DirecTV vs. cable

[mlmdub130]

so i have had directv for about 6 years and it has been great i'd say it's 10 times better than cable. however the directv on demand is a huge let down it's pretty awful and it seems like directv is getting more and more expensive,and the programing has gotten worse.

i will be buying a new house soon and am thinking of switching to fios, since i can bundle tv, internet,and cell phones. just wondering if anyone has any first hand knowlegde about fios and what they thought of their service and how much they were paying.

i pay about $165 a month on average for directv since i have 3 dvr's two of them hd, another non hd box and i get every movie channel. any help would be great, just from looking at verizon's website looks like i can get all three for around $320 a month.

plus it will be nice not to have to throw snowballs at my dish to knock snow off so i get my hd channels, already had to to it twice during this storm, i even sprayed the damn thing with pam, since a directv tech told me that would help

[MTK]

You could always try bargaining with DTV. Bitch enough and threaten to leave and they will work with you. Just don't be a prick, just be firm with what you want. Just a suggestion.

[724Skinsfan]

Originally Posted by mlmdub130

so i have had directv for about 6 years and it has been great i'd say it's 10 times better than cable. however the directv on demand is a huge let down it's pretty awful and it seems like directv is getting more and more expensive,and the programing has gotten worse.

i will be buying a new house soon and am thinking of switching to fios, since i can bundle tv, internet,and cell phones. just wondering if anyone has any first hand knowlegde about fios and what they thought of their service and how much they were paying.

i pay about $165 a month on average for directv since i have 3 dvr's two of them hd, another non hd box and i get every movie channel. any help would be great, just from looking at verizon's website looks like i can get all three for around $320 a month.

plus it will be nice not to have to throw snowballs at my dish to knock snow off so i get my hd channels, already had to to it twice during this storm, i even sprayed the damn thing with pam, since a directv tech told me that would help

I wonder how well Rain-ex would work?

[mlmdub130]

Originally Posted by Mattyk

You could always try bargaining with DTV. Bitch enough and threaten to leave and they will work with you. Just don't be a prick, just be firm with what you want. Just a suggestion.

trust me i know that routine, that how i got espn college game plan for a 1/4 of the price, and i plan on doing that i was gonna do it last week i was just busy and too tired to do it after work.

i love directv it just seems like they are charging more and more and the prgraming is getting worse and worse, and the on demand feature is a joke they charge you $3 for movies like die hard

[itvnetop]

To anyone who's had FiOS internet for awhile, are the dl/ul speeds what they say they are? I'm looking at the pricing and it seems like a no-brainer to switch from TWC's Standard 7 Mbps/512k to FiOS' listed 15/5 Mbps "Fast" plan.

I also hear it's a bit weird if you want your own router if you add a hi-def package... something about having to use the Verizon router (which seems to cause issues for people that use their computers in conjuction with their TVs wirelessly). You actually have to call to activate ethernet and then connect the Verizon router into an open port on your personal router, in order to keep using your own for everything.

[mredskins]

I still have Comcast and for the most part I can not bitch too hard. their DVR sucks but Ihave been thinking about giving them back their DVR and just getting HD boxes then add TIVO. I so heart TIVO.

Lately my go to for TV watching is PS3. I have Play On Media and Netflix Streaming, basically can see everything I want but no LIVE sporting events.

I have sid this before but go with wah tis best for your area and needs. When I lived in DC DIRCTV was best for me now that I am in B-more Comcast is best for me.

[firstdown]

Originally Posted by mlmdub130

so i have had directv for about 6 years and it has been great i'd say it's 10 times better than cable. however the directv on demand is a huge let down it's pretty awful and it seems like directv is getting more and more expensive,and the programing has gotten worse.

i will be buying a new house soon and am thinking of switching to fios, since i can bundle tv, internet,and cell phones. just wondering if anyone has any first hand knowlegde about fios and what they thought of their service and how much they were paying.

i pay about $165 a month on average for directv since i have 3 dvr's two of them hd, another non hd box and i get every movie channel. any help would be great, just from looking at verizon's website looks like i can get all three for around $320 a month.

plus it will be nice not to have to throw snowballs at my dish to knock snow off so i get my hd channels, already had to to it twice during this storm, i even sprayed the damn thing with pam, since a directv tech told me that would help

Verizon is twice as much. I can throw alot of now balls for $165. I think our Direct Tv runs around $65 per month and we get show time free and have no other movie ch. If anything I think DT has added more stuff then its removed. if your a sport fane their basic package get you the NFL, Basball, hockey, tennis, and golf ch.

[MTK]

Anyone thinking about getting DirecTV anytime soon? If so I have a referral code that will give you a $100 Visa Rewards card for signing up. Hit me up on PM if interested.

[mredskins]

I tried to get it. No dice with the trees in my back yard. I have FiOS and all is good.

[RedskinRat]

I live in a listed building with no Southeast facing windows. I guess I'll spend a fortune at Yard House again this season.

<shakes_fist_at_no_one_in_particular>

[JPPT1974]

Like Direct TV as it has the NFL Sunday Ticket. My dad nearly went back to ATT.Net but Direct TV came out and fixed the On Demand which we did not have at the time. But now we now have. As it is less than Cable to pay as Cable was costing us a fortune.

[skinsguy]

In regards to compressed TV signals that all Satellite and Cable companies have in order to fit more "HD" channels on their packages, DirecTV seems to have the best picture quality. When I lived in Virginia, I had Comcast for a little bit. The HD picture quality was good, but when I switched to DirecTV (same HD TV) it just seemed like the picture quality was so much better. Of course, it remains true that having over-the-air TV signals coming into your TV is the best quality picture, because the signals are uncompressed.

Anyways, the other thing I really like about DirecTV is that I feel like I can negotiate with them much easier than Comcast.

[Dirtbag59]

I'm starting to get closer than ever to stereotypical modern white guy in regards to my TV habits. I remember back in college there was a girl in my class who told me about how she hardly if ever watched TV any more and I couldn't fathom the idea.

These days, granted I'm spending a significant amount of time looking at a screen of some sort, but its rarely that of a traditional TV broadcast. Heck a year or two ago I switched from NHL Center Ice (NHL cable package) to Hockey Streams Online (which at least compared to the streaming NHL Gamecenter service was cheaper and better quality [60 fps vs 30 fps]).

For NFL games I'm usually "pirating" streams, mainly for Skins games. For almost any other sport streaming would be unbearable due to the usually no better than 240p quality and 30 fps but for the most part, as long as you're not 'breaking down film', football is more then bearable at lower qualities due to the fact that its not too hard to follow and slow moving enough while being accompanied by numerous replays and commentary.

Also as of last year I got the Mohu leaf HD TV antenna on Amazon for $40 where I couldn't believe the difference in quality over my Comcast HD. Granted I only had the traditional rabbit ear channels but for NFL football you're usually fine as you have Fox, CBS, and NBC.

Heck even with ESPN Monday Night Football I started using the X-Box 360 app instead of my cable box. Granted theres a few games on NFL Network where I turn to my cable box but even the Draft is streamed directly from NFL.com these days.

Anyway the point is times are a changing. Lets just hope that the cable lobbyist don't mess it up for the rest of us.

[skinsguy]

Originally Posted by Dirtbag59

I'm starting to get closer than ever to stereotypical modern white guy in regards to my TV habits. I remember back in college there was a girl in my class who told me about how she hardly if ever watched TV any more and I couldn't fathom the idea.

These days, granted I'm spending a significant amount of time looking at a screen of some sort, but its rarely that of a traditional TV broadcast. Heck a year or two ago I switched from NHL Center Ice (NHL cable package) to Hockey Streams Online (which at least compared to the streaming NHL Gamecenter service was cheaper and better quality [60 fps vs 30 fps]).

For NFL games I'm usually "pirating" streams, mainly for Skins games. For almost any other sport streaming would be unbearable due to the usually no better than 240p quality and 30 fps but for the most part, as long as you're not 'breaking down film', football is more then bearable at lower qualities due to the fact that its not too hard to follow and slow moving enough while being accompanied by numerous replays and commentary.

Also as of last year I got the Mohu leaf HD TV antenna on Amazon for $40 where I couldn't believe the difference in quality over my Comcast HD. Granted I only had the traditional rabbit ear channels but for NFL football you're usually fine as you have Fox, CBS, and NBC.

Heck even with ESPN Monday Night Football I started using the X-Box 360 app instead of my cable box. Granted theres a few games on NFL Network where I turn to my cable box but even the Draft is streamed directly from NFL.com these days.

Anyway the point is times are a changing. Lets just hope that the cable lobbyist don't mess it up for the rest of us.

I long for the day when we can sit back and laugh about the times when we had to go through a cable or satellite company to watch all of our favorite programming - especially football games. I'll admit that I absolutely LOVE watching football in HD - but like you, if I had to go the stream route, I could handle it. The only thing is, I often don't get home in time to watch the early game, so I have it recording on the DVR. If there could be a delayed stream on live games where you could start from the beginning (and maybe there is?) then I'd be OK with that!

[over the mountain]

i have been without cable for the past 2 months (until we pick and settle in to a new place in baltimore) and i have watched very little TV.

to be honest, i miss it. cable tv adds a quality to life bc after my daughter goes down, me and my lady would normally watch something together snuggled up in bed and now maybe we read next to each other or watch a seinfeld dvd but the bonding act of flipping through the channels and jointly picking what to watch is gone and it is different.

fighting over the remote, making concessions to let her watch what she wants etc is good fodder for couples to have light talk that isnt about bills or feelings or anything heavy and head-achy.

cant wait to get me some cable

rant off