I am a new DISH customer...well, my install was last Saturday, so it is technically a day short of a week, but I have enough time to feel comfortable with the post. Prior to making the switch to DISH, I had been a Directv customer since 2012.
My Set-up: I have the Hopper 3 Sling connected to a Pioneer receiver and a 60 Inch Vizio. The TV is mounted over my fireplace, while all the components are hidden away in built-in cabinets behind wooden doors. I use an HDMI IR Blaster product to relay remote signals inside the cabinet. And I have a Harmony 650 remote.
The Installation - Everything went smoothly. DISH provided email, text and phone updates on the install appointment. My local technician was on time and very professional. He presented me with different dish mounting options from roof-top to pole mount. Once in the house, he replaced a couple of coax connectors, which he said were necessary for the powered signal...said he was surprised that Directv's tech had not swapped those out when we moved in two years back. He connected two Joeys and did a great job of explaining the features. The only wrinkle to installation was that when I made the order over the phone, I specifically said I wanted the latest Hopper 3. The technician arrived ready to install an older Hopper 2, saying that was what was on his work order. Good thing I was home and not just my wife, or I am sure she wouldn't have known to ask. When he called DISH customer service, they tried to pass along a $50 upgrade fee to me and I refused, saying they could cancel everything and leave now. The CSR immediately said, don't worry, there will be no upgrade fee! It took the technician about 3 hours to complete the job, but most of that was waiting on software downloads and updates. He set up the DISH remotes to run my components, cleaned up everything and I gave him the highest ratings possible on the follow-up survey. It was just a very positive experience.
Next Steps - I spent the afternoon (it seemed), reprogramming my Harmony 650 remote, customizing the guides on all three boxes (loading only HD channels we watch and/or music stations we listen to), and setting up timers for shows we know we want to record in the future. My Harmony remote works fine as long as the wooden doors are open, but there is a known compatibility glitch between the HDMI IR Blaster and the Hopper, so the Harmony remote simply will not control the Hopper with the doors closed. This is not a huge issue, since I can use the DISH 52.0 remote fine with the cabinet doors closed...just an inconvenience to be forced to use two remotes.
Initial Impressions
Picture Quality - I was honestly concerned about this prior to the install, as I had read numerous reviews online saying that Directv's PQ was far better than DISH. I have not found that to be the case at all! While I know I never had a side-by-side comparison, I know a great picture when I see it. And the DISH PQ has been superb.
Guide & User Interface - If you are not on the new black background, go under settings and change appearance from "classic" to "modern". I think it came up by default on the Hopper 3, but I had to do this on both Joeys. World of difference! Once the programming info and channel logos loads, it provides a very easy sleek, eye-pleasing and user-friendly experience. Navigation is relatively easy. Arrow keys advance one channel or show at a time, while channel up and down keys advance a screen. The 30 second skip key has multi-function with a quick tap advancing to the next time period, while a long tap advances out 24 hours I think. It all seems rather intuitive after you have used it for a while. Moving around is super fast and responsive. So, kudos DISH on a well designed product.
Apps - The integration of Netflix and Pandora are two of my favorite things about the Hopper 3. The WiFi reception is very good for me, even in a cabinet. The Game Finder app is also very innovative, allowing you to select your favorite teams, leagues or sports in general. I particularly like how games of interest are not just listed, but are listed in oder of some "excitement" rating. Like last Saturday, there was a basketball game on that was tied 63-63 with 50 seconds to go and the excitement rating was high. Selecting that game provided the option of watching it, recording it, or seeing stats from it. The weather apps are also nice.
Other Features - One of my favorite features so far is the "bar mode" four channel view. Last Sunday, I literally had four basketball games up at the same time. You can listen to the audio for a particular game by toggling the selection box to that game. Press again and jump right to that game! I also like the "recall" function, which doesn't simply switch to the previous channel, but provides a list at the bottom of the screen of as many as six previous channels making it easy to toggle between a cluster of channels you have been watching. Direct has this for your last four channels thru the Info function, but DISH's application seems so much more logical and user friendly. I'm also a huge fan of selecting a show and getting a wealth of info from ratings to trailers to parental info. The search feature is awesome how it looks for your search topics across your DVR, your upcoming guide and apps such as Netflix. We are just getting familiar with the Prime Time Anytime feature, but in a week, we've used it to watch shows we would have otherwise missed. Setting up timers is easy and intuitive. The 30 second skip forward feature works just like Directv's, but the skip back is 10 seconds (2 seconds more than Directv) and it just seems to be right for some reason. We have yet to watch a show that takes advantage of the Autohop commercial skipping feature, so I don't know how useful this is. At this point, I am guessing that this is more hype than reality, probably based on legal or contractual issues. IDK.
Pros so far - PQ is excellent and no perceptible difference with Directv, Hopper 3 functionality (esp. the Netflix & Pandora integration, bar mode PIP, Game Finder with stats, search feature, and overall snappy UI) and a pretty well-designed 52.0 remote.
Cons - Hopper 3 compatibility issues with my HDMI IR Blaster rendering my Harmony 650 remote all but useless, and the lack of backlighting on the 52.0 Dish remote.
Overall, I am a happy camper. Enjoying the Hopper experience over the Directv Genie and glad I made the switch!
My Set-up: I have the Hopper 3 Sling connected to a Pioneer receiver and a 60 Inch Vizio. The TV is mounted over my fireplace, while all the components are hidden away in built-in cabinets behind wooden doors. I use an HDMI IR Blaster product to relay remote signals inside the cabinet. And I have a Harmony 650 remote.
The Installation - Everything went smoothly. DISH provided email, text and phone updates on the install appointment. My local technician was on time and very professional. He presented me with different dish mounting options from roof-top to pole mount. Once in the house, he replaced a couple of coax connectors, which he said were necessary for the powered signal...said he was surprised that Directv's tech had not swapped those out when we moved in two years back. He connected two Joeys and did a great job of explaining the features. The only wrinkle to installation was that when I made the order over the phone, I specifically said I wanted the latest Hopper 3. The technician arrived ready to install an older Hopper 2, saying that was what was on his work order. Good thing I was home and not just my wife, or I am sure she wouldn't have known to ask. When he called DISH customer service, they tried to pass along a $50 upgrade fee to me and I refused, saying they could cancel everything and leave now. The CSR immediately said, don't worry, there will be no upgrade fee! It took the technician about 3 hours to complete the job, but most of that was waiting on software downloads and updates. He set up the DISH remotes to run my components, cleaned up everything and I gave him the highest ratings possible on the follow-up survey. It was just a very positive experience.
Next Steps - I spent the afternoon (it seemed), reprogramming my Harmony 650 remote, customizing the guides on all three boxes (loading only HD channels we watch and/or music stations we listen to), and setting up timers for shows we know we want to record in the future. My Harmony remote works fine as long as the wooden doors are open, but there is a known compatibility glitch between the HDMI IR Blaster and the Hopper, so the Harmony remote simply will not control the Hopper with the doors closed. This is not a huge issue, since I can use the DISH 52.0 remote fine with the cabinet doors closed...just an inconvenience to be forced to use two remotes.
Initial Impressions
Picture Quality - I was honestly concerned about this prior to the install, as I had read numerous reviews online saying that Directv's PQ was far better than DISH. I have not found that to be the case at all! While I know I never had a side-by-side comparison, I know a great picture when I see it. And the DISH PQ has been superb.
Guide & User Interface - If you are not on the new black background, go under settings and change appearance from "classic" to "modern". I think it came up by default on the Hopper 3, but I had to do this on both Joeys. World of difference! Once the programming info and channel logos loads, it provides a very easy sleek, eye-pleasing and user-friendly experience. Navigation is relatively easy. Arrow keys advance one channel or show at a time, while channel up and down keys advance a screen. The 30 second skip key has multi-function with a quick tap advancing to the next time period, while a long tap advances out 24 hours I think. It all seems rather intuitive after you have used it for a while. Moving around is super fast and responsive. So, kudos DISH on a well designed product.
Apps - The integration of Netflix and Pandora are two of my favorite things about the Hopper 3. The WiFi reception is very good for me, even in a cabinet. The Game Finder app is also very innovative, allowing you to select your favorite teams, leagues or sports in general. I particularly like how games of interest are not just listed, but are listed in oder of some "excitement" rating. Like last Saturday, there was a basketball game on that was tied 63-63 with 50 seconds to go and the excitement rating was high. Selecting that game provided the option of watching it, recording it, or seeing stats from it. The weather apps are also nice.
Other Features - One of my favorite features so far is the "bar mode" four channel view. Last Sunday, I literally had four basketball games up at the same time. You can listen to the audio for a particular game by toggling the selection box to that game. Press again and jump right to that game! I also like the "recall" function, which doesn't simply switch to the previous channel, but provides a list at the bottom of the screen of as many as six previous channels making it easy to toggle between a cluster of channels you have been watching. Direct has this for your last four channels thru the Info function, but DISH's application seems so much more logical and user friendly. I'm also a huge fan of selecting a show and getting a wealth of info from ratings to trailers to parental info. The search feature is awesome how it looks for your search topics across your DVR, your upcoming guide and apps such as Netflix. We are just getting familiar with the Prime Time Anytime feature, but in a week, we've used it to watch shows we would have otherwise missed. Setting up timers is easy and intuitive. The 30 second skip forward feature works just like Directv's, but the skip back is 10 seconds (2 seconds more than Directv) and it just seems to be right for some reason. We have yet to watch a show that takes advantage of the Autohop commercial skipping feature, so I don't know how useful this is. At this point, I am guessing that this is more hype than reality, probably based on legal or contractual issues. IDK.
Pros so far - PQ is excellent and no perceptible difference with Directv, Hopper 3 functionality (esp. the Netflix & Pandora integration, bar mode PIP, Game Finder with stats, search feature, and overall snappy UI) and a pretty well-designed 52.0 remote.
Cons - Hopper 3 compatibility issues with my HDMI IR Blaster rendering my Harmony 650 remote all but useless, and the lack of backlighting on the 52.0 Dish remote.
Overall, I am a happy camper. Enjoying the Hopper experience over the Directv Genie and glad I made the switch!
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