Have Any of You Switched from Cable Tv to Netflix?

Updated on August 14, 2013
M.C. asks from Ann Arbor, MI
20 answers

My gut is telling me something is a miss here. Will someone please clue me in on this?

My husband wants to get rid of our cable because it's so expensive. I enjoy watching HGTV and Animal Planet. My husband is more of a movie watcher. He is talking about switching to Netflix because it is way cheaper. Supposedly, you can download your shows using Netflix onto your computer and watch them. (So, what about the tv???) I don't now.

I always thought that Netflix was strictly for movies and he's telling me that he THINKS you can get regular tv shows too. Okay, that's great, but what if I want to watch CNN or Fox News? I was under the impression that Netflix was strictly for movies.

What can I do next?

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So What Happened?

Thank you! We may be switching then!

Featured Answers

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❤.I.

answers from Albuquerque on

We've been cable free for years now. We finally got around to getting a roku so we have netflix and hulu plus. Netflix has a lot of movies and tv series (previous season). Hulu plus has newer tv content. As far as local channels all you need is an hd antenna, unless you have an old school tv, then you'll need a converter box also. Good luck!

2 moms found this helpful

K.M.

answers from Chicago on

We added Hulu Plus for additional options. Both choices offer a free trial so you can see if it will work for you before you make the official switch.

1 mom found this helpful

More Answers

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S.B.

answers from Dallas on

You can try netflix for free for two weeks to see what you think . We have been without cable for over 12 years and we don't miss it. We didn't even have the streaming option on netflix at the time. There are all kinds of shows on Netflix. I know there are definitely Animal Planet shows, I am not certain about HGTV. You will find in the beginning that you have "seen everything" they have to offer. It will take some time for Netflix to catch up to where you are...I hope that makes sense.

And there will undoubtedly be shows that you can't find. But after a few weeks, you will be surprised that you don't miss them. You'll find that you watch less television than before. And your kids won't see as many commercials or have as many outside influences. We really don't miss cable and we REALLY don't miss the bills that come with it.

We have found that Netflix is a good filler...whether you are in the mood for a movie or tv. If you stop midshow, you can pick up where you left off later. There are no commercials. You'll still get network tv. We get Fox, NBC, CBS, WB, UPN, and countless other channels. One dedicated to movies, another carries retro shows. QUBO has children's programming 24/7. And there are many religious and Spanish speaking channels too. You can rent many shows and movies on DVD too. We often get them at our library and watch those for free.

You won't get CNN or FOx news. But both of those stations have websites with all the information available. You can often watch the shows they offer there too.

We used to hook our laptop up to the tv to watch Netflix. Then we started using our Wii for it to stream on tv. Then later we upgraded to an internet ready DVD player and that's what we use in our living room. In our bedroom, we have an internet ready tv we us. So now it's as simple as flipping on the tv and picking.

4 moms found this helpful
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L.M.

answers from Philadelphia on

SB and Jim At Home Dad are right on the money.

The only thing we miss is baseball. We haven't found a way to get baseball games in our market... we can only get the games they broadcast on the local channel. But your market might be different. If your family is big into sports, cutting the cord might be a problem for you.

2 moms found this helpful
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J.K.

answers from Los Angeles on

My husband and I switched from cable TV to Netflix for the same reasons your husband wants to switch to Netflix. We have saved so much $ since we made the switch. Sure, we don't have access to some of our favorite shows, but it's worth it (for us). Netflix does have a lot of the TV shows, but they're always one season behind. So if you don't mind being behind one season, it's shouldn't be a big deal. Plus, Netflix has its own shows like House of Cards, which I watch and Orange is the New Black, which I hear is pretty good. As for the news channels, you can spend $30 on an antenna and you'll have access to the basic cable newsstations like Fox, NBC, ABC, and CBS.

2 moms found this helpful
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B..

answers from Dallas on

i would miss my HGTV, also! We keep coming close to loosing the cable or really satellite for us. We bought an Apple TV ($100) tiny box that sits next to the TV and so we get Netflix on it, to the TV. I am going to have to try the antenna. I am feeling closer to loosing the satellite. Nothing on worth watching any way.

1 mom found this helpful

S.G.

answers from Grand Forks on

Netflix has movie and tv shows, but you don't get the current season of tv. We got Netflix, and it was OK, but not a lot of new movies or big movies. I watched a couple of tv series that I hadn't watched before, and a few movies I hadn't seen. After the first couple of months I was out of things to watch. You won't get any HGTV or news, but I think they have some old Animal Planet series. You can watch Netflix on any tv that you have an Xbox, PS3, Wii or wifi BlueRay player hooked up to, as well as on your computer, tablet, iPod etc. I didn't get Netflix instead of cable, but instead of renting movies.

1 mom found this helpful
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A.C.

answers from Columbus on

In order to have Netflix on your TV, you need to have a ROKU streaming player (a box you attach to the TV to allow it to stream shows), which costs something like $100. Plus a small monthly fee of $10 or so for the Netflix service. For us, it was way cheaper the paying for cable channels. We watch TV series as well as movies.

If you're not using your TV, you can watch on a tablet or computer (and may be save the $ from the Roku?).

I love it.

1 mom found this helpful
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G.B.

answers from Oklahoma City on

I understand what you're saying. I could never do the switch because I want to watch live TV. Especially when there is weather that is threatening or a crisis going on.

If you can't get an antenna for the top of your house that you can point towards the nearest big city with TV channels then you are basically watching old stuff.

We got an antenna for about $70 and point it towards OKC. We get all the local channels just fine. I would not want to take a chance on not having good weather coverage when storms are nearby. I won't ever give up cable. If I couldn't have cable I wouldn't move there.

Let hubby get a subscription to a movie channel but keep your cable so you can watch the news and other important news programs live.

1 mom found this helpful
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C.C.

answers from New York on

You're right that Netflix is different from cable TV in terms of what you can watch - you can watch shows on Netflix, TV series, but not all of the individual programs you might enjoy (like stuff on Animal Planet).

I still have cable TV, mainly because I enjoy a bunch of random programs like what you describe, but it definitely seems like a "guilty pleasure" when I see the price on the bill.

1 mom found this helpful

A.J.

answers from Williamsport on

We've had Netflix through Roku instead of cable/satellite for 2 years. I love it. I watch TV, not computer, but you can also stream to computer. I missed some live shows at first, but now I love watching shorter versions with NO commercials on my own schedule. There are tons of shows, just not live run. Plus, through the Roku, we get tons of other free channels including PBS and news networks, live weather feed. No, you can't watch Meet the Press or NBC nightly news right when it's on, but you can watch it an hour or so later without commercials. There will be some shows from Satellite you no longer see, and lots of other shows and movies you never thought about watching that are awesome. As a busy mom, I rarely have time for more than an hour or so of TV at night and still just watch law and Order! (40 minutes, no commercials :) I haven't watched a movie in weeks which is a pity since they have MILLIONS of movies I want to see. If you go on Netflix website you can probably see the vast selection of shows and movies.

1 mom found this helpful
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C.N.

answers from Baton Rouge on

You can get tv shows on Netflix as well - current ones and vintage. You can also watch a lot of shows on the website for the network that airs them - you just have to wait until the next day when they're posted.
There's also Hulu.
I believe that Fox News and CNN regularly update their websites so you can get current news from them online as well.
I cut my cable to internet only. There were only a handful of shows I followed regularly anyway and I can watch them all online. My cable bill went from $150 a month to $60 a month.

1 mom found this helpful
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K.F.

answers from New York on

Internet service $25 monthly, Netflix $9 monthly for a total of $34 monthly.

We don't have cable and when I want to watch HGTV, I do so on Hulu which is free but we also have a Hulu Plus account which is also $9 a month.

We have a digital antenna for tv watching which works out pretty well.

We aren't much on TV but we are able to catch up and keep connected by using Hulu or Netflix which is way cheaper than cable but well worth it.

1 mom found this helpful
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M.H.

answers from Chicago on

We have netflix and cable.
We have decided not to get rid of cable, because I watch several TV shoes on channel 2 CBS, but I can not get it I watch.. NCIS, NCIS LA, Mentalist etc.. lots of shows but we can nto access it with out cable on free TV mind you.

Houlia you have to pay per season/episode for these and some of them are not avialable.

We love netflix because my kids can watch what they want when they want to..

1 mom found this helpful

J.B.

answers from Houston on

We dumped cable around 6 months ago. Bought a device that has nexflix, it's a blu-ray player. It also has Hulu, CinemaNow, AmazonPrime, and several other channels on it. Netflix is a subscription service, $8 a month billed to your CC. You can't download movies from Netflix but you can stream them to you computer/tv/device any time. And/or you can do the mailing thing that they originally started with. There are recent tv shows on a lot of these channels and some oldies.
You still have to have internet in your home, wifi etc. This runs us $30 a month for the fastest speed.
You will loose HGTV, Fox News all those cable channels are gone, but checking them out online is a good replacement.
Next we went to Target and bought an HD tv antenna for $40. If you are close to or live in the city a lot of your local channels are broadcast over the air, for free.
We get NBC, FOX, and some others for FREE.
Hope that helps. Msg me if you have any more questions.

EDIT: the antenna we bought mounts not the wall or can sit on the tv stand. It's very slim, black and not out of place at all. We didn't run any wires or anything to the roof or outside. If you are close enough to a bigger city you will be able to pick up channels.

1 mom found this helpful
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C.C.

answers from Sacramento on

We did this for a year, savings $1380. (Cable + internet $150 a month, internet + Netflix $35) Recently, however, my husband has decided to turn back on the cable but since we are "coming back" we are now paying $50. Due to the recent influx of streaming options it will be well worth it for you to look at the swtich. Good Luck

1 mom found this helpful

C.M.

answers from Washington DC on

we have just recently canceled our cable and switched to only netflix. Yes they do have tv shows also. I do miss HGTV but I can always watch episodes online (not netflix) and I never really had time to ever watch tv anyway. Our kids mostly watched their favorite shows on netflix anyway so we have been with out cable for about 2 months now. I honestly don't miss it.

1 mom found this helpful

M.D.

answers from Washington DC on

If you want to watch current TV then switch to Hulu. That will solve the problem of not wanting to pay for expensive cable and but still be able to watch streaming movies on demand and current TV.
Follow my blog. I wrote a post about Netflix because I love it so much.
www.scatteredwrecks.blogspot.com

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S.H.

answers from Honolulu on

Netflix, is for streaming, movies or tv shows.
But keep in mind, the "tv shows" on Netflix, is not the same as what is on tv now. It is from previous seasons.
Netflix is not the same as TV. It is not a TV station.
It is a provider of, movies/tv shows that you can download, or stream. Streaming means you can watch it, on your TV.
IF you have a "smart tv" or a "Apple TV" gadget.

For me, I hate watching tv shows or movies on a computer.
I rather watch it on a TV, which has a bigger screen etc. and is more comfortable.

Again, if you want to watch regular current LIVE TV SHOWS, then you need a TV. Netflix is only for previous season tv shows or movies that have already been released on DVD or for movie providers. ie: Netflix.

If you don't have cable, then, you will not have your local TV shows or HGTV or Fox News or CNN etc. Because, those are TV network shows. Not Netflix.

Sure you can watch many things via Netflix. But it is not, the same as what is offered on TV channels.

We have: a "smart tv" and an "apple TV" gadget, and DISHnetwork.

B.B.

answers from Grand Rapids on

Yes Netflix is for movies,but if you have a digtal tuner and antenna you can get local tv networks. Alot of people are going this way.Also Hulu has old time tv shows on their site.Please dont waste your money on the rabbit tv plug.
It takes you to the hulu site and cost you $10.00 for which you can just log in for free.

Bil

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