Why D* for my Dad?

[Scrib]

So my Dad has finally decided to step into the 21st century and get a HDTV. A Pioneer Elite 50" plasma to be exact... Lucky guy!

He wants to get some sort of a HD DVR with his HD service. He currently has E* with a Dish 500 and no contractual committment to E*. Three TVs in the house, all SD right now.

He's all confused on what HD service to go with. And frankly, so am I.

Comcast is available in our area, but his previous experiences with Comcast are making him hesitate a bit. To me, going back to cable is the easiet solution and offers pretty decent PQ.

I know nothing about E* and thier HD capabilities. I do know he'll have to upgrade the dish and equipment. No local HD channel availability though E*.

With D* things seem so darn complicated. He's in the Chicago DMA, so he can get the AT9 dish and H20 for HD locals. But then he can't get the DVR. He's got a huge antenna on the roof, so all locals can probably be received OTA, however. But then what happens when the H20-250 comes out? Guaranteed upgrade? I would have him get everything through Robert. But I don't know if D* is the answer.


We were out today and he mentioned that it's harder to figure out the service provider than it is to identify which TV to buy. I'd have to agree. If I were starting fresh, I'd be comfused too.

Anyone have any thoughts on this?

 

[vurbano]

If he wants HD then D* is NOT the place. The downrezzed bitstarved crap will leave a bad taste in his mouth. His best bet is Dish and the VIP 622 IMO. http://www.dishstore.net/

 

[dragon002]

go with directv, you wont regret it. there is a whole lot of exciting stuff very, very soon.

www.directv.com


somebody up there loves you, and it aint char-lie....LOL

 

[GeorgeLV]

Call E* customer retention and go with whoever makes the best offer.

 

[FlyingJ]

LOL, just what he needed. Vurbano, after reading many posts of yours I finally had to go on a search and see the HD feed for Dish. Finally saw it at a home about 4 blocks from me. Honest, V, I really don't think it was any better than D* Checked all the channels...live, sports, movies. The cable here might actually be the better choice Pic wise but their deals, service and selection sucks. I am with you on the HD Lite thing but frankly I haven't seen any better on any other system.

 

[steve615]

go with directv, you wont regret it. there is a whole lot of exciting stuff very, very soon.

www.directv.com

Could you elaborate more on this dragon?New DIRECTV customer as of last night. Any hints or tips as to what is coming and how soon?

 

[riffjim4069]

If he wants HD then D* is NOT the place. The downrezzed bitstarved crap will leave a bad taste in his mouth. His best bet is Dish and the VIP 622 IMO. http://www.dishstore.net/

Vurbano's statement is, sadly, 100% correct. I was hoping D* would be the HD Leader at this point in time, but they are lagging well behind Dish Network.

 

[FlyingJ]

I beg to differ...I will trade you your Voom Channels for the ability to watch my beloved Philadelphia Eagles in HD every Sunday. Don't underestimate the power that Sunday Ticket has. It had it before but now with most games in HD it will even hold more. The demographics of those watching the NFL in HD over the next 4 years hold way more clout than the Voomers ever could.

 

[GeorgeLV]

Vurbano's statement is, sadly, 100% correct. I was hoping D* would be the HD Leader at this point in time, but they are lagging well behind Dish Network.

It's almost like when DirecTV says clearly they're launching their new HD satellites in 2007 they actually mean it or something...

 

[dragon002]

go with directv, you wont regret it. there is a whole lot of exciting stuff very, very soon.

www.directv.com

Could you elaborate more on this dragon?New DIRECTV customer as of last night. Any hints or tips as to what is coming and how soon?

steve ,

congratulations.,

directv shot up two of the costliest , most tec -advanced and heaviest sats ever built, two more are going up in the next year. the two that are up there have 54 steerable spot beam transponders each, the next two have a minimum of 32 each. there is a lot of programming coming soon.

if you want to stay with echostar and watch an endless, and i do mean ENDLESS loop of BS, just to say you are watching HD , go for it. if you want to go with a forward looking leader, directv is where you want to be. the fox HD channels are going to blow VoOm away.
ergen will never get the NFL SUNDAY TICKET, and J is correct, that is a HUGE draw.

directv did not shoot those birds up there to brag they did it. something big is about to happen , and it will shut up all the nay-sayers.:devil:

 

[boston area dtv]

I have direct tv. I have HD, but how can anyone tell someone who to go with? Its your own preference. I agree with dragon, that in the future that Directv will be the HD leader however right now they arent...And Dish isnt that much better.

As for honest advice I think the guy should check out his local cable provider or FIOS if available. They both have terrific HD signals and come 07 when D* has the satellites up and running he can make an educated assessment of the HD landscape. I do believe with cable and FIOS you dont need to buy all the equipment up front or give a two year commitment.

My advice is for you to sit back and enjoy your HD. Dont make any major HD equipment purchases or commitments, and see what shakes out in 07

 

[JAG72]

I would see about picking all the locals up OTA (if the TV has a HD tuner) and wait to see what shakes out the next couple of months.

 

[RIRWIN1983]

I beg to differ...I will trade you your Voom Channels for the ability to watch my beloved Philadelphia Eagles in HD every Sunday. Don't underestimate the power that Sunday Ticket has. It had it before but now with most games in HD it will even hold more. The demographics of those watching the NFL in HD over the next 4 years hold way more clout than the Voomers ever could.

which is ovious and why voom when belly up.

 

[nickg420]

As someone who made the "MPEG-4" jump w/E* and as someone who had every HD channel they offered from the day Voom moved to E*. I have moved to D* and never looked back.......Ultimately as many have said it entirely depends on what YOU want.....

sure E* has what like 30 HD channels now.....of those 30 how many will you really watch???????

the approach D* is taking : Why slap up 45 HD channels just to say "Hey we have over 45 HD Channels!!!"??? But that's exactly what E* did!!

Sure some Voom is ok but alot of it is pure BS even if it was at full 1920x1080i it would still be a total waste of bandwidth.......GameplayHD for example.....someone sold their soul to the Devil for that channel to make the list...While Rave was one of the best channels I had ever seen.....but you have to ask yourself am I going to sit and watch garbage just because it's in HD?????

The next question is are you a quality or quantity customer?? Do you want 45 HD channels at less quality regardless of the content or 10 channels of compelling HD programming???

You'll also hear people throw around the term HD-Lite and how it's false advertising blah blah blah.........Again I can't tell a huge difference but then again I don't have a 10,000 dollar plasma either....

So I can't tell you who you should go with but from my experience from both providers D* is top on my list right now.......... better PQ, better CSRs and they don't have a CEO who will constantly piss down your back and tell you it's raining. Then again if cable ever comes to my area it may be a better route at that point,

just weigh your options and decide for yourself. DO NOT listen to what someone on this forum has to say about a provider that may have pissed him/her off.

just my .02

 

[vurbano]

1920 x 1080i is 2.07 million pixels = True HD which Dish provides on the channels both providers offer.
1280 x 1080i is 1.38 million pixels = D* HDLITE aka CRAP. And when you see the affects of their bitrate slashing its sometimes no better than Superbit DVD.

you decide.

 

[dragon002]

he did decide, hes with directv and he is happy.

 

[steve615]

steve ,

congratulations.,

directv shot up two of the costliest , most tec -advanced and heaviest sats ever built, two more are going up in the next year. the two that are up there have 54 steerable spot beam transponders each, the next two have a minimum of 32 each. there is a lot of programming coming soon.

if you want to stay with echostar and watch an endless, and i do mean ENDLESS loop of BS, just to say you are watching HD , go for it. if you want to go with a forward looking leader, directv is where you want to be. the fox HD channels are going to blow VoOm away.
ergen will never get the NFL SUNDAY TICKET, and J is correct, that is a HUGE draw.

directv did not shoot those birds up there to brag they did it. something big is about to happen , and it will shut up all the nay-sayers.:devil:

dragon,thanks for the reply.I am very pleased with the offer that DIRECTV made to me as a new sub.I am looking forward to seeing what new programming options they will deliver to the customers in the near future,sounds like it will be interesting and exciting times coming soon from DIRECTV.: :up

 

[r.jones1116]

1920 x 1080i is 2.07 million pixels = True HD which Dish provides on the channels both providers offer.
1280 x 1080i is 1.38 million pixels = D* HDLITE aka CRAP. And when you see the affects of their bitrate slashing its sometimes no better than Superbit DVD.

you decide.

I have a HDTV that supplies picture info, i.e., the resolution and if it's interlaced or progressive.

The picture info shows that the D* channels that broadcast in 1080i are at 1920 X 1080i resolution. So, is it really HD lite? If it is, then my TV set is giving bad information.

Vurbano were you the one that always complained about the "skeeter noise" in the Voom forum?

 

[dragon002]

I have a HDTV that supplies picture info, i.e., the resolution and if it's interlaced or progressive.

The picture info shows that the D* channels that broadcast in 1080i are at 1920 X 1080i resolution. So, is it really HD lite? If it is, then my TV set is giving bad information.

Vurbano were you the one that always complained about the "skeeter noise" in the Voom forum?

thats him, lovable ,cheerful Vurbano.

no correct picks in pro football, hates the Steelers.

VoOm was going to make it. (that was precious)

directv is garbage.

and the "skeeter noise, the skeeter noise"" "are those WIRE HANGERS!!!! WIRE HANGERS ON THE CLOTHES I BOUGHT YOU!!!!???!!!!

just some levity,,, ok??