Comca-t is a real hungry service that eats your money away. How can I get away from them?

[bassmaster547]

I have had Comc-st for a very long time and I reviewed my original (bill) to date and have come to the conclusion that they are a thief and a robber. They literally have rented a room in my house at my expense. I just want to watch tv so what do I do?

 

[Deuce65]

You know you don't have to watch TV right? The usual response to someone charging more than you wish to pay for a recreational product is to simply not purchase it.

 

[Wolfshadw]

Build a Home Theater PC with an ATSC TV Tuner card installed. What over-the-air broadcast channels you may or may not receive will depend on where you live and the distance from the broadcast towers of each local station. You can use a web site AntennaWeb.Org to find out what channels *should* be available to you.

Everything else you will need to find an alternative (free/online) source. Some cable channels will place their programming online shortly after it airs on regular cable. For others, you may need to look at pay services like HuluPlus, Amazon Instant Video, and Netflix. Whatever your end solution is, it's going to depend on what you're willing to give up and what you can't live without... programming-wise.

As far as the HTPC build, it shouldn't cost you much more than $500; less if you're willing to take on a Linux flavor like MythBuntu.

I would also note that for any online service, you're still likely to be stuck with Comcast.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD A4-6300 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-F2A75M-HD2 Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($47.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($82.53 @ Amazon)
Case: nMEDIAPC HTPC 1080P HTPC Case ($57.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($19.99 @ Micro Center)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSB0 DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Micro Center)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($84.98 @ OutletPC)
TV Tuner Card: Hauppauge WinTV-HVR-2250 w/Remote ($114.99)
Total: $534.43
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-03-15 00:43 EDT-0400)

-Wolf sends

 

[americanaudiophile]

Over the air TV is free. If your TV has an ATSC tuner in it you just need an antenna. If not then you will need a digital tuner box and antenna. Some of these boxes have DVRs built in.
If you want more channels you can add a Roku box to your TV and subscribe to Netflix, Amazon Video, Hulu+, and others. Roku allows you to access about 1200 channels free and pay. Check this site for reviews of the Roku.