directv on demand vs cable

[Lkr]

so i always hear people talking about how great on demand is. i finally can access it on D*, but I don't understand the hype surrounding it. do my friends with cable get a much better experience? i know they can watch "instantly"(although with my internet connection there isn't a big delay after an initial buffer), but that isn't what confuses me. there is hardly any content unless you are buying a PPV movie or something. there is practically no HD content. the only way i could see it being useful is if you get something like HBO, but even then, only game of thrones seems to have all episodes available.

 

[aa9vi]

so i always hear people talking about how great on demand is. i finally can access it on D*, but I don't understand the hype surrounding it. do my friends with cable get a much better experience? i know they can watch "instantly"(although with my internet connection there isn't a big delay after an initial buffer), but that isn't what confuses me. there is hardly any content unless you are buying a PPV movie or something. there is practically no HD content. the only way i could see it being useful is if you get something like HBO, but even then, only game of thrones seems to have all episodes available.

The only gripe I have is that the DVRs prior to the HR-24 are very slow in accessing the onDemand menus due to bloated firmware.

 

[ejb1980]

There is A LOT more programming available on-demand with cable. The exact amount varies significantly by market. Here in NC, Time Warner Cable advertises a lot about on-demand and how great it is. When I first moved to my current location, I briefly subscribed to TWC and even played around with their on-demand.
Like their availability of more HD channels, on-demand quantity is not related to quality. Sure, there’s a lot out there, but how many local car shows and high school sports can you really watch? A lot of the on-demand stuff is low-budget, just snippets, and highly niche. Most of the specific-channel on-demand content is the same on cable vs. Directv, from my observations. There is actually more HD on-demand stuff on Directv than TWC, if you include HBO (which I do, since I have it.) But in general, it doesn’t live up to the hype. Remember, though, that cable is highly-localized and it can vary from town to town.

 

[Lkr]

i just don't understand why the providers tout on demand. they expand all of their HD content, get everyone set up with HD systems, and then deliver SD content to us via on demand. no reason to use it over hulu plus

the hbo selection i saw at a friend's house was rather nice, but if i got HBO, i'd be taping the first runs of all of their shows i watch anyway

 

[Shady12]

One thing I'm very unimpressed with regarding DirecTV is the On-Demand. For one should be more HD, I was really surprised when I first started checking it out. I have used it some to catch up on some series like Homeland, before signing up the only premium I had on cable was HBO. But it sucks that On Demand stuff is only available for a limited time. For almost everything I use streaming services like Netflix or Vudu..But On Demand has been handy in a few cases.

 

[tigerfan33]

Only thing I watch is HD. Therefore VOD is mostly useless.

 

[ZawNH-VT]

DirecTV's on Demand is disappointing even compare to DishNetwork because Lack of HD and almost never any recent shows.

Alright, I don't care if it in 1080i or not, just make it DVD Quality with correct aspect ratio.

 

[rise&demise]

Without knowing much about the technical aspects, it sure looks like DirecTV cheats on the frame rate of the SD stuff. The viewing experience is noticeably choppier especially during scenes with high activity. The HD selection should not even be considered on demand as it's not available for immediate viewing due to pitiful download speed. Far cry from Vudu or Netflix in streaming capacity.

 

[dmcclure]

I am finding that more and more when I try to record a movie from a channel, it tries to "flip" me over to D* On Demand instead...to receive the same movie, but with a charge for it.

In general, I have to say that On Demand is little more than hype. I wouldn't spend a plugged nickel on any of its content, since it seems to have little more than what you can find on the D* channels. Now if they offered movies that were not on their schedule, a la Netflix...