Pollytink

Got my cable tv bill today and they're again raising the price another $15 a month. Which is the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back! I've been thinking about doing this for awhile and it looks like now may be the time. I'm on a waiting list to move into an independent living building in about 1.5 years and they do not have the cable company I have now-WOW, it will probably be Time Warner. So there are several changes to be made and I wanted to get some input from all here about their experiences.

First two changes will be a new phone service and then the cable tv portion. My son will hook up my tv's with an antenna each and a converter box. We tried an antenna on one and got about 11 local channels so that won't be a problem, esp with Netflix etc. I have a VCR on the two TV's and can go back to using them. My TVs are old and don't have the features of the new ones.

I'm thinking about using the Magic Jack phone system and wonder if anyone here has it or has used it? Or other phone systems?

I'll have to keep the WOW internet connection for awhile as have to set up some kind of provision for my email. I use an email client called Eudora and want to keep using it. Tried setting up a gmail account and it was pure pain.....they don't like Eudora and want you to use one that they have or recommend. My son suggested finding another host server or even set up my own. Once I get moved Time Warner may have a program I can use and will prob just get internet service fromthem, but must set up something else now and start transferring my new email address to the MANY places it's on now, esp important places like bank and other accounts. I think that on some providers you can use the same email connection for a small amt a month but not on WOW.

The cable company has features priced so that even cutting back on 1 or 2 services, you end up paying almost as much as the current bundle is.

Really would like to hear about your experiences with these issues and what route you have taken. Thanks!!

SHELTIE'SMAMA

I did last Jan. when I moved. I bought a Straight Talk (WALMART) modem + phones cost about $150 and my monthly bill is 15.32 for unlimited domestic service. Just recently checked and the modem is now $50 less. If you need international service the monthly charge is around $35. Works for me! Have TV on antenna and get abc, nbc, cbs + some others. Sometimes have to do the antenna fiddle thing but at a cost of $0 per month it also works for me.
Still working on my internet pay $45 but if I buy my modem I can lower the charge $10 per month --- love my internet and wi-fi -- those seem to be what I can't live without. Good luck on your conversion and quilt on!

Rose Marie

Im paying $129 a month for Direct TV. That's way to much.
My daughter has Hulu and Netflix and pays a lot less.
Im not sure how many channels she gets.
No cable in my area. I do have internet service but it is expensive to.

ManiacQuilter2

I left Verizon because with their unbundling, I couldn't get all the stations I watch which is only about 18 stations. I am using TWC. Paying about $100 a month for internet & cable. I am serious thinking about making changes if they raise the rate in a year.

yngldy

I have an old, on the roof antenna with a digital tv. We get about 130 or so channels, with about 50 that are English speaking. And there is still "nothing on"!!! There is only one station that I cannot get (a PBS channel) but we get many other PBS so it doesn't make that big a difference. When we first moved in, a door to door cable salesman said we needed to buy their service as we could not get tv signals here. He got mad when I told him I was getting signals from almost 100 miles away. And now, who needs cable when you have netflix? A lot cheaper per month.

ptquilts

I use Google Voice for all my long distance calls. Free calls to US and Canada, unlimited. When there is nothing on TV, I watch videos on Youtube of old comedy shows.

ladydukes

I've been using MJ for years now. Occasionally I have a bad connection, but rarely...and the price certainly is right. When I first started, it was $19.95/year, but now it is $35/year, which is still much less costly than $40-$60/month! Hopefully we can find out whether the programs we enjoy watching on TV are available through Netflix, Hulu or some other less-expensive service so that we can do away with satellite service.

lsimp123

Their internet runs around $54.00 a month with modem. Basic is about 34.00 not a fast speed or fastest they have. I have the middle one because I have Netflix witch I love its payed for itself.

lsimp123

O one more they like for you to bundle

mommafank

We have ooma for phone service. It is wonderful as it costs only 3 bucks a month once you buy the little receiver. It costs around 100.00. It is voice over IP and works fine. No problems ever so far and we have had it a pretty long time. All you are paying monthly is taxes. As for TV, we cut the cord a long time ago. I guess if you really watch a lot of TV it might not be for everyone. We have a digital antenna and get plenty of stations. We also have a roku that allows us to stream many other stations and use Netflix or whatever. We dropped Netflicks to try Amazon Prime for a year. As for cell phone service, we use Consumer Cellular which is a good bargain for great service. No contracts, buy what you need and AARP members get a discount. You can downgrade or upgrade your service at any time without any penalties. My hubby likes to save money, but we do not do without the things we enjoy and use as a result. The only thing is we have to pay for internet service with Comcast which you have to stay on top of from year to year to keep getting the best rate possible. If they think you might cancel they will usually give you another year at a fairly good rate.