1. Cut bills - Depending on your options, cable TV can cost from about $30-90 per month, averaging about $60. That’s $720 a year that you could save up or spend on something else.
2. Save electricity – Not a large amount, but still, you could save $20-50 per year by turning off the TV.
3. Skip commercials – They pay the bills – for the sponsors, not for you. Don’t be tempted to buy more just because you see it advertised.
4. Get more free time - The average American spends more than five hours a day watching TV. Five hours! Imagine giving up some of that time and doing so many other things instead – spending time with family, getting exercise, reading a good book, pursuing hobbies or maybe earning extra dollars with a second job.
5. Cut stress - When you spend five hours a day watching TV, you have to squeeze the rest of your life into the remaining, limited time. With less time watching TV, you can accomplish other things at a more leisurely pace instead of feeling so frantic.
6. Eat better – Lots of TV watching leads to fast food, convenience food and fatty snacks in front of the tube. Skip a show and spend the hour cooking a healthy meal.
7. Improve your health and fitness - Obviously, watching TV is sedentary, plus it means you have less time available to exercise.
8. Communicate better – TV takes the place of conversation in too many households. Watch less, talk more, and feel closer to your family.
9, Get romantic - It’s so easy for couples to fall into the trap of TV watching, instead of making time for each other.
10. Be more informed - TV news can be useful on occasion, but too often it promotes pundits and sound bites instead of real facts and information. Get your news online and/or through newspapers and radio.
Okay, so now you know why you should cancel your cable. But it doesn’t mean forgoing your Dancing With the Stars fix (or whatever show you prefer) – nothing wrong with the occasional show, just not five hours a day! There are some great options for watching TV free and legally online:
Hulu — Hulu is the big name in streaming video for a reason, carrying shows from Disney, Fox and NBC.
TV.com — TV.com is CBS’s answer to Hulu. The site has current shows, classic old shows, and news.
Fancast — Fancast is from Comcast but you don’t need to be a Comcast customer to access the site. It pulls together content from a lot of other web portals including Hulu and TV.com. There are also full-length movies available.
TVGuide.com — TV Guide offers lots of full-length TV episodes, clips and exclusive interviews on its website.
YouTube — Online video king YouTube now carries some full length TV shows, along with the usual viral videos of laughing babies and such.
SlashControl — AOL’s new SlashControl offers content from a lot of different sites including TV.com, Hulu and Fancast. The site also offers full-length movies.
Photo courtesy of Flickr
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Comment by The0 on 16 October 2009:
Very go0d article.. Im pawning my tv n0w + cutting the cable with a hacksaw!
Comment by Cablecutter on 3 December 2009:
The antenna/DTV option is pretty great too! I gave up cable three months ago and made the one-time investment of $80 for a new outdoor antenna, plugged it into my HDTV and immediately received 31 digital channels of free OTA tv. (You’ll need one of those converter boxes if you have an older tv set) Most of the channels are in pristine HD too. Couldn’t be happier. Most of what I was watching was on broadcast tv anyhow.
Pingback by Cancel Your Cable TV and Keep Watching All Your Favorite Shows – Smooth Move « Take the Dollar Back on 21 December 2009:
[...] Mr. Cheap Stuff: 10 Reasons You Should Cancel Your Cable TV Right Now [...]