America's Satellite Information Source???

[bobvick]

Scott can give a better and more detailed response, but basically Directv isn't as forthcoming with information until it's public and they didn't like when it was published here early. Scott, is that it in a nutshell?

That still is no excuse as to why a product like the HR34 has never had a "First Look" at this site. A HR34 should have been procured by some of the staff here, and reviewed. Just because DirecTV didn't give out a sample is no excuse for the product not to be reviewed at a place that is supposed to provide seemingly unbiased information.

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

My question is why does Directv refuse to have anything to do with satguys?I see no dtv internet response team.Dtv could have a much bigger presence here if they wanted,Dish has seemed to embrace the site.

I would welcome DIRECTV with open arms. There is a reason why companies like DISH Network, SiriusXM, Bright House Cable and SuddenLink communications all have OFFICIAL presences here. I can't make DIRECTV come to us, they are going to have to want to. But for now they seem to like their old guys club at DBStalk, and if they are happy reaching those small numbers then god bless em.

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

I think that this site is big enough to do honest review of both providers big product launches. I do not think that equipment that is provided by Dish and DirecTV should be tested, it seems that it would be a more honest and open review if the products were bought at retail, just the same as you and I would do, and then tested.

Bob I will be honest with you. Yes DISH did give me the equipment to test, but they did not tell me what to say or what not to say. The review I gave of the Hopper and Joey (if you read it) gave both the positives and negatives and (if you read it) did not sugar coat anything.

What was REALLY surprising to me, was as a courtesy to DISH I sent them an early copy of my first look and I expected them to be upset with some of the things I said and was expecting them to write me back to change a few things that they didn't like. Instead what they sent me back was a corrected and fully edited document to make my grammar read better. They did not attempt to change or ask me to change anything I said about the product.

I don't know if you have a selective memory or just didn't read here but over the past 5 months we have broke more DIRECTV news then the other sites...

We were the first the break the news of the new DIRECTV programming package. (There was no mention of it at the other site)
We were the first to break the news of the EXACT channel lineup for that package. (The other site again said nothing about it until it was officially available.)
We were the first to break the news of the specs of the HR34. (Again no mention from the other site.)
We were the first to break the news of the release date of the HR34 (Again crickets from the other site.)

I could go on...

BTW I am told by people inside DIRECTV that they were VERY upset with us for posting all of the above. One of the big reasons we had a fall out with DIRECTV was because THEY were trying to tell us what we could say about DIRECTV and how we could say it. If you look at whats being posted at DBSTalk it is all being fed by DIRECTV, which is why they wouldn't comment when we posted DIRECTV News. In their eyes NOTHING is talked about until they are TOLD they can talk about. How is that for Bias.

If you read my Hopper and Joey First look I told the good and the bad and was proud to tell our members things as I seen them. I do not review things to try pleasing any company, I review things to inform our members of what I think. If I can't be honest with our members then there is no reason for this site.

If anyone has any problem with what I have to say they have choices to go elsewhere, but most don't and if you look at our numbers when compaired with DBSTalks number it shows you once again why we are America's Satellite Information Source.

BTW At CES I met a few people who WORK for DIRECTV who are anti DBSTalk, they themselves think of it almost like a cult. It is some of these folks who have started feeding me information from the inside, and I think its safe to say that more is to come. STAY TUNED.

 

[Jimbo]

BTW At CES I met a few people who WORK for DIRECTV who are anti DBSTalk, they themselves think of it almost like a cult. It is some of these folks who have started feeding me information from the inside, and I think its safe to say that more is to come. STAY TUNED.

Glad to see this !

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

That still is no excuse as to why a product like the HR34 has never had a "First Look" at this site. A HR34 should have been procured by some of the staff here, and reviewed. Just because DirecTV didn't give out a sample is no excuse for the product not to be reviewed at a place that is supposed to provide seemingly unbiased information.

If you provide me one I would be happy to do one.

But it would be a second look. (Or maybe 2,973rd look at this point)

 

[Jimbo]

Bob,
The problem with Scott or staff picking up a recvr to do a first look on thier own would be , it would have to be activated before it would work and then they would be stuck with a 2 year commit on a recvr that they only want to do a review on, unless D* supplied/authorized it.

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

If I had a Samsung TV that supported it then I would really be interested in trying the HR34.

My wife just does not more wires and holes drilled into the house.

 

[Lkr]

That still is no excuse as to why a product like the HR34 has never had a "First Look" at this site. A HR34 should have been procured by some of the staff here, and reviewed. Just because DirecTV didn't give out a sample is no excuse for the product not to be reviewed at a place that is supposed to provide seemingly unbiased information.

So why don't you do it? Not all of the staff subscribes to D*, and those who do definitely don't want to get caught in a new contract and paying out of their own pocket for new hardware. Sure, some of them got it. Doesn't mean that they want to spend the time to write a review on it. Scott puts a lot of effort into his Dish reviews, but to be honest, when looking at a new receiver, there is only a little bit of information I personally find valuable, which has been discussed countless times in regards to the HR34 on the forum here; these details include speed, specs(hard drive size, tuner are all that really matter to me if it is fast), GUI, etc. When you go to a cell phone review site for example, no one on there is buying the new iPhone or HTC phone at the real $600 price, nor are they buying it subsidized at $200 and getting locked in a contract; the carrier or manufacturer is providing a free phone, that they can easily use with their sim card or change primary device via ESN on Sprint/Verizon. if DirecTV provided a free HR34 to a member with the obligation that they write an unbiased review, like Dish does, then there would be more reviews.

TL;DR: Yes, there is a Dish "bias." Not in the sense that anyone is going to push Dish on you unless they personally believe it is better for certain reasons. nor does the site have an agenda to get you to go to Dish. I used to have Dish on here, and EVERYONE that had Dish complained about certain things. The DirecTV area is smaller, but those of us here discuss, complain, and gloat at Dish subs. Bottomline is that Dish provides review units, has support reps on the site as a courtesy, etc, on their own, regardless of Dish or DirecTV subscribers who badmouth Dish on this site. Part of the reason why I have always seen Dish as a more consumer friendly company is because of the outreach to the community they are willing to give unlike DirecTV.

All of that being said, I won't be switching to Dish anytime soon, because I prefer DirecTV as a service. However, I do believe that Dish plays a much better PR game than DirecTV seems to.

 

[ejb1980]

I found this site as a Dish person and defended Dish till the end - until they started with their channel-dropping-anti-sports crap. They lost me when they didn't pick up MLB Network. (yes, I know they have it now!) After moving south and a brief stint with the devil (Time Warner Cable) I am now with Directv and will likely be forever. That being said, I will stick to SatGuys since DBS is a waste of time. The only advantage to DBS is the site doesn't take forever to load and isn't constantly refreshing itself (probably due to my slow netbook and non-supporting status) but sometimes it's just obnoxious (like now, it's taken me 7 minutes so far to type this post!) I do love SatGuys and will suffer with the slowness!

 

[Jimbo]

I found this site as a Dish person and defended Dish till the end - until they started with their channel-dropping-anti-sports crap. They lost me when they didn't pick up MLB Network. After moving south and a brief stint with the devil (Time Warner Cable) I am now with Directv and will likely be forever. That being said, I will stick to SatGuys since DBS is a waste of time. The only advantage to DBS is the site doesn't take forever to load and isn't constantly refreshing itself (probably due to my slow netbook and non-supporting status) but sometimes it's just obnoxious (like now, it's taken me 7 minutes so far to type this post!) I do love SatGuys and will suffer with the slowness!

If you become a Pub Member you will lose the majority of the ad's, most of that is what is slowing things down loading wise.

The site is typically pretty zippy !

 

[ejb1980]

When funds are less tight, becoming a pub member is honestly high on my splurge list!

 

[rockymtnhigh]

My question is why does Directv refuse to have anything to do with satguys?I see no dtv internet response team.Dtv could have a much bigger presence here if they wanted,Dish has seemed to embrace the site.

They don't want. That's the point, always has been the problem.

 

[radio]

A HR34 should have been procured by some of the staff here, and reviewed. Just because DirecTV didn't give out a sample is no excuse for the product not to be reviewed at a place that is supposed to provide seemingly unbiased information.

I'm not staff, but unless I miss my guess, the "staff" here is volunteer. Scott runs this site on memberships, and staff are volunteers trusted by him to handle different areas and responsibilities. Meaning, when fingers are pointed that "staff" didn't do a review of an expensive piece of equipment, keep in mind, they'd be buying it themselves from their own pockets if the manufacturer doesn't supply it or work directly with the "staff." Don't be fast to blame "staff" who are here because they love WORKING as volunteers in this virtual location!

If I were a manufacturer, I'd want to supply as many pieces as possible to key staff here! They'd all have different opinions and reviews! It's evident some manufacturers (comparable to providers who sell their own receivers or lease them) value this site.....and seek member opinions, like SatelliteAV for their upcoming FTA receiver.

 

[bobvick]

Well I can see I opened a thread that really was not worth opening. I did not mean to offend anyone. I should not have started the thread since I had an idea of what the answer would be. There is, has, and will be a bias toward Dish here because there is roughly two to three times the activity in the forum regarding Dish Network here, and it is the personal preference of a lot around here.
It would be nice if there was more information about DirecTV uplink activity, and more CE activity, but I don't guess that will ever happen either.
So I guess those of us that need any of that type of information will have to grit our teeth and go elsewhere to find it out, even though it would be nice if we could get it here.
Anyway, I didn't men to offend anyone who volunteer there time here to provide information, etc..

 

[Jimbo]

Well I can see I opened a thread that really was not worth opening. I did not mean to offend anyone. I should not have started the thread since I had an idea of what the answer would be. There is, has, and will be a bias toward Dish here because there is roughly two to three times the activity in the forum regarding Dish Network here, and it is the personal preference of a lot around here.
It would be nice if there was more information about DirecTV uplink activity, and more CE activity, but I don't guess that will ever happen either.
So I guess those of us that need any of that type of information will have to grit our teeth and go elsewhere to find it out, even though it would be nice if we could get it here.
Anyway, I didn't men to offend anyone who volunteer there time here to provide information, etc..

Bob,
I don't think the uplink activity for D* is available like it is for DISH.
As for the CE activity, we get people there, I doubt that everyone posts when they do run the CE software.

The fact that D* doesn't play fair with us the way they do with the other site isn't anything that can be changed until D* decides, Scott has offered them access many times.

 

[Teehar]

Well I can see I opened a thread that really was not worth opening. I did not mean to offend anyone. I should not have started the thread since I had an idea of what the answer would be. There is, has, and will be a bias toward Dish here because there is roughly two to three times the activity in the forum regarding Dish Network here, and it is the personal preference of a lot around here.
It would be nice if there was more information about DirecTV uplink activity, and more CE activity, but I don't guess that will ever happen either.
So I guess those of us that need any of that type of information will have to grit our teeth and go elsewhere to find it out, even though it would be nice if we could get it here.
Anyway, I didn't men to offend anyone who volunteer there time here to provide information, etc..

Personally I'm not offended.I think it would be great if there was a greater DTV presence here,but the problem as pointed out earlier they (dtv) don't want to play or even acknowledge satguys.

 

[charper1]

I think there are more than a few reasons; all of which won't or can't be discussed; thus my original comment of that's just they way it is/gonna be. I don't think anyone is offended.

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

We tried doing an uplink report for DIRECTV a few years ago, but the info was not reliable and we discontinued it just because it was wrong so much.

The DISH uplink report is so easy to do because the use the DVB standard, while DIRECTV uses their own proprietary modulation scheme which is not publicly documented.

It is my understanding that any transponder lists that are posted are done so by people that work for DIRECTV and is not automated. There is no way of telling if that info posted is correct so we just assume it is.

 

[riffjim4069]

There is, has, and will be a bias toward Dish here because there is roughly two to three times the activity in the forum regarding Dish Network here, and it is the personal preference of a lot around here...It would be nice if there was more information about DirecTV uplink activity, and more CE activity, but I don't guess that will ever happen either.

I won't agree nor disagee. However, I would like to point-out that for 18-months the VOOM Forums ran neck-and-neck with the Dish Forums in the number of threads, posts, views, etc. At one time there was even some animosity between both camps as they were vying to provide an identity to the newly forming SatelliteGuys.US website. VOOM was fairly open to the SatGuys community (e.g., Wilt Hildebrand (Head of VOOM Engineering) would address members concerns as would Josh Sapan, James Dolan and others from time-to-time) and some of the Staff had direct connections. In fact, I had the phone numbers for several folks in VOOM leadership such as VOOM's GM, their PR lead and the PM at Installs Inc. who were contracted by VOOM to handle all the customer installations. Most of the VOOM crowd switched over to Dish when they agreeed to carry the VOOM HD channels and buy the old Rainbow-1 satellite. I could see the D* Forums being much more active/involved...IF only DirecTV wanted to reach-out to SatelliteGuys. It has been my observation they do not.

Just my two cents...

 

[Mr Tony]

I'm not staff, but unless I miss my guess, the "staff" here is volunteer.

correct. We are all volunteer