Going Retro in the Digital Age
When the TiVo® Series3™ was released in September of 2006 I came to a realization: Roughly 90% of the television programming I watch is received from broadcast networks. With this information I could cancel my DIRECTV® subscription without a major disruption to my viewing habits. DIRECTV has been a quality provider for me, but saving roughly 65$ per month could go a long way.
After 6 months I have finally done it. I opened the package and installed my TiVo Series3 last night. I was able to get a deal on the TiVo Serie3 at almost 50% of the introductory price. This means that I will have covered the cost of the new TiVo and a year of service within 10 months due to the savings after canceling DIRECTV service. I can also potentially sell my DIRECTV HR10-250 for roughly 200$. After that time I will only be spending 15$ per month to cover the cost of the TiVo service.
It seems that I am not the only one with this idea. The Associated Press had an article this week titled “‘Rabbit Ears’ Find New Life in HDTV Age.” The article highlights HDTV as the motivating factor to returning to antennas and broadcast television. While cost is also a consideration, the compression used on most Cable and Satelite signals reduces the quality of the broadcast.
“When you’re using an antenna to get an HD signal you will be able to receive true broadcast-quality HD,” said Megan Pollock, spokeswoman for [the Consumer electronics Association]. “Some of the cable and satellite companies may choose to compress the HD signal.”
And with a format like HDTV, where the whole purpose is the clearest possible picture, every bit of clarity is crucial.
A factor that I believe is overlooked is the influence of Digital Video Recorders (DVRs). In the past cable channels were my go-to source of programming ouside of prime time hours. With the advent of the DVR I can watch fresh prime time programming whether it is 8:00pm on a Monday or 3:00am on a Sunday. The need to turn on a syndicated program on A&E has disappeared when I can watch a new episode of the same show anytime I would like. I am not aware of any data on the subject, but I believe DVRs have actually been a boost to the broadcast networks for precisely this reason. I watch not only more broadcast television than ever, but far less cable television. To the point where I have now gone so far as to revert back to exclusively over the air broadcasts.
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