Tofel Cuts The Cord (with some help from Sony)

Kevin Tofel just cut the cord. While he’s a good pal (having live-Tweeted each other’s weddings), what makes his “cable” television exodus a bit more fascinating is his technological background — including years of contributions to the TV-centric HDBeat and PVRWire (RIP) blogs. Heck, we even collaborated on a piece for PC Magazine (back in 2006, when it was paper) documenting how to cut the cord… possibly before that term even existed.

So what’s different in 2016? The content Kevin and his family appreciate, including premium channels and futbol, is now available “over-the-top” … on the hardware of his choosing … and without waiting around for the FCC to unlock the box.

I’m convinced we’ve reached a bit of a turning point in the industry that makes “cord cutting” more feasible for a wider range of people. […] We’re not completely “cutting the cord” but are instead using a different “cord” for television content. […] Frankly, I don’t see why I need to pay Verizon — or any other company — $600 a year to rent set-top boxes or have the ability to DVR content.

tofel-psvue

Kevin went with PS Vue ($40/mo), over Sling TV ($20/mo), for a variety of reasons including channel lineup and DVR functionality. I generally agree that PS Vue is the superior service. However, limited platform availability (Amazon Fire TV or Playstations) and what I’d call more of a catch-up service than a true “DVR” (given only 28 days of recording availability) might not meet everyone’s needs. In fact, if I weren’t invested in TiVo hardware, I’d likely cut the cord with Tablo for OTA DVR functionality and out-of-home streaming plus Sling TV and commercial-free Hulu with Roku endpoints. And therein lies the beauty of the current landscape. Yeah, things are still in flux (including content licensing). But we have several solid options to customize our own entertainment packages. Even the cable providers are getting in on the action.

22 thoughts on “Tofel Cuts The Cord (with some help from Sony)”

  1. Disclosure: I’ve got an advertising relationship with Tablo, which consists of the banner you see in the sidebar. Sadly, that doesn’t get me advanced access to their incoming Apple TV app. ;)

  2. Just checked out PS Vue – much more impressive channel lineup than Sling TV (which I thought had the worst interface imaginable)! Now, if only Tivo would add a PS Vue app to my Roamio. May have to buy a Fire TV Stick and try this.

  3. Stay away from the Fire TV Stick until it’s refreshed (or get the full Fire TV when it’s on sale for $85). It’s really under powered.

  4. Just saw a commercial for Vue watching the Thunder/Warriors game 7. Pulled it up on my iPad but it looks like CBS and ABC networks are not available under Vue? I only saw FOX and NBC. Not having the two top Networks makes this look more like an experiment and a deal breaker. And you still need to pay cable for the Internet connection. :(

  5. Bryan10024, availability of local channels varies by your zip code / location: Sony is still negotiating with broadcast providers across the country. I’m lucky in that the Philadelphia area was part of the beta program and VUE has access to ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox here. I’d check back on availability near you in the coming weeks/months….

  6. Yeah, the locals situation is a mess given all the franchises, each of which requires its own deal as they intend to get paid. It’s probably why Apple didn’t proceed with a television package (thus far). In my neighborhood, when I last checked a month or so back, I received no locals. However, instead of Kevin’s $40/mo, I would only be charged $30/mo.

    Multichannel recently covered Sony’s progress. Sounds like they’ve made inroads with the “owned and operated” ABC, NBC, and Fox networks. But there’s still a lot of work to do.

    http://www.multichannel.com/news/content/playstation-vue-offers-big-4-broadcasters-all-oo-markets/405235

  7. So…he’s saving the $600/year ($50/month) he was paying to his cable company and instead paying $480/year to Sony? And missing some key channels? I guess I fail to see what’s so much better about this, unless he’s in such tough shape financially that he needed to scrape together that $10/month savings.

  8. The $50/mo is only the hardware rental fees. He also lobbed off the FiOS television service, so their Verizon bill dropped from about about $210 to $100 and he’ll save about $800/yr. Which is nothing to sneeze at, but it’s not the only criteria. If I had Verizon’s set-tops, I’d want out too… and providers now often requiring 2-year contracts for preferred pricing is off-putting, along with dickering to find the real/better price. Etc.

    As to “better” well, for me, there were still too many tradeoffs — it’s a different and more tedious form of television with a number of compromises. However, our viewing patterns are much different these days with a new member of the family. Each household has to figure out for themselves what’s important and what’ll work.

  9. I just read the entire article (I should have done that before replying). So he actually cites a price decrease of paying $211/month to now paying $140/month ($71/month savings), though he does focus in on the $600/year ($50/month) savings from not having to rent boxes. He had to buy a 2nd Fire TV. So was he paying $25/month for each cable box/DVR?

    Some other bits I pulled out of the article:
    – The PQ caps out at 720p
    – He hasn’t seen “much” buffering or lag
    – He’s paying extra for Hulu, which he already did previously (if he had a DVR and a cable package before, I’m not sure why he needed Hulu – maybe for easy on-the-go mobile viewing?)

    Based on reading the article as well as some of the replies to the article (citing playback UI issues and recorded show glitches), it doesn’t sound like something that I, as a TiVo user, would ever want to downgrade to.

    FWIW, I have a TiVo Roamio (lifetime), a TiVo Mini, and a Comcast Blast package with HBO, which gives me every channel I want except for ESPN and HGTV, and I pay under $110 (it was less, but my promo rate just ended). That includes the cost of renting a cablecard.

    Obviously, I had to pay for the Roamio and the lifetime subscription. But if I compared this to the current Bolt offering for $200 plus $15/month, that would work out to me paying $125/month + $100 premium for the TiVo Bolt vs the Fire TV. He’s effectively paying $15/month more (but $100 less up-front) for less channels and lower PQ.

  10. I’m an occasional Hulu subscriber. Beyond current seasons, they also let you catch up on prior seasons you may have missed, pick up seasons in progress, requires no planning. They also have a selection of movies, kid’s programming, and a smattering of original content.

  11. I guess it comes down to how turnkey one wants things. Some people are willing to jump through hoops, and some just want to turn it on and have it work.

  12. Scott, good analysis but a few things to clarify when you say “He’s effectively paying $15/month more (but $100 less up-front) for less channels and lower PQ.”

    I’m not paying $15/month more. I’m paying $70 less per month. Some of that savings goes towards the purchase of a new Amazon FireTV for the second TV; I already had one well before this experiment. I also had several Chromecast devices purchased when I was a tech blogger. The CC covers my third TV, which isn’t used that much in comparison to the other 2.

    So the 3 STB’s/whole house DVR fees are gone, i.e.: There’s $50 a month in savings right off the top.

    As far as having less channels, you’re right but that’s not the right way — or perhaps, the most holistic way — to look at it. It’s not about having the most channels; it’s about having the most channels that you want to watch. ;)

    I do agree 100% that 720p content is a con. It’s not bothering my family though and my TV is the 4K set, which upscales quite well.

    Regardless, the point of the post wasn’t to convince anyone that my setup is ideal for them. I know it isn’t. It’s more about the big picture, in that more viable choices are popping up — the TV Everywhere part is big IMO — and the future is looking brighter.

  13. Sorry for any confusion…I was stating that you were paying $15/month more than TiVo setup with a Comcast Blast Plus package. You may not even have Comcast/Xfinity in your area, and the Comcast Blast Plus package may not even be a package that they’re still offering to new subscribers, so my point may be moot, regardless.

    Leaving that out of the equation…I still don’t like the sound of what you’re getting (and/or not getting). It sounds like PQ is compromised somewhat, and the packages I see offered when I look at their website seem to be missing some of the major networks (I understand that this varies from region to region).

    But to your point…everyone’s situation is a bit different.

  14. Yeah, one of the main takeaways is that we have choice for a change and these competing services should raise the bar on all services — prices can only go so low given content licensing. But there is opportunity for providers to distinguish themselves when it comes to interface or customer service or type of bundle… areas that the incumbent cablecos have frequently neglected given their pseudo-monopoly standing.

    Beyond some of the services already mentioned, I also find Amazon’s approach of aggregating offerings like Showtime basically into Prime fascinating – especially now that we know some sort of live feed is also on the docket (and Amazon’s Hulu is 1080p vs the lower resolution of Hulu direct). I assume they’ll continue to tighten the integration and presentation with some sort of Fire TV guide. Reminds me of a post I need to do, maybe tomorrow. :)

    Verizon would go a long way in keeping my happy on FiOS with a Roku or Fire TV app… (or maybe if TiVo got off their asses and did something more with the “beta” Fire TV app they released last fall.

  15. Ah, I get what you meant now, Scott. My bad and thanks for clarifying! ?

    Growing up in the Philadelphia area, I’ve had way too many bad Comcast experiences to even consider giving them my business now. Shame on me, because they may have the service to beat based in what you’re describing.

  16. We cut out Comcast, except for internet, when we moved to a new house in Feb. I turned in my cable cards and went OTA for local channels with our Roamio 4-tuner and a Mini. For the cable channels we still wanted we went with PS Vue. It’s been great.

    I would note that I stopped using the PS4 for Vue’ing, preferring instead to use a chromecast for streaming instead of always having to have my playstation on. Vue, along with Netflix, and Amazon Prime meet all of our needs.

    We’re paying $49/mo for Blast Plus 150Mbs, $40 for Vue and getting all of the channels we want, then $7.99 for Netflix and $15 for HBO now for GOT. We’ll probably keep that going. We’ll intermittently subscribe to Starz (Outlander, Blunt Talk, Survirors Remorse), and Showtime (Penny Dreadful). I’ll add that during the last two weeks we replaced our ageing tv’s with new Vizio Smartcast displays. One P-Series 55 inch and an E-Series 43 inch. Casting Vue to them works perfectly with no lag or noticeable artifacts, as do the other above supported streaming apps. We also have a Roku 4 for Amazon Dolby Vision and HDR content.

    Having been a Tivo user since 2003 I found the interface and cloud DVR functionality incredibly easy to adjust to. And with regards to PQ, yes it is 720p but then upscaled to 4K by the display. Scott, you do realize that broadcast tv signals are 720p and upscaled to 1080i? For the most part PQ doesn’t look any different on vue than it does OTA. We’re quite satisfied with the solution and happy not to be nickle and dimed by Comcast anymore.

  17. The only negative i would have to say about PS Vue right now is not having the option to go to a slim package because i get all of our locals OTA. If they would give everyone that option that would be outstanding. Hopefully, that will come to pass. Otherwise, it’s awesome.

  18. Kudos to you Kevin C Tofel! You’re doing what many of us are too chicken to do. We’ve become so dependent on the convenience of Big Corp cable packages that the thought of venturing out of the nest is daunting. My FIOS contract is expiring in a couple of months, so I started planning my big escape. But as I feared, the WiFi cost eats up most of the cord cutting budget. I was planning to go with PS Vue, TWC WiFi/Home Phone and a Mohu Leaf antenna. That was going to cost me around $110. But TWC was offering a Triple Play deal for my complex at $118 (taxes/fees included). The price is good for 12 months with no contract. So by this time next year there will be so much more competition among streaming services (Hulu, Samsung and Google are supposedly launching services next year). So I guess I’m just “weaning” my family off cable over the next year. In the process I’ll be saving over $100/mo. (my FIOS bill =$250!). I’ve got my Rokus, Fire TV stick and Chromecasts ready. Now all I need is a cable alternative that fits my desired budget of under $100/mo.

  19. “Kudos to you Kevin C Tofel! You’re doing what many of us are too chicken to do.”

    Kevin C Tofel: Hero, villain, or unwitting dupe? Next up, we’ll have a panel with Marshall McLuhan, Philo Farnsworth, and Werner Herzog to provide a definitive answer. Right after these short commercial breaks, only on CNN.

  20. @Scott R “So was he paying $25/month for each cable box/DVR?”

    Here a la carte, after taxes/fees, a DVR on TWC does cost almost $25/month.

    @Marcus “Scott, you do realize that broadcast tv signals are 720p and upscaled to 1080i? ”

    That depends on the network – some broadcast in 1080i, others 720p.

    As others note the beauty of OTA + OTT viewing is that you can easily pickup & drop OTT subscriptions.

    And there are occasionally deals on the OTT subs you keep – e.g. last month I bought a $120 credit for a popular OTT service for $50 from someone who had purchased a tablet with a “free year” code.

  21. A cheap OpenElec/Kodi box is probably the best way to get the most amount of content. There is so much free/legal stuff available on Kodi (SyFy, Bravo, CBS News, etc, etc) that you really don’t have to have anything else. Combine it with a HDHomerun Connect for OTA and you have a full functioning HTPC for ~$200.

    You can easily install Kodi on the Nvidia Shield Console for Netflix/Hulu and other stuff.

    Kodi is such an amazing tool. I don’t know what I’d do without it.

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