Want to put a thousand bucks back into your wallet in 2014? If you’re paying around $100 per month now for cable or satellite TV, pulling that plug would more than do it – and without leaving you high and dry for TV entertainment.
To many, pulling the plug might feel extreme and seem out of the realm of possibility, but it’s truly liberating and actually exciting to get TV for FREE…the way it used to be. Box up that DVR and the remotes and return it to sender. Call your programming provider and say “Asta la vista baby!”
You can still get all the local free broadcast channels, access to movies, TV and sports (live and otherwise), online content as well as an audio feed for cable news channels.
If this idea intrigues you, here are the steps for pulling the plug!
STEP 1: GET AN ANTENNA
In today’s digital world with the way that digital signals are transmitted, TV reception comes in crystal clear or not at all. All you need is decent antenna to add to your TV’s built-in digital tuner. Depending on how close you live to a stations’ broadcast towers, you may be able to get by with an indoor antenna. Not that close? You’ll probably need an outdoor antenna to get decent reception. You can find many options on Amazon that run around $20-$40.
This is really all you need if you are content to watch free television broadcasting. But if you like to watch movies on demand and enjoy all that broadband internet connectivity has to offer, you have lots of options.
STEP 2: GET A BOX
A broadband connection lets you connect your TV to the Internet to stream shows and movies. If you have a “smart TV” this connectivity is already built in. If not, all you need is a streaming box that sits between your router and TV that will allow you to access specialized Internet channels that offer all kinds of TV content. There are dozens of choices, ranging in price from about $50 to $400 or more
Of these devices, the most popular are Roku and Apple TV. Reviews say the Roku is more user friendly and costs under $100 with all the bells and whistles. If you have a newer game system like Xbox 360 or Playstation 3 then you already have a streaming box and don’t need to buy another. Many Blu-ray players can stream Internet channels as well.
Much of the content that comes through these boxes is free, but you’ll be watching older shows and movies. If you want newer shows and content, you will need to subscribe to one or more streaming service like Hulu, Netflix or Amazon. Both Netflix and Hulu are only $7.99 per month and you can get a free trial on each to check them out before committing. Amazon is fantastic for movies and if you Amazon Prime membership ($79 per year), then you’ll have access to hundreds of movies at no additional cost.
STEP 3: ADD A DVR
After you’ve installed an antenna and added a streaming box to provide Netflix and Amazon, you will have likely replaced most of what you had with cable for about $15 a month plus that $20 in upfront cost for the antenna.
You can stop there, but if you like to record programs for later viewing to skip through the commercials, then you need to add a DVR. There are many DVRs that do not require a monthly service. The most popular are PrimeDTV, Magnavox and Brite-View. Or consider TiVo which is easy to use and works well. A basic model costs about $150 plus $15 a month for the TiVo service. This brings your monthly TV costs to about $30 as opposed to your current bill.
Regrets? Sure you may miss a handful of the shows you may have enjoyed in the past, but is it really important in the long run? Every time you get a little sad and feel a longing, just think of the HUNDREDS of dollars you are putting back in YOUR pocket versus the cable/satellite company. That should brighten your spirits!
