Making the Jump

[mraudit]

Well, after posting on here and reading a ton of posts, I have decided to jump to Directv from Dish. The locals in HD are a big part. With this, I have a couple of questions. I am swithcing around July 1st when we move to Omaha.

What HD DVR will I receive, HR20 or HR21? Is one better than the other, should I ask for a particular one? I am going to hook up an internal antenna directly to my HDTV so I don't need to hook it up to the receiver.

Also, can I get 2 HD DVRs? I am getting anothe HDTV this summer and I want to be prepaired.

Finally, is it best to order online or by calling Directv?

Thanks,

Tim

 

[rmims404]

Hi Tim, I was a Dish customer for nearly six years and switched to DirecTv in April of '08. I have no regrets and I think you'll be well satisfied. I think the HR20 is silver and the HR21 is black. I think you'll probably get the HR21. I got two H21's when I switched. I have HD but not the recording units yet. You should be able to get two HD Dvr's because I got two HD receivers, they are just not DVR's. As far as ordering, I think it's always better to talk to a human. That way you can ask about all the best deals. If you have a friend with DirecTv, get his account number and do the referral thing then you and he will get $50.00 taken off your bill ($10.00 for 5 consecutive months). Good luck!!

 

[skottey]

Well, after posting on here and reading a ton of posts, I have decided to jump to Directv from Dish. The locals in HD are a big part. With this, I have a couple of questions. I am swithcing around July 1st when we move to Omaha.

What HD DVR will I receive, HR20 or HR21? Is one better than the other, should I ask for a particular one? I am going to hook up an internal antenna directly to my HDTV so I don't need to hook it up to the receiver.

Also, can I get 2 HD DVRs? I am getting anothe HDTV this summer and I want to be prepaired.

Finally, is it best to order online or by calling Directv?

Thanks,

Tim

I just joined two weeks ago or so. I was surprised at the size of the dish compared to the two tiny dishes I had with Dish Network. It is so big they had to mount it on the wall with an arm that bends around facing the south.

I got two HR21's. You have to pay a higher price for the 2nd box. It was $318 with tax for both for me. As soon as the installer leaves, you can look on the website and see your first bill for the first month of programming. It will be higher than you expected if you were expecting an $18 a month credit. You get that credit later they say.

 

[Shipsnake]

I switched back in March. The credits started on my 2nd month. I love the service so far you will not regret your decision.:up

 

[topgman]

I also switched over in march ,and I couldn't be happier - MSG-HD & Speed-HD were 2 big reasons ...they were also able to reuse most of the E* wiring in the house so installation was a snap ... I saw my discounts in my 2nd months bill also ... be sure to use a friend or perhaps someone from this board for your $10 a month referral discount

 

[kenf]

...you can look on the website and see your first bill for the first month of programming. It will be higher than you expected if you were expecting an $18 a month credit. You get that credit later they say.

Perhaps I'm mistaken, but I seem to recall Directv sending me another form that I had to return to get the credit (signing up wasn't enough trouble?) Watch what they send you (just in case).

 

[Shipsnake]

Perhaps I'm mistaken, but I seem to recall Directv sending me another form that I had to return to get the credit (signing up wasn't enough trouble?) Watch what they send you (just in case).

The installer gave me a paper on it when he was leaving, and i did it all online.

 

[pdxsam]

My rebate stuff came as an addendum in my first bill and I did it all online also.

 

[skottey]

Perhaps I'm mistaken, but I seem to recall Directv sending me another form that I had to return to get the credit (signing up wasn't enough trouble?) Watch what they send you (just in case).

You are absolutely right... I had already paid my bill five minutes after it showed up on the website but the paper bill came this week (less than two weeks after install). There was a notice inside that I had to go to something like www.directv.com/rebate and sign up for my $18/month for 12 months rebate. You are right, wasn't it enough to sign up? NOPE... they make you actually sign up separately for the rebate that you expect automatically when you sign up and see "first months bill estimate"

But... as annoying as it is, I am 100% pleased with DirecTV. I am sure they do it that way knowing some people will not look at it and sign up. Then they can say, "you didn't do your part to get the credit... blah blah blah...."

One thing that annoys me though is that I remember for sure that I saw something about "save $20 for signing up with paperless billing" when I first signed up. I declined but now I will switch to paperless billing if I can get that deal. I pay all my stuff online anyway, but have traditionally liked a paper statement to file away oldskool in my records. But I am willing to give up the paper statement and save them the postage for a one time credit of $20. Do they not offer the credit to existing customers who switch to paperless billing? It seems anybody should be able to get it. I have had one bill on paper. Take out the postage for that one bill and give me the remainder of that $20 credit and I'll sign up for paperless billing.

 

[skottey]

The installer gave me a paper on it when he was leaving, and i did it all online.

My installer had the personality of a rock but did a good job. I never would have thought to tip him for his services, but learned on this very website that satellite installers are tipped. I gave him $20.

I am the type to tip 20% when I go out for meals. I tip $5 on a $10 haircut, etc... but I never would have thought to tip a satellite installer. Until some installers on this site said they are regularly tipped.

I own a computer business, servicing residential and business customers and have had hundreds of customers. I can count on one hand the number of tips I have had over the years. People just don't tip a computer guy and I assumed that satellite or cable guys were not tipped either. There isn't much difference other than the fact that I am owner operated. But my techs aren't tipped either. So go figure.

My point is that I would have given the guy a better tip if he had a personality. He was very professional but he didn't have any people skills. When I hire techs in my business, people skills are a must!

Why didn't my installer give me that rebate paper?