From dish to direct - stick with dish

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donberry

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Nov 3, 2012
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United States
I had dish for a few years. I kept getting things from Directv and recently compared them and saw that for pretty much the same programming, plus free NFL games, I would save about $800 over a 2 year period by the time they gave me all of the discounts.
Great, figured it had to be about the same.
I was very, very wrong.
With Dish I had 2 722 dvr's, which gave me 4 rooms, all with dvr's.
Ordering my equipment from direct, I got the highly touted home media center, which can record up to 5 programs at a time, and then 3 HD receivers.

The comparison.
As far as equipment, that was pretty much my bad as I did not think it thru, but only having the 3 receivers means if I am watching tv in any other room beside where the HMC is, I have to 1st record it to get the dvr functions. Yes, I can now record more shows at once, which is handy at times as I don;t have to record the shows in different rooms as I did with dish, but I guess I am lazy but it is a pain when I am watching something and I first forget it is not recorded so do not have dvr functions, so then have to record it and then watch the recording.
Not a big deal at all - but combined with the rest....
The really, really bad.
Watching tv on my computer. I work in the garage quite a bit and with dish, often had the tv going to listen to sports. With Dish, is as easy as pie. Go to Dish, log on and watch whatever you want. Could not be easier.
I thought it would be about the same with direct since they go on and on about directv everywhere.
Not even close.
You can not watch live tv on the computer with direct. If for example I wanted to watch/listen to the football game in my garage today (which I did), I 1st have to go to the direct tv guide and record it - on the computer you can only watch recorded programs or the programs they have available for streaming - NOT live tv.
So what's the big deal you say, just take a moment and record it and then watch it......sure sounds good. Now I have a pretty fast home network. I use a Asus Black Diamond router, which is rated very fast, and my laptop has a wireless n card in it and my desktop has a black diamond usb adapter - it is very, very fast when I transfer large files - not so with directv.
Pretty much every time I am trying to watch a game, I 1st record it, then start the directv app to watch it and a very large part of the time it stutters like crazy. I usually put it on pause for a few minutes and sometimes that works, sometimes it doesn't.
I have no dog in the fight, but watching/listening to the alabama /lsu game just now, I go to the garage in the 4th quarter, and about 8-10 minutes later I end up coming back in the house because of the stuttering and it was an interesting finish.
I never once had a problem with dish.
If you want to stream LIVE tv within range of your receiver, there is absolutely NO comparison, Dish wins running away.

The highly touted Home Media Center - I hate it.
With the Dish 722 receiver, the dvr kept the programs in MUCH better order. Again there is absolutely no comparison. Directv does group them together, but it also moves the entire group up when recording - is hard to explain, but I record a bunch of shows for my grandkids. With directv, now I always have mickey mouse etc at the top of my list and always have top scroll down a lot, with Dish, it kept them in more orderly groups........I can not explain it without sitting in front of the receivers, but I do not like the way directv does it at all.

Having had dish for a few years and now having had directv for 2 months or so, it definitekly feels as tho I have taken a HUGE step backwards.
Every day I just keep reminding myself that I am saving xxx amount of dollars this month (is like $70 for a few months, then $40, then for the last year it is about $10).

I can't understand how anyone who has had Dish can compare directv to it. Dish could be idiots to deal with and it was a bummer watching the great deals new people would get, but I am sure the same thing happens to direct customers - like me getting the free nfl package and they do not.

I am contemplating whether I want to just go ahead and pay the penalty and go back to dish.........I hate directv. I do not understand why dish can be so easy to watch live tv on my computer and directv is really, really bad. Oh yea, when i did have dish and watched/listened to the games in the garage, not once did it stutter etc........and I did not have to record it to watch it.
Don;t let them fool you about directv everywhere....that just means streaming tv....the shows they pick out...not live tv.

Do yourself a favor if you are deciding between the 2 - go with dish..........you will have a much easier, pleasant experience...and won;t have to run into the house just to catch a game.......
I am biased tho as I obviously hate directv now......is like the difference between a prius and a new corvette........prius is pleasant enough and saves you money, but I'd rather drive the vette anyday

Oh, also, the 722 receivers had more audio out options....line out, optical and coax....not so with directv hd receivers........not a big deal, but the little things add up when you actually despise the trying to watch live tv on your computer part.....I think if Dish can insure I do not record live content on my computer and still allow me to just log on and watch, it surely can't be that complicated....instead, I get stuttering galore.......and my networked blazed along just fine with dish.....

another thing, the dvr controls - with dish, you hit the skip button and voila, you are 30 seconds ahead. With directv.....it fast forwards it....you watch it go. Not nearly as fast as Dish. When trying it from a different room,.,,,,there is a BIG network lag........with the 722 receivers, the tv's in the other rooms worked just as fast as if I were in the same room as the 722. With directv,is slooooowwww (relatively speaking of course). Again, little things that add up to a 2nd tier performance..
 
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Before you pay the penalty, maybe try a slingbox solo (cheaper than the penalty). Regarding the skip, another member told me to search for "30skip" as keyword. It changes the ff behavior.
 
One service can be better or worse than the other, or the other one can be better or worse than the other one. But in the long run they are basically the same.
 
The comparison.
As far as equipment, that was pretty much my bad as I did not think it thru, but only having the 3 receivers means if I am watching tv in any other room beside where the HMC is, I have to 1st record it to get the dvr functions.

Reason I waited before the switch from Dish till D* released the C31 clients. I have all of the DVR options in all 4 rooms. How did I know about the clients? I spent some time reading before switching on sites like this one. Everything else I got used to after using DVRT for about 3 weeks now. Maybe you should make a call to D* and see if they swap the receivers with clients for you or just buy them. Still should be cheaper then ETF.
 
Wow ....

Ya know, ya wouldn't have that problem in the garage if you would put a recvr out there.
well, I obviously did not do my homework, but as I never had a single problem with Dish and Directv Everywhere inundates the air waves, it never occurred to me that Dish would be a century ahead of directv when it came to watching tv, at my house, on my computer.
Dish - laptop, log on, listen to gfame.
Directv - 1st scour the internet trying to find the game on the internet and as a last resort, carry my laptop out, go to Directv "everywhere", go to the guide, record the program, open up the directv app, 50-50 chance it starts to stutter, put it on pause, mess around with it for a bit, 50% of the time or more get pissed off because it works, stutters, works, stutters, close the directv app, open up J River and stream music to my garage. Then make sure when I go into the house, delete all of the games off the dvr.
Let's say it is saturday and I want to watch/listen to 3 games - flip between them like a normal person does.
Dish - just bring up the guide and watch
Directv - log on The guide, record all 3 games, open app, go to menu and have to switch games thru the dvr - and for some reason, most of the time when I am doing this and change dvr programs tio watch the other game, coiming back to one game, it always starts back at the beginning of the game......it does not resume. So then I have to fast forward to the end.
Oh yea, Dish, when watching live tv, I still had all of the dvr functions as it is just streaming it from a receiver thru the slingbox (tho it did tie up that receiver. I had the slingbox on a bedroom dvr tho), if I was way back and wanted to get to the end (live), of course there is just a button , LIVE, you push and voila, back to live tv.......so many little things. Again, is 21st century programming vs 20th century. - Tho I am saving money with all of the discounts. Knowing what I know now, I would spend the money and directv would not even be an after thought.
Directv Everywhere, again for those deciding between the 2, does not mean LIVE tv everywhere. I would guess there is a good chance , at least 50-50, you will not have the stuttering problem, but you still can not stream LIVE tv.
Dish literally gave me a slingbox - was $99.00 with a $99 rebate, and as long as I was in range of my network, I could watch anything, live , recorded or on demand, any place and any time.
Directv - nope - you can only watch recorded shows or what they think I want to watch..........

I do think maybe I just have to learn the dvr better and could be, probably is, I am just accustomed to the dish 722 receiver.....but at least for me, and only me, after 2 months I am of a mind that Directv is still in the 20th century while Dish had me in the 21st century quite a while ago.

I personally think the streaming alone makes Dish way better.....then throw in the rest of the little things. Since I am getting old (53), maybe I will have some alzheimer moments and forget how easy and nice it use to be.
 
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I switched from Dish about 3 weeks ago from being a Dish customer for over 7 years. I too had 722 (3 of them running) from Dish. My observations as I am getting my feet wet with my HR34 HMC, HR24, and 2 C31's:

1. DVR. Dish wins! Dish's trick play (pause/rewind live TV functionality) is far superior than Directv. The timeline on Dish is simpler and tells you how far behind live TV you actually are vs trying to figure out what tick mark you are at while watching a 5 hour football recording. I hated the 30 second slip (which takes about 6 seconds to FF) but found the 30skip feature very similar to Dish after I figured out how to back door onto it from reading this site. I prefer Dish's 10 second back vs Directv's only 6 second back. The order of the list is growing on me with Directv. I hate how you have to go through menu (no shortcut keys) to get to manage your recordings AND the scheduled recordings are not integrated across DVRs which is pain in the bottom and you end up duplicating recordings just to be safe.

2. Recording capacity - Dish wins hands down. I went backwards by 300 hours of HD from Dish to Directv. Don't try and sell me external hard drive either...super ridiculous the external drive is paired to the DVR so if the DVR craps out, than you can't move your recordings on the external drive to the new DVR with Directv...why pay the extra money for no backup capability.

3. Picture Quality. - Directv wins but I can't tell that much of a distinctive difference. I do like that Directv has ESPNU in HD and isn't constantly in a pissing match with Disney/ABC/ESPN like DISH.

4. Whole home - I didn't have the hopper with Dish so Directv wins by default. Although I think I prefer to share all content like Directv vs. dish who only shares limited content I believe. I don't like how I have to constantly provide power to a SWIM system, but oh well.

5. Support/service. Directv CSRs flat out lied to me when they said that the C31s could see content from all DVRs connected. Also asked the question on several forums and folks here thought the same thing. This is bs. I know its coming...its coming...but don't lie out of the gate. I had to call Directv 5 times in 3 weeks to straighten out billing and programming issues. We are not off to a good start :). Dish - I could chat live with tech and billing support online with people who could actually spell their receiver models...Directv you cannot. Chat online is such a basic service nowadays that all companies should invest in.

6. Watching online content...never did this with Dish so I can't compare. I do know that my particular router (DHCP or not) does not like Directv and it ends up taking all my other wireless devices offline everyday...I am tired of recycling the router so I just go without my CCK connected to the net

7. Price - Directv wins for new customers on per month fees, but not for upfront equipment expenses. I never paid a dime for any equipment from DISH in or out of contract. Directv...I had to pay them $200 up front just to lease their equipment....bs! Although the programming credits washed out these up front fees. Dish treated me pretty well with various credits after new customer discounts expired...time will only tell with Directv. This may be the deciding factor if I stick with Directv after my 2 years are up!

To summarize, Dish is winning the battle thus far, but it isn't over quite yet. I do need to give Directv more time to work out kinks with the C31s (although I shouldn't be beta testing their stuff especially when kid content is involved).

Why did I switch...wanted to try something new and Dish didn't have BTN for 2 weeks during college football season....it is the principle!
 
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They both have their issues! I personally have had both and currently work for one but I will tell you I enjoy Directv much better than Dish. All the issues I'm reading are crazy things that are not normal on a system. I wanna watch live tv on a laptop, I log in and do so with no issues. Streaming live tv, no problems there either. Nothing ever gets knocked off my network either. PQ is hands down (to me) better on Directv but it seemed Dish did carry more HD (that I actually watched). Service I can't comment in Directv considering if it breaks I simply walk to my truck for a fix. But Dish charged me $15 with the protection plan to come repair my system before which to me is kinda shady. C-31's and the entire Genie system is new so as for CSR's knowing about the way it works is pretty grim (remember, call center turnover is unreal in all aspects of business).
 
These two won't be here long ...
They've already decided that DISH is better, without even trying to understand what is going on ...

I too never have any trouble watching stuff on the TV/Desktop or Tablet.
I just had the ST playing while I watch another game.

Don't know for sure why they decided to come to D* if they didn't expect to have a learning curve.

IF I were to move to DISH, I too would have trouble with it till I learned the nuances.
 
Good to see you that you are jumping to conclusions for us...doesn't really sound like a "supporter". I never once said I wasn't expecting a learning curve at all...I only want what was promised to me and don't want to waste my time calling 5 different times to get what was promised to me in writing when I placed my initial order.

I expect technology challenges/ differences...what I can't tolerate is being lied to and receiving poor customer support/service. Calling back until you get someone more knowledgable that can answer your questions (which is common advice given for Directv) is not acceptable in my mind.
 
Good to see you that you are jumping to conclusions for us...doesn't really sound like a "supporter". I never once said I wasn't expecting a learning curve at all...I only want what was promised to me and don't want to waste my time calling 5 different times to get what was promised to me in writing when I placed my initial order.

I expect technology challenges/ differences...what I can't tolerate is being lied to and receiving poor customer support/service. Calling back until you get someone more knowledgable that can answer your questions (which is common advice given for Directv) is not acceptable in my mind.

If you take the time to learn the way things work and ask questions, we can help you ...
 
For Donberry, if you hit the yellow button while in your recordings, you can change the way they are listed. I just switched to D*, and had the 722 with E*. I have the same setup as the OP, but with one extra H25. I know that there are different strokes for different folks, but I really don't understand how someone could prefer a 722 setup over the HR34. Like Jimbo said, if you take the time to learn some tips about your new system, you might actually like it. It really has some great features.
 
Thanks Jimbo and RapidTurtle. Not sure it is a training/learning issue at this point in time as I am pretty anal about researching products/companies.

But...if you have any recommendations on my feedback, I am all ears and willing to learn.
 
Well, I'm no expert but I only recently learned an answer to one of your issues. To find out where you are in a recorded program just push "play" the bar will appear and show you exactly where you are in the recorded program you are watching, down to the minute.
 
ONe thing I like about the 30 second skip is that it shows you how many times you push the button. 6 to 8 quick pushes will take care of the commercials for most shows.
 
rapidturtle said:
ONe thing I like about the 30 second skip is that it shows you how many times you push the button. 6 to 8 quick pushes will take care of the commercials for most shows.

There is a code to actually make it a real 30 second skip. Not fast forward 30 seconds.

I have both systems. Both dish and direc
Have their strong suits.
I still give the nod to dish VIP and hoppers
Also picture quality now goes back to dish. Improvement with new hoppers.
Sports- direc all te way.
 
Thanks Kattheaunt...still have to do subtraction to see how far away I am from the end of the recording or away from live tv, but we are a step closer.
 
Thanks Kattheaunt...still have to do subtraction to see how far away I am from the end of the recording or away from live tv, but we are a step closer.

The full amount of time in the recording should be shown at the far end of the graph and the marker will show where you are currently, usually in 15 minute increments.
 
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