Jump to content

Menu

Thinking about dumping DirecTV


Recommended Posts

We don't have cable or satellite; we do the Netflix/Hulu mix. We also have Amazon Prime, but that's more for the shipping - so far, we haven't watched much on it.

 

Our motivation is reminding ourselves of the time and money we save. We usually have a couple of shows we enjoy watching as a family (right now, that's Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Warehouse 13), and a couple for adults only (The Daily Show and The Colbert Report, the reason we have Hulu Plus).

 

Add in the fact that we all enjoy some computer time, and it's plain to see that we really SHOULDN'T be watching any more tv, much less paying a preimium for it! The money you save not only makes it easier to do more fun activities outside of the house, it makes it more likely that you will do so (b/c tv isn't sucking up your time).

 

Everything we do to save money in our house is portrayed in terms of our favorite thing, going to Disney World. Cancelling cable is much easier to do when you think of it as 3 days worth of Disney :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dh was worried he'd miss not having Direct but was willing to get rid of it. He doesn't miss it at all! He stays in hotels a lot for work and says, with all the available channels, there's still nothing to watch. When we wanted to watch the Olympics, we got it through Tunnelbear (thanks to the Hive!) and he is checking out another option for football season. I'm thrilled that we're no longer throwing money away on stuff we just don't care about.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dh was worried he'd miss not having Direct but was willing to get rid of it. He doesn't miss it at all! He stays in hotels a lot for work and says, with all the available channels, there's still nothing to watch. When we wanted to watch the Olympics, we got it through Tunnelbear (thanks to the Hive!) and he is checking out another option for football season. I'm thrilled that we're no longer throwing money away on stuff we just don't care about.

 

Let me know what you find out about football season. Dh wants something by SuperBowl! :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

UPDATE:

 

We tried an in house antenna. We got one, two, tres channels (all PBS, the last one in Spanish.) So I ordered an antenna from Amazon but decided that it was too small so we went out to Radio Shack and got a behemoth one. It is about 7.5 x 12 feet. Much to our surprise, we get about 50 channels. Dh loves having HD now but wasn't a fan of no DVR. So I bought a Tivo with lifetime.

 

No more monthly fees for TV ever again!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

we did, back during the first gulf war.

 

and it changed our lives for the much, much, much better.

 

the only thing i've really missed in years was this year, when i wanted to watch the newsroom really badly. but it will be available somewhere for streaming someday, and that will have to do.

 

dh missed football for a few months, but then became really aware of how many of his friends had their life centered around their tv and their football, and thanked me.

 

now is the perfect time. if the tv goes, the commercials go, and one of the big things we noticed that first year, and every year thereafter, is how our dc no longer have pages of things they want for christmas, because no one is telling them what they "must" have. it is perhaps the Very Best Thing of All, although all the extra time to do other things and all the time we no longer snack while we watch are big winners, too.

 

:001_smile:

ann

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awesome!

 

UPDATE:

 

We tried an in house antenna. We got one, two, tres channels (all PBS, the last one in Spanish.) So I ordered an antenna from Amazon but decided that it was too small so we went out to Radio Shack and got a behemoth one. It is about 7.5 x 12 feet. Much to our surprise, we get about 50 channels. Dh loves having HD now but wasn't a fan of no DVR. So I bought a Tivo with lifetime.

 

No more monthly fees for TV ever again!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

UPDATE:

 

We tried an in house antenna. We got one, two, tres channels (all PBS, the last one in Spanish.) So I ordered an antenna from Amazon but decided that it was too small so we went out to Radio Shack and got a behemoth one. It is about 7.5 x 12 feet. Much to our surprise, we get about 50 channels. Dh loves having HD now but wasn't a fan of no DVR. So I bought a Tivo with lifetime.

 

No more monthly fees for TV ever again!!

 

What's the name of the antenna you bought?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have had enough of paying $82 a month. We barely watch TV. And what we do watch we can watch online. Admittedly, it will make us change how we watch TV. I will miss Judge Judy, The People's Court, and Dr. Oz (although that is the biggest selling point with my husband, no more Dr. Oz.)

 

Anyone dump satellite and cable?

 

We would do it except for college football, which hubby is addicted to. I can't seem to find a way around it to cancel the crazy bill!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What's the name of the antenna you bought?

 

We bought:

 

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3767303

 

I was going to use an RCA 751r as it had phenomenal reviews (and half the price) but the Blue Ridge Mountains separate us and the signals 70 miles away. We did put on a $20 amplifier from Lowe's.

 

We are 70 miles from DC and this actually pulls channels from Baltimore, which is even further away.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We bought:

 

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3767303

 

I was going to use an RCA 751r as it had phenomenal reviews (and half the price) but the Blue Ridge Mountains separate us and the signals 70 miles away. We did put on a $20 amplifier from Lowe's.

 

We are 70 miles from DC and this actually pulls channels from Baltimore, which is even further away.

 

Thanks! We have a small antenna and get quite a bit of channels but I was hoping to get more.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Another thing that I learned this week:

 

If you have an antenna, you can put a Tivo Series 2 SINGLE TUNER on it. You will need an analog-digital converter box. Buy one with a lifetime subscription on it. You can find them on eBay for around $100. That will give you DVR, pause, FF, rewind, still with no fees. The downside is that you will lose HD if you have it. Or you can use a Tivo Premiere and that will do HD. It costs more as it has lots of bells and whistles, but it comes with a hefty price tag.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have an old Tivo 2 sitting in my upstairs. I also have an older TV that does not have HD on it. Maybe I will try it, although paying $14/mo for service to a TV I prefer not to even watch may not be the solution long term.

 

I have Playon, which I stream through my Roku box. Whatever is online available for watching I can stream to the Roku box.

 

 

Dawn

 

QUOTE=ustasmom;4325847]Another thing that I learned this week:

 

If you have an antenna, you can put a Tivo Series 2 SINGLE TUNER on it. You will need an analog-digital converter box. Buy one with a lifetime subscription on it. You can find them on eBay for around $100. That will give you DVR, pause, FF, rewind, still with no fees. The downside is that you will lose HD if you have it. Or you can use a Tivo Premiere and that will do HD. It costs more as it has lots of bells and whistles, but it comes with a hefty price tag.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

×
×
  • Create New...