How to Adult: How to ax cable, never look back
When I was little, I always scoffed at the kids who didn’t have cable. What do you MEAN you can’t watch Stick Stickly in the afternoon on Nickelodeon?! No "Salute Your Shorts?" "Hey Dude?!" NO DOUG FUNNIE?!
What is this world you live in and why is it happening?!
Clearly, I was an over-privileged brat, as we can all see, but it was only a brief foreshadowing to the TV junkie I would become in my mid-20s. Once college was over, evenings became filled with "New Girl," "Parenthood" and re-watching "Gilmore Girls" instead of sorority socials, club meetings and studying. As we can all see, I have a very riveting social life.
The point here is that I love my shows, and the idea of ditching cable and DVR sounded like a nightmare. I rejected the notion for years.
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I had friends who were doing it, and they all sang its praises, but I just couldn’t pull the trigger. I couldn’t cut the cord — and neither could my husband. He loves sports. Any sport, really, but especially football. A world without ESPN would be. a. tragedy.
But then one day we figured it out — a way to cut cable without missing out ... and since that glorious day, we've never looked back.
Here’s a step-by-step of how we did it and how you can too:
Step 1: Call up the cable company and cancel your subscription (if you’re not in a contract).
If you are in a contract, you’re just going to have to wait it out unless you want to pay a hefty fine.
FYI, canceling usually entails explaining away your life to some customer-service representative who is acting like you’re leaving him at the altar. No, Derek, I can’t keep doing this. I have to move on. We’re OVER. Goodbye. No, I don’t want a free upgrade to HBO, you tempting little devil, you. Resist.
Step 2: While you’re canceling your cable subscription, make sure your Internet service is top-tier.
We currently have Bright House Lightning 200 mbps (megabits per second) high-speed internet. It costs us about $55 a month. We negotiated that rate. Local tech guru Alex Rudloff told me I actually have a pretty sick deal for high-speed internet, but it's not the end-all be-all if you can't get this rate. He explains:
"The rule of thumb is five (mbps) per TV that will be watching HD video. Video is less about speed and more about bandwidth. So if you have a main TV and expect a kid to be watching Netflix elsewhere, you'd want 10 (mbps) down as a minimum (5+5), but likely a smidge more since cable companies advertise maximum numbers, not constant numbers"
Step 3: Subscribe to Hulu.
I’ve found that a majority of what I watch is actually on Hulu, and it has the most up-to-date episodes of shows currently on the air. The base plan for Hulu is $7.99 a month with commercials. The plan without commercials is $11.99. Personally, I like the plan with commercials because I can actually take a break from the show and grab a snack or go to the bathroom … or idk .,. pay attention to my kids for 2 minutes…
Step 4: Subscribe to Netflix.
Whatever you can’t get on Hulu you can get on Netflix. Netflix also has some super-addicting original shows you might enjoy. The basic Netflix steaming plan is $8 a month. Up that to $10 a month, if you want high-definition.
Step 5: Buy a high-definition antenna.
This is a one-time purchase, and it’s well worth it. HD antennas are usually flat, so they aren’t bulky like the old-fashioned ones. No, this isn’t grandma status; this is you being smart.
HD antennas usually work best close to windows or in attics. This will get you your basic stations, such as ABC, NBC, etc. Antennas range in price from $15 to $100, depending how far away the antenna can pick up stations. We paid $40 for ours on Amazon. Another perk to this is you'll get a bunch of rando Spanish channels, old-people shows (I just watched an episode of "The Merv Griffin Show") and Christian television. So if you're an evangelist, you're gonna love this.
Step 6: For the sports fans (or those who want stations like CNN or History), subscribe to Sling TV.
It’s $20 for the basic package and an extra $5 for the sports package, which includes ESPN. We also got a free Roku out of the deal. This is how we watch live sports that aren’t available on the antenna stations.
Personally, I could live without this, but my husband uses it regularly.
It also came in handy when I wanted to watch presidential debates hosted on CNN.
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Step 7: If you don’t have a Smart TV, you may need some sort of device that connects your TV to the Internet.
We have both the Amazon Fire TV Stick and Roku. The Roku seems to work faster for me, so I prefer that option.
The only downside is the batteries on the remote die really fast. I looked it up and it’s a common problem. Weird.
Fire TV Sticks come with a lot of in-app purchases. However, if you are an Amazon Prime member, you can stream all the Amazon Prime shows very easily on the Fire TV Stick. Fire TV Sticks are available for $40 on Amazon.Rokus range in price from $34 to more than $100 on Amazon, depending on which option you select.
Some Rokus have voice-activation, so those will be more expensive. We didn’t splurge on that … because … journalist salary.
XBOX and other gaming devices also can do the same thing for your. So if you’re a gamer, just download the app to your device.
Apple TV also is an option, but I don’t have experience with that.
Step 8: Make sure this is cost-effective
If you have a killer cable deal that includes Internet and all the fixins, weigh your options. At the end of the day, we pay about $88 a month for everything, including Internet. We share Hulu and Netflix with family plans, so we only pay for one of those, which keeps our cost down.
Considering we were paying more than $150 for cable, which only included ONE DVR, this was a no-brainer for us. Just make sure it's right for you.
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Contact Saggio at 321-242-3664, JSaggio@FloridaToday.com or follow @JessicaJSaggio on Twitter. Instagram: JessicaJSaggio Snapchat: JuhJuhJuh