Do it all over again..
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D* much better than E* but not perfect, cable passes the end of the street but not available. Internet is the only part of cable that is interesting.
Much of it depends on your starting-point. I chose D* because my local comcrap franchise was totally inept; and I lived in the NY region, where E* still does not carry the YES (Yankees') channel. I also lived 60+ miles from NYC and 60+ miles from Hartford, and between 2 hills, so I got zero OTA. I'd definitely choose D* again.
Despite having some moving/installation problems in NC, I'd still probably do the same. The local TimeWarner franchise is not overwhelming. Cost is roughly equal. I've gotten a ton of OTA channels just using simple rabbit-ears.
FWIW, I have cable broadband (8 MBps) and the discounted rates still don't encourage me to drop D* in favor of TWC.
Despite having some moving/installation problems in NC, I'd still probably do the same. The local TimeWarner franchise is not overwhelming. Cost is roughly equal. I've gotten a ton of OTA channels just using simple rabbit-ears.
FWIW, I have cable broadband (8 MBps) and the discounted rates still don't encourage me to drop D* in favor of TWC.
If it was now - I'd do cable, at least in MY area...
-More HD channels than D*, ALL of our locals are now in HD, (INCLUDING 2 PBS's & CW) plus they just added 3 new national ones, including MHD. They also are carrying all of the current SD subchannels our locals have (The Tube, PBS Create, etc)
-EVERY premium channel multiplex feed, including all 8 Cinemax's
-NO or minimal upfront cost to get dual-tuner HD DVR's installed & they will let you get as many as you want. (many folks I know have 2)
-Except for NO Boomerang, they carry all of the SD stuff that I use from D*
-NO extra charge for 70 channels on ALL TV's
-Even the analog expanded basic service has better overall picture quality than D*, not only at my place, but at most clients homes I go to that have it. (read: NOT being compressed to the MAX)
-They still have all 45+ Music Choice channels - I can't stand XM!
BUT since I have invested quite in bit in several D-Tivo's, as well as having the lifetime DVR fee on my account, I'm probably going to stick with D* for the time being - I just CANNOT give up my D-Tivo's; they just WORK exactly like they should! While the Insight DVR's (Motorola's) are OK, I am not that impressed with their "series recording", as well as they do NOT have as much capacity as my Tivo's do.
Also, I DO like having ALL the Chicago locals - sure beats our suck@#$ ones.
When I get my new HD set which I'm (planning) on by the end of the year, I am going to have to re-think how I plan on handling HD service.
-More HD channels than D*, ALL of our locals are now in HD, (INCLUDING 2 PBS's & CW) plus they just added 3 new national ones, including MHD. They also are carrying all of the current SD subchannels our locals have (The Tube, PBS Create, etc)
-EVERY premium channel multiplex feed, including all 8 Cinemax's
-NO or minimal upfront cost to get dual-tuner HD DVR's installed & they will let you get as many as you want. (many folks I know have 2)
-Except for NO Boomerang, they carry all of the SD stuff that I use from D*
-NO extra charge for 70 channels on ALL TV's
-Even the analog expanded basic service has better overall picture quality than D*, not only at my place, but at most clients homes I go to that have it. (read: NOT being compressed to the MAX)
-They still have all 45+ Music Choice channels - I can't stand XM!
BUT since I have invested quite in bit in several D-Tivo's, as well as having the lifetime DVR fee on my account, I'm probably going to stick with D* for the time being - I just CANNOT give up my D-Tivo's; they just WORK exactly like they should! While the Insight DVR's (Motorola's) are OK, I am not that impressed with their "series recording", as well as they do NOT have as much capacity as my Tivo's do.
Also, I DO like having ALL the Chicago locals - sure beats our suck@#$ ones.
When I get my new HD set which I'm (planning) on by the end of the year, I am going to have to re-think how I plan on handling HD service.
I have been Cable Free since 1991 and happy to be gone.
to answer your question :
YES, I would go to D* again ...
But then I am one of the few that understand what D* is working on accomlishing.
( there are many of you out there, but only a small number overall)
It is a major undertaking.
I will be happier when the OTA tuner is turned on the HR20-700 then I can use it the way I envisioned when I bought it, yes I knew it was not on when I bought it.
I will never again be a cable sub.
DISH is interesting, but D* is SPORTS and DISH is Movies.
I need my SPORTS
:
Jimbo
to answer your question :
YES, I would go to D* again ...
But then I am one of the few that understand what D* is working on accomlishing.
( there are many of you out there, but only a small number overall)
It is a major undertaking.
I will be happier when the OTA tuner is turned on the HR20-700 then I can use it the way I envisioned when I bought it, yes I knew it was not on when I bought it.
I will never again be a cable sub.
DISH is interesting, but D* is SPORTS and DISH is Movies.
I need my SPORTS
: Jimbo
I have only had DirecTV for a few weeks and am already quite disappointed.
I had CoxCable for 2 years and never had many problems with them down here in New Orleans. The DVR they sent me worked fantastic and I loved their channel guide options of searching for shows, ext....the Cable menu blows DirecTV out the door and then some....
I still have no DVR 3 weeks later
But, I havent had any problems with DirecTV otherwise
I had CoxCable for 2 years and never had many problems with them down here in New Orleans. The DVR they sent me worked fantastic and I loved their channel guide options of searching for shows, ext....the Cable menu blows DirecTV out the door and then some....
I still have no DVR 3 weeks later
But, I havent had any problems with DirecTV otherwise
Not only would I stay cable free, but I would have tried to do more to help BUD stay alive and well.
IF BUD still had the channels they use to have I would have gone that route at my new home, but the BUD started to not have the channels I was looking for anymore, I always found the Wild Feeds entertaining.
Jimbo
If cable has the channels you want at a price you can afford then you might want to give them a try. It's almost impossible to say if your cable will be better then D* or E* since each system is different and picture quality will even vary within the same system. Also, many cable systems are migrating to all digital which tends to correct all the problems that folks see with poor analog channel delivery. Cable also has the upside of no commitment and no additional extra charge to get a HD or HD-DVR box. If you don't like your cable service then you can cancel with no penalty and try E*.
In my case, no I'd stay with D* at the moment. TWC is too expensive for my needs (they charge way too much for HD-DVR's) and I've tried E* a couple of years ago and got tired of their poor hardware (at the time their 811 and 921's really sucked) and Charlies games or making promises then changing his mind. D*'s new hardware doesn't come close to the stability/reliability of their older boxes at this time, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they do get the bugs worked out. I'm also keeping my fingers crossed that D10 and D11 don't have any problems and that D* will finally be able to expand their national HD channel line up by the middle of next year.
In my case, no I'd stay with D* at the moment. TWC is too expensive for my needs (they charge way too much for HD-DVR's) and I've tried E* a couple of years ago and got tired of their poor hardware (at the time their 811 and 921's really sucked) and Charlies games or making promises then changing his mind. D*'s new hardware doesn't come close to the stability/reliability of their older boxes at this time, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they do get the bugs worked out. I'm also keeping my fingers crossed that D10 and D11 don't have any problems and that D* will finally be able to expand their national HD channel line up by the middle of next year.
I don't have D* but have E* and if I had to do it again I'd sign up with E* again. I almost went with D* but am glad I didn't. I came from cable and the cable was horrible quality here along with most of the channels not being in even stereo most other than digital channels and locals were in mono. That and not getting a few channels I really wanted that others with cable in other areas got convinced me to switch to Dish and I've never really wanted to go back. Cable sucked.
The wild feeds are fun, but the backhauls are very entertaining. You never know what you are going to hear!
I dumped the cable in 96.
Been with Primestar and D* since.
Wouldn't do anything different.
The negative comments are the norm on forums like this one. It gives people a place to vent about whatever injustice (real or imagined) that they have suffered.
Provider hopping is like anything else. Someone's always got something different or better(?).
It's just cheaper to change Television providers than to trade in your Kia for a Lexus.
Been with Primestar and D* since.
Wouldn't do anything different.
The negative comments are the norm on forums like this one. It gives people a place to vent about whatever injustice (real or imagined) that they have suffered.
Provider hopping is like anything else. Someone's always got something different or better(?).
It's just cheaper to change Television providers than to trade in your Kia for a Lexus.
I'm with you jpn. I picked up D* in 1997. I dealt with the local channel issues back then and stuck it out with D* because I HATE COMTRASH. Eventually D* introduced Tivo and I was the biggest promoter of their company.
Recently I moved and signed up as a new customer to get a free R-15 DVR. What a piece of junk compared to My Phillips DSR 7000 Tivo Box..... but if I would not have owned the Tivo Box previously, I'm sure I'd be really happy with the new DVR service because I wouldn't know what I was missing.
The bottom line is, I'm going to stick it out with D* for another year. If they do it right, like they did in the past with local channels and Tivo, I'm sure I'll be their biggest fan again. If not.... maybe Fios will be up to speed by then.
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