Comcast service (Parker, Castle Rock: HOA, how much, home)

[ronniedp]

I'm going to be moving to Parker in a few weeks, and I'm in the process of ordering my utilities. Does anyone have a recommendation for TV service---Comcast vs DirecTV? I've never had satellite service before, and some friends have scared me with their descriptions of having to climb up on the roof to scrape snow from their satellite dishes in the winter. What about phone service? Does anyone have any experience with Comcast's digital phone service, or should I stick with Qwest? Is the digital phone service maintained in case of a power outage?

Thanks for your comments!

[janders01]

Go with comcast and as a new customer ask for bundles with TV and internet. You see people with dish but there is a problem if there's a big storm and its not like they are cheaper. Qwest is fine for telephone. I have basic service and use a cell phone.

[Jester76]

try looking here

[RedSoxFanGoingWest]

I refuse to use Comcast due to past customer service nightmares - not in CO but in other states. I have had DirecTV for years and will never go back to cable. I've lived in Baltimore, Cleveland and now Castle Rock CO and have never had any major weather related problems with it. I never lost a signal this winter during snow storms. On occassion a really bad thunderstorm will cause some reception problems.

DirecTV has 'new customer' bundles as well and their HD signal and programming, IMO, is better. My Dad and I have the same exact TV, he has Comcast, I get a better picture. I know it is not scientific evidence, but it's proof enough for me.

And, the sports features on DirecTV are better. Couldn't live with the MLB & NFL packages!

[ColoWeb]

ronniedp,
I'd do Comcast with phone, internet, and tv all in one. They have the $100 for all three promo from time to time.

[chilaili]

Originally Posted by ronniedp

I'm going to be moving to Parker in a few weeks, and I'm in the process of ordering my utilities. Does anyone have a recommendation for TV service---Comcast vs DirecTV? I've never had satellite service before, and some friends have scared me with their descriptions of having to climb up on the roof to scrape snow from their satellite dishes in the winter. What about phone service? Does anyone have any experience with Comcast's digital phone service, or should I stick with Qwest? Is the digital phone service maintained in case of a power outage?

Thanks for your comments!

I had Comcast when I first moved here and it was a nightmare. I've now had DirecTV for 2 years and been very happy. I've only had to scrape snow off once and that was during the Winter storms in 2006/2007. Once, when it rained so hard you couldn't see 6ft out the window, the dish lost the signal, but when the rain stopped the signal came right back. I've no experience of the digital phone service tho.

[Noahma]

There is also Dish Network, which has a better rep than Direct TV or Comcast with Tom Martino (consumer advocate on the radio here) Direct TV refused with one person to come fix a reciver after it started sparking (a call from a customer on his radio show)

my mom had the Comcast deal for all three, when the deal ran out, the price jumped THROUGH the roof!

We have never had a problem with reception with our dish.

[RedSoxFanGoingWest]

I've experienced only excellent customer service from DirecTV. I think there can be horror stories with any carrier. I've just had too many personally bad experiences with Comcast.

[enigmakairos]

I agree with the Comcast-haters. I've had Comcast Digital Cable, DirecTV and DISH Network. Of the three, I'll only go back to Comcast if one held a gun to my head. In MD we were forced to have Comcast because of a backdoor deal with the HOA that bundled their service into our monthly dues. We ended up paying for Verizon FiOS ON TOP of paying for Comcast simply because the comcast service was just that unreliable. In two years we've had at least 15 appointments/visits from reps, 5 missed appointments where I stayed home from work all day waiting for them to show, and 2 reports to the county commission that oversees their service. The last move is the only option to get them to send out a tech with some knowledge and/or experience.

When the HOA contract ended, I can't express how much joy it gave me to slam the door in the face of the door-to-door comcast solicitor's face. (I slammed it gently, lest you feel sorry for the individual grunts working for such evil incompetence.)


Between DirectTV and DISH, it's kind of a toss-up. Not sure which we'll move to when we get to Castle Rock.

[celes_18]

To answer the op questions:

What about phone service?
Its close to a voip because the service goes over the cable lines but unlike trraditional voips it doesn't go over the internet.

Does anyone have any experience with Comcast's digital phone service, or should I stick with Qwest?
I've had both a few times then I realized that I'm out to often and just upped my cell minutes. I haven't had issues with it either way but decided to drop a home phone. I also have had varying experiences with customer service. Its just people tend to remember the bad experiences far more then the good ones. I shudder to think of the issues I've had with Best buy/Ups and them losing a shipment of an expensive video game system before xmas. When it comes to all of my services I usually pay online or deal with people face to face because I've had bad experiences with call centers. I say choose what company you want due to a product, research what your getting, make sure you know what the regular not the promotional price is and remember that none of these huge companies care about you just your money.

Is the digital phone service maintained in case of a power outage?
There is a battery pack in the equipment that should keep your phone service running for X amount of hours you'd have to ask Comcast how long.