My guess is that in five years most folks will still be using TVs that require standard RG cable connections, but you never know. When I lived in Texas I was able to buy AT&T uVerse, which could run over Cat5 or Cat6 instead of RG cable. However, in my current Virginia location we only have the option for Comcast over RG cable. I haven't even heard a rumour that this will change.

I would put in the minimum amount of RG cable and drops that is typical for your size house, and then add high quality network cable to wherever you want service. Wireless gets better all the time, but for high data rate applications its still better to use a fiber or copper hard-wired configuration.

Bruce

Appreciate the quick responses. Off to meet with the contractor now!

If this is a so-called granny flat or an intended rental property, it would have its own broadband connections (whether cable or whatever) and wouldn't be piggybacking off what the main structure has. Or would it?

You could put wiring in the wall leading to a suitable junction point on an outdoor wall but anything more than that might be a wasted effort.

We did nothing. I am watching my Samsung 4k TV streaming wireless.

Bruce - I have to laugh. I don't think most people use RG connections today let alone 5 years from now.

I cut the cord when we moved (8 months ago) and never look back. Just the hideous and power robbing cable boxes with their ridiculous remotes from 2000 were enough. But I save money too.

Cable (particularly Spectrum) is for people how are stuck in their ways or don't have time to research the better options.

So if you have to wire, do cat-6. But you better know exactly where the TVs are going. And - surprise - the Samsung Frame TV has its internet hookup and power in a different place than the TV. It then has a special cable from the control box (large - intended to be on the ground or hidden in a cabinet) to the TV. Good luck planning for that!

Multiple hdmi's and 1x RG6 to a cabinet on the side. Allows hookup Game console, blueray, or cable box. Rg6 as a backup just in case.

" Cable (particularly Spectrum) is for people how are stuck in their ways or don't have time to research the better options. "

My internet feed in two different towns is from cable companies (Spectrum in one place) using coax (RG6) cables. Both are at about 150 megs, much higher bandwidth than I need or use (but at a service and price tier I want) and both have been highly reliable.

What "better options" do you think I'm missing?

I meant cable TV (thread title was asking about TV). Cable internet is usually very good. Many urban/newer areas have fiber (which I went with) but I meant TV. I pay $40 for fiber and in my experience cable is never less than that.

But absolutely RG6 to your router area.

What I've done in my build is run 1.5" conduit with simple plastic J-box pretty much next to every outlet in the bedrooms/den/living rooms, down to the basement. The drywallers will cut out the openings, and I'll slap in blanking plates throughout. Also a run from where I'll have the "media gear" in the living room the wall over the fireplace for a wall-mount TV.

After we move in, and I decide where the various desks & other TVs will go, then I'll pop off the selected plates and pull precisely the wire I want.

For us this is simplified by the fact we're not finishing the basement (yet). If we were it'd take a lot more conduit to get to some central point.

Doing this will cost me about $700, but for us is better than running miles of CAT6 and Satellite TV RG6 lines to each wall of each room, or drill holes later. And if things like interior fiber becomes "a thing", I can pull that as required.

Yep, it's already getting to the case that a lot of the Sat and Cable TV are purely IP based. Many only use coax because that's the infrastructure in place in most homes (they're actually using MOCA or the like).

Fiber sort of came and went as a medium within the home wiring.

Does your new home have a basement? If so, it's relatively easy to run whatever wiring you need to a first floor location.

Low voltage runs are cheap. While everything (and growing) is wireless these days, which usually works just fine, hardwired is better and more reliable. I'm sure you can tell I'm a fan of doing the hard runs

If your wireless signal is weak, you really choke all of your connected components. If service blips, you have to wait for wireless router to reset. Everyone streams big on their phones these days and that really hogs the wireless network.

Cat6 runs can communicate anything - data, video, audio, HDMI, security cam feed, it's super versatile.

For a little but of $ you can cover the wall plates with caps or canvas art if you don't want them too

"If your wireless signal is weak, you really choke all of your connected components. If service blips, you have to wait for wireless router to reset. Everyone streams big on their phones these days and that really hogs the wireless network."

Very few households are going to max out on the capacity of a modern wifi system. There are several brands of so-called mesh network Wifi systems that, unlike the old repeater solution, actually speed up through-put rather than slow it down.

Aside from the specifics of the OP's situation, I think it can be hard to anticipate or guess future to/from requirements of wiring. Between the now available wide range coverage and performance of Wifi equipment and the ad hoc flexibility of ethernet over powerline equipment, I'm not sure that putting in network wiring is really necessary anymore.

And another vote for wireless. The Roku wireless modem is actually faster than the wired version. The wired version is actually more expensive also. Strange but true.

I have always been a fan of wired and Cat6 is indeed cheap. But I have a TV location that has a Cat5 and I stream everything wirelessly. I went Roku and saw that wireless worked better.

So wire it up - but you certainly might not use it. Our Samsung smart TV is also running wirelessly even though I have a Cat5 at that location - I just have been lazy to terminate the wire. It works fine so I haven't any need to....

Appreciate everyone's comments.

@mtvhike I don't have a basement (liquifaction area in an earthquake zone)

@David Cary thank you for clarifying - I am asking whether I should provide wiring for a possible future Cable TV configuration NOT internet. I have wired fiber and the house will be wired for it. I do not have or want a TV or any Cable TV package.

I am for sure going to hardwire to the desk are and to the 2nd floor bedroom at the far end of the house, figuring that if the wi-fi gets weak I can add a 2nd modem up there. These will be Cat5e and RG6. Still trying to make the final decision about running wiring over the other wall - big & blank. Might put in the wires with no plate/hole but note it on drawings for future owner to use if necc. *sigh* wish I could foretell the future!