23 replies to this topic

[SunshineServices]

Comcast for internet. Certainly fast enough. I did buy a beefy wireless set-up as we are heavy users...the price is a bit on the high side if you ask me tho. No home phone (and i don't miss it one bit). Dish for the TV. Best thing about Dish is the 30 second skip button. Makes commercials a breeze to ignore. Click 6-8 times and you're done. Also great for speed watching football on busy weekends. Ball carrier is down, skip 30 seconds and they are just coming up to the line for the next play...awesome when you are pressed for time! Much better than fast-forwarding.
Seems like most of the pricing and service packages are pretty much the same when you pencil them out. Just got Uverse availability a few months ago and called to see what kind of deal they would offer. Pretty lame, and not enough incentive to change.

There are articles on the internet on how to change one of your Comcast remote buttons to a 30-second skip. Couldn't agree more on how handy this feature is.

Just switched to Uverse after 12 years with Comcast, saving over $100 a month, the bill just kept going up. Happy so far, they did come out and replace a faulty router, but love the wireless tv and everything else we are pretty satisfied with.

[MikeinFolsom]

I've had DirecTv for over 11 years now. I'm an avid NFL Sunday ticket customer, so that's why I stick with DirecTv. Comcast for my modem roughly the same time. Switched to SBC Global or ATT whatever once....they had problems with secure websites, so I quickly switched back and have been there steadily for the last 10 years. ATT for phone. The deal with rising prices on Comcast modem or DirecTv packages is.....I call every 6 months or so and they put me into another 'promotional pricing' deal so I haven't noticed a rise in pricing for a while. Here's a tip with Comcast modem though....go purchase one from Best Buy or wherever for $50-60. Comcast charges $7/month to 'rent' a modem. You'll make it up in no time, plus you get a more powerful wireless signal. Just my opinion.

[ekars]

We had UVerse for all three but recently ditched cable... we were paying well over $100 for channels we don't really care about. I think it was like $60 just to have "basic" cable. Whatever it was, it was crazy - considering we could get it free with an HD antenna. We have been cable free since January and it hasn't been a problem yet.

I dislike how it's always a great "deal" for a year then they jack up the prices.

Yep, all those worthless channels and ever increasing prices. We have a Roku on the way and are ditching satellite this week. So I am now also looking into antennas for the locals.

What antenna do you have? Do you get all the locals pretty well? I'm thinking of getting this one from amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000EHWCDW/ref=nosim/?tag=mkassetsport5-20
Some people mount them in the attic and get great results, but I've heard Folsom can be a tough spot for OTA HD.

[john]

we got a "leaf" antenna, it's about as thin as a piece of paper and you basically velcro it where it picks up best. Each side is black or white so it can blend in. We get the big networks (plus they have alternate channels, who knew?), plus a couple other randoms. So far with Netflix and a Tivo, we haven't missed cable! So far so good.

http://www.amazon.co...34471656&sr=8-1

[ekars]

we got a "leaf" antenna, it's about as thin as a piece of paper and you basically velcro it where it picks up best. Each side is black or white so it can blend in. We get the big networks (plus they have alternate channels, who knew?), plus a couple other randoms. So far with Netflix and a Tivo, we haven't missed cable! So far so good.

http://www.amazon.co...34471656&sr=8-1

I had never heard of a leaf antenna, but wow the reviews are great and it looks like you've had good results. A couple more questions if you don't mind.
Is the antenna on the ground floor?
Did you look into the leaf with the amplifier?
http://www.amazon.co...M/ref=pd_cp_e_0
It's twice as much, but not sure if it's a lot better. But still, it costs less than a month of the bloated satellite bill.

[mac_convert]

I have a Terk antenna with an amplifier. I have it set up in my master bedroom which is upstairs. Channel 10 comes in clear and then doesn't play upstairs and channel 13 and 31 are only good downstairs about 15% of the time. I've been very happy saving the money so the inconveniences have been liveable. I share Netflix, Hulu Plus and Amazon Prime accounts with my parents so I haven't had a problem finding something to watch. (I pay for Hulu Plus and Amazon Prime and I use their Netflix access.) The way I see it I'm picking what I want to watch instead of watching what is scheduled with the cable/satelite company. I'm viewing sports on a streaming site recommended in an earlier thread but would love to be able to watch the Giants and (maybe the Kings now) with good quality HD!

[ekars]

The way I see it I'm picking what I want to watch instead of watching what is scheduled with the cable/satelite company. I'm viewing sports on a streaming site recommended in an earlier thread but would love to be able to watch the Giants and (maybe the Kings now) with good quality HD!

We cancelled DirecTV a week ago and are loving the Roku 2. Trying out the one month trials of Hulu Plus and Netflix and will decide in a few weeks if we keep one or both of them in addition to our Amazon Prime free video. I reconnected the 10 year old cheap Radio Shack antenna in the attic and even though it was horrible for analog, it's pulling in great digital stations (found 27 digital stations, though over half of them are just junk).

I only have one question left:

Why didn't I do this sooner?!?!

This really does change the way you watch TV, for the better. And it's a fraction of the cost.

[john]

I had never heard of a leaf antenna, but wow the reviews are great and it looks like you've had good results. A couple more questions if you don't mind.
Is the antenna on the ground floor?
Did you look into the leaf with the amplifier?
http://www.amazon.co...M/ref=pd_cp_e_0
It's twice as much, but not sure if it's a lot better. But still, it costs less than a month of the bloated satellite bill.

The antenna is on the ground floor... I have to admit it took some time to find a "sweet spot" that would pick up CBS and ABC. Or "sweet spot" is literally above the TV, underneath the shelf above it. The cool thing is, since it is so light, you just take some velcro and slap it up there and it's good to go.

not sure we've ever needed an amplifier - to be honest we only care about the major locals - NBC, CBS, ABC, Fox, and CW for Good Day Sacramento occasionally. We still don't watch live tv much except for the major stations; we still find ourselves catching a lot of Netflix still for other shows. All the locals have "alternate" locals to go with it too, which is kind of cool when you are poking around channels, they usually have old programming from the 70s or earlier, but if you are bored you can sometimes find something worth watching. However, it may bas as simple as "I don't know what I'm missing until I realize how many more stations are available"...

I must say my only complaint is that I miss out on Giants and Kings games. Giants games I can at least find occasionally on weekends but it's rare. No antenna will fix this problem until our practice (of not paying for cable) becomes so common that Netflix or someone eventually picks up the service.

[john]

We cancelled DirecTV a week ago and are loving the Roku 2. Trying out the one month trials of Hulu Plus and Netflix and will decide in a few weeks if we keep one or both of them in addition to our Amazon Prime free video. I reconnected the 10 year old cheap Radio Shack antenna in the attic and even though it was horrible for analog, it's pulling in great digital stations (found 27 digital stations, though over half of them are just junk).

I only have one question left:

Why didn't I do this sooner?!?!

This really does change the way you watch TV, for the better. And it's a fraction of the cost.

Totally agree. I thought I'd miss out on all the programming I'd get on cable like Pawn Stars, Swamp Loggers, stuff like that (I admit it, I know these shows are lame but I find them entertaining!)... but they are all on Netflix by now with more hours of programming than I have the time or desire for...