Amethyst Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 I am currently paying $299 for cell phones each month. We have 6 phones in our house (2 of them smartphones) because we decided to go without a landline when we moved here. We decided my youngest needed a cell phone of her own if we were going to be without a landline because occasionally she is home alone. I pay $141 a month for cable and internet service. It drives me crazy because I hardly watch TV at all. But I want a few certain channels (mostly for kids) and we need a certain plan to keep the DVR. Ugh! These luxuries that we come to rely on! (Also, I just moved Netflix down to 1 DVD out at a time with unlimited streaming. Whoopdeedoo. That will save me $4/mo) So, what I'd like to know is: have any of you found cheap creative ways to get your internet/TV/phone/cell phone services? I was just on the phone with our internet/TV provider who was trying to convince me to do a landline too and I'll actually spend less than without it. But that would only allow me to get rid of one of the cell phones really (dd12) since the others will still want texting capabilities. And of course I'm probably in a two year contract and won't be able to get rid of the cell phone any way. Ugh! Any advice? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 It depends on how much you are willing to give up. If you are asking for exactly what you have but for less, you won't get it, but if you are willing to change your habits, you can get by. Here is what we currently have Internet- $44 Netflix- $8 Hulu+- $8 Antenna- $0 4 phones on cell plan- $160 Yes, I could cut my cell more, but we have opted to stick with the higher expense for now. We used to pay about $50 for all the phones but we added internet/smart phones and texting and more minutes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommymilkies Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Wow! Those are high prices! What about pay as you go phones? We have 2 cell phones with unlimited text & 1000 or something minutes we never use for $108 a month total No cable Hulu $9 a month Netlfix $13 a month Internet $40 a month No landline (internet through cable line) I would never pay that much for those things! You can watch most shows through Hulu, Netflix, station websites (like ABC). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nova147 Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 It depends on how much you are willing to give up. If you are asking for exactly what you have but for less, you won't get it, but if you are willing to change your habits, you can get by. Here is what we currently have Internet- $44 Netflix- $8 Hulu+- $8 Antenna- $0 4 phones on cell plan- $160 Yes, I could cut my cell more, but we have opted to stick with the higher expense for now. We used to pay about $50 for all the phones but we added internet/smart phones and texting and more minutes. This pretty much matches us - we pay a little less for Internet and a little more for our 2 smartphones. We don't have a DVR. We don't miss it. The kids watch Netflix. DH watches Netflix and Hulu. Overall, we watch less tv. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 We ditched all the cable a little less than a year ago. We got a cheap digital antenna which picks up all the basics (NBC, PBS, ABC, Fox, CW, CBS and a bunch of random stations like Qubu and so forth). We kept Netflix and got Hulu Plus so it could stream on the TV (both you can do through the Wii or you can get a Roku box). There was a small outset of money at the start, but it's more than paid for itself now less than a year later. There were a few cable shows I was sad to miss - Doctor Who, for example - but I just committed to buy them online, and most of them come out within a week of their initial airing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK_Mom4 Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Can you replace the four non-smart phones with pre-paid ones? This can really be a savings, particularily if your teens hardly ever make phone calls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pretty in Pink Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Yikes! We have: 135.00/mo for 3 pay as you go smart phones, all w/ unlimited text & data, and unlimited/1200/300 minutes per month, respectively 8.00/mo netflix 8.00/mo hulu 35.00/mo internet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angela in ohio Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Can the oldest two pay for their own phones? Do they all need texting? Do they all need a phone? Could you offer the basic calls and then they pay for texting or data? Six phones with extras is going to be expensive. We go without cable because it would cost too much (though I would love to have the Discovery and History channels,) and we just pay $30 for an internet card from our cell phone provider. It's not super fast, but it's cheaper than other options. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssavings Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 We have 3 non-smart phones for $85 (DHs, mine, and a "home phone", all w unlimited text & talk through a local, month-to-month service). Hulu + $8 (stream through Wii) Netflix $8 (stream through Wii) Internet $50 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hannah C. Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Could you move to a plan with fewer minutes? How much is the texting? Can you downgrade any of the smartphones (thereby getting rid of the data charges)? How necessary is cable, really? Can you downgrade your Internet speed and still have decent Internet? We pay under $150 a month for two normal cell phones. This includes all taxes and the $30 unlimited family plan texting. It was about $200 with two smartphones (one $15 data plan, one $25). Our Internet is $55/mo including taxes for 12mpbs speed. We have AT&T cell phones and U-Verse. We had cable, which at the time was costing us $67/mo including Internet - intro price, and when I called to cancel they upped our plan... :001_huh: :lol: But then we actually did cancel. Still annoyed that our Internet went up. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Two cell phones, $90 (We're going to check into that; seems high) Landline w/Internet: $87 Netflix: $15 Antenna: free I suppose if Mr. Ellie made enough money, we'd pay for cell phones for all our dc, but I'd have to think seriously about a 17yo and a 19yo, and I'm not sure we'd pay for unlimited texting; it would depend on the plan. I don't consider cell phones a necessity for children. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted May 1, 2012 Author Share Posted May 1, 2012 My first question: What is Hulu? I'm assuming it's something like Netflix but I see that some of you have both Hulu and Netflix. I've heard pay-as-you-go phones do not have good sound quality. True or False? I wonder if we could do without the DVR. We got used to it, but maybe we can go back to doing without it. Sounds like a good topic for dinner time tonight. Yes, the teens rarely actually talk on the phone, so they really only need the phones for texting. Dh and oldest are the ones with the smart phones. I'm still dumb. Two oldest do not have jobs so no way of paying for phones. They are fulltime students and I'm okay with them concentrating on their studies. Summer jobs will hopefully happen but that won't help during the school year. We've looked into fewer minutes. We've been on the phone with Verizon repeatedly trying to get the package that makes the most sense based on how we use the phones. So I don't think there is anything I can do there. How necessary is cable really, someone asked. I'm wondering the same thing. Another topic for discussion. Computers are slow already. The kids prob don't need unlimited texting. We could look into that. But I'm scared of getting hit with extras. My kids could control themselves, but when you're near your limit and a friend texts you, you still get charged. Thanks for all these ideas. Great food for thought Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparrow Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 I've heard pay-as-you-go phones do not have good sound quality. True or False? False. Pay-as-you-go phones use the same cell towers as contract phones. I quoted the information I sent to someone else about this same issue a few months ago: The basic gist was that cell phones with model numbers that end in "C" use CDMA which is Sprint or Verizon networks. Model numbers that end in "G" are GSM and use AT&T or T-Mobile. Here's *some* info, but not as good as the other article: http://techtips.salon.com/cdma-vs-gs...ice-20419.html We have a Samsung phone from Straighttalk. The model number ends in "C", so it uses Verizon towers, which work best in our area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaxMom Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 (edited) We ditched all the cable a little less than a year ago. We got a cheap digital antenna which picks up all the basics (NBC, PBS, ABC, Fox, CW, CBS and a bunch of random stations like Qubu and so forth). We kept Netflix and got Hulu Plus so it could stream on the TV (both you can do through the Wii or you can get a Roku box). There was a small outset of money at the start, but it's more than paid for itself now less than a year later. There were a few cable shows I was sad to miss - Doctor Who, for example - but I just committed to buy them online, and most of them come out within a week of their initial airing. This is what we did a couple years ago, and dropped from $216 for cable/Internet/phone to $42 for higher speed dsl and dial tone. We pay $189 for two smart phones with (grandfathered) unlimited data and 1200 shared minutes. We have Netflix (we had it before) and an HDMI cable that lets us stream anything we can watch online from a tablet to our tv. (so, Netflix, Hulu basic, PBS streaming, etc) (and about 90 minutes NE of you, we get all of your channels, plus B'more and Philly) Quite honestly, we don't miss the cable. I thought we would but we really never have. And the dsl is much more reliable than our cable 'net ever was. Edited May 1, 2012 by MyCrazyHouse Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nova147 Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Hulu has current shows, instead of a season or two behind like Netflix. You can get the 4 most recent episodes of most shows on your computer for free, but Hulu+ gives you the full season and you can watch on other devices. We use ours on our TV (through Roku, but there are other options), iPads, and (rarely) iPhones. We got TiVo when it was new and LOVED it. When we dropped cable, we dropped TiVo. It was an adjustment, but we don't miss it now. Except when we're watching live tv, which is rare. It would be nice to pause and rewind! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jennsmile Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Our phone and DSL internet though a coop is $45 (going up soon I think by $3) I have a pay as you go cell. Since last July I have only spend $127. I use it mostly when I am in town or on trips. I can call my mom for free on the days I use my phone. DH doesn't have a cell. He occasionally borrows mine, but we survive. Mine is mostly a safety thing with a 30 minute drive and 4 kids I want to be able to call somebody should I break down in the middle of nowhere. For TV we have a Roku player (we got the $99 one for angry birds.) We have basic netflix streaming and no DVD. About $9 a month. There are plans out there for texting only for your teens that might be a better option for your teens. Dh has an ipod that he uses when out. Most places have wifi so we can get maps or something if needed off the net. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momma2Many66 Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 We really downsized everything to stay within a strict budget. We have no cell phones and landline only. We have no cable or satelite tv. We pay for internet and landline combined $ 50.00 per month We pay $ 8.00 for Netflix, streaming only and get our DVD's FREE from the library. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgiana Daniels Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 In your situation, I'd probably try to first switch internet/cable companies. We pay $107 for cable and internet combined. We only have one DVR, but that seems to work fine. Then try to lower your minutes or texting to get a better price on the phones. Also, does your plan qualify for any discounts? I didn't realize my husband's employer got a discount through Verizon, and the Verizon people said they don't tell anyone unless they ask. It's worth a shot! Saved us 19% a month. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Wow. I can't imagine paying that much. Dh and I share one prepaid cell. Fifty bucks a month for unlimited talk, text, and data. We have the good internet, and that's another fifty a month. We pay eight bucks for Netflix, and that's it. We're probably going to scale back our cell phone plan soon, because we just don't use it that much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommyof4ks Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Wow, I would need a job! Here is our breakdown: Netflix $7.99 a month Internet - $30 a month (at&t high speed) Prepaid cell for dh - $15 a month Internet for my iPad - $15 a month Home phone - $30 a year (MagicJack) I use the free MagicJack app on my iPad to make it into a cell phone that uses my home number, so I can answer my home phone from anywhere with no added devices. Less than $70 a month for phones, Internet, and entertainment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I talk to the trees Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Wow. I will never again complain about the $100 we spend annually to keep the cell phone active. The only things I can think of are getting rid of the tv (and the cable bill) and having fewer phones. Could you switch to pay-as-you-go phones (not smart phones), and make them emergency-only phones? We have had a tracfone for years, and there has never been any problem with sound quality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WeeBeaks Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Are those few shows you watch available elsewhere at all? We have been without cable for 10+ years now. Internet $24.95/mo - AT&T bundle cellphone $150 - Data/cellphone plan for 2 with AT&T Neflix $13 We also have Amazon Prime, which has been having more and more content available in terms of TV/movies. And it of course grants us free shipping for the multiple things I buy there each month, so I don't count it in my electronics budget above. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KirstenH Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 We pay about $100 a month for two cell phones (one smartphone on a contract, one pay-as-you-go "dumb" phone). We pay $50 a month for cable internet and $79 a year for Amazon Prime, which gives us access to plenty of shows through our computers and internet Blu-Ray player. We don't have cable or satellite TV and haven't for years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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