Question Have you "cut the cord" or are you considering doing it?

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SHaines

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Apr 1, 2019
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With the last few months of folks living in relative isolation, content has definitely been a major pasrt of our lives. As you rethink the way you interact with media, how many of you have decided to "cut the cord" by dropping cable television?

If you're still watching cable TV, have you considered dropping it? If you've already cut the cord, was there a specific moment or reason why?

I cut the cord around 20 years ago, before we really had a name for it. I was just very frustrated by the quality and quantity of ads you're forced to stomach to watch basic cable. I spent so much time switching channels to avoid commercials that I ended up just getting rid of cable completely.

We'd love to hear from you!
 

dsmith43

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Jan 25, 2018
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Wow, what a loaded question. YES, about 13 years ago I cut the cable and only have internet service with my cable company, no TV cable service. I was paying way too much for TV cable like, over $120 per month and never watched most of what I had and I absolutely loathe having to sit through commercials. Today I use an indoor OTA antenna sitting in my window sill pointed southward which is where the signals come from, and where I am in BC, Canada I get CBC, CTV, CTV2, Global, Decades, MeTV, Movies! Channel, Heroes & Icons (H&I), OMNI, a few shopping channels, and a few others depending on the weather. I find that if it's cloudy I get a better signal than I do when it's clear. Even though I have all these channels, I still loathe commercials and I think to myself I'm sure glad I'm not paying for them! I also have unlimited use of Netflix, and spend a bit of time on YouTube and Dailymotion every day. I also have a Roku and a home media entertainment system, so I'm not hurting for content.

People in the US must be constantly sick, because there are SO MANY commercials about drugs and their possible side-effects, accident insurance claim lawyers, reverse mortgages (thanks Tom Selleck!), product lawsuit claims (Round-Up, talcum powder, Zantac, and so on) and I just can't stand these commercials with a passion which makes me so glad I don't pay for them!

I have also been exploring IPTV lately and like what I see,so far, I just need to spend more time with it and find a good IPTV service provider for cheap.

I went to the local drug store and was able to pick up my antenna for about $40. There are better ones, and cheaper ones, but I'm glad I picked the one I have. It's more than I'll ever need.
 
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AudioBoy

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Sep 15, 2020
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With the last few months of folks living in relative isolation, content has definitely been a major pasrt of our lives. As you rethink the way you interact with media, how many of you have decided to "cut the cord" by dropping cable television?

If you're still watching cable TV, have you considered dropping it? If you've already cut the cord, was there a specific moment or reason why?

I cut the cord around 20 years ago, before we really had a name for it. I was just very frustrated by the quality and quantity of ads you're forced to stomach to watch basic cable. I spent so much time switching channels to avoid commercials that I ended up just getting rid of cable completely.

We'd love to hear from you!
ADS destroy the will and turn the brain to mush.
They promise the world and delivery nothing. They temp you to buy things you never thought you wanted, portrayed as things you now think you need. In the UK we have always been lucky enough to have the BBC which is ad free. And you can tell the difference between those that watch the commercial channels and those that avoid them. New methods of delivering entertainment such as Netflix have increased choice whilst avoiding the commercialism of advertising. Advertising would not be necessary if the things they are trying to sell you were actually NEEDED, because needed things sell themselves.
 
Sep 16, 2020
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I am a Prime member. Recently Amazon has been offering 1 and 2 day shipping as usual. When I purchase the item and the shipping date is confirmed, Amazon will ship the item charge my account and the delay the initial delivery date (sometimes by a week.) If I cancel the item the item is still delivered and I either have to accept it or return it in order to get a refund. This is something new that that they are doing and it is shady. It's not what I paid for when I signed up for Prime.
 
Jul 8, 2020
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With the last few months of folks living in relative isolation, content has definitely been a major pasrt of our lives. As you rethink the way you interact with media, how many of you have decided to "cut the cord" by dropping cable television?

If you're still watching cable TV, have you considered dropping it? If you've already cut the cord, was there a specific moment or reason why?

I cut the cord around 20 years ago, before we really had a name for it. I was just very frustrated by the quality and quantity of ads you're forced to stomach to watch basic cable. I spent so much time switching channels to avoid commercials that I ended up just getting rid of cable completely.

We'd love to hear from you!
I would love to cut the cord; however, I cannot find anything that will allow my family to watch sports normally shown on NBC, CBS, or ABC. We like watching local baseball, and football but would also like to watch something like the US Tennis Open, and other slams. So far, every time I find (think) something promising, it only directs me to supply my local "Verizon Fios" credentials meaning, I can't cut the cord. Any suggestions?
 
Oct 2, 2020
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We never got the cord! Free live TV sucks here in Australia. There are a few streaming services, Netflix being the best. I don't really watch much YouTube.

In response to kurtaj (sorry I'm new here, is this format okay?):
I've had variations on this setup for 4 years and can't imagine going back to cable. My kids actually watch more YouTube than anything else. That may change as they get older; it may not. Once Stranger Things is over, I may ditch Netflix.

I thought Stranger Things wasn't getting another season. While part of me wants it to have another season, I don't think I'll be interested in it.
 
Aug 23, 2020
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We've cut the cord rather successfully-
We got a refurbished TIVO OTA with a lifetime channel subscription and a 3year extended warranty. We also have a Roku for Amazon Prime and others.
The Tivo OTA exceeds our expectations BIG TIME !
I have a good outdoor antenna in Miami. It gets 92 digital channels... The Tivo interface is really good. I record my favorite shows automatically. Popular shows have auto commercial skip, but those that don't are easy to skip. We definitely use the TIVO OTA more than the Roku - I am going to give the TIVO a try at streaming Amazon to see if I really need the Roku(which is exceptionally good for streaming)
 

mejustsayin

Commendable
Oct 11, 2020
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I cut the cord around 10 years ago. though I do have a few streaming boxes, instead, I have cheap Walmart computers hooked up to every tv. This way I won't have to worry about apps quit supporting older devices. Only have to worry about services working in linux browsers. I only subscribe to a couple of streaming services, amazon prime and funimation.
 
Sep 25, 2020
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With the last few months of folks living in relative isolation, content has definitely been a major pasrt of our lives. As you rethink the way you interact with media, how many of you have decided to "cut the cord" by dropping cable television?

If you're still watching cable TV, have you considered dropping it? If you've already cut the cord, was there a specific moment or reason why?

I cut the cord around 20 years ago, before we really had a name for it. I was just very frustrated by the quality and quantity of ads you're forced to stomach to watch basic cable. I spent so much time switching channels to avoid commercials that I ended up just getting rid of cable completely.

We'd love to hear from you!
I am getting ready to do so. There were some benefits to Direct TV, e.g. being able to get network channels from both East & West Coasts, & a few "cable/satellite" channels, i.e. History Channel, Discovery, etc. My biggest complaint, after their ridiculous rates which appear to result from their desire to subsidize low viewer activity stations by only supplying services in "Bundles". They keep on telling me how wonderful it is that I get something like 186 channels, and I keep on telling them that over the last several months I have NEVER watched any more than 12 of them as I have zero interest in watching (nor paying to watch) the channels that are trying to sell me something, as it seems to me that those stations should be paying me to watch them, and there are a number of other stations that I find to be directed at audiences that I have no association with, and some which are directed towards stations the content of which I find offensive.

My biggest problem in viewing things over the Internet is that AT&T, the only ISP in our area refuses to upgrade the only available "high speed" (if anyone in the 21st Century believes that 3mb is really 'high speed') service available is DSL, which quite frankly sucks. Try to watch an "on-demand" channel program and it is too slow to watch constantly buffers and the only option is to record it to view later on. We don't have access to Comcast, or any other cable service, here as Comcast stops at the Interstate Hwy. overpass about a mile from here, and the only other provider, which is one of those small, local telco's has fiber about another 1 mi. from here and about a mile further on to the I-65 overpass from the opposite direction but they won't run it up and connect us in either. That is why AT&T know it has us in a box and that they can exercise their monopoly powers (I have no idea why the FTC &/or the FCC ever allowed AT&T to acquire Direct TV rather than apply the anti-monopoly or anti-trust statutes to refuse to permit the merger/acquisition), but it leaves a lot of rural areas and their occupants, literally as in my case, "between a rock and a hard place".

One simple example of corporate tyranny occurred with one of my neighbors down the road, along the state highway on which they routed the latest fiber cables. Despite the fact that they absolutely refused to allow him to connect to the fiber and upgrade both his Internet and his TV services they insisted that they had the right to use the public utility easement on the roadside to run their cable and that he had no right to interfere with it. Apparently, AT&T seems to have forgotten that they are no longer a public utility and after a careful reading of both of our deeds the easement is a dedicated use authority to allow public utilities and public roadways. Personally, I would have filed for a Temporary Injunction to stop their trespass on my property as their running that cable is not a "permitted use of the easement" and let the phone company spend its time and money fighting it. I don't see any value in allowing anyone to use any part of my property, or to trespass upon it to install any cable that might interfere with my use in completing things like drainage and erosion control, etc. A property owner should be able to prevail in such a case, and in fact, some of us offered to pitch in to help pay the legal fees, however, he decided that it would cause unnecessary delay and inconvenience to the people who were going to use the service, which coincidentally was only being installed to provide services to subdivisions being built by some "special people" developers and thusly only available to people who were purchasing either lots or spec. homes in those subdivisions. I guess that as long as some people will just "crater" to corporate bullying, which these companies seem to specialize in such tactics and seem to be more competent in doing so than they are in providing quality services it appears that they will continue to do so.

Someone on another list suggested that I just go to an LEO satellite-based ISP like Hughes to obtain faster Internet service, but then again all I have to do is consider what happens to my Direct TV service every time we get a storm and recognize that my Internet service would be equally affected, as well as their also outrageous pricing for substantially limited 25mb Internet services that revert to what is essentially DSL speeds after one uses up whatever specific level of hight speed services that are available under any of their service plans, plus the additional costs of leasing or buying their equipment, etc. that is not a practical alternative.

Don't ever let anyone tell you that high-speed Internet service is available as a practical matter in most, if not all of "flyover country"
 
Nov 9, 2020
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We currently live in Chapel Hill, NC and are building a house in Ridgefield, WA expected to be completed in the April-May 2021 timeframe. I am seriously looking into the possibility of using a digital TV antenna for live TV (news, etc.), as I've become aware that there are several major new networks broadcast towers in Portland, OR (roughly 17 miles away.) I have a question about the effective length of an HDMI 2.1 cable between an outdoor digital TV antenna w/HDMI connection I'm toying with buying/mounting just below the roof fascia of the back of the (west-facing) house, pointing SSW.

I am seeking recommendations from those who have had noteworthy success in using an outdoor digital TV antenna w/HDMI connection.
 

CParsons

Estimable
Staff member
Dec 4, 2019
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Cut the cord probably about 2 years ago now and will never go back to a full-on cable package. I have Netflix, Disney+, BritBox and IPTV and even with my internet fee's I still come in about $200 cheaper each month. The only bad thing about cutting the cord, in my opinion, is finding your optimal setup of services / devices.
 

Sharmick

Estimable
Feb 10, 2020
17
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4,565
Finally getting ready to cut the cord since Comcast/Xfinity raised prices again. i called to cancel but the person I communicated with, supposedly expert customer service rep (that's laughable) didn't offer a better deal and didn't seem to care. She told me I can go to a UPS mailing center to return the equipment. Don't trust that advice since the last time the rep gave me the impression of free visit by a tech to replace the box and then charged me $50 anyway. Couldn't get my money back.

The only problem I have is my husband. He finally learned how to hit the "Guide" button for programming and change to a channel he wants but that's it. He won't touch On Demand because it confuses him with all the channels. My son says he will be too confused to ever be able to handle any alternate programming. He also told me I'd wind up paying almost the same amount as i am now. So I don't know what to do now.
 

jnojr

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Oct 29, 2007
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With the last few months of folks living in relative isolation, content has definitely been a major pasrt of our lives. As you rethink the way you interact with media, how many of you have decided to "cut the cord" by dropping cable television?

I've used DirecTV for a while. We moved, the price went up, I called, they gave me a promo. I was paying $107 per month, with only HBO as a "premium" add-on. Wasn't particularly happy. Then the promo ended and they aded $32 per month, followed almost immediately by a rate increase, to almost $150 per month.

I signed up for Sling and ordered an AirTV (arriving today!) I can't wait to cancel DirecTV. Only problem is, it seems like all of the streaming services essentially suck... they don't have the functions and "polish" of cable and satellite. Channel guides suck, look-forward sucks, fast-forwarding sucks. And they don't care.

My wife is frustrated enough that I might just use the threat of cancellation to drop our price back down to where it was, and let her keep DirecTV. I wish there was a way to get streaming providers to actually listen and care about their deficiencies.
 

SafetyAlways

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Dec 31, 2015
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Just took the first step a few days ago! While switching to Youtube TV is "technically" cutting the cord, it is a baby step :) However, their channel lineup is now extensive enough that my wife couldn't argue and with a guide she can set the channel lineup to her liking and record ANYTHING she wants, it was now a no brainer :) Gotta love unlimited DVR you can watch ANYWHERE!

Previous Spectrum internet/tv bill: $230/month
New bill with Verizon Fios 200 Mbps plan and Youtube TV: $104/month.
Unless you have 4 kids, 200 MBps is plenty! We have 3 tv's, all smart, 2 cell phones, a tablet, and 2 laptops - we never run into a problem.
Mobile phone bill is separate and I use google voice for our home phone because the wife won't give up the number... Tmobile pays for Netflix, We pay for Disney+ and we have had an Amazon Prime account for years so we have their video ta boot!

The only difference is that I did have HBO with Spectrum, even though we never watch HBO. Honestly, we only got it to watch Game of Thrones :) However, they would not let me get rid of HBO alone to lower my bill since I was part of a grandfathered account from Time Warner...

PS: Now that Ib'm with Verizon Fios, my interent is not only much more stable, we had countless interruptions/drops with spectrum, but I'm get in house WiFi at 250MBps up and down and 300+ for Ethernet connections! Again, on their 200 MBps plan at $40/month.

Oh, one last important detail, I bought their router. It's 300 bucks. I don't pay $15 bucks a month in additional rent so in 20 months it will have paid for itself.
 
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