# So, school me on video streaming



## jaymz (Feb 8, 2011)

I am a complete novice when it comes to getting video content for my home theater. I have an LG "Smart TV" and a Panasonic BDP 210 3D "Smart" DVD player, but most (all) that I watch is from Dish Network and DVD movies. I realize there is much more available online from Boxee Box or Apple TV devices. I have a DSL wireless network.

So where do I go to get info on this subject? Is my DSL network sufficient to do video streaming? What does the content cost? Is it free or ? So many questions! I have a USB hard drive; what happens if I plug it into my TV or Blu-Ray player?

Thanks,

Jim


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## vann_d (Apr 7, 2009)

A roku player or apple TV are cheap, offer a lot of streaming options with good quality. Most of the good content means a subscription service like Netfilx, Amazon Prime, Hulu Plus. Hulu is worthless for you unless you want to get rid of Dish. Your DSL is fine. Apple TV lets you stream from content on your home computer iTunes. Unfortunately, you USB hard drive will likely not do much for you hooked directly to the TV or Blu-ray.


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## jerryrigg (May 1, 2012)

if you have a game console i wouldn't rule out it's use. if you have an older computer that's not in service or plan on upgrading soon, you can put an older tower to use for that. i wouldn't go back any further than a h/t p4 though. aside from that, the roku and appletv are good options. it really depends one what you are looking to do. i can't vouch for either device but i know you can get hulu plus and netflix on a wii and if you tend to d/l digital media, you can softmod one to play from a usb hard drive or s/d card. i'm sure the ps3 and 360 can stream from those sites to. if you have any of those, you might be in luck.. a spare pc would likely be better than those options if available. i use one of those from time to time and love it. i hit the free sites though like hulu, crackle, and xfinity, and a few of the station websites like history and my lifetime (my wife and her america's most wanted lol) i would suggest a pc (if you had one to dedicate) above anything else.


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