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depressedgirl

Cable, internet and phone

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Help! Have been looking through providers and where we will be living there is only Spectrum or Frontier. It looks like Frontier doesn't actually provide any TV so it'd have to be Spectrum and it just looks so so so incredibly expensive. And all the equipment you get here for free in the UK like a wifi router or DVR box is an added monthly extra to rent! Is this normal? And are there any clever options around this? Could we just buy internet and then have a smart TV with some sort of online provider that would give us the same channels? Or will we just have to bite the bullet and pay? Does any one have any experience over this? My wife is unfortunately no help on this despite living in USA all her life and just pays out what money she is told to regardless of whether she is being conned or not but I'd rather find out!

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Filed: K-1 Visa Country: United Kingdom
Timeline

Compared to the UK, internet and TV is more expensive and there is much less competition. Here in NJ we have Fios and Xfinity to choose from for internet and adding TV and phone just increases the prices, taxes and fees to silly levels. I just couldn't justify the expense. We ended up getting Fios 100mb internet and streaming live TV from Playstation Vue through an Amazon fire stick. $60 p/m for internet and $40 p/m for TV. That's still more than I used to pay for Virgin Media and Sky in the UK, but a pretty decent solution for here. The best benefit of Playstation Vue is being able to watch it on other TVs and tablets at no additional cost.

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Not sure where you live, but for TV, just buy an antenna. Pay once, save thousands. 

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01MY4HQ2F/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1493487426&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=antenna&dpPl=1&dpID=41xxqsy9z5L&ref=plSrch

 

Phone, I went with Ooma, paying $3.79 per month...

 

Internet is the most expensive, but I bought the modem so I am saving the rental fees.

 

Took me awhile to figure out what was the best deal, but it's costing us less than $50 per month now, including Netflix.  I prefer to splurge on Caribbean vacations the winter than paying $200/month for nothing more than what I have now.

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Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: England
Timeline

You should be able provide your own modem and router to skip  the rental fee.  We don't bundle the phone in. We prefer Vonage. Bundling in phone does often require the provider's equipment that supports voice, but even those types of boxes are available at Best Buy.  You have options, but it depends on what your needs are and how much the various "cut the cord" service subscriptions cost you in the end. 

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Welcome to the USA. :jest:

 

Did you ever think about "cutting the cord" (not getting cable TV)? That seems to be a growing trend now that most services let you stream their shows over the Internet. There are other (non-cable) TV providers such as DirectTV as well.

 

As for phone, do you really need a landline nowadays? Most US carriers have unlimited phone plans for smartphones.

 

No choice on the Internet...you gotta pay what you gotta pay. You can see if you can buy the modem yourself to save on rental fees, but that's something that varies by provider. With my provider, they provide the equipment a with a rental charge, but you can't use your own modem (I use my own router, though).

Timelines:

ROC:

Spoiler

7/27/20: Sent forms to Dallas lockbox, 7/30/20: Received by USCIS, 8/10 NOA1 electronic notification received, 8/1/ NOA1 hard copy received

AOS:

Spoiler

AOS (I-485 + I-131 + I-765):

9/25/17: sent forms to Chicago, 9/27/17: received by USCIS, 10/4/17: NOA1 electronic notification received, 10/10/17: NOA1 hard copy received. Social Security card being issued in married name (3rd attempt!)

10/14/17: Biometrics appointment notice received, 10/25/17: Biometrics

1/2/18: EAD + AP approved (no website update), 1/5/18: EAD + AP mailed, 1/8/18: EAD + AP approval notice hardcopies received, 1/10/18: EAD + AP received

9/5/18: Interview scheduled notice, 10/17/18: Interview

10/24/18: Green card produced notice, 10/25/18: Formal approval, 10/31/18: Green card received

K-1:

Spoiler

I-129F

12/1/16: sent, 12/14/16: NOA1 hard copy received, 3/10/17: RFE (IMB verification), 3/22/17: RFE response received

3/24/17: Approved! , 3/30/17: NOA2 hard copy received

 

NVC

4/6/2017: Received, 4/12/2017: Sent to Riyadh embassy, 4/16/2017: Case received at Riyadh embassy, 4/21/2017: Request case transfer to Manila, approved 4/24/2017

 

K-1

5/1/2017: Case received by Manila (1 week embassy transfer??? Lucky~)

7/13/2017: Interview: APPROVED!!!

7/19/2017: Visa in hand

8/15/2017: POE

 

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In my state there's only a few choices - Comcast, Verizon, and then of course satellite tv like Directv or Dish. Paying for the service and the fees for the boxes each month is standard procedure. For each box you have in the home there will be a fee. I use Directv, since they merged with ATT they do package deals, but I don't like bundling. If you aren't interested in cable tv, you can cut the cord and have an antenna and pay for a variety of streaming services. Personally I use satellite tv, and am sadly stuck with Verizon for internet. You're going to find with internet and tv services you have little choice but to pay what they ask or find unique ways to lower your costs as others have suggested, it is one of those things that are going to cost more than the UK for sure and you are going to find the internet speed is far slower than what you're probably used to. If you're in a rural area your chances of faster speeds are slim to none.

Edited by yuna628

Our Journey Timeline  - Immigration and the Health Exchange Price of Love in the UK Thinking of Returning to UK?

 

First met: 12/31/04 - Engaged: 9/24/09
Filed I-129F: 10/4/14 - Packet received: 10/7/14
NOA 1 email + ARN assigned: 10/10/14 (hard copy 10/17/14)
Touched on website (fixed?): 12/9/14 - Poked USCIS: 4/1/15
NOA 2 email: 5/4/15 (hard copy 5/11/15)
Sent to NVC: 5/8/15 - NVC received + #'s assigned: 5/15/15 (estimated)
NVC sent: 5/19/15 - London received/ready: 5/26/15
Packet 3: 5/28/15 - Medical: 6/16/15
Poked London 7/1/15 - Packet 4: 7/2/15
Interview: 7/30/15 - Approved!
AP + Issued 8/3/15 - Visa in hand (depot): 8/6/15
POE: 8/27/15

Wedding: 9/30/15

Filed I-485, I-131, I-765: 11/7/15

Packet received: 11/9/15

NOA 1 txt/email: 11/15/15 - NOA 1 hardcopy: 11/19/15

Bio: 12/9/15

EAD + AP approved: 1/25/16 - EAD received: 2/1/16

RFE for USCIS inability to read vax instructions: 5/21/16 (no e-notification & not sent from local office!)

RFE response sent: 6/7/16 - RFE response received 6/9/16

AOS approved/card in production: 6/13/16  

NOA 2 hardcopy + card sent 6/17/16

Green Card received: 6/18/16

USCIS 120 day reminder notice: 2/22/18

Filed I-751: 5/2/18 - Packet received: 5/4/18

NOA 1:  5/29/18 (12 mo ext) 8/13/18 (18 mo ext)  - Bio: 6/27/18

Transferred: Potomac Service Center 3/26/19

Approved/New Card Produced status: 4/25/19 - NOA2 hardcopy 4/29/19

10yr Green Card Received: 5/2/19 with error >_<

N400 : 7/16/23 - Oath : 10/19/23

 

 

 

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Filed: Country:
Timeline

I got a tv tuner card for my computer and an antenna so now my computer acts as my dvr which I get for free each month. as other people have said you can get your own router and modem to save there too. I personally just use Skype for my land ish line. and get a skype number for people to call me and then get some credit for who you need to call.  so then it is 4 bucks a month for the skype number and 40 ish for Internet.

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Filed: K-1 Visa Country: Sweden
Timeline

Yeah America is crazy expensive and hasn't kept up with technology very well. In my little rural village in Sweden I had my 250mbps for $25 a month, here in a quite big city in the US I'm lucky if I can even find a provider who can deliver 100mbps! And it costs more than $40 a month... Same goes with daycare, car insurance, phone plans etc.

 

At least we don't give a ####### about TV so that's one cost less.

K-1: 12-22-2015 - 09-07-2016

AP: 12-20-2016 - 04-07-2017

EAD: 01-18-2017 - 05-30-2017

AOS: 12-20-2016 - 07-26-2017

ROC: 04-22-2019 - 04-22-2020
Naturalization: 05-01-2020 - 03-16-2021

U.S. passport: 03-30-2021 - 05-08-2021

En livstid i krig. Göteborg killed it. Epic:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBs3G1PvyfM&ab_channel=Sabaton

 

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Filed: IR-1/CR-1 Visa Country: Kosova
Timeline

We have Charter Spectrum for Internet only. We don't have a TV. We both have smartphones with Verizon. We are happy with the 60 mbps Internet speed. I agree, compared to Europe, the options here suck. In my hubby's country, all you need to do is buy a satellite dish and box (apparently cheap there), install it and point it in the right direction. All kinds of channels from all over Europe are free, movies, music, news, sports, you name it. I don't think you can pick up much with a dish for free here.

XMY93gI.jpgXMY9m5.png

AAD1m5.pngThankYouUSA-Kosova.jpg

See my Timeline for details of our visa journey
17-Aug-2011 Our Wedding Day in Kosovo 
07-Nov-2011 Filed I-130
21-Nov-2011 NOA1
23-Aug-2012 NOA2 Approved 276 days
10-Jan-2013 Case complete via email

28-Feb-2013 Interview, result AP
11-Apr-2013 Embassy appointment - VISA APPROVED and issued in 4 hours
30-Apr-2013 POE Chicago O'Hare - He's home!

04-Sep-2014 Moved to northern California

12-Mar-2015 Filed ROC
16-Mar-2015 Documents delivered
18-Mar-2015 Check cashed
19-Mar-2015 NOA1 dated 03/16/2015 received in mail
13-Apr-2015 Biometrics completed
02-Feb-2016 Contacted USCIS about case, was told it's on hold because of security checks (email)
04-Mar-2016 Moved to Wisconsin
12-Aug-2016 New Biometrics appointment
14-Sep-2016 Contacted USCIS again about case (email said we should hear from them by Oct 6)
22-Sep-2016 Letter from USCIS dated 9/20 explaining the Service Request is currently being reviewed by an officer.
22-Sep-2016 Letter from USCIS dated 9/20 with Interview appointment for both of us for 28-Sep-2016
28-Sep-2016 Interview, both of us, separated, not hard, 10 min. each, result---said hubby will get GC in about 10 days
26-Oct-2016 *****STILL WAITING*****
02-Nov-2016 Card is being produced!!!
08-Nov-2016 Card is mailed
10-Nov-2016 Card is Delivered!!!! YAY
CITIZENSHIP: 

Biometrics appointment for 2020-03-27 has been cancelled until further notice as all field offices are closed because of COVID-19.

***NOA dated 12/10/2020 USCIS stated they are able to reuse previous Biometrics***

Interview was easy. My hubby's Oath Ceremony is scheduled for February 25th. I can't watch >sad< but happy he is getting his certificate!

25-FEB-2021 Oath Ceremony! My hubby is a Citizen!

 
 
 
 
 
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5 minutes ago, indiana_sweetie said:

We have Charter Spectrum for Internet only. We don't have a TV. We both have smartphones with Verizon. We are happy with the 60 mbps Internet speed. I agree, compared to Europe, the options here suck. In my hubby's country, all you need to do is buy a satellite dish and box (apparently cheap there), install it and point it in the right direction. All kinds of channels from all over Europe are free, movies, music, news, sports, you name it. I don't think you can pick up much with a dish for free here.

I have over 80 channels over the air for free with an antenna.  You can do a search here to have an idea of what you can get from your location: https://www.tablotv.com/tools/

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Filed: Citizen (pnd) Country: Malaysia
Timeline

Get a mxq pro and you have everything under the sun (movies, tv series, music). All you need is internet connection and the slowest speed will suffice. Your life will change forever the day you say good bye to commercials.

AOS - 130 days

ROC - 15m

N400 - 10/18/2019

bio - 11/4/19

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2 hours ago, Lemonslice said:

I have over 80 channels over the air for free with an antenna.  You can do a search here to have an idea of what you can get from your location: https://www.tablotv.com/tools/

20 stations here (with varying quality)...of which only 4 have a show I would watch. =___= c'est' la vie

Timelines:

ROC:

Spoiler

7/27/20: Sent forms to Dallas lockbox, 7/30/20: Received by USCIS, 8/10 NOA1 electronic notification received, 8/1/ NOA1 hard copy received

AOS:

Spoiler

AOS (I-485 + I-131 + I-765):

9/25/17: sent forms to Chicago, 9/27/17: received by USCIS, 10/4/17: NOA1 electronic notification received, 10/10/17: NOA1 hard copy received. Social Security card being issued in married name (3rd attempt!)

10/14/17: Biometrics appointment notice received, 10/25/17: Biometrics

1/2/18: EAD + AP approved (no website update), 1/5/18: EAD + AP mailed, 1/8/18: EAD + AP approval notice hardcopies received, 1/10/18: EAD + AP received

9/5/18: Interview scheduled notice, 10/17/18: Interview

10/24/18: Green card produced notice, 10/25/18: Formal approval, 10/31/18: Green card received

K-1:

Spoiler

I-129F

12/1/16: sent, 12/14/16: NOA1 hard copy received, 3/10/17: RFE (IMB verification), 3/22/17: RFE response received

3/24/17: Approved! , 3/30/17: NOA2 hard copy received

 

NVC

4/6/2017: Received, 4/12/2017: Sent to Riyadh embassy, 4/16/2017: Case received at Riyadh embassy, 4/21/2017: Request case transfer to Manila, approved 4/24/2017

 

K-1

5/1/2017: Case received by Manila (1 week embassy transfer??? Lucky~)

7/13/2017: Interview: APPROVED!!!

7/19/2017: Visa in hand

8/15/2017: POE

 

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5 hours ago, Lemonslice said:

I have over 80 channels over the air for free with an antenna.  You can do a search here to have an idea of what you can get from your location: https://www.tablotv.com/tools/

LOL! 1 station... well that's living out in the boonies for you.

Our Journey Timeline  - Immigration and the Health Exchange Price of Love in the UK Thinking of Returning to UK?

 

First met: 12/31/04 - Engaged: 9/24/09
Filed I-129F: 10/4/14 - Packet received: 10/7/14
NOA 1 email + ARN assigned: 10/10/14 (hard copy 10/17/14)
Touched on website (fixed?): 12/9/14 - Poked USCIS: 4/1/15
NOA 2 email: 5/4/15 (hard copy 5/11/15)
Sent to NVC: 5/8/15 - NVC received + #'s assigned: 5/15/15 (estimated)
NVC sent: 5/19/15 - London received/ready: 5/26/15
Packet 3: 5/28/15 - Medical: 6/16/15
Poked London 7/1/15 - Packet 4: 7/2/15
Interview: 7/30/15 - Approved!
AP + Issued 8/3/15 - Visa in hand (depot): 8/6/15
POE: 8/27/15

Wedding: 9/30/15

Filed I-485, I-131, I-765: 11/7/15

Packet received: 11/9/15

NOA 1 txt/email: 11/15/15 - NOA 1 hardcopy: 11/19/15

Bio: 12/9/15

EAD + AP approved: 1/25/16 - EAD received: 2/1/16

RFE for USCIS inability to read vax instructions: 5/21/16 (no e-notification & not sent from local office!)

RFE response sent: 6/7/16 - RFE response received 6/9/16

AOS approved/card in production: 6/13/16  

NOA 2 hardcopy + card sent 6/17/16

Green Card received: 6/18/16

USCIS 120 day reminder notice: 2/22/18

Filed I-751: 5/2/18 - Packet received: 5/4/18

NOA 1:  5/29/18 (12 mo ext) 8/13/18 (18 mo ext)  - Bio: 6/27/18

Transferred: Potomac Service Center 3/26/19

Approved/New Card Produced status: 4/25/19 - NOA2 hardcopy 4/29/19

10yr Green Card Received: 5/2/19 with error >_<

N400 : 7/16/23 - Oath : 10/19/23

 

 

 

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1 minute ago, yuna628 said:

LOL! 1 station... well that's living out in the boonies for you.

:D

 

I am sure you are saving plenty on other things.  We didn't have a TV for the first... 5 years or so after I moved here.  Not really a need for us, so there was no way I was going to pay $200+ a month to get the channels might have wanted.  Antenna was a compromise, more TV than we'll ever watch for little price. Also, boonies can be pretty scenic!

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Thanks everyone, you've given me a lot to look into. I don't care about tv but my wife watches a large amount of trash tv so.... 

 

thanks for all the great advice 

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