Update on my Home Toolset FWIW

One of the things I try to remember to do is to update my list of what I'm doing and what works (and doesn't) so that perhaps I can see where I could tweak, and perhaps you can get some ideas.

As some of you might remember, I "cut the cables" back in 2009. Here is what gets me and the family through the week these days:

• TrendNet TEW-671 br wireless dual channel (2.4 and 5 GhZ) router (about to be upgraded to a Linksys E4200 - more about that when I get it later this week)
• Two WDTV HD Live boxes connected to their respective LCD TVs via HDMI
• One year subscriptions to MegaUpload and Fileserve (about $120 total a year)
• MagicJack with one year subscription (About $16 a year)
• One ASUS CG desktop hooked up to the TV in our bedroom via HDMI
• One Cradlepoint PHS-300 portable router
• One iSound Portable Power 16000 battery
• LG Optimus V (rooted and running IHO port of Gingerbread) with a $25/month Virgin Mobile prepaid account
• CLEAR WiMax account ($55/month for one home line and the portable USB account)

Some of you may recall I tried using the Cradlepoint and the iSound to provide my Cell Service for a couple months. It worked OK, but there were portability issues - mainly due to the USB modem from Clear being able to fall off too easily. I also bought, but have hardly used a Digital Converter box and an RCA internal digital antenna. But these days I rarely watch Live TV, and even then can usually stream from a site as easily as turn to a channel. I also had my PS3 setup on a TV, but once I sold that TV I decided I didn't need to replace it.

One thing I am considering for later this year is to try that Cell Phone replacement again once my 2 year contract with Clear is up in December. I am thinking of going with an AT&T or TimeWarner Internet only service for home (about $30/month), and then buying a Verizon 4G LTE device with their $50/month prepaid LTE service (5 Gigs). That would get my monthly fee to about where I am now, but with better coverage since I can get Verizon in a lot of places that VM/Sprint don't reach. That would likely give me more responsive service at home since the Clear service throttles and most wired offerings don't (at least at the limits I'm likely to hit).

Feel free to let me know what you are using these days as well :-)