Consumer Reports satellite TV
Even if you hate the price of your cable service, you might still love some of its programming. Pay-TV services are coming out with lower-priced plans to hang on to potential cord cutters who can’t live without "Boardwalk Empire" and other HBO originals.
Time Warner Cable, for example, offers a $30-per-month "Starter TV with HBO" package with about 20 mostly broadcast channels plus HBO and HBO Go; an HD box adds $10 per month. Comcast has a similar channel lineup plus its Streampix streaming video service and high-speed broadband for $40 or $50 per month, plus about $10 for a set-top box.
If your cable company doesn't offer a perfect prepackaged plan for you, then it's time to get tactical:
Downsize. A bare-bones package might not suit you, but perhaps you don’t need everything you're paying for. Evaluate how many channels you actually watch. You might find that a lower, cheaper tier of service would satisfy you.
Negotiate. If you don't want to change your current TV package, see whether a promotion will save you money. Ask for the disconnect or cancellation department. You'll speak to a customer-retention specialist whose job is to keep you as a subscriber. Say you're planning to drop service because the price is too high. It might help to have info on better deals from other providers. Be warned that service providers are getting tougher. If they won't budge, say you must think about it and will call back when you decide.
Switch. You may conclude that it's time to switch to another provider, which might give you a better deal as a new subscriber. In many areas there's only one cable company, but satellite TV is available in most parts of the country, and Verizon FiOS and AT&T U-verse serve many areas.
Streamline. Think about cutting equipment. Is it worth paying for DVR service or a set-top box for all of the TVs you have connected? Consider keeping cable on your main TV and use an antenna for a bedroom TV used mostly to watch news or talk shows. You'll save $6 to $10 per month on box rental. (Bonus: That TV will get you over-the-air programming if your paid service goes down for any reason.)
Stream what you want, when you want it
Streaming video services are the big bang behind your exploding viewing options. Those online services offer thousands of movies and TV programs, old and new, that you can enjoy on your own schedule. To stream video, you need a broadband Internet connection (our experts recommend 5 mbps or higher, provided by most cable services) and either a TV with built-in Internet capability or a device that you connect to the set—a media player, an Internet-enabled Blu-ray player, or a game console.
Most services charge either a subscription fee, usually $10 or less per month, or several dollars for each movie or TV episode you stream. Subscription services save you money if you stream a lot. Renting a few movies and TV programs every week can get expensive if you have to pay for each one individually.
On the other hand, subscription libraries usually don't have current titles; pay-per-view services often get new releases the day they come out on disc. For quantity, a subscription service wins. For currency, go for pay-per-view. Or do both: Get a subscription and use pay-per-view occasionally to see new releases.
One major service, YouTube, has a huge selection of free movies and TV shows, though it's known mostly for amateur videos. But video quality varies more than with the paid services, which usually offer very good quality on a decent Internet connection.
Netflix, which costs $8 per month, is the most widely available service on TVs, media players, and other devices, and it has a large library of movies and TV programs. (Newer titles might be available only as DVD and Blu-ray rentals, which require a separate subscription.)
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