I wanted to give my initial impressions of Directv after having been a member with them for a week now. In June I went from Time Warner Cable, Central Ohio to Dish Network, and then last week onto Directv due to an offer to get a great deal on NHL Center Ice.
PQ: Prior to joining Directv I had heard that they had excellent PQ, but I honestly was expecting something very similar to what I had with Dish Network. Absolutely not! The HD and SD PQ are noticeably better than Dish Network and very often give me a WOW factor that I just never got with any channel on Dish Network. I don't think I realized how mediocre the E* PQ really was until now. As a movie buff I am PARTICULARLY dazzled by the quality of the Starz channels. They come VERY close to HD DVD quality, imo. Not to mention the fact that the SD channels are WORLDS better than on E*. I essentially never watched SD channels on E* unless I HAD to because they were so bad. While I obviously prefer HD, the SD is again watchable for me which just adds to the value. But again, the D* HD quality is just truly stunning and clearly better than with E*.
Receiver: I have a HR21 and sadly it pails in comparison to my Dish VIP722 box. The user interface is confusing and not nearly as user friendly. I miss the ease that I could switch through my various channel lineup lists that I created, how I could see a movie in the guide and do a search on it RIGHT from there instead of always having to go through manually (menu > search > title, etc). I miss having an antenna input (though I'm supposedly getting a HR20 to swap out the HR21), and the ability to record 3 programs at once. I miss being able to feed to another tv from the same box. I miss seeing the red record light that seems to not work on this box. The DVR on the 722 is MUCH easier to use, finding programs is MUCH easier with the 722, in short, the HR21 is a MASSIVE disappointment. I really hope there are plans to make their equipment more like E*'s equipment.
On-Demand: Well, since I have the HR21, I have not been able to use D*'s. However, considering that their SD quality is VASTLY better than with E*, and considering that you currently don't have to pay extra for it, this should be a HUGE advantage for D*. Not to mention how much the wife has missed on-demand from when we had Cable. Any time you have something that the wife LOVES after driving her nuts having switched to a 3rd provider in the last 6 months is a major positive.
Conclusion: With D* having MUCH better PQ, more HD particularly in the areas that I like most (movies), west coast feeds of those channels which helps with DVR recording conflicts, and the prospect of having an on-demand service like I used to have with Time Warner, D* is a MUCH better service for ME. If Directv could only make a receiver that is as user friendly as the 722, they would be better than E* in EVERY way. I just hope and pray that D* never degrades their HD quality like E* clearly has because it looks stunning right now. I couldn't be happier right now.
PQ: Prior to joining Directv I had heard that they had excellent PQ, but I honestly was expecting something very similar to what I had with Dish Network. Absolutely not! The HD and SD PQ are noticeably better than Dish Network and very often give me a WOW factor that I just never got with any channel on Dish Network. I don't think I realized how mediocre the E* PQ really was until now. As a movie buff I am PARTICULARLY dazzled by the quality of the Starz channels. They come VERY close to HD DVD quality, imo. Not to mention the fact that the SD channels are WORLDS better than on E*. I essentially never watched SD channels on E* unless I HAD to because they were so bad. While I obviously prefer HD, the SD is again watchable for me which just adds to the value. But again, the D* HD quality is just truly stunning and clearly better than with E*.
Receiver: I have a HR21 and sadly it pails in comparison to my Dish VIP722 box. The user interface is confusing and not nearly as user friendly. I miss the ease that I could switch through my various channel lineup lists that I created, how I could see a movie in the guide and do a search on it RIGHT from there instead of always having to go through manually (menu > search > title, etc). I miss having an antenna input (though I'm supposedly getting a HR20 to swap out the HR21), and the ability to record 3 programs at once. I miss being able to feed to another tv from the same box. I miss seeing the red record light that seems to not work on this box. The DVR on the 722 is MUCH easier to use, finding programs is MUCH easier with the 722, in short, the HR21 is a MASSIVE disappointment. I really hope there are plans to make their equipment more like E*'s equipment.
On-Demand: Well, since I have the HR21, I have not been able to use D*'s. However, considering that their SD quality is VASTLY better than with E*, and considering that you currently don't have to pay extra for it, this should be a HUGE advantage for D*. Not to mention how much the wife has missed on-demand from when we had Cable. Any time you have something that the wife LOVES after driving her nuts having switched to a 3rd provider in the last 6 months is a major positive.
Conclusion: With D* having MUCH better PQ, more HD particularly in the areas that I like most (movies), west coast feeds of those channels which helps with DVR recording conflicts, and the prospect of having an on-demand service like I used to have with Time Warner, D* is a MUCH better service for ME. If Directv could only make a receiver that is as user friendly as the 722, they would be better than E* in EVERY way. I just hope and pray that D* never degrades their HD quality like E* clearly has because it looks stunning right now. I couldn't be happier right now.
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