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The One Ring Forums: Off Topic: The Pollantir:
Cable? Still have it? Or no?
Poll: Cable? Still have it? Or no?
Cut the cord recently
Have been without it for quite some time now
Never had it
Thinking about cutting the cord, just need a reason
Scared to cut the cord, won't I lose contact with the outside world?
Never! Cable Guy's are my only friends!
View Results (36 votes)
 

Donry
Tol Eressea


Jul 24 2014, 9:58pm

Post #1 of 18 (1236 views)
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Cable? Still have it? Or no? Can't Post

We recently killed our cable.....I brought this up in an OT post earlier in the month and few others chimed in. This - according to the cable companies - is a growing trend. So I thought I would post this poll to see if the folks here are following the trend or not......I know there are a few, more than a few actually, over the years who have stated they haven't had cable in years....Anyway...off with their heads (cable 'heads' that is)....


Meneldor
Valinor


Jul 24 2014, 10:08pm

Post #2 of 18 (1086 views)
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Never did buy cable. [In reply to] Can't Post

Gave up on TV after Firefly was cancelled. If I really want to watch something, it's likely to come out on Hulu or Netflix eventually. I can be patient.


Magpie
Immortal


Jul 24 2014, 11:04pm

Post #3 of 18 (1077 views)
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You didn't specify but I assume you mean cable tv? [In reply to] Can't Post

I don't have cable tv.

I do have cable internet.

Back when cable first came out, I let them sign me up for a free month. When my month was up, I knew that they had to provide an option that was just local broadcast channels (provided via cable) stations (and maybe some cable community access channels). That option was very affordable (maybe $5 a month?) and it lets you see what you'd see with an antennae but with better 'reception'.

They didn't want you to know this and you kind of had to be very insistent but I was insistent and they signed me up for local channels only. But they never 'switched' the full service off. I was told (by someone in the industry) that they probably had to come out to the junction outside my house and switch it there and it just wasn't worth their effort. I had full access to all cable channels (but no extra pay channels) for a good year or two at rock bottom prices. Then they got around to it and switched it to local only.

At some point, the price for basic service rose to around $12 a month and we got a better rooftop antennae and discontinued cable altogether. That was probably mid to late 80s. We could get Fox, CW, CBS, NBC, PBS, UPN/The-WB and ABC. Fox was not great reception. When everyone went digital transmission, Fox got great and I now get 17 different channels plus a weather channel. I actually can 'get' more than that but I have 17 available on my rotation for easy access. (the rest are either marketing or religious channels) My reception on all of those is good except for occasional high wind times when images will momentarily break up.


Dame Ioreth
Tol Eressea


Jul 24 2014, 11:22pm

Post #4 of 18 (1090 views)
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none of thre above [In reply to] Can't Post

I like our cable service. And hubby works for a long distance/cable company so we're supporting his company and his job. The whole industry is hurting and we've already lost his pension and a good hunk of his 401K to a bankruptcy. He also lost all the bonuses he earned over the years because they were given as stock options and we weren't allowed to exercise them in time. That was our retirement and our kids' college fund down the tubes because of a greedy CEO and board of directors.

Whoops... /rant

No premium channels though. We don't need them.


DaughterofLaketown
Gondor


Jul 24 2014, 11:52pm

Post #5 of 18 (1072 views)
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We have basic cable service [In reply to] Can't Post

Very basic service from mediacom albeit, but we have it and have for many years. Our best experience with a cable company was Cox but we cannot have it where we are located. However there are days when it's really trashy. We use netflix a lot.


Magpie
Immortal


Jul 25 2014, 12:38am

Post #6 of 18 (1081 views)
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"That was our retirement and our kids' college fund down the tubes because of a greedy CEO and board of directors. " [In reply to] Can't Post

That's the story way too often and for way too long.

This story goes back generations.


dernwyn
Forum Admin / Moderator


Jul 25 2014, 2:50am

Post #7 of 18 (1062 views)
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I selected the last option, but it's not quite true... [In reply to] Can't Post

The Cable Guy is not our "friend". We have cable because that's the only way to get TV reception in our area - and our Internet is tied into it.

Hubby's gotta have his sports channels, and we'll sometimes watch PBS or the local public station. Others in the family like some of the Animal Planet, Discovery Channel, and Food Network offerings. Our Basic subscription covers these.

I've tried watching shows on the computer screen, but it's just too small! And sitting at the desk is not as comfy as lounging on sofa pillows. Smile


Donry
Tol Eressea


Jul 25 2014, 2:57am

Post #8 of 18 (1056 views)
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HDMI... [In reply to] Can't Post

We are pretty much all laptops in our house now, so we plug in the laptops to the television via HDMI cables, which gives us the bigscreen.....sports is the tough one for me as well...bit of a junkie...


dernwyn
Forum Admin / Moderator


Jul 25 2014, 3:03am

Post #9 of 18 (1056 views)
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Wouldn't work for us... [In reply to] Can't Post

The TV is in a far-away room, we've have to trail cables through the house, and since it's a 15-year-old CRT-style TV, we'd have a hard time finding where to plug anything in...Laugh!


Donry
Tol Eressea


Jul 25 2014, 3:13am

Post #10 of 18 (1062 views)
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True! [In reply to] Can't Post

We have pretty much upgraded all the tv's in our house.....kinda screwed ourselves in the process! Some of the devices we have now don't work with the new tv's....which are all HDMI and different AV cables...no longer the old red/white and yellow cables....so our dvd players are pretty much obsolete now....as are some of the older game systems....the dvd's now get played in either laptops plugged in via HDMI or the newer gaming systems.....

We have one computer left that is hard wired to the wall....it is our old PC, which pretty much acts as a server and storage hub at the moment...We are soon going to replace it....with something new and wireless.....Bell Canada is promoting their new wireless televisions, which is very intriguing....would love to go that route soon....just the power cable on those tv's.....all modems/routers basically get plugged in where the cable comes through the wall....everything is wireless.....we don't have a phone land line anymore either....so we're almost wireless...


Alcarcalime
Tol Eressea


Jul 25 2014, 8:47am

Post #11 of 18 (1052 views)
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Not an issue for us! [In reply to] Can't Post

Cable TV/internet not offered to people who live in the rural areas in our county.


Annael
Immortal


Jul 26 2014, 2:25pm

Post #12 of 18 (1019 views)
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other [In reply to] Can't Post

went without for many years & didn't miss it; I'd wait for people to tell me what shows were good & get them on DVD. Much preferable without the ads and crawl at the bottom of the screen!

But then I moved to a rental where cable is included. I rarely watch shows as they are playing, but instead record them & watch at my leisure (gleefully skipping the ads).

I imagine we will all go to some kind of streaming sooner or later.


IdrilLalaith
Rivendell


Jul 26 2014, 8:02pm

Post #13 of 18 (995 views)
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Haven't had it since I went to college [In reply to] Can't Post

I lived in apartments all through college, but no one wanted to spend money on cable. After I graduated, I didn't bother getting it, and that was nearly three years ago.

My boyfriend has had cable at his place for almost a year, but he's cutting it when his contract is up. It's kinda cool seeing things right away, but it's not really worth the money. There's so much crap on, anyway, and you only have so much time.


sauget.diblosio
Tol Eressea


Jul 27 2014, 1:49am

Post #14 of 18 (996 views)
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I have cable-- [In reply to] Can't Post

HD with a DVR and Internet-- and i like it. I have two roommates and we split the cost, so it ends up being about 30 bucks a month, which isn't too bad. Too many great shows on AMC, FX and the like, and other shows like Mythbusters, to miss. No premium channels though (i would get HBO for Game of Thrones and all their other excellent series (and HBO Go) but the roommates aren't interested).

I also have Netflix (me and my girlfriend share an account), and Amazon Prime (which i had long before they started streaming-- i buy way too much stuff from them). Used to have Hulu Plus, but got annoyed at having to pay for it and watch ads, so i dropped it.

Rereading that, it sounds like i watch too much tv, but really i only watch a few specific series (right now i'm on Louie and The Americans), and binge watch shows like Breaking Bad and The Walking Dead. If i'm just lounging around and want some background atmosphere, i'll leave it on MeTV and half-watch all those great old shows.

Edit: We have Charter in St. Louis, and they are reasonable. Any time i've had to deal with customer service it's gone really smoothly, the prices aren't too bad, and the internet the internet is fast and dependable. As far as cable companies go, they seem like one of the better ones.


(This post was edited by sauget.diblosio on Jul 27 2014, 1:53am)


Dwarewien
Rohan


Jul 27 2014, 8:25pm

Post #15 of 18 (973 views)
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I get MeTV too... [In reply to] Can't Post

I usually watch it around 2:00 in the morning (I don't go to bed till after 4:00). I like to watch the Alfred Hitchcock hour and Thriller (which is hosted by the one and only Boris Karloff). I have way too many shows to ditch my cable any time soon, even though you can watch the latest episode of Under the Dome on the CBS website, you can't up here in Canada, so if I miss an episode, I would have to wait until I could buy the whole season on Blu-ray and DVD, and I'm not about to do that (though I usually end up buying them anyway, especially since Under the Dome is more of a Summer series). I was without cable once, and it was a bloody nightmare, due to the fact that I hardly ever watch those three channels you do get without cable. I need to get more cable, since I don't even get HBO (yet) or the Discovery Channel in my cable package (though I do get the National Geographic channel, so at least that's something). Though it's true that you can buy the various seasons of Game of Thrones on Blu-ray and DVD, they're a little on the pricey end (about $60.00 depending on the store), so I would rather watch it on television.Smile


joec_34
Rivendell


Jul 28 2014, 7:58pm

Post #16 of 18 (949 views)
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Bunny ears for me [In reply to] Can't Post

I've not had cable in my adult life. Bunny ears have sufficed, because I live in a city and can pick a bit up. PBS is all I need. Back in those WV hills when I was young I had cable.


Aunt Dora Baggins
Immortal


Jul 28 2014, 8:50pm

Post #17 of 18 (976 views)
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We got basic cable a few years ago [In reply to] Can't Post

when it all went digital and our antenna didn't work anymore. I guess we're thirty years behind the times.


Elizabeth
Half-elven


Aug 26 2014, 9:43pm

Post #18 of 18 (921 views)
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It's included in our coop apt. [In reply to] Can't Post

We have a few added channels.

We almost never watch live TV, though. We mostly record shows we're interested in (mostly Public Television) and watch them when we're ready. The exception is live sports events, such as Dodger Baseball. I use the paddle to mute it during ads, though.

We use Netflix a lot, but I really need access to TV. And I never, never watch movies or shows on my computer!

 
 

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