Cutting the Satellite TV cable

[Larry Browning]

My DirecTV bill has gotten out of hand! We have maybe the middle teer service, no premium channels like HBO or Showtime with 3 TVs. The bill just seems to go up every month to where our bill is now $110 ever month.
It also seems like every time we start to watch TV, after scrolling through all the channels, we discover there is absolutely nothing we want to watch, so we switch to the Roku and watch something on Netflix. I have come to the conclusion that about the only thing we watch on DirecTV is the local channels and live sports (Especially the Texas Rangers on Fox Sports Southwest). I have also come to the conclusion that it just may not be worth $110 a month to watch the Rangers lose.
I know with just a little effort I could get the local channels and this Sling TV thing looks pretty interesting for $20 a month. SWMBO really likes the real time channel guide, but I think she would be willing to give that up to save $90 a month.
Anyway, who here has "cut the cable" recently? What did you replace it with and how is it working out for you and your family?

[David Ragan]

it is a lot of money, Larry.

We have DirecTV, and a small upgrade thing and itis ~$127/mo.

I sit there and enjoy it. And think about the black and white that was screwed up-the picture tube was bad, and so was squashed vertically. And, only 3 channels, right?

If I am not using something, 86 it.

Now, do not ask me....why then, have you not gotten rid of some of those nice tools that you never use. Ha ha.

[Larry Browning]

it is a lot of money, Larry.

We have DirecTV, and a small upgrade thing and itis ~$127/mo.

I sit there and enjoy it. And think about the black and white that was screwed up-the picture tube was bad, and so was squashed vertically. And, only 3 channels, right?

If I am not using something, 86 it.

Now, do not ask me....why then, have you not gotten rid of some of those nice tools that you never use. Ha ha.

Part (but not all) of the motivation is just general cost cutting. The wife just retired from 37 years of teaching 12 & 13 year olds, so the disposable income has been reduced by quite a bit.

[Phil Thien]

The SlingTV on Roku works pretty well. The newer (faster) the Roku, the better. The interface really runs better on newer/faster chips. But we subscribed to SlingTV to be able to watch a couple of shows we like on HBO (oh and March Madness) and have been happy with it.

[Matt Meiser]

If your contract is up you can usually get lower pricing out of them to stick around. But sounds like price isn't your only motivation.

[Steve Peterson]

If your contract is up you can usually get lower pricing out of them to stick around. But sounds like price isn't your only motivation.

We lived for years with a rooftop antenna using a standalone Tivo that came with a lifetime subscription to Tivo basic. It was limited to 3 days lookahead and had limited search, but no monthly fee. They only made a few of them. I won't give up the DVR, but I was unwilling to pay $15 per month to get full service Tivo.

We ended up getting Directv when the Tivo finally died and now the kids are hooked on a few of the channels. The intro package came with 3 months of free premium channels (HBO, Showtime, etc.), but then the price shoots up to $45 per month. When I called to cancel the premium channels, they offered the package for $25 for 6 months. I don't think it is worth it to keep paying especially with Netflix at $9 per month. They usually offer some type of concession when you call to cancel.

I know one person that signs up with Directv with free installation and a great teaser price for 2 years. Then he cancels and switches to Dish for 2 years. It's a bit of a hassle, but he always has a teaser price.

Steve

[Larry Browning]

If your contract is up you can usually get lower pricing out of them to stick around. But sounds like price isn't your only motivation.

Our contract is up but pricing really isn't the only motivation, put it is what is driving my interest. We are going to start keeping a log of how much we watch stuff on DirectTV that is not a local channel. My thinking is that it is going to be very little. At this point, I am not sure the value is there. I do watch at least part of a Ranger game every night, and we do watch some shows on HGTV, History, Food Channel, some ESPN but not much else. I do believe those are all on Sling TV. $20 vs $110 is pretty tempting.

[Mike Cozad]

I am getting ready to bail on uverse. My bill is north of $220 for Internet and television. I have found a dvr that will work with a digital antenna for local channels. We use Netflix and Vudu for movies and series we really want to watch anyway so it's a no brainer. I had the TV for the kids but they're gone now so they aren't chipping in any longer and I don't want to waste my money on it...

[Bert Kemp]

I've gone into this in great depth here on other threads that were basically about the same thing. I have everything over the internet hook to my 42 inch tv in the living room. I get everything I want. Music, News, Movies, sports, and TV for total $63 a month. There are few glitches now and then but thats mostly cause of my slow DSL But I don't mind. Works for me.

[Larry Browning]

I know one person that signs up with Directv with free installation and a great teaser price for 2 years. Then he cancels and switches to Dish for 2 years. It's a bit of a hassle, but he always has a teaser price.

Steve

The guy that came to install our DirecTV said what he does is Cancel every 2 years and switches the account name back and forth between his wife and himself. He gets all new equipment and the teaser price each time. It may not be illegal, but it does seem a bit unethical.

[Chuck Wintle]

My DirecTV bill has gotten out of hand! We have maybe the middle teer service, no premium channels like HBO or Showtime with 3 TVs. The bill just seems to go up every month to where our bill is now $110 ever month.
It also seems like every time we start to watch TV, after scrolling through all the channels, we discover there is absolutely nothing we want to watch, so we switch to the Roku and watch something on Netflix. I have come to the conclusion that about the only thing we watch on DirecTV is the local channels and live sports (Especially the Texas Rangers on Fox Sports Southwest). I have also come to the conclusion that it just may not be worth $110 a month to watch the Rangers lose.
I know with just a little effort I could get the local channels and this Sling TV thing looks pretty interesting for $20 a month. SWMBO really likes the real time channel guide, but I think she would be willing to give that up to save $90 a month.
Anyway, who here has "cut the cable" recently? What did you replace it with and how is it working out for you and your family?

Larry,
I had the same dilemma with my cable company...maybe 1 show was interesting to watch and the monthly bill steadily rising. I just decided to cut it and use my roku to stream video.

[Bert Kemp]

I think Unethical is how they keep raising prices lowering service, give you a hard time when you try to cancel, all kinds of things theses company's do that are unethical and boarder illegal

The guy that came to install our DirecTV said what he does is Cancel every 2 years and switches the account name back and forth between his wife and himself. He gets all new equipment and the teaser price each time. It may not be illegal, but it does seem a bit unethical.

[Larry Browning]

I've gone into this in great depth here on other threads that were basically about the same thing. I have everything over the internet hook to my 42 inch tv in the living room. I get everything I want. Music, News, Movies, sports, and TV for total $63 a month. There are few glitches now and then but thats mostly cause of my slow DSL But I don't mind. Works for me.

That sounds more like it! SWMBO really likes the realtime guide. Even though she may have to give that up, is there any kind of replacement for that?

[Larry Browning]

I think Unethical is how they keep raising prices lowering service, give you a hard time when you try to cancel, all kinds of things theses company's do that are unethical and boarder illegal

Well, two wrongs don't make a right.

[Larry Browning]

BTW: I have a colleague who swears up and down that they passed a law a few years back that required cable companies to broadcast the local channels of their system so that even if you didn't have cable turned on at your house the local channels would still be available through their system. He hasn't had cable or satellite for 4 years and says he gets the local channels simply buy hooking up his TVs to the cable connection. This just does not seem correct to me. Is it possible that the cabling in his house is acting as an antenna and he just thinks it is being broadcast? I am going to test this theory this weekend.