Wanting to switch from Cable to satellite...please help!

[Bond007]

Hello everyone, i'm new here

I have been looking all over the net these past few days trying to get people's opinions etc on what they thought of satellite TV providers. And I came across this place!

Anyway, here is my situation, My wife and I have had Brighthouse Networks (cable) for years, and have never had any problems. With the exception of the bill. Which is now getting too costly. Not because of rates going up, just with the prices of gas, and our first baby on the way, we need to make some cut backs here and there. So, trimming all the fat off of our Cable bill, it's still going to cost about 85.37 a month. That price includes 2 DVR's which we just can't live without! Well, that price is just too much anymore, and most of the channels we can live without, so...

We have been looking into Dish Network or DirecTV. As it stands right now, we are leaning towards Dish, because they are offering the "America's Top 100" for 32.99 which is perfect for us. I was under the impression that with 2 TV's in separate rooms that 2 DVR's would be needed, but after looking a little harder, Dish gives you one DVR for 2 bedrooms. (?) After all is said and done, we believe the price (in our area) will be around $55. a month after taxes and fees (give or take)

But, my questions are:

• How does the Dual Tuner DVR work? With one DVR, can my wife watch a recorded show in one room, while I watch a recorded show in another? Can she watch a recorded show in one room while I watch live TV in the other?

• I live in Florida, and the weather can get nasty here, will satallite go in and out a lot?

• Is Dish the best choice for me, or is DirecTV better? It seams like DirecTV and cable are so close in pricing, that it would not be worth the switch. Or is Dish not being very truthful about hidden fees on their website?

• The Brighthouse DVR is very nice and user friendly with a great user interface, how is the Dish DVR's interface?

• Is it wise to go for the 24 month commitment? I have never needed a commitment with cable before, and am very weary of that.

Well, i guess thats all i am wondering right now. Thanks and I hope someone can help me!

 

[jayn_j]

Hello everyone, i'm new here

Welcome. I hope we can help.

But, my questions are:

• How does the Dual Tuner DVR work? With one DVR, can my wife watch a recorded show in one room, while I watch a recorded show in another? Can she watch a recorded show in one room while I watch live TV in the other?

Yes, all of the above. The setup is very flexible. You can even be watching different points of the same show at the same time. You also have the nice feature that everything gets recorded on the same DVR, so you can view it in either location.

• I live in Florida, and the weather can get nasty here, will satallite go in and out a lot?

Won't lie. When the weather comes in heavy, the sat goes south. It generally happens during the heaviest storms. Drizzles and light overcast won't take it out. I used to lose it maybe 4 times/year for 20 minutes at a stretch, but I suspect hurricanes will keep it out for hours/days. I'll leave it to Fla owners to discuss how well the dish withstands hurricanes.

• Is Dish the best choice for me, or is DirecTV better? It seams like DirecTV and cable are so close in pricing, that it would not be worth the switch. Or is Dish not being very truthful about hidden fees on their website?

There are some fees. If you stay with the single box, the fees are under $10/mo. DirecTV is slightly higher. It is the better choice if you plan on subscribing to sports packages. They also have more HD right now, but that doesn't seem to be a concern for you.

• The Brighthouse DVR is very nice and user friendly with a great user interface, how is the Dish DVR's interface?

Don't know which box Brighthouse uses, but if it is the motorola DVR, the DISH unit is much better. I have used both recently, and there is no comparison.

• Is it wise to go for the 24 month commitment? I have never needed a commitment with cable before, and am very weary of that.

That is a definite downside, but there is a fair amount of equipment dedicated to you, so they need to recoup the investment. Cable has a somewhat lower investment, as the boxes are leased and returned, and there is no dish or switches to amortize. You can avoid the commitment, but it involves paying a few hundred in upfront costs.

Good luck with your search and feel free to ask any follow-up questions.

 

[Bond007]

Welcome. I hope we can help.


Yes, all of the above. The setup is very flexible. You can even be watching different points of the same show at the same time. You also have the nice feature that everything gets recorded on the same DVR, so you can view it in either location.

Hmm, sounds good. I had no idea such a thing existed. How will this work with 2 remotes and the box on the other side of the house? Is there a delay when pressing play or pause or anything?

Won't lie. When the weather comes in heavy, the sat goes south. It generally happens during the heaviest storms. Drizzles and light overcast won't take it out. I used to lose it maybe 4 times/year for 20 minutes at a stretch, but I suspect hurricanes will keep it out for hours/days. I'll leave it to Fla owners to discuss how well the dish withstands hurricanes.

So, the everyday summer afternoon thunderstorms here in Fla might be a problem huh?

There are some fees. If you stay with the single box, the fees are under $10/mo. DirecTV is slightly higher. It is the better choice if you plan on subscribing to sports packages. They also have more HD right now, but that doesn't seem to be a concern for you.

So, basically he price is pretty much what they have it at online. Thats good!

Don't know which box Brighthouse uses, but if it is the motorola DVR, the DISH unit is much better. I have used both recently, and there is no comparison.

The box is made by Scientific Altantica

That is a definite downside, but there is a fair amount of equipment dedicated to you, so they need to recoup the investment. Cable has a somewhat lower investment, as the boxes are leased and returned, and there is no dish or switches to amortize. You can avoid the commitment, but it involves paying a few hundred in upfront costs.

Guess they leave you no choice really but to take the 2 year contract.

Good luck with your search and feel free to ask any follow-up questions.

Thanks! I appreciate your help!

 

[jayn_j]

Hmm, sounds good. I had no idea such a thing existed. How will this work with 2 remotes and the box on the other side of the house? Is there a delay when pressing play or pause or anything?

The 2 tuner boxes come with 2 remotes. The one in the room with the box is IR, the other is UHF so it can pass through walls.

So, the everyday summer afternoon thunderstorms here in Fla might be a problem huh?

Maybe. The ordinary 20 minute Colorado thunderstorms seldom bothered it. The ones that did it in were the ones where you worried if there was a tornado buried in those clouds somewhere.

The box is made by Scientific Altantica

No experience with the SA box. The DISH units are rock solid though and well thought out. I think you will be happy with them.

 

[Bond007]

So here is what i think i am going to do.

We have an HDTV, and in order to save money, we planned on just not getting any HD content. (It was purchased for Blu-Ray movies and HD games). But, it seems like Dish has HD programing for pretty cheap. So...

For $60.95 a month, we can get America's Top 100, with some HD channels (no locals available here yet, ) 2 DVR's, one HD DVR and another regular DVR. (we record 3 or 4 shows at a time some nights)

For the 60 bucks a month, thats how much our cable provider is charging right now for just standard digital cable, no DVR's, no HD.

• I was wondering, with the 2 dvr's, can we record 3 to 4 shows at a time like we can now with Brighhouse? Is there some kind of limit with satalite's? (I dont think there are, but, wanted to make sure)

• Also, we plan on keeping our cable companies internet, cause it's priced right and very fast. Will this cause any install issues with the DISH Network stuff?

• And off hand, besides having to plug in the Coaxal cable and the componant cables to the HD DVR, is there anything else the installer guy will need to have access to, cause it is VERY difficult to get behind our HD TV, and if the box uses the same cables as our cable companies box, then he wont need to get back there, and the TV wont need to be moved.

• I read somewhere online that after a few months the bill will go up 20 bucks? Why? (The pricing i have is from filling out the stuff on Dishnetwork.com)

Anyway, i guess these are my last questions, lol. I would call them, but, i want to be 100% sure about some stuff before i do, so they dont call me 5 times a week wanting to know if i want to switch yet. lol!

Thanks!!!!!

 

[jayn_j]

So here is what i think i am going to do.

For $60.95 a month, we can get America's Top 100, with some HD channels (no locals available here yet, ) 2 DVR's, one HD DVR and another regular DVR. (we record 3 or 4 shows at a time some nights)

You might want to consider "moving" to get some HD locals as well. You can search other threads for info on this, or PM me and I can probably help with specifics.

• I was wondering, with the 2 dvr's, can we record 3 to 4 shows at a time like we can now with Brighhouse? Is there some kind of limit with satalite's? (I dont think there are, but, wanted to make sure)

a 722 can record up to three programs simultaneously, two from the sat plus one OTA. Two 722s can do up to 6.

I don't believe DISH will lease 2 622s though. YOu would need to purchase one, and for that I would recommend Dishstore.net. Claude is a regular contributer here and all around good guy.

• Also, we plan on keeping our cable companies internet, cause it's priced right and very fast. Will this cause any install issues with the DISH Network stuff?

No, the DISH stuff will likely be installed with separate cables. You might want to consider keeping lifeline cable if it is part of a bundle. This could be fed into the 622 antenna input and provide any HD locals that are on the cable. Just an option.

• And off hand, besides having to plug in the Coaxal cable and the componant cables to the HD DVR, is there anything else the installer guy will need to have access to, cause it is VERY difficult to get behind our HD TV, and if the box uses the same cables as our cable companies box, then he wont need to get back there, and the TV wont need to be moved.

The reason I said that DISH will likely use their own cables is that the sat signal needs special high bandwidth coax (RG-6 or better) and cable generally uses RG-59 which won't work. Also, you can't have splitters in the line. You need a cable from the receiver directly to the dish for each receiver.

• I read somewhere online that after a few months the bill will go up 20 bucks? Why? (The pricing i have is from filling out the stuff on Dishnetwork.com)

Because everybody has promotional pricing these days. The additional $20 depends on your packages and particular promotions. BTW, I believe some promotions are changing Mar 1, so you might want to commit today, or be prepared to figure the packages and pricing all over again tomorrow.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[stevenl]

why would you want to ruin your tv experiance?

 

[thomas34461usa]

Reception question

So, the everyday summer afternoon thunderstorms here in Fla might be a problem huh?

Hello and Welcome to this forum Bond007,
I too live in Florida, not too far from you. I live on the Gulf of Mexico side, near Crystal River. At this time I too have Brighthouse cable. Every time it storms hard and it knocks out the electric the cable goes out too. Most often the electric power will come right back on in a second. Not the case for the cable as we have to wait till the cable re boots. Whats even worst is the "Smart Boxes" and the "DVR/Smart Boxes" as you have to wait even more.

I use to live in Wyoming and while I lived there I had DirecTV. I thought that was pretty good for what they have to offer. I would only lose the ability to watch TV when it was snowing and the dish was caked with snow. We won't have that problem down here! It looks to me that the Dish Network offers a good package. If you are a "Sports Fan" who can't be away from watching the games, DirecTV is your answer.

Guess they leave you no choice really but to take the 2 year contract.

You could pay up front for the equipment. Two years for them to recoup their investment back isn't too bad for you. I take it with your Username Bond007 that you are willing to take a risk once in a while?

Like I said I have Brighthouse, but not for long as I'm getting ready to put up a C/KU Band Satellite dish.
Aye,
Thomas

 

[Bond007]

Awesome, thanks for your help everyone! Calling Dish tonight!

 

[Andrewwski]

You don't need to pay upfront for the equipment to avoid the contract...it's only a $49.99 charge.

 

[lhfh]

I have had cable for 30+ years. The cost of cable is out of line. I Finally made the switch to Dish two months ago. I have the top 100 package with the SD DVR625. The picture quality is noticeably far better than a analog cable. Wish I had made the move sooner.