My FIOS TV vs. DISH Compare

[psumattDE]

Well, after being a DISH customer since March of 06' - FIOS TV just rolled out in my area, and I was installed on Thursday with an HD-DVR and an HD box - just as I had with DISH (622 & 211).

After a few days of missing channels (was a local issue in my area - I was one of the 1st out of my CO) - i'm now up and running. Oh yeah, still need to work out some OnDemand kinks tomorrow with the tech group.

Comparisons

Receivers - Naturally, DISH's receivers and interfaces were awesome. FIOS uses the Microsoft TV platform - it's not terrible, but certainly DISH would win in this category. FIOS is supposedly working on a revamp of the guide.

SD Channels - my local SD channels blow away DISH's offering - standard SD channels are much clearer. I would say some stations have similar quality as DISH (probably based on the channel itself), but most of them are better.

HD Channels - the quality looks fantastic - every HD channel comes in great. Especially the HD Nets, SportsNet Philly HD - and one that was big on this board for awhile, StarzHD. You can tell FIOS is giving the required bandwidth to these stations. It's also nice to see MHD. I will admittingly miss Food HD and HGTV HD until FIOS adds them. These were 2 of the most watched channels in my home. I hardly ever watched the VOOM channels, so in all reality I won't miss them. It's also a relief to finally get my Local HD stations in perfect. No more pixilating macroblocking crap on ABC HD out of Philly. In 9 months DISH couldn't fix that.

Other points - FIOS offers "Widgets" - which is local weather and traffic along the bottom of the screen - I have Weatherscan Local again - and of course, the Weather Channel with "real" Local on the 8's. It will also be nice to have OnDemand again - the real kind.

I now have to call and cancel today the basic Comcast service I had as a backup to DISH - and then, cancel DISH as well. I'll probably wait a week or so to get that done.

IF anyone has any questions - please let me know!

 

[riffjim4069]

Glad to see you're happy with FiOS TV...the PQ is awesome. On a positive note, the faster AT&T and Verizon rollout their TV service, the faster Dish Network will have to fix their PQ. People just aren't going to accept fuzzy analog cable and blurry bit-starved satellite when there are better, and possibly less expensive, alternatives.

 

[RedWings]

I agree that the guide for FIOS TV is nothing to write home about....but the PQ makes up for all that.

I just wish they'd add the NHL Center Ice Package so I could go that route.

 

[AllieVi]

I recently got a notification from Verizon that FIOS TV is available. I'm seriously considering their service, but one thing keeps me from abandoning DISH. I like the RF remotes.

I distribute signals to lots of small TV's around the house via a central distribution system. Each TV has an RF remote nearby that can change channels on any of my 3 receivers. Verizon's FIOS receivers don't seem to provide the same capability. I've used IR extenders in the past, but prefer RF remotes.

Maybe someone here can clarify a receiver question. Do the FIOS receivers provide simultaneous HD and SD outputs? I would want to supply an HD signal to the main TV and an SD signal to my distribution system. I downloaded and searched the receiver manuals, but didn't find the answer.

 

[neftv]

How about a price chart between the two services? Thanks.

 

[grydlok]

Well, after being a DISH customer since March of 06' - FIOS TV just rolled out in my area, and I was installed on Thursday with an HD-DVR and an HD box - just as I had with DISH (622 & 211).

After a few days of missing channels (was a local issue in my area - I was one of the 1st out of my CO) - i'm now up and running. Oh yeah, still need to work out some OnDemand kinks tomorrow with the tech group.

Comparisons

Receivers - Naturally, DISH's receivers and interfaces were awesome. FIOS uses the Microsoft TV platform - it's not terrible, but certainly DISH would win in this category. FIOS is supposedly working on a revamp of the guide.

SD Channels - my local SD channels blow away DISH's offering - standard SD channels are much clearer. I would say some stations have similar quality as DISH (probably based on the channel itself), but most of them are better.

HD Channels - the quality looks fantastic - every HD channel comes in great. Especially the HD Nets, SportsNet Philly HD - and one that was big on this board for awhile, StarzHD. You can tell FIOS is giving the required bandwidth to these stations. It's also nice to see MHD. I will admittingly miss Food HD and HGTV HD until FIOS adds them. These were 2 of the most watched channels in my home. I hardly ever watched the VOOM channels, so in all reality I won't miss them. It's also a relief to finally get my Local HD stations in perfect. No more pixilating macroblocking crap on ABC HD out of Philly. In 9 months DISH couldn't fix that.

Other points - FIOS offers "Widgets" - which is local weather and traffic along the bottom of the screen - I have Weatherscan Local again - and of course, the Weather Channel with "real" Local on the 8's. It will also be nice to have OnDemand again - the real kind.

I now have to call and cancel today the basic Comcast service I had as a backup to DISH - and then, cancel DISH as well. I'll probably wait a week or so to get that done.

IF anyone has any questions - please let me know!

I can get it now, but dislike for verizon is great. This whole cherry picking plan is a great injustice to all consumers. I won't crap on your thread anymore but I'm glad you like it.

 

[Stargazer]

What is FIOS price compared to Dish? What do they charge for HD, DVR, additional outlets, B.S. fees?

 

[psumattDE]

Price wise - with the setup I have - it's about $10/mo cheaper than DISH after you factor in the additional HD receiver fee, etc. Nothing huge - but since I do now get Philly SportsNet back - I had to jump at it.

I had HD Platinum with Locals with DISH - and now have Premier, Movies & Sports, and the HBO/Max package - with 1 HD DVR and 1 HD box for $107.95/mo

 

[Stargazer]

Sounds like the B.S. fees are going to catch up to Dish. Wasn't it said last year that FIOS and cable was really hurting satellite churn rates and sales because of the bundling deals?

 

[GadgetGirl]

I am hoping the FIOS will make it down to Dover. I have been frustrated with Dish this past year. I just signed up with Comcast. They have really improved since I left them 8 years ago. I am in the process of deciding if I will drop Dish all together or have some cable and some satellite. The new price increase coming from Dish is bigger than any I ever paid with cable. I have lost channels and will be paying more. I have also had issues with installers and the billing department this past year. I am also tired of trying to communicate to csr's that don't understand basic English. I have found Comcast csr's all speak English well. For me, cable will actually be cheaper, though the quality is not quite as good. I have to decide what trade offs to make. Cable does offer me more HD locals and the Salisbury, MD locals that actually cover Dover news. I have some tough choices ahead. I am really interested in FIOS and hope to see it this way soon. Thanks for your comparison on FIOS vs. Dish.

 

[dishcomm]

Well, after being a DISH customer since March of 06' - FIOS TV just rolled out in my area, and I was installed on Thursday with an HD-DVR and an HD box - just as I had with DISH (622 & 211).

After a few days of missing channels (was a local issue in my area - I was one of the 1st out of my CO) - i'm now up and running. Oh yeah, still need to work out some OnDemand kinks tomorrow with the tech group.

Comparisons

Receivers - Naturally, DISH's receivers and interfaces were awesome. FIOS uses the Microsoft TV platform - it's not terrible, but certainly DISH would win in this category. FIOS is supposedly working on a revamp of the guide.

SD Channels - my local SD channels blow away DISH's offering - standard SD channels are much clearer. I would say some stations have similar quality as DISH (probably based on the channel itself), but most of them are better.

HD Channels - the quality looks fantastic - every HD channel comes in great. Especially the HD Nets, SportsNet Philly HD - and one that was big on this board for awhile, StarzHD. You can tell FIOS is giving the required bandwidth to these stations. It's also nice to see MHD. I will admittingly miss Food HD and HGTV HD until FIOS adds them. These were 2 of the most watched channels in my home. I hardly ever watched the VOOM channels, so in all reality I won't miss them. It's also a relief to finally get my Local HD stations in perfect. No more pixilating macroblocking crap on ABC HD out of Philly. In 9 months DISH couldn't fix that.

Other points - FIOS offers "Widgets" - which is local weather and traffic along the bottom of the screen - I have Weatherscan Local again - and of course, the Weather Channel with "real" Local on the 8's. It will also be nice to have OnDemand again - the real kind.

I now have to call and cancel today the basic Comcast service I had as a backup to DISH - and then, cancel DISH as well. I'll probably wait a week or so to get that done.

IF anyone has any questions - please let me know!

Save for the exepected new technology bugs,I hear and read nothing but good things about FiOS..I am a 9 year E* sub and If FiOS comes here AND they offer sports packs such as NHL CI and MLB EI(I won't hold my breath on NFL ST) and have competitive rates I am done with Satellite...We'll see..One thing..If cable offered something similar to FiOS I still wouldn't go with them..I hate Time Warner..This may sound irrational, but if TW suddenly became my only Pay tv option, I'd go to rabbit ears....
I won't be here in this area long enough to see any technological advances like FiOS..Our local Phone Co is the former Alltell, now called Windstream....This company barely qualifies as a phone service provider...I check their website and see that FiOS isn't even a glint in their eye.....What really sucks is if I lived in the other end of this subdivision, I'd be a Verizon customer...About 3/4 of a mile form here....DAMMIT!!!!!!

 

[dishcomm]

I can get it now, but dislike for verizon is great. This whole cherry picking plan is a great injustice to all consumers. I won't crap on your thread anymore but I'm glad you like it.

What do you mean by "cherry picking plan"?

 

[AllieVi]

What do you mean by "cherry picking plan"?

The term in this case refers to installing service in the most lucrative markets. Detractors will claim it's a form of discrimination. Supporters will say it's simply good business.

Verizon chose to enter my area (Murrieta, CA) largely because the city saw the benefits of having a fibered backbone and greased the skids (i.e., reduced the hurdles in the fiber installation process). The neighboring community (Temecula) didn't. Guess who got FIOS first.

You could say Verizon "cherry picked" Murrieta...

 

[dishcomm]

The term in this case refers to installing service in the most lucrative markets. Detractors will claim it's a form of discrimination. Supporters will say it's simply good business.

Verizon chose to enter my area (Murrieta, CA) largely because the city saw the benefits of having a fibered backbone and greased the skids (i.e., reduced the hurdles in the fiber installation process). The neighboring community (Temecula) didn't. Guess who got FIOS first.

You could say Verizon "cherry picked" Murrieta...

Actually you're dealing with two seperate issues..
First is the approval process from each community when it comes to getting wires thru town...I don't know if this applies to public utilities which FiOS is because it is owned by the local telco.In that case the town does not have the same jurisdiction(correct me if I am wrong) over telcos than it does over cable..Cable is NOT a public utility ...
cherry picking neighborhoods....Or redlining if you will...cable comonaies seeing the need ot placate city politicos to get their lines strung thru town, had to agree to place their service, much to their financial chagrin, in even the poorest sections of town..Apparently FiOS has no such restrictions..And IMO rightly so...The technology and hardware for FiOS is very expensive...The service is financially out of reach for most of the people who live in the skipped areas...So why bother running all that expensive fiber through an area where very few people will take the service..Remember this, The same appiles to cable..Cable co's are forced to serve all areas..And the areas where there is a low pct of dwellings subscribed are subsidized in the form of higher rates to subscribers...And like it or not this may sound racist or classist but it's a cold hard fact of life...Cable piracy/theft is much more prevalent in poorer neighborhoods...Paying customers also are charged for the actions of the"entitled"...
So I agree with neigborhood cherry picking. Now it looks like from your story that an entire town was cherry picked....Fine by me..If there aren't enough potential customers, why should the telco be forced to spend the money to serve them when they won't take the product...It's the same thing in semi rural areas when the cable franchise gets word that new homes may be built in a previously unserved area or there is an interest in the product, the cable co surveys the local residents. If there are enough people who say if the service was available they'd take it. Then the cable co may be inclined to spend the money to serve the area. If the majority say no, the cable co stays out of the area......Hey, if Home Depot looks at a community and decides they won't do a profitable business in that community, they simply don't build there... I see no difference with FiOS....

 

[Cokeswigga]

How is the DVR functions of FIOS compared to dish.

I love the 30 sec skip ahead
... I am also MARRIED to the modulated output and UHF remotes....
I currently have two receivers in the livingroom, both are hooked up to the living room tv, and the bedroom has acccess to both receivers via cable & UHF remotes.

I will need to replicate this for me to switch.
I hate having the receivers in the bedroom.. they are noisy..

I also like having 3 HD tuners... 2 sat tuners and 1 OTA tuner.

I would like to now more about the fios Master DVR functions too

 

[dishcomm]

How is the DVR functions of FIOS compared to dish.

I love the 30 sec skip ahead
... I am also MARRIED to the modulated output and UHF remotes....
I currently have two receivers in the livingroom, both are hooked up to the living room tv, and the bedroom has acccess to both receivers via cable & UHF remotes.

I will need to replicate this for me to switch.
I hate having the receivers in the bedroom.. they are noisy..

I also like having 3 HD tuners... 2 sat tuners and 1 OTA tuner.

I would like to now more about the fios Master DVR functions too

What noise?..Do you mean that low barely audible hum the DVR HD makes?...

 

[Cokeswigga]

How is the signal transmitted from the Fiber node to each box?

is it standard coax?

can you use the regular cable tv splitters?

 

[Aqualung812]

Cherrypicking

Cherrypicking is fine, until it affects you.

The idea that cable (and by the way the tech works, sat too) must provide service to an entire area while the phone companies can waltz in and just give service to who they want is wrong. The cost to deploy FIOS is no greater than it was to do cable Internet. Don't buy the phone company BS that they need special help!

Imagine how many people might be willing to pay for the service, but they live in an area with too many "poor" people. There are all sorts of people I know of that have rennovated old downtown homes and can afford to pay for the top tier of services. However, when you look at the downtown area, there are a lot of "poor" people as well. So those customers that live there AND can pay for the service get passed up.

The other part of this is that the "poor" people STAY poor. Without the compitition from the phone company, the cable company will keep their rates high.

In the end, the person to blame isn't the phone company. Blame the lawmakers that bought the BS and changed the laws so the phone company could get away with this.

 

[GadgetGirl]

Cable has done their own cherry picking. I have known people that wanted cable, but couldn't get it. They weren't in an area with enough people to make it worth it to the cable companies to run the cable. They would only do it if the individuals were willing to pay the full cost of running the cable to them. When more developments were built nearby, then Comcast would run the cable to them. These weren't people in the middle of nowhere, just not in a dense enough area for Comcast. I don't see how it is any different with what FIOS is doing. I don't like what is happening, but I can't say one is worse than the other. Satellite doesn't care, as they don't have to run cables or fiber so it doesn't matter where the person lives, as long as they will pay the bill.

 

[dimi1963]

I can't wait of rit ot ba available in my area!!!! I am kinfd of tired of *E, I was trying to watch a movie on StarzHD and I had to change channel.....