Friday, December 12, 2008

cancel your cable

the internet has made it easier and easier for people to give up their cable television.
but have many people actually done this?
probably not.
you say you want to save money... but you just can't drop that tivo.
i have not had my own cable television since i was living with my parents.
so it's been probably 6 or 7 years.
it was hard to give up at first, but i realized that i just could not afford it at the time.
and i realized there are cheaper alternatives.

when i first started my no-cable lifestyle, i watched a lot of dvd and vhs movies.
most of them i owned a just kept watching over and over again.
i wouldn't suggest this route.
go to the library and pick out some dvds that interest you.
are you a movie junky and can't be motivated enough to go to the library?
netflix is also a better option to cable.
it's still way cheaper and you can rent seasons of your favorite tv series on dvd.

in most recent times, i utilize my library's website to request dvds to check out.
i also subscribe to netflix when i can afford it.
when i can't afford it, i put my account on hold.
putting my netflix account on hold still allows me full access of their website, but i don't have to rent from them until i am ready to.

i also found the joys of about 6 months ago.
hulu offers you a queue option (much like netflix) of your favorite tv programs and movies.
all you do is subscribe to your favorite show, and hulu will update your queue as new episodes become available.
it usually updates the day after the episode has aired on television.
my queue is always updated with shows that interest me most.
doesn't mean that i actually get around to watching them though.
here are my favs on hulu: the family guy, it's always sunny in philadelphia, madtv, the office, the colbert report, the daily show, late night with conan obrien, psych, my name is earl. is good for random stuff and so is miro.

don't want to watch tv on your computer tiny screen?
another simple solution, buy hdmi cables to connect to your computer.
i use a mini-dvi cable to connect to my hdmi cable.
but then again, i use a macbook, so every computer will be a bit different.
but i can watch movies and tv programs from my laptop, on my tv.

okay, so what do you do without that weather channel with it's soothing music?
you go to!
the website is just as accurate as the tv and you don't have to listen to the music or watch any advertisements.
i am a addict.
i don't dare step outside until i see just how cold it is.

what about the news?!
find your local news channel's website and surf it!

okay, i honestly can't help ya there.
i'm not a sports fan, so i don't have to deal with that.
any ideas?

and if all else fails, pick up a book.
it's more mentally stimulating for you.
sure, it's not instant gratification, but good things are worth waiting for.

any other suggestions on how to make the switch from cable television?

1 comment:

ZombieKitteh said...

o0o0oh I also found Hulu. I like how the commercials are so short.

I lived without cable at my old trailer for like 2 months and about died. I watched numerous dvd's over and over again and read 4 or so of my books. My overpacked bookshelf thanked me. But I must say that I would rather have cable than internet. At the trailer, I didn't have internet though, so that made it worse. I want to be frugal but I really like my cable. >_< Why does life have to be so hard.