Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Can anyone tell me how Direct TV compares to Time Warner in terms of reliability, service etc? I live in the Southpoint area and I'm thinking of switching from Time Warner to Direct TV to receive a couple of channels that I can't get on cable.
I'm somewhat satisfied with Time Warner although we have had problems in the past. Is Direct TV better or worse?
I ditched TW and live in SE Durham and haven't looked back. I love Direct TV over TW cable. However, also TW at my house would have all sorts of problems and they could never fix the issues with the lines.
I'm sure you will receive a dozen of opinions for/against these service companies. While so many tell me TWC gives bad service, I've had them for over 5 years and have been VERY HAPPY with the product and the service. I had one issue that was resolved promptly. My neighbor has Direct TV and has been just as happy as I have been with TWC. I think it all comes down to personal experience.
We had too many issues with the TWC box. TWC customer service was never rude, but they were never able to help us. Being put on hold numerous times for over 30 minutes was aggravating. Since my boyfriend bought his house back in May we have been with DirecTV and couldn't be happier. We find the HD quality and channel selection to be much better. The picture went out twice for maybe two minutes b/c of weather. With TWC the picture would go out much more often and for longer periods of time. If you're happy with TWC you may not care to switch, but for anyone unhappy I would definitely make the switch if it is possible. As an added bonus we can program our DVR from our iPhone app when we are not home. TWC may have added this too though?
It depends on how you want it set up inside your house.
I had a bad experience with DTV installation crew/service and thus went with TWC. I have one line entering my house from the outside and then it splits in a distribution box inside my coat closet. The problem with their DVR box is that you need two lines running directly from the satelite dish to the receiver unless they install a SWM (called a swim) box. They refused to install a swim box for me because I was only ordering two boxes (one DVR, one regular, counting as three lines) and they said I needed to order 5 lines to get the swim box (that would've cost me $200 more).
We were at a stand off because I didn't want holes drilled in my house and they didn't want to provide me with the solution to having only one cable coming into my house. I told them to go pound sand and went with TWC, which gave me the chance to keep my beloved TiVo. I'm happy with TWC so far (have had them about 5 months).
I have been very happy with DirecTV this year since switching over from cable when we moved. Yes, everyone has an opinion, but here's a fact: If HD matters to you, DirecTV offers way more HD channels, and the picture is much better. Sending HD signals via satellite instead of coaxial cable means a less compressed, much clearer signal. Maybe that will change someday when we all have super-high bandwidth fiberoptic cables running into our house, but that's a long way off.
Also, I have heard nightmare stories about DirecTV installers. They're subcontracted by DirecTV, so it really depends on who you get. I could not have possibly been happier with our installation. The guy was quick, professional, courteous, didn't flinch at running a cable through the crawlspace, and didn't charge us a dime extra.
Be careful about paying Direct TV with a debit card. After we cancelled, and they claimed we owed them $200 (we didn't) they made an unauthorized debit to our checking account of that amount throwing us into a negative balance and almost $200 in NSF fees. I disputed it with my bank and thankfully they found in our favor and credited everything back. But since they had our debit card number because we made a one time payment online, they claimed that card was on "file" and they were free to debit it for charges at any time (sorry for them though, the bank thought otherwise). If you google Direct TV unauthorized debits/charges, this seems to be quite a common practice with them. I've been a Direct TV customer for over 10 years but refuse to ever go back with them over this because they refused to reverse it or even look into it.
Be careful about paying Direct TV with a debit card.
I don't pay any recurring bills with my debit card (or via debit to my checking account). It's just too easy for things like this to happen and not just with Directv. I have a handful of small recurring charges (<$10) that go on a regular VISA, and I pay the rest of my bills (Directv included) via online banking so that I can control what is being paid when. Much safer that way!
edit: Let's put it this way - TWC sent me a bill for over $200 when I didn't return my cable modem fast enough. If they were setup on auto-debit they would have very happily deducted that money first and asked questions later!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I think it all comes down to personal experience.
