How to ditch cable TV?

[echo88 74]

Afghanistan doesn't have tv anyway - right...

 

Afghanistan was so 2012. ...

[Parseghians theorem 0]

still have to oay for internet.

any good suggestions for that?

 

comcast has an internet plus local channels with HBO for $40 a month

[davislove 0]

still have to oay for internet.

any good suggestions for that?

 

comcast has an internet plus local channels with HBO for $40 a month

 

Once you pay for the cable box, remote, and modem you're at least at fifty bucks. And that's not counting those taxes and fees.

 

You can get one of those 20 dollar internet systems. Most tv shows you could find online. Maybe someone can talk NBC and ND into some fee based streaming service.

[NDNorm 50]

Reviving an old one here to say that I am diving in to the world of streaming live TV. Co-worker of mine is huge into it and talked me in to trying it out...plus, looking at my $140/month Dish bill made me sick.

 

Signed up for a month of Sling just to get the free Roku device, and I have to say, it is pretty freaking impressive.

 

Just signed up for Directv Now and got a free Amazon Fire stick, but more importantly got their huge channel package for $35/month. If the performance/quality is as good as Sling, I will stay w/that, get used to some adjustments of years of being a Dish user, and enjoy the roughly $100/month savings!

 

Next up is ditching digital phone and saving about $40/month with Ooma.

[davislove 0]

Reviving an old one here to say that I am diving in to the world of streaming live TV. Co-worker of mine is huge into it and talked me in to trying it out...plus, looking at my $140/month Dish bill made me sick.

 

Signed up for a month of Sling just to get the free Roku device, and I have to say, it is pretty freaking impressive.

 

Just signed up for Directv Now and got a free Amazon Fire stick, but more importantly got their huge channel package for $35/month. If the performance/quality is as good as Sling, I will stay w/that, get used to some adjustments of years of being a Dish user, and enjoy the roughly $100/month savings!

 

Next up is ditching digital phone and saving about $40/month with Ooma.

 

Enjoy it now because when it starts to take off that's when they'll start raising prices. I'd bet Netflix will start raising it's prices nearly yearly in pretty soon.

 

I DVR everything now. I just can't stand commercials anymore.

[jfschellcrna 11]

Enjoy it now because when it starts to take off that's when they'll start raising prices. I'd bet Netflix will start raising it's prices nearly yearly in pretty soon.

 

I DVR everything now. I just can't stand commercials anymore.

 

can you DVR streaming programs???

[Synoptico 334]

I just can't wait for Google Fiber

 

 

With Google fiber they have a TV package as well where you can dvr 8 programs. Can't wait to get rid of Time Warner. That will be a great phone call to make.

[NDNorm 50]

can you DVR streaming programs???

 

Yes, with one that I know of now....Sony's Vue....which I was going to go with until they dropped all Viacom channels.

 

Vue's DVR is cloud-based, which makes sense. Sling is beta testing theirs now and DirecTV Now says theirs isn't far behind.

[Jersey Irish 205]

I know. I just recently finished a Nielson survey where I had to log what I watched for a week. It's amazing to see how few channels I watch. I felt like I had to force myself to watch something on HBO so I wouldn't feel bad about paying for it.

 

Cable loves to screw over long term customers.

 

SDIrish,

 

If you can do without baseball, March madness, or the NBA playoff, you might want to cancel your service. Most channels have their shows available online.

 

After a couple of months your cable company will be offering you a deal to come back.

 

True, cable offers no loyalty program to long-term users. They will only throw you a bone when yo9u complain and give you SHO free for a few months. Big deal!

[echo88 74]

Yes, with one that I know of now....Sony's Vue....which I was going to go with until they dropped all Viacom channels.

 

Vue's DVR is cloud-based, which makes sense. Sling is beta testing theirs now and DirecTV Now says theirs isn't far behind.

 

I just got rid of Vue. It's a great option, unless you plan on watching live sports. They'll list channels like FSN, NBCSN, etc and conveniently omit that the live sports typically carried on those channels won't be airing...

 

Found that out the hard way over the last football season. The straw that broke the camel's back was the Giants/Packers wild card game. Despite having Vue's most comprehensive package (including 6 different fox sports channels), the only channel that carried that game was Fox Deportes.

Edited January 11, 2017 by echo88

[Jim2Dokes 3]

I just got rid of Vue. It's a great option, unless you plan on watching live sports. They'll list channels like FSN, NBCSN, etc and conveniently omit that the live sports typically carried on those channels won't be airing...

 

Found that out the hard way over the last football season. The straw that broke the camel's back was the Giants/Packers wild card game. Despite having Vue's most comprehensive package (including 6 different fox sports channels), the only channel that carried that game was Fox Deportes.

 

I have Vue. It only has locals in some markets like NY I believe. I just use a 10$ antenna to pick up locals in clear HD. Watched the SAT NFL games on VUE and Sunday games through antenna. $30 bucks for cable and free locals. Vue also with free DVr is awesome.

[TheRizz 5]

Reviving an old one here to say that I am diving in to the world of streaming live TV. Co-worker of mine is huge into it and talked me in to trying it out...plus, looking at my $140/month Dish bill made me sick.

 

Signed up for a month of Sling just to get the free Roku device, and I have to say, it is pretty freaking impressive.

 

Just signed up for Directv Now and got a free Amazon Fire stick, but more importantly got their huge channel package for $35/month. If the performance/quality is as good as Sling, I will stay w/that, get used to some adjustments of years of being a Dish user, and enjoy the roughly $100/month savings!

 

Next up is ditching digital phone and saving about $40/month with Ooma.

 

 

Is the consensus is that for live tv and sports, sling is the best option right now?

[NDNorm 50]

Is the consensus is that for live tv and sports, sling is the best option right now?

 

This stuff is all pretty new to me right now, but I've done a ton of site surfing already weighing the main services against each other, and the DirecTV streaming pkg that I paid 35 bucks for has just about everything I could think of that I don't want to lose from Dish, and I have the whole shebang from Dish.

 

Sling and Vue are missing a scattering of channels here and there (sports included) that I'd have to learn to live w/out. I think it's Sling that has SEC network, but not the Big 10 netwk, for example.

 

But I think they're all covered with all the ESPN's and Fox Sports channels.

[echo88 74]

This stuff is all pretty new to me right now, but I've done a ton of site surfing already weighing the main services against each other, and the DirecTV streaming pkg that I paid 35 bucks for has just about everything I could think of that I don't want to lose from Dish, and I have the whole shebang from Dish.

 

Sling and Vue are missing a scattering of channels here and there (sports included) that I'd have to learn to live w/out. I think it's Sling that has SEC network, but not the Big 10 netwk, for example.

 

But I think they're all covered with all the ESPN's and Fox Sports channels.

 

Also, depending on your wifi speed, Sling picture quality can deteriorate quickly and often. I was watching the title game at my gfs house and the quality would pixelate and then the screen would go black every 5 mins or so.

 

She has 2 Apple TV boxes in the house, but I was very disappointed after I saw that she had a mid-range wifi package from ATT. That shouldve been able to easily support 2 streaming boxes at the same time.

[jfschellcrna 11]

thanks for the info guys...

[echo88 74]

To be honest, for sports, I would get a cable login from a friend, log in to whatever sports feed you want (NBCSN, FSN, ESPN, etc) and just stream live games that way.

 

There are no viewing restrictions as far as how many devices you can use and a simple HDMI connection to your TV is a 75% solution. Won't be as vivid as a true HD feed, but it's a band-aid fix if there is a game you are missing due to a lack of cable.

 

Also, for you Canadians who are given the "outside of viewing area" message by a sports provider, I recommend the "Get GOM" proxy extension for Chrome. It offers a trial period, but I think it's only like $4 a month after that. Will trick the providers into thinking you are within the U.S.

[NDNorm 50]

Also, depending on your wifi speed, Sling picture quality can deteriorate quickly and often. I was watching the title game at my gfs house and the quality would pixelate and then the screen would go black every 5 mins or so.

 

She has 2 Apple TV boxes in the house, but I was very disappointed after I saw that she had a mid-range wifi package from ATT. That shouldve been able to easily support 2 streaming boxes at the same time.

 

This is interesting how hit and miss this stuff is. I haven't tried the DTVNow thing yet because my device hasn't arrived yet, but I'm fearful of all the negative reviews on quality.

 

My Sling meanwhile, has been rock-solid. I've tried every channel and watched for extended periods and never a problem w/quality...this is what sold me on the fact that I may actually be able to live solely on a streaming service.

[echo88 74]

This is interesting how hit and miss this stuff is. I haven't tried the DTVNow thing yet because my device hasn't arrived yet, but I'm fearful of all the negative reviews on quality.

 

My Sling meanwhile, has been rock-solid. I've tried every channel and watched for extended periods and never a problem w/quality...this is what sold me on the fact that I may actually be able to live solely on a streaming service.

 

Yeah, your experience is all based on the provider you use, the speeds you pay for, and the number of users in the household. You can buy whatever streaming service you want, but in the fine print it clearly states, in a nutshell, that users experience may vary. And it makes the service providers a hell of a lot less culpable than a standard cable company...

[AlabamaDuck 0]

I am considering Direct TV. I had a bad experience with them years ago but I hear good things since AT&T bought them.

 

I have Charter now and they are not bad nor anything to brag about. Any advice?

 

Thanks!

[UnifiedIrish 0]

So I'm to the point that I'm tired of taking it in the rear from my cable company. So I'd like to look at ditching cable TV and using a service like Netflix or Amazon prime or something for watching shows.

 

Obviously I'd still need internet.

 

My question is has anyone done this?

 

How do I still watch live tv? Sports etc?

 

I live in a pretty rural area so I doubt a digital tuner is going to get me much, but maybe.

 

Any tips or tricks on how to go about this?

 

Look into Kodi TV. Live TV, sports, movies. Everything you wished you could find that Google couldn't offer.