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jasnhrpr
Last reply · posted in DIRECTV General Forum
I posted this on the Dish Network forum and I thought I would post it over here as well to get the most feedback so I can make my decision.

Does anybody have a link to a channel comparison between Directv and Dish Network? It seems like I saw one somewhere on here before. I want to see which channels I may lose/gain by switching to Directv.
Anyway, I have been with Dish Network for almost two years now. I have a Vip 722 and 211k. I have been frustrated with them several times. first over Turbo HD, which was the reason I signed up with them in the first place, and now over the loss of the Disney channels and ESPN news. I got upset when they didn't add any new channels to TurboHD and raised the prices significantly at the same time, so I switched over to classic silver and they gave me discount for a while. That discount has now ran out and I'm seriously considering making the switch over to Directv. They have some really good offers right now. Give me the pros/cons of making the switch.
Thanks,
Jason
3 Replies · 1098 views
jaj1701
I gave this a lot of thought....as a NEW customer that has had both in the past.

1. I had too many HD TVs. The receiver fees would have killed me for DVRs, so I was going to have to go with 211k's ($7/mo) and add a lot of external hard drives. That meant being stuck with single tuner "dvrs" after the one time $39.99 charge plus having to buy a bunch of external USB hard drives. Either those or 612 receivers, which are $10/ea and again are Single tuner and old. I would have had $21-$30 for 4 receivers fees, compared to $15 with DirecTV....and they are all MRV compatible lastest generation dual tuner receivers.

2. I thought DISH had a stronger NON-sports HD channel offering, but DirecTV was strong on the sports side. I trusted DirecTV to be able to add more with their fleet up there and going up there.

3. The $29 first year/$14 second year discount that is available in certain areas was a nice benefit....a 2nd year discount is rare in Sat TV land.

4. Being able to get a $10/10 months referral discount for me and my friend was another bonus.

5. Thought the 922 was a bust personally.

6. The fact that Directv just released the HR24 line....the thought of getting brand new, fast receivers got rid of one of the downfalls of DirecTV (slow receivers)

7. MRV!!!!! MRV!!!! Thats just awesome and will be very well utilized at my place.

8. I like the DirecTV remote

9. The full time HD regional sports networks

10. NASCAR HOTPASS and some of the other cool sports related cool stuff like mix channels and the score stuff.

11. $350 rebate available from Best Buy when purchased with a $499 or above HDTV...which I did take advantage of.

12. DirecTV matched DISH's FREE HD for LIFE promo.

13. I kinda distrust Dish's CEO Charlie and the decisions he makes. The current DISNEY issue, the TIVO lawsuit, etc...... In Charlie Chat he doesn't even seem to know what's going on.

14. Some repeat of the above points, but the bottom line is it was a better value for me!


Against DirecTV

1. My local market will not being going HD anytime soon on DirecTV.

2. Can't take external HD recording to another receiver......but who cares with MRV

3. NO EPIX channel

4. No built in OTA tuner, available on some DISH models ($60 with external AM21).

5. Up to 4 items can record at a time on a DISH receiver with 2 SAT and 2 OTA tuners, DirecTV can't do that. MRV helps that too. Just record it on another box....but a hassle.


Keep in mind, I was *THIS* close to signing up for DISH a couple months ago, thinking the 922 sling loaded receiver was going to be enough to put me over the top. I won't go through the list of why that was not the case.
Poke
Yeah again I'm really like Direct! Their site better their packages just seem to have a better over all better variety. Plus their sports are better as well so you can not go wrong. :)
Matt9876
I was with DirecTV since 1996 and a new Dishnetwork customer going into my 6th month,My change was forced by the economy and a strong dislike of Directvs DVR fee and clunky slow DVR. "The HR24 may be the first exception to the rule but I've yet to see/play with one."

If money wasn't a problem I would still be with DirecTV HD with a bill around $80 a month,Right now I have a 211k HD on the eastern arc and external hard drive DVR with a monthly bill around $30. "No monthly DVR fee,Just a one time $40 EHD activation fee."

Will receive a $15 credit for the next 6 months.

If you are big into sports I recommend you stay with DirecTV.

DirecTV = "Grade A"
Dishnetwork = "Grade B"
Cable = "Grade C-"
Neutron
Supporting Founder
Last reply · posted in Computers and Gadgets
Does anyone here use Apple Home/HomeKit with HomePods or Apple TV to automate smart devices in their house? We have had Amazon's Alexa set up in our house for the last 10+ years and I have been waiting to switch them out to Apple for a few reasons; We are already in the Apple ecosystem with our phones, tablets, and computers. I have never liked Amazon's stance on privacy and I really like that Apple has pushed for privacy for a long time.

I bought 4 of the new HomePod Mini 2 speakers to go in various rooms in our house and we have one of the new Apple TVs on preorder that will be the start of me replacing our Rokus. I have the HomePod Mini 2s set up and have an RPi that is running HomeBridge for our legacy smart devices that worked natively with Alexa but don't work with Apple Home natively. I had trouble with the older smart bulbs not keeping the brightness or light color consistent with what our routines were with Alexa despite trying every setting in HomeBridge with the bulbs just not shining very bright. I ended up replacing them with updated versions that are Matter compatible so they work in Apple Home natively. That in and of itself has been interesting to set up because I have my home network segretated with the IoT devices on their own vlan and wifi and pretty locked down. Matter requires IPv6 and due to how my home network is designed I had to do some digging with AI to figure out how to make it all work correctly.

Apple Home definitely has some shortcomings that Alexa does much better with but I am hoping Apple will continue to improve their Home products and introduce features that will bring it closer to the functionality of Alexa.
4 Replies · 20 views
b4pjoe
I tried HomeKit to be able to see my Ring cameras on my Apple TV as they are not supported natively on Apple devices. The best I could get was to be able to view the cameras live but I could not view any recordings. After the last major update version of HomeKit I could not even view the live cameras anymore. I gave up on it after that. If I were going to do it again I would only buy devices that can work on Apple devices natively as HomeKit didn't work well at all for me.
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Neutron
I tried HomeKit to be able to see my Ring cameras on my Apple TV as they are not supported natively on Apple devices. The best I could get was to be able to view the cameras live but I could not view any recordings. After the last major update version of HomeKit I could not even view the live cameras anymore. I gave up on it after that. If I were going to do it again I would only buy devices that can work on Apple devices natively as HomeKit didn't work well at all for me.
That's what I started doing after seeing legacy devices work hit or miss using the HomeBridge. At least Apple is following a standard now with Matter which is unusual for Apple. Looks like HomeBridge does allow you to see the live views but I haven't seen how to view past recordings. I'd really like to ditch Ring altogether due to their stance on privacy and if I had my choice I'd go with UniFi since that's what I use for my network and I like the idea of my camera recordings being all local and not in the cloud. UniFi doorbells and cameras are quite pricey though.

I'll try to access the Ring doorbells in Apple Home for now but I'll see if it's useful any.
Foxbat
I found that the IoT devices need to see the Apple TV to be able to use it as the HomeKit Hub. Unfortunately, that means being in the same IPv4 subnet.

I was thinking of getting a HomePod Mini for my Mother-in-Law to play music and set up HomeKit scenes, as well as make FaceTime Audio calls. When Apple announced their price rises due to RAMageddon, I kicked myself as they went up 50% in cost. I'll be curious to see the HomeView in person as this might not be a bad way to get her started on automation.

She asked about it because her friends have Alexa and they use it to control lights. But like you, I feel better putting in a HomePod or HomeView that's listening for commands instead of Amazon or Google.
b4pjoe
That's what I started doing after seeing legacy devices work hit or miss using the HomeBridge.
Homebridge is what I meant when I said HomeKit. Forgot the name of it.
Bruce
Supporting Founder Lifetime Supporter
Last reply · posted in Internet Television (IPTV) Discussion Forum
Comcast is the first to report, with a massive 274,000 loss in video subscribers.

In the 3Q of 2016, Comcast had 21.42 million video subscribers and was the #1 provider, now at 10.39 million and is the #3 Provider, YTTV is #2 ( who also surpassed DirecTV-8 Million and Dish-under 5 Million), Charter/Spectrum is #1.

20 Replies · 761 views
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ncted
All my parents had to do to get a discount on Spectrum Internet is say the words "Verizon Home Internet," and they cut the price by $30/month.
NYDutch
All my parents had to do to get a discount on Spectrum Internet is say the words "Verizon Home Internet," and they cut the price by $30/month.
I don't think they'll go below the current $30 price since it's part of a deal they have with the non- profit that owns the apartment building.
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ncted
I don't think they'll go below the current $30 price since it's part of a deal they have with the non- profit that owns the apartment building.
Yeah, I was just saying Spectrum suddenly wants to keep what customers they can.
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Tom Speer
Optimum, which bought up our previous cable company, Suddenlink (originally COX), replac ed all of their coax disdripution with Fiber several years ago. They ran new fiber links to the house, but installed RFOG (RF over glass) devices on the outside of the house, which makes the house coax system look like a cable system. They used DOCSIS modems and of course we had the same assymetric bandwidth of cable internet. When I called them a couple years ago, and said I had installed a connection to the local Fiber provideer, MetroNet, They panicked and offered me the 300 MBit "Fiber powered" cable service for $20 per month. They were bleeding customers. I cancelled my Metronet and went with the $20 deal for a year, even though I didn't like the old cable technology.

Then T-moble Fiber struck a deal with Metronet Fiber where T-mobile would take over the marketing, billing and customer relations for residential Customers. They offered a "Founders Deal" for 2 Gigabit service, symmetric speeds, for $70 per month for new customers. That included all taxes and fees and was guaranteed for 10 years. I couldn't resist. That deal is no longer offered, but I am set for 9 more years.

Now the successaor to the old local telephone company, Brightspeed has also installed a modern Fiber system in the neighborhood, but won't be getting my business. But their Fiber technology is also superior to Optimums cable based system.

With Fiber competition, the cable companies are eventually doomed.
Foxbat
Meanwhile, my neighbor 300' away has gigabit fiber, and I'm stuck with copper solutions.
K
Pub Member / Supporter Lifetime Supporter
Last reply · posted in TV Shows
'Rockford Files' Reboot Gets NBC Pilot Order

I grow tired of all the reboots. Most I don't bother with but will depend on the actor chosen.
23 Replies · 856 views
long_time_Dish

I wonder how they're/if they're going to do something like the answering machine message opening? It was always funny...
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Howard Simmons
I wonder how they're/if they're going to do something like the answering machine message opening? It was always funny...
I hope they can find enough Pontiac Firebirds to keep the show going.🤔
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dishstaller
I wonder how they're/if they're going to do something like the answering machine message opening? It was always funny...
I had forgotten all about that part of the show. Used to really like it.
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long_time_Dish
The one where Beth is telling him about her cat is one of my favorites. "...he's not very discriminating". 🤣
Scott Greczkowski
Staff member HERE TO HELP YOU! Cutting Edge
Last reply · posted in The Chit Chat Club
Sometimes a thread gets so many posts in it that is can cause issues for the server so that why today we introduce The Song Name Game Part 3!

So let the game continue!

The last song was added by Bobby who posted...

One Meat Ball - Andrews Sisters

CONTINUE ON AND HAVE FUN! WELCOME HOME TO SATELLITEGUYS.US!

Here are the original rules for the game as posted by WebbyDude back in 2006. http://www.satelliteguys.us/threads/68645-Song-Name-Game

Just name a song title and the band who performed it. The next person does the same thing, but needs to list a song title or band name which includes a word from the previous entry. Pick songs from any genre.

Example:

Long Live Rock and Roll -- Rainbow

Rainbow in the Dark -- Dio

Another example:

Ride the Lightning -- Metallica

Lightning Strikes -- Ozzy Osbourne


Get it?


An additional note: we all know that song titles, sometimes, use profane words. Because this is a family friendly website it is advised that you clean up that title up a bit. This is accomplished by using something like sh!t instead of the real word. Thanks....
68764 Replies · 2686058 views
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dishstaller
Knights In White Satin - The Moody Blues
Bobby
The Topical Song - The Barron Knights
dishstaller
The Logical Song - Supertramp
sdfntx
From a Logical Point of View - Robert Mitchum
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long_time_Dish
Point Of Know Return - Kansas
b4pjoe
Pub Member / Supporter Cutting Edge
Last reply · posted in Computers and Gadgets
6 Replies · 177 views
harshness
Given that Tubi is one of the hottest FAST services out there, I don't expect it to go anywhere. Building up intolerance for ads takes a while, and as long as the advertisers are willing to foot the bill, why not?
osu1991

Surprise! Fox Corp. said Friday it has closed the acquisition of streaming platform Roku, a deal valued at $22 billion, well ahead of the expected 2027 date.
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Neutron
Another reason I'm glad we are swapping or Rokus out for Apple TVs. I was already planning on ditching the Rokus earlier this year and had been waiting on Apple to announce the new one last month. Our Rokus have had issues the last year or so with freezing video and reboots, and one with an HDCP issue randomly.
dishstaller
Building up intolerance for ads takes a while, and as long as the advertisers are willing to foot the bill, why not?
That is what I have to explain to customers all the time. They want it free with no ads :facepalm
dishstaller
Pub Member / Supporter Lifetime Supporter
Last reply · posted in The Chit Chat Club
Thought some might find this encouraging. It turned out good but I still feel a little bad about it.
Had to drop by Walmart on my way to the store this morning, I had enough time but no time to spare either. As I was walking across the parking lot I noticed an older gent pushing his buggy with a confused look on his face. I said hello as I passed but he didn't respond...something was bothering him. I kept walking and then stopped and chided myself for being in too much of a rush. I turned around and asked him if he needed some help. Turned out he had NO idea where he had parked his truck. He told what color and model and looked around...nothing. I asked him if he had tried his key fob, he wasn't sure what I was talking about and got it out and handed it to me. Hit the lock and listened for a horn like my F150 does. Nothing. Finally I hit the panic button and we heard his truck...it was on the complete other side of the parking lot. He thanked me and I went on about my business.

I felt bad however because I almost didn't stop. I was so focused on what I had to pick up that I almost just kept walking without seeing if I could help. Years ago I wouldn't have hesitated. It seems that as we age it is easy to focus more on ourselves and ignore others which is why you'll see footage of these muggings in big cities and people just walk by the wounded victim who is laying on the sidewalk.

Moral to the story: Don't let your humanity die just because so many others have allowed theirs to.
3 Replies · 52 views
T
Years ago you wouldn't have hesitated...What was your hesitation? In breaking stride to assess another's situation, which you wouldn't have done when younger? Usually it's younger people who are less observant or likely to break routine to help an old lady cross the street, etc.
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TRG
TRG
Kinda reminds me of a verse from an old John Prine song.

So if you're walking down the street sometime
And spot some hollow ancient eyes
Please don't just pass 'em by and stare as if you didn't care
Say, "Hello in there, hello"


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Jimbo
Thought some might find this encouraging. It turned out good but I still feel a little bad about it.
Had to drop by Walmart on my way to the store this morning, I had enough time but no time to spare either. As I was walking across the parking lot I noticed an older gent pushing his buggy with a confused look on his face. I said hello as I passed but he didn't respond...something was bothering him. I kept walking and then stopped and chided myself for being in too much of a rush. I turned around and asked him if he needed some help. Turned out he had NO idea where he had parked his truck. He told what color and model and looked around...nothing. I asked him if he had tried his key fob, he wasn't sure what I was talking about and got it out and handed it to me. Hit the lock and listened for a horn like my F150 does. Nothing. Finally I hit the panic button and we heard his truck...it was on the complete other side of the parking lot. He thanked me and I went on about my business.

I felt bad however because I almost didn't stop. I was so focused on what I had to pick up that I almost just kept walking without seeing if I could help. Years ago I wouldn't have hesitated. It seems that as we age it is easy to focus more on ourselves and ignore others which is why you'll see footage of these muggings in big cities and people just walk by the wounded victim who is laying on the sidewalk.

Moral to the story: Don't let your humanity die just because so many others have allowed theirs to.
Actually, I think it's a bit different ... as we age, we do what we need to ... I being retired, don't leave home as early as I would other wise have, some day I have a ton of stops to make, others just a few ...

I think the problem is the generations behind us are all about themselves and generally could care less about others ...

Thats not everyone behind us, but I would guess a majority ...

There comes a time in life that you decide your going to do whats Right, or not ...
TWiT Tech Podcast Network
· posted in TWiT Tech Podcast Network
0 Replies · 13 views