Did You Cut the Cord?
By LindaOH
@LindaOHio (156276)
United States
May 22, 2022 8:56am CST
If you've kept up with my posts, you've read about my trials and tribulations with Spectrum and DISH TV.
Spectrum increased our rate for TV/Internet/Landline to $266. After complaining, they reduced it to $247. Still too much. Called DISH; and before hanging up on the rep that was so obnoxious, he quoted me a price of $208. Not very impressive.
@GreatMartin told me how he cut the cord; and I thought that I would ask all the members what they did since everyone will be different.
To let you know what kind of equipment we have: I have a Smart TV that is quite old. My husband has a new TV. Does it make it a Smart TV if he can view YouTube? We have a landline and a wireless internet connection. All are set up through cable at the moment. We also have Hulu and Discovery+ for streaming.
If you cut the cord, what did you do?
Thanks!
Photo Credit: Pixabay
31 people like this
31 responses
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
23 May 22
@NJChicaa How hard was it to install your Firestick?
2 people like this
@celticeagle (159058)
• Boise, Idaho
23 May 22
@LadyDuck ......That is bad. You don't seem like a TV addict like I am.
1 person likes this
@LadyDuck (458233)
• Switzerland
23 May 22
@celticeagle It is very different here in Switzerland, you pay $25 a month (increasing again) for a 75% of local shows (this is the law), garbage! Many are unsubscribing. When you pay you want at last to have the show in your native language.
1 person likes this
@vandana7 (98830)
• India
22 May 22
I wish I had an answer to this. All I can think of is, this is not gonna resolve the issues because the guy doesn't give a damn which channels you are watching and which you are not. Nor that you were out of house for the entire month and so did not watch cable TV.
3 people like this
@vandana7 (98830)
• India
22 May 22
@jayanth_77 When BJP came to power, I really believed it would be pay as per usage.
2 people like this
@jayanth_77 (7180)
• India
22 May 22
@vandana7 the cable guys have no way to check you were at home or not as probably they might be having over 1000 customers and its difficult to keep a watch on who is out of station and is not watching TV.
But pay as per usage is a good option similar to electric or water connection but they do charge a fixed monthly fee.
2 people like this
@jayanth_77 (7180)
• India
22 May 22
@vandana7 political parties can't do anything as its privately run
2 people like this
@mythociate (21437)
• Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
22 May 22
I don't manage my house's money, so I'm not sure how much things cost. And my setup ... the 'word' that comes to mind is "hodge-podge."
We have 3 TVs ... all 'Smart TVs' (I think).
Our main TV-network (if you can call it that) is AT&T U-Verse, mostly-because they bundle the 'TV' & phone & Internet. (I know it's "cable," but ... it's different, like a cable/wireless hybrid).
We also get Netflix somehow (either through our TVs or a deal with AT&T or ...)
I DO have an Amazon Firestick, but Amazon Prime ALSO works through our Smart TVs.
2 people like this
@mythociate (21437)
• Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
23 May 22
@LindaOHio I don't think so; I had my mother or sister do it, but I think all you had to do was 'plug it into the USB-port (on your TV ... and I think there's an adapter if your TV doesn't have a USB port)' & 'synchronized your TV to the FireStick remote' (I know "synchronize" makes it sound like a complicated technical thing, but it just means something like 'adjust the channel-settings on your TV to be compatible with the FireStick').
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
23 May 22
@mythociate Was the Firestick hard to install?
1 person likes this
@jayanth_77 (7180)
• India
22 May 22
@LindaOHio the cable operators increase their rates without notice. It's their habit because they are concerned with getting profits only.
I stopped watching TV on cable as mobile network and data charges are quiet cheap and very fast in India. So all the programs of your favourite channels can be watched for free using mobile which can be linked to smart TV.
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
23 May 22
@jayanth_77 That's good to know. Thank you for commenting.
@jayanth_77 (7180)
• India
22 May 22
@vandana7 you are from India. Great. Nowadays hardly anyone watches TV when everything is free online. I too have Tata Sky set top box which I stopped recharging altogether.
1 person likes this
@luisga814 (6913)
• Quezon City, Philippines
22 May 22
Cutting the cord is not that easy to decide. The amount is too high. Here in the Philippines, you'll get an unlimited internet with 50mbps, not that too fast, which I'm using right now but this is already enough for what I need with my TV, computers (4 computers), mobile phones. We only pay Php1699.00 or an equivalent of US$32.52.
4 people like this
@luisga814 (6913)
• Quezon City, Philippines
22 May 22
@jayanth_77 Wow. That's cheap. Is the 3 USD is monthly?
4 people like this
@jayanth_77 (7180)
• India
22 May 22
@luisga814 yes monthly prepaid mobile charge with unlimited outgoing calls nationally. Even lower charge available but data and days validity will be say 15 days, 21 days etc..
4 people like this
@luisga814 (6913)
• Quezon City, Philippines
22 May 22
@jayanth_77 Is the signal good?
4 people like this
@celticeagle (159058)
• Boise, Idaho
23 May 22
Sorry to hear of your plight. I also got a bill that was outrageous and I posted about it on here. I have Sparklight digital cable. I have two DVRs, used to have a landline but cut it out when they started charging $50 a month. I have the base and the next one up as far as the stations go. I was paying nearly $250. I read another member's post where she had called the company she had and they brought the amount down. I called mine and was able to do the same, will save about $50. For a year and then I was directed to call them back.
I hope you are able to find an alternative. Sorry, I don't know much about the type of tv and hook ups. I rely on my grandson to help me with those things.
1 person likes this
@celticeagle (159058)
• Boise, Idaho
31 May 22
@LindaOHio ........They may have us hooked but having some business ethics will take them a long way.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
31 May 22
@celticeagle Yes it would. DISH has almost 5,000 complaints on the Cleveland BBB site.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
23 May 22
The cable and satellite companies know that they have you hooked; so they can all charge what they want! Thank you for commenting.
1 person likes this
@FourWalls (62164)
• United States
22 May 22
I have T-Mobile for a phone carrier, and they give free MLB every year. Baseball is my main “live event” consumption.
I have Apple TV and a Samsung smart TV. Most of what I watch is You Tube; however, there are free apps like Stirr and Tubi that have TV shows and movies. Sky News and CBS News both have free apps for news (so you don’t have to pay, and they aren’t as biased as others).
You can subscribe to You Tube Premium (I think it’s $65 a month) for “cable-like” experiences, but I’d rather just watch the sun set in Galveston.
2 people like this
@FourWalls (62164)
• United States
23 May 22
@LindaOHio — I don’t know if I have that one marked. The Broadwave cams are generally good except when they swing them from one view to the next (instead of a gentle pan the way you get on Frenchy’s or the Deerfield Beach cam).
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
23 May 22
@FourWalls Frenchy's? I'm not familiar with that one.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
23 May 22
I understand. Thanks for the info. Do you watch Robbie's webcam in Islamorada? It's not as interesting now that they changed their camera view. You really used to be able to see the tarpon jump up to get the fish.
1 person likes this
@dgobucks226 (34369)
•
22 May 22
Depending on your viewing pleasure it is difficult to save. I've done some research on it and I do plan on cutting the cord when my current promotion ends. I am not concerned about watching a program live so doing this fits my viewing needs. I will just keep internet only and watch stuff on free tv apps like Tubi or Pluto. I do have a Netflix subscription which allows me to watch some other content. You might also check out Hulu which you can subscribe and cancel at any time. Their price is reasonable.
2 people like this
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
23 May 22
We currently have Hulu and Discovery+. Yes, once you start adding this and that and the other thing, it starts getting as expensive as cable.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
25 May 22
@dgobucks226 I have added a couple of those. I am looking at Philo - 60 channels for $25 and you can add movie channels for a fee.
1 person likes this
@dgobucks226 (34369)
•
25 May 22
@LindaOHio If you like old shows the free apps have some interesting programs. Create an account and that's it.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
6 Jun 22
You're right about the streaming services. They figure they've got 'ya just like the cable and satellite companies.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
7 Jun 22
@porwest Paramount+ is now fishing for customers with all the exclusive programming they are offering. We have Discovery+; and I think that's the best bargain for streaming TV shows especially. There are programs from over 10 networks.
1 person likes this
@porwest (78761)
• United States
6 Jun 22
@LindaOHio Yep. The more they clamor for customers the more they clamor for exclusive content to reel them in. It's a vicious cycle honestly.
1 person likes this
@MommyOfEli2013 (82010)
• Rupert, Idaho
23 May 22
We have Netflix and Hulu for our "cable". We use Pluto TV sometimes too which is free and they have a lot of channels.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
23 May 22
@MommyOfEli2013 No, Philo is not free. 60 channels for $25 a month; and they are a lot of the channels that I watch.
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
23 May 22
We have Hulu and Discovery+. I looked at Pluto and Philo; and I like the channel lineup on Philo. Thanks for commenting.
@MommyOfEli2013 (82010)
• Rupert, Idaho
23 May 22
@LindaOHio Is Philo free? I've heard of it but never checked it out. Hulu is good, they get quite a bit that is on cable the next day
1 person likes this
@divalounger (5849)
• United States
18 Jun 22
We got a mohu indoor antenna and place that near a window for all the local channels. We also have an apple tv box and a Roku device. The apple box was a gift and I got the Roku device (which plugs into the back of the tv) for free with a three-month trial of Slingo tv. We didn't end up keeping Slingo, but I have kept the Roku.
We have the following subscriptions:
Netflix
Amazon Prime
Hulu
PBS (I make a $5 monthly contribution to them and they give is access to all their programming via "Passport"
We stream the following for free:
Tubi tv
Peacock
Brit Tv
The antenna ran us about $75 5 years ago
the rest costs me about $40 a month.
Cutting the cord was one of the best things I have done. I hope this helps.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
19 Jun 22
Thanks so much for the information! I have so much to consider with all the answers that I received!
1 person likes this
@rebelann (111189)
• El Paso, Texas
23 May 22
The last time I hooked into Discovery+ they didn't have enough shows I'd like for me to view even for that month so now I pretty much stick with Prime and sometimes select a channel if there's a show I want to see that isn't offered on Prime.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
23 May 22
Thank you for commenting. We have Hulu and Discovery+.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
24 May 22
@rebelann I have a ton of shows in my queue to watch on Discovery+ but I never get around to watching them. I should just cancel it.
1 person likes this
@Aquitaine24 (11653)
• San Jose, California
23 May 22
The rate is per month, right?
1 person likes this
@Aquitaine24 (11653)
• San Jose, California
24 May 22
@LindaOHio that sounds like a lot.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
23 May 22
Whether it's cable or satellite...they all charge too much.
1 person likes this
@aninditasen (15742)
• Raurkela, India
23 May 22
I cut the cord of my present broadband connection. For TV I have airtel dth and and wi fi device for internet and phone calls too. My land line phone is idle.
1 person likes this
@aninditasen (15742)
• Raurkela, India
24 May 22
@LindaOHio They are rather more expensive than compared to other companies. So they are loosing business in India and investing in other countries.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
23 May 22
The service is a lot less expensive in India. Thank you for your response.
1 person likes this
@arunima25 (85328)
• Bangalore, India
23 May 22
Mobile data and Internet charges are pretty cheap here in India. We have Amazon fire stick and Prime video that takes care of most of our entertainment needs. Anything from internet can be streamed on smart TV.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (156276)
• United States
23 May 22
How was the Amazon Firestick to install? Was it difficult?
1 person likes this
@arunima25 (85328)
• Bangalore, India
24 May 22
@LindaOHio No, it was not. My husband did it on his own. I am not so updated with technology. My husband and elder daughter are tech savvy and they take care of such stuffs around the house 
1 person likes this
