TV - cable or satellite?

[mzteris]

Which is better? Fewer problems/outages, etc?

I don't watch a lot of movies. I've never done HBO type channels. I do want things like Discovery, The History Channel, Animal Planet, National Geographic, etc...

(I also want to be able to get Carolina Hurricanes hockey up here in Wisconsin. :) )

It looks like the satellite might be a little cheaper than cable - but is it as reliable? If satellite - which service? Direct or Dish?

[MrCoffee]

1. Rabbit Ears.

[mzteris]

17. what do I do

with the rest of it?

:D

[supernova]

2. I have DirecTV

and I love it!! :woohoo: :woohoo:

Not a problem. Sometimes it will pop out or pixelate for a few minutes during a rough storm, but it always comes back when the weather clears. (Because the clouds obstruct the satellite from the receiver. )

[querelle]

3. I Have Cable

In the part of Canada where I live, cable is a monopoly (Fuck You Rogers Cable!!!!!). I can't have a dish. The neighborhood where I live forbids it. I even have to get permission from the community association to paint my garage door or change even the smallest thing on the exterior. No clotheslines either even if they are in the backyard. No window air conditioners. I have to submit a plan to the association every spring for any changes I wish to make regarding landscaping too. I wanted to plant a red maple tree in my front yard last March and they said no because it's not the sort of aesthetic that "we" want for this neighborhood. I feel like like I'm living in Berlin circa 1936.

Sorry if I hijacked this thread, but I just needed to vent.

Q

[mzteris]

18. YIKES!

I think I'd have to find ways just to mess with their heads. . . Home associations - gotta hate 'em.

[Rosie1223]

4. I have Dish

I've had both Dish and Direct at various times. Both have equal reliability in my experience. We had Direct for a while because they have the NFL package but switched to Dish when they offered our local channels. We live in the boonies so off air TV was very limited and poor reception.

[mzteris]

19. Thanks -

that's the kind of info I needed. I guess I should check and see who has what special running, then...

[Patiod]

5. Rabbit Ears!!

No cable bill!

[astonamous]

6. Direct TV...gotta have my football!!!! n/t

[mzteris]

20. but do they have

?????

[Dukkha]

7. Cable

Cable provides superior Internet connectivity and IMO is more reliable. we have dish at our work and constantly goes out every time there's a storm. Basic cable is enough for me. I don't watch sports, rent DVDs, and rarely see anything other that Daily Show & Adult Swim.

[Left Is Write]

10. I do have cable for my internet, but DirecTV for my TV.

[LSK]

8. I still have basic cable

If it wasnt for sports and CSPAN/DailyShow/Colbert I would drop it.

[Left Is Write]

9. I have had DirecTV since 1998. I like it and have no plans to switch.

[mzteris]

21. Thanks.

Sounds like it's pretty reliable!

[Mutley]

11. I have Cable.

I've never had satellite, so I can't do a comparison, but cable is okay. I get more than enough channels on the teevee. Too many, actually. The internet speed is fast. I do lose service more often than I'd like, though, but I think that has more to do with my neighborhood, as it happened much less in my old neighborhood.

[mzteris]

22. I've got DSL

over the phone for the internet....

I'm okay with Cable - but the direct and dish are both cheaper! - so if they're just as good. . .

[NJ Democrats]

12. Directv

It has all the regular channels plus local and you can get your sports temas from far away. Like the Canes for you or for me the Yankees and Giants here in NC. If you don't want HBO you don't jhave to get it. I love Directv.

[mzteris]

23. Thanks.

DTV is sounding pretty good.

[grateful581]

13. I have directv

but I hate that Rupert Murdoch owns it.

[mzteris]

24. ouch

I wonder who owns Dish?

[trof]

14. After Ivan, we were without cable for 3 weeks.

Got Dish shortly thereafter.
During Katrina AND Rita we never lost signal.
Nuff said.

[mzteris]

25. sounds like all the

stories I heard about satellite always going out was a bunch of baloney.

[lost-in-nj]

15. Both cable and directTV

We had cable first than tried Direct TV.
Hubby likes shows on direct TV. I like cable :)




lost

[Digit]

16. I have Direct TV, as Dish would not work at my home

Dish Network needed to point lower on the horizon or something and my trees were in the way. Direct TV DID work, however.
I use cable for internet only.

[mzteris]

27. hmmmmm......

that's an interesting bit of information. Did Dish refund your $$?

[Digit]

36. I had purchased my own equipment (luckily)

Otherwise, I might have had to have the damn dish mounted on a pole.

[TK421]

26. I had Direct T.V for two years.....easy as hell to use, and not ONE damn

problem with reception or some of these horror stories you hear about losing channels during a thunderstorm....not ONCE did I ever lose a channel. Perfect service all the time.:thumbsup:

[mzteris]

28. Thanks so much......

that's exactly the info I was looking for!

[TK421]

30. Anytime n/t

[BlueJazz]

29. I have Dish Network and Never have an outage mainly because I

..have 2 disks. I use to have cable but (Per Channel) Dish is cheaper.

[IndyBob]

31. Had Direct TV 5+ years

and now have cable. In the US, I heard there was a law stating a satellite receiver must be allowed on your property. My apartment complex tried to stop me from placing a dish, but were unable to. I think they took my transponder once, I just went out and bought a new one, and threatened small claims court. They never bothered it again.

My signal dropped whenever it rained moderate to hard. Rainy days were good days to surf the net, watch a DVD, play X-Box, or give up the electronics and read a book. Probably because I had to shoot through part of a tree, the signal was weak to begin with.

I now have cable and am satisfied. Finally got broad-band. The cable cost is higher, but I am saving by not having a phone line at all - using VOIP.

Direct TV was good 98% of the time, make sure you can "get a clear view of the southern sky".

[fujiyama]

32. I have Dish Network

I used to have cable TV and kind of miss one feature in particular - On Demand.

Also, the picture does go out when the weather is really bad.

[Fox Mulder]

33. I like Direct TV, but it goes out when it's raining or snowing hard.

I've never had problems with cable.

[politicat]

34. none. We ditched them both.

Not worth the money for a noise generator when there are a gazillion podcasts, internet radio stations, books and audiobooks out there.

Between the web and netflix, we never lack for something to think about. TV sucks.

[Nicole]

35. Cable

I had Dish & hated it. I often had to go outside & move the damn thing to get good reception.

[Broken_Hero]

37. For reliability

IME, cable is more reliable. I had direct tv out in sacramento, and my father in law had direct tv here in SW Missouri. In both cases, the minute it started to rain, or storm, the signal would go out...my fried brian/kat have dish network, same thing...whenever it starts to rain, or storm, the signal goes out...

That is just my experience, but if I had my choice, I would go satellite, either direct, or dish...the lower prices are enough for me, to put up with minor hang ups during storms...

Currently I'm on...soemthing I never saw before...its TV, through phone lines. I didn't know they could do that, our phone company has got this S-Go service, where our tv signals come from our outside phone line box, we also got broadband at the same time...phone/broadband/tv for 91 dollars a month, roughly 30 bucks for each service...which is cheaper than direct tv, or dish network(depending on packages).

[mvd]

38. Cable from Comcast

One TV is on the digital service, while the others are on basic cable. Verizon is bringing DSL into my neighborhood, so I'll look into that.

[RoyGBiv]

39. An Insider's View

I'm not going to offer a direct, detailed opinion because I am in the industry, and what I say with regard to satellite vs. cable would favor cable naturally. I happen to believe as a person, not just an employee, that in most cases cable is the better option, but I am also fully aware that satellite has some qualities that would appeal to a certain kind of consumer better than cable. You do tend to have more variety on satellite, for instance, and new channels are added with less of a fuss. Satellite providers, just like cable providers, have to work out contracts with the content providers to offer a channel, and it has to be financially beneficial to them to do so, but satellite has less overhead with regard to infrastructure in this regard and tends to be able to offer more channels at less cost, i.e. no pysical lines to maintain and not the same kind of problems with bandwidth. On the other hand, as far as reliability is concerned, unless you live in an area with few storms and not a lot of high winds, cable does tend to be more reliable overall. However, it depends partly on the cable company. Some simply suck and have infrastructure that hasn't truly been updated in three decades.

So, given the disclosure, I'd recommend cable unless you want a certain kind of variety or happen to live in an area serviced by one of those cable companies that needs to be show the door. Regarldess of what you choose, do be certain to get clear details on what kind programming you'll get -- and with satellite that includes local programming, which isn't covered by "must carry" rules -- what it will cost, how it fits into the package pricing, and most of all how long that special, initial pricing lasts. They're going to give you a good price up front, no matter what you choose, but it will change and could potentially be almost double what the initial quoted prices was. Then make sure to ask about cancellation fees and escape clauses in case you decide you hate what you chose. Some satellite providers have contracts you are required to sign that include draconian escape clauses. Other than that, I won't insult you with the sales pitch.

The main reason I am writing is to suggest that if you do choose satellite, stay away from Dish. Some of it has come out in places like the WSJ, and I'll leave others to detail it and argue about it if they desire. (I'm not going to argue about it. I've seen things that haven't come out in public yet and will just leave it at that.) In the very near future, people with Dish Network are either not going to be getting a very good service, or they are going to be getting service from a company that has merged with another that will completely change the way they offer service. It might be better; it might not. No one knows at this point, but Dish customers are very likely not going to be getting a better deal unless the option that has them merging with DirecTV goes through. The latter might not be such a bad thing except that all the price breaks and special packaging you'd be getting will go away at the time of the merger or shortly thereafter. Dish is about to get its little ass handed to it in court by companies, like Tivo, by having tactics Dish has been using to unfairly manipulate the marketplace for years thrown back in its face. I, for one, will be happy to see it. Dish has been essentially stealing for years and protecting itself by throwing mountains of paper at the problem, absurdly claiming it is the one that has been stolen from.

Despite the person that controls it, from a consumer's standpoint, DirecTV is a better company anyway and will likely be around for a good, long time. (Hell, if I didn't get cable for free, I'd probably have it.) Dish, in its present incarnation, has days that are numbered and is, imo, a crappy company at best. They're also in bed with ATT, or have been, if that means anything to you, but that relationship is about to change as well, another chink in the Dish armor that will end up hurting the customers more than the people in suits who draw the big salaries.

[mzteris]

42. I appreciate your candor.

You've effectively eliminated "one" contender anyway. :)

I'll just have to sit down and compare just two by option/price now. Thanks.

[RoyGBiv]

44. No problem ...

I've been watching this thing brewing with Dish for some time now, and it's just about to explode. (And, I will add, I don't intend to make it sound like this is a secret because it isn't. It's just something you wouldn't notice unless you read the right papers or industry magazines. The people that run Dish make Rupert Murdoch look almost saintly.)

Here's another bit you might consider, and I'll try to phrase this so that it doesn't come off sounding like a sales pitch. While Dish is fighting legal battles to try to claim it owns things that were invented before Dish ever came into being, certain cable companies have been making deals with the companies that do own those things so that they can offer it to customers as a package deal. Tivo is at the center of this. The little upstart company that has changed the way we think about television is about to go big time as it partners with cable companies to offer its services through those companies, minus all the cost involved with purchasing equipment and repairing that equipment if it fails. (Digital video recorders have hard drives. They *will* fail at some point.) And rather than have two services that you have to figure out how to use together, sometimes realizing they won't work very well together a lot of the time, it'll all be integrated.

I don't know if that means anything to you, but it does to me. Naturally, I also don't know if the cable company in your area will be one of those benefiting. But, I thought I'd mention it as something for you to check out. I rarely just watch television anymore. I record everything I want to watch and watch it when I have free time. Tivo offered as a part of television service rather than in competition with it is going to be a good thing for those who enjoy the technology but get sick of the compatibility issues.

[REP]

40. Had Cable for Years; Just Got DirecTV

My cable bill had become enormous and the service wasn't very good (lost the sound and/or picture at least once a day) so I switched to satellite, which is cheaper for more channels (I get SciFi now, yay) and a DVR service. No problems at all with the service.

[ScreamingMeemie]

41. Directv. Rain fade is more annoying than you would think...

...and that's all I have to say about that. :hi:

[FILAM23]

43. Cable

only because I got tired of my dish going out
everytime it got cloudy