I only have the extremely bare-bones, $13 cable - the cheapest option available from the local provider. Aside from the standard broadcast networks, this gives me about 3 or 4 channels I’d ever care to watch, plus a lot of foreign-language channels. Before that I could get no TV at all, even with antennae. When I went from dial-up to cable modem, I decided it would be nice to have access to news in case someone blew up another building.
The only channel I really miss is Comedy Central. However, I am never in danger of accidentally stumbling across MTV, so that’s a fair trade-off.
Not only have we not had cable for over two years, but we don’t have a VCR or DVD player :eek: ! Our tv sucks, too. It’s a hand-me-down from one of my husband’s elderly relatives. It doesn’t have a remote and has little buttons to push for the channels (1-8). It takes several hours for it to warm up (remember when tvs used to have to warm up?), so we’re usually watching a horrendous picture. We still watch plenty of tv. When we move back to the US in a few months, my husband has deemed cable to be a priority so that he can watch rugby and cricket. I’ll be happy to get my *Daily Show * back.
It won’t be too long before “TV” as we know it will be available on TV’s and PC’s(and iPods, and…). We’re not too far from that being a reality right now.
When my “introductory rate” runs out on the cable service I have now, I’ll ask them to extend it. If they don’t, I’ll cancel. I can watch a lot of my favorite programs on the web, and the rest I won’t miss in the slightest.
I don’t have cable for reasons simililar to Gordon Urquhart
If I had cable, I’d watch WAY too much TV.
I still watch, maybe a bit “too much” (im my own opinion), but with cable I’d be in trouble.
When I got out of college I didn’t have any cable at all for a year or so. Then I wanted to watch the Olympics so I got it. A few years later the women I was living with wanted the huge digtial cable when it came out and I hated it. I hated the box, waiting for the channel to change. When she left I ditched cable and went to an antenna. When I bought a house I couldn’t use my antenna so got basic cable. I’ve had that for the last couple of years with no problem.
Now, I just bought a new HDTV when my last one died. I’ve been looking into it for the last couple of weeks and have decided to go with an antenna again. I just got one yesterday that looks a bit like a dish so I’m going to install it on my roof where the dish is and not worry about it. I think once I get it pointed the right way I will get 20-25 HD channels. I have it set up inside now and picked up most of them really well, I figure when I get it outside it will work great since all the stations are within a couple of degrees and a mile or so apart. I would totally ditch cable if I could find a DVR that had a digital tuner in it.
Well of course I could do without, anyone could do without, but I choose not to. I watch almost nothing on the networks. I don’t think I’ve watched a CBS show, for example, regularly in five years or more. Oh, except for The Amazing Race. If I didn’t have cable I’d miss all the poker shows I watch semi-obsessively and Veronica Mars.
I forewent subscribing to cable when I moved into my own place last November. I didn’t own a television over 15" and I wasn’t about to spend $200 on a 21" box when I have a perfectly good 21" monitor for one of my computers.
I watch the 15" tv - broadcast - when I am falling asleep at night (PBS rocks!) and the 21" computer monitor is my television in the living room. Hooked up to a powerful computer with Region 1 and Region 2 DVD players, surround sound, 30GB of music and 400GB of “watchables.” Plus I have a subscription to Netflix.
I dropped the premium movie channels on DirecTV about 5 years ago. Every now and then, they’ll offer a free weekend on one of the movie networks. When they do, I check out the listings and I flashback to the scene in Crocodile Dundee where he sees the I Love Lucy rerun on the hotel TV.
“Yep, that’s what I saw.”
They’ll be showing the same movies that they were repeating before I dropped them.
I’m hoping I can - I’m moving to a new (to me) house next week (fingers crossed), and just to be different I’m planning to use an old green-screen monitor + VCR to handle my TV needs for a while.
Hopefully my PC + DVD drive + local library DVD collection will prevent withdrawal symptoms.
I haven’t had any sort of cable except rabbit ears for about six years now. Everytime I go to the gym to work out (each treadmill etc, has it’s own tv and cable or you can plug in a dvd or cd) I always end up watching tbs and catching a very funny rerun of Enright3 Loves Raymond (as my son calls it), or Friends or a Braves baseball game. I don’t miss it at all. If I got it, it would only be for the reception.
I’m of the opinion that they’re losing a customer base. If they offered me a true basic cable of only the channels that I could get on antenna, then I’d pony up the bucks just for the reception (assuming that coverage like that should only be about $5/ months).
I haven’t had cable for about ten years. I almost broke down last year for NFL Sunday ticket, but I ended up moving to a house that was walking distance to a prety decent sports bar. Why flip between games when you can have them all on at once?
The only things I ever watch on TV now are news, Simpsons reruns and PBS specials.
Plus I have a subscription to Netflix.