If, like Julie Goldman, you think you need to watch some more TV, whether it’s to catch up on the latest series everyone has been talking about, or simply to give yourself another way to relax at home, you might be tempted to take a closer look at those cable options. However, to put it simply, those cable packages may very well be redundant, and here are just a few reasons why.
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There’s a streaming service for that
We live in a digital future and people are starting to watch TV in accordance with that single fact. The rise of streaming services has been meteoric. While Netflix might have been the only player in the game for some time, that is most definitely not true. Amazon Prime, Disney+, Apple TV+, and so on are keeping the market competitive. Even signing up for a couple or three of these different services is likely to get you access to more shows than paying for the average cable bundle. Furthermore, premier cable networks, like HBO, are even starting to forge deals with the big streaming providers to get their shows available online, too. That’s not to mention the sheer amount of movies on each platform, too. It’s not all TV shows.
A Firestick might be a lot better
If you really want to get as much access to TV programs at your fingertips as possible, then opting for a device like a Firestick, Fire TV, or Android box might be even better. Troypoint shows how you can install all manner of apps, including Kodi builds that could allow you to access way more channels and types of free TV shows than you would ever get from a single cable package. It is worth noting that your warranty on your device might not strictly cover jailbreaking it to install more apps, so that’s a risk that you have to consider.
Don’t forget about YouTube
It might not exactly be the kind of premier TV that you would normally expect to pay for, but YouTube has been demanding more of our watch-time than ever. In fact, an increasing amount of younger people more spend time watching video content on YouTube than they do watching traditional TV content. That’s to say nothing of the sheer variety of content on YouTube, including the genre that it practically gave birth to: the video essay. If you’re interested in dipping your toes into the YouTube waters but have no idea where to start, Thrillist has a list of the biggest YouTube channels at the moment. The subreddit for YouTube constantly highlights interesting new videos and creators all the time, as well.
The internet has democratized our access to good TV shows in a way like never before. As such, the need for cable providers to exist is really up for debate nowadays. The exorbitant fees that come with them, not to mention the sheer glut of unnecessary channels that you’re not ever likely to watch might only push the case further in favor of the digital option.
