Posted on 10/24/2011 1:06:37 PM PDT by Zionist Conspirator
Most FReepers are not aware of this, but the past six or seven months have been full of disruptions: the biggest being our having to move from our home of 28 years to a new abode. And there is no cable out here (and analog aerials don't work any more).
So yes, I must now ask the question which other FReepers have asked on prior occasions: which is better, Dish Network or Direct TV?
I have long assumed that satellite is cheaper than cable. Well, it is cheaper, but not by nearly as much as I thought. Dish Network has the more inexpensive packages, but from what I see on their home page, some channels come only with the basic package; you move up to a more expensive package and you actually lose these channels. That seems like the exact opposite of the way things should be.
Now with Direct TV you don't give up any channels by moving up to a pricier package, but it is more expensive than Dish. And once the one year introductory price runs out, it's only about twenty dollars (if that much) less than I used to pay for cable.
Would FReepers who have experience with one or both of these two products please give me some advice? And I don't mean "TV will rot your brain and Obama uses TV signals to brainwash you subliminally." I know that already.
Are local network channels available with either product? If so, what is the difference in prices?
Thank you for whatever advice you are able to give me.
I hope you don’t feel insulted if I direct a ping your way. You seem to be very well informed on almost every subject, so maybe you can give me some advice here?
And why don’t analog aerials work anymore?
Just curious...
=8-)
Because free TV ceased analog broadcasts over two years ago.
Besides . . . there's more cartoons on cable/satellite!
Causin' the federales don't allow no broadcastin' 'cept digital no more.
We have DirecTV with absolutely no complaints.
On 2 occasions I called to see if they were going to have a special on Showtime and both times I was given a 3 month trial for free.
They have great customer service and do have excellent specials especially if you can bundle telephone and internet.
My mother-in-law has Dish and she used to enjoy watching QVC to do some shopping and she doesn’t have it on Dish anymore. She wanted it and was told she would have to pay for it each month. We have so many more channels she does for about the same price.
I’ve had DirecTV (medium price package) for nearly a year and have been very happy with it. I understand that Dish was not providing some of the sports channels for a while - don’t know what the problem was.
DirecTV has better Sports Packages, including 4 free in-car Channels for Nascar Sprint Cup races.
Apart from ever-increasing prices I have no complaints about DirecTV. I have only ever had one receiver fail since 1996 and it was replaced promptly.
However, DirecTV are apparently currently in some kind of dispute with the Fox parent company. According to ‘screen crawlers’ which ran on some stations over this past weekend, on November 1, 2011, we may lose Fox, FoxNews, Fox Sports, other Fox affiliates, Speed and several other channels.
I have received no official notice from DirecTV about this apparent dispute, but if they permanently drop the Speed Channel then I will be switching to something else in fairly short order. Televised Formula 1 car racing is the MAIN reason I even own a TV.
They probably both have advantages and disadvantages. We chose dish due to picking up local stations and hubby gets the HUNTING channel included in the basic plan.
I understand now that if I make any upgrades then I will have to pay extra for each “local” channel I now have included-WHAT A CROCK- anything to make money I guess.
I don’t watch much TV other than the British comedys for laughs on PBS. You may want to check into getting one of the new TV’s and work off of HD rabbit ears, that works great for me - I get local channels and PBS all FREE.
Digital broadcast uses analog carriers - you guys know that right?
If you went out and bought “HDTV” antennas - you got screwed.
Old “analog” antennas are “HDTV” antennas by default as-is.
=8-)
Dish : I don’t understand the losing channels thing ,, they all start with a base and build??? Dish has higher receiver fees which will really add up if you have 3 or more sets.. Dish has better porn ,,, Dish has worse customer service , local channels included
DTV : better sports (NFLpromo going on) , better receivers and lower receiver fees , I’m freepmailing you my account number so you can get $100 off ... local channels included
Antenna : FREE !! Your “analog” antenna works just fine ,, but you need TV’s with digital tuners. You will get the best HD from a good antenna , better than cable , better than satellite , they all compress the HD where with an antenna it’s 100%
Either one is more of a hassle than cable, but if cable isn't an option that doesn't matter.
By the time you get the same programming you had with cable, you'll be spending about the same price as cable. Getting the local channels used to be a problem in some areas, but I don't know if that's still true.
If you live in the snow belt, make sure you can reach the dish to brush off the snow. Otherwise, you might not get reception until spring!
What are you doing for Internet access? I hope you have DSL, because satellite-based Internet is terrible. If my only choice was satellite-based Internet or dialup, I would probably pick dialup.
Good luck!
Direct TV all the way. No one I know who has Dish is happy with their service, they keep cutting channels and raising prices.
For what it is worth - my brother has had both. He says Direct TV.
I’ve used both, and much prefer DirecTV. I think their guide is much better, and their customer support if better. Other than that, the pricing is pretty comparable for both.
Those ‘you may lose’ crawlers come up once a year or so when they are in contract renewals. I think they are to get customers to put pressure on Fox to help DirectTV’s negotiation position.
I had DirecTV for several years. Customer service was polite, professional, and responsive. Signal quality was very good EXCEPT when the weather turned nasty. Heavy rain between your dish and the bird up there over the equator will disrupt the signal.
No experience with Dish.
Currently using an old “analog” antenna on top of my very own 30’ tower to receive digital signals from Washington, DC and Baltimordor.
Heavy rain interferes with that, too.
>>>Because free TV ceased analog broadcasts over two years ago.
OTA digital TV signals can be picked up nearly everywhere, with the 4 networks & PBS all likely sending multiple streams - and the same antennae that you think are useless are exactly what you’d need for OTA TV reception... and it’s still free to pluck out of the air.
Direct TV all the way. No one I know who has Dish is happy with their service, they keep cutting channels and raising prices.
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Yeah , Charlie Ergin (dishnet CEO) is way too tight ,, needs to upgrade his custserv A LOT ... DirecTV has always had better receivers because they allowed multiple companies to produce them (and naturally compete) , where dishnet made their own exclusively for at least 10 years.. I think Dishnet is raising prices because of a failed satellite that is out of position costing them BIG $$$ ... Echo9 maybe?
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