Television, drug of the nation

I've got a Smart TV already, would I get anything out of getting a Chromecast as well?

Did anyone else laugh at the end of the most recent game of thrones? Have they rinsed their CGI budget already?

I don't have a tv, smart or otherwise, but i sometimes use the chromecast at my parents house to watch things on their big telly from my laptop.
I'm sure there is a way of doing the same with a smart tv, but i'm very out of touch.

^^^from up there somewhere, Munch is even mentioned in an episode of Luther, as the US police liaison or something.

Watched the preview for Preacher yesterday. What a waste of a good comic book.

In other news- just started Fargo season 2 - so far, so good.

Watched some of Black Sails recently too... bit hammy occasionally and some seriously irritating characters, but strangely more-ish. Worth a watch.

I like black sails.

You would.

I had the exact same impression as Dan. The melodrama quickly killed the sweet pirate vibe.

Nah, Pirates and boobs and fighting and stuff, it's like GOT but wetter and cheaper.

it's filmed in cape town. i think i went to school with half the extras in it.

"Why, 'round the Cape, the rain beats down so hard it makes your head bleed!"

you went to school with soppy tits?

Despite the endless boobs and the really poorly written female characters (seriously, is it so hard to write dialog for women?) I still enjoyed it.

like GOT but wetter and cheaper.

Excellent summary

i AM soppy tits.

We don't have a freeview box or built in freeview... and we have 2 old but decent TVs so wouldn't buy a new one. So at the moment it's looking like:

chrome cast + freeview box
Vs
Humax

I just need to read up on the Humax to work out; 1) whether it does everything the Chrome Cast does, 2) decide if recording matters in an on-demand world, 3) price up the options.

I have a Humax hdr-fox t2 PVR and it's pretty good - the HD channels are superb quality on it

There's rarely anything worth recording (or watching) on freeview and all the decent stuff is either on demand or torrent it and stream, get a chromecast and don't bother with the STB for a month, then get one then if you feel you need it.

From the looks of it, not all the Humax have on demand functionality and / or may need an extra bit.

I don't know our TV specs, but I doubt it's HD which means having an HD freeview box/recorder might not be worth it anyway.

I think you're right. I'll get a chromecast and the cheapest freeview box I can find*. Then see how it goes.

Thanks for bearing with all the questions. I. Feel. So. Old.

Incidentally, if anyone has a working freeview box they don't want, let me know.

*my other half wants regular TV.

For the cost of the Chromecast, I'd say just get one anyway. I've got a Humax DTR-2000 but I use the CC for all streaming/web content. It's just so much easier and quicker.

Can get the Chromecast for £22.99 plus a crappy film and 2 month Now TV pass here http://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/chromecast-2-intern-hd-2-month-now-tv-entertainment-pass-22-99-wuaki-2456865

The Chromecast requires an HDMI input, so if your TV isn't HD you may struggle to connect it. Possibly you could run it through an adaptor to SCART or something but I don't know if that'd work/how easy it'd be. For the price you can pick a cheap HD flatscreen up for these days (with freeview tuner built in), I'd def consider that plus a CC.

I don't know our TV specs, but I doubt it's HD

Now is the time to type your TV model numbers into google and find out what you actually have.
It's not your age that causes your consternation. This market is an absolute minefield, with descriptions designed to confuse and obfuscate.

.

If you've got a Wii or 360 or PS3 hanging around anywhere, they do a pretty decent job of hosting all the catchup/streaming services.