Drop Cable TV?

My family has never had cable. We buy TV series in boxed sets if we watch to watch anything. But mostly, we read, play games or do stuff on line.

I had been with comcast for years with and without the bundle package and we only had 1 or 2 premium channels and the bill was crazy. I kept hearing negative things about dishes so I wouldn't bother. Eventually, every time there was a rain storm my bundle would go out completely. I went to DirectTv in December and we have never been happier. We only have cable but when the storms hit, we had no problems. Just something to consider.

I have Comcast as well, and we were paying sooo much for our cable, internet too. I had my hubby call them and I have before too, and tell them that its just way to expensive and we cant afford it anymore. They were more than willing to work with us after that! Lol, they didnt want to lose our service, because we have been with them for a few years.

Now we pay $90 for all of it. Way cheaper than what we were paying.

Call them and see what they can do for you.

You might want to look into Apple TV if you haven't already.

We got rid of cable in December 2007. We have 3 kids and do just fine. We do have an antenna and get 5.1 5.2 5.3, 9.1-3, 11.1-4, 23, 26.1-5,32.1,50.1.
The antenna is just a plug in rabbit ears with amplification that cost us 39.00 at Target. We have saved 4,760.00. We paid it into a savings account instead. We are now going to plan a cruise with this savings. We can watch Hulu, you tube, Network sites offer full episodes. We do get several channels that have hawks, bears, sox and cubs. If you have a ESPN junkie this may not work. We do not pay for additional game by game or subscriptions to netflix. If we want to rent a movie we go to redbox which is a 1.00 or we go to the library and check one out, they also have tv series to check out as well. We found we have so many things to do that we rarely miss it. You learn to plan ahead for weeks that may be raining or like the forecast blizzard we hit the library and the redbox and checked out books, videos and games. We were fine even when we couldn't go anywhere. Or you could do the playing for price and call around to dish, att, comcast, direct , verizon, and see who has what available and go with the absolute smallest package you can live with for the best price for the shortest term.

DO IT! We were without cable for a few years and I spent my evenings on a lounge chair on the porch reading from my kindle and looking at the moon. It was awesome! We just moved and installed cable (not sure why) and I"ve noticed we spend less time talking to each other after dinner, and definitely less time reading and preparing for the next day. WOrst case scenario: you decide you need cable back in your life, so you sign on and get a break in price for the first 6 months because you are a 'new customer.' I say give it a shot!

I have not dropped my cable, but just as a side note to your plan to go online is that more internet providers are clamping down on the amount you can download. You get charged for going over the limit. Now for your casual user of the internet that isn't a big deal as you normally don't go anywhere near the limits, but once you start downloading movies and shows or livestreaming of events that is where the big gigabytes come from. So before you make a decision, you should check with your provider to see if they have limits in place (comcast does, AT & T does). They may also have ways of policing your account so you know how much you are using and if you are close to the limit. Just an FYI.

I have been trying to get my husband to drop cable for the last six months. While I barely watch any television, my husband apparently needs it. (His latest obsession is TruTV!) So while it will not work in my situation, it may in yours. Even if you drop the cable, you will be able to get the major networks (ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox, PBS), so for news, weekday children's shows, and some sports you will probably be able to make do. As you mentioned, you could always do some videos and online for the kids. ESPN does do live streaming of some sports events, but I am not too familiar with their offerings. Other options for sports might be tuning into the radio, heading to a friend's, or watching at a sports bar.

Also, have you considered doing Netflix for tv shows and movies? We have an Xbox 360, and with a Xbox Live membership, you are able to sign up for Netflix and ESPN and watch on your television.

I say go for it! If it doesn't end up working out, you could always go back to the cable.

Happy Summer!

Well, we didn't watch sports at all, so this may not help you. BUT, we turned off cable about three years ago, and although the first couple months were a little weird we got over it quickly. I get free movies at the library for my kids, and my husband and I would rent or buy movies on sale and watch about twice a month when the kids went to bed. Now that he is deployed I don't watch TV at all. Amazing how many books I've been able to read during nap time, and honestly I enjoy books much more than TV, and always have!

Hi,
We just dropped cable too. We watch everything through our computer now and got a really good antennae for the roof. We have many of my son's favorite disney shows on itunes.
As for sports, there are many sites online. Some you have to subscribe to tho. I think espn does? There are some sites that you can get free viewing from people file sharing. Its not legal, but some people do it.

The cable bill can get out of hand, but we've fond that if you switch to another provider you get a great discount for a year. Then you switch back b/c the other company wants your business back they will also give you a discount.

Our bill (Comcast 3-way bundle, just like you - plus I need ESPN2 and the tennis channel) is $100 for all 3 service for the whole month, b/c we switched from AT&T. If after the year, if they don't keep their prices competative, we'll go back to AT&T. We just play them off each other every year and we keep a pretty good price going. It's a bit inconvenient to have someone come to your house and set everything up, and mess around with getting your DVR set back up, but it's only once a year. And you can keep your phone number too.

Give AT&T a call and see what they will do for you. Then call Comcast and tell them what AT&T is offering and see if they will meet it. If not, switch.

We dropped cable last summer and love the extra money! We use Clear for Internet and just stream Netflix onto our Blu-Ray for $10/mo. Lots of kid shows on there for our 3 year old. I am the sports fan in the house (college football) so I have been pretty sad when my games aren't on national TV, but I have found streaming websites you can use (ESPN3 and others). We didn't buy an antenna for the digital TV, we just hooked up an old coaxial cable and strung it up onto the rooftop and it worked just fine.

Most sports are played in bars and sports bar type restaurants. If you husband likes to watch them regularly that can get quite expensive though. I know when we didn't have sports channels, and I liked to watch College football (yes yes, I am the one in the house yelling at the TV... don't judge;) ) I used to go to Buffalo Wild Wings, when the games weren't on network. There are ways around it, but the cost can add up so you would want to take that into account. I know there are a lot of sporting events you can stream through your computer as well. Again, I used to do that for college football. I can't remember the service I used, but it was a free one. The quality wasn't the greatest, but at least I still got to see the games.

I am considering the same thing. Especially for the summer. We are never home and the prices are ridiculous.

For sports you can watch a bunch of them on ESPN, for NHL you can watch them on NHL.com I don't quite know about the rest of them cause I only watch hockey :)

We have Netflix .... do a search on Netflix on this site tons of questions about it, have DVD's of some of our fav shows we just can not live with out (Scrubs!) and a few shows that I can not find anywhere else I con a family member into recording for me ;) but honestly it's hard to find a show that does not some way air online or produce a DVD so it will be on netflix. On the game front is it totally undo able to go to a friend's house or a sport's bar for the important games?

We dropped cable a year ago, and this would be our only complaint...sports. With hulu and netflix we can watch just about anything, but sports are very hard to find. Most of our college sports teams games are streamed online, but our internet is slow and it doesn't stream it well. If your husband can live without them I'd say drop it. I never thought I could live without it, I love love love tv. But without all the channels I watch a lot less, and so do the kids which is good.

I would say just drop it. My husband quit cable last year and we haven't looked back once. It's an unnecessary expense and really bottles down to an addiction in most families. You will all be fine without it. The local channels come in great now that they're all digital and some games are still aired.