The era of using cable boxes is coming to an end. Many people want to reduce the number of appliances and devices around their TV. People nowadays mount the TVs on the walls and attach soundbars and then use Fire Sticks. This is less cumbersome and has a good aesthetic impact on interior design fanatics.
With the above brief description, it is evident that cable boxes do not fit in a smart home setting. The idea of eliminating a cable box has got many people switching to the latest smart TVs in the market so that their home is smart. This article will give you ways of connecting your TV to a cable without a cable box.
What Is A Cable Box?
A cable box is a device whose hardware resembles a DVD player. You can easily confuse it for a DVD player. It has several functions. The main function is transposing TV channels from cable television service to analog RF signal or in simple terms, achieves analog signals by converting from digital television.
Some of the recently built cable boxes can record TV shows. We are not going deep into the detail of how a cable box functions and the other functions that it performs since you want to know how you would connect your TV to a cable without the cable box.
Getting Cable TV Connection Without A Cable Box
Connecting TV to cable is not so easy unless you have a media streaming device or your TV is a smart TV. Media streaming is the most common device that will enable you to have a cable TV connection without a cable box. However, you can also connect to cable TV or an antenna using the following steps:
- Disconnect the TV from the power source. Make sure that there is no power connection with your TV.
- Use a coaxial cable to connect to your Antenna or Cable In jack on at the back of your TV. Achieving a perfect connection will require you to study your TV well, check where the ANT/CABLE IN jack is located and whether your coaxial cable is functioning well. The faulty coaxial cable will fail the whole process, you may make an effort of purchasing a brand new cable.
- Once you have established the coaxial cable connection, confirm whether you have plugged in the cables well. Connect the TV back to power (put the power adapter back to the power source).
- Thumb the Input button so that you can access the Input source list.
- Highlight TV using the volume up and down buttons and then thumb the ENTER button.
- Scan for channels. This is an important process that will expose you to various channels. Do not interrupt the scanning process so that many channels are scanned. Alternatively, if you don’t want to go through the scanning processes, you can directly look for the channels that you know are currently available and immediately tune in. Your TV might display ‘no signal’ on the screen when you are trying to tune in your channel, check the antenna or antenna cable. You can also switch off the TV and then switch it on again. You may also check your entire coaxial cable connection then try an automatic scan.
If you establish that the antenna is the problem, do not force installation by yourself, it is advisable to seek an antenna installation service provider so that your connection is done by specialized personnel.
If you want to use a media streaming device like Amazon Fire Stick then you can follow these simple steps:
- Connect your streaming device to WIFI. There are many streaming devices available in the market. However, Roku Streaming Device and Amazon Fire Stick are the best and most common you can use. We recommend the two if you are going to purchase them for the first time. You don’t want to purchase or use a streaming device whose setup procedure is complicated. If you are purchasing for the first time, you will need to create an account, amazon for Amazon Fire Stick, or Roku for the Roku streaming device.
If you have an existing account, then you just have to log in to your account/sign in. You cannot use the media streaming device without an account, although there are some shortcuts of how to use a streaming device without an account, it is advisable to establish an account to be on the safer side.
- Search for TV apps. There are so many TV apps available. Pick the app of your choice and then download it on your device. You can download as many as you can depending on your storage capacity. However, do not bombard so many as you can handle/manage.
- After downloading your preferred app, you will have to log in to the app. Initially, you will be prompted to put your username and password by the cable provider. If you are creating a new username and password, establish a simple password that you will not forget. Alternatively, you can use similar details like the ones you use on other devices like the media streaming device, you can only adjust slightly.
- Once you log in to the app, you can watch the programs that you have subscribed to and other videos from the internet if your WFI connection is strong enough. Some cable service providers (most manufacturers) have their TV apps. If you are fortunate to find such service providers then you have something slightly different from the cable box.
What Are The Alternatives Of Cable Box?
We have earlier looked at Antenna, this is one the most affordable options you can find. If you have a smart TV, then you will enjoy it the most. You just need to purchase an antenna and coaxial cable or antenna cable.
It has two major advantages, it is cheap to establish and install. Secondly, you can view many channels, you only need to conduct an automatic scan and all the channels are available.
One disadvantage is that you cannot view channels that are not local. You are limited to local channels however many they are. If you love international channels such as supersport, then this might not be the best option for you. It will only serve your basic needs. Sometimes antennas will fail you especially when there is bad weather in your location. You will constantly see ‘no signal’ displayed on your screen. When there is bad weather, you have no option other than to be patient until it gets back to normal. For this reason, you may consider this next option.
Use the TV apps. Many smart TVs have many installed TV apps. If in case you are using an antenna, then there is no signal due to bad weather, then you can use these apps. You can use the apps to stream your favorite channels via OTA. One thing that you must put in mind is that you need to have an active subscription using this method.
You can use streaming platforms to watch and stream your favorite shows and movies. The most common platforms include Hulu, Netflix, CBS, and HBO. Again here, you will need to have an account and an active subscription.
You can purchase a media streaming device like Amazon Fire Stick or Roku. Setting up and using these devices is described above. You will only need to ensure that your internet connection and strength are stable enough to allow live streaming.
In a nutshell, all the above alternatives will work best in place of the cable box. They have a major advantage of reducing the number of devices connected to your TV.
Can I Cable TV Connection To Another TV Without Cable Box?
Yes, this is very possible and simple. You might want to watch a TV in another room or the same large room but a different TV. You can establish another connection line and watch another TV. You don’t need so many accessories for this function. A coaxial cable splitter is the only requirement. Establish another connection to the additional TV connecting the cable splitter to the output of the first TV and the input of the second TV.
How Do I Mirror Cast on my Android TV?
Follow these steps to mirror cast on your android smart TV:
- Using your smartphone, locate the Google Home app and open it. If you don’t have the app, download it from the play store and install it and give it the necessary permissions from your phone.
- Open the menu (on the left of your screen).
- Click on the cast screen then choose your TV. You will find cast screen/audio or cast screen, click on either.
- Watch your shows.
