
Dear Lifehacker,

I'd love to get rid of cable and stream all my favorite TV shows right from the internet. What do I need to know before I take the plunge?

Signed,

Ready to Cut the Coaxial

Photo by sociotard.

Join the club! Some of us at Lifehacker HQ have already left or are ready to leave the cable company for 24/7 live TV streaming, too. We get this question all the time, and we've examined ditching the monthly bill in favor of watching programs online occasionally in the past, and we've also looked at ways to get your TV fix with apps like Boxee and Hulu, plus there are cool set-top devices like Roku and TiVo, but this is a good opportunity to get exhaustive. There are so many great options for catching a show here or there, but can you rely on them to replicate the cable TV experience? Well, yes and no.


If you're going to unplug from the cable company, prepare to exercise some patience when it comes to watching your favorite shows as soon as they air—it can take anywhere from a day to a week for them to appear online. Also, be ready to do some digging around to find who's streaming special events, sports, and other programming outside of the drama/sitcom variety. Let's take a look at ways to find certain types of programming without relying on your cable company.

Watch TV Online

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You can watch most of your favorite network shows by simply streaming them directly from the networks' web sites. They're often available a few hours after they air, and regularly have additional goodies like behind-the-scenes footage or teasers for upcoming episodes. In addition to official network sites, more and more useful tools are popping up every day to help you get your TV fix online.


If you're nuts for Psych, The Daily Show, or other cable TV shows, Hulu's got you covered. Some programs take a week to turn up on the web site, though, so you'll have to exercise some patience and avoid spoilers for a few days. On the other hand, Hulu has a bunch of nice features that let you organize, queue, and search shows. There's a desktop app that works with standard Apple or Windows Media Center Remotes. If you're sporting Windows 7 on your computer, don't forget to check out the Hulu Integration app for Windows Media Center.


Watch Movies Online



Watch Sports Online


Watching professional sports without cable is a tougher nut to crack and, depending on the event, you may have no choice but to head to your local sports bar. Even with cable, however, there's no guarantee you'll be able to access your favorite team's game. Fortunately, professional sports associations are getting in on the online action and streaming some or all of their televised games via paid subscriber network.


Yes, subscriptions that let you watch professional sports still cost you some coin, but a one-time fee of $50 - $150 per season to catch your favorite games is better than paying $50 or more a month all year for cable. Of course, some events, like the Olympics, will have several viewing options to choose from.


Set-Top Boxes and Gadgets


Set-top devices like Roku and TiVo let you stream movies and some television shows directly from Netflix, Blockbuster, and similar subscription services. They're great options for scratching that movie itch, and perfect for times when you feel like browsing viewing options until something strikes your fancy.


The Antenna Option

Finally, though you probably already know this, you can watch your home teams, local news, and, yes, even LOST without cable. In fact, these are the easiest types of shows to get because they're free and just require a TV antenna to capture. If you have an HD-ready TV, you can even pick up high-def channels. Not sure what kind of antenna gives you the most bang for your geographical buck? AntennaWeb will help you figure out which antenna works best for your house based on where you live, and even tell you which way to point it. But you're here to watch TV online, so let's get to it.


So, Coax, here's a few ways to get you started on the road to cable-free living. We'd love to hear more ideas from readers who've axed their cable, and we'll update this post as tips roll in.


Love,

Lifehacker