I have always loved traveling…be it to an exotic, foreign location or my aunt’s house in Virginia or to wherever the road ends for soul-searching. Borrowing words from Bill King, ‘Journey is more important than the destination,’ and that is because we experience so much in between. The solitude, the companionship, the wait, the thoughts, the chilling to get there, the longing to stay put – everything adds to our personality much more than we can ever imagine.
While traveling is so much fun and a step towards self-discovery, it is also true that sometimes we like being connected to our roots. Take it from the pros, it is most times. There comes a point while traveling when all you want to do is check up on your hometown. It is essentially true for people who go out for a longer period of time. In such times, accessing your cable TV can be a blessing.
In this article, we will be discussing simple yet useful ways to watch cable TV while traveling.
Your Cable Provider’s Streaming Platform
Most cable providers have started offering a streaming platform that permits users to stream local programming on their PCs and mobile phones from anywhere.
Many cable companies utilize a streaming platform, TV Everywhere, that incorporates a significant number of famous cable networks. It is rather common for this service to be included in a cable bundle. Giant cable companies offer a streaming platform of their own to the customers, on top of the TV Everywhere service. For instance, Grande offers free Grande2Go application to its customers enabling them to enjoy Grande television channels on the go.
Such added services are turning into a significant feather in the cap of cable providers. Select cable providers do not even charge for this benefitting service.
Invest in a Streaming Stick
In the event that you do not have a cable membership and instead use a streaming platform with Amazon Fire or Roku, you can use it while traveling too. The Amazon Fire Stick and Roku Stick are two of the best streaming devices as traveling buddies. They are small in design and can fit inside your bag. One of the best features is that you would not lose your preferences after unplugging it from your TV.
Most hotels provide an HDMI port with televisions, which is essential for both sticks to work. However, if your hotel offers a steady Wi-Fi connection, you will be fine and watch television like it is your home. Furthermore, another ease is that you can leave your remote control at home and utilize your tablet or smartphone for that matter.
PlayStation Vue
Another piece of equipment that can enable you to watch television while traveling is PlayStation Vue. It permits almost three streams simultaneously, although the restriction is that you need to be in the U.S. Out of the three streams, only one is allowed when using devices like Amazon Fire TV or Roku. This means that if someone is using the said device on your home TV, you would not be able to access the TV outside. Additionally, you should log in at home within the 30 days of subscription and once every 2 months from there on to hold access outside the home.
If accessible, you will be able to watch live local networks dependent on your present location. You can further access all the local broadcasts that you saved at home; however, you cannot record local channels when you are away.
If you have signed in from your home even once, you will be able to access local sports from anywhere in the states.
A Slingbox goes a long way
Slingbox is a helpful device to watch television programming when you are away from home. You can interface a Slingbox to your satellite or cable DVR, connect to the Wi-Fi network, and as soon as it is set up, you can control your Slingbox from anywhere with an internet connection.
One benefit of Slingbox is that you have full control of your DVR, so you can change settings, erase recordings, or even schedule them. You can likewise stream recorded and live TV to your PC, tablet, or mobile phones as long as your internet connection is strong on both ends.
While Slingbox has numerous benefits, it does come with one inconvenience. In the event that you choose to access live TV from outside your home, people in the home would need to watch the same thing. This might come as a bigger issue in families where one person is always on the go. To get around this issue, you might want to connect Slingbox to another TV box.
The best thing about this option is that you can enjoy TV from your home as well as when on the road. Your cable login data is compatible with streaming devices, for example, Roku.
Use Plex
If you are one of the few individuals who are unfamiliar with Plex, it is a cloud-based platform that permits you to access and stream your media content from any connected gadget. Plex is a famous choice among customers that like traveling a lot because it is quick and dependable.
You can make a basic account free of cost, and with time, if you feel like accessing premium benefits, you can go for the paid account. Plex is an amazing service that allows you to deal with your complete media collection from anywhere.
Use Windows Media Player
In the event that you are a member of Windows Media Center, you can utilize the streaming choices incorporated into Windows Media Player or WMP.
To start with, you will need to ensure that you have the most recent version of Windows Media Player installed on your computer. From that point, it is just about as basic as setting up streaming platforms and you will be all set. Windows Media Player utilizes similar collection archives as Media Center, therefore, if you have set up your Recorded TV library appropriately, you should be good to go.
Streaming from WMP is not anywhere close to utilizing a gadget like Slingbox. While Slingbox gives you control of your DVR distantly, WMP just awards you access to the records in your library.
This choice gives you admittance to media files like music, pictures, videos, etc., including recorded TV hours. Yet, it does not permit you to access live TV.
