Register a SA Forums Account here!
JOINING THE SA FORUMS WILL REMOVE THIS BIG AD, THE ANNOYING UNDERLINED ADS, AND STUPID INTERSTITIAL ADS!!!

You can: log in, read the tech support FAQ, or request your lost password. This dumb message (and those ads) will appear on every screen until you register! Get rid of this crap by registering your own SA Forums Account and joining roughly 150,000 Goons, for the one-time price of $9.95! We charge money because it costs us money per month for bills, and since we don't believe in showing ads to our users, we try to make the money back through forum registrations.
 
  • Post
  • Reply
bull3964
Nov 18, 2000

DO YOU HEAR THAT? THAT'S THE SOUND OF ME PATTING MYSELF ON THE BACK.


I was thinking apple music was only $4.99 /month but I was confusing that with a student rate.

Adbot
ADBOT LOVES YOU

Endless Mike
Aug 13, 2003



Yeah, if you're a student, it's a wash.

bull3964
Nov 18, 2000

DO YOU HEAR THAT? THAT'S THE SOUND OF ME PATTING MYSELF ON THE BACK.


It's all hypothetical for me anyways since I'm not actually paying for any of the services between T-Mobile and half year trials for buying an iPad.

BonoMan
Feb 20, 2002

Jade Ear Joe
Blech. The Pixel plan is neat but just very phone centric. I’m just in a no win situation. YTTV is a must have for me and I’d love Fiber, but leaving Spectrum and killing my 2 lines for $60 is a deal breaker. I had Fi for a year and it’s way too expensive. If they were competitive there I’d switch back.

bull3964
Nov 18, 2000

DO YOU HEAR THAT? THAT'S THE SOUND OF ME PATTING MYSELF ON THE BACK.


If WarnerDiscovery continues through with day after releases of Adult Swim shows on HBO Max, I'm going to have even less reason to keep YTTV around. I probably already would have cancelled it if it weren't for the $10 discount.

BonoMan
Feb 20, 2002

Jade Ear Joe

bull3964 posted:

If WarnerDiscovery continues through with day after releases of Adult Swim shows on HBO Max, I'm going to have even less reason to keep YTTV around. I probably already would have cancelled it if it weren't for the $10 discount.

We tried to live without it. Going with some cheaper options, but in the end we just liked it too much. We watch lots of live TV (more than we thought) and it’s just got an unrivaled experience in the streaming Live TV space. I watch sports too and being able to have it so seamlessly on my phone/tablet when I’m out is nice too.

I wish I didn’t like it so much :(

qirex
Feb 15, 2001

Anyone who has experience with Comcast: is it worth even trying to not have cable tv? Every offer I’ve seen from them for bare internet is as much or more than a tv bundle, and I actually want peacock for the soccer and Tour de France. As it stands it looks like I could save a few dollars a month but nothing major.

movax
Aug 30, 2008

qirex posted:

Anyone who has experience with Comcast: is it worth even trying to not have cable tv? Every offer I’ve seen from them for bare internet is as much or more than a tv bundle, and I actually want peacock for the soccer and Tour de France. As it stands it looks like I could save a few dollars a month but nothing major.

OTA an option? I have not looked at my Comcast bill for awhile now, but I'm Internet only... haven't seen a bundle that's cheaper with TV included.

Proteus Jones
Feb 28, 2013



qirex posted:

Anyone who has experience with Comcast: is it worth even trying to not have cable tv? Every offer I’ve seen from them for bare internet is as much or more than a tv bundle, and I actually want peacock for the soccer and Tour de France. As it stands it looks like I could save a few dollars a month but nothing major.

It's only worth ditching it if you can't get any of their bundle deals.

For the last two years I paid $129 (after all the fees and taxes). That was 900Mbps + 180+ channels. For the actual channels I watch the equiv Hulu Live + same internet would be about $160.

Now however, the bundle deal has expire and I'm paying $213. This is with no modem rental or box rentals ( I have a HDHomeRun Prime w/Cable Card). And they will not offer any deals, even when I threaten to walk away.

So I'm likely to ditch the TV part and keep the 900Mb internet for a flat $90/mo. I likely won't even replace it with a streaming service. I'll just get Hulu Live when college football is active and cancel when not.

Between Pluto, OTA, Amazon Prime, Disney+ and HBO+ I'm pretty covered for what I want to watch these days. Netflix I'll just activate when there's an original I want to watch (which isn't all that often these days)

phosdex
Dec 16, 2005

I moved recently and am on Comcast. Have internet only, but when I considered a tv bundle, it made it seem like they no longer allow you to use your own modem if you want tv service too. Did I just horribly misread that?

Maneki Neko
Oct 27, 2000

phosdex posted:

I moved recently and am on Comcast. Have internet only, but when I considered a tv bundle, it made it seem like they no longer allow you to use your own modem if you want tv service too. Did I just horribly misread that?

I recently changed plans to a current internet/tv plan (was cheaper than cord cutting) and am using my own modem, overall it was a very easy switch.

qirex
Feb 15, 2001

As far as I’ve been able to tell the plans they offer on their website and the plans you can get by having to talk to a sales representative have almost no overlap.

WhyteRyce
Dec 30, 2001

qirex posted:

Anyone who has experience with Comcast: is it worth even trying to not have cable tv? Every offer I’ve seen from them for bare internet is as much or more than a tv bundle, and I actually want peacock for the soccer and Tour de France. As it stands it looks like I could save a few dollars a month but nothing major.

I ditched my old triple play bundle for just internet. Paying about $70 for 400/10 plus $30 for unlimited. Can shave off $10-20 if I step down the download speeds. When you factor in YTTV I’m not really coming out ahead of my old bundle that ranged from $120-160 after fees, depending on the promo they run at the time.

From my experience locally, they didn’t really have promo prices for just plain internet. No contracts or lock in prices. The rep on the phone said it was a new thing they were doing to make everything easy. Which can be completely full of poo poo and also probably dependent entirely on your local market.

Even if I’m not saving that much money, it is really nice not having to schedule a yearly bitch and threaten to cancel call to bring the bill down

You should still get peacock for free as an internet only customer. They even sent me a special free streaming box for it which still sits shrink wrapped on a shelf somewhere

WhyteRyce fucked around with this message at 05:07 on Jun 4, 2022

EL BROMANCE
Jun 10, 2006

COWABUNGA DUDES!
🥷🐢😬



I’m pretty sure most of the fees that they don’t quote in the pricing only apply if you have TV.

Anton Chigurh
Mar 18, 2008
Probation
Can't post for 10 years!
If you choose to go on contract with Comcast to get a better monthly rate for TV and what you think is a locked in price, they get around it by upping the Broadcast TV Fee and Regional Sports Fee once or twice a year, which the fine print tells you they can do.

In 2016 the Broadcast TV Fee was $5 and the Regional Sports Fee was $3, now they're $22 and $10, respectively, in my state.

Whenever my contract comes close to the end of the term, I go through the voice menus and indicate I want to cancel service. That gets me to a "customer retention specialist" and I haggle with them by continuing to repeat the price is too high and they keep reducing it. The regular sales rep drones will never give you the best price.

Saved me over $30/mo. and I got to keep the TV package I currently have that they no longer offer online.

About 4 years ago I did cancel Comcast for a year (to go OTA and streaming with Playstation Vue), and I had to tell the retention guy 4 times I wanted to cancel, decreasing the price each time before he finally gave in and did it.

Wayne Knight
May 11, 2006

If you ever need to cancel comcast for real (not just looking for a price drop), the easiest, no-hassle cancellation is by saying you're moving. They'll ask you if you want your service moved instead. Say yes, then give them your "new address" you pulled off zillow in an area that comcast doesn't service. Absolute easiest cancellation call ever. "Oh, wow, looks like we don't service that part of montana. Yourserviceiscancelledthankyouforcallingcomcastgoodbye*click*"

WhyteRyce
Dec 30, 2001

Wayne Knight posted:

If you ever need to cancel comcast for real (not just looking for a price drop), the easiest, no-hassle cancellation is by saying you're moving. They'll ask you if you want your service moved instead. Say yes, then give them your "new address" you pulled off zillow in an area that comcast doesn't service. Absolute easiest cancellation call ever. "Oh, wow, looks like we don't service that part of montana. Yourserviceiscancelledthankyouforcallingcomcastgoodbye*click*"

I’m moving in a month to an area that legit doesn’t have comcast and I own my own modem so I’m extremely excited to place my cancel call

I also get to choose between ATT Fiber and some smaller cable internet provider so that’s great too

GEEKABALL
May 30, 2011

Throw out your hands!!
Stick out your tush!!
Hands on your hips
Give them a push!!
Fun Shoe
Anyone have a good modem recommendation for comcast/spectrum (if this is the right thread for such).

FCKGW
May 21, 2006

Spectrum should include the modem for free unless something has changed recently.

Edit: modem chat usually happens in the home networking thread

FCKGW fucked around with this message at 14:51 on Jun 8, 2022

MarcusSA
Sep 23, 2007

FCKGW posted:

Spectrum should include the modem for free unless something has changed recently.

Edit: modem chat usually happens in the home networking thread

I get mine for free they actually changed things now so that it’s No longer a modem router combo they separated them which is nice.

FlamingLiberal
Jan 18, 2009

Would you like to play a game?



So we switched from Spectrum to T-Mobile Home Internet a couple of years ago. Everything was working fine until later on Sunday, when the Internet started to go down or only work sporadically. We had tried to get an answer from T-Mobile, but all they would tell us is that they are doing some kind of tower maintenance but that they have no idea when this will be done. Meanwhile my wife had to go back into her empty office today because she couldn't work at home. So now we are having to switch back to Spectrum because there aren't really any good alternatives, and I keep getting told by T-Mobile that they don't have any kind of timetable for the problem to be fixed. It's really frustrating because T-Mobile had been cheaper and better than Spectrum up until now. Unfortunately those are the only two decent speed ISPs where we live.

movax
Aug 30, 2008

GEEKABALL posted:

Anyone have a good modem recommendation for comcast/spectrum (if this is the right thread for such).

I just got a Arris S33; had a SB8200 before that. Have owned a SB6141 before that, 1-2 others, going all the way back to a Toshiba branded Surfboard.

Never an issue with anything carrying that name / whatever Broadcom chipset was in it at the time, for about 15 years now. Terminate your unused coax connections appropriately, minimize splitters on the way to your modem and assuming good signal levels after that, it should be smooth sailing.

Maneki Neko
Oct 27, 2000

movax posted:

I just got a Arris S33; had a SB8200 before that. Have owned a SB6141 before that, 1-2 others, going all the way back to a Toshiba branded Surfboard.

Never an issue with anything carrying that name / whatever Broadcom chipset was in it at the time, for about 15 years now. Terminate your unused coax connections appropriately, minimize splitters on the way to your modem and assuming good signal levels after that, it should be smooth sailing.

Seconding the Arris S33 it has been rock solid and seems fairly future proof at this point.

Three Olives
Apr 10, 2005

What if Hitler invented the BMW i3 Subcompact Electric car?

Maneki Neko posted:

Seconding the Arris S33 it has been rock solid and seems fairly future proof at this point.

quote:

Technical Specs
Wired Speeds Up to 3.5 Gbps
Best for Cable Internet Speed Plans Up to 2.5 Gbps
DOCSIS Technology DOCSIS 3.1
Gigabit Ethernet Ports One 2.5 GB and one 1 GB Ethernet Port

:psyduck:

Anton Chigurh
Mar 18, 2008
Probation
Can't post for 10 years!

bull3964
Nov 18, 2000

DO YOU HEAR THAT? THAT'S THE SOUND OF ME PATTING MYSELF ON THE BACK.


But better video quality, more varied programming, fewer or no ads, can watch anywhere on anything, and the ability to stop any of them at any time.

And all of them combined are still barely the cost of the most basic cable package.

Cost was never the biggest thing.

Also, Sling TV IS cable TV basically, so the graphic isn't even all that accurate.

Kilometers Davis
Jul 9, 2007

They begin again

bull3964 posted:

But better video quality, more varied programming, fewer or no ads, can watch anywhere on anything, and the ability to stop any of them at any time.

And all of them combined are still barely the cost of the most basic cable package.

Cost was never the biggest thing.

Also, Sling TV IS cable TV basically, so the graphic isn't even all that accurate.

:yeah:

Cost was a big factor for me and it’s far better with streaming too.

It’s not a perfect system but it’s so much better than the old cable setup.

Iron Crowned
May 6, 2003

by Hand Knit
The fact that cable channels are essentially all day blocks of one sitcom, is one big deterrent for cable on my end.

bull3964
Nov 18, 2000

DO YOU HEAR THAT? THAT'S THE SOUND OF ME PATTING MYSELF ON THE BACK.


Even the most basic of FiOS TV tiers that allows you to view in one room without DVR is like $75 /month. You can buy a lot of streaming subscriptions for $75 /month.

jokes
Dec 20, 2012

Uh... Kupo?

Yeah but streaming isn’t “real” TV

davebo
Nov 15, 2006

Parallel lines do meet, but they do it incognito
College Slice
I can't even imagine having cable tv WITHOUT also adding several streaming services on top of it in TYOOL 2022. I guess I'd be caught up on Better Caul Saul instead of waiting for Netflix to get it, but I'd just be missing everything else. It's definitely not an either/or situation.

TheScott2K
Oct 26, 2003

I'm just saying, there's a nonzero chance Trump has a really toad penis.
If you're not getting at least one of these services free with your phone plan and/or home internet service...how

Island Nation
Jun 20, 2006
Trust No One

TheScott2K posted:

If you're not getting at least one of these services free with your phone plan and/or home internet service...how

Prepaid T-Mobile which has mlb.tv but nothing else and Fios on contract (ends next month). That's how.

What's the best indoor antenna one can get? I'd prefer amplified since I'm not close to towers but it seems like some make reception worse

phosdex
Dec 16, 2005

TheScott2K posted:

If you're not getting at least one of these services free with your phone plan and/or home internet service...how

I'm on the $15/mo phone plan from xfinity since I use so little data, 0.33 gigs for my last cycle. You don't get free poo poo at these tiers.

MadFriarAvelyn
Sep 25, 2007

TheScott2K posted:

If you're not getting at least one of these services free with your phone plan and/or home internet service...how

Sometimes the free streaming services you get packaged in are bad. Verizon gave me a year of AMC+ for free, but the standalone AMC+ streaming service itself is garbage and incredibly limited on what platforms it supports (at the time only supporting browser streaming, and streaming off of android/iphone, so if you wanted to watch it on your TV you might have been out of luck). For the recent season of BCS I ended up...separately subscribing to the AMC+ channel that Amazon hosts, which gets me everything AMC+ does but with better support for different hardware, just so I could watch it in my living room.

Keyser_Soze
May 5, 2009

Pillbug
I'm still good with YTTV and Prime, Disney/Hulu/ESPN+ package and Peacock along with HBOMAX/Netflix on a rotation and stuff like Showtime like every few years for a few months. For Netflix I only need like 2-3 months per year to bomb through whatever I was interested in. They are the weak link nowadays although Prime is quickly heading that way too.

bull3964
Nov 18, 2000

DO YOU HEAR THAT? THAT'S THE SOUND OF ME PATTING MYSELF ON THE BACK.


AMC+ has apps for like every platform now.

Peacock continues to be the weak link with only like 2 weeks worth of new content per year.

Keyser_Soze
May 5, 2009

Pillbug
I need Peacock for Sports mostly (especially winter sports that have been relegated there) but The Office/Psych to re-watch on the exercise bike and occasional movies that pop up are often enough to keep it going.

bull3964
Nov 18, 2000

DO YOU HEAR THAT? THAT'S THE SOUND OF ME PATTING MYSELF ON THE BACK.


Life is too short and there's too much content for rewatches. Catalog poo poo that I've already seen holds little value for me and even if it did, I wouldn't keep a sub for it rather than just buying it outright.

If a streaming service wants to keep me subscribed, there needs to be new content week to week or a deep enough backlog to entice me to stay. New seasons of Girls5Ever, Rutherford Falls, and Killing It are done. Only thing happening week to week for now is Resident Alien and then Chucky later.

My peacock is free right now anyways through a 6 month trial.

Meanwhile I still have at least 7 season show backlogs on Netflix at this point.

Adbot
ADBOT LOVES YOU

Minidust
Nov 4, 2009

Keep bustin'

phosdex posted:

I'm on the $15/mo phone plan from xfinity since I use so little data, 0.33 gigs for my last cycle. You don't get free poo poo at these tiers.
yeah Verizon's Disney+ deal caught my eye, but I realized that upgrading to an unlimited plan would increase my bill by more than $8/mo or whatever the current Disney rate is, so v:shobon:v

you can still make an economic case for cable if you genuinely only plan to use one screen. but it goes out the window with anything beyond that IMO.

Minidust fucked around with this message at 23:34 on Aug 16, 2022

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
  • Post
  • Reply