Cable went up. Again.
Cable co raised the rates again. We have the tv/phone/internet package for $150/mo including taxes. Since it's not going to get cheaper, we are looking for good ways to cut the cord. 1. We ...
Forum Discussion
There are a lot of factors that play into your specific area, and what is available.
We cut back to just internet. Actually, Comcast had a bundle deal for really basic TV and Internet that was cheaper than just internet. So dropped the bill from $180 to $54. Got a Tivo "OTA" (over the air) for recording shows off the antenna, which is better HD than what Comcast provided at a premium. Costs $14 per mo. for the "TV Guide" service from them (needed to be able to set up future recordings). We get ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, CW, free via antenna. Had Amazon Prime already. Added Netflix ($8 per month). Tivo allows connecting to both Amazon and Netflix, so you don't need a Roku, or other additional box.
Between the two, you can find almost any cable show. May cost from $25-35 additional to get the whole current season of a show. Many older shows, and the shows they themselves create, are free. Lots of older movies for free, but new releases are charged for.
So, over time, we've cut the bill from $180 to about $90 per month.
Phone was never part of the above, but for a really basic AT&T landline here, it's $14 per month. No long distance, but we have cell phones for that.
Tivo is a bit flakey (especially over home wifi), but for a "plug and play" alternative, it is the easiest. There are cheaper ways to go about recording shows, but they all involve some level of hands on techie work to get them up and running.
The only downside might be sports - we don't watch, but that is the big hook that cable companies still have to keep people subscribing.
Just heard that Comcast, and therefore probably other Internet providers, are exploring how to get us to pay based on the amount of Internet used (like cell phones). Looks like they are trying to figure out how to make us pay lots more for TV, even if we did "cut the cord".
We cut back to just internet. Actually, Comcast had a bundle deal for really basic TV and Internet that was cheaper than just internet. So dropped the bill from $180 to $54. Got a Tivo "OTA" (over the air) for recording shows off the antenna, which is better HD than what Comcast provided at a premium. Costs $14 per mo. for the "TV Guide" service from them (needed to be able to set up future recordings). We get ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, CW, free via antenna. Had Amazon Prime already. Added Netflix ($8 per month). Tivo allows connecting to both Amazon and Netflix, so you don't need a Roku, or other additional box.
Between the two, you can find almost any cable show. May cost from $25-35 additional to get the whole current season of a show. Many older shows, and the shows they themselves create, are free. Lots of older movies for free, but new releases are charged for.
So, over time, we've cut the bill from $180 to about $90 per month.
Phone was never part of the above, but for a really basic AT&T landline here, it's $14 per month. No long distance, but we have cell phones for that.
Tivo is a bit flakey (especially over home wifi), but for a "plug and play" alternative, it is the easiest. There are cheaper ways to go about recording shows, but they all involve some level of hands on techie work to get them up and running.
The only downside might be sports - we don't watch, but that is the big hook that cable companies still have to keep people subscribing.
Just heard that Comcast, and therefore probably other Internet providers, are exploring how to get us to pay based on the amount of Internet used (like cell phones). Looks like they are trying to figure out how to make us pay lots more for TV, even if we did "cut the cord".
