Cutting the Cord (FIOS)

We have FIOS TV, internet, and landline. Our TV package is rather standard, no premier channels (HBO, Showtime, etc.). For this we pay $200 a month, which seems astronomical. We are considering doing away with our landline. Does anyone have any suggestions on how we can get good internet and TV (we still want to get cable channels like MSNBC, CNN, etc.) for a lower cost?

I'd start by calling Verizon. We pay substantially less than that for cable and internet - around $100, maybe $110 since we added Showtime. We have one HD DVR box and one SD box. That could be a place to start too...the extra box fees really add up quickly.

[I just lost a long post I typed!]

Long story short. Look at the shows you like to watch not at the channels. I would bet 80% of the popular shows are now available online.

We cut our TV cable completely a few months ago and I am happy as a clam. Between the HD antenna on the tree outside, Netflix, Amazon Prime video and Hulu I see everything I want. I also occasionally use a HDMI cable to attach a laptop to the TV and stream live broadcasts from CNN etc.

Hi,

A couple of yrs ago, in early Dec, I called verrizon and told them that I had checked rates with Comcast...and that they were heavily marketing to get us to sign up by year end. "What are you going to do for me?" They dropped the rate by $40/ mo.

BTW, this syst is: triple decker, 2 HD DVRs and1 Hd stb + whole house; no premium channels. Highest bill thenwas about $188.

kmk, what do you pay for internet, and which provider? the internet is the sticking point for me.

BTW, I had smtartekd a thread about fios pricing 2013 Title is fios triple decker - last post was feb 2014

See my thread from a while ago.

https://maplewood.worldwebs.com/forums/discussion/id/115590-Cord-cutters-Has-anyone-tried-Tablo-or-SimpleTV-as-OTA-DVRs-?page=4#comment-3073240

We cut cable and phone.

We have a Roku on every TV, a Tablo TV to record OTA and a simple flat antenna. The Tablo also broadcoasts the OTA signal to all the Roku boxes. For phone we use Ooma after first trying and then discarding Magic Jack.

Paying $85 a month for comcast (we don't live in SOMA anymore), $5 for the Tablo premium, $10 for Ooma premium and $14 for Netflix.

We pay $129/mo for Fios phone, Internet (50/50), and cable. The cable includes the "extreme HD" set of channels (including HBO and Showtime), and we also rent a set top box and a cable card. My total, including the rental charges and taxes is $155. I think that's a pretty decent price.

I pay $59.99/month for 150/150 FiOS internet alone.

It took some work (including becoming a "new" customer) but it is so worth it.

Here is what I am paying today.

Monthly fees:

Internet: Verizon FiOS 150/150 $60/mo

TV: Netflix $7.99/mo, Amazon Prime $8.25/mo, Hulu Plus $11.99/ mo

Phone: VYL Media $8.25/mo (includes 2 lines)

TOTAL: $96.50/ month for everything

One time charges:

HD Antenna $150 and Chromecast $35

I'm only paying about $150 for a triple play with fios..

I think i have the 2nd lowest cost cable plan (although there might be a really cheap one that only have former over the air channels).

I have a lower internet speed which is fine..i watch vidoes, even have 2 videos running at once at times (1 is just running to earn 1 cent per video--while I actually watch the other)

there are some minor slowness problems.

also, i only have 1 real cable box with full features (not including DVR)...the other TV is a cheap channel change only box

you used to be able to switch back and forth between providers every 2 years to keep getting new customer discounts

You can just drop from a triple play to a double play (internet/TV only)

I tried the "What are you going to do for me?" trick and their response was NOTHING...they even escalated to higher level alleged customer service who gave me the same answer.

I've been successful three times in returning to the new subscriber rate after my FIOS contract has run out.

Instead of asking what they are going to do for you, call and cancel, and they'll switch you to the retention specialist. Tell that person to match the promotional rate or cancel you.

I have HBO and Showtime, the second-fastest internet choice and a landline that nobody uses (except telemarketers), and I pay less than you do. The only reason I haven't switched to the kmk plan is inertia.

When we moved here four years ago I only wanted Internet from Fios but the rate to get tv and phone added was only $10 more than just internet so now we have tv that I watch once or twice per week, plus a Roku. We mostly use our iPad for shows.

With fios contract about to run out, I would to know what is needed to cut the Fios TV cable, first? I,d like to get approx. same as fios hd pkg; for several TVs.

A) Hardware?

1- Reception

2- Recording

B) Services?

I,m pretty handy so I imagine that this wouldn,t be a very difficult set up

Apollo_T,

I do not have any recording capabilities and I only use one television but most of that may not be a for you because all of the content is up "in the cloud."

I bought an omni-directional Mohu HD antenna to receive the basic network OTA channels (over the air) and I am very happy with it. Depending on your televisions you will need to buy hardware to make them "smart" and then subscribe to a few services. (Note: These services are month to month. NO CONTRACTS, thank goodness.)

Netflix, Amazon Prime and Hulu offer a nice combination of TV shows and movies. In addition, find your favorite networks' websites and learn how to stream them on your new smart TVs.

Watching TV has become a real delight for me!

BTW: I was at Best Buy this weekend and they have a whole display re: cord cutting and the equipment needed.

Pretty similar to my experience. They only thing they did for me when I renewed about a year ago was not raise the price.

One lucky thing for me was that several years ago they were running a "free multiroom dvr for life" promotion, which I was able to take advantage of. That's been a big break, giving me a $20 credit each month.

jmitw said:
I'm only paying about $150 for a triple play with fios..
I think i have the 2nd lowest cost cable plan (although there might be a really cheap one that only have former over the air channels).
I have a lower internet speed which is fine..i watch vidoes, even have 2 videos running at once at times (1 is just running to earn 1 cent per video--while I actually watch the other)
there are some minor slowness problems.
also, i only have 1 real cable box with full features (not including DVR)...the other TV is a cheap channel change only box

you used to be able to switch back and forth between providers every 2 years to keep getting new customer discounts


You can just drop from a triple play to a double play (internet/TV only)


I tried the "What are you going to do for me?" trick and their response was NOTHING...they even escalated to higher level alleged customer service who gave me the same answer.

http://time.com/money/3956348/cut-the-cord/

Call Verizon. If they don't want to give you the current deal of TV + Internet (100M) for $85+ bucks per month, schedule a disconnect like a couple of weeks out. Go through with the disconnect. They will call you and offer you the new deal + $300 debit card. We just did this. Were without TV + Internet for 2 days. It was manageable and worth the savings!

pmartinezv said:
Call Verizon. If they don't want to give you the current deal of TV + Internet (100M) for $85+ bucks per month, schedule a disconnect like a couple of weeks out. Go through with the disconnect. They will call you and offer you the new deal + $300 debit card. We just did this. Were without TV + Internet for 2 days. It was manageable and worth the savings!

So you disconnected and then had to get a new account? What about land lines? If you have a land line wouldn't you have to agree to keep that on a new account or the old account assuming you want to keep your number?

We play this game every two years with Verizon. It starts by ignoring all the emails, mailed glossy brochures and texts! Then I call up a few times and get blown off. Then I call up and say I just want net and how much is that? Next thing I know we have a new faster router, my net speed is doubled, I have more HD channels and free HBO for 3 months for the same price.

Just by asking how much Internet only would be? Got to be more complicated than that!

joy said:
We play this game every two years with Verizon. It starts by ignoring all the emails, mailed glossy brochures and texts! Then I call up a few times and get blown off. Then I call up and say I just want net and how much is that? Next thing I know we have a new faster router, my net speed is doubled, I have more HD channels and free HBO for 3 months for the same price.

joy said:
We play this game every two years with Verizon. It starts by ignoring all the emails, mailed glossy brochures and texts! Then I call up a few times and get blown off. Then I call up and say I just want net and how much is that? Next thing I know we have a new faster router, my net speed is doubled, I have more HD channels and free HBO for 3 months for the same price.

It must be nice to have that kind of time on your hands. I hate the entire process.

fabulouswalls said:

joy said:
We play this game every two years with Verizon. It starts by ignoring all the emails, mailed glossy brochures and texts! Then I call up a few times and get blown off. Then I call up and say I just want net and how much is that? Next thing I know we have a new faster router, my net speed is doubled, I have more HD channels and free HBO for 3 months for the same price.

It must be nice to have that kind of time on your hands. I hate the entire process.

Hating the process and having the time aren't mutually exclusive.

I just noticed that we can watch the State of the Union address tonight - live, on YouTube!