OT-Direct TV vs Cable
thecaptain12
Senior Member
In the next six months my family is building a new house and I am tired of paying too much for TV. I know with the internet/net flix/Hulu Plus, you can make things cheaper. Currently have Comcast (xfinity) bundle (tv, phone and Net) and get HBO and 2 HD DVR boxes. It seems like these prices are just getting out of control. I use to play the "I'm going to switch services card" (from WOW to Comcast and back) in order to get the cheapest service and it worked but I am sick of switching back and forth.
I have been researching Direct TV and it seems so cheap, but don't know if it comes with any issues? I have also thought of getting the middle of the road cable package, then adding NFL ticket or NCAA package. That way I don't need the huge package to see all football games.
My wifes work gives her HULU PLUS for free that we can watch through our Blu Ray player, and all she really wants is HBO which I know is extra, and HGTV which I am sure comes with the basic package.
Any insight into this would be very grateful. Thanks
I have been researching Direct TV and it seems so cheap, but don't know if it comes with any issues? I have also thought of getting the middle of the road cable package, then adding NFL ticket or NCAA package. That way I don't need the huge package to see all football games.
My wifes work gives her HULU PLUS for free that we can watch through our Blu Ray player, and all she really wants is HBO which I know is extra, and HGTV which I am sure comes with the basic package.
Any insight into this would be very grateful. Thanks
Comments
When you sign up they will charge you bulk up front fee for HD/DVR boxes that is usually a few hundred bucks. In addition you will have to pay $10 monthly HD fee and $8 month DVR fee. They also charge you $6 per for any active receiver you have in your home.
I have basic middle of the line package with HD/DVR and my bill is $125 or so a month.
Just a heads up before you make a decision based solely on costs.
As far as the actual tv, it works fine unless its storming hard. However, good luck if you ever have to deal with the customer service as I have a few nightmare stories from my previous encounters.
The one thing I do with Directv I call every 8 months or so and this is a sample of what I tell them. They always answer saying hello and thank you for being a VIP customer since 1992 and I tell them yes I enjoy your service and I know you see in your computer notes that I call from time to time complaining about seeing all the stuff you want to give the new customer but you never offer anything to your loyal customers. They always say hold on lets see what promotions we have this month for our loyal customers. They always come back with something one time it was $20 a month off my bill for 6 months most of the time it $5 or $10 for 6 months but always something. I think they're by far the best out their at this time. The CS their Reception and lack of over-all problems. Also if you have to have a tech come out you can always politely talk them out of the $49. Charge the first time. I had to change an old box in my office to an HD box and they required the tech come out to set it up talked them right out of the charge.
They do treat their long time customer a little different where's most other company's don't give a shit. Got a little long winded there sorry about that.
Before you sign up though, you should look at the total outlay of costs over the entire 24 month Direct TV contract compared to other options. Make sure you are comparing like services and programming packages but look at the entire picture and not just the first months of discounts. For most people that like sports and have multiple tv's that require HD or HD DVR boxes, I think Direct TV is the way to go.
The only service outages I've had were when the dish gets covered in snow-- and I just wiped it off with my hand and everything was fine. Do get scrambled eggs occasionally-- but used to get that with cable too.
My experience similar to OT's--Direct TV cust since 1995 and love the NFL Superfan Package
I am not sure if DTV is exactly what your looking for but I certainly love it.