Direct TV?

[gpurtz]

I've pretty much had it with Verizon and Comcast. Any comments +/- about Direct TV would be appreciated. Thanks. Gary

 

[IngridN]

We dumped Comcast for Direct TV about a year ago and couldn't be happier especially with the ~$30/month savings. We still need to figure out what we have to get at Radio Shack to make the DVR work though .

Ingrid

 

[Elan]

Of all of the services for which I pay a monthly fee (phone, internet, cell phone, etc), I feel best about DirecTv. They don't nickel and dime you (too much), they give you free upgrades, and their service just plain works.

Also, I got into a lengthy discussion with the last installer when I was helping him on our last service upgrade. He was very happy with the company, and it sounded as though DTV treats their employees (at least the installers) very well.

 

[dioxide45]

We have had DirecTV for over 11 years, that should say enough about what we think of DirecTV. However, don't go in to it thinking you will save a lot of money. The satellite TV market has gotten to the point where they are about inline cost wise with cable. However they usually only have one (announced) price increase a year, usually in January or February. So if you do plan to sign up, do so before that price increase to lock in at the current pricing.

We have two 100 hour DVRs along with Whole Home. This allows us to record up to four shows in HD at one time and watch two others. We can watch shows in one room that are recorded on the DVR in the other. For us, this works great. If you have a friend or other family member that has DirecTV, be sure to get their account number and provide it to DirecTV when you call to sign up. You will get a $100 bill credit and they will too. This is their refer a friend program. You have to sign up directly with DirecTV to do this however. You can't go to your local retailer.

If On Demand content is something you use a lot, don't expect DirecTV to be as good as cable. They utilize your internet connection to download On Demand content and record it to your DVR. Depending on your internet speed, you may be able to start watching the content in a few minutes, or if you have a slow speed, you may have to wait a half hour. The system needs to buffer enough content to make watching the show seamless. The content is high quality and there is a lot to pick from.

With installers, you can get good ones and lazy ones. With the lazy ones, expect several return visits. You may not even know what they didn't do until after they are gone and you find yourself having to call DirecTV back to have them send someone out again.

 

[Makai Guy]

DirecTV customer since 1997, currently with 2 DVRs. We are very happy with the service and have never seriously considered leaving.

The DirecTV forums at DBSTalk.com (sort of a TUG for satellite tv) are extremely helpful and have enabled me to get the most out of my DirecTV service.

 

[Elan]

I would recommend that one always be present for any in-home install. Also, familiarize yourself with your home's infrastructure so you can have a handle on what needs to be done, and how it's best accomplished.

Understandably, the installer will want to install in the most time efficient manner, which often isn't the most robust or most aesthetic. If the installer won't agree to do it the way you want it done, then they shouldn't be allowed to complete the install. It's your property, and they're ultimately profiting from the install, so they'll acquiesce. One just needs to be tactful in addressing the situation.

I've been with DTV for 12+ years, and have never had install issues.

 

[IngridN]

... However, don't go in to it thinking you will save a lot of money. The satellite TV market has gotten to the point where they are about online cost wise with cable.

Once our introductory price goes up to the normal price, the difference in our area will be about $30/month for the exact same package. It is currently $60/month and for the first 3 months was $90/month. Downside is a 2 yr contract where with Comcast, there is/was none.

And I definitely agree with the comment about the install. Direct TV was not a problem, however, years and years ago with cable and the transition to digitial, they wanted to drill another hole in the floor because the phone/internet connection was in another room. We told them that was a deal breaker. It wasn't until they realized we were totally serious that they reluctantly offered a wireless option...Comcast truly sucked and we're glad to be rid of them.

Ingrid

 

[ondeadlin]

I've spent the last few years alternating between Comcast and DirecTv, generally switching whenever I can save by switching.

Both are good products with different strengths and weaknesses. DirecTv typically costs me more, because I can bundle my TV and internet with Comcast, but I find the DirecTV interface easier to use (for instance, you can tune the guide to show only the channels you want to see - which really makes the guide more useful IMO).

But I also find Comcast's OnDemand very useful.

I just switched back to Comcast, getting a deal where I'll save $60 a month the first six months and $40 a month for the remainder of a 2-year contract. I'll probably switch back to DirecTv after 2 years if the deal is better.

 

[Tia]

Had Direct for 4 years and at the time were promised local channels soon. No local channels yet. Did find out just recently that for $2.50 extra each we can have them add the west coast ABC/NBC/CBS.

 

[Timeshare Von]

The Direct TV dispute with local FOX network affiliates prevented us from being able to watch the Packers/Tampa Bay game in S. Florida last weekend. What a crock of $&*!.

 

[bjones9942]

I had DirecTV for years, and had purchased all of my equipment. When HD came out, they wouldn't rent me a HD receiver. Stupidly I bought the one they were selling. First one arrived doa. Sent it back and got another, which was obviously used (they refused to exchange it). Then started getting the notices from DirecTV that I owed them for the new machine. Their receiving dept said they never got my doa unit. I had proof they did, but that took a couple of months to sort out. Then, I believe less than a year later, DirecTV told me my HD unit was no longer compatible. This time they told me I could rent. When the installer came out he told me I'd need a THIRD dish on my house (untrue). I blew. Back to cable for me, and I've been happy ever since. I've had nothing but good experiences with Comcast, even though I hear I seem to be in a minority.

 

[dioxide45]

The Direct TV dispute with local FOX network affiliates prevented us from being able to watch the Packers/Tampa Bay game in S. Florida last weekend. What a crock of $&*!.

Unfortunatly this is the way things are going, for Dish, DirecTV and the cable companies. It will only get worse in the future, and the customers will only see higher prices because of it.

 

[hvsteve1]

We have DirectTV and are pretty happy. I have two HD DVRs. Once you pay for the DVR service on one box, the fee covers all boxes in the house. I have a kind of stripped down (not totally basic) package. We don't subscribe to any of the movie channels. As you may notice from movie ads, most popular films are aimed at kids and teens. DTV has free HBO, Showtime, Starz or Cinemax promotions every few months and we record the films that interest us at that time and take a few months to work our way through them. While the DVR will hold 40 or 50 hours of HD content, you can buy an external hard drive (eSATA) of up to 2 tetrabites and record nearly 200 hours of stuff. While most normal humans would not sit and watch all of that, it is a good way to build a film and TV library in HD. Just keep in mind that, if you replace the DVR, the hard drive will not play back content as it is mated to that box. I have friends with DISH and they are complaining bitterly, so I guess DTV is the best choice. I would recommend going to their web site, www.directv.com and curser onto the "help" section on the top bar. That will show you "technical forums". You can read those and get a lot of good advice about how to subscribe, get the best installation and make sure you have the best equipment (you get what's on the truck that day, which is not always the best and latest equipment). Also, I agree with finding a friend or neighbor with DTV so you both can benefit from the $100 rebate.

 

[suzanne]

We have had Directv for 12 years and are happy with them. Few times we have had a problem, customer service was very prompt at taking care of it. Only issue with sat versus cable is you lose the signal if weather gets bad.

Suzanne

 

[IngridN]

We have had Directv for 12 years and are happy with them. Few times we have had a problem, customer service was very prompt at taking care of it. Only issue with sat versus cable is you lose the signal if weather gets bad.

Suzanne

We've had the exact opposite experience. Last winter was the first time w/o weather related outages.

Ingrid

 

[presley]

I switched to DirectTV from cable almost 2 years ago. I get a lot more, at a slightly lesser cost. I do like the selections better, as well.

I opted to pay the $5.99/month for the insurance against anything that could ever go wrong on any part of the system. I haven't needed to use it, yet. When I had cable, I had some very expensive issues with the power company turning off the power on my block and the cable equipment dying.

I will only switch back to cable if it becomes financially worth it. I do like DirectTV much more, but considering that I don't watch TV very much, I will be going for the lower price.

 

[mtngal]

At the time we moved up to the mountains the only cable company didn't carry Fox Sports West, so no hockey. Being long-time hockey fans that wasn't acceptable so we switched to DTV and their Center Ice package. That was 11 years ago and we've never had an issue that wasn't solved quickly. At the time we switched we weren't in anyone's local station area so were allowed to get the east/west coast feeds (for extra). We're grandfathered into them though now DTV carries what they consider our "local" stations (Bakersfield). Since we work in L.A. we are more interested in watching L.A. stations, and for the few regular shows we watch, we prefer to watch them on the east coast stations - love watching prime time TV 3 hours early.

The only time we have weather related issues is when the dish fills up with heavy, wet snow. Since that's pretty common, I have the dish mounted fairly low, so I can easily go outside and wipe it off. Never have had any other weather related outage - better than the brief time I had the cable up here (which would go out periodically for no apparent reason. Usually right in an exciting game or suspenseful moment of a movie).

We have HD but no DVRs. For us there's not much else that I would consider acceptable options.

 

[persia]

I have switched back and forth between Dish and Directv of the past decade or so (had Charter before that) to take advantage of the special pricing. We're back on Directv again and I may stay there, good signal, good stations and never a hassle.