So, we're considering dropping DishNetwork and just purchasing TV shows on a per-show basis in the future. We already have two Apple TVs and have been quite happy with them (even if they have some annoyances and still feel like "toy" products from Apple's perspective).

Basically, at this point I feel like we can download or buy and rip all the TV shows we watch for cheaper than we are paying monthly for our DVR + satellite, and then we'll own them permanently. There may be better deals out there than what we are paying for satellite (I think $75 a month), and I realize there are probably cheaper options if I hook a computer up to our TV, but the convenience of the Apple TV added to the fact my wife gets a LOT of reply value out of the stuff we own (I've lost count of the number of times she's re-watched Buffy, Angel, Charmed, Firefly, SatC, and Friends) makes this option pretty compelling. I'm not a big fan of re-watching TV shows/movies, but she is, and she watches a lot due to her back disability and having to be down a lot.

I really do think in the end this would be cheaper. We'll probably drop $100-$150 in the fall to buy some season passes, but other than that I think our monthly costs will be much lower (I expect to get a lot of mileage out of all the DVDs we already own, thanks to my wife's viewing habits).

Anyway, has anyone else considered doing something similar yet? This feels a lot like the time when I got and empeg and boxed up my CDs (I'm now boxing up DVDs as we rip them), but the empeg was a lot better product than the Apple TV. Also, have I sold my soul to satan (er, Steve Jobbs), but owning multiple Apple TVs?