Huge cord cutting guide update

My biggest cord cutting guide update ever

Plus: Repairable gadgets, item finder deals, and how not to run over your packages

Jared Newman   |   August 25, 2026

If you’re still clinging to cable or want to save more money on streaming, I’ve got a guide that can help.

My Complete Guide to Cord Cutting goes over everything you need to ditch cable or satellite TV, while also lowering your streaming bill. While I first published this guide a couple years ago and have made small updates since then, this new edition is a total rework that properly addresses the state of TV in 2026.

It also includes a Streaming Savings Calculator, which is arguably the most ambitious thing I’ve ever done:

Enter the channels and streaming services you want, and this interactive tool will find the cheapest ways to get them. I’ve factored in pretty much every conceivable combination of streaming services, including all the ways you can bundle things together at a discount. I’m confident that nothing quite like this exists anywhere else.

Two ways to get this guide:

Your purchase supports the many, many hours that went into building this guide. It includes access to an online edition, plus a downloadable PDF version.

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Can’t pay right now? Let me know and I’ll take care of you. I want anyone to have access to this guide regardless of budget.

Last thing: If you’ve previously purchased this guide, you do not need to buy it again. Just locate your original confirmation email for a link to the online guide and PDF edition. I promised to update the guide over time, and I meant it. Thanks for your support!

News in brief

Amazon device price hikes: While I mentioned in Cord Cutter Weekly on Friday that Amazon has raised the price of all its Fire TV devices, the company is also raising prices on Echo speakers, Kindle e-readers, and Eero routers.

Apple, Samsung, Microsoft and others have all made similar hikes, as AI data centers sap the available supply of memory and storage for consumer electronics. Seeking out used or refurbished gear and planning to keep your existing devices for longer will be the way forward for the foreseeable future.

More notable news and reads:

Tip of the week

Get packages in the right place: Given how often FedEx leaves packages at the garage door, aligned precisely under the wheels of our SUV, it’s a miracle that I haven’t destroyed anything yet. But after nearly running over the Fold8 phone that Samsung sent for review a few weeks ago, I decided to seek out a solution.

Turns out, you can prevent such mishaps by telling FedEx exactly where to leave your stuff. This requires a free FedEx account and a trip to the Delivery Manager webpage. Select Delivery address(es) > View Details, then hit the “Edit” button next to “Delivery instructions.” Here you can choose to receive packages at a front door, side door, patio, or wherever else is least likely to end in disaster.

UPS offers similar options if you have a free MyChoice account with them: From the dashboard page, head to the UPS My Choice tab, select “Driver Instructions” under the “Delivery Options” heading, then use the “Delivery Location” drop-down.

USPS only lets you set delivery instructions on a per-package basis.

Try these apps

Find a shady spot: I hope it’s not too late in the summer to recommend Shade Map. Enter an address, select a date, and use the slider at the bottom of the screen to see exactly where the shade will fall at any time of day. It’s helpful for figuring out where and when to go walking, biking, or picnicking without being in the sun the whole time. (Via Web Curios)

Copy-paste convenience: Copynpaste.xyz is a free site for pasting text into apps while preserving and translating the formatting you copied. If you’re copying from a Google Doc into Slack, for instance, it will automatically handle bold, italics, and links in a way that Slack recognizes. The developer says it processes text privately on your device. (Via Recomendo)

Spend wisely

This section of the newsletter may include affiliate links, which earn me a commission if you wind up purchasing something.

Well, if you bought 8bitdo’s NES-themed Retro Mechanical keyboard on my recommendation last week, you might as well return and rebuy it (or ask Amazon to credit you the difference), because now it’s on sale for $51. That’s $19 lower than last week’s price for a great keyboard with programmable keys, volume control, and three connectivity options (USB-C, Bluetooth, and wireless USB-A dongle).

Other notable deals this morning:

  • Best Buy’s Insignia 35W charger with two USB-C ports drops to $10.
  • New low for second-gen AirTags at $80 for a four-pack.
  • Or, get a four-pack of UGreen’s item finders (also compatible with Apple’s Find My network) for $20.
  • Android user? Motorola’s Moto Tag 2 with precision finding drop to $20 for one, or $70 for four.
  • SanDisk 1 TB MicroSD card for $130, which almost resembles pre-memory crisis pricing.
  • Could be a good basic desktop PC: Lenovo ThinkCentre with Ryzen 5 5650GE processor, 16GB RAM, and 256GB storage for $300 refurbished.

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That’s all for now. Catch you next week.
– Jared

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