Congrats cutting the TV cord, internet next?

[QuarterMillionMan]

I pay $70 a month on internet service (in addition to $70 a month on TV service). I'm thinking of cancelling my internet service and using the hotspot on my iPhone for $10 a month for 2 GB of data which may not be enough but if needed I can add more data. I'll be able to connect my laptop to the iPhone hotspot but for my desktop I'll need to install a pci express wireless adapter. Has anyone else cancelled their internet service? Should I cancel my internet I will be losing the use of a router which runs my magicjack phone (and fax) and slingbox which uses the router to display my live TV anywhere which I will miss the most but the cost savings outweighs the capability of watching TV everywhere.

[rennigade]

Why not just get the bare bones internet speed? Would be a lot cheaper than $70.

[feh]

Why not just get the bare bones internet speed? Would be a lot cheaper than $70.

+1

We stream some television programming, so we need the bandwidth of cable internet. If we didn't need the bandwidth, we'd get DSL (3 Mb) for $20-30 per month. I'd prefer that over using a phone hot spot.

[bjl584]

I think having reliable internet is almost a necessity in today's world.

I'd shop around for better rates or cut back the speed to lower the bill, but unless I was hurting for money I probably wouldn't drop it and rely on my I phone.

[rennigade]

+1

We stream some television programming, so we need the bandwidth of cable internet. If we didn't need the bandwidth, we'd get DSL (3 Mb) for $20-30 per month. I'd prefer that over using a phone hot spot.

I currently have a 3mb line. Ive tried streaming once...it was a disaster.

[Atretes1]

I cut the cable cord several months ago. My bare bones internet service is $34.00 for 5mb. I am keeping that to be able to stream what I watch from the net. Plus I do to much on the internet and my phone speed would not be fast enough.

[disneysteve]

We were just talking about cutting back to limited basic cable - basically the local channels and a few others. I think that goes for about $12/month. We would absolutely keep internet. No way we would give that up. But we really don't need 200 cable channels since almost everything can be viewed online. You might have to wait a day after it airs but who cares? We rarely watch anything when it actually airs anyway.

[dawnwes]

Internet for us is a necessity. My husband often works from home and has to use internet the entire time.

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

Why not just go full-on Amish and really save money?

[JoeP]

Internet for us is a necessity. My husband often works from home and has to use internet the entire time.

We have a similar situation.

Antenna for about 40 channels, and broadband/roku for all other entertainment. We also use Pandora free (mute the commercials) for radio that gives us far more variety and better reception than a clunky FM radio.

[corn18]

I was looking into cutting the DTV cord, but then I figured out I needed antennae on each TV. Is there something I can get where I mount one antennae on the roof and then use the installed cable TV cables to feed 3 TV's?

[SavingSteve]

I was looking into cutting the DTV cord, but then I figured out I needed antennae on each TV. Is there something I can get where I mount one antennae on the roof and then use the installed cable TV cables to feed 3 TV's?

All you need is a TV antenna splitter made for this. if the signal is not strong enough you can use an amplifier.

At my old house I had a <$200 digital HDTV antenna made by Winegard on the roof and it was fantastic. They made smaller in room units too and some people also have them in the attic. The picture is actually better than cable because it's almost uncompressed video. The cable company uses compression schemes to cram 100's of channels down the line and it looks awful!

[JoeP]

Technically, there is no such thing as a "HDTV Antenna."

The most important part of antenna selection is getting the right one. Most channels moved out of the VHF band and into the UHF band. The channel numbers used today on HDTV tuners are virtual, and likely map to UHF frequencies. TVFool.com can provide details when you plug in your zip code. So if you are like most locations, a UHF antenna will be the right choice.

I did my research about 4 years ago and bought a Channel Master 4228 UHF antenna, mounted it high outside my house, and have enjoyed tons of free HDTV. I did all my own installation, including grounding, cabling, splitting, etc. I can pick up channels almost 70 miles away.

BTW, the antenna I purchased is no longer made, and even Channel Master put the "HD" designation on the replacement model. Marketing

[tripods68]

I pay $70 a month on internet service (in addition to $70 a month on TV service). I'm thinking of cancelling my internet service and using the hotspot on my iPhone for $10 a month for 2 GB of data which may not be enough but if needed I can add more data. I'll be able to connect my laptop to the iPhone hotspot but for my desktop I'll need to install a pci express wireless adapter. Has anyone else cancelled their internet service? Should I cancel my internet I will be losing the use of a router which runs my magicjack phone (and fax) and slingbox which uses the router to display my live TV anywhere which I will miss the most but the cost savings outweighs the capability of watching TV everywhere.

I've considered this in the past if I was still single. However, with Netflix binging we do and my kids on youtube a lot, hot spot alone will not be sufficient.

I'd you do cut your internet, tell us the whole experiences of it.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

We had internet only for $50/month then got a bundle for $59/month for local channels got it for football. But seriously we were fine without cable but internet is impossible.

Without cable we used netflix and amazon prime to stream shows for the kids. We'd burn through gb insanely fast if we had to pay on our cell phones. It wouldn't be worth it. Everytime we travel using our data to stream videos we just burn through the gb. 10 gb in 2 weeks is easy when you don't have wifi and you have kids.

Plus now with DH studying at home it wouldn't make sense to watch videos online without internet. The local channels are nice, I can watch NBC and Fox on Roku like HULU.