If you are tired of paying high cable TV prices then you might want to consider switching to an internet streaming service.
Step one. Buy a flat hang on the wall TV antenna (50-mile range, $25) for local stations. In Suffield you should receive channel 22 NBC Springfield, channel 40 ABC Springfield, channel 3 CBS Hartford, channel 61 FOX Hartford, channel 30 NBC New Britain and channel 24 PBS Hartford. Most of these stations are located north or south of Suffield, so place the antenna on a north/south wall.
Step two. Find an internet provider in your area. The following link provides a good overview of the internet providers available in Connecticut. https://www.cnet.com/home/internet/best-internet-providers-in-connecticut/ In Suffield the following providers are available:
Frontier. Check if the fiber cable is available on your street. $50/mo., 200Mbps.
Cox. Check if the cable is available on your street. $50/mo., 100Mbps.
Verizon 5G. Internet speed depends on the distance to the cell phone tower. $50/mo., 100Mbps.
T-Mobile. Internet speed depends on the distance to the cell phone tower $50/mo., 100Mbps.
Starlink. $90/mo., 100Mbps, $249 equipment cost.
How much bandwidth do you need?
100 Mbps. Suitable for HD (1080p) streaming two devices at a time.
200 Mbps. Supports 4K streaming two devices at a time. 4K requires 4k Smart TV and premium streaming services. Netflix premium plan is $24/mo. If you plan on buying a 55+ size TV then 4K is recommended.
300 Mbps. Supports 8K streaming and gaming on two+ devices at a time. 8K requires 8K Smart TV or monitor. If you plan on buying an 85+ size TV then 8K is recommended. However, at this time very few streaming services support 8K. High end gaming supports 8K.
The Internet Service provider will provide a cable modem. However, they typically charge $10/mo. for the router. You can buy a good dual band router at Walmart or BestBuy for $50. Make sure that it’s compatible with your internet service provider. The TP-Link Archer C54 router is compatible with most internet service providers.
Step three. Choose the internet interface to your TV. Smart TV Wi-Fi or an Ethernet CAT6 connection. A hardwired Ethernet connection is less susceptible to dropout. Wi-Fi is good enough for simple streaming. The Amazon Fire Stick or Roku is best for older TVs without Wi-Fi.
Step four. Choose streaming services (HD pricing is shown here). Apple ($13/mo.), Amazon Prime($16/mo.), Netflix($8/mo.), Paramount (free with Walmart+), HBO max($10/mo.) look for sale price during Black Friday, Disney ESPN ($30), Tubi(free), Discovery($6/mo.), YouTube (Free), YouTube TV($83/mo.), Hulu ($10).
Be careful, you could end up spending more than your cable TV bill depending on your Smart TV, Internet provider/bandwidth and streaming services. Good luck!