Long time cable co, looking to switch..

[bigjohns97]

I have been a TWC customer since they have been here in houston (over 10 years) and have always liked them. But things have changed here in Houston and now comcast is running the show and I am not happy. Their internet is great but their TV is for the birds. I am trying to find out my alternatives as i am fed up with their "don't care" attitude and their high prices for inferior service.

So, I am very interested in "upgrade" to direct tv hd dvr but don't want a contract and want the best equipment availible, I have learned over the past couple of hours about lnb's, hr21's, etc... Now my question is ....

What is currently the best HD DVR and sat dish?
I called direct tv and they said hr21 and 2lnb but i see people refrencing 5lnb here and it bothers me that i will end up with drop outs due to weather.

So what I am looking to do is get on ebay and buy a hr21 outright this makes more sense to be than signing a 24mo contract along with 100-20 bucks just to rent the same dvr.

Now if i did that they said their wouldn't be any installation charge to come out and set me up, but i am still worried about the lack of lnb's on the csr's quote, can anyone comment on that?

Has anyone else just outright bought the hr20/21 from ebay and then just had direct tv come out and hook it up?

 

[jdc20006]

Bad News.....if you go and buy any of the new receivers off ebay your still going to be under contract under whats called a lease. Just as well have signed the contract because when you activate your obligated to keep that receiver turned on for a year or two. If you ever decide to turn it off before your time runs out your penalized.

You can't purchase and own receivers anymore with Directv unless its some of their older models. The old models work fine for core programming but their useless with the new satellites launched. If you do purchase one from Ebay its not yours. You will still have to send it back to Directv when you cancel services because its "leased". f**ked up isn't?

In short your damned if you do and damned if you don't. Any of the new hd receivers activated puts you under contract weather you know that or not.

Something else, if a directv technician has to come out and do anything other than a service call you have renewed your contract with them without knowing. Upgrades included. Your not going to get out of one if you want the new HD. Sorry.

 

[bigjohns97]

Man that is messed up, I just got off the phone with one of their reps and he said that if i already had one of the boxes that they wouldn't charge any startup and it would just be the monthly charges. And no contract. This completly contradicts what you just said.

I am going to call them again and confirm what i was told the first time.

 

[harshness]

Man that is messed up, I just got off the phone with one of their reps and he said that if i already had one of the boxes that they wouldn't charge any startup and it would just be the monthly charges. And no contract. This completly contradicts what you just said.

There would be no setup charge, but there will be a commitment.

If you want the best HD DVR and no commitment, you need to look into the other company.

Bear in mind that if you're someone who uses customer service a lot, you're not going to be happy with any of the distributors.

 

[bigjohns97]

There would be no setup charge, but there will be a commitment.

If you want the best HD DVR and no commitment, you need to look into the other company.

Bear in mind that if you're someone who uses customer service a lot, you're not going to be happy with any of the distributors.

Actually i had dish for about 6 months and canceled due to their soft hd picture, but their CS was top notch and never had any issues dealing with their policies or customer service reps.

Now the experience from comcast and direct tv (haven't owned them yet and i guess i never will since i find out now there is no way out of a 2 year commitment).

There is no excuse for a contract these days, they are the only ones that do it and you don't own any of the equipment anyways so what inital cost are they trying to cover with the contract?

 

[harshness]

There is no excuse for a contract these days, they are the only ones that do it and you don't own any of the equipment anyways so what inital cost are they trying to cover with the contract?

Satellite has a substantial installation cost that cable doesn't usually have to front. They have most of the same routing issues, but must route multiple cables.

Add to this the cost of the dish and its installation and DIRECTV figures that their acquisition cost is almost $700. Given the number of options that most people have, that's a pretty hefty sum to expend without a great deal of certainty that they aren't going to walk away before you recover the costs.

 

[bigjohns97]

Satellite has a substantial installation cost that cable doesn't usually have to front. They have most of the same routing issues, but must route multiple cables.

Add to this the cost of the dish and its installation and DIRECTV figures that their acquisition cost is almost $700. Given the number of options that most people have, that's a pretty hefty sum to expend without a great deal of certainty that they aren't going to walk away before you recover the costs.

Well like i said i had dish only about a month ago and already have the mounting holes and cable runs through my house, any equipment they provide will be sent back to them when i am done.

Also why the commitment and 200 up front charge, do either one or the other not both. If i could get one or the other i would sign up today but since i have to do both it makes it not worth it, i mean who wants to spend damn near 500 bucks to try something out?

 

[HDinCincy]

John,
I am pretty new to D* (having been with dish for 5 yrs prior) Getting a slimline dish, new HD-DVR, new H20 and 2 D11 (SD rec'vrs) installed was about $399 for me in August. Yes, I have a two yr. commitment but there is simply no LEGAL way around it. (maybe no way, I don't really know.) If HD is important to you I would highly recommend D*. Dish has nice equipment but IMHO, many fewer programming choices.

 

[harshness]

If i could get one or the other i would sign up today but since i have to do both it makes it not worth it, i mean who wants to spend damn near 500 bucks to try something out?

Did you miss the part about you costing them an average of $700 to acquire?

They don't make assumptions about how easy the install will be nor do they force the people who write up orders to make thoughtful adjustments to the standard terms and conditions.

 

[joed32]

Well like i said i had dish only about a month ago and already have the mounting holes and cable runs through my house, any equipment they provide will be sent back to them when i am done.

Also why the commitment and 200 up front charge, do either one or the other not both. If i could get one or the other i would sign up today but since i have to do both it makes it not worth it, i mean who wants to spend damn near 500 bucks to try something out?

Complaining to us won't change anything. If you don't want a commitment then go with Dish or stay with cable.

 

[bigjohns97]

Did you miss the part about you costing them an average of $700 to acquire?

They don't make assumptions about how easy the install will be nor do they force the people who write up orders to make thoughtful adjustments to the standard terms and conditions.

You would have an argument if i owned the equipment but they are getting back everything so i don't see how they are loosing 700$ it's still their capital.

 

[bigjohns97]

Complaining to us won't change anything. If you don't want a commitment then go with Dish or stay with cable.

exactly what i plan to do, until they drop either the install charge or the commitment.

 

[lastscreenname]

Give DishNetwork a call they will set you up with the the Best HD DVR out there with no up front cost. If you get the right person they might drop the 18 month contract.

 

[Andrewwski]

Or you can pay $50 to Dish and there's no contract.

 

[ONUOsFan]

You would have an argument if i owned the equipment but they are getting back everything so i don't see how they are loosing 700$ it's still their capital.

There are plenty of other expenses involved in getting you installed besides just the equipment. Besides, as Harshness said, other people will be more work than you, and they have to average it out. Their accountants would go crazy if they charged different amounts for every install. Like it or not, that's the way it is.

Personally, the two years doesn't bother me at all. I did my research ahead of time and made the right decision for me. There's also a lot of hassle in switching companies, so I wouldn't want to jump around all the time like that.

Give DishNetwork a call they will set you up with the the Best HD DVR out there with no up front cost. If you get the right person they might drop the 18 month contract.

Or you can pay $50 to Dish and there's no contract.

Did you guys read the part where he said he already tried Dish and didn't like it?

 

[Andrewwski]

Apparently not.