What is the best way to replace DIRECTV?

The following are the best alternatives to DirecTV: DirecTV is one of the leading satellite TV providers in the United States of America that has been in the market for many years. This is why many have been wooed to DirecTV by the variety of channels, exclusive programs, and service reliability over the years. Nevertheless, as consumers’ requirements and technologies change, there are many who are keen to find a solution that would be more appropriate to the current state of affairs and price range. Below, you will find a number of outstanding choices if you are seeking to sever your relationship with DirecTV. Here are some of the best options available that might help you make the switch from DirecTV easily.

Streaming TV Services OTT services or streaming TV services have gained immense popularity in the recent past. Satellite TV providers provide comprehensive channel lineups delivered through an internet connection rather than a satellite. Many of the previously mentioned leading services such as YouTube TV, Hulu Plus Live TV, Sling TV, and DirecTV Stream (which is hilarious) boast comparable channel bundles to cable and satellite.

The advantages of such services are that they are cheaper than traditional cable and satellite services in terms of monthly subscription fees, which mostly cost between $40 and $50 per month. They also let you pick and choose the specific channels that you want to watch instead of paying for all the channels that are offered by the cable providers. And they offer the possibility to broadcast from anywhere instead of satellite dishes and receivers. If you desire to reduce your spending but retain the ability to watch lots of well-known live channels, streaming TV has become a genuine option to pay TV nowadays.

One disadvantage is that there are fewer local channels available on streaming services compared to satellite services. Those with a poor internet connection could experience some lagging or poor quality of the stream. For many people who need to find a replacement for DirecTV, streaming TV is now an accessible and versatile solution.

OTA Antenna TV One of the potential substitutes for DirecTV is over-the-air (OTA) TV that is watched with the help of an antenna. Interestingly, you can get more than forty channels in most parts of the country even in high definition with an antennae aimed at local transmission towers. Using the air, one can access the popular networks such as NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX, and PBS among others. And frequently there are such options as CW, independent and sub-channels, for example.

The primary advantage of an antenna over a service such as DirecTV is that the former can be utilized entirely free of charge in the long run after the purchase of the necessary equipment. It is also important to note that most of the antennas in existence are relatively inexpensive, averaging at $40 or less. Since it is a one time expense, you will save more than $100 every month in the long run of the antenna. It also offers access to local programmes and news not always aired on satellite.

The disadvantages are relatively fewer channels as compared to satellite packages offered. There is a particular limitation on the content with relation to sports programming. And again, the ability to access these networks is based on how close you are to the local towers. However, for those interested primarily in the large local stations and perhaps some of the streaming services to supplement, OTA antenna TV can be a cost-effective way of reducing or even eliminating DirecTV.

Sling TV Among all the streaming TV options, Sling TV is possibly one of the services that can be compared to the programs offered by DirecTV most closely. Similar to DirecTV, Sling also emphasizes on the sports, news and entertainment channels. Indeed, they have many of the same channels such as ESPN, FOX sports, NFL network, TBS, TNT, CNN, History Channel, and A&E among others.

Sling has several starting packages such as Sling Orange and Sling Blue plans that come with over 30 channels for $40 monthly. This is cheaper compared to other DirecTV packages that are offered in the market. Sling also copies with DirecTV in the sense that it lets you to customize them with premiums such as Showtime and Starz. They include exclusive and niche sport add-ons such as NBA League Pass which are not available from most of the streaming competitors.

In summary, there is no other streaming provider that can offer all the services offered by DirecTV but Sling TV is the closest one to it specifically in terms of focus on live TV and number of channels. Thus, if you are in need of something similar to DirecTV package, but at a lower regular price, Sling TV is an obvious choice of a smart alternative.

Pluto TV Instead of the usual streaming platforms, there is another nice one to talk about – Pluto TV. This free streaming TV service has hundreds of live linear channels in movies, news, sports, foods, tech, comedy, and many more. The content is made up of digital sub-channels, internet broadcasts and video on demand all presented in a channel guide format that is recognizable and accepted by cable and satellite users.

Being free, Pluto TV is quite helpful in filling at least some of the gaps that could be left after switching to DirecTV by substituting certain channels. Navigating the interface reminds me of surfing channels with the Direct Television company. And you have access to things like CBS News and CNET that are absent from some of the paid counterparts.

Selection and video quality is not up to par with paid TV providers like Sling or DirecTV Stream, however. So, indeed, Pluto TV is more suitable for content which is watched without a strict focus and can be used as an additional service to paid streaming platforms. But it costs nothing and gives a great DirecTV-type feelers that can ease the pain of severing relations with satellite service.

Install an Outdoor TV Here’s an out-of-the-box strategy for replacing DirecTV. With satellite TV, those big satellite dishes on the yard are an eyesore, which are needed to receive far off signals from the space. But what if you could put in a sleek outdoor TV instead that will give you some of the convenience of DirecTV for your patio, poolside or tailgating?

Thus, it becomes evident that outdoor televisions have improved in performance but at the same time are cheaper. Today, people can spend just several hundred dollars to get an outdoor smart TV which is protected against the weather, has streaming apps, digital antennas for local channels, Wi-Fi and the like.

While using streaming services such as YouTube TV, you can replicate almost all of your previous DirecTV channel options. And by adding an OTA antenna, you are free to draw from local networks as and when you want to. Wireless devices are reliable and easy to manage and monitor, outdoor TVs do not need satellite dishes or cables hanging outdoors and yet can access and manage live TV.

For some replacing DirecTV a streaming outdoor TV can bring the live sports and news that fits well into the backyard chill and the summer fun. And streaming devices with Alexa support like Fire TV even enable you to control your outdoor entertainment system through your voice. So consider putting in a high-quality outdoor TV as a creative solution to going beyond traditional satellite service.

The Bottom Line DirecTV is an industry leading TV provider that has been serving the public for many years. However, as consumers responded to this change more demanding and new technologies are being developed, many consumers turned to look for other options that may better suit their need for lower cost, flexibility and customization. While exploring other paths apart from DirecTV, other options, such as streaming TV packages, OTA antenna broadcasts, customized solutions from other TV providers, like Sling TV, improvisations of outdoor smart TVs can provide a full or partial solution to this issue. And now there are enough possibilities to accommodate almost every demand or price range one might have. Therefore, whether just supplementing with other services or entirely replacing them, you can have a positive experience in identifying DirecTV alternatives that fit your households viewing requirements the best.