It might actually happen!

[Dweller_Benthos]

Well, I went ahead and ordered the cable connection today. TV, phone and Internet will cost me about $120 a month I think. Internet is 100mb down and 20 up I think? I'd have to check on the up speed, but the down speed is definitely 100mb. I could have upgraded to 400mb for another $40 a month I think, but I left it at 100 for now. They also have a "gigabit" speed which is actually ~950mb but that costs another $60 a month.

Installation is scheduled for the 19th, but I have to find out from them first if they install underground wire or do I need to get a guy up to the house with a backhoe and dig up my driveway? All my other wires, power & phone go underground, I'm not putting wires up on the house at this point, even if it takes another month to get it done.

For comparison, right now I'm paying ~$115 for satellite TV, ~$85 for 4G cell phone internet (which 25% of the time only connects at 3G), and ~$30 for phone. Plus another ~$20 for my old dial up internet account that I've been keeping just for the e-mail address. So I'll drop all those and save about $100 a month.

[PZ]

Those package deals are real savers, D_B - hope it goes well (it should)

I'd jump on one of those in a heartbeat if I had it available.

My son pays a fraction of what I do and has on demand Netyflix, Hulu, Prine Video, and many others all running through his PS4 Pro (at a fraction of what I pay). I visited him not long ago, and it sure is nice to watch anything you want to any time the mood strikes. No more having to purchase DVDs, or wait for a movie to come on broadcast.

[LowPolyOWG]

Use that 100$ on the gigabit option. You'll thank me later Nah, it's your money, do what you see fit

[Art Blade]

fingers crossed, D_B I might re-install Portal2 again just to finish where we left off years ago, only this time with a working voice chat and smooth gaming

By the way, if you haven't already, get a bloody headset for voice chats, it's so easy to use over steam

[LowPolyOWG]

Currently using this. Very good audio and mic for it's price

[Art Blade]

PZ followed my recommendation and both of us enjoy this—you can get it for around US$ 20+ (no idea why MS sells it for 39)

[PZ]

Yes indeed - excellent headset 

[LowPolyOWG]

I am attracted to the gaming gimmicks (notably golden controllers and keyboards/mouse/mousepads with flashy LED -lights) 

[Art Blade]

kids.

[PZ]

 

[Dweller_Benthos]

Yeah I will need to get some kind of microphone setup I guess. I already have a set of headphones I like, the ones on headsets that I've tried aren't too comfortable. I saw a video on a small microphone you can add to practically any headset, I may look into that.

Turns out the final monthly bill will be a bit over $150. Still a step down from what I'm paying four different companies now. I talked to their tech support last night about the special install I will need as our wires are underground, and they seemed to think it wouldn't be a problem. We'll see what happens on the 19th.

I'm really only getting the phone & TV to get the bundle price. Just an internet connection alone would be cheaper, sure, but they are under merger restrictions for the next 4 or 5 years to play nice with speed and bandwidth limits. You can be sure that when those restrictions expire, there will be changes to what they offer. I've seen news of other cable companies doing things like offering higher speed internet only to customers who also have a TV service from them, or charging exorbitant amounts for a higher speed connection if you don't also have TV. This is the sort of thing that can happen when ISPs outright buy politicians and tell them what laws to pass. ISPs, especially cable companies whose bulk profits come from TV, are fighting tooth and claw to protect those profits, even to the point of denying anything like the fact that most people would drop traditional cable TV for a streaming service in a heartbeat.

The price I'm paying is also an introductory price for new customers, which I think lasts a year or two. After that, I'm sure the price will go up and I'll have to adjust things.

[Art Blade]

the best of luck, mate

[PZ]

 

[BinnZ]

Congrats D_B! Sounds all pretty good! 100Mb is very nice. I have 200Mb myself, but only because my ISP keeps raising the speed without charging me for it. When I hooked in I had like 40Mb and it just kept rising every now and then.
The prices over here are a lot better though. I pay around €70 ($80) for TV, On Demand HBO, hardline phone and the internet. My wife pays another €12 for Netflix.
I think you might get a cheaper contract in the future. There will be more competition in the future I hope

[fragger]

Hope it all goes well, D_B