Cutting the cord in 2022 — this is my top pick to kill cable

[admin]

What I learned from the year I cut the cord, testing all of the major streaming services.

Cutting the cord in 2022 — this is my top pick to kill cable : Read more

 

[kennybania]

I always feel like these discussions about cutting the cord should start with how much someone is willing to pay. That narrows the options quickly. Next should be the type of services they want to have, dvr, local tv, sports, etc. Some services are great but if you don't need every sports channel then you may not want to pay for that.
If someone is hooked on one show or network I think that makes this much harder. Cutting the cord is also about changing habits. That favorite show can be found in other places and paid for only when it is new. If a person has to have the Hallmark channel then they will end up paying for it.
For some people I think "Cutting the cord" really is more like "switching the cord" and getting a cable alternative which is not cutting the cord.

 

[AustinTA65]

What I learned from the year I cut the cord, testing all of the major streaming services.

Cutting the cord in 2022 — this is my top pick to kill cable : Read more

Why does every article about these streaming services take the POV that they are different from cable? About the only difference is the "no contract" aspect allowing you to change services on a month to month basis...if you so desire. Believing that any of these services won't and shouldn't have contract disputes is naive at best. Your reasons for not selecting YTTV because they had multiple contract disputes is not valid...just wait...Sling will have - and has had in the past- contract disputes (or they will simply acquiesce and raise prices accordingly)...they all will. Disputes are a sign that the service cares about the prices they have to offer their customers.

 

[Dick2111]

I applaud you for trying to simplify a seemingly complex decision, but I've come to believe that doing what's 'best' (or 'cheapest'?) depends on where you live in the U.S., what your personal priorities are, and who your internet service provider is. For instance, I live in the Tampa, Fl area & use Spectrum as my internet provider AND as my cable TV provider. Currently pay them $147.55 monthly for (1) 200 Mbps internet which costs $75 monthly; (2) cable TV using TV Choice option which costs $30 monthly; (3) DVR with receiver which costs $22 monthly. Broadcast TV surcharge adds $13 (go figure huh) & fees/taxes add almost $8 monthly.

Spectrum's TV Choice is admittedly limited (tons of 'local' channels plus 10 other channels of my choice), but it more than meets my priorities (my wife insists on having the DVR to record some of her favorite shows that are on Spectrum ... keeping mama happy is a BIG priority). I also subscribe to (1) Paramount Plus ($100 a year or roughly $ 8 monthly); (2) Netflix ($10 monthly); (3) Amazon Prime Video (supposedly free with my annual Amazon Prime deliveries subscription); (4) Hulu with limited ads ($70 annual or $6 monthly). That's an additional $24 monthly, bringing my internet plus TV charges to $172 monthly on average. I could cut that down to $150 monthly IF I wanted to do away with my wife's DVR, but then I'd have to find another place to live (cheaper to do it this way).

I've got local friends who pay more than that for YouTube TV plus their subscriptions to Netflix, etc, when you include the cost of their monthly internet service (usually Spectrum here). An advantage to keeping a 'limited' cable package (TV Choice?) is that if internet goes out (which it has here at times) then cable TV still worked. That 'redundancy' can be beneficial at times, as well as the fact that our streaming service here via internet can get bogged down with buffering at times (don't seem to have that problem on the cable). So again, I think each family's decision to cut the cord is really dependent upon a number of factors, not all of which ever seem to get listed in every article on cord-cutting that I read.

 

[Manxe!!!]

The programming you subscribe to after you cut the cable monster [to pieces!!] is just fluff. That's up to you, and there are a hundred ways to go. The real problem is: how are you going to get the signal to your box?? You are going to pay about $60/month minimum just to connect to the Internet. With a minimal signal. And unless you are really lucky, you will pay a lot more for a signal that has enough bandwidth to play a decent game on. If all you are doing is reading and writing, and downloading not so challenging streams, you can avoid this additional cost, for a high speed signal like fiber, but this charge is always the first consideration when cutting the cable. People like Henry who write fluff pieces like this know this, but they never mention it, even tho it is the primary consideration when cutting your cable. To cut the cable then, you need to have training about the Internet FIRST. Then selecting an ISP [Internet Service Provider] is next, based on your budget and your needs, and that is the critical SECOND step. The programming you select is all dependent on the limiting technical factors in these two steps. And you may have additional charges for hardware, depending on where you are and who your ISP is. At 72, you should be capable of learning how the Internet works [and do it now, not later] but it may be a struggle. I have taught a class with 72+s in it, and most got it. So the odds are in your favor. And if you have a grandkid, use him/her!! It will save you hours.

 

[Rich 1944]

I always feel like these discussions about cutting the cord should start with how much someone is willing to pay. That narrows the options quickly. Next should be the type of services they want to have, dvr, local tv, sports, etc. Some services are great but if you don't need every sports channel then you may not want to pay for that.
If someone is hooked on one show or network I think that makes this much harder. Cutting the cord is also about changing habits. That favorite show can be found in other places and paid for only when it is new. If a person has to have the Hallmark channel then they will end up paying for it.
For some people I think "Cutting the cord" really is more like "switching the cord" and getting a cable alternative which is not cutting the cord.

For me it is what channels do I need and then what channels do I want and then what its the lowest cost solution to meet those criteria. I only need Locals plus 10 channels and I don't really need locals.

There are only two solutions for me. One is Sling Blue and the other is Spectrum Choice which is covered by someone else here in the comments. Believe it or not those are the only two of all the streaming services that have all 10 or even all 8 of my required "cable" channels and they have the best price (I don't actually need locals because I have good reception with an antenna) so that makes Sling one of the two that qualify.

 

[Rich 1944]

The programming you subscribe to after you cut the cable monster [to pieces!!] is just fluff. That's up to you, and there are a hundred ways to go. The real problem is: how are you going to get the signal to your box?? You are going to pay about $60/month minimum just to connect to the Internet. With a minimal signal. And unless you are really lucky, you will pay a lot more for a signal that has enough bandwidth to play a decent game on. If all you are doing is reading and writing, and downloading not so challenging streams, you can avoid this additional cost, for a high speed signal like fiber, but this charge is always the first consideration when cutting the cable. People like Henry who write fluff pieces like this know this, but they never mention it, even tho it is the primary consideration when cutting your cable. To cut the cable then, you need to have training about the Internet FIRST. Then selecting an ISP [Internet Service Provider] is next, based on your budget and your needs, and that is the critical SECOND step. The programming you select is all dependent on the limiting technical factors in these two steps. And you may have additional charges for hardware, depending on where you are and who your ISP is. At 72, you should be capable of learning how the Internet works [and do it now, not later] but it may be a struggle. I have taught a class with 72+s in it, and most got it. So the odds are in your favor. And if you have a grandkid, use him/her!! It will save you hours.

You are right except most people that think about cutting the cord have internet. I could stream HD with 25 Mbps. I did that because when I switch to DSL for a month and then back to Spectrum, I get the first year rate again. If you don't want or need internet or just use your phone. Actually you can stream off your phone if you have an unlimited data plan and "Cast" it to your Smart TV, or Roku or FireTV using WiFi (I think). I know I have tried a phone based recording app and was able to cast the movies to my FireTV.

 

[Jim E.]

We cut the cord for real a few years ago. I put up a good roof top TV antenna, for a total cost of roughly $250 (antenna, pre-amp, distribution amp, wiring, etc) and then I purchased a Tivo OTA DVR with lifetime service for $350, and that's it.......forever. We use free apps like Tubi and Pluto along with the 50 channels we get with the antenna, way more TV than we can ever watch.

Why pay a monthly fee for channels you don't ever watch? Cancelling cable and then going with a paid streaming service isn't cutting the cord, it just changing the method of delivery.

 

[Rich 1944]

Why pay a monthly fee for channels you don't ever watch? Cancelling cable and then going with a paid streaming service isn't cutting the cord, it just changing the method of delivery.
[/QUOTE]
That is great, but some people want what is on some "Cable Type" channels. I think Over the Air channels are great but I also dip into the other services. I have had Netflix forever, even when I had cable. I also like the Walking Dead franchise and some others on AMC and SnowPiercer on TNT.

I can get every channels I watch (about 10) for about $35 with Sling Blue and only pick it up when the shows are on that I watch and drop it off when it is off season. It is not that expensive. I also don't want to watch things I have seen before and many of the free services are just re-runs of old stuff.