Boxee vs. Cable/Satellite
We cancelled DirecTV this past spring. We then got an HDTV. Which was nice. But, while we love PBS, after a while, we realized we missed a few of the ‘other’ channels. So, we signed up for satellite service again, this time giving DishNetwork a shot.
Of course, the very week we did that, the Boxee team announced support for Netflix streaming. Well, I had to check that out, so visited the site and 5 minutes later, we were watching Netflix on our new TV. Whoa! Cool!
I thought I’d put together a handy guide to compare the options:
| feature | DishNetwork | Boxee + Netflix + Over-the-air Digital TV |
|---|---|---|
| Channels | Turbo HD = about 35 + locals | Most major networks, Viacom content, CNN, Hulu movies, any show/movie Netflix offers for streaming. |
| Cost | ~$50 month | ~$15 month |
| Install | 13 hours(!) | 5 minutes |
| Contract | 2 years | none |
| DVR | Yes | Not needed |
| Picture quality | Tolerable to Decent (satellite is highly compressed) | Tolerable (streaming)/Excellent (over the air) |
| Interface | Tolerable | Fun! |
Winner? At this point, I’d say it’s a solid tie. Which should be of some concern to the Satellite and cable operators. Unlike the music industry, the TV networks appear to have caught on that the consumer wants the content online, and rather than fighting, they seem to be embracing it. Hulu is extremely fair and convenient service for the consumer. We get TV on demand in exchange for a handful of ads. Netflix streaming is instant gratification at its best.
Yes, there are still networks that have yet to get on board, but given the success of Hulu and Netflix, I don’t see how they can plead ignorance and not get their things online soon.
With a little luck, having to deal with the Cable and Satellite industries will be a distant memory within 5 years.
One Comment
We haven’t had cable TV in years. An HDTV antenna up on the roof, a MacMini in the home theater with EyeTV (for HDTV/DVR), along with a nice projector and Hulu/Netflix streaming has been quite enjoyable. OTA HDTV looks astounding. Now with Boxee, we are bringing it all together in a nice experience controllable from an iPhone (with RemoteBuddy). Indeed, a one-time payment for a few things and only one monthly fee for Netflix is a good thing!
I’ve found that with high-speed internet (which I pay for anyway), the streaming video can be very good quality. Hulu/Netflix is just a bit less than DVD quality but passable.