One of the best ways to save money is to cut that cable. Cable TV is very expensive. They usually reel you in on a special for 29 dollars a month but 6 months later, its 89 dollars and before you know it it's 120 a month. Many if not all premium cable services are now available a-la-carte on streaming servers such as Roku and Apple TV. For a very small fee you can subscribe to HBO, or a sports network or movie channels. I only pay for internet and Amazon Prime which I get for 1/2 price with a student email account. I have subscribed to Netflix or Hulu at times but I find most things I want to watch are available through Amazon Prime, YouTube or free channels on my Roku. I also have an antenna which brings in 30+ channels of live TV. I have had to adjust my viewing a bit. I just don't watch as much TV. But all things considered, I was paying 120.00 per month for cable, and I won't ever go back to that!
I would like to agree with you since with the Internet and paid streaming sites like Netflix, Iflix and the like, cable has become redundant. One of the reasons why my family still pays for satellite cable subscription is that my dad isn't a tech-oriented person and he prefers television over the Internet. For my college years and a few years after I first joined the workforce, we didn't have cable. We saved a lot of money from that move but only because back then the whole family had unpaid debts and couldn't afford to pay for the subscription. Cable subscription is a luxury these days.
I wish we had an antenna! Our cable company went digital and forced us to get a converter. I wish my family would go cable free. I am cable free, but my boyfriend can't stop those sports channels and he says it is too hard to find live sports online. We have tried to watch and I must admit that you can't get games online. It's frustrating!
My cable provider used to operate in that kind of manner where after a while the rates would gradually creep upwards. However, another cable provider has entered the field and is providing stiff competition for the original cable company, therefore, the crawling peg type of increased has now ceased. I am still wary that my provider may try to get back to the old ways of creeping increases but if this happens I will have to end my association with them and seek more favourable options.
I can't get unlimited internet here so that is the only reason I am still using a satellite TV service. I am not happy with Dish anymore because they have not reached an agreement with our local CBS Affiliate and I have been stuck without CBS for going on 3 weeks now. I am going to switch providers shortly.
Yeah. Since streaming services took over the business, most T.V cable broadcast services are getting obsolete or moving to streaming. Still, direct cable T.V is hardly replaceable since it delivers a light speed signal, is better than satellite TV service at least.
Heck yes friend! At this point, when cable TV has gone downhill in such a big way, there is no reason not to just get your news from the internet and use streaming services for your entertaiment. It is a sad thing that TV had to go, but I guess it's just the way of progress, if they don't evolve then other services which provide better quality and less ads will take over, that's just the natural way of things. There is still time for TV to make a radical change but sadly the chances of that ever happening are lower by the minute. Would love to hear an update from you in a month, cutting the cable is kind of a big deal. Hope it works out for you as well as it did for me!
I have been a cord cutter for over a year and love it. We invested in a couple Roku's and have not looked back. Well we did actually get the basic package, so that we can watch live sports, but other than that, it has been Roku all the way. I think the cable companies are going to start struggling in the next 5 years or so as more and more people leave their cable subscriptions in the dust every year.
Well congrats, and it certainly a nice feeling. Whenever I think about the sixty or so dollars that I would be shipping out a month for the little benefit that I receive, I get a good feeling knowing that it stays with me. I have just found alternatives and get what I need, somehow, and still save the money. I have heard of some new things coming out for TV though, so I am going to stay tuned (no pun intended).
I live alone so it's easy to for me to do without many things. I hardly ever watch TV so I don't spend money on Cable TV. If I want some entertainment then I'm sure I'll find something interesting to watch on Youtube. And there also some old TV shows posted on youtube. There are some which good, others not so good but thing if it's free entertainment you seek, it's not all that bad.
Cutting the cable is still on my agenda. I only have the one Roku right now, and can also stream somewhat on my blu-ray player, but I'd like to get at least one more Roku before I cut the cord entirely. I recently purchased a converter cable that should enable me to stream from my cell phone (I won one recently, yay me. Even though I only use it via wifi, it's handy to have,and lets me use apps again) to my television via Google Play, and I'm working to get started building up credits there via surveys. I haven't had the time to try out the connection yet, but hopefully it will give me additional options, even without a second Roku.
We keep stoping and starting our cable because of the extortionate fees. My husband loves football and we subscribe mainly during football season. It's frustrating that we only have one provider who really does take the Michael. I mean, one of the reasons we initially decided to stop paying for it is because they charge for pausing, rewinding, fast forwarding and recording. The have a special fee for that, and I think it's just ridiculous! I mean, who does that?!? Anyway, because they're the only ones, we keep going back to them. I've considered Apple TV and Amazon Prime before, but I'm not sure if either would work given where we are
I stopped paying for cable service about four years ago and for awhile I didn't have any TV service at all. For the past couple of years I've had an antenna and on a good day we can get about 14 channels. We don't watch a lot of TV, but there are some shows that I don't like to miss either. I've been thinking about the streaming option, but I don't know a whole lot about it. I see that a coupe of the posters here have mentioned Roku. I'll have to check this out.
@Lushlala Even here in the United States, if you're into sports, it's usually necessary to have cable or at least satellite television to get your preferred programming. I'm not a sports fan, so you'd think I'd be able to get away with a really low cost plan, but the providers know exactly which channels are the most popular, and tie those into the less popular ones, so despite having a huge amount of channels, there's often not much to watch unless you pay a lot of money. I hope y'all find something that works for you and are able to cut the cable.
@ Diane Lane....oh ok! That's a revelation! I would've thought it'd be a lot better over there. I know they do that even in the UK. What I really hate is that they'll also chuck in a lot of kiddie channels that I have absolutely no need for, and I just think WHY?! I don't even care for the movie channels that much. I'm more about the news, sport, documentaries and entertainment. Would it really kill them to let us cherry pick and pay a bit less?! Oh yea, they're way too busy thinking of the bottomline, the greedy so and so's LOL
I haven't been able to officially cut the cord yet. I've switched companies and even changed my packages and that has been a tremendous help over the years. I'm still looking at all of my options and it is so confusing at times. Glad to know that you were able to find something that works for you, maybe one day I'll find that fit for me, too.
I agree with you. Cable TV is very expensive. Especially in Greece it is quite overpriced if you go for the best provider (OTE) since you have to pay around $60 for the whole package. I would rather pay for a faster Internet Connection and an additional $9.99 per month for Netflix rather than pay for Cable TV since I have no control over what content I want to watch and at which times I want to watch. Overall, cable TV may have lots of good movies and shows but it doesn't offer you control and you still pay a high price while Netflix a wide range of content but some of your favourite shows may not be available and you pay a tiny price. If I had to choose, which I had, I would go for the latter option.
Several family members of mine had to cut cable internet when the local cable company suddenly instituted strict caps and limits on data usage. DSL is a little slower in speed but they seem competitively priced, where the cable company owns a monopoly on the cable market. The DSL seems to keep us in constant internet without capping us after a week of use. They used to offer really awesome bundles with television, phone and television in the whole package. Once they roped people in they changed their terms and conditions and offered less and less. Worse the "special price" they sign you up with suddenly skyrockets through the roof after the special time period is up, and you are left with some sticker shock. I like the higher internet speeds of cable but cannot deal with their business practices. I do not watch television. I find it depressing. I need the internet for my work though and consider it as much a necessity as a phone.
Agreed! Cable is expensive and archaic. Once I called charter to set up Internet and the harrassed me about getting cable. But yeah, they'd just give me a special discount and then up the price after six months. Honestly, I'm happy with Netflix. Not to mention cheaper maybe even freeer ways. Say no to cable!!
Cable here is a monopoly. There's only one provider it just depends on what area you're in. My dad and I share a duplex. He has cable, I do not. We honestly watch about the same things on TV and about the same amount of TV. I just stream mine via the internet or find shows available for download. I have a friend who also lets me use their Netflix password/account. I am not into paying for anything I don't have to! If I had cable, I probably would only have a few limited channels. Even then, I would still pay at least $50 a month for the service. That means, bare minimum, not having cable saves me over $600 a year. That's a ton of money! People need to wake up and stop letting companies steal their hard-earned money.
