Dish Network or Directv?

[midwestfisherman]

I'm looking to get rid of my Charter cable and am considering satellite for my TV. Am looking for opinions/pros/cons for these two. Thanks

 

[Newbian]

This comes up a lot but usually it comes down to this:

If you watch a lot of sports, want a bit more HD channels and only plan on hooking one tv up to it unless you want to be charged a lot more then get DirectTV.

If you want about the same as DirectTV but a bit cheaper but less sports or HD and a duel dvr that lets you use it on two tv's without a ton of extra charges go for dish.

 

[JPS35]

This comes up a lot but usually it comes down to this:

If you watch a lot of sports, want a bit more HD channels and only plan on hooking one tv up to it unless you want to be charged a lot more then get dish.

If you want about the same as DirectTV but a bit cheaper but less sports or HD and a duel dvr that lets you use it on two tv's without a ton of extra charges go for dish.

???????????????

I love my dish. When looking to get it hooked up, make sure they include free install and that it can be done on multiple TVs (usually will do a 2 or 3 TV deal), and get one of their decent DVRs.

You might also have a friend that with an invite, can save him/her some money and get you hooked up free.

 

[kinev]

This comes up a lot but usually it comes down to this:

If you watch a lot of sports, want a bit more HD channels and only plan on hooking one tv up to it unless you want to be charged a lot more then get dish.

If you want about the same as DirectTV but a bit cheaper but less sports or HD and a duel dvr that lets you use it on two tv's without a ton of extra charges go for dish.

So, it's Dish either way, right?



He meant "get DirectTV" for the first one. Pretty accurate and succinct analysis, though.

 

[Newbian]

So, it's Dish either way, right?



He meant "get DirectTV" for the first one. Pretty accurate and succinct analysis, though.

Errr, fixed it.

 

[deadlyapp]

I had directTV for a while. The thing thats nice about dish is the "free HD" although the HD quality seemed...not as good as most of Direct's stuff. HD on direct is $10 extra a month, DVR is another $10 a month, extra SD boxes cost $5 a month.

You get raped ultimately.

 

[maidaa]

If you are a Costco member, get Directv through them, $180 cash back Costco card

 

[Newbian]

I had directTV for a while. The thing thats nice about dish is the "free HD" although the HD quality seemed...not as good as most of Direct's stuff. HD on direct is $10 extra a month, DVR is another $10 a month, extra SD boxes cost $5 a month.

You get raped ultimately.

Not to mention you have to pay I believe a extra $13 a month to simply use basic dvr functions, fast forward / pause and such or even to access your recorded shows on your dvr, on any other tv's other then your main for directTV.

 

[1sikbITCH]

Not to mention you have to pay I believe a extra $13 a month to simply use basic dvr functions, fast forward / pause and such or even to access your recorded shows on your dvr, on any other tv's other then your main for directTV.

You really believe that you have to lease the equipment for 5 bucks a month but can't use it unless you pay another 13 bucks a month? As for watching recorded shows on other tv's, that's called Whole Home DVR and it means that you only have to lease one DVR for your whole house. It's well worth the 13 bucks for people who have 4 or 5 boxes all over the house. Saves them 400 or 500 bucks in the beginning.

 

[Newbian]

You really believe that you have to lease the equipment for 5 bucks a month but can't use it unless you pay another 13 bucks a month? As for watching recorded shows on other tv's, that's called Whole Home DVR and it means that you only have to lease one DVR for your whole house. It's well worth the 13 bucks for people who have 4 or 5 boxes all over the house. Saves them 400 or 500 bucks in the beginning.

Oh, you can use it but all you can do with it is watch live tv with it so it makes the dvr useless on other tv's unless you pay extra.

You still have to pay extra for each receiver each month for directTV and while it can be worth it if you plan on getting a ton of tv's for it hooked up the dish dual dvr makes one wonder why direct tv can't come out with something similar as most places won't need more then that.

 

[smitbret]

Oh, you can use it but all you can do with it is watch live tv with it so it makes the dvr useless on other tv's unless you pay extra.

You still have to pay extra for each receiver each month for directTV and while it can be worth it if you plan on getting a ton of tv's for it hooked up the dish dual dvr makes one wonder why direct tv can't come out with something similar as most places won't need more then that.

You're completely ass backward. I just left Dish because I went from two tvs to four tvs and it was much, much cheaper (monthly DVR and Receiver charges) to go with DirecTV, including 2 HD DVR receivers and the Whole Home DVR.

 

[Dr. Zaus]

neflix+hulu+torrents+sports bar

 

[Newbian]

You're completely ass backward. I just left Dish because I went from two tvs to four tvs and it was much, much cheaper (monthly DVR and Receiver charges) to go with DirecTV, including 2 HD DVR receivers and the Whole Home DVR.

Like I said, if you use two tv's it's a lot better to use dish compared to using directTV in the same situation since they double charge you more or less to be able to access your dvr.

More tv's it's better for DirectTV if you want that access on them all.

 

[kamikazekyle]

With my DirecTV bill, I pay $61 for the actual package. I then have the protection plan ($6), HD Access Fee ($10), DVR service fee ($7), and two leased receiver fees ($6 each). I get one receiver fee waived. Net result, after taxes and such, is my bill is $95 for a $61 package. I don't get premium channels or pay for the whole-house DVR. Initial signup price was a net $63/mo for a year during the promo special.

I priced out Dish as well as my local cable, and they're both about the same for my setup, plus minus a bit. I might swap to Dish or drop everything entirely, depending on if I can get my girlfriend to properly adopt Hulu and my media center. She uses the Roku fine, but still shys at XBMC.

 

[qliveur]

Money better spent on a faster internet connection.

Pay TV is fast becoming obsolete.

 

[Newbian]

Money better spent on a faster internet connection.

Pay TV is fast becoming obsolete.

True but if everyone does that then who will upload the tv shows?

 

[squirrel dog]

they both blow.I am leaving directv as soon as my contract is up.Weather conditions affect their signal strength no matter what anyone tells you . I have the most recent dish,mounted on a pole pointed toward the southern sky unobstructed,still get freeze ups or loss(like yesterday).Also as mentioned they will nickle and dime you to death.I pay $110 per and do not get hbo,ect.UVerse here I come.

 

[squirrel dog]

You will be surprised how fast your introductory offer expires.

 

[1sikbITCH]

Oh, you can use it but all you can do with it is watch live tv with it so it makes the dvr useless on other tv's unless you pay extra.

You still have to pay extra for each receiver each month for directTV and while it can be worth it if you plan on getting a ton of tv's for it hooked up the dish dual dvr makes one wonder why direct tv can't come out with something similar as most places won't need more then that.

Absolute bullshit. If you have Whole Home DVR you can watch your recorded channels on every tv in the house without paying any more money other than the fee for Whole Home DVR.

It's ok to be a fanboy, but at least get your facts straight.

 

[1sikbITCH]

they both blow.I am leaving directv as soon as my contract is up.Weather conditions affect their signal strength no matter what anyone tells you . I have the most recent dish,mounted on a pole pointed toward the southern sky unobstructed,still get freeze ups or loss(like yesterday).Also as mentioned they will nickle and dime you to death.I pay $110 per and do not get hbo,ect.UVerse here I come.

Your beef with satellite comes more from a crappy installation rather than the equipment not working when properly installed. Otherwise both companies would have long ago been bankrupt.

If your signal levels are not in the upper 80's and mostly in the 90's, that is EXACTLY your problem and you need to tweak it yourself or schedule a service call. If they are looking good, then I bet when you shake the pole it moves. Either way your signal problems can be fixed.

 

[Newbian]

Absolute bullshit. If you have Whole Home DVR you can watch your recorded channels on every tv in the house without paying any more money other than the fee for Whole Home DVR.

It's ok to be a fanboy, but at least get your facts straight.

Not true, you have to pay for the whole home and the extra receiver cost and I can see the cost on a friends statement.

Both are the extra fee's as are listed on their website so not sure why you seem to be such a fanboy of directTV saying they don't charge you extra for it.

 

[Fingolfin269]

I've got DirecTV and am thinking about switching to Dish. The DVR for DTV is just plain awful and a recent update made it even worse. Plus AMC is only in SD!

To be honest, I've thought about pulling the plug entirely once my contract is up in a couple of months just to see if I can handle not having pay TV at all.

 

[weadjust]

If you sign up for auto pay. Directv will drop the $10 a month HD charge for 24 months

 

[murphy55d]

I've had both and am with DirecTV now. The *only* thing I miss about Dish was their DVR. With one receiver you could watch your recorded shows in two seperate rooms with no lag or anything. DirecTV's "Whole Home DVR" is not anywhere near that in quality. It pretty much sucks, at least from my experience. Constant drop-outs, lag, etc. I'm not the only one though, as there are complaints about it on the major satellite message boards, too. DBStalk and satelliteguys.

 

[1sikbITCH]

Not true, you have to pay for the whole home and the extra receiver cost and I can see the cost on a friends statement.

Both are the extra fee's as are listed on their website so not sure why you seem to be such a fanboy of directTV saying they don't charge you extra for it.

Your original statement said that you had to pay an extra 13 bucks to "simply use basic dvr functions". I guess you just worded it poorly.

Quote:Not to mention you have to pay I believe a extra $13 a month to simply use basic dvr functions, fast forward / pause and such or even to access your recorded shows on your dvr, on any other tv's other then your main for directTV.

That reads as two separate thoughts and is incorrect on both counts.

1. You can use all functions of your DVR without paying an extra 13 bucks a month. You lease each box for $5.00 a month. That's it.

2. If you want Whole Home DVR, it's an extra $3.00 a month.

As far as choosing a provider based on whether you want Whole Home DVR or the convenience of not having a box at every TV, that is of course, a personal decision for each family. For my family, with 3 floors and 6 TV's, I am willing to pay $3.00 and I will deal with a box at every TV.

Nobody should ever be a fanboy forever. I do like Directv but I am not married to it. Every two years when my contract expires I compare Dish and DTV programming, hardware, and pricing, and if Dish ever presents a more appealing package to me, I will switch. As it is, Directv has always had more of what I am looking for.