VERY IMPORTANT POLL

[the_deep_magic]

So for this move, I'm considering dumping cable entirely, which would obviously save me money and allow me to get slightly faster internet.  The lowest price I can find in my area is $30/mo, and that's for the very basics and a 2-year contract.  I'm just curious, for people in the U.S. who have dropped cable in favor of getting their shows through

Comments

[theofenraven]

I had satellite for years and years but it was getting to expensive and I resented having to pay for shows that were loaded with commercials. Isn't the point of commercials to pay for the show? Why should I also pay? So I quit cold turkey last year. Haven't missed it.

I use Netflix and Amazon Prime (this one is redundant, but it saves me a lot of money on purchases and I always get free shipping). The few network shows I want to watch stream at the network site (and the commercials are far fewer!).

I will never pay for cable/satellite again.

[the_deep_magic]

Yeah, satellite's not really an option for where I'm living, and I don't think it would be any cheaper anyway. I'm thinking I'm going to try to go without cable.

[chibinecco]

I am uselessly "other" on both:

1. I haven't ever been without cable, but I find I'm constantly forgetting to set my shows up to record anyway, so end up downloading/streaming them no matter what. I'm planning to drop cable when I move as well. It's one more monthly charge I don't use enough to justify.

2. I've only heard bad things about Hulu Plus: that they only have the most recent episodes of crap series (none of the shows you'd actually want to watch.) Buffering problems. CONSTANT complaints about bandwidth.
HOWEVER, this is all word of mouth, and I cannot say anything from personal experience.

[the_deep_magic]

Yeah, I'd heard similar things about Hulu Plus -- bad selection made worse by recently pulling off a ton of popular shows -- which is why I wanted to ask. It's not THAT expensive, but I'm wondering if even $8 a month is worth it.

[fatty_fat]

i'm also just netflix/amazon plus.

but sometimes when i want to watch something on the BBC, i'll use a UK proxy and pull up BBC iplayer. i did this when the latest episodes of sherlock were coming out and i'll probably do it again when DW season 7 starts airing.

for specific shows, there are some private livejournal groups for downloads. :)

[the_deep_magic]

Yeah, I wouldn't get BBC America with the basic cable package anyway, so no Doctor Who or Sherlock for me. I might just have to go through... other means.

[plot_h0les]

Ok, so,I haven't had cable in three years. I can find ALMOST anything I want online. I have a Hulu plus subscription, and that allows me to stream most things through my wii to the tv, though certain shows will only work on a computer. Ilikemy Hulu plus subscription a lot! The only thing that bothers me, is that there is no way to get hbo or show time shows, and sometime bbc stuff, without having a cable subscription and the premium channels on top of that. I am pretty broke, and this works for me much better than cable. Hope you figure stuff out!

[the_deep_magic]

I don't keep up with any HBO or Showtime shows (if anything, I rent the DVDs later), so that's not a problem, though I would like to get BBC America -- but of course it doesn't come with the basic package. :P Stupid cable. I wish you could do an a la carte thing and pick (and only pay for) the channels you want. I don't need 12 ESPNs.

[zjofierose]

i hate cable, and the only thing i hate more than cable is paying for cable. hulu plus is fine, netflix streaming is getting better and better, but the thing that we got that has completely changed everything is apple tv. i could give a shit about brand names and electronics in general, but lemme tell you, that apple tv is one nifty little piece of chips. big, big fan.

[the_deep_magic]

I know absolutely nothing about Apple TV. I'll look into it.