DISH or DIRECTV (lease, buy, versus)

[azriverfan.]

The other reason to go with DIRECTV is they have the NFL Sunday Ticket which if you are a sports fan is a huge bonus

[Desertspiritsteve]

I have one more year on my Direct tv. It's around $100/month for HD and DVR. 3 receivers. No one ever turns the tv on. I'll switch to a roof top hd antenna when this is over with. I had dish network for years and had only HBO a la carte with an upcharge of $5/month for no programming. I should have kept that. Most of my viewing comes from the internet. I watch German tv everyday streaming. The quality is excellent. I will stay with the Cox Premiere internet unless I upgrade to extreme ($100/month). I think that most of the programming will come from the internet (streaming) in the future. South Park is available in full screen in near HD quality. Every episode from day one is available. Check out Roku, Hulu, Netflix and some of the other stuff available. I'll not get locked into another multi-year contract.

[nicoleeee]

DIRECTTV! Great customer service, been with them 7yrs.

[Desertspiritsteve]

Most of the customer service is in India. I have only contacted them a couple of times. I was in the path of the great hail storm, and the Slimline dish took a hit. I called them about it and they wanted $70 to come out and fix it. You can take out an insurance policy for even more money every month. Even the receivers in your house are property of Direct TV and Dish Network. If they break, you have to pay to fix them. I inspected my Slimline HD satellite dish and discovered the the hail didn't damage any functional parts. So, I'll ignore it until I return their equipment in a year. If I felt the need to buy television programming, I'd do it with Cox. You can even bundle their services for lower costs. Top notch broadband internet is important to me. Direct tv was money down a rat hole for me.

[Lindsey_Mcfarren]

Personally I would go to each companies websites, they both have different features that the others don't have. Like Dish has the capability of streaming your TV viewing to a mobile device and they also have a sling box loaded tuner, with Directv, you can get a sling box but its a separate piece of equipment and of course there are programming differences. You just have to decide what is important to you.

[Ponderosa]

Originally Posted by Beware_of_Dog

I just Friday called my Direct TV customer service department. Told them I was changing to Dish Network because they are cheaper and I want the newest DVR equipment. They immediately lowered my rate of $108 per month down to $68 and are sending a service guy out Monday to update my receivers for no cost. They said it was because I was a long time premium customer and they don't want to lose my business. They said if I call back every 6 months they will make sure I keep the lower rate or give me an even lower one if their rates come down at all. Sounded like a good deal, plus I love the NFL package which no one else has.

Thanks for that! I just called and did pretty much the same thing. Got new receivers, and additional HD TV setup and upgraded service level all for less than I was paying, although it all goes up in a year. Anyway, you saved me several hundred bucks over the coming year.

[ForexFerret]

I can't speak for Direct tv but the Dish dvr's are cheap junk that break often. Once one breaks on you they start to send you refurbished units that weren't fixed properly, so they break even quicker.

[Lindsey_Mcfarren]

Originally Posted by ForexFerret

I can't speak for Direct tv but the Dish dvr's are cheap junk that break often. Once one breaks on you they start to send you refurbished units that weren't fixed properly, so they break even quicker.

I have wondered about this issue. For my entire time with Directv I have had TIVO units, I once tried one of Directv's own units and I went through 3 of them before I decided to purchase another TIVO. I have never had Dish but last I checked TIVO could not be used with DISH.

[Beware_of_Dog]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

Thanks for that! I just called and did pretty much the same thing. Got new receivers, and additional HD TV setup and upgraded service level all for less than I was paying, although it all goes up in a year. Anyway, you saved me several hundred bucks over the coming year.

Good, I thought someone else might go for it also. I forgot to say that they gave me the next 2 months free also. I was so happy with their offer that I didn't think to ask for anything else extra. Probably could have gotten a few months of HBO free too. Doubt if it costs them anything.

[Jukesgrrl]

Originally Posted by lilsprstr

We've had Dish Network for 8 years and have been happy with it. Whenever I've compared prices, it's always been cheaper than Directv.

Dish Network should be cheaper. It's basic package has significantly fewer channel options than DirecTV. I switched from Comcast cable to DirecTV a year ago and my reception is much improved. I had constant pixelization and black outs with my Comcast service in suburban Tucson. I saved a lot on rebates the first year of my two-year contract, but now that the rebates are expired, the price is only slightly less than my neighbor is still paying for comparable Comcast service -- but he doesn't have a recorder.

I have no complaints about customer service. And just for the record, when I've called them, the billing person I talked with was in Ohio and the technical service I called once was in North Dakota.