DirecTV versus Cable?

[Sandan]

Better than digital cable as well

 

[Totally_Red]

I've had Directv for five years. Before that I had Dish Network. Both beat cable by a mile. The bad thing about Directv is the substanial rate increases each year. That's no different than cable of course, but increases are usually at least double the inflation rate. Right now, it's $45 for local and the cheapest package.

If not for the NFL Sunday Ticket I'd still be with Dish Network which has a greater variety of programming options and more reasonable pricing.

Directv went thru a bad spell of customer service a year or two back, but seems to have restored it now. For a while they tried to nickle and dime you.

The worst thing about satellite is not getting the local weather on the Weather Channel. But with local channels, you catch up 4-5 times a day anyway.

You will lose signal during heavy rain and/or snow, usually for less than a half-hour. That has never happened to me during Sunday ticket though.

 

[Alan]

I am thinking of getting DirectTv in my new apartment. They have a really sweet looking promo: http://www.directv.com/DTVAPP/global/contentPage.jsp?assetId=2700001

Now I just have to find out in my complex will allow a dish ...

 

[Cbus cardsfan]

I've had Directv for about 9-10 years and it's the best out there. Their customer service is about the worst there is but,if you like the NFL, you can't beat it. BTW, i recently moved and i called DTV and just made up a promotion and they gave it to me. I told them Dish network was offering me 6 months free HD, 6 months free movie channels(all of them) , something else(i can't remeber what) and they gave it to me.

 

[Slacker]

If you have Hi Def there is zero comparison pricewise. Cox blows DirecTv out of the water. I would have to pay 100 bucks to DirecTV to get what I have with Cox. I pay Cox a little over 100 for Cable, Internet and phone combined and that's with an HD DVR. I have HD and HBO. The only thing DirecTV has over Cox is Sunday Ticket. I'm not knocking DirecTV. It's a great service. The prices especially combined with internet and phone can't be touched by Cox's price though.

 

[JC_AZ]

My only complaint with Direct TV is the sporadic availablilty of the new equipment for HD/DVR receivers for HD via satellite versus over the air...otherwise the quality and the service has been really good and the TIVO is priceless...

 

[DKCards]

How much a month do you guys with Direct TV pay a month? Is it a lot more than cable?

It depends on how many TVs you want to hook up. DTV is cheaper for 1 or 2 TVs but I have 5 and it turned out to be way more expensive then cable to get all 5 hooked up.

 

[JC_AZ]

I have a combination... I use Direct TV for two TV's and I use the cable for internet and the other seven TV's... a little pricy to pay for both, but provides the cleanest option for my 'needs'

 

[CaptTurbo]

DirectTV = NFL Sunday Ticket

Cable = nadda.

Easy choice.

 

[JasonKGME]

Get it now. Get Tivo. It'll cost you around $49 bucks for 1 unit. It's $5 a month for every additional unit per month. You'll never miss another game and you'll wonder just how the hell you ever lived without Tivo.

This is the problem I have with Direct TV and Satellite systems, I have 5 TV's throught the house that are connected to my Cable, so if I went to Direct TV I'd have to pay a $20 premium to get the extra 4 TV's connected. When you add that charge to the basic charge I end up paying about an extra $15 per month * 12 months is an extra $180, Only difference I have found from Direct TV is the NFL package, and since only team I really go out of the way to watch is the Cardinals I can't see spending the $180 plus the extra cash for the NFL package just to get a bunch of games I probably won't watch anyways.

 

[Lloydian]

The advantages for cable are (assuming you want a DVR and HD): 1) lower up front costs because you buy nothing and, at worst, have to pay a small installation fee, and 2) more properly integrated HD locals because the HD locals will just be another channel on your system while, currently, you must use an external antenna for HD locals with DirecTV's HD DVR (it is currently the Tivo, but that will likely change within a year).

The advantages of going with DirecTV: 1) lower price (unless you're buying every premium channel, in which case, cable channels may charge less per channel); 2) NFL Sunday Ticket (available nowhere else); 3) Tivo (the Tivo HD DVR is, hands down, better than any other HD DVR, but when DirecTV starts broadcasting new HD channels using MPEG-4, you'll need to move to their DVR, when available, to get those channels negating this advantage).

I've had DirecTV in HD since the days when the only channel you could count on having any HD content was the demo channel (with Dennis Miller in HD despite his show being in SD), and the only actual HD channel being carried was HBO. I've heard people claim about limited bandwidth on DirecTV, and I don't question their accuracy, but I do question whether or not it reduces my enjoyment of the channels. I've always been quite happy with the picture.

And I've heard people mention the rain fade that can happen with satellite. This is true, but it's also uncommon. For me, it has to be a fairly strong rainfall to see any problems.

 

[JC_AZ]

Actually the LOCAL HD Channels are supposed to be available this month via satellite, but the receiver and dish need to be replaced to receive them. The new HD receiver with DVR is also supposed to be available this month as well...they ASSURED me the new equipment would be available before football season...The DVR with NFL Ticket and LOCAL channels in HD will be a great upgrade. I live behind a mountain and can not currently receive the local HD channels with the external antenna because my 'line of sight' to South Mountain is blocked.

 

[MigratingOsprey]

in phx locals are already available with direcTv through the dish - they have been for a little while now - however, you need the new 5lnb dish and the proper receiver - only problem is they do not have the HD DVR receiver that is compatable with the locals on the 5lnb yet

 

[gusmahler]

A few general DTV questions:

How's the Superfan package? The thing where they compress every game to 30 minutes, but still show all the plays, sounds really cool. Is it worth the extra $99? What equipment do you need for it?

What is the difference between the 5-LNB antenna and the 3-LNB antenna? And which one should I get?

How is DirecTV with upgrades? E.g., I don't have an HD monitor yet, but I do plan on getting it, if not this season, then certainly next season. Will they let me get the normal DVR then upgrade to the HD model? Or should I just get the HD receiver now so that I'll be ready when I do get the HD monitor?

 

[Lloydian]

Yes, I know that HD locals are up (but not 61), but since the DVR is not ready yet, I left that out. When I mentioned the adding of MPEG-4 channels, I meant the new, cable only channels that will eventually replace their SD counterparts.

If you can get the 5-LNB dish for about the same price as the 3-LNB (remember that standard def only requires a 1-LNB dish currently), get it. As to the HD receiver, if you're going the DVR route, don't waste your effort until the new unit comes out since you'd have to upgrade anyway. Remember that to get any channels in HD requires an extra ten bucks a month, so it isn't as if you'll pay for the HD package for your SDTV.

But if you don't intend to go with a DVR, go ahead and get the HD receiver.

 

[JC_AZ]

The HD/DVR receiver is supposed to FINALLY be available this month...as of the status from Direct TV last week

 

[Lloydian]

The HD/DVR receiver is supposed to FINALLY be available this month...as of the status from Direct TV last week

I'll still hold out as long as I can. I love my Tivo.

 

[Bada0Bing]

If you have DirectTV, do you have to have a box in every room? Right now I have a Cox DVR in the family room and my bedroom, but I have cable in 3 other rooms plus the garage. Could I do this with Direct TV?

 

[Lloydian]

Yep, but yes, you need a box in each room (with a mirroring charge of $4.95 per box), so for your situation, satellite may not be the answer.

That said, cable may be migrating to the same system with the move to digital television though currently, Cox charges less per additional box than DirecTV.