preparing to cut the cable TV cord

[rfuerst911sc]

My wife said to me the other day that our cable TV/internet bill had increased to $250.00 a month ! We have AT&T Uverse 200 and while we have no complaints the price is crazy for what we actually watch. So today I decided to order an outdoor antenna. Did some internet searches and decided on this one. I'm going to mount it on the roof of my detached three car garage in the backyard and try it first on just the TV in the garage. If it works well and gives a decent amount of channels I can feed up to 8 TV's off of this one antenna so I can use the existing cable coax to feed the house TV's. Anyone using this antenna or a similar one ? I'm only 5 miles from Atlanta so I'm thinking I should be able to get a fair amount of free stations. I'm inching closer to cutting the cord.


Lava HD2605 | Lava 2605 | Lava Antenna HD2605 | HD2605 Antenna

[tabs]

End the tyranny of the cable and media providers...

[rwest]

I've been using Hulu Plus for a few months and am very happy- $7.99 a month, I could never imagine paying hundreds of dollars for cable.

[LeeH]

That seems like overkill for living in a metro area. I'd start with rabbit ears. Doesn't take much to pull in a lot of stations. I can pick up most of the Phoenix stations just by hooking up 3' worth of coax to the antenna input.

[fireant911]

rfuerst911sc,
We are currently in two homes. In one, we have basic cable and the other, which is way out in the country (where cable is not available), we use an antenna. We get more channels with the antenna (25) than we get with our basic cable (12). Take a look at the attached link (AntennaWeb - Address) and enter your address and you will get a good idea of the channels that you may get (we receive lots more than what this revealed but it is a starting point!). The selection on antenna is MUCH better than what we experience with cable PLUS it is free!!!

My neighbor went tested many antennas starting at the Walmart cheapest through the Walmart most expensive $99. The $99 version, by far, worked the best (Clearstream 2V-J3 - Walmart.com).

[rfuerst911sc]

Originally Posted by LeeH

That seems like overkill for living in a metro area. I'd start with rabbit ears. Doesn't take much to pull in a lot of stations. I can pick up most of the Phoenix stations just by hooking up 3' worth of coax to the antenna input.

I'm an overkill type of guy I already ordered it so rabbit ears are out of the equation.

[rfuerst911sc]

Originally Posted by rwest

I've been using Hulu Plus for a few months and am very happy- $7.99 a month, I could never imagine paying hundreds of dollars for cable.

I will look into Hulu plus thank you.

[RANDY P]

I haven't had cable in over a decade- won't pay for it.

At Mom's she had an antenna installed and digital reception is good.

Internet access for the must-watch...

rjp

[jyl]

I dropped cable TV about a year ago.

Use an indoor antenna ($40) for the few times I want to watch the networks, like for the Superbowl. Use Netflix ($10/mo), Hulu (same) and Amazon Prime for TV shows and movies. Use a VPN ($5) and Eurosport ($8) for the sports I care about. And of course I'm paying for internet. So it's not free but still a lot cheaper than cable TV. That said, if there are competing cable providers in your area, you can probably switch and get a 1-year introductory price.

[Arthropraxis]

Make sure you get a antenna that picks up UHF and VHF. I recently got one that only picks up one of the channels.
I have a fire stick or firebox on every TV with Netflix and Amazon Prime. I am going to get Hulu soon and cut cable. I did a test over the last couple of weeks and I did not miss cable. My kids may be a harder sell, but they will get over it.

[jyl]

My kids told me to get rid of cable. And to get them Hulu to go with Netflix.

Unless kids are still watching the Cartoon Network, they won't miss cable. I bet they are not big fans of CNN, HGTV, Speed, Fox, Discovery, etc.

[Rick Lee]

Cutting the cord is my New Year's resolution. I was very underwhelmed with the one month Netflix trial. I really need CNN and Fox. What non-cable solution will let me keep those?

[stomachmonkey]

Take a look at Sling TV as well.

[Arizona_928]

Newspaper? ^^

I don't have cable. Don't have time, nor the need.

[jyl]

Originally Posted by Rick Lee

Cutting the cord is my New Year's resolution. I was very underwhelmed with the one month Netflix trial. I really need CNN and Fox. What non-cable solution will let me keep those?

Sling TV might.

[Oracle]

Geez.. all those Hulu, Netflix, etc.. services you have to pay! (and shows are at least a season behind!)
I hear https://kodi.tv/ is the real deal for free.. and every possible tv show and movie in existence.. available to you..
Search and you shall find..

[GWN7]

I bought a android TV box 2 months ago. It's based on kodi. tv Oracle mentioned. You still need the internet from a provider but I no longer have a $125 cable TV bill every month. There is more TV on there than I will ever watch. The only thing I miss is the local news but you can get it on the net, just written not broadcast.

[aigel]

Never had cable. No TV ... Internet is getting pretty expensive too now - I think cable providers noticed the trend and are upping isp rates. Granted speeds are up but I used to get Internet for 20 bucks a month now it's 50 or 60 ...

I sometimes wonder how lower income families are even able to afford cable or dish TV???

G

[Porsche-O-Phile]

I've cut my telco expenses down to $52.99 a month. $45 a month for wireless on my iPhone (I use StraightTalk wireless which is $45 a month, no contracts, no B.S. - I bought the phone free and clear, unlocked direct from Apple, then put my own ST nano SIM in it). Then $7.99 a month for Netflix. Beyond that I use Apple TV for anything "on demand" that I happen to want to see, which isn't all that much. I probably watch a show a week if that and a a couple of movies a month (budget another $15-$25 a month or so give or take). I buy them all then I have them on iTunes whenever I want and no commercials. I have an antenna for "over the air" broadcasts but I really only use it for very occasional sporting events (world series, NFL playoffs once in a great while, stuff like that). I dislike the over-the-air broadcasts because of all the commercials - I value my time too much to sit there and be bombarded by pushy marketing efforts. No way. I can borrow all the movies I want from the local library, which has a fairly extensive DVD selection (great for kids stuff too). I also borrow their audio books a lot (currently working through Noam Chomsky's "Failed States").

I recently cut my ADSL too - I have a personal hotspot issued through work so I can work remotely or from home with unlimited data so I use that and tether my Apple TV, laptop and iPad to it. No need to pay for my own internet That saved another $49 a month. I can't fathom how people feel the need to pay hundreds of dollars a month to AT&T, Verizon, Comcast, Time Warner and all the rest - they all suck and the content is largely horrible and loaded with commercial B.S. Maybe you guys have time / patience for that but I sure don't! I want what I want when I want it and I want it clean and without a lot of B.S. and overhead cost. This system works very well for me. I could afford the "market rate" stuff but I figure why? What does it get me other than big bills? If I were paying for cable or satellite TV, a "standard" mobile phone text / voice / data plan, etc. and home internet, I'd easily be up over $200 a month, probably closer to $250. That's maybe $1,200-$2,400 a year in my pocket by simply not wanting to be ripped off and not watch commercials or waste my time rotting away in front of the idiot box. Heck, that'll pay for my hotel stay in Kauai for a week later this year, which I'd far rather spend the money on!

[KFC911]

I've tried several antennas over the years as I have one tower that's probably 30-40 miles away and a few stations (from the same tower) were iffy at times. All were amplified, inside. I've been using a $40 Radio Shack ('bout 12" square) that works great. IMO, 5 miles from Atlanta, any would probably suffice...no need to mount outside, or even in an attic...and no Bug's Bunny ears either .