Ditching cable TV can save your household hundreds of dollars this year. Check out this article to discover if you should get rid of cable TV in 2018.
Last year, nearly 5 million Americans canceled their cable or satellite subscription. Researchers predict that over 80 million US adults won’t use traditional pay-TV services by 2021.
Believe it or not, high costs aren’t the main reason why most people choose to get rid of cable.
In fact, surveys show that the majority of cord-cutters want to do it because they prefer streaming services.
Do you feel tempted to get rid of your cable TV subscription soon? Read on to find out whether you should go through with it.
Why You Should Get Rid of Cable
Cost isn’t the primary concern for most people who ditch cable. However, it still bothers many cable TV customers.
It’s not difficult to understand why, when the average cable bill is over $100 per month. You end up wasting a large chunk of money on hundreds of channels you’ll never even tune in to watch.
Don’t forget about pesky TV commercials too. On average, there are about 16 minutes of commercials per hour of cable TV. If you have a DVR, you’re probably already used to fast-forwarding past them anyway, but you can save yourself more time by getting rid of cable for good.
Another reason to move on from traditional pay-TV services is that you have many alternatives.
These include Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, Netflix, just to name a few. Even YouTube, a free platform, has endless hours of live and pre-recorded content you can enjoy.
The Negatives of Dropping Cable
While Cutting The Cord offers many perks, it’s not the right choice for everyone.
If you make the switch to streaming, you’ll have to become accustomed to delays. Streaming platforms don’t list episodes same day they air on cable TV. It will take some time for them to become available.
Getting rid of cable could present some problems for sports fans, especially those that follow teams in other markets. But a digital TV antenna might mitigate this issue if you’re a fan of a local team. Plus, some sports leagues offer individual streaming packages.
Also, you shouldn’t ditch cable just yet if your wifi is unreliable. The last thing you want to see is the video buffering when you’re trying to clear your mind and destress by watching your favorite show.
You’ll need about 5 Mbps to watch HD videos and at least 25 Mbps for 4k streaming. However, you’ll likely need even more if other devices in the house hog up your bandwidth.
Making Your Final Decision
All in all, if you own a smart TV, have decent wifi, and want to save some money each month, it’s a good idea to get rid of cable.
Keep in mind that many streaming platforms have exclusive shows and movies. That said, subscribing to several streaming services at once won’t cost you anywhere near as much as a decent cable TV package.
Dropping cable is a smart money decision in the long-run, but are you ready to learn how to make more? If so, be sure to head over to the money section of our blog!