Some Dish Info

[samatha6]

No can do. If you have an 811 activated you will be billed for the HD Pack. You are not permitted to leave an 811 activated and not subscribe to the HD Pack.

Sorry.

Is that so? Well I have a 811, not owned, and I am leasing it. I cancelled the crap HD pack before my first free 6 months was up.. I have had the 811 now for over a year and they don't charge me for the HD pack.. just the lease fee which I think is 5 dollars. Maybe I am just lucky or something.. but I get OTA FREE and thats a good thing

Dish has been good to me.. when the installer came out to put my 322 and 811 in, he also put another older dish 300 dish up so I can grab some channels in Asia.. I only activate those when my mother in law comes to visit from Fiji Islands.. she can only speak hindi. But he did not charge me anything for that extra work.. real nice guy you might say.

 

[BFG]

yup, you got lucky. If you tried to cancel the HD pack they were supossed to make you turn the 811 back in

 

[dlsnyder]

They told me when I entered the lease that I was only obligated to maintain the HD pack through the one year lease term. I probably have that in writing somewhere with the paperwork I got in the box. If they don't let me do it that thing is DEFINATELY going back in April.

Yes, I turn it off at night when I am home. The trouble is my wife and kids don't turn it off on the days that I am not home. Usually they only watch SD programming on the composite video output, so they don't see problems happening very often. When I am home I really use the thing, watching HD on satellite and OTA, doing channel scans, channel surfing between HD and SD channels, etc. No wonder it usually hangs on me!

The main reason I got the thing was it was a "cheap" way for me to tune in my local digital OTA channels. Here in the LA area there are 22 stations actively transmitting programming, most of them from Mt. Wilson. Out of those only 8 broadcast any part of their schedule in HD. I find that I don't watch the satellite HD programming much at all, although the kids like watching the fish tank on the HD Demo channel at night. I have been watching some sports lately (mostly football and hockey) because they look so darn good in HD, although I am not a sports fan. I think that, for the content I am really interested in, a plain OTA receiver would probably do just fine for now. I would like to get UHD, but I'm not going to pay $20/mo for just one channel.

 

[samatha6]

I think that, for the content I am really interested in, a plain OTA receiver would probably do just fine for now. I would like to get UHD, but I'm not going to pay $20/mo for just one channel.

You sound just like me.. I agree 100% that the current HD pack is a waste of money.
Not sure why you are having that much trouble with the 811.. I have been told it is only necessary to power the 811 down at night.. that is when it updates the guide and firmwares if necessary. Yes mine will hang occasionally, but I probably don't use it as much as you do.. It has a great OTA tuner though.. I use a silver sensor indoor UHF antenna and have no issues.

OTA HD is a really good value at this time.. I even read somewhere that broadcasters were thinking about charging for OTA HD content.. I wonder if that is possible? I guess since it is digital they could encrypt it requiring special decoders.. boy would that upset alot of folks.. But I can see as time goes on when more and more people start putting up those old antennas on the roof that content providers are going to want to get money for it.. With cable/dbs rates rising at alarming rates.. especially companies like Comcast.. I see people buying OTA tuners at bestbuy in ever increasing numbers. Who ever thought that antennas would come back like they are now.

 

[lakebum431]

I even read somewhere that broadcasters were thinking about charging for OTA HD content..

I don't usually use the work 'never', but this will NEVER happen.

 

[Chris Freeland]

Here in Chattanooga Comcast only caries CBS, NBC and PBS in HD plus 4 sub-channels of PBS and 1 from local NBC(NBC Weather Plus). From my understanding many people here are getting local ABC-HD (and its weather sub-channel), which Comcast has yet to come to terms with as far as HD, are local FOX-DT(last I heard still not broadcasting in HD) and local WB-HD ota, even many with Comcast are putting up antennas in order to get the extra channels.

 

[samatha6]

I don't usually use the work 'never', but this will NEVER happen.

Good.. I can see where they would probably try to get laws changed so they could get carriage on OTA.. But your right.. the public outcry would be huge. Its not going to happen. But I can see more and more people pulling the plug on cable/dbs for OTA HD. Digital OTA is rewriting the book on free TV. No more noise.. no snow.. Perfect PQ and even 5.1 surround sound at times.. If your lucky enough to get all your digital stations OTA, then you probaby can get a better picture then most SD cable/dbs can provide. If this happened, the networks would probably start gaining more market share away from the satellite/cable channels. And that could improve content for the big networks.

I am sure this has been mentioned in other forums a hundred times.. but is there any good OTA stand alone DVRHD recorders that even have a online guide for little or no monthly fee? That would be something I may do at some point in the future.

 

[theodore_miller]

This is so crazy for me who has digital and wants to go to HD. I have to wait until Feb to get a Mpeg4 HD/PVR receiver. So besides all the pricing conversations going on, I still will not know if I can upgrade or get my locals from Dish. They better bring locals to Detroit. I have called twice to cancel and becuase I am a 4 year dish cusotmer, I am willing to see what the deal will be.

 

[mdonnelly]

...
I even read somewhere that broadcasters were thinking about charging for OTA HD content.. I wonder if that is possible? I guess since it is digital they could encrypt it requiring special decoders.. boy would that upset alot of folks.. But I can see as time goes on when more and more people start putting up those old antennas on the roof that content providers are going to want to get money for it.. With cable/dbs rates rising at alarming rates.. especially companies like Comcast.. I see people buying OTA tuners at bestbuy in ever increasing numbers. Who ever thought that antennas would come back like they are now.

What you've probably seen is that some broadcast groups like Sinclair are withholding their digital signals from cable providers unless they are paid. COX in Oklahoma City doesn't carry the FOX affiliate's digital signal for that reason. Therefore, no FOX HD on cable here.

 

[samatha6]

What you've probably seen is that some broadcast groups like Sinclair are withholding their digital signals from cable providers unless they are paid. COX in Oklahoma City doesn't carry the FOX affiliate's digital signal for that reason. Therefore, no FOX HD on cable here.

But you still can get it OTA true? I don't think the broadcasters have a choice about that. They have to switch to digital transmission by 09 I believe.. But your right, that may be what I read.

 

[mdonnelly]

But you still can get it OTA true? ...

Oh yeah, and it's sweet! NFL in HD rules!

 

[dlsnyder]

There is also the newest flavor of OTA digital TV - USDTV. For $19.99/mo they have 11 basic cable networks and Starz is also available for an extra charge. They use encrypted digital subchannels of broadcast stations in the area. Only the primary (##.1) channel is legally required to be transmitted in the clear; anything goes for the subchannels. So far they are operational in Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Albuquerque, and Dallas. When they get to LA I just might give them a try.

 

[samatha6]

There is also the newest flavor of OTA digital TV - USDTV. For $19.99/mo they have 11 basic cable networks and Starz is also available for an extra charge. They use encrypted digital subchannels of broadcast stations in the area. Only the primary (##.1) channel is legally required to be transmitted in the clear; anything goes for the subchannels. So far they are operational in Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Albuquerque, and Dallas. When they get to LA I just might give them a try.

I know.. I live in Albuquerque and its available here.. I think you get lifetime, LMN, Food, HGTV ESPN ESPN2 Foxnews discovery disney toons and TLC along with the local stuff. I would jump on it but they charge an extra 5 dollars for extra receivers.. So my bill would be at least 30 dollars. But this package is way better then Dishes' familiy pack....alot better. I pay 50 now for the AT120 on three tv's with free OTA locals.. Its just not quite a good enough deal to get me to jump ship. But USDTV is running a ad on their site to get back you lifetime TV.. Just show them your Dish bill and you get a free month of USDTV and 3 months of starz free. If I only had one TV I would go to USDTV today.

One thing I like about USDTV is you can get just the regular Starz for around 7 bucks a month.. Dish and the others make you get all the channels and pay twice that a month.. I like USDTV's a la carte approach to Starz..does anyone know if that is in HD?

 

[dlsnyder]

Fortunately my wife has been very good about Lifetime's demise on Dish. I asked her if this would make her want to switch over to D* and she gave me a short quick no. She said it was really no big deal - she likes the channels but wouldn't miss them.

 

[general487]

How can you tell if you lease or own your receivers?

I signed up in September, got an 811 and 625 (no upfront cost), and now I pay for AT60, HD Pack, 1 Additional Receiver fee of $5, and 1 DISH DVR Service Fee of $4.98.

Do I own my receivers or am I leasing?

 

[Stargazer]

Satellite does not seem to be as good of a deal as it seems if you have multiple receivers or have to pay for more than one DVR fee. These extra fees really add up.

You only get one Starz channel for $7 a month? At least on Dish Network there are more channels available and you get several more Starz channels for $5 more per month. You can even get the Encore thematic package for $5 more per month.

 

[FreddyvsJasonvsAsh]

I had USDTV and they were ok but they lack channels.....I like to have choices and it just didn't do it for me

 

[samatha6]

Satellite does not seem to be as good of a deal as it seems if you have multiple receivers or have to pay for more than one DVR fee. These extra fees really add up.

You only get one Starz channel for $7 a month? At least on Dish Network there are more channels available and you get several more Starz channels for $5 more per month. You can even get the Encore thematic package for $5 more per month.

Well with dish, AT60 will soon be 36 dollars a month.. add starz and your hitting 50 a month.. With USDTV you can do it for under 30 with starz. I know you get more channels but I never would pay 12, 14 dollars for a premium channel... They are old movies. Takes forever for them to hit Starz etc.. At 7 dollars I may do it.. but at 12, I won't do it no matter what so it does not matter how many channels it has.. I know alot of people would do a la carte.. just one channel if given the choice.. but dbs never gives you that option.. I think you would be surprised at how many people.. who are cheap like me might jump at that offer.

 

[mdonnelly]

There is also the newest flavor of OTA digital TV - USDTV. For $19.99/mo they have 11 basic cable networks and Starz is also available for an extra charge. They use encrypted digital subchannels of broadcast stations in the area. Only the primary (##.1) channel is legally required to be transmitted in the clear; anything goes for the subchannels. So far they are operational in Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Albuquerque, and Dallas. When they get to LA I just might give them a try.

USDTV is a parasite! They contract with one of your local stations to siphon off some of their bandwidth. That results in bit-starved HD on your OTA local station.

 

[samatha6]

USDTV is a parasite! They contract with one of your local stations to siphon off some of their bandwidth. That results in bit-starved HD on your OTA local station.

So true.. I think one of my OTA locals sold so much that they can only broadcast a 480i signal.. with no chance of doing HD. Even DBS does not always broadcast true HD. Now we have HDlite... The FCC should have made standards for HD.. Now HD is being crippled.. before it even gets off the ground. But the feds as I see it were in this for the money to resell the analog spectrum.. HD is coming to us for all the wrong reasons.

On the other hand.. Its good to know I have an option like USD if DBS/cable prices hit my pain threshold.