If you are a movie buff like I am, then you can probably save a ton of money by using Netflix instead of paying for a premium cable subscription. HBO, ShowTime, Cinemax and other channels, are great, but if you are willing to wait at least one season, then most of the good shows will be available with Netflix, either with their streaming video service, or as DVD or Blu-Rays. With all the great content out there, waiting a season is no big deal – just pass the time watching some of the movies you missed on the first go around, watch sporting events, or skip TV altogether and have a family night.
If you want to take the concept a step further, you can even drop cable. Most cities show several HD channels over the airwaves and if you have an HDTV you can get tons of free TV shows. When you combine free over the air HDTV and Netflix streaming and DVD by mail, you can get most of the shows and videos you need. The only downside is that sports are limited on most over the air channels. So if you are a big sports fan, then you may not wish to go that route. If you want to try it out, you can get a free Netflix trial with this Netflix free trial.
Here are some more great options for watching free or TV online: hulu.com (free or prime), Boxee.tv, and network and cable sites like: ABC, A&E, CBS, Discovery Channel, Fox, NBC, and PBS.
You can also watch some TV shows on YouTube, but the quality usually isn’t great and the shows are sometimes broken into several segments, which is annoying, especially because the big ads always pop up and you have to click the “x” each time to get rid of them.
The online websites are starting to show more ads on them, but they are still free for the most part. It won’t be long before cable TV as we know it is gone.
Oh, and if you need to supplement your TV watching experience, you can supplement your movie watching or TV shows, stream TV and movies from Amazon, or sign up for season passes to your favorite sporting leagues – most of the major sporting leagues offer HD quality content which you can stream to your TV for a flat rate for the entire season, or for special PPV events. Depending on your TV habits, you can save a ton of money by cutting the cord!
