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I think I'm finally reaching the point where DirecTV is just taking it too far with their price hikes and the value it provides, considering we also have several streaming services like Netflix and Disney+.

I know I've seen posts here about it in the past about people's experiences with different plans... some have tried them and some didn't like them.  What is anyone's thoughts on Youtube TV and Hulu?  Or, any others I should consider?

I have had similar thoughts on DishTV for years.  The key is how do you get ESPN and SEC Network from streaming servieces.  If I can nail down those two, I have the rest figured out I think.

I'm comparing youtube tv and hulu now... both have SECN and ESPN, I'm almost positive.

And I realize these services are and will continue to hike their prices as well...  still, I'm paying WAY too much for Direct.

I didn't realize Hulu had the SECN. Good to know. Unless you pay an arm and leg for cable to get everything you want , it is not cost affective to stay on cable. Fortunately all my housing and utilities are paid by my employer.  Pretty soon even "free tv" will cost. Do you have any idea the cheapest way to get SECN up here in the great white north.

If you go to these Streaming service websites I think you can punch in your address and it will show you what's available to you.  SECN seems to be on all of them, for me.

I tried all of them, and Hulu is the one I settled on. It seems to be the best value of the bunch, imo.

The cost is just becoming outrageous and as more and more people dump cable/satellite, it'll continue to go up until the price is comparable to where satellite is now. I'm still hoping for the day when ESPN decides to offer a stand-alone streaming service. I'd pay $20/mo. just for ESPN so that I don't have to pay $60/mo. for a bunch of stuff I don't watch just to have ESPN/SECN.

Have you not heard of ESPN+? I think it’s 5.99 a month.

I have youtubeTV and it has SECNetwork, but not the altchannel.  You would need ESPN+ for that.  YTV is pretty good and basically has an unlimited recording service that works pretty well.  It records all Vols hoops for me, for example.  It has all the basic cable channels except for a Weather channel, I suppose.  All local channels, tons of news channels (barf), MTV, TBS, TNT, TCM (YEAH!) AMC, ect.  Tons of sports networks including NFL network, all the ESPN channels, ACC, big 10, atc.  FOX, CBS, GOLF, blah, blah, blah.  I like to meditate with a bowling tourney on in the background from time to time.  Since I am a Prime member (which I am debating shizzlecanning) I have a firestick and can access YTV through the firestick and can also access Prime video and Netflix.  We also have the Hulu, Disney, ESPN+ bundle which is a great deal.  Prime and probably Hulu, offers decent deals to get pay channels a la cart if you want for an extra charge per month ($10 typically) HBO, Skinemax, SHOTIME, ect.  If you get one of those, you can basically stream their whole library of stuff.  It's probably better just to try HBOmax if you are thinking of adding HBO. 

Had YTTV, went to Hulu when YTTV went to $65,back to YTTV because far more connection problems with Hulu Live (zero with YTTV), plus the end game--inability to fast forward/rewind for many Hulu Live programs.  I don't have a single complaint about YTTV other than price.

I use morestreamsnow.com

It's $25ish/month, literally 1000's of channels to choose from, including HBO/showtime/ect, the ABC/NBC/CBS line up from every city across the US, every offering of ESPN and SECN/other conference programs.

Between more streams and Youtube, I'll never go back to cable

Really liked what I was reading about Hulu so I started a free trial.  Logged into it from my home office Roku TV and immediately got an error.  Apparently Hulu doesn't jive with this new Tmobile Home Internet I'm also trying for the first time today (which is a major reason I'm now able to even consider cutting the cord).  Hulu sees it as a "mobile connection".  So idk, may give YTTV a try and see if that works.

I have YTTV, Disney+, Netflix and Britbox. My bill for these, even including $87/month for internet (I have only one real option for high speed internet) is still below what I was paying just for DIrecTV. I don’t ever want to go back.

I tried Hulu, but liked YTTV better (I record every NCAA football and basketball game that’s on - every one). The unlimited DVR is just one of the great features. You could record every episode of every show and go back and watch (I think they delete after 9 months?).

Good luck.

Britbox required here as a result of spending 2+ years i the UK.  The wife loves a LOT of Brit shows

I went all cheap when I cut the cord - just an antennae.  We do have Netflix and Disney+ for the grandkids.  We also have Amazon Prime.  For sports it is mostly just OTA and there are some internet options for live sports but they are sketchy sometimes.  I'm content to wait for someone to upload the games on Youtube.  I have learned that approach really helps my blood pressure!  I do miss a DVR to skip commercials though.

Of course I've heard of it, but it's not a substitute for the ESPN cable network.

Britbox has some really good content.

If I’m not mistaken, anything on the ESPN network can also be watched through ESPN+ app. If it’s on the app it can be streamed to a TV using a Chromecast or Firestick.

So far I really like the presentation/guide of Hulu. 

That's what I like about it most. Still not quite as convenient as cable or satellite, but a lot closer than most of the other streaming services. I started with Sling and it drove me nuts trying to navigate to what I wanted to watch. PSVue might've been even worse.

We use YouTube TV and have been very happy with it.  If you like to record and watch later,  they have unlimited shows and keep it 9 months.   I pick up a couple of others for special shows a couple times a year... and drop after my series ends.. like Starz.   But we get all we want in YT TV.

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You tube TV has ESPN and SEC

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Does YT TV have any sort of proper guide at all?  Or is it pretty much the look and feel of youtube itself?

If you don't have high speed internet at a reasonable cost, streaming is a no go. And you better not have a data cap if you want 4K HDTV.

I'm an intermittent Sling user. This year I think I turned it on for two months. When football is better I'll turn it on all fall.

For easy on/off it's terrific. Also, the only reason I have it is football.

Right... I've only recently been able to get what I consider stream-capable internet speeds and it's really opened up some possibilities.  We're gonna do the Hulu free trial through the weekend and if that goes well I'm gonna tell DirecTV next week that I'm no longer their customer.