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Best Bang for Buck on TV Service....

Jun 7, 2011
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What is best service to go with if looking to cut the cord ? Currently have Direct TV but price keeps going up, I know a lot options on streaming side but seems they all keep going up as well. Just wondering who has best package and doesn't blackout local sports coverage and also has best picture and sound.
 
Best picture, sound, and price is OTA with an antenna. From the streaming services lowest cost and best package, picture and sound are not from the same provider. Best is probably Youtube TV but it is not the cheapest at all.
 
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Best picture, sound, and price is OTA with an antenna. From the streaming services lowest cost and best package, picture and sound are not from the same provider. Best is probably Youtube TV but it is not the cheapest at all.
We have YT TV. Yeah, definitely not the cheapest, but for the channels that I wanted, it ended up being the best fit.


There are lots of comparison charts and wizbangs out there, but this website is really cool. You can just pick, a la cart (sort of) and get streaming solutions for your selected needs.

 
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Find a friend or family who subscribes and is willing to share their log in then add an antenna. Lol

But if you’re paying, I think Sling is best bang for your buck if you don’t want fox sports. In other words I found Sling to be the cheapest route to SEC Network at about $46/month. The rest are all $60-$70 (which I feel is about the same as a Spectrum bundle).
In my experience, all the streaming services buffer at some point so I just opt for the lowest price
 
Find a friend or family who subscribes and is willing to share their log in then add an antenna. Lol

But if you’re paying, I think Sling is best bang for your buck if you don’t want fox sports. In other words I found Sling to be the cheapest route to SEC Network at about $46/month. The rest are all $60-$70 (which I feel is about the same as a Spectrum bundle).
In my experience, all the streaming services buffer at some point so I just opt for the lowest price
Buffering is your internet. I have 100mbps in the boonies and I couldn’t tell you the last time My tv buffered. I however do not like the lag behind satellite or cable when it comes to sports. Seems like all my friends are texting what happened before I see it
 
I'd suggest you take advantage of free trials before letting DTV go. I did that because I'm not the only one at home who wants certain channels. Hulu met our needs when it was all said and done. In fact they just added a dozen or so channels to the basic lineup a month or so ago. Just figure if you go with something like that you might want to include Disney+ for all the ESPN+ channels... especally if you like college baseball.
Hulu may not the cheapest youll find but it is far cheaper than DTV. I've had no issues buffering or otherwise with them.
 
I'd suggest you take advantage of free trials before letting DTV go. I did that because I'm not the only one at home who wants certain channels. Hulu met our needs when it was all said and done. In fact they just added a dozen or so channels to the basic lineup a month or so ago. Just figure if you go with something like that you might want to include Disney+ for all the ESPN+ channels... especially if you like college baseball.
Hulu may not the cheapest you'll find but it is far cheaper than DTV. I've had no issues buffering or otherwise with them.
Always good to try something out first.
 
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If the Braves, Hornets/Hawks and/or Hurricanes are important to you, the only streaming option right now is AT&T Now (and MAYBE Spectrum's streaming app if you live in its area). When Disney bought out a portion of FOX, it had to divest the Fox Regional Sports Channels (Sport South, Fox Sports South/Southeast Fox Sports Carolinas). Sinclair Broadcast Group bought those channels and rebranded them Ballys. The streaming services balked at what Sinclair was charging and dropped the channels. I had Spectrum streaming for a while, but it kept blacking out the Hurricanes feed when it shouldn't have so I dropped it.

The now-Ballys regional channels offer some ACC and Big 12 (maybe Big Ten/PAC-12, too, but I'm not positive since I don''t have it now).

If pro teams and the above conferences aren't important, YTTV, Hulu + Live TV, Sling and Fubo have pretty similar options at similar prices. Some offer local broadcast channels (ABC, CBS, etc.) which will have some college sports.

All should offer access to ESPN3/WatchESPN and SEC-Plus streaming at no additional charge. ESPN+ is a different service (ca. $7 per month). ESPN+ hasn't carried SEC home events in the past but I believe (hunch only, no proof) it's likely to happen in the near future.

Depending on your location you may be able to get your local network stations with an antenna. I get 65 to 80 channels (some I have no interest in watching) in the Greenville area depending on the weather.
 
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I live in a rural area without fiber optic,natural gas,cable and sewer,finally had water line run down the road after many years. I have to use dish TV and dishnet for internet for a combined cost of $249.00 monthly.
 
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All should offer access to ESPN3/WatchESPN and SEC-Plus streaming at no additional charge. ESPN+ is a different service (ca. $7 per month). ESPN+ hasn't carried SEC home events in the past but I believe (hunch only, no proof) it's likely to happen in the near future.
The day is coming for ESPN+ unfortunately. I just don’t want to have pay for another service. Our first football game this year will be simulcast on ESPN+ and SECN+. It’s part of the new agreement the conference signed with ABC. Right now ESPN+ can broadcast one non conference football game per team (which is nice though because the host can choose the kickoff time, hence our 7pm opener). I’m sure they will expand their scope of coverage at least for other sports in coming seasons
 
Had Dish for years, but the price keep increasing and the channels decreasing. After tons of "research" of the different streaming devices, (Hulu, YouTube, Sling, etc..), I chose ATT TV.

If sports is what you are looking for, beyond any doubt ATT TV.

I was very skeptical about streaming services and ATT itself, but I must say I am extremely glad I made the switch about 8 months ago, and have been nothing but pleased with my TV viewing and the service.

I recommend at least going to their website and give it a look.
 
They are all a rip off. I had Hulu live for a couple years. It went up from like $40 to $50 something and was at $65 when I cancelled it. Same ish as cable, but faster price increase- a total SCAM. That is like a 60% price increase in less than 3 years!?!? I have Netflix and Disney and HBO right now and have not missed “live TV” at all. I don’t spend as much time watching it now anyway and life is better that way.
 
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I live in a rural area without fiber optic,natural gas,cable and sewer,finally had water line run down the road after many years. I have to use dish TV and dishnet for internet for a combined cost of $249.00 monthly.
Before I’d pay that much I’d sit in the dark with a candle, a Playboy magazine, and a transistor radio.
 
Agree with bucketdad above, take advantage of the free trials and see which works best.

I've tried Sling, Hulu, DirecTV Now, and YTTV. For the channels that we want and also the interface, YTTV was what we went with. We also have Philo that has certain other channels that we want. Before I dropped DirectTV (was with them over 20 years), I was at $130 a month, and that didn't include any recording/cloud capabilities. With the 2 above, I'm in the $85 range. Also have Disney, Hulu (not live), and ESPN+ which is included in my Verizon phone plan. Very fortunate to have fiber optic in the rural area that I live, no buffering issues.

It's scary going to a new interface for some. My father wanted to make the switch, but was kind of set in his ways. But after I convinced him to give it a shot, a couple months later, he said he should have done in alot sooner. He loves it.
 
Unpopular opinion... Dont use any of them and get an antenna and some hobbies. After my last move I refused to pay for TV anymore and havent missed it at all.

I was pretty nervous about cutting the cord after we moved. It's almost like a security blanket. In reality, we rarely watched anything on cable. Anything we watched was on Hulu or Amazon Prime. When I thought about it, the only time I ever really watched much cable was college football season.

With how fractured streaming is becoming, it's gonna get to be just as much as cable. If you do YouTube TV or similar, carry Hulu and/or Netflix or Amazon Prime, have Disney+, Peacock, Paramount+, etc you're right back up there in terms of cost.
 
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Another good thing about streaming vs. cable/satellite is no contract. If you watch ESPN, etc. for college football only, you can cancel your service after the national championship game and subscribe again the next August.
 
If the Braves, Hornets/Hawks and/or Hurricanes are important to you, the only streaming option right now is AT&T Now (and MAYBE Spectrum's streaming app if you live in its area). When Disney bought out a portion of FOX, it had to divest the Fox Regional Sports Channels (Sport South, Fox Sports South/Southeast Fox Sports Carolinas). Sinclair Broadcast Group bought those channels and rebranded them Ballys. The streaming services balked at what Sinclair was charging and dropped the channels. I had Spectrum streaming for a while, but it kept blacking out the Hurricanes feed when it shouldn't have so I dropped it.

The now-Ballys regional channels offer some ACC and Big 12 (maybe Big Ten/PAC-12, too, but I'm not positive since I don''t have it now).

If pro teams and the above conferences aren't important, YTTV, Hulu + Live TV, Sling and Fubo have pretty similar options at similar prices. Some offer local broadcast channels (ABC, CBS, etc.) which will have some college sports.

All should offer access to ESPN3/WatchESPN and SEC-Plus streaming at no additional charge. ESPN+ is a different service (ca. $7 per month). ESPN+ hasn't carried SEC home events in the past but I believe (hunch only, no proof) it's likely to happen in the near future.

Depending on your location you may be able to get your local network stations with an antenna. I get 65 to 80 channels (some I have no interest in watching) in the Greenville area depending on the weather.

That's kind of where I'm at. I'm paying DTV around $170 a month for TV and fiber combined and that's with a $50 (give or take) promotion. I tried to register my dad's two DTV accounts online so I could watch the Braves if I went to Hulu or YTTV and it was a sh*tshow and a failure. My promotions are good until February so we'll see what happens then. I'm really hesitant to drop DTV because I also won't have unlimited internet anymore and I'm worried that streaming everything will put me over the max and end up costing me more money. We do have Spectrum in our area, but there's no way in hell I'm going with any of their services.
 
I was pretty nervous about cutting the cord after we moved. It's almost like a security blanket. In reality, we rarely watched anything on cable. Anything we watched was on Hulu or Amazon Prime. When I thought about it, the only time I ever really watched much cable was college football season.

With how fractured streaming is becoming, it's gonna get to be just as much as cable. If you do YouTube TV or similar, carry Hulu and/or Netflix or Amazon Prime, have Disney+, Peacock, Paramount+, etc you're right back up there in terms of cost.
A significant part of costs is when the services offer local OTA channels. The fees they have to pay TV stations for the right to carry their signals is quite high. Paying for something you can get for free is rather nonsensical, IMO. Now if you can't that's a different story.
 
I'm a T-Mobile customer so I get $10 off per month on YouTube TV. All in all, it is the best deal. To get the same channels on ATT would be over $100. Even SlingTV would be almost $70 per month.
 
I'm a T-Mobile customer so I get $10 off per month on YouTube TV. All in all, it is the best deal. To get the same channels on ATT would be over $100. Even SlingTV would be almost $70 per month.

Oh, that's good to know Recently switched to T-mobile. Will keep that in mind come football season.
 
There is so much free tv,there is no need to pay unless you really want to pay for certain channels.Pluto tv,Airy.TV(not as good as it once was) roku channel,even YouTube has free movies.I haven’t tried it my self yet but on a fire stick,u can integrate all your live channels into one guide,may even do your ota channels. (I could be wrong,maybe someone can confirm ).I saw this video the other day and I didn’t know sling had a free content.Youtubers has to be careful now on what they put on their channels or risk getting taken off.

 
There is so much free tv,there is no need to pay unless you really want to pay for certain channels.Pluto tv,Airy.TV(not as good as it once was) roku channel,even YouTube has free movies.I haven’t tried it my self yet but on a fire stick,u can integrate all your live channels into one guide,may even do your ota channels. (I could be wrong,maybe someone can confirm ).I saw this video the other day and I didn’t know sling had a free content.Youtubers has to be careful now on what they put on their channels or risk getting taken off.


The "best" deal is subjective. Depends on what programming a service offers and whether or not the offered programming interests you. Just because a service has lost of channels doesn't make it "better" if the programming has little or no personal appeal.
 
Gen2 using a fire stick or FireTV. It is 29.99 a month for up to 4 tv's and you get EVERYTHING. All channels, all sports packages, all higher tier channels(HBO, Showtime, Cinemax, etc.) Also every PPV event is included. All new movies are on it too. Connection can be a bit spotty, picture may pixelate sometimes, but come on, it is $29.99 a month. I keep it just for PPV and NFL package.
 
Gen2 using a fire stick or FireTV. It is 29.99 a month for up to 4 tv's and you get EVERYTHING. All channels, all sports packages, all higher tier channels(HBO, Showtime, Cinemax, etc.) Also every PPV event is included. All new movies are on it too. Connection can be a bit spotty, picture may pixelate sometimes, but come on, it is $29.99 a month. I keep it just for PPV and NFL package.
That does not sound legal. Lol. That’s a heck of a deal though!
 
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That does not sound legal. Lol. That’s a heck of a deal though!
I am sure it skates the boundaries of legality. It is based out of Canada. You get every local affiliate in the US. All the other channels have Canadian commercials. I am sure at some point it will go away, but I have had it for 2 years now. You can do just a 5 day trial for around $5.00 to see if it is for you or not, I would highly suggest it, heck this weekend would be worth the $5 just to get the UFC PPV.
 
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