I cut the cable TV cord at my Washington State summer house and put up an antenna. It gets the five major networks, in really nice HD.
I also stopped using Comcast for my Internet at my WA state summer house. The blog post below describes the options anyone might have if they want to stop using cable Internet for a while.
A neighbor near my Washington State summer house recently wrote:
"I've had enough of Comcast and all thier bull s***. I ca'nt find anyone who offers internet out here.
Do you have any ideas on how we can get internet?."
I wrote back:
I had enough of Comcast too! ...
I have some solutions for you, but what has worked for me may not work for you.
First thing was getting rid of cable TV and putting up that giant antenna. It gets all five major networks, which is fine with me. However, it is getting stations from 30 to 42 miles away, and it cuts out during low tides. The TV signals travel across water better. I am bringing a new TV antenna (smaller) that I've just had good luck with here in Pacific Grove, where I am also fed up with Comcast. I want to test it against the giant one. (Conclusion, the giant antenna works better than the one I tested in PG).
That leaves internet. You told me once that you streamed Netflix. That could be a problem, because streaming video takes up lots of data. I've been getting by in Olympia by using and buying cell phone data from Verizon and Sprint networks. AT&T and T-Mobile cell networks don't work well at my place. I have 500Mb of free data on every Freedompop hotspot and phone that I carry with me, and I have about four of them. But those all together are only 2.0Gb per month.
I used to get by just fine for a few weeks in Olympia with just 2Gb per month, but it's been getting harder and harder to do so. A lot of these computer and tablet manufacturers automatically upload updates to, for instance, an iPad -- and those updates might be 1.5Gb in size. That's most of my free allotment right there. Web pages are getting more and more dense with data.
I have written about Freedompop and their free phones on my blog. They actually really are free, and I bought two wifi hotspots from them recently for $20, and they work great. But you have to be really careful with them or they will getcha on data overages (but there's a setting where your data just turns off if you go over a certain amount). They use the Sprint network. I get Sprint just fine at our Olympia house but I also have an unobstructed path to the water to where I put the hotspots. They are the kind of service that will getcha unless you are careful and know all the rules.
Here are some of my blog posts on Freedompop:
http://norbertwu.blogspot.com/2015/11/sprintfreedompop-nexus-5-phone-suddenly.html
http://norbertwu.blogspot.com/2016/08/freedompop-phone-gets-suspended-if-you.html
I bought an iPad with a Verizon modem, that I use as a wifi hotspot, because the data plan is good and Verizon's network is strong at our house. I will buy 1Gb or 2Gb of data at a time, which is about $25 per month. That data expires after a month if I don't use it.
Both Verizon and Sprint have unlimited plans now (again). Verizon has been losing customers and so is trying to get back customers. Now might be a good time to get a cell phone and an unlimited plan with Verizon, perhaps. If you get service with Verizon, make sure to buy a phone that allows you to use the phone as a wifi hotspot. I am not sure if Verizon allows this or has a fee to do so. You could do the same with Sprint. If you get a phone with a big data plan, and can use your phone as a wifi hotspot, that might solve a lot of your problems (unless, again, if you stream a lot of videos). One hour of video streaming can use up 500Mb to 1Gb of data.
If you get a cell phone as a wifi hotspot, I have various routers and repeaters that can take that signal and spread it around your house, if you need a stronger signal.
Cell data, however, is super-expensive compared to cable internet from Comcast or AT&T. Luckily, here at PG, we have the choice of both. I may go with Comcast for 12 months, then switch to AT&T for 12 months. That makes me a "new" customer every 12 months with the other company, so I call in after 12 months and get a "new customer" deal. I just switched from AT&T, and they gave me something like 200Gb of data per month with their internet service. I probably used 60Gb of data or more each month that I was with AT&T, which is way more than Verizon or Sprint would allow me to use. I can get by with just 2Gb to 5Gb of data at Olympia each month because I don't watch videos online (I use the TV antenna) and I am real careful not to allow updates to my laptops or ipad. I update those items when I get to a place like a hotel, or home, where I have truly fast, near-unlimited data.
When I switched back to Comcast in March here in PG, they promised that my TV service would remain exactly the same. I've had the same service with them for years, called Limited Basic, around $30 per month. After the switch, I got a bill, and suddenly there were all these new, unannounced charges. Broadcast TV fee $5 monthly. DTA fee for each TV, $4 to $11 per month depending on whether you want HD. Installation fee. Incredible, fraudulent! I got so mad that I've now gone through three TV antennas and over 30 hours of walking around my property and two roofs trying to get the best signal. I finally found a good antenna that gets the four major broadcast networks, and am looking forward to telling Comcast to f*** off next year. However, I will still need to get internet from somewhere, and will probably switch to AT&T for a year.
For Olympia, I am happy living with few bills and not having to deal with Comcast. Their customer service in Olympia was ridiculous one time. They would not allow me to return their box, and keep my TV service going for another week. I had to throw a hissy fit before they took the box back . It was their damn box, I did not need it to view TV programming over their cable, and they would have charged me if I did not return it. They were arguing that I could only return the box the day that I cancelled TV service with them.
How about satellite internet and TV?
http://www.reviews.org/internet-service/best-satellite-internet-providers/
PS: I see this Freedomspot Netgear Zing:
https://www.freedompop.com/offer/netgear-zing-free-trial?ftm_source=google&ftm_medium=cpc&ftm_campaign=SHOP_Hotspots-NA_US-ENG_DTM_USWLS_NB&ftm_placement=-&ftm_term=-&ftm_network=search-g&ftm_content=112646612479-1o1&ftm_adgroup=US_WIRELESS_SPRINT&ftm_device=dto&ftm_devicemodel=&gclid=Cj0KEQjwxPbHBRCdxJLF3qen3dYBEiQAMRyxS4v5QzK1VZWoq9CoTHMl4f63-xVEnheIPWH0MeVJwR4aAj5u8P8HAQ
I have two of these hotspots. They work well but always give battery error warnings -- but still work. $20 for one of these is a good deal, as long as you don't sign up for any BS plans -- just the free plan.
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