TV options

[Judahjudah]

I need to stop paying Comcast $200/month. We mostly watch local news, PBS, MSNBC, and my husband likes Cubs baseball, mostly on MLB. We also like movies and detective series, especially the English ones. I sure would appreciate any recommendations on how to get these programs more cheaply. I'm no techie, so please keep it simple. Thanks.

Jude Mayer
Sereno Del Mar

[MikeH]

You should talk to the people at Sonic Internet and ask them if or how you could get what you want by streaming over the internet. Who is your current internet provider? Any video you can stream over the internet you can just as easily watch on you TV with some simple equipment. I think the Sonic internet people would help you by explaining how this can work. I think this is where things like Roku boxes come it.

For example, there is CBS news live stream 24 hours everyday, and KRON4 local San Francisco news streams live over the internet every morning and evening, but only streams while it is live over the air. I watch that sometimes.

https://www.cbsnews.com/live/ CBS News live stream

https://www.kron4.com/watch-kron-4-newscasts KRON4 news live when scheduled


I have an antenna and it will not give you what you want. In fact, since the upgrade from analog to digital broadcast it has become much more difficult for me to get many local ( San Francisco ) broadcast stations. PBS KRCB Channel 22 is extremely easy to get, as well as Channel 36 which gives me re-broadcasts of channel 2 KTVU news and programming. I also get a few other off beat stations. But regular ones like channel 7 KGO ABC local SF station comes in most of the time, but not always. Same for Ch 5 KPIX-CBS and Ch 11 KNTV-NBC and others. Not reliable reception, which means it is essentially worthless. You could start watching a baseball game, and part way through lose the signal, screen goes blank!

[Judahjudah]

You should talk to the people at Sonic Internet and ask them if or how you could get what you want by streaming over the internet. ...

Thanks, Mike. I'm with Comcast now.

[LaNessaLee]

Just get internet service.. then subscribe to DirectTVnow it’s online access to the same programs you get with the direct tv dish.
I think it’s $14.99 per month. I watch on my lap top but if you get a fire stick thingy you can watch thru you regular tv

[pdfender]

We have Comcast in a bundle (internet and t.v. and landline) and pay about $155/month. We only watch MSNBC, and some local channels. Call them and tell them you want a good rate.

[podfish]

I need to stop paying Comcast $200/month. I'm pretty techy, and I haven't been able to use online-only TV because it's too much effort. Maybe someone who subscribes to Hulu or one of the other networks will say something different, but I don't want to learn about all the various ones. For example, you'd need to either add MLB network to your subscriptions or find some online source of WGN just to get the Cubbies. Plus, my network speed is an issue.
$200 is a lot, though. Have you looked at Dish or DirectTV satellite? I bet for under $100 you'd get most of what you want. They also have a single-source for sales and tech support, which you won't find if you try to put together internet sources. I suspect you're using Comcast for internet, though, so you'll either have to keep paying them for that, or check into satellite internet.

[MikeH]

Comcast has been advertising $35 internet plus $35 TV if you purchase both with a 2 year contract. That would be $70, plus equipment rental of about $20/month plus tax for 2 years if you commit to a 2 year contract, but that is for NEW CUSTOMERS ONLY. So obviously they are playing games with pricing, trying to hook people, then jack up their rates. It's a shame.

https://www.cablealternatives.com/

[Judahjudah]

Just get internet service.. then subscribe to DirectTVnow it’s online access to the same programs you get with the direct tv dish.
I think it’s $14.99 per month. I watch on my lap top but if you get a fire stick thingy you can watch thru you regular tv


Thanks, LaNessa, that sounds like a good option.

[Barry]

Here's a good roundup of live TV services offerred over the internet:

The best live TV streaming services for cord-cutters in 2018 (https://clark.com/technology/tvsatellite-cable/best-live-tv-streaming-plans-deals-2018/)
Mike Timmermann - August 31, 2018

I get by on Netflix, Youtube, Prime, and Apple TV.

[Judahjudah]

...Have you looked at Dish or DirectTV satellite?...
Thanks. I think I will.

[Judahjudah]

...Have you looked at Dish or DirectTV satellite? ...
Thanks. I was going to check out DirecTVNOW. MLB would be $25/year, not bad. I do get internet through Comcast. Lots to figure.

[wisewomn]

You might want to check out Acorn TV. They show only British programs and offer a free trial. I think the service is less than $10/month. <cite class="UdQCqe" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 33); font-style: normal; display: inline-block; max-width: 558px; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap; vertical-align: bottom; font-family: Roboto, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">signup.acorn.tv/freetrial</cite>‎

[MikeH]

If you cancel the cable TV, then you may also want to switch your internet from Comcast to Sonic.

You would need to compare speeds and price. The speed for Sonic internet depends on your location. But the price should be less. So it would depend on what speed they can offer you.

Sonic is about $40, plus $15 equipment rental for the router with wifi, plus $2 tax for a total of $57. But that is guaranteed for only the first year, and can go up after that. But still should be cheaper.

https://www.sonic.com/availability? Click on this link, type in your address, see what speed they offer you.

Here is the speed and price they offer me:

Internet + Home Phone
Your internet speed:
20 MbpsYour price:$40/MO
Regular price: $50.00/mo
Get your first month of Sonic service free! Excludes taxes and fees.

[AJL]

If someone shares their xfinity comcast passcode, you can probably watch every thing they subscribe to through any internet connection on any machine. There is probably a limit to how many simultaneous logins you can have though. Maybe it's 5?

[Judahjudah]

Here's a good roundup of live TV services offerred over the internet:

The best live TV streaming services for cord-cutters in 2018 (https://clark.com/technology/tvsatellite-cable/best-live-tv-streaming-plans-deals-2018/)
Mike Timmermann - August 31, 2018

I get by on Netflix, Youtube, Prime, and Apple TV.


Thanks. Good information.

[Judahjudah]

If you cancel the cable TV, then you may also want to switch your internet from Comcast to Sonic....
Sonic isnt available able where I live. Too bad.

[Judahjudah]

You might want to check out Acorn TV. They show only British programs and offer a free trial. I think the service is less than $10/month. <cite class="UdQCqe" style="color: rgb(0, 102, 33); font-style: normal; display: inline-block; max-width: 558px; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap; vertical-align: bottom; font-family: Roboto, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">signup.acorn.tv/freetrial</cite>‎


Thanks. I'm aware of Acorn. They've alerted me to many good series.

[Lorrie]

There is a thing called "FireStick" that you can get at Target or order on line : Amazon
You need internet, but everything is free and you can add channels and/or apps
I'm loving mine!

I found that a simple antenna worked well to get most basic cable channels..try it. They aren't that expensive (one time purchase)

[ChefJayTay]

Shhhhh! Don't tell people about KODI.

[Judahjudah]

Thanks, Lorrie, I'll check into FireStick. Jude