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Old 01-21-2019, 03:57 PM   #1101
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We are to the point where the $$ we pay for cable TV with a premium package would be far better spent on bills, or increasing our savings. Over $200 a month to watch shows that can be found on the internet, or use a gaming system. About the only shows I watch anymore are some DISCOVERY Alaska shows, and football, with a few car shows in there.

My wife is the problem, she watches everything !
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Finally did it!
Old 01-21-2019, 06:08 PM   #1102
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Finally did it!

Spectrum announced that the price was going up in February, but when my husband called to bargain with them, they told him that he had to wait until the price went up before they could tell him if they could offer a "special deal". It finally pushed him over the edge.

We have 7 day introductory services with YouTube TV and DirecTV. They both provide the two cable channels and the one network channel that we watch (before The Good Place, we hadn't watched a network for years). YouTube costs less without HBO, but with HBO the services are the same price. With either one we'll save almost $100/month (we still don't know what the new price would have been!) They both stream well without glitches. YouTube offers more "cloud DVR" space which isn't that important with so many on-demand choices. We also have Netflix and Acorn subscriptions as well as access to the PBS streaming service via donation.
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Old 01-22-2019, 08:05 AM   #1103
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Originally Posted by timo2 View Post
and Satellite reception is more stable than internet.
Don't think so, not under heavy rain and snow conditions. My internet is way more reliable than sat could ever be.
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Old 01-22-2019, 08:07 AM   #1104
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Originally Posted by Sojourner View Post
I firmly believe that the viewing experience is smoother and better overall from a good satellite source than from even a very high speed Internet source.
My viewing of select Amazon/Netflix 4K HDR movies and shows would beg to differ with you. Rock solid and great picture/sound quality via Comcast HSI. I can't see how a sat feed would be any better.
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Old 01-22-2019, 08:23 AM   #1105
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My viewing of select Amazon/Netflix 4K HDR movies and shows would beg to differ with you. Rock solid and great picture/sound quality via Comcast HSI. I can't see how a sat feed would be any better.
I agree. If anything our PS Vue picture quality is better than Dish Network satellite was, but I'd judge them essentially equal. I think all the streaming services offer free trials (PS Vue, Sling, YouTube TV, Hulu Live, DirecTV Now, Netflix, etc.) - so I'd recommend for others to do a free trial and see for yourself. If you don't have a smart TV or streamer, maybe you can borrow a streamer (I have a Chromecast I don't use anymore, maybe your family/neighbors)? Just be sure your internet bandwidth is adequate, at least 10 Mbps for HD, though I wouldn't recommend less than 25 Mbps.
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Old 01-22-2019, 09:49 AM   #1106
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FWIW, here is our Home Theater setup:

Equipment:

3 TVs - 1) Vizio PQ65-F1 and 2) Visio D32F-F1
Yamaha RX-A3080 - Darbee Darblet DVP-5000
3-Roku Ultras and 1-nVidia Shield
SageTV v9 - HD300
4) SiliconDust HDHomeRun units (10 tuners)
3) rooftop antennas (2-UHF, 1-VHF/UHF)
DSL Internet

Subscriptions:

DirecTV NOW - Live a Little
HBO GO
SHOWTIME Anytime
PBS
Amazon Prime
HULU
Netflix
Acorn
CBS All Access

EDIT: I forgot some most important other things - PLEX, PlayOn, and the HDHomeRun App. I have the free version of HDHomeRun App but would immediately switch from DirecTV NOW to the pay version if things go south with DTVN.
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Old 01-22-2019, 11:26 AM   #1107
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I’m not going to provide as much detail but:
  • 3 TV’s, Samsung 55” 4K fam room, Sony Bravia 40” 1080p mstr bdr, Sony Bravia 36” 720p exercise room
  • 1 Roku Ultra, 2 Roku Streaming Stick +
  • PlayStation Vue Core Package ($49.99/mo)
  • PBS Passport ($5/mo, actually $60/yr)
  • about a dozen free streaming apps/channels - YouTube, NewsOn, Weather Nation, Pluto, Vudu, Tubi, etc.
  • XFinity Internet 25 mbps
That’s it, we’re saving so much over satellite (over $500/yr) I told DW we should get Netflix, HBO and/or Prime because she loves movies, but she is fine with the free Roku channel and movies on PS Vue.

I have an OTA antenna and it works well, but I don’t bother with it. DW was UNHAPPY with changing input sources (pick your battles).

We have a Blu-Ray player, but we rarely use it, maybe 2-3 times a year?

I also have a Chromecast I don’t use.

And I watch YouTube more than TV anyway, 40+ subscriptions.
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Old 01-22-2019, 11:29 AM   #1108
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RonBoyd View Post

Subscriptions:

DirecTV NOW - Live a Little
HBO GO
SHOWTIME Anytime
PBS
Amazon Prime
HULU
Netflix
Acorn
CBS All Access
What's that total every month?
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Old 01-22-2019, 11:44 AM   #1109
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Originally Posted by REWahoo View Post
What's that total every month?
DTVN/HBO/Showtime = $23.84
PBS = 5.00
Prime = $10.27 (if assigning the total to TV)
HULU = $5.99
Netflix = $14.50
Acorn - $4.99
CBS = $5.99

Total = $70.58

(Note: I am adding a couple things to my earlier post.)
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Old 01-22-2019, 11:47 AM   #1110
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RonBoyd View Post
FWIW, here is our Home Theater setup:

Subscriptions:

1. DirecTV NOW - Live a Little
2. HBO GO
3.SHOWTIME Anytime
4. PBS
5.Amazon Prime
6. HULU
7.Netflix
8.Acorn
9.CBS All Access
Quote:
Originally Posted by REWahoo View Post
What's that total every month?
9?

note: all numbers in RonBoyd's quote were placed by redduck
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Old 01-22-2019, 11:51 AM   #1111
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9?

note: all numbers in RonBoyd's quote were placed by redduck

I am not sure of the question but DTVN/HBO/Showtime are on a combined invoice. (I got a really good deal for being one of the first DTVN subscribers and was part of the BETA team.)
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Old 01-22-2019, 11:55 AM   #1112
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When listing services, shouldn't you be including the cost of internet? I'm thinking that to get a true comparison of cord cutting to satellite or cable, which do not necessarily need internet to function.
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Old 01-22-2019, 12:04 PM   #1113
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My viewing of select Amazon/Netflix 4K HDR movies and shows would beg to differ with you. Rock solid and great picture/sound quality via Comcast HSI. I can't see how a sat feed would be any better.
Not sure if you read the details of my post that you quoted, but I'm referring to video stuttering and what appear to be skipped frames. I see this routinely on Netflix, even when watching on a latest-gen Roku device with a 200 Mbps Internet feed. I never see this type of stuttering or skipped frames when watching something from my DirecTV DVR. I've noticed it often enough, in multiple and varied environments, to conclude that it's somehow fundamental to the streaming video technologies/networks/etc. But I'm certainly open to other explanations. Just reporting what I've directly observed. And I should also add that it's a minor enough annoyance that it probably wouldn't be enough to keep me from switching from satellite TV to Internet streaming if—all other things being roughly equal—the price differential gets large enough.
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Old 01-22-2019, 12:04 PM   #1114
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I am not sure of the question but DTVN/HBO/Showtime are on a combined invoice. (I got a really good deal for being one of the first DTVN subscribers and was part of the BETA team.)
Oh, I was just a bit unsure of my counting ability. Has nothing to do with how you presented. Sorry for the confusion.
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Old 01-22-2019, 12:06 PM   #1115
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When listing services, shouldn't you be including the cost of internet? I'm thinking that to get a true comparison of cord cutting to satellite or cable, which do not necessarily need internet to function.
Yes, that is correct... in a perfect world. However, I am unsure how to separate out the non-TV usage of my Internet usage -- a guess would be about 10%. This is the same problem I have with Amazon Prime. We use the streaming service maybe every month or so. On the other hand, I spend 10's of thousands of dollars for the two day delivery service.

Additionally, in both cases, I had the service before needing to stream so it was more a "get more use" than "add a cost" situation.

Anyway, if you can suggest a way to get an accurate accounting, I would be appreciative.
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Old 01-22-2019, 12:07 PM   #1116
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Oh, I was just a bit unsure of my counting ability. Has nothing to do with how you presented. Sorry for the confusion.
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"In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice. But, in practice, there is." ~(perhaps by) Yogi Berra
"Those who have knowledge, don't predict. Those who predict, don't have knowledge."~ Lau tzu
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Old 01-22-2019, 12:09 PM   #1117
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When listing services, shouldn't you be including the cost of internet? I'm thinking that to get a true comparison of cord cutting to satellite or cable, which do not necessarily need internet to function.
We’ve had this debate before and it’s a fair question, but I don’t think you can assume internet is part of the cost of streaming. I know advocates for cable and satellite always add internet costs to make themselves look closer to competitive (they still aren’t IME), but it’s not that simple.

I don’t include it because we’d have internet access regardless. For all the years we had cable and then satellite we also had internet access. We did not have to upgrade our internet bandwidth for streaming, the difference might be a legit cost of streaming. So it’s truly not an added cost for us.
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Old 01-22-2019, 12:10 PM   #1118
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I don’t include it because we’d have internet access regardless. For all the years we had cable and then satellite we also had internet access.
Yep, same here.
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Old 01-22-2019, 12:12 PM   #1119
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When listing services, shouldn't you be including the cost of internet? I'm thinking that to get a true comparison of cord cutting to satellite or cable, which do not necessarily need internet to function.
No, the Internet costs should not be included unless you are didn't previously have a high speed Internet connection and are subscribing to a new one in order to cut the cable/satellite cord. But most people already have HSI, regardless of their TV service provider, so it's a fixed cost. If you need to upgrade to a higher Internet speed just so you can get reliable streaming TV service, then of course the incremental cost to upgrade should be included when comparing it to cable/sat.
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Old 01-22-2019, 12:15 PM   #1120
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Not sure if you read the details of my post that you quoted, but I'm referring to video stuttering and what appear to be skipped frames. I see this routinely on Netflix, even when watching on a latest-gen Roku device with a 200 Mbps Internet feed.
I'm not a Netflix subscriber but haven't seen what you describe (video stuttering/skipped frames) when streaming Amazon Prime, which we do almost every day.
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