Hi guys - I'm thinking of switching from cable to DirecTV - one barrier is that I have to buy the equipment - are there published reliability data? I'm assuming its worse for DVR rather than a standard receiver? Do most people by the extended warranty/protection plan?
D* Box Reliability?
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Don't know about reliability, but I have had DirecTV for 5 years without a problem. I started the protection plan when I got HD and Tivo's in my house. For standard receivers I probably wouldn't bother.
The protection plan also gives you major discounts on service calls ($75 down to $30), so most people either have it, or are encouraged to add it when you call tech support.
I had a standard receiver for upwards of three years and had it on all the time and it worked flawlessly.
The hardware is really pretty decent -- far, FAR superior to Dish Network -- and really shouldn't need to be replaced within the product's design life.
I had a standard receiver for upwards of three years and had it on all the time and it worked flawlessly.
The hardware is really pretty decent -- far, FAR superior to Dish Network -- and really shouldn't need to be replaced within the product's design life.
IMHO, the protection plan is a waste of money for most people. First of all, it's costs $8 a month if you have ANY DVR &/or HD receivers on your account. Considering that you can get a brand new standard DVR for $99 everyday, you would have to have one die EVERY YEAR to get your money's worth out of it. (of which all likelyhood this will NOT happen, since as the poster above mentioned, D* hardward is pretty reliable)
HOWEVER, if I had an HD-Tivo, I might be inclined to consider it. But as far as the non-DVR HD receivers, again since they are down to around $250, not sure if it's worth the money.
HOWEVER, if I had an HD-Tivo, I might be inclined to consider it. But as far as the non-DVR HD receivers, again since they are down to around $250, not sure if it's worth the money.
My 1st D* boxes, both Sony SAT-A2, were still in use until mid 2004 without one single issue, ever. I bought them brand new in late 1996 and switched them out for HD units and they were still going strong for me..
D* Box Reliability
I've had (or now have) 2 regular Hughes SD receivers, 2 SD Tivos (1 Hughes and 1 Phillips), a Sony HD receiver and a Hughes HD Tivo. Never had any problems with any of them other than replacing the cooling fan in the Hughes SD Tivo.
They're like the Energizer bunny, they just keep on going and going!
beantownslacker said:
I've had (or now have) 2 regular Hughes SD receivers, 2 SD Tivos (1 Hughes and 1 Phillips), a Sony HD receiver and a Hughes HD Tivo. Never had any problems with any of them other than replacing the cooling fan in the Hughes SD Tivo.
They're like the Energizer bunny, they just keep on going and going!
In my current stint with D* I have to SD-DVR40's (one upgraded with a 120GB drive), a HR10-250 and a Sony HD300, no problems with any of them. In my prior stint with D* I had two Sony A55's that had an audio problem, design flaw in the box, Sony purchased them back from me once they figured out that they couldn't fix them.
I do have the D* protection plan, with a HD Tivo and a HD STB I wanted the extra protection (didn't want to see a $1K box fail and I'm out the $'s, just in case).
I do have the D* protection plan, with a HD Tivo and a HD STB I wanted the extra protection (didn't want to see a $1K box fail and I'm out the $'s, just in case).
I've been a DirecTv sub since 1994. My 1st DirecTv receiver, a RCA DRD203RW was still working when I retired it last year. I also have a older DRD420RE that is still working. The only problems I've ever had was a multi-switch that went bad and a bad cable that turned out to have a staple in it....
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