photo credit: Taro the Shiba Inu
I have mentioned before that our family has been considering canceling cable. Some of you responded by encouraging me to go for it and cancel the cable.
Well, we finally did it! Is it a tiny bit sad that our four year old wanted to hug the cable boxes before the cable guy took them? Looks like we are cutting the cord none too soon.
We have actually lived quite a charmed life when it comes to cable. We had one step up from basic years ago, then went down to basic, but all the channels still came in. A few times a technician stopped out for something or another and I pointed it out, but he said, “Just enjoy it, we don’t have the capability to remove them just yet.” So for just $55 we enjoyed broadband internet and a decent selection of cable channels.
About 18 months ago, the cable company finally caught up to all of us enjoying these extra channels and made it so boxes were required. Not willing to cut out the cable just yet, and willing to pay the low introductory price, we signed up for the channels. Our bill went up to $80 a month. About once every six months, the introductory rate expires and we have to call and try to get a better rate, threatening to cancel usually gets them to offer up a better rate.
A couple of months ago must have been another introductory rate expiration, because our rate went to $137, then to $167 the next month. Yikes! Just to veg out in front of the TV? I was motivated to take action.
I was honestly tired of calling and trying to haggle a better rate. I was also tired of watching my kids watch TV. They are fairly active, but more than I care to admit, I would find myself having to turn it off in order to get them to do something more active. I also was guilty of zoning out instead of going to bed myself, a habit that I was having a hard time shaking. Plus, when I did want to watch TV, as luck would have it, most of what I wanted to watch was not on at that time, anyway. And I did not want to invest in a DVR and the related service fees on top of what I was already paying.
We have now been without the cable for more than a month now (just basic and our internet, back to $55). The TV has been off more than usual – a nice turn of events. In addition, our Netflix is getting more use and the kids have found some really good, new to them, shows to watch.
So far, so good.
I know some of you don’t have all those cable channels – any thoughts on how it works for your family? Or, maybe (and I pass no judgement) you have thought about it, but just aren’t ready? What holds you back?
I sometimes wonder if we could do without cable. Mostly what we watch is the local channels & PBS anyways. I am not sure I want to try to convince DH to drop cable, because it is the only way we can get HD channels. And I think he would laugh at me if I told him I wanted to do away with HD channels during football season.
Yeah, it can be a tough sell!
My brother canceled cable several years ago. He was rarely home so he couldn’t justify the expense (even basic). He’s in the computer industry so he has a lot of techy stuff at his home. He has cable internet paid by his company because he works from home and has to have cable internet to connect to their network. So what he did is hooked up a computer server and a whole bunch of other equipment to his TV and he got a cheap Netflix subscription. So he watches all kinds of movies and DVD’s of his favorite shows through Netflix through their streaming video. Since he has the internet connected to it, he also watches shows through Hulu and other websites. He has a master antenna on top of his house (installed back in the 70s when the townhouse development was built) and so he can get our local channels that way. He pretty much can watch whatever he wants, although he doesn’t get to see certain shows that are on cable networks that aren’t rebroadcast on the internet.
Yeah, we have some of those things, but not all, I am not that technical, unfortunately. My company reimburses my internet, too, so we really only pay $10 out of pocket – a nice perk.
We got rid of our basic cable because they raised the price a few bucks AND took 3 channels away. We also downgraded our Netflix to streaming instant only since they double their price. We now have internet “lite” for 19.99 and Netflix instant streaming for 7.99 and head to our local library for dvds. We have no trouble finding enough to watch when we want to and it’s a great way to catch up on missed episodes of tv that we’ve missed. Don’t miss either that we dropped and the lowered bills can’t be beat!
So you traded letting the kids zone in front of cable…to letting the kids zone in front of netflix? Write again when you actually do something that made a difference instead of diverting.
So you obviously did not read the whole post. “The TV has been off more than usual.” And when we do watch it, we are making better use of Netflix, which we were already paying for. The post is about cutting cable not the pros or cons of the kids watching TV. Comment again when you actually read the post.
I think Michelle does write about making a difference… the difference is that it is far less money to pay for Netflix and to watch less TV, then to zone out in front of expensive cable. It’s a perk that the family is now finding other things to do!
Good for you! Glad to hear how it works for you.
We bought a Roku and signed up for Hulu Plus ($7/month) which lets us watch our favorite network shows the day after they actually air. Totally fine for us!
We love this because we control what we watch and what our kids have access to. We have to consciously decide we are going to watch TV and choose what to watch, no mindless turning it on just to veg.
We also have Netflix and there are a TON of free channels available on the Roku as well. We love it. :)
We have never had full cable since we got married (10 years). Its “baby” cable so the local channels, TLC and Discovery really. When we got Netflix, we didn’t see a need to get cable. Now we just have to contend with the 8 year old watching Netflix way too much. We’ve had to institute no TV after 9pm so she can wind down to go to bed. She does play outside a lot with her girlfriends when she gets home from school but when they can’t play, its all Netflix. Sigh… I think its time to start earning some TV time!
Good for you! My hubby and I have been married for 8 years and have never had cable plus counting the last 2 years at college I didn’t have cable. It is easy for us b.c hubby is not into sports, we actually get more than a dozen channels with the digital converter, we have an old tv (so HD is not an issue), most the channels we watch are PBS and network, we watch TV shows we miss on Hulu for free, and rent Blockbuster express movies for free when there are codes. I can honestly say we have never missed it. Also we figure at $70/month for 10 years has saved us $8400. Not too shabby.
We don’t have cable in our area so we’ve had satellite TV until last month. We pay for high speed internet and purchased a Roku box and now stream free internet channels through the Roku. We have an $8 Netflix account that plays through the Roku and have more than enough to watch! It can be done and is a great way to save money.
They charged that much for cable only? I’m not sure if it’s cable/internet or just cable. I’m must surprised at the cost. I pay $120/month for cable/internet (highest speed)/phone (unlimited free long distance). I telecommute, so the internet/phone piece of it isn’t negotiable, but the cable piece of it doesn’t add much since it’s a package. I personally spend too much time watching baseball, but I’ve never been into TV otherwise. I do have to watch my kids to ensure they don’t watch too much, but with school in session and after-school activities, it’s not really an issue at this point. They simply don’t have time. I guess what holds me back from cutting the cable is that I don’t care for movies or sitcoms, so the TV that I do watch (primarily sports), I haven’t found available in other ways. Plus, I’m okay with the cost of our current service. If they tried to charge me $130-160/month for cable only, I would actually learn about other ways to watch what I care to watch. I’m guessing they are out there. :)
We’ve been without cable for over a year. We had the works, HD, DVR, etc etc and really? didn’t need the expense. We have basic cable and internet bundled (which is actually cheaper than just internet alone, go figure) and we pay just under $61 a month. We also have Netflix (streaming and 2 disks out at a time, which we are going to reduce). That, with the new Netflix increase, is only costing us $21 a month.
For us, that is enough to eliminate the DVD collection for streaming Bob the Builder or Veggie Tales and older TV shows that we have missed with the occasional DVD movie sent to our house. For us, that’s perfect. We could probably cut that further, but we are content with the cost vs the amount of entertainment we get from it.
Eliminating our satellite would be really tough for us. We live so far out in the country, that we can’t get the internet speeds needed for watching Hulu or Netflix. TV is a nice option for us for entertainment when the weather is bad… I think we could cut it, but it would be one of the last things to go.
I finally bit the bullet and canceled cable at the end of August. But I didn’t really cancel cable, because our HOA dues include basic cable. I told my neighbor I was considering cutting the premium channels (not the really good ones, just more decent ones) and she looked at me funny and said, “That’s all I’ve ever had and we have over 70 channels. I’ve never missed a popular show.” So the next day I turned the boxes in and am saving $30 a month. I switched my internet to the phone company when the cable company wouldn’t give me a new deal and saved a bunch doing that too, so now I’ll have no bill at all from the cable company. Cutting the premium cable is good, and it saves money, but I more just feel silly for paying for it for so long when it was really of no value to me!
Wow – thanks for all the great comments, everyone! I have never heard of Roku, so I might look into that. We do have EyeTV on our Mac, which is supposed to work through our Apple TV, but like I mentioned earlier, I am not the most technical person, so it is not working just yet.
It’s been about 2 years since we’ve dropped our basic cable so the only TV we watch are movies (owned, borrowed or rented from Family Video or Redbox). We can’t even get the local channels. I don’t miss it, but I cut my TV consumption years ago. My 3 kids don’t seem to miss it (much), but they sometimes watch a bit of TV when they are visiting their grandparents. My husband had always enjoyed TV, so he periodically talks about getting it back, but I’ve reminded him of the cost ($500+ a year) and the conversation ends. A couple of times a year he will go to his parents house to watch a sporting event (Superbowl) or he will watch a game at an area bowling alley.
So what are we doing instead of TV? Reading. I also think my husband sleeps better without TV too.
Great post! We are actually cancelling our Directv on Friday, we have been mulling it over for the last year. After reading a lot of articles, Set-Top Box comparisons and information about antennas we came to the conclusions that we could make do without “regular” television.
Leading up to Friday we purchased two wireless antennas for $45.00 each on Amazon, with them we get the basic cable channels, 3 different PBS stations, a bunch of other channels and the major networks come through in HD! We are going to purchase a Roku for the bedroom (using gift cards from Credit Card points) to watch Netflix streaming on and luckily we already have a blue-ray for the living room that streams Netflix.
So we will have the initial $90 investment for the antennas but after that we will save around $75 a month. We aren’t really giving anything up and gaining $900 a year. I think we will read more and hopefully make more thoughtful choices about what we spend our time watching. Please do another post in three months; it would be great to see if it you like it more or less then.
We cut the cable after a similar experience. We now save over $70 a month by not having cable. We do have a roku box that streams Netflix and hulu plus. It has been three months and I can honestly say I really don’t miss cable. We also have an outdoor antenna and we get about 20 channels from that. We have to keep the internet because of the blog (www.frugaldesertdwellers.com) and because of Netflix and hulu plus. One other thing is that we get to watch shows we would have never have heard of before. Like the IT Crowd from the BBC! Hilarious!
We have been without tv service for over four years. We’d have to pay for satellite tv where we live, and that’s just too much for us to pay. Our five year old son gets to watch a DVD for one hour before bedtime, and my husband and I have netflix to watch after the kiddo goes to bed.
I used to watch a lot of tv when I was younger, and I don’t really miss it at all.