Update on Cord Cutting (Cable TV) - 2021 version

[MissMolly]

I have been using Recast for quite some time too now - very likely on your recommendation, pb4youski. It is working very well for what I need. What I PARTICULARLY like is the fact that I have almost unlimided DVR storage. Is there such an option for Tablo too or are you stuck with recording just a few shows? I may have to chose between the channel guide and the unlimited DVR at some point

You record to an external drive. Ours is 2T, cost $70. We don't even come anywhere close to filling it up.

 

[euro]

You record to an external drive. Ours is 2T, cost $70. We don't even come anywhere close to filling it up.

Good to know - thanks!

 

[target2019]

I don't blame you. Those various paid streaming services can be expensive. Check out free Sling Freestream if you want free 10 hours of DVR service with a channel lineup like Pluto. I don't have the DVR perk with my existing account at this time, but supposedly it's added to new accounts. You can't get more DVR hours unless you go with their paid service.

Since then I shut off Disney for a small win.

Two weeks ago we finally dismissed basic Comcast cable from the home. I had that as a backstop for various reasons, but just never went to the coax...

We have so much available through free channels now, and a few services, that recording is not something I will chase after. It's really like cutting back weeds (subscriptions) and watching them take over again.

 

[aja8888]

Sick of Youtube commercials

I have signed up for a trial of Youtube TV to watch golf tournaments and NFL football later this year. ML Baseball does not seem to be on the lineup. I really don't watch news stations or reality shows, so I don't need 75% of the offering channels.

So far, I have been looking at some prerecorded shows on Youtube and I am thoroughly disappointed with the frequent intrusion of 3 + minute commercials for free S**t which are really comeons (like $1400 government checks each month?). Is this the best they can do?

I was a prior Comcast user when DW was alive. Comcast is not offered where I live now.

I have 1 GB fiber internet at this house so I can stream anything.

I tried Sling last Fall and that was not bad, but pretty limited. But this Youtube thing is off the charts with commercials that just pop right into your view at no pre timed interval.


I have a newer Google TV which has its own set of free channels, but no sports to speak of. The Google channel lineup looks similar to the Youtube one. But Google TV has no sports and no real live content.

I do have Amazon Prime, but rarely watch anything on it.

Anything better than this youtube TV service for sports and some live programing without breaking the bank? Maybe go back to Sling?

I certainly miss Comcast, but it was expensive.

The Youtube commercials are horrible.

 

[pb4uski]

suppose.tv might be helpful to you.

 

[aja8888]

suppose.tv might be helpful to you.

I'll have a look at it. Thanks.

 

[pb4uski]

We had YouTube TV for a few months and I liked it and thought it was a suitable competitor to cable TV. I understand that Hulu with live TV is similar.

 

[MichaelB]

There was a recent announcement by ESPN, Fox and Warner Bro Discovery. They are joining forces to offer a new sports programming option, and they say it will be available this fall. https://www.kbzk.com/espn-fox-and-w... Warner Bros.,golf, tennis and cycling events.

ESPN, FOX and Warner Bros. Discovery plan to combine their sports offerings into a new streaming package that will be available in Fall of 2024.

The new service will bring together coverage of the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, college football, the FIFA World Cup, and golf, tennis and cycling events.

It probably makes sense to avoid making a long term commitment to another option, at least until more details are available about this.

 

[aja8888]

There was a recent announcement by ESPN, Fox and Warner Bro Discovery. They are joining forces to offer a new sports programming option, and they say it will be available this fall. https://www.kbzk.com/espn-fox-and-w... Warner Bros.,golf, tennis and cycling events.


It probably makes sense to avoid making a long term commitment to another option, at least until more details are available about this.

Thanks, it will be great to have all these sports channels in one service.

 

[target2019]

I have signed up for a trial of Youtube TV to watch golf tournaments and NFL football later this year. ML Baseball does not seem to be on the lineup. I really don't watch news stations or reality shows, so I don't need 75% of the offering channels.

So far, I have been looking at some prerecorded shows on Youtube and I am thoroughly disappointed with the frequent intrusion of 3 + minute commercials for free S**t which are really comeons (like $1400 government checks each month?). Is this the best they can do?

I was a prior Comcast user when DW was alive. Comcast is not offered where I live now.

I have 1 GB fiber internet at this house so I can stream anything.

I tried Sling last Fall and that was not bad, but pretty limited. But this Youtube thing is off the charts with commercials that just pop right into your view at no pre timed interval.


I have a newer Google TV which has its own set of free channels, but no sports to speak of. The Google channel lineup looks similar to the Youtube one. But Google TV has no sports and no real live content.

I do have Amazon Prime, but rarely watch anything on it.

Anything better than this youtube TV service for sports and some live programing without breaking the bank? Maybe go back to Sling?

I certainly miss Comcast, but it was expensive.

The Youtube commercials are horrible.

We never had an expanded Comcast TV package. But my daughter and son-in-law are addicted to that. Their bill is enormous. So when we go there, I play with the remote and on-screen lineup.

Prime is worth it. Maybe 1 or 2 new movies a month.

Some old TV series worth watching. How about Northern Exposure and that earwig theme that gets embedded into every waking step you take? Did we really grow up with a square TV format?

 

[ychuck46]

.Anything better than this youtube TV service for sports and some live programing without breaking the bank? Maybe go back to Sling?

I did a lot of research on the sports angle over the last few years, since I wanted to watch football and basketball for two teams (TN and Syracuse) that were on two different broadcast channels (SEC and ACC). YouTube TV was the only one that let me watch all the games either live or taped, no matter if they were in our viewing area or not. They also gave me all the channels showing March Madness when others were lacking one or more. TBH, for sports there is no one better than YTTV for streaming. In my case I no longer watch the NBA or MLB so I'll be cancelling YTTV until the fall football season, after the last episode of Shogun next week on FX.

Now for NFL games you might want to consider an NFL+ subscription IF your team or teams are not in your viewing area. The reason why is that with NFL+ you are able to watch ANY game starting 5-15 minutes after it ends, not live. And the beauty of watching those taped games is that NFL+ strips out all the commercials on their replays! It cost about $75 for a whole year. Best of luck on your decision.

 

[aja8888]

I did a lot of research on the sports angle over the last few years, since I wanted to watch football and basketball for two teams (TN and Syracuse) that were on two different broadcast channels (SEC and ACC). YouTube TV was the only one that let me watch all the games either live or taped, no matter if they were in our viewing area or not. They also gave me all the channels showing March Madness when others were lacking one or more. TBH, for sports there is no one better than YTTV for streaming. In my case I no longer watch the NBA or MLB so I'll be cancelling YTTV until the fall football season, after the last episode of Shogun next week on FX.

Now for NFL games you might want to consider an NFL+ subscription IF your team or teams are not in your viewing area. The reason why is that with NFL+ you are able to watch ANY game starting 5-15 minutes after it ends, not live. And the beauty of watching those taped games is that NFL+ strips out all the commercials on their replays! It cost about $75 for a whole year. Best of luck on your decision.

Thanks! I have a lot of research to do. Last night, the Astros game was on TBS and YT TV blocked it in my area. This is what's so sucky about the streaming channels. Since I was on Comcast for 25 years, and sure i paid "up" for the service, it was pretty nice and just slightly more costly than an internet provider and streaming options. If I had it here, I would be on it now.

 

[GenXguy]

Prime is worth it. Maybe 1 or 2 new movies a month.

Some old TV series worth watching. How about Northern Exposure and that earwig theme that gets embedded into every waking step you take? Did we really grow up with a square TV format?

I haven't been able to justify Prime after having the trial more than once. I never watched any movies/shows on it because I have too much other content I can never get around to. Now Amazon is adding more commercials unless you pay extra. I limit my ordering to when I can hit the minimum free shipping level.

I mentioned Northern Exposure a few times in this thread a while back:
https://www.early-retirement.org/fo...ng-with-commercials-120382-7.html#post3050967

It was fair and provided some nostalgia, but I wasn't really interested in continuing and pulled the plug after two seasons.

Youtube TV sounds like something I would want anytime soon with the high cost and all those commercials. I can watch most of the sports (mostly NFL) I want to see with my OTA antenna via my home theater PC with tuner & DVR functionality, attached to HDTV.

 

[Trooper]

Thanks! I have a lot of research to do. Last night, the Astros game was on TBS and YT TV blocked it in my area. This is what's so sucky about the streaming channels. Since I was on Comcast for 25 years, and sure i paid "up" for the service, it was pretty nice and just slightly more costly than an internet provider and streaming options. If I had it here, I would be on it now.

Yeah watching the local teams will require more $. If you have cable or satellite you'll need an RSN (Regional Sports Network). If you stream even the MLB package won't give you local teams; you'll need a local package for that.

DirecTV Stream might be an option for you. It's the most pricey but has a wide breadth of stations. You'll still need to add an RSN for the Stros, tho.

 

[aja8888]

Yeah watching the local teams will require more $. If you have cable or satellite you'll need an RSN (Regional Sports Network). If you stream even the MLB package won't give you local teams; you'll need a local package for that.

DirecTV Stream might be an option for you. It's the most pricey but has a wide breadth of stations. You'll still need to add an RSN for the Stros, tho.

AT&T SW channel was within my Comcast plan that had the Astros. Although, they are getting their butts kicked recently and are hard to watch! Maybe I'll just go to a local sports bar with friends to watch them!

 

[camfused]

All this DVR talk here recently has got me thinking about my Tivo. I have had it for 5-6 years I guess, and I was thinking that we actually have not recorded anything on it in 1 or 2 years. This makes me wonder if I will even bother replacing it when it dies someday. These days, we rarely watch OTA stations, and don't record anything. We may want to catch something on PBS, but there is an app for that.

 

[YB88]

All this DVR talk here recently has got me thinking about my Tivo. I have had it for 5-6 years I guess, and I was thinking that we actually have not recorded anything on it in 1 or 2 years. This makes me wonder if I will even bother replacing it when it dies someday. These days, we rarely watch OTA stations, and don't record anything. We may want to catch something on PBS, but there is an app for that.

A good example of how we are all at least a little different.

My wife and I typically watch TV at dinner time, and almost always via the DVR. Local news sometimes, international news. Lately she has a trip planned and we've found a lot of content that relates to the country she'll travel to --- via local broadcast.

We like a Japanese science show that I can only get via local broadcast (at least I don't think it streams anywhere?). As a side-note (rant/ramble), it's sad that U.S. science programming tries too hard to be 'entertaining' (and for me just fails at that) while conveying less interesting science content as a result.

Anyway. Apart from a lot of old-but-good content, there are some interesting channels where I live (close to a large city admittedly), so between that and local news plus PBS content we find a lot to watch.

If I watch TV on my own or we both do later in the evening, that's more typically Netflix or occasionally some other Roku 'station'.
But to be clear, the DVR for me isn't because I can't or don't want to afford a streaming service, but because it reliably gives me some good stuff to watch that I either can't get elsewhere or would have to pay a whole lot for. My many-year-old Tivo with lifetime programming has turned out to be an excellent investment in that regard.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

We do not DVR anything.

However, our device supports real time TV, so if we want to see something again, or we missed something like a goal on Saturday Morning Premier League UK Football, I just rewind it and watch it again. Then I just carry on as if nothing had happened. It keeps track and does not jump forward, it just continues from where I left off.

 

[GenXguy]

We do not DVR anything.

However, our device supports real time TV, so if we want to see something again, or we missed something like a goal on Saturday Morning Premier League UK Football, I just rewind it and watch it again. Then I just carry on as if nothing had happened. It keeps track and does not jump forward, it just continues from where I left off.

I pretty much DVR everything I watch or OTA Live TV, but if I catch something in the middle during the broadcast, it works the same way where I can pause and rewind. I don't think I could handle watching NFL Football without time shifting with the DVR so I could skip over commercials, half time, and various other dead ball times.

 

[pb4uski]

+1 watch mostly recorded shows. We have the morning and evening news set to record every day so we can watch it when convenient for us and skip commercials, etc.

 

[Chuckanut]

If I watch TV on my own or we both do later in the evening, that's more typically Netflix or occasionally some other Roku 'station'.
But to be clear, the DVR for me isn't because I can't or don't want to afford a streaming service, but because it reliably gives me some good stuff to watch that I either can't get elsewhere or would have to pay a whole lot for. My many-year-old Tivo with lifetime programming has turned out to be an excellent investment in that regard.

Thanks to my ancient TiVo I can watch OTA shows when I have the time. And, I can FF through commercials.

I also record the news every evening in the event something significant to me has occurred. I keep two days worth of news, today’s current news and the news of yesterday. Everything else ages off.

 

[wmc1000]

Back in Nov. I did the cancel hulu to avoid the price increase and instead get the $2.99 for 6 mos. offer which let me continue with my no ads Disney+ add on for only $2.99.

Just had the last $5.98 per mo. charge go through which gave me until May 25th before it jumped to $10.98. I went into my hulu login and did the cancellation again and it gave me the option to continue for $2.99 per mo. for 6 months again.

Hit accept and it showed hulu for $2.99 and my Disney+ - no ads for an additional $2.99 - so all good again until next November!

 

[aja8888]

Dumped Youtube tv trial offer. Too much confusion on the channel selection process and most of Google TV content on my TV is free too. I'll stick with Prime and the free channels and watching the Astros is going to be out in a bar with friends.

 

[Qs Laptop]

Word of caution on renewing streaming services and using coupons.

I subscribed to Brit Box during a promotion in 2022 for $.99 a month. The usual price at the time was $6.99 a month (I think.) I put a tickler note in my calendar 11 months in the future to cancel Brit Box so I can cancel it, stopping it from auto-renewing and so I don't pay the $6.99 a month. When I went to cancel my subscription there was a coupon to extend my subscription for another year at $2.99 a month. The regular prices was $7.99 a month. I really enjoy Brit Box so I went for it. I used the coupon and renewed for another year, again putting a tickler in my calendar 11 months hence.

OK, now it's March 2024 and my subscription is coming up for renewal. Lo and behold, there is a renewal special. By using the coupon code SPRING I could once again renew for $2.99 a month. I figured OK, used the coupon and renewed.

A week or so later I'm looking at my checking account statement and I see an entry for Brit Box for $98.11. What?! I got on a chat with their support people and they told me the coupon SPRING was invalid because it was used in March 2023, the previous year. I asked them why that coupon was available to me and why it was presented as if it was a valid coupon. I was stonewalled and told to read the Terms of Service.

I then decided to cancel and get a pro-rated refund. I was told they would "review my request for cancellation." Dumbfounded, I asked them what that meant? Answer: "The outcome may vary depending on the criteria and expectations." I was again told to read the Terms of Service. Basically the TOS says that you can cancel your subscription any time up to the date of renewal but if it renews there will be no refunds.

Apparently, if I were to cancel my subscription I would not get a refund. So I got Brit Box for another year. I got a tickler in my calendar again for next time.

 

[GenXguy]

A week or so later I'm looking at my checking account statement and I see an entry for Brit Box for $98.11. What?! I got on a chat with their support people and they told me the coupon SPRING was invalid because it was used in March 2023, the previous year. I asked them why that coupon was available to me and why it was presented as if it was a valid coupon. I was stonewalled and told to read the Terms of Service.

Wow, I never heard of a site allowing you to use a coupon to make a purchase, and then later finding out you were charged the full price. Thanks for the warning, although I would never prescribe to that particular service.

Dumped Youtube tv trial offer. Too much confusion on the channel selection process and most of Google TV content on my TV is free too. I'll stick with Prime and the free channels and watching the Astros is going to be out in a bar with friends.

I don't blame you. It doesn't sound like it was providing you a very good experience for such a high monthly price.