Need some honest info

[bnewt]

I want to upgrade from my 625 to a 722 & a 2nd dual tuner receiver this fall. I would like some truthful opinions on:

1. picture quality - which is better Direct or Dish. I have not seen Dish's HD offerings, but have seen Direct at Best Buy & HH Gregg. It looks very good, even the locals.
2. Will Eastern Arc be available to existing customers by this fall? With it being MPEG4, shouldn't it be better picture quality?
3. Will the launch of the satellite in the next couple of weeks, will it allow for more HD programming that Direct has but Dish doesn't.
4. Will the 222K receiver be available this fall? If not, is there another dual tuner receiver (non dvr) that is available in black?

I have been a Dish customer for several years, and don't really want to switch, but when I upgrade, I want to watch as much HD as avaiable. I really like the fact that with Dish's receivers they have the distribution output available since I have several tv's in the house.

 

[rockymtnhigh]

First off, the distribution output on the HD receivers outputs in SD; unless you run component video to a second tv, it will not be in HD.

Most of your question are very subjective. Dish and Directv have different offerings for sure; if you want HD sports packages, i.e., MLB and NFl, then its a no-brainer for Direc. Right now Directv is probably broadcasting their HD at a higher resolution, but with all the changes coming, I suspect you'd be happy with either.

The biggest thing for Dish - the 722 receiver rocks. It is an awesome DVR, and has external HDD archiving capabilities.

My HD locals look great on Dish as well.

I'd stay with Dish, and enjoy the 722.

 

[garys]

Also note, Direct does not have any dual tuner receivers.

 

[navychop]

The ViP722 is black.

Not sure when the 222K comes out.

No definitive word is out on when Eastern Arc will be available to current subs. But all HD on Dish will be MPEG-4 as of August 1 this year.

Oh- and everything Rocky said.

 

[tds4182]

Also note, Direct does not have any dual tuner receivers.

The D* HR20s and HR21s are both dual tuner DVRs.

D* doesn't have any dual tuner non HD receivers.

For MPEG 2 only, the older Tivo based DVRs all have/had dual tuners.

 

[KAB]

The D* HR20s and HR21s are both dual tuner DVRs.

But no TV2 output.

 

[harshness]

Both companies likely "shape" their content. DIRECTV is known for "punching up" contrast and chroma. Many -- especially plasma TV fanciers -- love this.

It isn't so much that one is decidedly better than the other. They just do things differently.

 

[garys]

But no TV2 output.

Sorry, this is what I meant. Direct cannot operate two independent channels on two different tv's.

 

[gadgtfreek]

D* is doing HD better than Dish and has been for almost a year. I'd honestly go with them if PQ is a big issue for you. The Dish HD only pack is great because of the price, but if I was still on an $80/mo Dish HD plan, Id drop them like a bad habit and go back to D*.

 

[bnewt]

I truly do want the best picture available, but I have 5 tv's in the house that are being fed by the 625. I do not want to have 5 receivers & that is what I would have to do with Direct. That is the only hesitation. Presently, Direct has my locals in HD & Dish does not. That is not really a deal breaker because I receive the locals OTA, but having 5 separate receivers is a problem.

 

[rad]

If there are some sets where it wouldn't be a problem watching the same program on both of then you could always get a RF modulator from RadioShack or somewhere and use that to feed one or more TV's, just connect it to the composite output of the STB and get 1 or more extra RF remotes from the D* web site.

Not as elegant as E*'s solution but it would work.