Honest opinions of DirecTV vs Dish......

[JonUrban]

I just cancelled my D* (I had both). I won't miss it. To me, E* is much better all around, from CSRs to hardware to programming. They may be a smaller company, and screw up a lot, but they have the best packages and performance - except for Sports - in which D* gets the nod.

 

[stone phillips420]

to each their own i guess
some swear by Chevy others by Ford and even some Dodge haha

 

[MikeD-C05]

Mike just as a point DirecTV has more SD local channel markets then Dish. In HD locals DirecTV again has more and will continue to have more. However your are correct that DirecTV only advantage right now is NFL and RSN in HD. May not be much for most but to some its a lot.

How many sd locals do they have? I just looked at Directv and they have listed 142 in their local markets done, Dish has 164 listed giving them 22 more dmas done than Directv. So how does Directv have more in analog? I do agree that Directv has more in hd locals and most likely will for now.

IF you want to check the DISH sd locals list and when they were added I suggest you go to the echostar Knowledge base
on the front page of the dbstalk website : www.dbstalk.com . You can access it on the left top side of the web page under the letters EKB on dbstalk.

 

[MikeD-C05]

Mike, don't be blind on your part. WMD have been found. Just do a search

You proved my point Tulsa. You and others who like Bush , keep insisting that they have been found and never say where and what , and I don't count that little bombed out truck van they talk about as a WMD. But anyway I don't want to get into politics.

I am only saying that some people will make any excuse to defend their choice in providers even when the overwhelming evidence is pointing to the other provider that has the best deal on just about everything. To admit they made a mistake in their choice would be to much for them and they would rather live in denial.

 

[Sapient]

dish has more hd yes but worthwhile hd i guess nationalgeo hd looks interesting but i bet its on a similar loop as discovery hd

1 channel isnt enough for me to switch
hdtivo is slow but its great user upgradable hdd
my hr10-250 can record 103 hours of hd or 693 hours of sd

dtv's equipment is fgar better excluding r15 h10 h20 as i have never seen one
but dtv wins hands down with customer service dtv doeas all they can and more to keep every customer they have happy
if youre so upset with dtv call customer retention explain yourself and see what they offer you im sure they do everything humanly possible to keep you a a customer
stick it out with dtv IMHO

HD-Lite is also a factor.

Nice to see another Minnesotan, though.

 

[frankygamer]

dish has more hd yes but worthwhile hd i guess nationalgeo hd looks interesting but i bet its on a similar loop as discovery hd

1 channel isnt enough for me to switch
hdtivo is slow but its great user upgradable hdd
my hr10-250 can record 103 hours of hd or 693 hours of sd

dtv's equipment is fgar better excluding r15 h10 h20 as i have never seen one
but dtv wins hands down with customer service dtv doeas all they can and more to keep every customer they have happy
if youre so upset with dtv call customer retention explain yourself and see what they offer you im sure they do everything humanly possible to keep you a a customer
stick it out with dtv IMHO

Well 2 channels was enough for me. Rave and StarzHD. D*'s equipment is only going downhill by dropping Tivo while Dish has steadily improved their DVR. There is no D* equipment "far better" then the 622. Maybe a HDTivo with 6.3 but last I checked there is no such thing even though D* had the SW since March 05. All customer retention can do is buy you off. They can't get you more HD, the 6.3 upgrade on the HDTivo, a MPEG4 Tivo. They won't get Rupert to realize dropping Tivo was a dumb move. The upgradeability argument is dead once you go MPEG4 while DISH has plans for USB HDD support.

If you want the cheapest package, with the least offerings, and are willing to bitch every 6 months for discounts, D* is the place to be. If you just want a decent, well rounded, satellite company, Dish wins hands down.

 

[Tom Bombadil]

I have to say that I am a happy D* customer. One thing that I have not heard mentioned in this thread is the customer retention dept. from D*. They have always gone above and beyond to keep me happy with what they can provide. I currently have two HD DVRs (Mpeg2 Tivos) with the first one almost free not including programming credits ($99 out of pocket) and the second one free ($0 out of pocket). I have read on the E* boards that E* is not quite as generous.

I just upgraded to an E* 622 HD DVR for a net $0 deal. $199-$100 trade-in - $10/10mo programming credits.

And this included upgrading my satellites dishes to new LNBs and switches.

As to WMDs, yes they were found. The USA had them all along.

 

[BobaBird]

IF you want to check the DISH sd locals list and when they were added I suggest you go to the echostar Knowledge base

Direct EKB links: SD locals, HD locals

 

[stone phillips420]

If you just want a decent, well rounded, satellite company, Dish wins hands down.

are addicted to crack cocaine, dish has the worst customer service i have ever dealt with
most if not all dish operators are rude, retarded, and cant speak english
not to mention all the times dish hangs up on it customers
as i said to each their own

 

[mdonnelly]

are addicted to crack cocaine, dish has the worst customer service i have ever dealt with
most if not all dish operators are rude, retarded, and cant speak english
not to mention all the times dish hangs up on it customers
as i said to each their own

YMMV. Dish CS has never jerked me around, has always been polite, and I've never had trouble understanding them, or them understanding me.

 

[stone phillips420]

YMMV. Dish CS has never jerked me around, has always been polite, and I've never had trouble understanding them, or them understanding me.

well there always one.
did you win powerball too?

 

[mdonnelly]

Not in every state on the same day, no.

 

[Super Dave]

As a recent convert to Dish, I have found their HD and system to be faster and better than DTV. What I also found is that it is raining outside now and I have no signal, it was rare I would lose my DTV signal, and never for just a rainstorm. It's a good thing we have Comcast as a backup. since we use it for HSI. So Dish flunks the weather test, but when it is clear the PQ is way better.

Also a feature I really like is that when I watch HD the output is set to normal 720p. When I swap the tuner and watch SD it remembers to set it in stretch mode, the way I watch SD. Nice.

 

[frankygamer]

are addicted to crack cocaine, dish has the worst customer service i have ever dealt with
most if not all dish operators are rude, retarded, and cant speak english
not to mention all the times dish hangs up on it customers
as i said to each their own

Huh? Do you know what well rounded means. If they struggle in one area they make it up elsewhere.

I haven't experienced any of your problems. I call,tell them them what I need, and they do it. In between they said yes sir, no sir, just a mintute while I pull this up on my screen, etc. I honestly had no problems with D* customer support either except for having to hand hold them that a HDTivo was a Directv branded receiver (not Hughes, RCA, etc). My 2nd one was registerd as a RCA receiver because "Directv" doesn't make DVR's per the CSR

Also I'm not going to base my 365 day a year TV service based on a CSR I have to call maybe 1-2 twice a year. Maybe the problem isn't the Dish rep but the person on the other end of the line.

 

[davideo]

I've got both Directv and Dish, and HD PQ on Dish is clearly superior to Directv [using a sony vpl-vw100 ["ruby"] projector.

The only reason I keep Directv are the SD and HD Tivos :up , which have become deeply imprinted into my viewing/recording habits.

I would however love to dump Directv HD-lite.
Now I'm just hearing about HDNET-Lite on Dish...

 

[ilkevinli]

You should not lose your signal in a rainstorm. I would check to make sure your dish is Aligned properley

What I also found is that it is raining outside now and I have no signal, it was rare I would lose my DTV signal, and never for just a rainstorm. So Dish flunks the weather test, but when it is clear the PQ is way better.

 

[Super Dave]

You should not lose your signal in a rainstorm. I would check to make sure your dish is Aligned properley

How would I do that, I didn't install it, the guys from Dish did. 2 of them, I would think with 2 dishes I should have been able to get something.

 

[Sapient]

well there always one.
did you win powerball too?

Make it two. I've never had a problem with Dish's CSRs. I think they are just like any other company. Some of their CSRs are good and some are not.

 

[RandallA]

How would I do that, I didn't install it, the guys from Dish did. 2 of them, I would think with 2 dishes I should have been able to get something.

Check your signal levels by going to Menu, 6, 1, 1 and select each satellite you have. Record the signal levels for at least two TPs per satellite (even and odd). Make sure none of them is a Spotbeam, those will always read higher.

If your signal readings are low, you begin losing the signal around 40-45. That's why it's important to have high readings so you don't lose the signal.

If you have 129, well that's a different story and average for that one is mid 70s.

 

[Super Dave]

I just went out and looked at the dish on the roof and it is aiming directly at the middle of a tall oak in my back yard. The 110 seems to vary between 89 to 104 on the signal strength. The 119 are over 100. 61.5 ranges from 93 to 106, except zero on transponder 4. Signals are high now, but nothing during the rain. I never had a problem with rain and DTV, and the signal strength for them was 93, never over 100 like this. I'm guessing a wet drooping tree.