Ive been researching what it would take to add satellite TV to my boat. I have a Voice and Internet connection through a Fleet 33, but a barely capable 17 Phillips HDTV and DVD player. Its tolerable, but far from enjoyable. There is a nook on the port side of the saloon where I could tuck a 26 or 32 LCD TV. Add a lift and a KVH satellite dish and Im off and going, but about $7,000 lighter in the wallet. My question is this, how much time do you find yourselves watching TV? The whole reason to go cruising is to enjoy the places, people and experiences of the world, so it seems like putting this much into a TV is excessive. On the other hand there are some real benefits, access to The Weather Channel, Local News (assuming I can adjust for locality), National and World news (ugg, do I really want that?) and so forth. I assume I can recover some of this investment when the boat is sold, but thats just rationalization on my part. Nope, the question really comes down to will we use it and is it worth the cost. So, for those of you that are out there doing it, how much do you watch TV? Thanks! Scott Bulger, N40II, Alanui, Seattle WA

IMHO, a clear picture is worth a lot, whatever the size of the TV. We don't watch too much while out cruising. Maybe an hour or two after anchoring or tying up for the night. If we're stationary, we don't watch any unless it's just raining outside and we can't go anywhere. A small TV with a good picture beats the heck out of a large one with a poor picture. The satellite TV would probably be a good investment, but I don't see the advantage in a huge TV screen. I have a little flat screen Sharp that works great. Also, you'll never get your $$ back on much of any equipment investment on a boat. Buyers only look at the prices for the same size/model boat and price based on the cheapest, no matter how they are equipped. I guess I should say that I have the Follow-Me TV unit, and at about $800, it works very well, and sure leaves a lot more in the cruising kitty than the 3D tracking units like the KVH. Again, IMHO, if you want the huge high definition TV with earth moving surround sound and hundreds of channels, set up a home theater at your house. The whole reason we're out boating is to mostly get away from that stuff. For weather, news, etc... stick with a mobile high speed internet connection like Sprint or Verizon broadband. Easier to get and better information than you'll get with the TV. Keith _____ "Relationships are hard. It's like a full time job, and we should treat it like one If your boyfriend or girlfriend wants to leave you,they should give you two weeks' notice. There should be severance pay, the day before they leave you, they should have to find you a temp." -Bob Ettinger ----- Original Message ----- From: "Scott E. Bulger" <scottebulger@comcast.net> > > My question is this, how much time do you find yourselves watching TV? > The > whole reason to go cruising is to enjoy the places, people and experiences > of the world, so it seems like putting this much into a TV is excessive. > On > the other hand there are some real benefits, access to The Weather > Channel, > Local News (assuming I can adjust for locality), National and World news > (ugg, do I really want that?) and so forth. I assume I can recover some > of > this investment when the boat is sold, but thats just rationalization on > my > part. Nope, the question really comes down to will we use it and is it > worth the cost. So, for those of you that are out there doing it, how > much do you watch TV?