Gilgamesh1082

Guys, I need your help. I'm about to move into my new home and I've decided to make the jump to satellite as my local company (COX) sucks. Not getting NBC for the past 10 months and COX not making any plans whatsoever to bring HD programming to our town has pushed me over the edge. Now I've got a decision to make. Both DISH and DirecTV are offering similar packages with extremely similar prices for my viewing dollars. Both packages include a HD-DVR and two standard receivers. Up front costs for DISH are signicicantly higher, about $200, with DirecTV costing me about $4 a month more.

I'm at a stand still as to which one I should get. Who do you guys recommend I use and why?

Jimmy James

If you care about possibly getting the NFL Sunday Ticket package, you have to go DirecTV.

Otherwise, it seems to me it is a matter of cost. It seems to me that DirecTV is the better deal there because your time to breakeven is over four years.

I have never had either service, btw.

Michael T Hudson

I would go with DirecTV. I have had them since 98 and have great service. Also the tivo option is great.

Jadzia

I am super-happy with DirecTv with Tivo.

aktick

Though as I'm sure you know they won't be selling DTivos anymore, they'll have their own branded units. No real word on how good they are yet.

BigDan

I had DirecTV from 98-00, and I liked it a great deal. After that, I moved to an apartment that didn't have the proper view, so getting rid of it wasn't based on the quality of the service.

When we moved into our house in July, we got DISH Network. I like it very much, as well. We went with DISH because it was a better deal at the time. We got the DISH PVR, and it works great.

Honestly, I'd probably go with DirecTV in your situation. There aren't a whole lot of differences between the two, in my opinion.

Groucho

But they are still selling them NOW, which is the important thing.

Not to mention that there's plenty on the secondary market as well.

aktick

Very true. If you want one, make sure to do it soon - BB has the new ones on their site, though they aren't available yet. And DTV will be supporting them, just not putting any money into them in the future.

Deftones

Not until next year. So if he orders now he'll get a Tivo.

maingon

i would go with Direct Tv and try to get a tivo

Maxflier

I feel your pain when it comes to Cox. If ever there was a company that was aptly named, they are it. I switched to Directv from them years ago and can't imagine using any other service. And like someone mentioned earlier, if your a football fan, then NFL Sunday Ticket is reason enough.

Chew

A pretty major sticking point with me and Dish is that the HD-DVR only has a single OTA tuner (IIRC) with dual satellite tuners. The HD DirecTiVo has two of each and each of the OTA tuners get more of a workout than the satellite ones do.

Morf

A friend of mine just tried using a standalone TiVo with Dish Network, and it worked like complete shit. Dish's software makes it so that the standalone wouldn't change channels correctly, and TiVo pretty much admitted that they hadn't been keeping up with Dish's updates.

Needless to say, he dropped Dish after 1 week with their alternative DVR and went with DirecTV and a TiVo.

Jimmy James

So...your friend punished the company working to provide him better service and rewarded the one that had just given up?

BigDan

My fiance's mother uses a standalone ReplayTV unit with her DISH Network, and it works perfectly. Don't know why TiVO couldn't do the same.

Michael Corvin

Isn't there a BIG difference in cost for the HD-tivo with DirecTV vs. the HD-DVR with Dish? Or did DirecTV get off their $1000 high horse to be competitive?

Chew

Yeah, Dish costs $699 and DirecTV could be had for $199*.

*that was pretty much for existing customers and it's over now. $499 with $100 MIR is the new "deal".

Gilgamesh1082

Guess I'm going with DirecTV then. Thanks for all the info guys!

Gilgamesh1082

True that. Right across the river, Shreveport is getting wonderful Time Warner. They have very fast internet, VoIP coming, and HD content right now. Cox barely delivers their digital programming. Their digital set-top boxes have more of a lossy connection to the office than a satellite does. It sucks when all the channels above 75 can't be accessed. You just get that nice message saying, accessing content.

Oh, and football is a RELIGION at my household now and will continue to be one in me and my spouse's house, much to her dismay. NFL Sunday Ticket here I come. No more Cowboys and Texans games for this Indy and Chicago fan.

Morf

It's all in how you look at it. Personally, I found what Dish was doing to be hightly anticompetitive and not "working hard to provide him better service." My friend wanted a TiVo and DirecTV could give him one, today. So he dumped Dish, the company which refused to play nicely, and went with DirecTV.

As soon as Dish plays well with a TiVo brand DVR, I'll re-evaluate the situation. Until then, they can piss off.

Heat

I had dishnetwork from '97 to about '02, then directv ever since (my dishnetwork remote was going bad, was cheaper to switch to directv than to buy a new remote).

Overall, I still like dish network better. Much more foreign language options and their packages are a little cheaper than on directv. Also, directv has the sports packages, which is why their other package prices are a little more expensive (it's not cheap to get exclusive rights to sports packages).

Personally, I have a mixed English / Spanish language package and I like directv's lineup better than that on dishnetwork (directv's package has more english channels), that's why I'm still with directv. The one thing I really liked on dish network was that it would give a ranking of movies (1 to 5 stars, if I remember right), and their ranking was usually dead on with how I would rank the movie, so it was a good way to screen movies before deciding whether to watch it or not.

Having said all that, either one will be much better than Cox.

kvrdave

Had Dish for many years, and went to Directv out of boredom. I prefer Dish. Both are great, though, so you can't go wrong. Tivo is over-rated, imo. Any DVR is fine (and necessary). Unless you need the NFL package, go with the best deal. I think Dish was slightly better for HD, but neither (or any) is great.

RayChuang

...For this reason: they will be offering far more HDTV programming than Dish Network in the future.

Chew

Although I have DirecTV and don't plan on switching: they've been promising that for a long time now and have only added ESPN2 in the last, what, year? I know the MPEG4 switch will result in a lot more HD programming, but that certainly seems to get pushed back and back.

Michael Corvin

Well what they keep promoting those 600 HD channels or whatever number it is, but all it is, is local channels across the country. Big whooped-di-fucking-do. They won't get into other HD avenues until that is done. I think I read 2007 is the goal for new stuff.

On the flip side Dish picked up all the original Voom HD channels and are available right now. 10 HD movie channels(including a Horror channel & a western channel), 1 HD Music channel, 1 HD Extreme sports channel, an HD animation channel and some others.

So unless you need the NFL ticket, I wouldn't put all your eggs in DirecTVs basket just yet if you are interested in HD programming.