News, info, and opinion by Mac users, for Mac users.

January 25, 2007

video

Downloadable TV becoming more cost effective

Posted Jan. 25, ’07, 9:31 AM PT by Dan Moren
Category | Video
ShowCost via iTunes
Battlestar Galactica$34.99
Heroes$42.99
How I Met Your MotherN/A
Lost$34.99
Psych$28.99
Scrubs$34.99
Studio 60$34.99
Veronica Mars$34.99
Total$246.93

While I’ve already explained that the Apple TV is perhaps not my cup of tea, I did appreciate ZDNet’s Alan Graham breaking down the cost of forsaking your cable subscription/TiVo in favor of watching your shows via iTunes and AppleTV, to the tune of saving over $600 over two years.

If it weren’t for Internet (and my roommates), I honestly wouldn’t even have cable. Most of the TV shows I watch are on broadcast networks, and you can still get a decent signal in the Metro Boston area. But just for argument’s sake, I went ahead and totaled up the shows that I watch.

Feeding my TV habit costs around $250 a year, though it’s worth noting that one of my shows isn’t even available on iTunes, so it’s not a completely feasible plan (a number of other shows I enjoy are also missing: Doctor Who and Life on Mars, for example). Of course, as I split the cable TV with two roommates, the cost is somewhat less, and we don’t even have a TiVo, so that throws the whole analysis out of whack too. And iTunes hasn’t yet started handling the streaming of live video, so watching the State of the Union, or live sports is also out of the question, though a lot of that is available over-the-air as well.

Final verdict for me is that the Apple TV still isn’t worth its cost to me, but someday it might be. The idea of TV on demand is a good one, though it does raise other issues: namely, where do I keep all of this video? Perhaps that’s a question best saved for another day.


6 Comments

GCarden said:

"...where do I keep all of this video?"

Answer: you don't.

I've finally realized that there's no point in keeping television shows downloaded from iTunes that you'll never watch again. Sure, keep an episode or two that you really like, but for the rest, either burn it onto discs or Shift-Apple-Delete.

January 25, 2007 10:46 AM
Dave said:

Dude, how did you know what I watch?! It's like you're hacking my TiVo :)

January 25, 2007 11:42 AM
Yan said:

Pretty interesting. I'm sure I would save a good chunk of money, though TV shows are not available through iTunes in Canada yet.

January 25, 2007 12:15 PM
md said:

not really a good alternative for HDTV owners, especially for those who like live events, like sports.

January 25, 2007 1:26 PM
Jack said:

Funny, my wife and I were going through this type of calculation last night.

January 25, 2007 3:55 PM
George said:

I looked at the article and find his conclusions questionable at best. I can't speak for the readers here, but the average American averages 3-5 TV shows a day, somewhere between 20-35 shows a week. Top that off with the loss of anything live (sports, local news, award shows, and even American Idol). Add on the loss of random access to stuff you don't want to watch the full season. Would people be willing to plunk down $35 to watch Deal or No Deal or Jeopardy or Oprah? Yes, all that is technically available over the air but good luck getting a worthwhile signal if you live anywhere outside a major city.

Add on the cost of getting AppleTV in an additional rooms at $300 a pop versus a $5 monthly digital receiver charge. And if you're not on digital cable, the cost is the price of a splitter and coaxial cable (maybe $30-50 depending on how much cable you need).

If you factor in all of these elements, AppleTV is not a cost effective solution for most consumers.

January 26, 2007 7:05 AM

Leave a comment

 



Visit other IDG sites: