Recently our cable package increased from $17 to $23 per month, so I’ve been on the look-out for some new ideas and ways to cut costs. I decided I would test out several options and share my findings! Hopefully, it will be helpful…and maybe you can give me some ideas, too.
For the last few years, we’ve had the basic of the basic cable packages offered in our area. We get about 15 channels, so we’re used to not really watching too much t.v. We’ve kept it because my husband likes to watch the games offered on network t.v. — and I still don’t know how many channels we could pick up with an antennae in our rural area. That will be something we test out, too!
Over the next few months, I plan to try:
- Netflix
- Amazon Prime
- Hulu Plus
- Antennae
- Unplugged (NO T.V.)!!
Last month, I signed up for the 30-Day FREE trial at Netflix. We have a Wii and I knew we could use it to stream the shows to our t.v. I was actually pretty impressed by it! Keep in mind that we have basic – basic cable, so I haven’t watched many shows lately. I loved watching Hoarders and some of the other TLC shows.
I was actually overwhelmed by the options! There are lots of movies and t.v. shows I haven’t seen, but Netflix has some pretty nice options that helped me decide which shows to try out (plus, I got quite a bit of input from you on Facebook)!
Netflix Streaming Pros and Cons
Here are a few of my favorite things about Netflix:
Two sections: Netflix and Netflix for Kids
This is my absolute favorite. The girls could just click on the Kids Section, and (for the most part) pick out appropriate cartoons, shows, etc. for them. I quickly realized how many *iffy* shows and other movies were in the Netflix section, and I wasn’t interested in my 7-year-old reading all about them!
The ability to mark and rate movies and shows that interest me.
This is a great feature. It allows you to mark shows and genres you are definitely not interested in — and those you are. There were several genres that popped up on my screen at first that I did not want to see, but when I want in and rated them with the lowest marking they stopped showing up.
There are parental controls.
You can set a maximum rating for movies that show up as available to watch. It’s also easy to disable or enable the feature with a password.
Netflix Queue
You can place any movies or show you want into an online queue. This was helpful for me as I was browsing and ran across some shows I was interested in watching. Also, I received several recommendations for shows to watch, so I added those to my queue, too! Then, I could easily pull up the shows when I wanted to watch them. This is great for me since I somehow seem to forget what shows I want to watch! I’m easily distracted…
Android and iPhone Netflix app
I downloaded the Android app to my smartphone, and this allowed me to watch a movie whenever I wanted to. I could also pull up a cartoon for the girls if I needed something quick to occupy them (like at a restaurant or appointment).
As far as negatives for the service, I didn’t really find any. I know some of you mentioned that there aren’t as many shows available as some other services; but since I don’t generally watch much t.v., there were more than enough options for me!! I was actually quite impressed with the Netflix streaming service. For $7.99 per month, it’s a pretty good bargain and there are lots of options for shows we haven’t seen and educational documentaries. It was definitely worth signing up for the 30-day Netflix trial just to test it out and see a few shows I haven’t seen!
I did cancel my subscription to Netflix after the 30-day trial, because I’m still exploring options! Next month, I’ll share about my experience with Amazon Prime.
Feel free to leave your ideas in the comments below!
Jenae says
We LOVE Netflix! That is basically all my kids watch, therefore they have rarely seen a commercial in their lives! We just got Amazon Prime as well (mostly for the shipping benefits) and I am not as impressed, but that might just be because I am not as familiar with it. We’ve had Netflix for a few years now. 🙂
Stacie says
That’s great…those commercials are terrible! I keep wondering how the girls know about certain products, etc…and I realize it’s from Sat. morning cartoons!!
Lynn says
If you already have an internet subscription, you don’t need cable tv. You can get by with an analog tv, digital converter box and digital antenna and still receive about the same number of channels you have now. Hulu has tons of programming, and most of the tv channels also have websites where they stream the most recent episodes of their most popular shows (NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX, USA, CW, etc etc). Some of the cable channels do as well. SyFy streams many recent episodes of Ghost Hunters (one of my favorite cable tv shows). I’m a huge fan of SyFy but it was the only channel I was watching, and my cable tv subscription was almost $60 a month!!). Even the weather channel streams video segments, and you can search for the weather in your area by your zip code on their website at weather.com.
Might I also suggest using your public library? Most DVDs at the library are free. If your library charges for rentals, they probably only do so for new releases and the charges will be nominal (my local public library charges $1 for 3 days for each rental).
If you want more movies than that, then I recommend Netflix for the stream-only option, which is just under $8 a month. You can get DVDs from the library, and a Redbox vending machine if you still want to deal with DVD discs.
Personally, I have an old analog tv with digital converter box and digital antenna, plus a Netflix streaming subscrirption only.
Through the digital antenna/converter box combo I get the local channels and several other channels my parents don’t get with their expensive cable subscription (I especially enjoy all the classic tv reruns on MeTv and AntennaTV. I get to see all the old Perry Mason, M.A.S.H., Daniel Boone, and Mary Tyler Moore I want!).
The only channel I have trouble getting is our local PBS station, but a lot of the shows I want to watch from PBS are also streamed online on their website (i.e. Downton Abbey! and also sometimes Frontline, American Experience, Antiques Roadshow and so on). Also, the public library has many of those programs on DVD (the first season of Downton Abbey, the first 3 seasons of Doc Martin, all of Dr. Who, etc etc).
I find I watch more television shows and movies on Hulu and on the channels’ websites than I do on Netflix. I’m afraid I haven’t even logged onto my Netflix account in a while, which makes me wonder if I ought to cancel it altogether at this point and just be totally subscription-free.
Stacie says
Thanks for all the great suggestions! I’m going to test out a lot of these options and see how it goes! Our public library doesn’t have a great selection of DVDs, but we do that sometimes.
I will have to get a converter box too, because we have a 17 year old t.v.!!
CeCe says
If you decide to go back to Netflix, all of the items you put in your queue will still be there for you.
Stacie says
Good to know! Thanks!
Tammy says
This is where I struggle and have played the game with the satellite dishes to get the best price. I absolutly do not like the committment you have to give, just like the cell phone. I have to tuff it out for another year for my cell phone contract and my dish contract (unless any of you have suggestions on how to get out of either one without stiff penalties). But once the dish is gone, I’ve been loving all of the suggestions I’ve read on how to get free to cheap tv. My 3 year old is not really intersted in watching anything for any great length of time. But it is a ridiculous bill, that unfortunatly I have another year to deal with.
Kim says
Dish used to have an option that you can call and hold your service for up to three months for $5 a month.
Heather says
we have been cableless for about a year now. and use our Netflix to watch things! i LOVE the kids area, my son (3) can pick things he likes, and for the most part it’s good for him! PBS offers a lot of their educational shows on there so that’s nice too! 🙂 we use the disks from Netflix to watch TV shows for my hubby and the kids, they love watching the “old” superhero shows. we found it was cheeper to do the Netflix than for him to go buy the shows on DVD.
on the antenna front my hubby MADE our antenna for about $10 (if i’m remembering correctly) and we get close to 40 channels. he found instructions on youtube. and it was an easy 2 hour project for him and his friend! 🙂 we had to get a converter box too, but we like it for the sports but that’s about it!
Heather says
OH! we also use a program called Playon that pulls all the shows from the different websties (CBS, ABC, NBC, HULU, NETFLIX) all in one spot on our gameing system, we have a 360 and PS3, i’m not sure if it works on the Wii. but it uses your computer as a server you might check that too! 🙂
Dalari says
We gave up 2 1/2 years ago when we moved and I will never go back. Last year I did my research and elected for Netflix. It has the most kid friendly content with no commercials (HUGE plus in my house). My kids were never big TV watcher’s because the TV was not in a location that I could watch them in our old house. It was a lot of DVD’s prior to Netflix. PBS kids also has an iPad app and can stream current shows. Hulu Plus is the only way to watch my sons favorite Wild Kratts :(.
I am a HUGE TV watcher and am able to get most of the shows that I like from Hulu (non subscription) or the different web sites. Some networks are playing games with content and making non-cable/satellite wait a week or 30-days or not streaming content at all. If I really like the show I suffer or save my money to buy it on iTunes. If I’m somewhat interested, nothing makes me stop watching faster.
Best of luck!