Update on Cord Cutting (Cable TV) - 2021 version

Downloaded the Peacock Channel for my Roku. I have the free version. Much on-demand content. Yes, there are ads but not many.

Personal Disclosure: DW and I have Prime Video, Netflix, a Tablo OTA DVR and for a limited time Britbox at about $4 a month. And a few freebies. I get my 10 minutes of live CNBC in the morning. Can't find any thing more to watch on Hoopla.
 
Z3Dreamer said:
Since no one replied "Yes" on AirTV or AirTV2, I have an alternate strategy. Tablo will do it.
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Thanks for the response. The article discussing this streaming option says this about using Tablo:

Tablo’s streaming device support is narrower, and you must pair your devices on the host’s Wi-Fi network before taking them elsewhere. If you delete the Tablo app, or if the DVR’s IP address changes and a reboot doesn’t restore the connection, you’ll need to bring your streaming device back and pair it all over again.
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I had dismissed using it for that reason and was (and still am) seeking input from anyone who has experience using an AirTV device to stream to a remote location.

Are you using a Tablo to stream local TV to a remote location? How well has it worked? Any issues with the pairing concerns mentioned above?
 
REWahoo said:
Thanks for the response. The article discussing this streaming option says this about using Tablo:



I had dismissed using it for that reason and was (and still am) seeking input from anyone who has experience using an AirTV device to stream to a remote location.

Are you using a Tablo to stream local TV to a remote location? How well has it worked? Any issues with the pairing concerns mentioned above?
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When I go on long vacations I take a Fire TV stick. It does the trick. No problem streaming local or previously recorded OTA. I have owned a Tablo for a long time. In the early years, there were some issues. None in the last few years. Setting up a reservation on my router for the Tablo's Mac ID helped. Also, some devices such as Roku's don't work remotely.
 
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I just started using T-mobile's 5G home internet for $50/month including all fees. So far so good. I get cable-like speeds in Plymouth MN. We had been using Comcast for much more money, but since we rarely watch things on live cable anymore, we decided to try this for internet and then just use an antenna for local channels.

It is working great for us. I'm going to cancel the cable in a week or so once we are comfortable that it is going to be consistent.
 
Hamlet said:
I just started using T-mobile's 5G home internet for $50/month including all fees. So far so good. I get cable-like speeds in Plymouth MN. We had been using Comcast for much more money, but since we rarely watch things on live cable anymore, we decided to try this for internet and then just use an antenna for local channels.

It is working great for us. I'm going to cancel the cable in a week or so once we are comfortable that it is going to be consistent.
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We have been using T-Mobile internet since January 2021 and it's been fine. Tonight it's really fast at 150Mbps. Can drop to 25 Mbps if we get hooked up to an LTE tower instead of a 5G tower. I sometimes have to call customer service for some assistance but I cut them a lot of slack because they are NOT the local cable company, Spectrum. Got 2 other neighbors to convert also.
 
Has anyone used the apps that help create a unified guide? I read something about them but haven't tried it. It would be nice to look at one guide for all things streaming.
 
With T-Mobile Magenta plan, you now get Netflix, Peacock and Paramount and Apple TV. Peacock and Paramount have ads. Gives me enough content, with Prime, to satisfy my need for TV.
 
ivinsfan said:
The winner here is Sling where you can slice and dice exactly the sports coverage you want and pay accordingly.
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Not a big sports TV fan, but it looks like with Sling's add-ons and extras (with Sling Blue), they give my DW every TV channel she wants all with one service. She doesn't watch anything on network TV these days, but if necessary, a cheap antenna works fine at our home.

We may be making the switch next month as our AT&T Uverse promo expires on 11/30, and there is no guarantee AT&T is going to make it attractive to remain with Uverse (meaning no more Uverse promos). I keep waiting for the hammer to come down on Uverse and force their AT&T customers to their TV streaming service.

Not looking forward to "training" my DW to deal with streaming services and new devices. She's not stupid, but she gets easily frustrated with her tablet and her smartphone. Heck, she gets annoyed with the Uverse DVR. Her and tech are not friends.
 
Chuckanut said:
I looked at Brit Box. Maybe I am wrong but it seems to offer a lot of old shows that are or were on PBS or other places. Is there much new stuff on it?
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You are wrong. There have, indeed, a long list of older shows available. However, they also have an even longer list of both new shows and new (weekly?) episodes of current series including those original to Britbox.

https://www.britbox.com/us/new

FWIW, thanks to Britbox (and Acorn) we watch very few U.S. Network shows anymore.
 
My neighbor just cut the cord with Xfinity Cable. He ends up paying almost the same now he added HBO, Netflix and who know how many other streaming services. Not to mention his his internet is now a lot slower.

Not saying the cable companies do not rip us off, they do, and loyalty is NOT rewarded.

We have found threatening to cut them is almost as good as cutting them off completely. I have managed to re-negotiate about 3 times so far to my satisfaction without any compromises. MMDV

One of my other neighbors changed the service to his wife's name then got the new subscriber deal later. So there are many ways to skin a cat.
 
RonBoyd said:
You are wrong. There have, indeed, a long list of older shows available. However, they also have an even longer list of both new shows and new (weekly?) episodes of current series including those original to Britbox.

https://www.britbox.com/us/new

FWIW, thanks to Britbox (and Acorn) we watch very few U.S. Network shows anymore.
Click to expand...

Thank you. I stand corrected.
:)
 
RonBoyd said:
FWIW, thanks to Britbox (and Acorn) we watch very few U.S. Network shows anymore.
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Neither do we. The best value in our opinion for $129.98 PER YEAR for both. There is simply no comparison on the quality and realism of the shows in the Genre that we like to watch when comparing to US equivalents. The New Dexter will be an exception, we are waiting till all episodes have aired, we never watch episodes week to week, we wait till they are all done. MMDV
 
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RonBoyd said:
FWIW, thanks to Britbox (and Acorn) we watch very few U.S. Network shows anymore.
Click to expand...

Ditto. In fact, I’m planning on ditching YTTV because we just don’t watch much of what’s on the cable channels. Due to a mountain in our backyard we can’t use an antenna so I’ll probably use Paramount+ to receive CBS, which has our preferred local news station and the few network shows we do watch. By cutting out YTTV at $70 per month, it frees up budget for other streaming services or even purchasing seasons of shows on iTunes or whatever.
 
So Hulu+Live is going up $5 to $69.99 for Christmas, but they're "giving us" more channels? Still much less than any comparable cable or satellite service for our 3TV household...

The price of Hulu + Live TV will increase on December 21, 2021 to $69.99/month. The price adjustment will be reflected in your first billing cycle on or after December 21. Your payment method on file will be charged the new price unless you cancel before the start of your first billing cycle on or after December 21.

With this change, you will also get access to Disney+ and ESPN+*. On Disney+, you can watch all the amazing content from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, and Nat Geo, plus The Simpsons. And ESPN+ has even more live sports and the award winning 30 For 30 library.
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Speaking of sports, it looks like under the new NFL TV contract (starting with the 2023 season), the networks will be able to stream all NFL games on their streaming services.

In a first for the league, Amazon acquired an all-digital rights package that will make it the exclusive home of Thursday Night Football. The tech giant is paying $1.2 billion per year for the rights, according to the source.

Amazon has aired NFL games on its Prime Video streaming service since 2017 as part of a tri-cast distribution deal. But starting in 2023, fans will need to sign up for a Prime membership if they want to watch the games.

CBS retained its rights to air American Football Conference (AFC) games on Sunday afternoons. All games will be broadcast on CBS and streamed live on the company's digital platform Paramount+.

ESPN held on to its Monday Night Football rights package, while ABC acquired the rights to televise two Super Bowls along with exclusive regular season games.

Streaming service ESPN+ will be able to simulcast all ESPN and ABC games. Subscribers of the service will also be treated to one International Series game each season.

Fox retained its National Football Conference (NFC) rights package of Sunday afternoon games and expanded its digital rights, including for its Tubi streaming platform.

NBC will remain the broadcast home of Sunday Night Football. All SNF games will also be available on steaming service Peacock.
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https://www.npr.org/2021/03/19/9791...s-deal-gives-fans-more-options-to-watch-games


Not only that, besides Amazon Prime for Thursday Night games, each streaming service will have a number of exclusive games, such as ESPN+ streaming one international game, NBC Peacock getting 6 exclusive games.

Amazon may get an exclusive Wild Card playoffs game if their viewership on the Thursday Night games reach certain levels.

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/...hings-to-know-including-flex-games-on-monday/

Will they get to stream SuperBowls too?


This could accelerate cord-cutting, though the streaming services with NFL games will probably raise prices.

Especially if they offer 4K and HDR streams of NFL games while cable and broadcast TV is stuck at 720p and 1080i.

NBA is also trying to negotiate a much bigger TV deal and it could also have streaming rights. NBA doesn't draw nearly the same ratings as the NFL but it's the second most popular team sport in the US and they will air far more national and regional TV games during a much longer season than the NFL. So NBA represents a huge bulk of TV sports content, especially after the NFL season ends around early February.
 
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ShokWaveRider said:
My neighbor just cut the cord with Xfinity Cable. He ends up paying almost the same now he added HBO, Netflix and who know how many other streaming services. Not to mention his his internet is now a lot slower.

Not saying the cable companies do not rip us off, they do, and loyalty is NOT rewarded.
Click to expand...

I have had Comcast for almost 20 years and always get the new customer HSI+cable promo when I re-up for another 2 years. So YMMV, but it is possible.

And it costs about the same as if I got HSI alone with some sort of cable replacement like YTTV (I'm paying $135/mo all-in for 600mb HSI+most of the non-premium channels). Comcast is subsidizing the cost of cable to the point where there is little incentive for me to switch, especially given that I have the best DVR setup you can get (Tivo+Minis) and I'm a big sports fan. But at some point either cablecard will die or they'll move most of the channels to IPTV, just a matter of time.
 
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Does anyone have Paramount + ?
Is it part of a package or do you pay for it separately?
One of my shows (Seal Team) recently jumped from CBS to Paramount +.
I see how not every show being available with each service is definitely a draw back or at least something to get used to.
 
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