Tools Toys and Technology

About the Tools You Use and the Toys That Make Life Interesting

Tools Toys and Technology - About the Tools You Use and the Toys That Make Life Interesting

Coming March 1st

My Favorite Roku Channels

Of all the Internet TV hardware options discussed in my January article, my favorite by far is Roku. Why? Because, Roku has the biggest selection of streaming channels: 328 at last count.

In my March 1 Tools, Toys & Technology, I’ll compare and contrast some of those selections when I reveal my favorite Roku channels.

Netflix, Hulu and Hulu Plus

Copyright © 2012 Richard Beaty

In last month’s Tools, Toys & Technology, I started a series on Internet TV. That article discussed the hardware and infrastructure you need to stream TV programming to your big screen. This month, we start discussing programming sources, starting with an online “one-two punch” to your expensive, traditional cable/satellite provider. The combination of Netflix and Hulu will have you giving serious consideration to “cutting the cord,” firing your cable or satellite company and saving $100 a month.

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Internet TV – An Introduction

Copyright © 2012 Richard Beaty

I know it’s probably not a revelation to you that you can now receive television over the Internet. But I thought I should, at least, review it before digging into the nuts and bolts.

Video on Websites became commonplace several years ago. And the quality has gotten better and better as the technology behind video streaming gets more sophisticated and Internet speeds get faster and faster. Technology has gone from allowing us to view a few minutes of fuzzy video on Youtube with our computers, to being able to watch full length feature films in HD streamed over the Internet to our 50+ inch wide screen living room TVs.

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