Direct TV or Dish..Satellite Television??

[Cohiba]

Hey All,

In the Sunday paper today I noticed advertisements for Dish and Direct TV.

Give me the absolute Pros & Cons on these satellite hookups.

I have always heard that bad weather(storms,clouds,snow...etc) causes them to go out....no signal. Any truth to this?? Mounting on the roof of the house, is this the only way to hookup the reciever dish?

I have Cox cable and have NO complaints. I just thought I might hook up a satellite in the "man-cave" on my new 47", to get the total experience for the football season.

Also, is there any cost advantage to a satellite-vs-cable?

Thanks!!
Cohiba

 

[1911Sooner]

I would like to know to answers as well. My Cox bill has sky rocketed to $150 per month and the on demand service sucks and doesn't work. I am paying for "tiers" I don't want or use because they are bundled in certain packages.

From what I've read satellite will still cost more than cable in the end. My deal is I have cable in the living room, my bedroom, and both kids rooms so that would be 4 hook ups for satellite. I'm thinking of just keeping basic cable in the the bedrooms and getting dish network or direct tv in the living room.

 

[Snyperc]

Direct TV wins hands down. Dish screws their customers every chance they get. Having worked for them I know how they do everything they can to squeeze every last cent out of their customers. They treat their employees just as bad. If they were the last option I would do without.
If you opt for Dish, you will be screwed whether you realize it or not.
Dave

 

[Danny]

I've heard lots of stories from owners of satellite tv. Birds landing on the dish, weather knocking it out (just when you need it), etc. I hate the cost of cable, but it is WAY more reliable than satellite. According to those I've talked to.

 

[einsteinwv]

Cox will be getting NFL redzone this football season. I believe its 30 bucks for the whole season like 5 bucks a month or something, Video to video there's not a huge advantage only reliability Once a house is done right with cable there's hardly ever a problem. There are only a few channels that are different between all. Every Provider has exclusives , Advantage comes from Bundling your stuff, If you have phone Internet and video there's a nice cost advantage You save alot of money.

I have seen one house now who the guy in his man cave has two TV's One to run the football game of his choice and one to be on constant redzone.

Oh and forgot to add above all, Satellite you will be in a contract. Cable you have choices.

 

[doctruptwn]

I can speak for all 3.

Cable was very reliable but with basic service you have very limited channels and the cost cost oy vey.

With the Satellite I get about 3 times the number of channels. Only watch about 10 of them but I've got them none the less. That being said the cost is about the same for cable or satellite. My mother has Dish Network, I have Direct TV, We have the same basic package, no premium channels. She gets about half the channels that I do. Her channel package is better than Cable but not much. For example I receive, Discovery, Discovery Health, Discovery International, Military Channel (which is a former Discovery Channel). She get Discovery, and Discovery Health. I have Outdoor Channel that is a separate Charge, But isn't available on her Dish Network.

The good thing about Dish network is you only need one box to cover up to 4 TV's in your house. With Direct TV you need a box for every TV.

As for weather. The only times I have trouble is when there is a highly electrical situation, ie. Lots of lightening, and the signal is interrupted. If it is just an occasional flash kinda situation it doesn't get bothered that much. The other time is when it snows a huge amount and the dish gets covered up by a bunch of snow. I'm talking 4-5 inches or more, of snow on the dish, if it is just a small covering it doesn't bother it.

Hope that helps.

 

[Davs2601]

I have had both and liked the functions within the menu of the directv system alot more. Dish is confusing and hard to manage recordings. But it's alot cheaper than directv. Have you looked at AT&T uverse. I heard it was awesome and cheap as well although not available in all areas.

 

[einsteinwv]

Uverse Oklahoma is part of a Class Action lawsuit, So be weary getting them for the current time.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4182/is_20100803/ai_n54736231/

 

[reddog1]

no matter waht you choose... you are screwed. Period.

and with dish or direct.... an itty bitty cloud comes over your house and *POOF* no more TV.
still costs over 100 bucks a month for cable or satellite.
I have FVHD (Farmer Vision HD)
Cheap, and does'nt go out when a tiny cloud comes by

 

[cjjtulsa]

no matter waht you choose... you are screwed. Period.

and with dish or direct.... an itty bitty cloud comes over your house and *POOF* no more TV.
still costs over 100 bucks a month for cable or satellite.
I have FVHD (Farmer Vision HD)
Cheap, and does'nt go out when a tiny cloud comes by

I pay $62.50/month for Dish with HD channels, and only have problems with outages if there is a monsoon downpour, lots of lightning, or heavy snow. I like having one receiver for our two TVs. Wouldn't mind DirectTV, either, but have had (been screwed by) Dish Network for several years, so I'm pretty used to their setup.