Cord cutting, streaming and economical internet access in Houston (prebuilt, apartment)

[Spartacus713]

I am cutting the cord. I should have done it several years ago. I am currently served by ATT with U-verse and fiber internet access. Once I cut off, AT&T is saying that the cheapest they will sell me internet access only for is $60 per month. This seems a bit high.

Some of you may have been dealing with these issues for a while, or at least more recently. What is the best and cheapest source for broadband internet access in Houston?

Also, the only way to get access to CSPAN by streaming that I am seeing is through AT&T's 'DirectTV Now,' which I do not otherwise see as a very good value. How else can we get CSPAN by streaming in Houston?

[robh11]

Originally Posted by Spartacus713

I am cutting the cord. I should have done it several years ago. I am currently served by ATT with U-verse and fiber internet access. Once I cut off, AT&T is saying that the cheapest they will sell me internet access only for is $60 per month. This seems a bit high.

Some of you may have been dealing with these issues for a while, or at least more recently. What is the best and cheapest source for broadband internet access in Houston?

Also, the only way to get access to CSPAN by streaming that I am seeing is through AT&T's 'DirectTV Now,' which I do not otherwise see as a very good value. How else can we get CSPAN by streaming in Houston?

I made the switch last year from Xfinity. I switched to AT&T Fiber for $80 +/- which is not as low as the $60 they're quoting you but still much better than what I was paying Xfinity for everything. I remember searching other internet options at the time and couldn't find anything better than the AT&T fiber. I will say that going to fiber (or something comparable) makes a lot of sense when streaming as many devices as I am.

I don't have a need for CSPAN so I can't comment on that. I did do a "DirectTV Now" trial but decided I didn't need it for the extra cost. I basically use an antenna for local stations and fire TV with Amazon Prime.

[kreeyax]

I think I'm at $60 for AT&T Fiber 300. Seems pretty fair to me, I was at 15 mbps for the same price up until a few months ago. Now if I could just get my wife to drop down to a TV package lower than U-verse 450.

[Spartacus713]

Originally Posted by kreeyax

I think I'm at $60 for AT&T Fiber 300. Seems pretty fair to me, I was at 15 mbps for the same price up until a few months ago. Now if I could just get my wife to drop down to a TV package lower than U-verse 450.

On reducing to a lower package that the U-Verse, that is what I am busy doing now. I bought a Roku box at Costco and now my video services are going to go down from about $165 a month (not including the internet, which you mentioned above), to about $23 a month for Netflix ($13) and Amazon Prime ($10).

I should have done this several years ago. There does not appear to be a streaming option for CSPAN, which is a drag, but I can watch that online if I really want, and at some point it will surely be made available through streaming. As far as the entertainment options through these and other services, they are absolutely immense. It is time to cut the cord.

I have felt like I am being taken advantage of by these people for a long time, and when you look at the other options that are available, it appears that is correct. Cable TV and health insurance. With regards to these two services, I feel like I am being totally fleeced. Everything else I buy is reasonably priced or pretty cheap. I do not know what to do about high health insurance costs yet. But I am done with cable television.

[Marv1985]

How does that Roku box work and are you able to record programs with it?


I share your opinion wholeheartedly about cable TV and health care, which is why I cut the cord last month and am now soliciting opinions on what brand/type of indoor antenna I should buy, since I can save some serious $$$$$$$ just by going with Netflix and Amazon Prime, both of which I've had for almost a decade.

[Spartacus713]

Originally Posted by Marv201

How does that Roku box work and are you able to record programs with it?

I share your opinion wholeheartedly about cable TV and health care, which is why I cut the cord last month and am now soliciting opinions on what brand/type of indoor antenna I should buy, since I can save some serious $$$$$$$ just by going with Netflix and Amazon Prime, both of which I've had for almost a decade.

I don't have it plugged in yet, but I bought this antenna, based on almost 10,000 positive reviews and a very competitive price:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The Roku box is like a portal that has a lot of other streaming services on it. Many are free (with advertising), but other are for pay (largely without advertising, including Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, etc). With Roku, there is no monthly fee. You buy the box (or stick) and then you only pay more if you decide to subscribe to the pay services.

While newer TV's are typically "Smart" TV's, in fact they really have not been all that smart, as the manufacturers of the TVs (Samsung, LG, Sony, etc.) are good at manufacturing hardware and not so good at providing ongoing services or dealing with never-ending software programing updates and improvements. So other companies such as Roku (Also Amazon, Apple, Nvidia, Google, etc.) have designed and marketed devices that have a ton of different streaming services on them that can be connected to the television.

If you are content with your "Smart" TV options, then you may not need to get a Roku box. And no, the Roku box does not have a DVR built in.

As far as the antenna, I am putting together a media server, which my antenna will be attached to. This will include a DVR that I can use to record Over the Air "OTA" programs and then either entirely skip or fast forward through the commercials. Again, if you do not mind watching these programs only live when they are scheduled, and you do not mind sitting through the commercials, then this may not be something that you need.

Just in case, here are some reviews of media servers (google will provide many more such articles). I am going with option #2:

https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/best-p...s-plex-server/

I also started another thread, which is now in the City-Data TV Forum, which talks more about Cord Cutting, in case you are interested:

https://www.city-data.com/forum/tv/30...e-markets.html

[chris_ut]

Be careful with buying a "smart" tv as the smartness mostly revolves around tracking you and selling information to advertisers.

https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/4/1...acking-lawsuit

Better to go with something like an Apple tv box tied into a dumb flatscreen imo. Apple only tracks you for their own purposes and doesn't sell it to everyone in the world.

[Spartacus713]

Originally Posted by chris_ut

Be careful with buying a "smart" tv as the smartness mostly revolves around tracking you and selling information to advertisers.

https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/4/1...acking-lawsuit

Better to go with something like an Apple tv box tied into a dumb flatscreen imo. Apple only tracks you for their own purposes and doesn't sell it to everyone in the world.

This seems right to me. Better to have a dumb TV and an external box to provide these services. Also, when everything changes over the next 3-5 years, you will not be locked into some obsolete "Smart" TV system that has not kept up with the times. You have Apple, I have Roku. I understand that the other services are pretty good too, so it is just a matter of preference.

[ilikeme]

Originally Posted by chris_ut

Be careful with buying a "smart" tv as the smartness mostly revolves around tracking you and selling information to advertisers.

https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/4/1...acking-lawsuit

Better to go with something like an Apple tv box tied into a dumb flatscreen imo. Apple only tracks you for their own purposes and doesn't sell it to everyone in the world.

Agreed. The smart tv systems also tend to be slower and go out of date faster too. I always recommend external boxes like a Roku or Apple TV.

As far as antennas, I work at a TV station and from what we have seen, most of the stick on the window antennas are crap. We always recommend an attic or roof antenna when possible, or a good set uhf/vhf rabbit ears if in an apartment.

[kreeyax]

Watch out for that data cap though. Unless you have the AT&T Fiber 1000 plan (or U-verse TV) you won't have unlimited data. Isn't the cap 1TB per month?