Cord cutting update: Streaming TV expands

Entertainment is more plentiful than ever — and more expensive.

Cable gave everyone a great picture and more choices but it brought along high fees that have been rising 6 percent a year, according to Motley Fool. In fact the average household now pays nearly $65 a month, more if they have a video recorder or more than one television.

New streaming TV services leave many wondering if they need expensive cable anymore. The answer is a resounding: maybe, maybe not.

There are lots of new services that offer cheaper bundles but by the time you add up everything you tend to reach the cost of cable. If you want something obscure, you will pay.

The easiest categories to replace are previously aired television shows and movies. Services like Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime offer a startling array of network content as well as their own premium shows created in house for fees less than $10 per month.

If you want to stop there and receive local channels over the air, then that saves at least $55 over the average bill.

But, sports for dad, cartoons for kids, movie channels, well, because.

Now you have to add networks and you are talking higher fees. SlingTV has a $20 starting package that allows users to assemble a bundle of actual network channels that can stream in real time to a smart TV or media player and include all of the typical favorites like ESPN, Disney, and more. You won’t get QVC or Fox News on any Sling package, though.

You can go to other services such as Hulu, YouTube TV, DirecTV, or PlayStation Vue. They all have some channels, but not all, available on one TV (or more for a price), some with pause/play, some without.

You could pick two services plus Netflix and you would have a decent, if slightly confusing, array of shows for about $60. Remember, you must have a good internet connection to do this.

According to USA Today, Sling TV recently added the NFL Network and NFL RedZone channels to their lineup.  SBNation.com says the service likewise offers NBA TV as an add-on and coupled with ESPN, ESPN2, and TNT nearly every game will be covered.  Local channels can cover any other gaps in coverage.

Local channels can be replaced by streaming services to a limited degree, but there is always the tried-and-true antenna to capture local channels right out of the air.  Far removed from the rabbit ears of decades past, modern antennas are smaller and less obtrusive.

Find out more with CNET’s master chart of services: https://www.cnet.com/news/youtube-tv-vs-sling-tv-vs-directv-now-vs-playstation-vue-channel-lineups-compared/