DisplayPort adapter. You can get one for VGA or DVI for about $30 from Apple. I would imagine there are alternatives but I don’t own an Apple… so I don’t know.
Technology is awesome… gone are the days of DVD players and cable TV! We have laptops! :)
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May 20th, 2009 at 10:54 pm |
I love watching shows online although I tend to go the network website (abc.com for Lost, etc). Sometimes when watching shows online, tho, they freeze up for a second or 2, especially if I’m watching on full screen mode on the laptop. They usually run mostly hiccup free in the smaller pane, but it’s not quite as fun. Any remedy for it?
Also, since giving up cable, my boyfriend is interested in finding ways to follow his favorite sports teams. We were able to find some hockey webcasts but they were in a really small window and would also have a tendency to freeze up. Any suggestions?
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MyLifeROI Reply:
May 21st, 2009 at 1:10 am |
@Mandy,
The network’s website apps have been getting better, I must say. I do prefer Hulu and Fancast, but if they don’t have the show I will check the network sites.
A few reasons for freezing:
-Internet connection bottlenecks (do you pause it and let it queue up for a while?)
-Since it is a laptop, possibly video card issues.
-Outdated Flash. Most of the players use Flash, so that may be an issue if you are a version behind.
-Need updated video codecs.
In re: to the sports. To get more variety, have you tried ESPN 360? Not sure about all the details there, but that may be worth a look. I normally just check ESPN and watch the highlights, so I’m not too sure. For the freezing issues, I would say it is most likely one of the 4 issues noted above.
If you need help narrowing it down, I will try and help!
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August 28th, 2010 at 11:08 pm |
So, if your computer IS NOT within 10 feet of the tv, and is actually in another room about 30 feet away, what is the suggestion?
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