I have been in transit recently and have officially relocated into a new apartment, so I will blog about all of my activities this past week on one post. Here goes.
Internet setup:
Last Sunday I attempted to set up my wireless connection with my rented Comcast modem and my own Belkin wireless router to no avail. I was on the phone with both Comcast and the Belkin for a good part of my day on Sunday because my router and modem were not properly communicating with one another. This is what I get for not paying a $30 installation fee.
I was having trouble identifying if the problem was with the router or modem because my super-sleek MacBook Air doesn't have an ethernet port. Luckily a good friend of mine came over with her laptop and we connected the modem directly to her laptop to uncover that the issue was with the router because the modem was working just fine when connected directly.
I became too frustrated to deal with the router issue because the router wasn't the only thing having communication problems when it came to speaking with the undoubtedly outsourced Belkin tech support agents. So I broke down, went to Target, and purchased a brand new Belkin router for $30 so it was a wash by not paying for Comcast installation - even tough I am almost positive Comcast would not have been able to fix my problem because it's not their router. I plugged my new router in, followed simple instructions, and voila, 5 minutes after opening the box I have wireless internet.
Basic Cable:
Without my antenna (which I am still waiting on from Amazon) I only have 4 channels: ABC, NBC, Peachtree TV and a Jesus channel, which I have yet to watch at all because I have been using my Roku. More on that later. Hopefully with my HD antenna I will be able to get a few more channels, suck as CBS and the CW.
Roku:
I got my Roku in the mail on Sunday and set it up after work on Monday. The set up process was simple. You pick a "channel" on the Roku you'd like to add and it gives you a website to go to on your computer and a code to link that channel (ie. Netflix, Pandora and Hulu Plus) to your Roku. The whole setup took about 5 minutes and I was ready to start watching my Roku.
Everything is loading insanely fast on my Roku and I am sure that my 20 mbps internet is more than enough to download all the TV shows and movies I can stand.
Netflix:
I have found it easier to pick the movies to watch on my Roku online because if you are just browsing and not sure what you are looking for, you only get about 50 options in certain categories to browse. I've noticed that the selections frequently change so i get some variety if I browse on my Roku directly.
Overall, no complaints with Netflix whatsoever. I have lots of HBO and Showtime shows in my instant queue and some things that aren't on the instant queue yet on my DVD queue (i.e. Mad Men).
Hulu Plus:
So far I like Hulu Plus a lot. There are commercials, but there are fewer commercials than with regular cable, which I'd end up paying more for. Commercial breaks last anywhere for 30 seconds to 1.5 minutes. That is just enough time for my to check my e-mail or facebook on my iPhone before my show comes back.
A few things I don't like about Hulu Plus:
1. No CBS. You can, of course, go to their website to watch HIMYM and Big Bang theory, but I'd like to watch it on my TV rather than small laptop screen.
2. There are some shows you cannot "subscribe" to, which means you can't add every new episode automatically to your queue. I am not really sure why this is this way...seems to be hit or miss.
3. Some shows on Hulu Plus online are not available to watch on TV. I find this to be aggravating, but I have so many movies, TV shows and documentaries in my queue that I don't mind waiting another month to see it come out on Netflix.
I may consider completely getting rid of Hulu Plus with Netflix. I am going to see what the typical turn around time is from original air date to Netflix availability, but if it is only a few months I do not mind waiting.
Stay tuned!
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