Live Streaming for Computer VS having a TV?

[campnqueen]

Ok this is to all you nerds and techies out there.

We do not have a TV in our camper and dont know that we really want one. The last one we had we only watched a few times and it went down the road with the old camper.

So when we ordered our camper, we didnt get a new tv. we do have TV cable hooks ups.. just no TV.We are trying to use anything and everything we put in our camper for duel duty.

So my questions is: How can we Live Stream TV shows i.e mostly local news/weather on our computers?

We figured we can watch movies like Netflix on our computers using streaming or the old fashioned DVD... but what about the other? I know some of the bigger networks do have streaming for computers ...like FOX News Channel.

How can we do this while on the road? Suggestions? Comments?
Your expertise is greatly appreciated.

[meck51]

You could try a device such a Apple TV, Kindle and Amazon also have sticks that can plug into an hdmi connection that I believe both are cheaper than the apple.
Basic idea is that the stick (I include Apple TV into stick for brevity) gets plugged into your TV, you use a remote to control the function. The stick acts like a web browser and each app on the stick acts as a saved favorite destination. In order to view channels you open the respective app, you must log on using your home cable/dish provider info. Some apps are live (such as news/sports) some are video on demand, each channel will have their own features.
With these sticks you can also use movie apps such as Vudu, Netflix or Hulu which allow you to rent or own movies or tv shows. Netflix is great for older movies, Vudu is better for new releases.
Your limiting problem will be Internet signal strength.
One other way to go, not streaming. Get a large hard drive and store your DVD's into it, travel with a ton of movies on the hard drive and your set. I have not tried this yet but many others on here have.


Sent from my iPhone using Forest River Forums

[wmtire]

Just a FYI, some parks (like the state parks here in Louisiana) won't allow streaming thru their wi-fi, as it bogs it down. If you try to go to websites like youtube, hulu, netflix, etc......the filters won't allow it.

[Paradise115]

We use verizon mifi for our internet signal. Once that is on we can stream thru kindle, Roku, internet, etc.

[ependydad]

Like mentioned above, we use a Roku device for this purpose. BUT- the campground wifi is usually not great for streaming (lots of "please wait, loading...") and it can get expensive quick to have a cell phone plan that lets you stream these things (video streaming uses a lot of data).

Your best bet is likely just an antennae and picking up over-the-air free channels.

[donniedu]

Live streaming can suck up tremendous amounts of band width. Trying to do it without a wired internet will cost you a lot of money. Besides even the fast Verizon 4G network is probably too slow to stream without at least some flicker and stops. Get a small TV and use your roof antenna for local programming

[Witch Doctor]

Join Amazon Prime, streaming is included to watch on your computer screen, lots of free programs. I now use Roku through my jetpack by Verizon, no problem yet.

[ependydad]

Originally Posted by donniedu

Live streaming can suck up tremendous amounts of band width. Trying to do it without a wired internet will cost you a lot of money. Besides even the fast Verizon 4G network is probably too slow to stream without at least some flicker and stops. Get a small TV and use your roof antenna for local programming

I will say, having actually streamed using my cellular Internet- it's remarkably better than you'd ever guess! I just don't do it often due to the amount of data used.

[Witch Doctor]

Originally Posted by donniedu

Live streaming can suck up tremendous amounts of band width. Trying to do it without a wired internet will cost you a lot of money. Besides even the fast Verizon 4G network is probably too slow to stream without at least some flicker and stops. Get a small TV and use your roof antenna for local programming

I don't have any problem with the Verizon 4G jetpack at all, in fact it's faster then my wire Verizon at home through my Phone line. I can say that being where we live we do not even get 4g by hard wire. Everyone is talking about how many GB's it will eat up, but I have not seen any figures on that GB's amount. I can get 4g at home using my jet pack, I guess I will watch a move through it and see what the device tells me, then I will know. I pay for 5gb's a month if I use it or not. Verizon refuses to upgrade here. I can see there point, it would cost them a big dime to do. We have never used my whole allotment yet in a month. But do not watch movies every night either. The longest travel time gone (on the road) has been 2.5 months.

[donanddona]

Yes you can do all this stuff going down the road with your computer or I-pad. you may need a converter for the laptop (batteries don't last streaming), but if all you want is to video stream then I would use the I-pad because its lighter to hold. There are cases for proping it up also.

[Witch Doctor]

Found out to stream in standard dif, not in HD. You would use about 300mg per hour, there is 1024 mg in 1 gb. So if you have a use of 5gb's. I would be able to stream about 17 hrs, before I ran over my allotment, of 5gb's per month. That's really quite a lot of TV time streaming. If I was going to stream that much I guess I would stay home. I guess a person could then use the CG WIFI for anything else. I can see why they tell you no streaming allowed. I can imagine 50 sites trying to do it at the same time. Your internet would crawl, and everyone wants speed.

[meck51]

The gb usage is the reason my poor wife never upgrades her phone. Her phone is grandfathered in with unlimited data, we can use it for streaming if desired but mostly use it for pandora or xm radio linked by Bluetooth to the trailer.


Sent from my iPhone using Forest River Forums

[Tiggerdad]

gljurczyk-You can put that Jet Pack on stand by when not using it and you have the choice of continuing to pay to satisfy your contract or extend the contract. I have heard different people say you can only do it twice a year but I have done it more times than that but the maximum amount of "vacation: for the Jet Pack is 6 months in one year.. In am off contract and just cancelled my Jet Pack. They said I can reactivate at no charge and chose a different data package. I only use it when traveling and when in parks with bad Wi-Fi. Thinking about looking at the Jet Pack offered by Wal-Mart. Pay as you go with no contract.

[speckeld]

Verizon jet pack, this will let you do anything you want computer wise.
If you use a sling box at home this allows you to have the complete viewing as if you were home, all channels including your local news stations to keep grounded while gone.
You can access sling box on your computer from any place in the world with a wifi connection.

[speckeld]

and this is 1080p hd

[rsdata]

So my questions is: How can we Live Stream TV shows i.e mostly local news/weather on our computers?

I am going to break this down and you will find that others have said as much:

1. WiFi signal in most campgrounds, is usually either not available or high enough quality to stream anything without lengthy delays ( load time almost equals watch time) during watching

2. If you do get good WiFi signal through your cellular hotspot or tethered cell phone, eventually you will hit your monthly data download limit and will pay more, something like $10/Gig for each gig over your plan limit...

3. Once you start streaming alot, your service provider will start to "throttle" (slow down your data stream) for the rest of the month EVEN if you have unlimited data ( they do this to be "FAIR" to their other data customers) This will happen when you start gobbling up chunks of downloading HI-bandwidth streaming movies off Netflix or Hulu TV show programming.

4. You wil generally not get any local programming, news, sports, weather... of course you can stream the national news weather and sports but not local.

To help myself to local TV programming while camping in FL this past winter, I have purchased a tripod, three 5' lengths of antenna mast, and an HD long range fringe antenna plus enough RG6 cable to string to a flat screen TV. All of this can be found reasonably priced at

www.mcmelectronics.com

I setup the tall antenna close to a tree and bungee cord the mast to the tree to keep the wind from blowing it down. Generally 15 feet of mast gets you over most obstacles, as "line of sight" (no trees or obstructions) works best, but you can always get another length to go higher.

I purchased a flat screen TV (a TV not just a monitor) with a bulit-in DVD player @21 inches. It has one HDMI input where I insert an HDMI cable from my laptop's HDMI output to the screen if I can get good WiFi streaming at a location, and send the laptop picture to the larger TV screen. I watched last year 2 NFL playoff games that way, but wound up paying $30 extra that month with my limited 4 GIG data plan when I exceeded that number.

With this antenna setup I have often picked up 50 or more HD TV channels if you are within 50-60 miles of a metro area. Even way out, I am usually able to pickup 3 to 6 local stations as far as 110 miles away. Often PBS will be the channel that you pick up the best. The "Deep Fringe HD-TV" antenna is directional, so it will have to be pointed toward a signal using a compass and Google maps for guidence.

You can google search for web sites that show you the exact locations of broadcasting antennas all over the nation.

Mounting the TV to a wall using a standard hardware mount, ( you may already have a wall mount in your camper or even on the outside of the trailer; I do) will allow you to take up virtually no space inside your camper for a flat screen TV that may give you DVD movie input, computer streaming input and off-the-air antenna local channels with the proper antenna setup.

You can call the 800# at MCM Electronics and they can guide you to the proper antenna system to do what you want.

Hope this helps...

[GreenImp]

Originally Posted by campnqueen

So my questions is: How can we Live Stream TV shows i.e mostly local news/weather on our computers?

We figured we can watch movies like Netflix on our computers using streaming or the old fashioned DVD... but what about the other? I know some of the bigger networks do have streaming for computers ...like FOX News Channel.

How can we do this while on the road? Suggestions? Comments?
Your expertise is greatly appreciated.

If you are referring to local news/weather as in local to wherever you may be while on the road, you will find it next to impossible to stream live over the internet. If you are referring to streaming your hometowns news/weather, there is a device called Slingbox that will allow you to remotely view and control your home TV source/s (Cable TV, Dish Network, Blu-Ray Player, etc.) via an internet connection.

Slingbox.com

Personally, I couldn't care less about "TV". I added a WDTV Media Player (similar to Roku/AppleTV etc.) and have all of our movies stored on a HDD. This is the only thing we watch in our trailer. We do a lot of "off season" camping (LOVE those empty campgrounds!), and there is something awfully cozy about a movie night while camping in the rain.

[Witch Doctor]

Originally Posted by Tiggerdad

gljurczyk-You can put that Jet Pack on stand by when not using it and you have the choice of continuing to pay to satisfy your contract or extend the contract. I have heard different people say you can only do it twice a year but I have done it more times than that but the maximum amount of "vacation: for the Jet Pack is 6 months in one year.. In am off contract and just cancelled my Jet Pack. They said I can reactivate at no charge and chose a different data package. I only use it when traveling and when in parks with bad Wi-Fi. Thinking about looking at the Jet Pack offered by Wal-Mart. Pay as you go with no contract.

Thanks for this info, OF COURSE Verizon never said that. Verizon and I are going to have a little talk. I was out of contract once with a little plug in USB, we got a surface so I went to upgrade to the jetpack, and got caught again in a contract. I heard of the pay as you go,I will look into that.....Thanks

[campnqueen]

We reaaly dont care about TV much either... mostly news and weather. I knew I could count on y'all out there!! Thanks for all the awsome info. We do have a converter to charge the batteries. Have used our cell phones as hotspots for wifi and yes they do work well and reaaly do not use up that much date... for us. I will take more time to read through this thread and digest the info.
Keep it coming!!

[rockfarmer]

A couple of comments to add to the discussion:
1 - if you are going to stream, you must have either a good wi-fi or a good 4G signal. Otherwise, streaming will be very slow.
2 - there are smartphone apps to locate tv signals - both direction and strength. And other apps to determine local tv schedules.