Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

Are you with TekSavvy as well? Have you tried talking to them about it? They're pretty good about this sort of thing I think... but as you say, 2/3mbps still is good enough to stream Netflix.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

It's not insane, we just don't have that sort of money laying around so takes a few months to save it.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

It's a principle I'm trying to teach my children... That we don't get items wanted straight away whatever they are, we save up for them.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

It's Vianet, and they can only work with existing framework. Long road, no cable etc. That said our speed had dropped off a few times and they couldn't work out why..

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

We have been throttled from what I can tell, our download speed is now 2.29...

Guess instead of charging extra they just slow you down to a point its useless.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

I had to gocheck our account as we are with Shaw.
We are on Internet 100 - they don't offer it any more, but it's up to 120
Download speed (fastest they do) and 550gb a month for $99 plus tax a month.
We also have a land line, but no cable, and the monthly bill is approx $140.


With 4 of us , 2 kids that are constantly watching / downloading etc we don't hit the 550.

You sure yours is secure JSmith ? No wifi poachers ?


Hubby and I prob watch equiv of 4 films a week, plus some series stuff, I
Normally have Loose Women
/ This morning , running while I'm cleaning / cooking.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

It's password protected, but I am not sure how to check to see if anyone has managed to break into it.

Maybe I should change the password? It's just the one shaw set it up with, a random bit of letters and numbers.

You have a good deal, 90 a month now only gets you 450gb, their 120/month plan gives you 800gb but 120 and 90 dollars per month is too steep for internet, the 60 we pay is already pushing it.

If there is anyway to check and see if anyone besides us are on the network, let me know, I am not sure how to check, but I'll change the password in the morning.

The only thing we have watched on netflix during the time frame the data use is for:

13 episodes of Orange in the New black

2 movies

58 20 minute episodes of Raising Hope.

Not sure how much each show uses data wise.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

I know everyone should choose how to enjoy their life and if it genuinely makes you happy and feel fulfilled then great, but on Raising Hope alone you spent 20hrs of your life watching one programme....

I like the downtime of watching say Grey's Anatomy but it's not every night and I genuinely don't watch anything most days, but when I do I get this slightly restless dissatisfied feeling of not having used my time productively or gained anything from it like I do with reading..

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

Not much to do in the middle of the night which is when it was watched, my sleep schedule is so messed up from working graveyards 2 days, then days 2 days, my brain doesn't know when to sleep, so I find myself wide awake in the middle of the night more often then not, and its either netflix the internet or sitting and staring at a wall.

Squamish is a very boring town, there really is nothing to do here, even my born and raised in Squamish wife can't find things to do. Unless you like outdoor stuff, you will find little if anything to do in this town which doesn't help.

When I live in a large city, I watch little TV as I can generally find things to do.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

I'm with Tory on that one - that's a LOT of time spent watching TV in a month. I often have something I've seen a zillion times and can listen to playing in the background when I'm getting ready in the morning (current selection is 30 Rock)... but that's not actually watching, that's just on while I'm getting ready. My husband and I will sometimes watch a 30-minute show (so 23 minutes) while we have dinner, or the occasional evening when we are pooped we will splurge out for a full hour show... however we are trying to get out of the habit of watching TV while we eat and instead eating at the table, so TV watching has gone severely downhill. I just asked my husband when was the last time he watched a TV show, he thinks it was about a week and a half ago when we watched an episode of Family Guy before spending the day in the backyard.

Anyway. The shows Jsmth listed come up to roughly 30hrs of streaming. Assuming it was streaming in HD, Netflix uses roughly 3GB per hour. So that means that in the time in question, Netflix alone accounted for roughly 100GB of data usage... Add on any other internet usage, you're probably coming right up to your 150GB cap and then likely getting throttled after you pass that 150GB. General internet surfing uses a negligible amount of data, but if you start adding in stuff like YouTube, music streaming, lots of picture browsing (and I'm talking really large pictures, not Google Images), or lots of *other* streaming (cough), or gaming in particular... yeah, 150GB is certainly not adequate.

It might be worth changing your Netflix settings to stream only in SD instead of in HD, which would keep your Netflix usage to around 1GB/hr instead of 3GB/hr. That should help your Netflix reliability as well as keep you well below your usage cap.

If money is tight it does sound like the 300GB option from TekSavvy would be sufficient, though, and you wouldn't need to go all the way up to the unlimited. (I'd also guess, and this is worth checking with them, that you can probably start with the 300GB package and then upgrade later if it's still not enough, but unlikely you can downgrade down the road if you decide that 300GB otherwise would have been adequate.)

(I just checked our logs, so far in June we have used a whole 70GB of data. 10GB of that was used on Friday when I was home sick and had Netflix on for quite a few hours, but that was 30 Rock which was in the background while I was doing other stuff. I think I killed most of a season on Friday, hehe.)

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

Hidden fees.

They make their money back on the modem rental.

You'll likely have it for 3 or 4 years and during that time they'll pick up $500 to $700 for something that cost them $70.

*Wait- just seen it says (rent to own). At what point would you own it?

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

The nice thing with TekSavvy is that they really don't have hidden fees. THere are a load of up-front fees, yes, but their monthly fee is pretty much just that.

I did a quick google on the rent to own. Looks like you pay a "down payment" on the modem, which is the $60, and then a monthly fee of $15 for about 6 months, then the monthly fee goes away as you now own the modem.

They don't do the stupid thing that other places like Rogers etc do where you pay an ongoing rental fee for years.

We just bought our modem outright, I think it cost us about $150 or $200 or something, but the rent to own is a decent option that doesn't rip you off too badly. There's a small premium, but there usually is for renting anyway.

Edit

So Jsmth, if you went with the 300GB option from TekSavvy at 15mbps, that would be I think it was $37/month. So call your start-up fees $260 in the first month, then your monthly cost would be $37 + $12 (dry loop) + $15 (modem rental for 6 months), so:
Month 1: $260
Month 2, 3, 4, 5, 6: $64
Month 7-12: $49
Total expenditure for the first year: $874
Total expenditure for the second year: $588

If you stick with your current plan, which you said was $60/month, you're spending $720/year.

So if you switch, just money-wise you break even at about 14-15ish months in, but you are also getting way more (300GB cap instead of 150GB cap) and it sounds like much more reliable speeds.

Hopefully that made sense!

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

I've never really got the Netflix thing.

The main reason I have TV is for news and sport. Beyond that I want to be up to date on all the latest shows like Game of Thrones, Tyrant, The Whisper etc.....

I'm not into watching out of date TV any more than I'm into out of date groceries.

Netflix is like Uber and other recent fads. It's cheap now because they cut all sorts of corners but once they've imploded everything what will we be left with?

On Netflix's current subscription price they can't produce enough good quality content so they'll bust a few broadcasters and you'll end up paying 3 or 4 times the price for Netflix with lots of really low quality content being produced.

People are very short sighted in my opinion.

Rant over.

I'm not sure how to help you Jsmth as in the end the network will either have your cable subscription or your data fees. And in the long run it will cost more money.

If you push on and get back to Cali you'll probably have cheaper options through competition.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

It's not all out of date and some things are Netflix produced or exclusive. The excellent House of Cards for example or Lilyhammer. Of course they're seasonal - just like most TV.

Does this mean that you postpone a trip to Hooters because something up to date is on TV? ;) Or do you record it?

Is it that big a deal to see it a little later?

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

They have TV's in Hooters.

Most shows I follow occur Sunday through Tuesday. Non bar nights.

Most of the fun of watching TV is getting involved with communities on Twitter or in the office and exchanging views and banter.

I binge watched "Breaking Bad" last winter. It sucked with out cliff hangers or social exchange. Certainly the plot writing or strength of characters left a lot to be desired.

JSmith has access to a PC and internet he may well be better of investing in a couple of good strategy games.

I'm aware Netflix has produced a couple of things but to replicate the superior content of HBO eventually it will need to charge as much.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

Not really conducive to watching something that needs attention. "Ssshhh....I'm watching TV...what's that?....Oh, mine's a pint." :lol:

Most of the enjoyment for me is something well written, well acted etc. But, yes, I do remember 'reliving' Twin Peaks, Red Dwarf among other things at work next day.

On the other hand I also remember others at work going on about Eastenders or Corrie or something. :(

Twitter? Not for me. But I do know exactly what you mean as I can easily get involved on the guardian blogs and that's fun. But not when I've not seen something yet.

It was a couple of years before I caught up with the sopranos and it was hard avoiding reading how it ended. :eek:

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

From another thread.

When MediaHint stopped being free and when Chrome and Firefox removed it from their available add-ons (presumably at the same time) it continued to work while it was in my add-ons.

Last year I had reason to re-install Firefox and I lost MediaHint, but with a little googling I found I was able to download an old version and install it back into Firefox add-ons.

Sadly, the latest Firefox update now disables it and offers 'remove' rather than have it just sit there disabled.

Apparently there is a way to override this but Firefox has a "here be dragons" warning when you follow the process. Aside from me not really understanding the process there was virtually a 'promise' that something else would be problematic.

It's not a massive issue. First off, MediaHint taken officially does only cost about $3 a month. I've had a look and there are elements of the install process I'm not sure about.

Secondly there are numerous alternatives including watching 'live' via other sites, not least FilmOn in at least half a dozen variations or watching/downloading the streams that appear within a couple of hours of broadcast and certainly by the next day.

Where I would miss MediaHint is in two small areas.

I generally watch 2 or 3 English football matches on a Saturday on Canadian TV channels with the odd NBC broadcast thrown in.

But I still like to watch Match of the Day on BBC as a supplemental.

Of course, I don't want to see highlights of what I already saw, so I allow the programme to run for about 20 minutes and then using BBC iPlayer I use the 'restart' feature and then cut out the parts I don't want, leaving previously unseen highlights and manager interviews.

Is that worth paying for? Not really. Not when I could simply watch live and just do something else for the parts I don't want.

The only other time I will miss MediaHint is where I could go on iPlayer and watch something without downloading it.

This has the benefit of watching without having to save it onto the computer.

Is that worth paying for? Not really, since I'm not short of storage space and once seen it'll be deleted anyway.

Nevertheless I'd still like something free or with a one time only fee just for the convenience.

In the meantime, I installed Tunnelbear but that has a limit and might only work for MOTD twice. Unless the limit is per use or the limit can be 'renewed' by means of uninstalling and reinstalling.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

It's $10 a month. And no ads. That's the 'Netflix thing'.

I can't imagine paying $100 a month for cable, and then having to sit through half a dozen ads every five minutes.

Why? Does TV rot and smell bad after a while?

While I also suspect that Netflix is another 'we lose money on each sale, but we'll make it up in volume' scheme, they're also providing a way for those other broadcasters to make money from people who aren't subscribed to them.

A lot of the stuff on Netflix seems to be shows that were broadcast elsewhere a year ago (Dr Who, for example, seems to be a year behind). So now I no longer have to go looking for Dr Who or Top Gear episodes on Youtube, and the Beeb make a few cents from me through Netflix instead.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

Netflix and chill may or may not work with your favourite Hooters waitress ;)

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

We have Ignite 250 (250Mbps down/20Mbps up) Unlimited with Rogers and pay $85.87/month after mega discounts and taxes and 8% bundling discount. We generally use between 400-700GB a month depending on time of year and what not. Most of Rogers' current plans are now unlimited usage actually which is a relief, and they even include the modem rental. At least here in ON they are trying to win back customers from Teksavvy/Start.ca et al.

I'm with you. Where we live is a very boring town, there isn't much to do, there's no shopping, no easy access to anything except getting a ride/borrowing parents cars, so its hard to really go anywhere, so aside from after school activities its stuck at home with the computer, mobile and telly. And when you don't like the winter, going for a walk or doing stuff outside is massively unappealing.

As others have said, there are alternate providers available, I didn't bother to read the whole thread but i'm assuming you priced it out and your current package with shaw itself is cheaper than a package with a different provider. That said, have you tried calling shaw, saying you are going to cancel, and they transfer you to customer retentions? I know a member on this forum got free or nearly free internet from this, and that's how we got our internet for so cheap. When you call in and ask to cancel, they transfer you to this special department that has the ability to give more discounts and offer plans that are cheaper with more stuff in it. This department could throw in an extra 100GB usage or even free unlimited for a certain period of time to name a few. Try giving it a go at some point, bonus points for calling near the end of their opening hours at the call centre as you may just get what you want so the rep can end his/her shift and go home ;)

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

We have 300Mpbs and its around $100 for 1000GB per month and work pays for it. Not sure if this is about the fastest in the city atm. There may well be but I haven't really looked, I think it depends which building you're in.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

Nice. Is that Telus FibreOp?

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

Novus.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

Interesting. Never heard of them, will get a google. :)

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

Novus only operate in very limited areas of downtown Vancouver.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

Yep, figured that much out... Would be nice to have fibre here but as long as it isn't oversubscribed (it isn't in our area) cable actually does fine :)

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

I don't live in the downtown area, that said our Strata council has put in a request to a company to upgrade our broadband service so we can get up 1000Mpbs. But I'm not holding my breath, I can't see that happening until the summer or later.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

Oh I didn't realise they had expanded to some of the suburbs.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

I don't live in the suburbs, I just don't live downtown. :sneaky:

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

Only alternatives as far as I know in this area is Telus and TekSaavy.

Telus is about the same price but does give more data for the same price, but since we are not going anywhere near the 150gb right now (we are averaging 10-20gb per month) the extra 100gb Telus offers at the moment isn't a huge draw.

Plus Telus wants a $300 deposit to receive service, so that is a deal breaker.

TechSavvy could be an option in the future, they just require you to purchase everything upfront which is a hurdle.

We are on a grandfathered in plan with Shaw, so pay 63/month, that plan now is 80/month and when we move probably will go up, doubt will be able to keep that price.

Shaw is the only provider who either doesn't require a deposit or buying the equipment so the best option at the moment.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

I suggest that before you move find out

a) price for your internet/cable needs in the new place if it is ordered in your name and

b) if in your wife's name as a new customer. If it is cheaper as a new customer in her name cancel your current account in your name and set up in your wife's name in the new place.

This is assuming that it is the same cable/internet company.

Gozit had the right idea about getting through to the cancellations/retentions group. With so many people cutting the cord etc the companies need the business.

Re: Is streaming really a viable alternative to cable?
 

Hello JS,

has that perhaps changed? I accepted the offer Get Optik TVâ„¢ and Internet 25 for $50 per month for 12 months, and then $93 for the next 24 months. Equipment and installation is for free. Telus did not ask for any deposit.

A cancellation after 12 months would theoretically mean I would have to pay $240, but even in that case I would have saved around $160 (of course I will negotiate that then).

Meanwhile it is I think $50 per month for 6 months and then $93 for the next 18 months.