I consider our monthly cable bill obscene and we don't even have any premium channels. I'm on a quest to cut the cable and figure out how to get the programs we like without paying an arm and a leg.
Hubby and I are retired (me late 50’s, he early 60’s). We have a few favorite programs, but most of what we see on cable doesn't interest us. Don't get me started on all the ridiculous reality shows and the conspicuous consumption celebrities with no talent.
My husband loves sports – mostly baseball, golf and football. We love Jeopardy. Downton Abbey is a thrill for me each year. Is this really going to be their last season? We enjoy a few home shows, especially Fixer Uppers and Tiny House Hunters. We love old movies, too. Lately, we seem to spend more time searching for something to watch than actually watching something.
I keep seeing where other people are dropping cable and instead relying on cheaper services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, and You Tube. We have had Netflix for awhile, which seems insane. As much as we pay for cable, it seems there should be no need for anything more. Just this week, I made the plunge and signed up for Amazon Prime. We order from Amazon frequently, so it seemed to make sense/cents. Sling TV looks like it may be a good solution for us as well. It may be that we won't need both Netflix and Amazon Prime.
There are cheaper ways to get local channels, but I'm just beginning to look into that. I think you can get a very basic cable subscription. You can also get some sort of antenna or box I think.
I need to make certain that Hubby can watch the Atlanta Braves on TV. If not, that would be a dealbreaker for him.
We are still in the just-thinking-about-it phase on this idea. If we actually make the jump, I'll do an update after we've used it for awhile.
If anyone has advice,
I sure would appreciate it.
Want to know more? Check this out -
The Ultimate Cable TV Alternatives - This post is fantastic! It includes all sorts of info and options. The author (a true techie) gives you a quick solution and also more detailed options so you can fine tune to get just what you need. In his quick example, he breaks down the cost as follows -
Cable TV Alternative Cost:
- Roku 3 or Apple TV – $69 – $99 one-time cost
- TV antenna – $80 one-time cost
- Subscription Services – about $17 a month
- Internet access – at most $60 per month
This equates to a $170 startup cost, and a monthly payment of $77 for internet, TV and Movies. That’s much cheaper than the average cable bill in the U.S. Using streaming based cable TV substitutes reduced my families entertainment cost by half.