Bultaco Loc: Aiken, SC

How did you get local channels?

bobmcculloch Loc: NYC, NY

I like HULU and YouTubeTV combo, with Spectrum internet, YMMV. Bob.

jccash Loc: Longwood, Florida

Hulu off so offers channels like YouTube TV does

BebuLamar

a good antenna gives you the best local channels. Better than any cable service.

Red6

You have asked a lot of questions about different subjects but I have some suggestions.

I am currently living in central Florida and have had Spectrum Internet for less that $70 per month and no contract. Not sure why you would need or want to have Spectrum for internet and use someone else for streaming. ALL YOU NEED is one internet provider and you can stream and have internet access at the same time. Why pay for two internet sources?

As you asked, it IS AS SIMPLE as just getting internet from Spectrum to stream. THEN select the streaming service that has the programs or services that you want or need. All the streaming services provide pretty much the basic programs. I have HULU with the Disney+, ESPN package for around $80 per month. Note; this is just the HULU service. Your total bill will be the internet service + whatever streaming service you choose. With the cost of the internet from Spectrum that would make my total bill around $150 give or take a few dollars. Hulu is a good source but it is one of the higher priced options. I am actually going to try out Sling to see if it works for me. It is a little cheaper than HULU.

However, there are other options also. Many newer TVs have ROKU built in and it is a FREE source of many programs. However, you can add on many paid services if desired. If movies are your thing then there are many FREE options such as TUBI that have free movies. If you are an Amazon Prime member you can also stream PRIME which is a source of movies and other programming.

There are a lot of streaming services - HULU and Sling are two of the most popular, Others include YouTube and FUBO. You just need to choose the one that delivers the content you want at the price you want to pay.

However, your first priority should be is to get the your internet service at a reasonable cost. You should be paying no more than $50-75 per month for internet. After that the choice is simply a matter of what you want or need.

Red6

If you get HULU LIVE (for extra $$ of course) they provide the local channels. HULU basic does not.

I have HULU LIVE but also have a cheap antenna and this is a GREAT combination. The new digital TV transmission comes in as clear as the streaming channels in most areas.

Indi Loc: L. I., NY, Palm Beach Cty when it's cold.

I’ve been using YouTubeTV since 2020 and never looked back. I kept fighting with Optimum to lower my $325 bills, and telling them they are not seeing the handwriting on the wall, and that people are “cutting the cord” everyday.
I use YouTubeTV, in NY (9 months,) and FL, (3 months.) One price…$72/mo.
Recently, my son discovered that YouTubeTV allows family members to use my account even if they don’t live with me…No additional charges. YTTV only allows 2 moves per year but I think there are ways around that like “traveling.”
I pay the same price per month wether I’m in NY or FL so no need for a different Streaming service in each place.
You DO need Internet in either location and I recommend at least 200 MB/second (mbs?). In both locations I have my own modem & router. Renting a modem from your provider will cost you at least $10/month x 12 months=$120/year. Times that by 10 years and your paying $1200 for that modem.
I use Amazon Fire Stick TV on every Tv in both locations. DON’T BUY THE CHEAPEST ONE, as you’ll only be able to change the channels. A couple of bucks more and you’ll be able to turn your TV on and off and control the sound without using any other remotes.
Last thing. Fire Stick TV has it’s own programs but not network stations. That’s why you buy subscribe to YouTube TV or other streaming service that provides network stations. You can download numerous free “apps” that will provide a wide variety of programming and also download some of the major Network Apps, but programming may not be in real time/live.

Bridges Loc: Memphis, Charleston SC, now Nazareth PA

We cut the cable about two years ago. We were paying 235 a month for basic cable and 1 GB of internet. Our cost from Verizon went from 235 down to 105. We added the HULU package for 10.99 a month which includes HULU, Disney +, and ESPN +. We also have Paramount + for around 13, and Peacock for around 8. All told our monthly outlay for TV is now around 140 per month. For Nov. to March, I also add Sling for 70 a month. This is so we can watch football and college basketball. We forgo the Oct. games or pick some of them up on the other services. After the final four basketball tournament, I drop Sling and that takes our monthly bill down from 210 to 140. By doing this we save about 1000 a year over what we were paying for cable. We also get Prime which comes with an Amazon Prime shipping package so no additional charge there. If you are not careful, you can pay as much for streaming as you did for cable. If you add up all the services it can cost a lot. You will pay a premium for watching ad-free, extra for the ability to record, and extra for added services like Red Zone onto the NFL package. You will pay for monthly fees for some services or a yearly fee for other services like MLB which is around 140 for the whole year. You also lose the ability to switch from one channel to another since two shows you may be watching at the same time are on different servers. It can be a little aggravating at times having to exit one server and sign in to another, but so far we have found the aggravation to be worth the savings.

Some services will hook you up with local news. Between the services we subscribe to, we have something like 85 apps listed on the Roku screen when it first starts up. Some apps are single while others will take you to several download streams. Sling for instance will take you to many like ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, BBC America, The Food Network, Big 10 sports, and about 60 or 70 other sites. Peacock will have about a dozen apps within its menu including NBC News, etc. The best thing to do is to Google all the different services and see which lineups are most appealing to you. Then add up the price of all the services you want and see if there is a reasonable savings over cable. Most of us who have cut the cable have found it is a positive thing to do.

twowindsbear

I LIKE my ROKU device. There is lots & LOTS of free programming, and lots & LOTS subscriptions, and pay per view options, too. I have Direct TV and 'stream' it with the ROKU device. My top 4 programming sources are Direct TV, Amazon Prime, Paramount, and Retro-Tech. And, I have an LG smart TV. There are about 260 'channels' actually available on the LG TV. I sometimes select a 'cooking' channel & just let it run. Good luck reducing your TV expenses.

Morry Loc: Palm Springs, CA

I sympathize with you. Unfortunately it looks like the "TV PLAN" including almost all the TV reception media is intent on raising prices when they can and do not have to. Yes . . . it seems to be all about more profit . . . for CEO's, board members and stockholders. Look for a future of much higher TV watching cost.

Bultaco Loc: Aiken, SC

Thanks

hj Loc: Florida

I will research this combo for price as areas may be different, but can you indicate what you are paying in total for the three?

Bridges Loc: Memphis, Charleston SC, now Nazareth PA

All our TVs are "smart" but their offerings are lacking so I have added Roku to all of them. It is a great service with a menu system that is excellent. For instance, when what I am looking for is a sports program, I arrow down one notch from the Home label to Sports, and all the sports offerings across multiple downstreams are listed. It will connect me to that particular service. While I haven't any experience with Firestick, from what others have said, it works similarly to Roku.

bobmcculloch Loc: NYC, NY

You Tube TV has local channels included

bobmcculloch Loc: NYC, NY

Problem with streaming is that certain channels are only available on certain services. So you end up with more than one service.