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Satellite Providers: General Consensus

Zing

Zing

Retired Admin
Superstar
Is Dish any better - in any way - than DirecTV or vice versa?

I used to be a DirecTV customer about 3 years ago and had no complaints. I'm currently a cable customer and have complaints out the yin yang. Never been a Dish customer. Have heard horror stories about both companies. Looking to switch.

So what's the general consesnus? Am I screwed no matter where I go?
 
I have been a DTV customer for 12 years and generally speaking no complaints. I have several friends with Dish and they seem to have less of a channel selection and on a personal note I do not like their UI at all. And viewing at friends with cable (TimeWarner and WOW) that is definitely the worst. I do wish I had the option of Uverse.

All the services seem to be getting pretty expensive. Like Matt I pay a bit extra a month for a maintenance contract and have had to use 3 times in the last 5 years. Worth every penny as I get next day service with no hassle, no direct cost to me and it does not require a contract renewal for a service call. Plus I'm not about to get on the roof and screw with that thing at this point and time.
 
I've been with Dish Network for almost six years and aside from nasty weather causing the signal to drop I have no complaints at all. I'm still using the original two HD receivers (non-DVR) and have never had an issue with them, nor have I had any sort of problems with the actual dish itself.
 
Had DirecTv for 10 years, switched to Comcast.... It sucked.

Back to DirecTv for the last 2 years.

D
 
Been with DirecTv since August of 95, happy with the service. We pay way too much though, for the few channels that we actually watch.
 
I had our TV service with many cable companies in different states and HATED EVERYONE OF THEM.

When we moved back to Texas, I thought that I would give DirecTV a try and have been very happy for the past 3.5 yrs!

Like some of the others, I pay the additional $6/Month for the Maintance/Insurance Plan, I have had to use it twice.

Customer Service over the phone seems to always be considerate and helpful, not like the idots at Time Warner, where I get my high speed internet service from.
 
Huey said:
Been with DirecTv since August of 95, happy with the service. We pay way too much though, for the few channels that we actually watch.
Click to expand...

Cafeteria type packages would be great but I think there may be a law that prevents that. Or it is just an industry agreement not to offer it.
 
You need to talk to Tee, he knows all the ins and outs, pros and cons of both cos. I've been a pretty happy Dish customer for the past ~8 years. I truly believe they have the superior equipment between the two but I'm not sure how the reliability stacks up though. I'd recommend the maintenance plan MZ alluded to for either company, it's worth it. I believe the two pretty much take turns besting one another year after year as technology improves. Dish is releasing what appears to be a pretty kick ass whole house DVR system dubbed "Hopper/Joey" soon. And after that I'm sure Directv will counter. I don't know if there is any truth to the rumors that if you follow both services all the way to the top the same guy is raking it in from both companies. I've heard this from actual installers, but they couldve been talking just to hear themselves if ya know what I mean...I think Tee really has his finger on the pulse of the sat companies for what that's worth.

*edit* I also meant to give directv credit for beating dish to the market with a wholehouse DVR which is and has been available for a while. I meant to mention and forgot to...
 
The way Dish Network dealt with me I can honestly call them the worst customer experience I have ever had. I had a rep from Capitol One on the phone with me on a 3 way call and the Cap One rep was shocked at how Dish responded to me. Nothing was their fault, and getting my money, regardless of how or why was the only thing they truly gave a shit about. I always try to remain calm and persistent. when dealing with any type of customer service, they managed to get my blood boiling well more than once. Given the choice, I'd have no TV over giving Dish a single penny.

Maybe it's the area I'm in, but Verizon FiOS and Comcast have ALWAYS offered excellent customer service and I never had issues with the performance of either. Each are convenient in the event of STB failures in regards to getting new equipment. The only way I can see satellite TV as being an option is if there is no option. I never see anyone on Facebook (yes, that's the sounding board of the people these days) griping about Verizon or Comcast performance. I see Dish and Direct TV complaints consistently, especially in bad weather.
 
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