need internet/cable/satellite suggestions

[tsagona]

So my cable bill keeps going up. We are now at $150 a month for internet and cable with programming just 1 level above basic cable. I have no DVR or movie channels. I do have 4 tvs and HD. I think $150 a month for nothing more than internet and cable is pretty high.

Really, is $150 just the going rate or could I do better with a different service provider? I had directv for years until they made me mad and I left them.

Are there options other than cable, directv, dish? DH watches all the college football games so I'm almost afraid to make any changes during football season, but I'm ready for a change.

What service do you use and are you happy with what you get for the price?

Thanks!

 

[Ann Marie]

we have verizon fios. internet, tv, and phone bundle. It is 124/month, including taxes. We have HD, 2 tvs, and DVR. Right now, we get movies package included for a year. I will probably cancel the movie channels once the free subscription is over. Don't think I ever even looked at them.

 

[PhyllisG]

We have TimeWarner Cable and pay $150 a month for internet, cable and phone. We have a DVR included in that price. I do not have HBO, or Showtime etc. Too expensive.

 

[kathryn]

A few months ago, I downgraded my cable from Basic + whatever-the-next-level-is to Basic only, and now pay only just under $30 a month.

For the last 6 months, I've just used my TV for watching workout DVD's, and I watch all the shows I want online, including HBO and Showtime shows. I find a show I want through www.sidereel.com , then usually choose Megavideo or Hulu to watch it ( I could never figure out how to find the shows I want directly on www.megavideo.com ).

I pay around $70 a year for unlimited access to Megavideo (otherwise, you can watch up to 70-74 minutes, then have to wait an hour to watch more), which averages out to about $6 a month. I prefer finding stuff on Megavideo, because there are no commercials, though even the sites with commercials (like Hulu) have less than half the amount as on TV. A 2-hour show is about 1 hour 40 minutes, while hour shows are around 42 minutes

 

[melagras]

A few months ago, I downgraded my cable from Basic + whatever-the-next-level-is to Basic only, and now pay only just under $30 a month.

For the last 6 months, I've just used my TV for watching workout DVD's, and I watch all the shows I want online, including HBO and Showtime shows. I find a show I want through www.sidereel.com , then usually choose Megavideo or Hulu to watch it ( I could never figure out how to find the shows I want directly on www.megavideo.com ).

I pay around $70 a year for unlimited access to Megavideo (otherwise, you can watch up to 70-74 minutes, then have to wait an hour to watch more), which averages out to about $6 a month. I prefer finding stuff on Megavideo, because there are no commercials, though even the sites with commercials (like Hulu) have less than half the amount as on TV. A 2-hour show is about 1 hour 40 minutes, while hour shows are around 42 minutes

I need to check out Megavideo. I've never heard of it.

 

[JT]

I have Direct TV, I love it because of all the channels I get even the ESPN ones for college football. For movies, I use like a pay per view from DirecTV Cinema. Most of my channels are HD. $70 per month with one DVR. For cable, there is Charter and Comcast here so I have the better of the deal. I hear Time-Warner is good.

 

[LastTango]

I switched from Cox Cable to Direct TV back in May. DTV was having a very good deal for a two year period. I was paying almost $80 a month for just cable with Cox (basic extended, no movie channels), and my bill is around $50 with DTV, and that is HD in both rooms and a whole-house dvr, which I never had with Cox. It will go up a little in the second year, but it's still less than Cox. After that, I'll reevaluate and see what happens. We have no competition here for Cox Cable.

 

[Pedmom]

For the last 6 months, I've just used my TV for watching workout DVD's, and I watch all the shows I want online, including HBO and Showtime shows. I find a show I want through www.sidereel.com , then usually choose Megavideo or Hulu to watch it ( I could never figure out how to find the shows I want directly on www.megavideo.com ).

Kathryn, your post caught my eye because I, too, watch a lot of shows online. I'm afraid bad things are coming though. Just like how now I can't fast forward a lot of the primetime shows on the Time Warner free On Demand, now TNT is starting to hold providers (and thus the watchers) hostage. I can no longer watch anything on TNT's website because Time Warner has not partnered (ie paid up) with them to allow it. They now have this stupid thing where you have to "unlock" an episode by entering your cable subscriber information. So basically they are trying to make sure that people watching online are paying for it somehow. They were also the first to disable fast forward on the On Demand as well. Pretty soon I won't watch any current tv shows if this keeps up.

 

[Dela]

we have verizon fios. internet, tv, and phone bundle. It is 124/month, including taxes. We have HD, 2 tvs, and DVR. Right now, we get movies package included for a year. I will probably cancel the movie channels once the free subscription is over. Don't think I ever even looked at them.

Do you know what your monthly bill will go up to after the first year? (Assuming you were to keep the movie channels)

I have the same bundle with a different provider, 4 tvs, only 1 with DVR, 3 tvs will all the pay channels and HD (hbo, showtime, starz, extra sports package), and 1 tv I'm not even sure if that's HD, but the others are. $207/month.

I'm not even sure fios is available to us yet, but I heard it's coming and I keep getting stuff in the mail, and you are paying almost $100 less than me a month!