How I Cut the Cord and Enjoy Almost Free TV: A Follow Up

My article "How I Cut The Cord and Now Enjoy (almost) Free TV" about canceling cable and relying on other options to watch everything I wanted, was featured on the Yahoo home page and many people read about my experiences.

I appreciate all the feedback and to me, the fact that over 13,000 people shared it on Facebook means they found value in the information and wanted to share it with their friends. Although there were over 4,300 comments, I read as many as possible and found some recurring themes I wanted to address in this follow up.

Free Content
Many readers suggested all kinds of quasi-legal sites that offer current movies and television shows for downloading and streaming, as well as file sharing sites. Technically, these sites are not legal to use in the US and are not authorized by the copyright owners of the material they share. I don't believe in stealing content. My son and daughter are both involved creatively in the entertainment industry and if I don't want people stealing content they create, I can't do the same. This is why I only included legal, official options for accessing content.

Cost of High Speed Internet
The backbone of my content delivery system after cutting the cord is our high speed connection. We are paying $19.99 per month for 6 megabyte per second download speed from AT&T Uverse under a promotion they offer in our area. The normal pricing is $49.99 a month. Many readers commented they must pay much higher rates and that high speed access is not even available in their area.

Check various providers for specials in your area. Internet access is provided by phone companies, cable TV companies and also satellite TV companies, compare each. Also check with national providers like EarthLink. Some mobile providers also offer wireless high speed access via a plug in card or device for your desktop or laptop computer.

Free HDTV
All network and independent television stations in the US broadcast a free digital HDTV signal. You can watch your local Fox, NBC, ABC, CBS, PBS, CW, all local stations in full HDTV for free. You just need an antenna and a digital converter, which may be already built into your TV. This allows you to watch the latest TV shows, sports, awards shows, everything and be totally up to date on the latest developments, just like those with cable or satellite.

If you have a clear line of sight to the broadcast towers, you can buy an antenna under $20. and get all the local channels. Any TV antenna will work, even an old roof top model. If you are far away or if there are buildings or other natural obstructions (hills, mountains, etc.) you will need a more expensive amplified model costing around $75. Check antennaweb.org for detailed information on digital television, antenna selection and placement.

Amazon Instant Video
Since writing the article, my wife and I have discovered the offerings of Amazon's On-Demand service, now called Amazon Instant Video. They offer most current television shows the instant they are broadcast. Shows cost about $1.98 to purchase, and you can buy a season pass, which saves a bit of money and guarantees you get every show of the season.

The shows looks great, and are in HD. We watch them on our Logitech Revue device, amazon has an app on it, that makes previewing and purchasing shows very quick and easy. Most shows and films are offered with a 1-2 minute preview, which is great to see if you like the content.

Apple TV
Another great set-top box is the Apple TV device. Obviously, the device is very tied to iTunes, and buying or rental shows and movies. Most TV shows and movies are available, but you must pay for everything. Most also are only a 48 hour rental.

The device works great with Netflix, so you have all that content available to you. You can also watch youtube videos. You cannot watch Hulu or use Hulu Plus on the device, but weirdly, you can use Hulu Plus on iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch. The Apple TV does work great with the other Apple devices and lets you listen to music, look at photos and other extra functions that share the content across the different platforms.

More from this contributor:

"How We Cut The Cord and Now Enjoy (almost) Free TV"

"How To Use Credit Cards Wisely"

"Common Sense Ways To Trim Your Fuel Spending"