SO what are the real differences between direct TV and DIsh..i have had the dish for almost a month and am very happy with the service, infect I cant tell much of a difference between dish and comcast, another man I worked with also switched to dish and we were talking to another co-worker about how happy we are with it, he asked what the difference between dish and direct were, and the only thing I could think of was the NFL sunday ticket, I am sure there has to be more then that..could anyone fill me in? Also if i reccomend friends to switch to dish is there a referral reward of anytype, if so how do i get it?
whats the real difference between direct and dish
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dish network has dual tuner boxes and is thus cheaper for multiple TVs, and they use different dishes 
Did you switch from comcast regular cable or comcast digital cable? See, when I switched it was from regular (expanded) cable, but at one point when I switched from DSL to cable internet I decided to try their digital cable out of curiosity, and the equipment seemed so... old fashioned, that I canceled the service after like 3 days.
But yeah, one of the other differences is Dish Network is owned by Echostar while DirecTV is owned (majority controlling shares anyway) by News Corp (murdoch and friends) -- that may or may not be your cup of tea (it sure isn't mine).
lol, political differences aside - people always talk about how great directv boxes are, I've never used one so I can't say, but it seems to be like this:
Directv box > dish box > cable boxes..
*shrug* really though, when you set up a favorites list on the dish box or lock down all the channels you don't want, you have a list of the channels -- and only the channels, you want to regularly surf! No need to scroll through pages of PPV ads or shows you might not like (and if someone switches the lists well, that's what channel locking is for -- best part is you can hide locked channels too!)
That channel management is something comcast's boxes couldn't dream of having it seems
Did you switch from comcast regular cable or comcast digital cable? See, when I switched it was from regular (expanded) cable, but at one point when I switched from DSL to cable internet I decided to try their digital cable out of curiosity, and the equipment seemed so... old fashioned, that I canceled the service after like 3 days.
But yeah, one of the other differences is Dish Network is owned by Echostar while DirecTV is owned (majority controlling shares anyway) by News Corp (murdoch and friends) -- that may or may not be your cup of tea (it sure isn't mine).
lol, political differences aside - people always talk about how great directv boxes are, I've never used one so I can't say, but it seems to be like this:
Directv box > dish box > cable boxes..
*shrug* really though, when you set up a favorites list on the dish box or lock down all the channels you don't want, you have a list of the channels -- and only the channels, you want to regularly surf! No need to scroll through pages of PPV ads or shows you might not like (and if someone switches the lists well, that's what channel locking is for -- best part is you can hide locked channels too!)
That channel management is something comcast's boxes couldn't dream of having it seems
The differences include what LIL DMA are served and those not. The two are about 99% exact, just like the price, PQ, and channels offered. The dual tuner boxes from DISH offer a $5 saving per month per each box over #2 but at a reduced PQ. EX: 2 boxes save $5, 4 boxes save $10. DirecTV has the NFL and no one else does. DirecTV has a better plan for future growth and a better general record on hardware stability and CS. So if you don't need the NFL and your DMA is served by DISH, it is a clear toss up regardless of the over-hyped night & day differences some try to play off. They are 99.95% the same after you take out the NFL package.
DirecTv receivers are cheaper, smaller, and changes channels faster. Dish Network's dual tuner receivers is a big advantage though on monthly costs. You can save $5-15 a month in additional outlet fees with the dual tuner receivers.
DirecTV also has dual tuner receivers. Dish has dual output receivers, which DirecTV and Cable do not. They are not the same thing.
As for Cable receivers being dinosaurs, it depends on the model. My Moto 6412 is fine. The interface was a little nicer on my old Dish 721. But, not by much. Also, the 6412 is more stable, especially since Dish introduced all kinds of new bugs with their last couple of SW updates. And, you can't beat the true OnDemand of Cable. That's argueably their coolest feature and biggest advantage.
As for Cable receivers being dinosaurs, it depends on the model. My Moto 6412 is fine. The interface was a little nicer on my old Dish 721. But, not by much. Also, the 6412 is more stable, especially since Dish introduced all kinds of new bugs with their last couple of SW updates. And, you can't beat the true OnDemand of Cable. That's argueably their coolest feature and biggest advantage.
Did the 721 have the grey interface or the blue one?
The "i-guide" on the 2200 we had (which is supposedly the same one all comcast boxes get) is prehistoric. It lets you change colors and go to ondemand, but it's ugly as hell and .. well.. I'd much rather have a DVR than OnDemand.
And when I said dual tuner I also meant dual output, so yeah.
This is what I saw on the comcast box (the video preview pane eventually came up where it's supposed to, but not always):
http://www.talesmud.com/comcastvsdish.jpg
The "i-guide" on the 2200 we had (which is supposedly the same one all comcast boxes get) is prehistoric. It lets you change colors and go to ondemand, but it's ugly as hell and .. well.. I'd much rather have a DVR than OnDemand.
And when I said dual tuner I also meant dual output, so yeah.
This is what I saw on the comcast box (the video preview pane eventually came up where it's supposed to, but not always):
http://www.talesmud.com/comcastvsdish.jpg
nfl ticket, dual tuners, packages vary to a certain degrea, oh and one is spelled dish network and the other is spelled directv
Although the deciding factor should always be: how much does it cost?, and what programming can i get?, on the technical side Dish is using the DVB standard while DirecTV uses something else.
Dish equipment can also be used to subscribe to Sky Angel.
Dish equipment can also be used to subscribe to Sky Angel.
Dish uses more current technology for their LNB's and switches then Directv.
DiSEQc 2.0 switching allows for 1 cable from each LNB, and only 1 cable to a dual tuner receiver.
DiSEQc 2.0 switching allows for 1 cable from each LNB, and only 1 cable to a dual tuner receiver.
I don't remember what color the 721 UI was. I believe it was green. (It was different from both the old-style 301/501/811 UI and the new-style 522/625 UI.) I liked it, though.OoTLink said:
They're not mutually exclusive. My Comcast box has OnDemand AND is an HD DVR. (No $250 upgrade fee, either lke the Dish 942.)OoTLink said:
Unlike the pic in that link, my Comcast box has Video In Guide. I also prefer having more info on the screen. In those pics, the Comcast guide shows six lines of programming vs. Dish' four, making it superior in my POV.OoTLink said:
Getting back to the main differences between DirecTV and Dish:
HW - Dish may be more cutting edge. But, DirecTV is more stable and reliable.
HD - Dish has 10 of the Voom Originals channels. (Unfortunately, they appear to play the same programming over and over, with nothing new added since Dish started offering them.
DirecTV offers ALL FOUR major nets in HD. Dish only has CBS-HD.
They both offer EPSN-HD, Discovery-HD, and HDNet/HDNet Movies.
DirecTV has ESPN2-HD. Dish doesn't.
Dish has TNT-HD, while DirecTV has Universal-HD.
Locals - Dish provides locals to more DMA's. That is a major deciding factor for many people.
International - Dish offers far more International programming than DirecTV. However, DirecTV has increased their offerings in recent months. That is also a major deciding factor for many people. (Ironically, many of those channels are available free-to-air.)
Sports - DirecTV used to have a huge advantage here. Dish has recently added many sports channels, seriously closing the gap. But, they still lack YES and Sunday Ticket. They also have smaller coverage areas for many regional sports nets to save money. (For instance, many upstate NYers don't receive NYC sports nets from Dish. They are given rsn's from PA!!!)
Dish does offer a lot of niche International sports on PPV. Yet another big deciding factor.
General Programming - Very similar. A few channels here and there only available on one or the other. Dish has far more shopping, gaming, and public interest channels. Some people find that an asset, some find it a negative.
Price - Very similar. But, Dish offers the lowest price basic package, which is good enough for many people. Dish also has those dual-output receivers which save add'l receiver fees.
DirecTV charges a single $5 DVR fee per account. Dish charges $5 PER DVR.
Dish charges $5 per programming change if it results in a lower OR EQUAL monthly bill.
