So you still haven't canceled cable? The other day I realized my household had been cable free since 2012! It’s crazy to think it's already been five years since we placed a phone call to Comcast canceled our cable subscription and sent back that crazy huge old cable box. When we decided to cut the cable cord back in 2012, we still loved TV, but we realized our TV viewing habits had changed. We no longer watched TV live, we often would wait several days before watching our 'must-see TV' or binge-watch several episodes.
Also, we got sick of never ending reruns as much as I loved the HGTV channel and the Food Network how many times can they show endless episodes of House Hunters or Cupcake Wars. You feel me! After adding up the cost, we quickly realized we were paying over $ 480 a year for cable to watch re-runs, plus factor in the additional charge for internet. It just didn’t make sense. You can read more about our decision to cut the cable cord here.
I love sharing how our family went 100% cable-free and how we currently watch TV. My mission is to convert all the cable subscribers out there into cable free households. Patting myself on the back, I’ve turned my mom, dad, sister, and friends (who said they'd never go cable-free into believers) along with my blog readers into cable free households. Below, I'm breaking down our cable-free house.
How We Watch Television
We watch our favorite TV Shows and movies with a ROKU player which is internet streaming device, that has channels on it. You subscribe to the channels to watch the shows. The cool thing about the ROKU player is it’s only a one-time cost to purchase the equipment, no monthly fee afterward, they range between $ 29.99 - $ 129.99 learn more here. There so many options on the market to make going cable free accessible including Apple TV, Amazon Fire, and Google Chromecast.
What We Pay For
Roku has several channels on the streaming device you can subscribe to, some are free and some a paid. In addition to our internet each month we have three paid subscriptions with Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime (love that two-day free shipping option!!) We pay around $28 bucks a month and have way movie movies and TV show options compared to when we had cable. Thanks to HULU we’re still able to enjoy all the current TV shows on the major networks.
Plus, I’m able to enjoy my favorite BBC TV shows from across on the pond. Last month HULU added a bunch of TV shows from HGTV, so now I can catch up on House Hunters International and The Property Brothers. One of my favorite free channels available on the RUKO player is PBS. I’ve freaking love PBS! Their period TV shows are bananas my recent favs: Victoria and Poldark (free if your currently subscribed to Amazon Prime) and Call the Midwife.
I also like the CW channel which is free and allows me to watch my new favorite teen suspense 'who did it' TV show Riverdale. Have you seen it? It's a little campy, yes but I got hooked.
SPORTS// We're also able to watch sports on ABC live or ESPN the channel. We haven't missed one game of the NBA Finals.
In the past we tired out SlingTV which is paid subscription that allows you to have access to 'live TV on the major networks.' I don't know if it was our internet connection, but the connection always felt rough and spotty and certainty not worth the $ 19.99 monthly fee. Online streaming is becoming more and more popular and with popularity brings more access to watching the hottest favorite shows, I can now watch many HBO or AMC shows thanks to my paid subscription with Amazon Prime and HULU.
Oh! I should share how we watch new releases since it can take a while for Hulu & Netflix to have new movies available. We often rent movies on Amazon Prime for $1.99 - 3.99 depending on the movie. I love the option to rent new movies, I also love being able to rent older movies thanks to Amazon Prime. Specifically movies from my childhood that I know my kids would enjoy. We recently watch Arachnophobia, that movie still makes me jump and gives me the chills!
Evolution of Netflix / Hulu / Amazon Prime
It's so exciting how much Netflix / Hulu / Amazon Prime have evolved over the years; they’re changing the landscape of TV as we know it. Seriously those three are #GameChangers. Only a few short years ago Netflix was just Netflix and Chill lol. Now Netflix is creating TV shows, documentaries and even making movies! Did you catch The Crown on Netflix, it was incredible. I’ll be honest it took me two episodes to hooked but once I did I was all in, I’m patiently waiting for Season Two to arrive next year. I also totally dug Stranger Things, my teen and I got hooked last Summer.
Amazon Prime also has some fantastic TV shows they’ve created. HULU is killing it! They have created some amazing TV shows they refer to as HULU Originals. Let’s talk about The Handmaid's Tale, are you also watching it? I’m currently watching it very slowly and still deciding on how I feel about it. I will say its fascinating and eerie how fast society can flip, that part gives me the chills.
Binge-able TV Shows I love
What did we do before binge watching? Gone are the days I used to wait for TV shows week after week, I typically let my TV shows stack up for a while before watching. I seriously live for weekends that are super chill, which means I’ll stay up late and binge watch. Below are a few of my favorite TV shows that are binge-able, yup its made up word!
Period TV Shows:
Downton Abbey, The Crown, Victoria, Poldark, Underground, Mad Med, Grantchester and Father Brown
British Shows:
Doc Martin, Happy Valley, Last Tango in Halifax, Broadchurch and Scott & Bailey
Positively Good Shows:
The Good Wife, The Carmichael Show, The Goldbergs, Switched at Birth, Riverdale, The Flash and This Is Us (which is incredible, get a box of tissue)
Have you gone cable free? If so do you miss anything about cable? If you still have cable, what do you love it / loathe? Lastly, what are you currently binge watching?
