My Streaming Life

It is no secret that the cost of streaming has gone up. Almost every major service has increased its monthly subscription fee over the last few years. While the approach of keeping every subscription active simultaneously is convenient, it has become unsustainable for many household budgets. The most effective strategy to counter these price hikes is to rotate your services. The premise is simple: instead of subscribing to Netflix, HBO Max, Disney Plus, and Paramount Plus all at once, you subscribe to just one. You watch the content you want on that service for a month, cancel it, and then move on to the next one. This method allows you to see all the content you want over the course of a year, but you only pay for one service at a time. The financial impact The savings generated by rotating are substantial. If you have six services and you only pay for one each month, you are saving the cost of five subscriptions every single month. Because the individual prices are higher now tha...

It all comes down to this. The college football postseason ends tonight with the national championship game. The preseason number 10 Miami and the preseason number 20 Indiana wound up number 10 and number 1 respectively. The Game This is it. This is for all the marbles. January 19 One game, between two teams. One that didn't even make their conference championship games, and one that made it this far as the only undefeated team this season. College Football Playoff National Championship Presented by AT&T (7:30 PM ET on ESPN) (#10) Miami (13-2) (#1) Indiana (15-0) How to Watch There is only a single network broadcasting the game tonight. ESPN ESPN Unlimited: ($30/month) Sling TV Orange: ($46/month) Fubo (Sports & News): ($56/month) DirecTV Stream MySports: ($70/month) YouTube TV: ($83/month) Hulu+Live TV: ($90/month) My Streaming Life is consumed by football during this time of the year. We hope you enjoy watch the games during this 2025 College...

+ In this video titled "I QUIT Paying for Streaming and Use These 5 Alternatives Instead," Spencer Campbell from the channel Spencer's Adventures discusses the frustrations of rising subscription costs and the loss of true digital ownership. [ YouTube ] Spencer examines the trend of "enshittification" in the streaming industry, where platforms prioritize profit over user experience by increasing prices and adding ads to paid tiers. He argues that streaming has become a cycle of monthly rentals where consumers have no control over their libraries. To combat this, he outlines five practical alternatives: utilizing free ad-supported services like Tubi and Pluto TV, investing in physical media, buying DRM-free digital music, using a broadcast antenna for local TV, and making use of the free digital and physical collections at public libraries. The point Spencer makes about digital ownership is one that is becoming harder to ignore. We have seen instances where v...

If you're a cord cutter, or thinking of becoming one, an option you should consider is getting a TV antenna. Most people in the USA live close enough to at least one broadcast tower and could pick up TV signals over the air. That's free. A long time ago, that was the only way to watch TV. We had an antenna pointed toward the TV towers in Savannah, and we'd watch the stations from that city. It was the closest place that had TV signals. The increase in streaming services has put a huge dent in cable, and is partly responsible for people remembering, or finding out for the first time, about over the air TV. What was an old market was resurrected and became a hot new market again. And what happens when a new market emerges? Someone wants to take advantage of it. A lot of TV antennae that you see in stores make some really outrageous claims. I've seen antennae claiming 200 mile range. Let me tell you a secret. They're lying. Here's why I can tell you they are lyi...

If you cut the cord and replaced cable with a live streaming service -- YouTube TV, Fubo, Sling TV, or Hulu+Live TV -- I have a question for you: why? Why did you simply replace cable with a live streaming service? What was it about cable you didn't like? The price? If that's the case, take a look at your current bill. With YouTube TV at $83 , Hulu+Live TV at $90 , and Fubo starting at $85 (often exceeding $100 once regional sports fees are added), that price gap has nearly vanished. Or was it paying for channels you didn't watch? If that's the case, does your live streaming service have channels you don't watch? I bet it does. So what did you solve? If the answer is "price," then we are back to the same problem: the cost of live TV is rising everywhere, regardless of the delivery method. The real benefit of streaming is control. There is nothing wrong with wanting to control your TV rather than ceding that to a cable company. With cable, you are oft...

The media has a favorite story they like to tell: "Traditional TV is dead." We have heard it for years, and as I celebrate my 15th anniversary of cutting the cord this week, I have heard it more than most. But as I look at my own habits lately, I have noticed something strange. I am actually watching more antenna-based TV now than I was five years ago. For a long time, I thought I was just an outlier. Then I looked at the actual data from the last five years (2020-2025), and the numbers tell a story that the "streaming-only" crowd isn't talking about. The Great Compression: 2020 vs. 2025 Category 2020 Data 2025 Data 5-Year Trend Pay TV Households (Cable/Sat) 81% of homes 44% of homes -45% Antenna (OTA) Households 18% of homes 23% of homes +28% Big 4 Average Viewers 19.3 Million 15.9 Million -18% Top Minor Networks ~1.3 Million ~1.6 Million +23% The Truth Behind the Numbers The "catch" in this data is exactly w...

Michael Timmermann on Auditing Your 2026 Streaming Budget Michael Timmermann, a personal finance journalist and cord-cutting expert from the Michael Saves channel, provides a strategic look at how to audit your viewing habits to avoid the "bundle trap" in 2026. [ YouTube ] The video highlights a common mistake for cord-cutters: trading expensive cable packages for equally costly live TV streaming bundles. Michael Timmermann suggests auditing viewing habits by listing specific shows and sports rather than just channels to determine if a large bundle is truly necessary. He recommends a DIY approach, such as combining an indoor antenna for local stations with more affordable standalone services like ESPN Unlimited, NFL Plus Premium, and Peacock Premium. This strategy can save around $40 per month compared to a standard $94/month YouTube TV plan by prioritizing cost savings over the simplicity of a single app. I saw the video recently and while I've shared much of the sa...

The joke used to be, "I'm so old I remember when MTV actually played music." For the last few decades, that punchline was backed by a programming schedule dominated by "Ridiculousness" marathons and reality TV drama. However, recent reports from Bloomberg suggest that the joke might finally be reaching its expiration date. Paramount CEO David Ellison is reportedly making a massive push to return the network to its musical roots, viewing the departure from its original identity as a critical misstep that needs to be corrected to save the brand. This isn't just a nostalgic whim; it's a calculated business move involving financial advisors and potential high-level partnerships. Paramount is looking for strategic allies in the music and tech sectors to help fund and fuel this revival. The goal is to move away from being a "repository of reruns" and transform MTV into a modern music tastemaker. By leveraging its massive archives -- including ...

The "Cable 2.0" transition is officially here, and it arrives this Thursday, January 15, 2026. Paramount is raising prices across the board, and the justification is a classic page from the old cable playbook: forcing every subscriber to pay for expensive sports content regardless of whether they ever intend to watch it. The New Math of Paramount Plus Starting Thursday, the price for a standalone subscription is increasing for both tiers. While the monthly hike is a standard $1, the annual plans are seeing a much more aggressive jump. Paramount Plus Essentials: Increases to $9 monthly or $90 annually (up from $60). Paramount Plus Premium: Increases to $14 monthly or $140 annually (up from $120). This isn't just a simple adjustment for inflation. Paramount is using these increases to help fund a massive $7.7 billion deal with the UFC. Starting this month, marquee fight cards that used to cost $80 on pay-per-view are being folded into the standard subscription for a...

I saw a video from the channel Switch and Click, in which Betty Van explores building a budget-friendly home media server to replace expensive streaming subscriptions. [ YouTube ] The video documents the process of setting up a used Dell Optiplex with Jellyfin and digitizing a physical DVD collection. While the project was successful, it required a full week of troubleshooting. Ultimately, Betty notes that while a home server offers control, the time investment and hardware hurdles are significant trade-offs. The DIY route shown in the video is a great project, but there are other ways to escape rising costs. For those who just want a simple server, using the $200  NVIDIA Shield TV Pro as a Plex server is an option. It acts as a plug-and-play appliance and avoids the week of troubleshooting described in the video, though you will need an external drive for your MP4 files. However, if someone wants to do more, such as ripping DVDs or Blu-ray discs like Betty did, a full compu...

I have been using Plex for a long time, but lately, I have started playing with Jellyfin on a separate Linux server as an alternative. Plex works, but I am curious about Jellyfin, and I think it is good for me to be familiar with it. This way, I can eventually offer knowledgeable suggestions regarding which way someone may want to go, and why. My initial experience with it has been quite good. One thing I noticed right away is that it actually does a better job than Plex did regarding identifying movies the first time. For someone with a library of 1,800 movies, the accuracy rate was over 99% right out of the gate. While Plex wasn't bad, Jellyfin was better in this area, which meant I had significantly less manual cleanup to do. When it did miss something, it was relatively easy to fix by looking up the IMDb ID and providing that. It made the identification process much smoother than Plex, which can sometimes be a struggle when the server doesn't get a match right the first ...

Major League Baseball is officially taking over the broadcast rights for the Atlanta Braves and eight other teams, ending their relationship with FanDuel Sports Network. After a long and winding bankruptcy process for Diamond Sports Group, the two sides have agreed to part ways, which means the RSN model as we know it is effectively over for nearly a third of the league. Along with the Braves, the eight other teams included in this move are the Cincinnati Reds, Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals, Los Angeles Angels, Miami Marlins, Milwaukee Brewers, St. Louis Cardinals, and Tampa Bay Rays. For those of us who follow the Braves or those other 8 teams, this is a massive shift. The Braves' territory is famously huge, covering five full states and parts of others, which has historically led to some of the most frustrating blackout restrictions in professional sports. For years, if you didn't have a specific cable package or a high-priced streaming bundle, you were simply out of ...

Bowl season is done. Well, almost. There are two playoff games remaining that are part of the bowl system. The semifinals are being played as part of the Fiesta and Peach Bowls. The Schedule Here is this week's schedule and how to watch, if you are a streamer. January 8 One game, between two teams that didn't make their conference championship games, but are still a couple of the best teams this season. College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl (7:30 PM ET on ESPN) (#10) Miami (12-2) (#6) Mississippi (13-1) January 9 One game, between two teams from the same conference, including the number one team. College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl (7:30 PM ET on ESPN) (#5) Oregon (13-1) (#1) Indiana (14-0) How to Watch There is only a single network broadcasting these bowl/playoff games this week. ESPN ESPN Unlimited: ($30/month) Sling TV Orange: ($46/month) Fubo (Sports & News): ($56/month) DirecTV Stream M...

It has been nearly a year since I published The Ultimate Showdown: Walmart Onn Streamers vs. Google TV, Fire TV, and NVIDIA Shield , and the core of my setup remains remarkably stable. Every TV in my home still features the dual-platform approach of a Google TV device paired with a Roku. While I still consider Google TV the best of the "fancy" interfaces, I have found myself reaching for the Roku remote almost exclusively lately. There is something to be said for a simple, stripped-down app grid when you just want to get to your content without the noise. Behind the scenes, my NVIDIA Shield TV Pro is still the undisputed workhorse of the house. It rarely gets used as a player anymore; instead, it just sits there, chugging along as my dedicated Plex Media Server. It handles my local library and the feed from my HDHomeRun tuner without a hitch, proving that even as it ages, it remains the gold standard for server stability. However, the real reason for this check-in is a pi...

DirecTV is implementing another round of price increases on February 5, 2026, specifically targeting legacy and grandfathered plans. This follows a previous wave of hikes in October 2025 that primarily impacted current subscribers. For those on older tiers, this second jump in four months represents a total monthly increase of over $20 since last summer. While currently available tiers like Entertainment and Choice are remaining steady for February, legacy subscribers are seeing base rate increases alongside a jump in the mandatory Regional Sports Fee (RSF). Legacy (Grandfathered) Pricing The following table reflects the total monthly cost. These figures include the base price and the mandatory Regional Sports Fee. Note that TV Channels and the specific RSF can vary significantly by zip code; these totals use the Savannah market as a real-world example to illustrate the total monthly impact. All figures are rounded to the nearest dollar. Plan Tier TV Channels Jan 2026 Price ...

Last week, I had a discussion with one of my sisters about her TV subscriptions. She currently subscribes to Philo and occasionally watches some FAST content. When I asked which channels she watches most on Philo, she listed her favorites: Hallmark A&E Lifetime Great American Family If those names look familiar, it is because every single one of them is available on Frndly TV. My sister is currently paying $33 per month for Philo, yet she could get that exact same lineup from Frndly TV for just $11 per month. That is one third of the cost for the same content. Don't get me wrong; I like Philo. It is a worthwhile service with a great interface and a solid channel lineup. However, depending on your specific tastes, you may be able to find everything you need on Frndly TV for significantly less. Is she going to switch? No. She is happy with Philo. Personally, I would change in a heartbeat to save $22 a month, but she is not me. That conversation sums up the reality of st...

There are some must-have streaming services for many people. They aren't the same for everybody, though. Traditionally, Netflix has been a must-have for most families. However, it's not been that way for me for a decade or more. That just proves how customizable streaming is. What one family wants may not be what another family wants, but either family can find what they want. One service that's never been at the top of my list, but is a must-have for many, is Peacock TV. I've had the servcie as a perk with my Internet service, but that's not longer available, so when it comes to Peacock TV, I'm looking for a deal if I'm going to subscribe. That's where Michael Timmermann of Michael Saves comes in. If you're looking for a deal on Peacock TV, he has some suggestions. [ YouTube ] My Streaming Life is one of bargains and deals, and still watching what I want. I am hopeful that if Peacock TV is one of your must-have services that today's feature...

A little over a week ago, I decided to downgrade my computer. I have always owned high-quality machines -- a Microsoft Surface laptop running Linux, a MacBook running macOS, high-end Chromebook Plus models, and even Linux on a MacBook Pro. However, with the End of Life for Windows 10 arriving in October 2025, Microsoft's decision to drop support and increase the minimum hardware requirements for Windows 11 has left many perfectly good computers destined for obsolescence. For users with older devices, the standard advice was to purchase a new computer to run Windows 11. But what else could they do? The alternative is simple: switch to another operating system. While some users look for ways of bypassing Windows 11 hardware requirements , those workarounds can be unstable. Moving to macOS requires buying Apple hardware, but moving to ChromeOS or Linux allows you to keep your existing hardware running. While ChromeOS is the simplest solution due to its ease of use, Linux may be a ...

Bowl season is underway, with 35 bowl games this year, not counting playoff games. College football is a passion of mine, and I have a team that I root for every year. Perhaps you do as well. Or maybe, just maybe, you watch for the love of the game. The Schedule Here is today's bowl game schedule and how to watch, if you are a streamer. January 2 Four bowl games make up today's schedule. One game features a ranked team taking on an 8-win team, while another features a 10-win team. January 2 Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl (1:00 PM ET on ESPN) Rice (5-7) Texas State (6-6) AutoZone Liberty Bowl (4:30 PM ET on ESPN) Navy (10-2) Cincinnati (7-5) Trust & Will Holiday Bowl (8:00 PM ET on FOX) (#17) Arizona (9-3) SMU (8-4) Duke's Mayo Bowl (8:00 PM ET on ESPN) Wake Forest (8-4) Mississippi State (5-7) How to Watch There are several networks and services involved in broadcasting the bowl games this year. Other games this post-season ca...

Bowl season is underway, with 35 bowl games this year, not counting playoff games. College football is a passion of mine, and I have a team that I root for every year. Perhaps you do as well. Or maybe, just maybe, you watch for the love of the game. The Schedule Here is today's bowl game schedule and how to watch, if you are a streamer. January 1 Three bowl games, all of which are playoff games, make up today's schedule. Three of the four teams that won their first round games are playing against three of the four teams with first round byes. (The other second round playoff game was last night.) College Football Playoff - Capital One Orange Bowl (12:00 PM ET on ESPN) (#5) Oregon (12-1) (#4) Texas Tech (12-1) College Football Playoff - Rose Bowl presented by Prudential (4:00 PM ET on ESPN) (#9) Alabama (11-3) (#1) Indiana (13-0) College Football Playoff - Allstate Sugar Bowl (8:00 PM ET on ESPN) (#6) Mississippi (12-1) (#3) Georgia (12-1) How to Watc...