Tonight's episode of the Big Bang Theory reminded me of a post I've been meaning to make for a few weeks.
Something is wrong with my computer. Lately I can't wake it up from sleep. I have to restart it. Someone told me it might be because of an update, and google research indicates it's something to do with my BIOS but I don't completely understand it. I'll try to fix it this weekend.
But back when I thought my computer was dying, I was debating giving up the desktop (Yes, I'm on a desktop), or maybe getting one and making it part of my home entertainment system. And then I started thinking about my home entertainment system. I think I'd like to enhance it a bit, though I'm not really sure what I need. To tell the truth, it may not need anything. My current stuff may be perfectly good. Heck, they may have abilities I'm not aware of.
So what do I have?
I have a 40" television, 1080p. It's not a SmartTV but it does have a USB Port. Not quite sure what I'd use that for unless I got Google Chromecast though.
If I got a new tv, and I don't know that I would, this one would replace the one in the other room, which is a 32" Cathode Ray Tube I bought back in 2003, on sale, out of the box. The color is a little off on this one. Everything is slightly redder than it needs to be, so I wouldn't feel bad upgrading it.
I bought a Blu-Ray player a few years ago when my DVD player decided it no longer would play DVDs. This player can allegedly connect to the internet but I need a USB Lan adapter.
I also have a Wii, that I sometimes play but is more often used as a Netflix player, and in the other room I have a Roku (First generation).
I've been thinking about a couple of things. One is "Cutting the Cord" and getting rid of cable. I would probably up the netflix subscription, and get Hulu+, but otherwise not much would change. Another potential idea is to get a PC as a storage device to hook up to the TV. I don't know if this is for me, but I know a few people doing it, and as more movies come with UltraViolet copies, I would like a place to store them. And at some point, I'd like to add a sound system.
All this requires more research on my end. And my first idea for research is some crowd sourcing! Any thoughts? Especially from folks that either know a lot about this stuff, or that have done it themselves. All advice is appreciated.
If you don't find yourself watching anything on cable that you can't get from Netflix and Hulu+, then I'd definitely cancel cable. If cable wasn't part of our rent, I don't think I'd have it anymore. As for media storage, if you want a new comp for yourself, I'd suggest concentrating on what you plan to use it for outside of storage - you can buy a cheap harddrive for storing movies these days, so you don't need to focus on that when buying a computer.
ReplyDeleteI like the idea of a new TV. I've been thinking about that too. We've had ours for a long time now, and getting a 50 inch or something would be cool, except our stand isn't rated for that much weight, so we'd have to get a new one of those too. Might put it on the 'if we ever move' list instead.
Also, you have Amazon Prime, no? They have an app now for the XBox that works just like the Netflix one. They probably have it for the Wii as well.