Cutting the cord – if you have not stopped paying for cable or satellite TV, it’s time. Yes, you can do it and be happier than you are now with your current DVR (that you are probably paying a ridiculous monthly fee for). I am going to introduce you to Plex. Plex has saved us money for years and will basically record anything streaming on tv. We get our local channels for free using an antenna. They are much better than they were back in the day and even gather an HD signal. (you can grab an antenna from any local Wal-Mart). My dad is in a remote location with the biggest city being about 100 miles away and he uses this: Amplified HD TV Antenna.
What you will need first and foremost is a computer to run the back end called Plex so of course I am going to recommend a Mac, really any 2012 or newer Mac will work. You can run a Plex server on a Raspberry Pi but that does take a little extra skill to set up so I only recommend that if you are familiar with the Raspberry Pi. Really, you can run Plex on just about anything, in fact I have a hard drive that runs Plex and it is awesome to take with me when I am on the road. Check out WD 4TB My Passport Wireless Pro if you need Plex on the go.
Ok, so back to what you need for home, you need a server/ a computer something to run Plex. It most likely can be a computer you have already running in your house, Windows, Mac, Linux, it does not matter just go to www.plex.tv to get started. Now that you are running Plex get something to receive Plex, basically stream it to your TV. I recommend the Roku Premiere. Why? Well because I like it and it seems to work well and it is cheap. Last, to take your experience to the next level, you will need a way to capture the awesome HD Signal off an antenna. Yes, tv for free and straight out of the air, and make sure to put it on your network so Plex can see it, download it, organize it, take all the commercials out of it (I know NO commercials and free, does it get any better?). Next, it will be placed it on your hard drive so you can play it back whenever you want to. What you need is a SiliconDust HDHomeRun. That’s all you will need for now make sure this is all connected to your network and I guarantee you will be impressed.
