Hobbies that involve technology are becoming more and more expensive. But, there are ways to be smart when it comes to spending time and money on those techy activities.
An evening at the movies
Going on a date to the cinema will set you back at least $30…and that’s if you’re already frugal when it comes to your drinks and snacks (if any at all). If you make it an evening with the family, that will probably set you back at least a good $50.
Why not instead create a cozy movie theatre experience in your own home? If you’re looking for a date-worthy environment, grab some wine, pop some popcorn and queue up a movie on Netflix that came out a few months ago that you’ve been wanting to see for what seems like forever! Redbox is also a great option to rent a movie for your next movie night.
Want to make it a family fun movie night? Whip up some healthier sweet treats than the theatre could offer, let the kids build a fort in the living room and press play on a family-friendly flick you’ll all enjoy! The best part about creating a cinema in the comfort of your own home is that you can pause the movie for bathroom breaks, and snack and drink refills.
TV on the cheap
This brings us to our next area of savings. Cable is becoming crazy expensive. Ditch the cable plan and take advantage of services like Netflix and Hulu. As long as you have an internet connection in your house, you’ll be able to play your favorite TV shows and movies for $8 a month – without any promotional prices or catches you’ll often find with cable companies. Not sure if you’ll like it? Netflix and Hulu both offer free trial periods. So, talk is cheap; why not give it a shot?!
Make sure your phones meet your needs
Do you really use that land line? If you don’t use it regularly, ditch it. Triple play plans that include phone, internet and cable tend to be really appealing deals. But, if you’re really only going to use the internet out of the three, try to find a stand alone internet package that beats the others.
Similarly, unlimited data plans tend to be more popular because it’s better to spend a bit more on a higher data limit than being slapped with overage charges. Yikes! Try monitoring your family’s data usage. If you consistently don’t come anywhere close to your limit (or the next lowest limit), try scaling back on your plan. Still give yourself some wiggle room, but if you’re using 2GB each month and paying for unlimited, there’s probably a plan out there that would better suit your needs.
What are some ways you save on the technology in your life?
