Life Without Cable, 6.5 Years Later

Don't get me wrong. I have often looked at getting cable again. So many channels, you can pay per view the fights. That's where all the new shows are and I would know what is going on by watching the news.

Then I start calculating the cost for each box in every room, and I would probably want the hopper. I see family post on Facebook that the weather effects the satellite tv. I also went over to my sister's house the other day and didn't find anything on. It seems for the most part people aren't watching live tv anymore, they record it to watch later.

So in the mean time we have tried different, alternative cable options*-

Amazon Prime $8.99/month video only; other plans available
I did a free trial of this and it was impressive. They had many options, plus there are other perks to amazon prime. In the end we cancelled but if I ever decide I need to order more items online I will defiantly look again. I also think they have added more to what you watch.

Sling Tv packages $20-40/month plus extras available
They do have three options for payments. It was alright, but it still wasn't the assortment I was looking for in an option. We didn't continue after the free trial.

Hulu $7.99/month with commercials $11.99 without
This used to be a free service and I loved it. I was able to create a list of favorites, all the shows I liked to watch, except for CBS shows. Then I just went to my list and was able to see if any new episodes were available. I did subscribe to the free trial just to watch 11.23.63  because the book was so good, I had to see how they put this into a short series. I ended up canceling it, but I would consider this again because it has a lot of good tv shows, just not the best for movies.

Yahoo View FREE
Hulu free is now over here. I hate I can't make a list of shows I like to watch and it is a constant search for when new shows are on. I do love that they have older shows, like Major Dad.

CBS All Access limited commercial $5.99/month
I haven't subscribed to this yet. It has old episodes of Big Brother, so I plan on subscribing sometime soon.

DirectTV Now packages starting at $35/month (promotional price currently)
We are just starting our free 7 day trial of this, and it seems promising. We do have more problems streaming videos on this than with Netflix, Hulu, or Yahoo. Also you cannot use PS3, PS4, or Xbox right now.

Playstation View Packages $29.99/month and up
I looked into it, but it doesn't seem as good as the others. Depending on how well DirectTV Now streams we might try this next.

Netflix $7.99/month for one tv to stream. $9.99 for two
This one we have been streaming subscribers for years, like when it used to be $7.99. The kids love the shows and I rarely can't find anything to watch. Normally just binge watching old shows, like Friends, or watching a Netflixs original.

*Please note prices are subject to change.

Do you have cable or do you stream?

No TV and I'm loving it

As a child both of my parents worked, and they worked opposite shifts to save on daycare with 3 kids. I watched a lot of TV and ate a lot of TV dinners as a kid. As I grew up I always seemed to feel better with the TV on. I would do homework in front of the TV, eat, surf the Internet, cook, babysit, fight with my boyfriend, etc. When I was in college I didn't want to pay for my own cable so I didn't have as much to watch with an antenna, but I still consistently had the TV on. So last year my husband decided we should have cable, which we have had before. Ever since the need for converter boxes, we get very poor reception in the valley where we live. We watched a lot of TV in that year, probably too much.

Last Saturday I canceled my cable and I'm loving it. I have my Internet and that is all I need. You can watch so my shows on the Internet these days it seems like such a waste to continue paying high price for cable. Now my kids watch DVDs, and I don't have to constantly monitor what is being watched ( I am not a fan of some Cartoon Network cartoons). I can watch my shows any time I want to, before I didn't splurge for the DVR and I would stay up too late watching a later show. Today my daughter is playing with her cousin and was reading him a book. This is the girl who hated to read at the beginning of first grade. I also woke up and started cleaning while listening to my Dr Joy Browne podcast. If I still had cable I'm sure I would be glued to the TV guide looking for something to entertain me. My husband still thinks we should shop around for a new package but I don't want to play the game of promotional pricing. If anything I would buy a media player once I learn more about them. My sister has also volunteered to DVR Big Brother, and I can watch a marathon when I visit her. I feel optimistic about my decision and I hope the positives of no cable continue.