Vanity - Direct TV or Dish Network???

me | 8-21-03 | Dan

[Dan from Michigan]

Thanks in advance here.

I moved two weeks ago to my new apartment, and I found the cable provider is the same company my last one was. I don't like Comcrap...I mean...comcast, so cable is out the window.

Which is the better way to go? Direct TV or Dish Network. I'm on the fence right now. Thanks.

[Moonmad27]

I'm very happy with Dish. Got the dish itself for free, and only pay a monthly charge. No problems in a year and a half. Got the 150 channels but on my viewing list, cut out many of them (starting with CNN!). All the Discovery channels, History International, Biography, Fox News, Cartoon Network, Boomerang, TCM...you get the idea I'm not a sports person!

[Bacon Man]

At our last place, we had the Dish, and Bacon and Hap have DirecTV (or maybe it's the other way around). We all love our dishes, no matter the maker. (I miss mine . . . damn free Warner cable.)

It's the other way around. I love my Dish. Tivo rocks also. Totally changes the way you watch TV.

[ETERNAL WARMING]

I've had both. Go with Direct TV.

[MarkL]

Hmmm.... Well, if you're still using it, I wouldn't get rid of it!!! Maybe some other service is using their equipment?

I distinctly remember when my service was discontinued. I had been watching it for 4 days after the cut-off date, then everything went off...

Mark

[tiamat]

Not still using the dish from Primestar. Have a smaller Dish dish ( grin) on the roof. Was frankly waiting for Primestar to retrieve their equipment, but they never did.

Tia

[ThinkingMan]

Hey Dan-
I have DirecTV and love it. Good range of channels, and the NFL Sunday Ticket/NHL Center Ice are truly worth purchasing. As a Denver Bronco/ Colorado Avs fan, living in South Dakota, I wouldn't get to see many games without the packages. (I also enjoy being able to see the Redwings get their butts kicked!)

Seriously- knowing your a hockey fan, the center ice is well worth the price of admission!

[BEAV]

I was a customer for over 10 years and wanted to update old equipment ( Thought) the new boxes are volatile, you lose power and they have to reload your settings that takes a couple min. denying you of what you have already paid for. Direct TV has put their security issue in your hands and in doing so interupts your service. These new boxes are hot enough to cook an egg on. direct TV also broadcasts commercials almost twice as loud as the programs(up 2.2db) I measured it. In South Florida we lose power 5 time a week thus making this volatile box a big issue. After being with Direct TV for over a decade and ending my subscription with them, they now what me to pay 125.00 for an early cancellation.

[Karl46]

Hi all, new to the forum. Let me tell you about my latest experiences with Direct TV. I've had Direct TV for six years now. I wanted to upgrade to an HD DVR. Because I am an existing customer I had to jump through hoops and explain to them what Dish is offering. After about 4 hours of hold time on the phone and some broken promises by sales reps, I prevailed. So I'm home today waiting for the tech, I get a call and he isn't coming. They don't know when they can reschedule. I was about to switch a month ago after Direct TV pretty much told me I was lying about my conversation with the first sales rep.

[Skooz]

DirecTV in the only place to get the NFL Sunday Ticket.

That seals the deal for me.

[charliegillman]

i have had terrible service from Dishnetwork
As of now they have missed 4 service calls to add equipment with no service calls
I do not know how theyt stay in business with such terrible service and follow thru
Also you stay on hold for ever with them
I advise every one to stay away from them

[Clam Digger]

I have found DirectTV’s customer service to be absolutely outstanding. Never had better customer service from any business.

[RabidBartender]

I had DishNetwork for 4 years before switching to Directv last year. My main reason for switching was because Dish was ordered not to show distant networks (ABC, NBC, FOX, and the Katie Couric one). This kind of sucked for me, since I live outside a major viewing area. So I lost the networks, and missed the Super Bowl, a few bowl games, and some March Madness. I switched to Directv and have 2 of each network (from NYC and Los Angeles).

Also, the first year I had Dish, I ordered the NHL sports package, but chose not to renew it. Each season since, Dish has charged me for the package and I had to call and cancel each one and have my balance fixed.

I’ve had various technical problems with my Dish box, but never really complained about them since overall, I was able to watch TV. However, I haven’t noticed the same problems on my Directv.

What I don’t like about Directv - is their telephone system when you want to call customer service. “Please SAY your account number”. Why can’t I just press the dang buttons?

[RabidBartender]

Also, every once in a while Dish network tends to get into pissing contests with the networks they show. Do a google search for problems they had with Viacom, Outdoor Life Network (ref: NHL games), Court TV, Lifetime, etc.

Dish’s Starz package is better than Directv’s though.

[Hunble]

For years, I was using Direct TV and was happy with the service. However, last year, I upgraded my telivision to HDTV and needed a new satellite receiver.

The Direct TV website totally sucked and it would take over a month before they could install a new HDTV satellite receiver. Dish Network has an outstanding website with prompt service and they installed my new receiver the following week.

For customer support, I must rate Dish Network as being the better of the choices.

[Tatze]

I’ve had both, and prefer DirecTV to Dish. With Dish Network, the main dish had to receive signals from two satellites, and a second dish was required to recieve the local channels from a third satellite. While at home, this was no problem because thier techs set it up. But when I took it on the road, I could never align the main dish correctly to receive both satellites at the same time. A major PITA if you wanted to view a channel on the other satellite.

DirecTV puts all channels on the same satellite so only one dish is needed. DirecTV HD might be different.

DirecTV also has DirecTivo, if you can still find a DirecTivo receiver (eBay, etc). DirecTV stopped selling the Tivo units and now sells their own DVR units. I still have my Tivo units and will keep them until they die. That was the worst thing DirecTV has done during my 2+ years with them.

[Tatze]

How can all of you put up with dish outages during storms? Give me cable anyday.

I've had maybe 2 outages in the last several years due to storms. And when it does happen it doesnt last long. I had far more outages the last time I had cable, than my combined Dish/DirecTV experience.

[mgmr]

I have had Dish & Direct. Direct sucks big time. As soon as my contract is up I am switching back to Dish. The programing is far better and cheaper than Direct.

[mgmr]

I have had both direct & dish. I will tell you that dish is far better than direct. Dish has better programing and I find is somewhat cheaper in the long run, depending on what package you choose. Direct lied to me about the starz channel, they said I would get the family straz. Found out that it is on HD and is not included in their programs without spending and extra 25.00 for it. Dish already offers it in their package. As soon as my contract is up, I am switching back to dish. I should have never changed.

[pinkster88]

Hey There,

I came across your post and I just wanted to reiterate some of the facts which make DISH so much better than DIRECTV and the value they give for the money you pay. I work and subscribe to DISH Network services and DISH by far gives you a greater viewing experience. Some of my family members do use DIRECTV and for the money they pay compared to how much I pay has a huge gap. In order to get your full new customer promotion, you have to mail in a rebate which can take anywhere from 6-8 weeks to process. You will pay 8x’s more with DIRECTV to watch every touchdown for every Sunday game and 16%higher DVR service fee compared to DISH Network. DIRECTV has also received an “F” rating for the Better Business Bureau and they have over 40,000 customer complaints about their company. DISH offers HD Free for Life on their basic package which is the America’s Top 120, but DIRECTV requires you to have their “CHOICE XTRA” package. I would highly recommend anyone looking into a TV provider to check out DISH. You will beyond any doubt get more for your money.