About to Order Directv: Need Advice

[Viventis]

I have just cancelled Dish after they cancelled my subscription package (HD Absolute). I need to have Directv in place on or before February 2 (if possible).

I am inclined to get the Choice Xtra package to get the extra premium movie channels free for 3 months. I definetly need one HD DVR and another HD box (no charge in this package).

Some questions before I order.

Should I go online, phone to Directv or contact a local provider? Any differences in the costs, incentives or packages?

Is there any special trick or way to get a better deal than published online? Does it matter if I give contact information for a current Directv customer on a "referral?"

How does the whole house DVR work in a setup where I will have one HDTV connected to a DVR, one HDTV connected to the HD box, and two SD connections?

What is the best, latest HDDVR and do I automatically get it or do I have to specifically request it? Will it cost extra? I definitely want to hook up an eSata external HD.

Will the installer remove my Dish Network dish or do I need to do that before the Directv installer arrives?

Any other tips before I pull the trigger?

Thanks in advance from a soon to be customer.

 

[mdram]

to insure the latest box, you may have to go to a local provider.
the latest hddvr is the hr24
for whole home you have 1 box at each tv. they talk to one another and stream video from the dvr to the regularbox.
if you hook up an external hd it disable the internal. if you move this drive to another dvr it formats it.
get everything you think you want now, its costly later.
to get a referal you need to call the special number and have the info ready. i didnt do a referal, i did a rebate thru dishstore for the same amount.

how many tvs do you want? will you need ota? how many streams do you want to record at a time? what did you ahve with dish?

i ask because d* dvrs record 2 streams at once, e* does up to 4 iirc.
if you need ota you will need an am21 as there is no built in tuner for this.
also each location will need its own reciever either dvr or other
request hr24's and h24's for the latest stuff, well until the h34 is released but i dont think there is a timing on that yet.

almost forgot i doubt he will remove your dish as they use diff mounting methods

 

[bacchus101]

almost forgot i doubt he will remove your dish as they use diff mounting methods

I actually brought the same question to the D* rep I spoke with and he said the installer would remove the Dish Network equipment at my request as part of the installation. Guess we will see how that pans out...

 

[kjlued]

Is there any special trick or way to get a better deal than published online? Does it matter if I give contact information for a current Directv customer on a "referral?"

This is the best promo

Get a friends Name, Address, phone #, and account #
Call 1-877-774-1688 (make sure you use that number as different promotions are attached to their phone numbers)
Give them your friends information and use this promo code: MANC913320

This will give you and your friend each $100 Visa gift card.

You can ask if they are still offering free HD but you will have to have autopay to get it.

As far as guarantees on equipment, there are none unless you go to a retailer but you will not get all the promotional discounts if you do this.
However, most of what we are currently getting is HR24 and H24.

Getting service by Feb 2 will be no issue at all as there is about a 24 to 48 hour turn around in this area.
Your tech will either come from office in the Asheville area or from Charlotte just depending.

Make sure you get all equipment you want on the work order.
If you want 2 HD/DVR's, then pay the $99 to get the extra because if you decide to do it a month down the road, it will cost double.

And yes, any tech should remove the dish.
Even though it uses different mounts, most will try and put it in the same place so they can use the same wiring.
Certainly though you can ask them if they will.

 

[Viventis]

if you hook up an external hd it disable the internal.

What do mean by this? Can you still do whole house DVR with an external? If I start out recording on the DVR, then add an external drive later, will I lose all of the previous recordings (or can you transfer them)? My plan is to record as many movies as possible while I have all of the premium movie channels for free.

What is the initial cost of the AM21 over the air tuner and is there a monthly cost associated with this? With the AM21, can you record a third show? I have an external antenna I use to record a third stream with my current Dish DVR. But, I can always hook it up directly to the TV if I need to.

BTW: Thanks all for the replies. I think I am going to enjoy this forum!

Another question: Does the HDDVR connect to my network in addition to a phone line? What, if any benefit is there to connecting through my network? I am guessing that the use of a computer (or iPhone) to schedule the DVR needs this. I am also assuming the connection, if any, is not wireless. I will probably need to get a wireless access point if I need to connect to my network.

 

[Ronnie-]

What do mean by this? Can you still do whole house DVR with an external? If I start out recording on the DVR, then add an external drive later, will I lose all of the previous recordings (or can you transfer them)? My plan is to record as many movies as possible while I have all of the premium movie channels for free.

What is the initial cost of the AM21 over the air tuner and is there a monthly cost associated with this? With the AM21, can you record a third show? I have an external antenna I use to record a third stream with my current Dish DVR. But, I can always hook it up directly to the TV if I need to.

BTW: Thanks all for the replies. I think I am going to enjoy this forum!

You will still be able to use the whole home DVR with an external, but it replaces your internal, not supplements it. If you wanted to view the stuff on the internal, you would have to deactivate the external. At least that is how I think it works, have not used an external personally.

The AM21 is around $50 or so, but you can probably talk them into giving it to you for free. There is no monthly fee associated with it.
You can not record a third show, you can record 2 sat or 2 ota or a combination of 2, but two is the max that can be recorded by one box at one time. You can also watch a recorded program while recording those other two.

 

[mdram]

also if you connect to your home network ask for the cinema kit. it allows your dvr to talk to the internet for stremaing shows and such, if you have high speed.
you can shcedule your dvr without a network connection.
there is also directv2pc that allows you to view stuff on your computer if you connect this way.

im not sure how this all works, as i cant get highspeed so i didnt go this route

 

[kjlued]

The AM21 is around $50 or so, but you can probably talk them into giving it to you for free.

Not needed or available in this area.
So, no you can not get the AM21.

As far as connecting in to your network, you will not need a wiresless solution.
All we need is to be able to get a cable to your router (or use a pre existing one).
It will all communicate through the coax then.
If you want it hooked to your computer network (which I would) then ask for it to be connected to your broadband.
This will not only allow you to order movies, but also allow video on demand, dvr2pc, etc.
It is free to have done at the time of install and there is no monthly charge.

Phone lines will then only be necessary if you want to receive caller ID in the receivers so if you have phone jacks near the receiver and want that option, then ask for some phone jumpers.
Personally, I find caller ID popping up on the TV to be quite annoying.

 

[Viventis]

Not needed or available in this area.
So, no you can not get the AM21.

As far as connecting in to your network, you will not need a wiresless solution.
All we need is to be able to get a cable to your router (or use a pre existing one).
It will all communicate through the coax then.
If you want it hooked to your computer network (which I would) then ask for it to be connected to your broadband.
This will not only allow you to order movies, but also allow video on demand, dvr2pc, etc.
It is free to have done at the time of install and there is no monthly charge..

Thanks. Dish charges $5 per DVR that is not hooked up to a phone line.

Will the installer run Cat-5 cable through the crawl space of my house free as part of the install? If so, I'll get a small gigabit switch to run my Blueray and Squeezebox (and the DVR) hardwired rather than wireless. I can configure it ahead of time to make it plug and play.

 

[kjlued]

Thanks. Dish charges $5 per DVR that is not hooked up to a phone line.

Will the installer run Cat-5 cable through the crawl space of my house free as part of the install? If so, I'll get a small gigabit switch to run my Blueray and Squeezebox (and the DVR) hardwired rather than wireless. I can configure it ahead of time to make it plug and play.

No, how we wire the system in to the internet is by running coax to the router and using what we call a Broad Band DECA which allows the system to communicate to the internet through coax.

 

[bender3000]

I'm in the same boat as Viventis. Thanks for all the info.

 

[kjlued]

I say to any new customer thinking about ordering DTV with DVR, order this.

1 HD/DVR
1 HD
Up to 4 standards
Broad Band Deca (if you have high speed internet and a router)

This will be what DirectTv will give you for free (depending on credit history).

Ask for free HD which I believe they will give you as long as you go on autopay.

If you want extra HD equipment or additional standards they will charge you.

I believe they will charge you $199 if you ad a HD/DVR or $99 if you swap the HD for it (not sure on this).
Additional HD receivers will be $99
Additional Standards $69
(Again not 100% sure on all prices and they are subject to change)

Whatever you do, order additional equipment at time of original order or the price will go up if tou try and order it down the road.
Also, if you change your mind when the installer gets there, he may not have it because we leave with little to no extra equipment due to shortages.

 

[hdinsd]

This is the best promo

Get a friends Name, Address, phone #, and account #
Call 1-877-774-1688 (make sure you use that number as different promotions are attached to their phone numbers)
Give them your friends information and use this promo code: MANC913320

This will give you and your friend each $100 Visa gift card.

does this still work? is this just like the regular referral which can be combined with other offers, such as the $180 costco card?

 

[kjlued]

Still works, but don't think it can be combined with other offers.

 

[Mojo Jojo]

Thanks. Dish charges $5 per DVR that is not hooked up to a phone line.

I thought that Dish did away with that fee when they quit giving $5 credits for having boxes hooked up to a phone line or broadband connection.

In addition, if you are going with DirecTV, you should be able to get the HD Extra Pack (if no one has mentioned it) for free for at least the first three months.