Can a Roku streaming stick be used to get free TV stations?

On 3/27/2018 3:41 PM, Paul wrote:
Frank wrote:


Also think I would opt for higher download speed which may be needed
for streaming.

Nothing prevents an ISP from throttling Netflix,
even if you buy Gigabit service. That's the beauty of
net neutrality or the lack thereof.

This is one reason that people cannot see Netflix in HD,
because the connection to Netflix is throttled, no matter
what grade of service you thought that you'd bought.

The ISP could have been cut out of the picture, by the
usage of a VPN to "hide" the traffic, except Netflix has
anti-VPN provisions to prevent people from other
countries from subscribing to US Netflix service
(by using a US billing address).

Netflix has a lot of nuances. One size bandaid doesn't fit all.

Â*Â* Paul

What I found interesting is that Netflix has a deal with Comcast, which
I have, and I believe also FIOS as I suspect from their ads. Our two
bigger HD non-smart TV sets with Comcast DVR have a Netflix ap so smart
TV is not needed there. I asked someone that works at Comcast's main
office and he said they do have a deal with them. There is no other
option like Amazon on the DVR. It only takes a few seconds to bring up
and watch Netflix.

With voice activation on the DVR I can ask for a show and if it is on
Netflix and I have a subscription I can go and see it for free otherwise
there is a pay option where it would be added to cable bill.

OP wants to save money and I don't blame him. My cable TV bill with
extended cable options and HBO, Showtime and Starz with internet and
phone is nearly $200/month and I have to fight annually to keep it down.
I have a neighbor that switches from Comcast to FIOS every couple of
years when initial low cost introductory offer expires and they won't
come down. My son would do that but my wife would not tolerate it.

Char Jackson wrote:
On Tue, 27 Mar 2018 21:37:11 +0000 (UTC), Amethyst
wrote:

For those who have a Roku streaming stick, do you concur that the sticks
should work in the computer monitor HDMI input?

Yes.

But he will have no audio unless the monitor has builtin speakers with
HDMI support. Now the old Roko 2 had a 1/8 audio jack for headphones
that could be used for external speakers, but the sticks do not.

--
Take care,

Jonathan
-------------------
LITTLE WORKS STUDIO
http://www.LittleWorksStudio.com

On Tue, 27 Mar 2018 19:04:33 -0400, "Jonathan N. Little"
wrote:

Char Jackson wrote:
On Tue, 27 Mar 2018 21:37:11 +0000 (UTC), Amethyst
wrote:

For those who have a Roku streaming stick, do you concur that the sticks
should work in the computer monitor HDMI input?

Yes.

But he will have no audio unless the monitor has builtin speakers with
HDMI support. Now the old Roko 2 had a 1/8 audio jack for headphones
that could be used for external speakers, but the sticks do not.

That's an excellent point. He'll get video for sure, but audio only if
his monitor supports it. Every TV would, but monitors are a different
animal.

Am Tue, 27 Mar 2018 18:23:24 -0500, schrieb Char Jackson:

But he will have no audio unless the monitor has builtin speakers with
HDMI support. Now the old Roko 2 had a 1/8 audio jack for headphones
that could be used for external speakers, but the sticks do not.

That's an excellent point. He'll get video for sure, but audio only if
his monitor supports it. Every TV would, but monitors are a different
animal.

Oh oh... no speakers on the monitor.

Thanks for bringing that unthought of point up!

On 03/27/2018 07:49 AM, Wolf K wrote:
On 2018-03-27 08:58, dadiOH wrote:
"Bod" wrote in message
...

There are many free channels, most all will pump out a deluge of
ads; one
needs a high threshold of pain to watch them.. The better channels
such
as
Netfliix, Amazon, et al all require a small monthy fee.

You can browse the channel store here...
https://channelstore.roku.com/browse


(Butting in, apologies)

I watched some TV whilst I was in the States and I found the amount of
adverts intolerable, especially as I mostly watch the BBC channels in
the
UK which are all ad free here.
I found it so annoying that I stopped watching.
Are all US tv channels like that?

All the networks, over the air TV, are fueled by ads but a more tolerable
quantity. When one receives them via a cable type service, those
services
add even more. IOW, all suck.

Well, that's what "free TV" means. You are the product, and the
advertisers pay well to get a chance at your eyeballs (and whatever
brain is connected to them. ;-) ) It's even worse withe Facebook etc.

BTW, we have a couple of video-rental stores in this small town. It
seems there are people without cable or satellite. Assuming they indulge
only at weekends, their movie bill is at most equal to a cable/satellite
bill, and likely a lot less. Plus, no ads.



I've done Netflix DVDs for years. I can pick and choose, no ads, and
they are delivered to my mailbox. The only thing I have to do is be
careful about spoilers for the cable TV series since the DVDs aren't
released until about a year after the season ends.

I did screw up and found out how a Walking Dead cliff-hanger came out
but I'm sick of endless zombies and might not watch that season anyway.

Amethyst wrote:
On Tue, 27 Mar 2018 15:41:24 -0400, Paul said:

Netflix has a lot of nuances. One size bandaid doesn't fit all.

I just want to say that all the articles assume you'll pay for Netflix,
which isn't the question here.

I don't want to pay for anything since I think it's foolish to pay for what
you can get for free, if you can get it for free.

That's why I asked what comes with the Roku sticks. It seems, from the
answers, "stuff" comes for free, so that's good.

Now all I need is to figure out if the Roku can plug into the HDMI "IN" of
the monitor (with a Y adapter) or if the Roku can plug into the HDMI "OUT"
of the Sony Playstation 3.

If the Roku can plug into the HDMO "OUT" of the Sony PS3, that would be
perfect because the Sony PS3 already has cables that go into the old but
rather large (48 inch?) Sony TV (maybe through the DVD player?).

Come to think of it, I didn't look at the back of the DVD player yet.
http://www.bild.me/bild.php?file=3232054dvd_player.jpg

The DVD player also has an HDMI "OUT" that I ask if I can plug the Roku
stick into?

Just plug it into the *monitor* and get testing.

Paul

Wolf K wrote:
Without Internet access, you can't watch Roku channels. Roku is _not_ a
method of replacing OTA or cable/satellite service.

Just to clarify the OP said is had Internet access, he just does not
have OTA or cable/satellite service.

--
Take care,

Jonathan
-------------------
LITTLE WORKS STUDIO
http://www.LittleWorksStudio.com

On Tue, 27 Mar 2018 06:27:18 -0400, DMP wrote:

On 3/26/2018 11:23 PM, Jonathan N. Little wrote:
Terry Coombs wrote:
** The short answer is yes . That stick is meant to plug into the USB
port on a TV set

Not a USB, it connect into an HDMI port. I have one.

Short answer to OP is yes, there are some free channels of varying
degrees of value. Better channels need subscription or some cable tv
package, but like me no cable access here. Works on my slow DLS 3mbs.


We have a Roku and there are several offerings that really aren't too
bad for being free, Pluto TV being one. There are news offerings,
weather, limited sports and movies, music stations, gamers channels and
wacky things like cat and gorilla videos.

Roku channel itself is free as well as Crackle and a bunch of others.

Red Bull TV.



D.

Jonathan N. Little wrote:
Wolf K wrote:
Without Internet access, you can't watch Roku channels. Roku is _not_
a method of replacing OTA or cable/satellite service.

Just to clarify the OP said is had Internet access, he just does not
have OTA or cable/satellite service.


But you can check out your OTA TV situation, using the TVFOOL website.

*******

You can even build your own TV antenna. But it's generally
cheaper to buy a cheesy plastic one.

On a good day, the curve for this one says it gets 10dBi on
a range of frequencies. In Canada where I live, they were really really
clever, and spread the damn channels over VHF LOW, VHF HIGH,
and UHF, complicating home antenna construction. I can't drop
VHF here, because of that aspect (I'd probably lose half
the channels - there was room to put *all* the channels in
the UHF section if they'd wanted). OTA TV is treated as
a joke here, in terms of intelligent frequency selection.
One station was left on Channel 4, so the owner could keep
the transmitter part, and change the modulation or something.
There was some clever scheme to make the transition cheaper
for the station owner, and make my antenna work more difficult :-)

https://www.onetransistor.eu/2015/01...f-antenna.html

Ones like this, can give 13 to 15 dBi gain, but they're a lot
more work to put together. This one would cover all of VHF LOW,
VHF HIGH, and the DTV range of UHF channels. It can take you a
solid month of work, to build one of these. The simpler one,
with that single stick of wood for support, would go together
a lot faster. These are directional enough, you'll typically
need a rotator for 360 degree coverage. The beamwidth on
one of these might be 20 degrees or so, and it must be
"pointed right at the target" to work. This is the kind of
thing you'd use at the cottage. Or a giant yagi of course.
Your old antenna at the cottage would still work, so if you
already own an antenna, you don't need to change a thing.

https://cdn.instructables.com/FUK/V5...IB76.LARGE.jpg

The TV Tuner card I got last year, made a significant difference,
and I can't figure out how, technically, the new silicon is
that much better. I'm receiving pretty well everything I'm
supposed to be getting (according to my TVFOOL map). And I'm able
to do that, with plain old rabbit ears.

Reception varies with time of year, and if when you set up your
gear, you're getting a ton of stations, a time may come later
when things thin out, and you're not as happy.

Paul

Paul wrote:
On a good day, the curve for this one says it gets 10dBi on
a range of frequencies. In Canada where I live, they were really really
clever, and spread the damn channels over VHF LOW, VHF HIGH,
and UHF, complicating home antenna construction. I can't drop
VHF here, because of that aspect (I'd probably lose half
the channels - there was room to put *all* the channels in
the UHF section if they'd wanted). OTA TV is treated as
a joke here, in terms of intelligent frequency selection.
One station was left on Channel 4, so the owner could keep
the transmitter part, and change the modulation or something.
There was some clever scheme to make the transition cheaper
for the station owner, and make my antenna work more difficult :-)

https://www.onetransistor.eu/2015/01...f-antenna.html

Built one of those with rotor and amp. I'm in deep-deep fringe. Closest
station 60 miles with most 100 miles. Have over a dozen stations.

--
Take care,

Jonathan
-------------------
LITTLE WORKS STUDIO
http://www.LittleWorksStudio.com

"Amethyst" wrote in message
news
For those who have a Roku streaming stick, do you concur that the sticks
should work in the computer monitor HDMI input? The computer is a modern
Windows computer desktop.

Yes, I do. That is how the Roku sends data...via the HDMI channel.

Once you plug it in and set up Roku you and your entire family will be able
to huddle around that little monitor and enjoy all the best of the free
channels available. You'll have plenty of opportunity to make popcorn, open
a beer, take a leak, whatever you need a few moments for, during the
commercials. After a winter or two of that, you may decide that the $8-$10
per month for Netflix or Amazon isn't such a ripoff after all.

But wait, there's more.

If you would like to have a more comfortable viewing experience by viewing
via your TV, then get a Roku device that will connect via RCA phono plugs to
the TV rather than HDMI. As I said originally, that is model Roku Express+
3910RW. It would set you back $35 but that is less than buying a new TV.
Worth it? Depends upon how much you value lebensraum.
https://www.roku.com/products/compare

On 3/27/2018 9:09 PM, Paul wrote:
Jonathan N. Little wrote:
Wolf K wrote:
Without Internet access, you can't watch Roku channels. Roku is _not_
a method of replacing OTA or cable/satellite service.

Just to clarify the OP said is had Internet access, he just does not
have OTA or cable/satellite service.


But you can check out your OTA TV situation, using the TVFOOL website.

*******

You can even build your own TV antenna. But it's generally
cheaper to buy a cheesy plastic one.

On a good day, the curve for this one says it gets 10dBi on
a range of frequencies. In Canada where I live, they were really really
clever, and spread the damn channels over VHF LOW, VHF HIGH,
and UHF, complicating home antenna construction. I can't drop
VHF here, because of that aspect (I'd probably lose half
the channels - there was room to put *all* the channels in
the UHF section if they'd wanted). OTA TV is treated as
a joke here, in terms of intelligent frequency selection.
One station was left on Channel 4, so the owner could keep
the transmitter part, and change the modulation or something.
There was some clever scheme to make the transition cheaper
for the station owner, and make my antenna work more difficult :-)

https://www.onetransistor.eu/2015/01...f-antenna.html


Ones like this, can give 13 to 15 dBi gain, but they're a lot
more work to put together. This one would cover all of VHF LOW,
VHF HIGH, and the DTV range of UHF channels. It can take you a
solid month of work, to build one of these. The simpler one,
with that single stick of wood for support, would go together
a lot faster. These are directional enough, you'll typically
need a rotator for 360 degree coverage. The beamwidth on
one of these might be 20 degrees or so, and it must be
"pointed right at the target" to work. This is the kind of
thing you'd use at the cottage. Or a giant yagi of course.
Your old antenna at the cottage would still work, so if you
already own an antenna, you don't need to change a thing.

https://cdn.instructables.com/FUK/V5...IB76.LARGE.jpg

The TV Tuner card I got last year, made a significant difference,
and I can't figure out how, technically, the new silicon is
that much better. I'm receiving pretty well everything I'm
supposed to be getting (according to my TVFOOL map). And I'm able
to do that, with plain old rabbit ears.

Reception varies with time of year, and if when you set up your
gear, you're getting a ton of stations, a time may come later
when things thin out, and you're not as happy.

Paul
Direction is a BIG deal for OTA.
I live within 15 miles of the antennas, but I like to be able
to record/timeshift 4 channels (out of 7) at a time.
Turning the antenna is not an option.
I discovered that it was not a signal strength problem.
Looking at the signals on a spectrum analyzer showed all had plenty
of RF.
The problem seemed to be multipath messing with the phases for small
frequency changes
across the channel bandwidth. The Bart's head displays weren't flat
across the top.
All it takes is a water tower or hill or large building somewhere
near the signal path, even behind you, to give you a blocky display or
none at all.

I used a distribution amp and a variable attenuator to tweak the
amplitude into each tuner and restrict the channels recorded by
each tuner.
That gave a watchable set of channels most of the time.
Situation got better as new tuner generations evolved. I no longer
need individual attenuators, but the direction of the antenna has
a very narrow window to keep it all working.

On Wed, 28 Mar 2018 10:46:37 -0400, Wolf K wrote:

On 2018-03-27 23:09, Jonathan N. Little wrote:
Wolf K wrote:
Without Internet access, you can't watch Roku channels. Roku is _not_
a method of replacing OTA or cable/satellite service.

Just to clarify the OP said is had Internet access, he just does not
have OTA or cable/satellite service.


True, but I got the impression that OP wanted "regular" TV. You know,
news, movies, sitcoms, drama series, documentaries. A quick look at the
Roku website shows that the free stuff is, er um, how shall I say this,
ah, mostly weird niche stuff.

Like, for example, the Egyptian Belly Dancing channel? Or the Aquarium
channel or the Fireplace channel? ;-)

You can PBS free, and plus things like The
Great Courses, maybe a dozen or so channels in total. May be enough for OP.

I have 3 Roku devices, one for each TV, and one of the channels I use
the most is AccuRadio. It delivers uninterrupted*, ad free, no talking,
music all day long, in the sub-sub-sub-genre of my choice. You can drill
into any of multiple categories of music, then continue drilling down
until you find just what you want. I think AccuRadio is also a website,
and there could be ads there, but on Roku it's free of ads.

*Ok, to be honest, there's a recorded voice every couple of hours that
says, "You're listening to AccuRadio", but that's really easy to ignore.

Ragnusen Ultred wrote:
Am Tue, 27 Mar 2018 18:23:24 -0500, schrieb Char Jackson:

But he will have no audio unless the monitor has builtin speakers with
HDMI support. Now the old Roko 2 had a 1/8 audio jack for headphones
that could be used for external speakers, but the sticks do not.

That's an excellent point. He'll get video for sure, but audio only if
his monitor supports it. Every TV would, but monitors are a different
animal.

Oh oh... no speakers on the monitor.

Thanks for bringing that unthought of point up!

What was it again about not using multiple nyms in a single thread!?

And BTW, you're welcome, twice, one time for 'Ragnusen Ultred' (the
*two* spaces persona) and another for 'Bob J Jones'.

But I'm a little bit disappointed that you can lie, cheat, belittle,
insult, etc., but can't be bothered to acknowledge help/advice/
whatever.

On Wed, 28 Mar 2018 10:09:31 -0500, Char Jackson wrote:

I think AccuRadio is also a website, and there could be ads there,
but on Roku it's free of ads.

*Ok, to be honest, there's a recorded voice every couple of hours
that says, "You're listening to AccuRadio", but that's really
easy to ignore.

Great site, thanks!