I am thinking about Internet only with Dish/Direct and using Netflix or Hulu plus a antennae.
What experience does the group have or what am I not thinking about? I always had cable as a adult but haven't lived in the states for the last 10 years or so.
I'm on my THIRD satellite Internet provider, and believe me, if you have ANY other alternative, you DO NOT want satellite Internet. The biggest problem is the data cap, which in my case is 10Gb/month for which I pay about $65. A single movie can use most of a Gb, so it's very easy to us all 10Gb in just a few days if I'm not careful. If I go over I can either pay another $10/Gb or suffer under reduced data transfer rates that are similar to the old wired telephone modems. The data caps are lifted between midnight and 5AM, but who wants to stay up all night just to use the computer? And so far, at least, I have yet to find a program that will let me set up an automated download from any of the streaming media providers that I can capture and watch at a later, more reasonable, time.
I've had Dish for the last four years, and recently got a free equipment upgrade when I threatened to switch to DirecTV. Service is about the same between the two, but I think Dish may be a few dollars cheaper each month.
Another Internet option that is available in many rural areas (unfortunately not mine) is sometimes called WI-MAX. It works off a radio based technology and is usually provided by small regional companies. Bandwidth is good and data caps are rare, but it changes from company to company.
Cellular telephone companies like Verizon Wireless and ATT are also offering Internet through 3G and 4G networks, but they also usually come with data caps, and the service areas can be spotty outside of large metro areas.
Wherever you decide to relocate, make sure you check the availability of both television and Internet services at the actual address before you buy. Also make sure you can actually start a new service, as in some areas the service is there but is so oversubscribed they are only accepting new customers when an existing one cancels. I found out too late and learned the real truth about satellite Internet and the predatory nature of satellite TV service. I also paid $3500 to have a land line telephone service installed the last mile down to my house (the house was wired for telephones, but I never bothered to ask if they were connected to the network). Even worse, I'm too far from the "office" to get any kind of DSL.
