Does anyone like their Cable Provider??

[Luvtoride]

I'm furious with my Cable company, Optimum here in NJ. I've been a long time customer and have seen my prices continue to rise much faster than Cost of Living for many years. I have cut back my services to try to keep costs lower (dropping DVR, eliminating 1 cable box, downgrading my channel selections to the "value" package). Yesterday, I get an email from them offering to "upgrade" my service to "Select" with many more channels PLUS get a free year of Starz networks for only $5 more per month. OK, I bite and call requesting the upgrade. The rep then proceeds to tell me I can't have this upgrade unless I also upgrade my internet speed service for a total change of $11/ month. I told him NO. I again said I just want the TV upgrade offered for $5/ month and he said he can do it but it will be $10/ month. I told him forget it and hung up.

I then called Verizon and arranged to have FIOS installed, with 1 GIG internet speed, full DVR, all channels I would have gotten with the upgraded "Select" package from optimum (and my sports channels) for a 2 year guaranteed contract price of $100 less per month than I'm paying NOW! I will also get a $200 Samsung gift card.

Are these Cable companies the worst? Do you really need to change companies every 2 years in order to get a good deal? Shame on me for not doing something sooner, but what a pain to go through this?!

And what about for those of us with 2nd/ vacation homes? What do you do for TV and internet services there? I know I bite the bullet to keep basic service and good internet speed at a place we use on weekends. I try to use streaming services in both my home and 2nd home as much as possible so I don't subscribe to any premium channels. I don't think that "cutting the cord" fully is a feasible alternative with significant cost savings yet. Any other tricks or ideas?

 

[WinniWoman]

We have DSL here and have had it for many years. That is for internet. Than we have the cheapest Directv package that has been grandfathered in and that goes up every year for hardly any channels. Then we have ROKU and I have one subscription on there for a news network.

When we move we will have to have Spectrum for everything. I hope it's ok. I don't care about TV (but hubby does) I am good with just ROKU- but that depends on internet and the internet overall is the most important to me.

 

[WinniWoman]

Oh- and we also have Amazon Prime and can watch movies through Roku.

 

[vacationhopeful]

Get a digital TV antenta for your TV watching. I got mine a Walmark. My house avarta picture is where I watch TV using Walmark antenna (not electric power stuff).

Seems the FAA requires ditigal TV service over the air for emergencies. That place is 100+ miles west of NYC and 20 miles NORTH of the mountain ridge where the PA Turnpike tunnel is. North of me by 3 miles as the crow flies is the Camelback Ski area.

Not a boat load of channels ... mostly channels of either 24 hours NEWS and WEATHER and a channel or two of old TV shows.

 

[bbodb1]

What's a cable provider?

 

[bbodb1]

Brian,

On a more serious note, one possible solution to your 2nd home is this. Use your cell phone as a hot spot IF your data plan is unlimited and your cell reception around your 2nd home is solid.

Of course, the X factor here is what programming do you consider essential?

 

[Cornell]

HI Brian -- Like you, I got sick of the cable company game of having to call them every year or two to negotiate a lowering of my prices. Hassle. I have two TVs in my home. One is a Smart TV and the other I put a Roku on. I pay for Netflix and HULU + Live TV. Hulu + Live TV allows me to DVR and watch most of the channels that I'm interested in live. However, even though I DVR shows on Hulu, I'm often precluded from being able to skip commercials, which annoys me to no end. And the interface is really a PIA to use -- not nearly as simple as my former Cable setup. I still use the cable company to get my Internet service . I'm not saving a ton of $$ once I pay for internet service , Netflix and Hulu Live. I'll be honest -- I miss cable TV and imagine I will be going back at some point. I'm not saving THAT much! I don't have a vacation house, so can't offer any suggestions on that.

 

[Jan M.]

Where we lived in PA we had a smaller independently owned cable company. We were very happy with Armstrong Cable and didn't know just how good we had it. Living in Florida we have Comcast and last fall switched to Direct TV and AT&T.

Our HOA dues include basic cable with Comcast. We just pay for internet and few extra channels so my husband could have the history channel, not any premium channels, and our bill was over $100 a month. And that didn't even get us decent internet speed. We got a good two year deal through Costco for Direct TV and AT&T for everything that was cheaper than what were paying Comcast for just what we had over the basic cable paid by our HOA. We switched just so we wouldn't be giving Comcast any more of our money. We are hoping AT&T gets the fiber optic cable to our plan done so our HOA can switch to them. Our HOA wanted to go with AT&T when the last contract was up and dump Comcast but now are stuck with them until after 2020.

My husband is president of the Board for our HOA of 146 homes. Comcast screwed them on the contract renewal. Gave them a proposal in writing with 2 options then decided not to honor the prices quoted in the proposal. It gets even better. Then they said the association was stuck with the crappy old contract with a yearly rate increase even higher than they were paying. They let the time the association had to cancel with them expire before telling the association that they wouldn't honor the proposal which left them stuck with the automatic renewal clause in their old contract. The attorney for the association said it wasn't worth what they'd spend in legal fees to go after them. Needless to say our plan won't be doing business with Comcast after this contract. I can see being willing to lose the business of one homeowner but 146 with a guaranteed two year contract is a big chunk of money just for the basic cable. I know because I had to run the numbers for my husband to present to the Board for the homeowners meeting.

I can't remember who our son has now but for a while they had Time-Warner. They seem to be equally as bad as Comcast. The cable company in my home town area in Ohio was bought out Spectrum. I belong to a Facebook group for my hometown and I see frequently complaints about Spectrum.

 

[Free2Roam]

Do you really need to change companies every 2 years in order to get a good deal? Shame on me for not doing something sooner, but what a pain to go through this?!

I recently switched from Verizon Fios to Comcast cable and I'm saving over $100/month. So, yes, from my experience, you need to switch to get the best rates.

Before I switched, I called Verizon a couple times to get lower rates. No-go... so I went. I cut back on a couple TVs, which saved approx $20/month... included in the savings. I use the xfinity streaming app on my Roku stick to watch TV in those rooms if needed.

I agree that cutting the cord isn't yet a comparable option if you actually watch TV. I need internet more than TV, and in some cases the internet-only options are almost the same price as internet with TV

 

[Sandy VDH]

They screw you if you stay with them, as @Free2Roam stated, you have to jump ship every year after your contract finished to get a good deal.

Another ploy is call and tell you are you going to cancel, they will have someone come back with a better offer. But you have to really be willing to cancel and know what prices the competition is offering.

I too have Comcast, and every year it is a dance. Last year they gave me a better deal on TV and 150 mps high speed internet, with all taxes and charges it is just about $90 a month. Turns out the Latino cable package was a better deal. That explains all the spanish channels I don't watch. But I don't want most of the other channels either. However the TV and internet was a cheaper priced bundled than it was for internet alone.

 

[Luvtoride]

Wow, I guess I struck a nerve in many of you! Thanks for sharing your experiences and woes. At our beach place we do have Comcast Infinity which I happen to like. I already figured out the Roku stick trick with Xfinity streaming for 3 of our TVs there and saved $30/ month in cable box rentals! I now tell all of my neighbors there to do the same thing (Comcast is the only service in our community).

Yes, determining what channels are most important to us is the best place to start. We don’t watch a lot of regular TV either but need to have the local broadcast news and our sports channels.

It will be interesting to see if any of the new streaming services coming out in the next year like Apple or Disney find a way to offer some local channels with theirs at a reasonable price. Let’s hope.


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[davidvel]

Where we lived in PA we had a smaller independently owned cable company. We were very happy with Armstrong Cable and didn't know just how good we had it. Living in Florida we have Comcast and last fall switched to Direct TV and AT&T.

Our HOA dues include basic cable with Comcast. We just pay for internet and few extra channels so my husband could have the history channel, not any premium channels, and our bill was over $100 a month. And that didn't even get us decent internet speed. We got a good two year deal through Costco for Direct TV and AT&T for everything that was cheaper than what were paying Comcast for just what we had over the basic cable paid by our HOA. We switched just so we wouldn't be giving Comcast any more of our money. We are hoping AT&T gets the fiber optic cable to our plan done so our HOA can switch to them. Our HOA wanted to go with AT&T when the last contract was up and dump Comcast but now are stuck with them until after 2020.

My husband is president of the Board for our HOA of 146 homes. Comcast screwed them on the contract renewal. Gave them a proposal in writing with 2 options then decided not to honor the prices quoted in the proposal. It gets even better. Then they said the association was stuck with the crappy old contract with a yearly rate increase even higher than they were paying. They let the time the association had to cancel with them expire before telling the association that they wouldn't honor the proposal which left them stuck with the automatic renewal clause in their old contract. The attorney for the association said it wasn't worth what they'd spend in legal fees to go after them. Needless to say our plan won't be doing business with Comcast after this contract. I can see being willing to lose the business of one homeowner but 146 with a guaranteed two year contract is a big chunk of money just for the basic cable. I know because I had to run the numbers for my husband to present to the Board for the homeowners meeting.

I can't remember who our son has now but for a while they had Time-Warner. They seem to be equally as bad as Comcast. The cable company in my home town area in Ohio was bought out Spectrum. I belong to a Facebook group for my hometown and I see frequently complaints about Spectrum.

Make sure you cancel in month 24 of your DirecTV contract or you costs will double or more. . .

 

[clifffaith]

When the Cox cable bill went from $200 to $215 last month I decided I'd had enough. No more Property Brothers, Walking Dead, American Pickers or 24 hour news stations. Price went down to $146, but I'm pissed. Cliff stopped in at ATT/ Direct TV and came home with a quote that included all our old channels and his music channels, as well as Showtime/Starz/Encore. Price is $135 for Internet and TV, but I suspect there will be taxes on that and that the movie channels will go away after a time (which doesn't bother us a bit). Thing is, on Nextdoor people complain about AT&T as much as they do Cox. So devil I know vs devil I don't. Someone suggested to double check that since we have an AT&T landline that the price couldn't go down further with a "bundle".

 

[SmithOp]

Brian,

On a more serious note, one possible solution to your 2nd home is this. Use your cell phone as a hot spot IF your data plan is unlimited and your cell reception around your 2nd home is solid.

Of course, the X factor here is what programming do you consider essential?

I upgraded my AT&T cell plan recently from 15G/month to Unlimited data, they slipped in a gotcha, no hotspot data!

I just went through this cable BS with Spectrum. I guess we do have to change every 2 years! I had tv, phone and internet for $130 for first year, then it went to $160. This year it went to $210 so I cut off phone and DVR and its back down to $160. Trouble is I like the service, there is an app I can watch from anywhere with wifi.


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[Free2Roam]

I upgraded my AT&T cell plan recently from 15G/month to Unlimited data, they slipped in a gotcha, no hotspot data!

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Unless it's changed in the past few months, AT&T does have an unlimited package that includes hot spot capabilities.

 

[Sandy VDH]

Verizon has an unlimited that includes hotspot, and I also discovered verizon has a 55+ plan that takes another $20 off per month. It does throttle it back after certain limits. It also includes Canada and Mexico, both calling to and traveling in.

It is only available in some states however.

 

[davidvel]

When the Cox cable bill went from $200 to $215 last month I decided I'd had enough. No more Property Brothers, Walking Dead, American Pickers or 24 hour news stations. Price went down to $146, but I'm pissed. Cliff stopped in at ATT/ Direct TV and came home with a quote that included all our old channels and his music channels, as well as Showtime/Starz/Encore. Price is $135 for Internet and TV, but I suspect there will be taxes on that and that the movie channels will go away after a time (which doesn't bother us a bit). Thing is, on Nextdoor people complain about AT&T as much as they do Cox. So devil I know vs devil I don't. Someone suggested to double check that since we have an AT&T landline that the price couldn't go down further with a "bundle".

We can get Directv and Dish, Cox or Spectrum. Directv is the best overall provider, IMO as far as TV, DVR etc. But the AT&T DSL is unusable for us (25mps) as we stream a lot. Since you bundled internet, your price should stay fixed for 24 months but will go to about $250/mo in month 25. You also need to watch your bill like a hawk. If you don't want to pay for premium channels cancel before they expire (usually 3 mos to a year.)

 

[bogey21]

I had DirecTV for years and was very satisfied. The only hassle was having to call and beat them down to cut my rate but they always accommodated me...

George

 

[Cornell]

TUG is always provides useful info to me -- even for things not related to timeshares. I had no idea about the Comcast trick w/Roku until I read that in this thread. As I mentioned earlier, I cut the cord a few months back but really miss it. I called Comcast tonight and they gave me a sweet deal to get my business back. So, buh-bye to Hulu Live, which I just did not care for. I'm saving more $$ b/c I'll watch Comcast on my 2nd TV via the Roku. So , thank you all!

 

[Patri]

I had DirecTV for years and was very satisfied. The only hassle was having to call and beat them down to cut my rate but they always accommodated me...George

It is because you are so charming on the phone.

 

[dioxide45]

We actually loved DirecTV for many years. Had it for almost 19. Everything is all a-okay until you want to cancel. Apparently this year AT&T updated their policy to stop pro-rating your final bill. So we had to pay for the full month even though we riped our dish out two weeks early. I wasn't pleased. Right now we have no television in our new condo. The TV is hooked up and we can watch Prime and it also has a Chromecast attached, but we are so busy unpacking we haven't watched anything.

I am seriously considering just an OTA antenna and if we get a good reception I may spring for a standalone Tivo which also has all the streaming apps on it.

 

[Sandy VDH]

I also side loaded xfinity onto my firestick. I few extra steps as it is on in the amazon store, but easy enough to get it on there. Work better with voice commands, than the old V1 of the firestick.

 

[rboesl]

For us our Verizon Fios service price got out of hand (over $250 a month with no premium services.). Then we received an offer from Spectrum that would reduce our price by 60%. Woo Hoo!! I called Verizon to talk about a change to match and wouldn't so we changed. We liked Spectrum. Had them for a little over a year. But, we were hearing they were in trouble with New York State and we weren't sure they would be able to continue to do business in the state for much longer. Around the same time that news was floating around we received an offer in the mail to come back with similar service to what we had before for even less what we were currently paying for Spectrum. So, I called Verizon, again, and not only did we get the new lower price (now ~65% less than what we originally paying) but they locked the price for 2 years. Sweet.

We're 6+ months in now. Spectrum has finally settled with New York State. So we'll see what happens in a year and a half. One thing that did seem a little odd to me was that Verizon required me to include phone service in the bundle. We were considering dropping it but, it was the only way to get the better price.

 

[Patri]

Apparently this year AT&T updated their policy to stop pro-rating your final bill. So we had to pay for the full month even though we riped our dish out two weeks.

Hmmm, I wonder if that is true for cell phone service too. We changed carriers two weeks into the month, and never got a refund.

 

[Ken555]

This thread reminds me to review my Spectrum account and verify I’m still on a promo price. I only have internet service with them but if I don’t call every year they increase my rate by ~$10 per month. FWIW, their internet service and support is better now than it was with Time Warner and performance is a solid 425/20 for me (and while they promised 960 for my area a few years ago I really don’t need it...at least, not now).


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