Peace of Mind

[scoony]

First off let me apologize for being one of those guys who analyzes everything from every direction.

I've ordered DISH from a local shop with the install to be this weekend. I'm going with an HD receiver and a standard receiver (no DVR's).

My concern is mostly a lot of the unhappy posts on this forum. What I was hoping for was a few HAPPY customers who can ease my mind about committing the next 18 months of my TV life to Dish.

I currently have basic Comcast and there's no way i'm upgrading service with them.

Thanks.

 

[iafirebuff]

I have been with Dish for about 10 years. I had Directv first, and for a few weeks many years ago and I LOVE Dish. They used to be very reasonable, but their price now is close to the others, but I feel Dish still has better programming and options. I have always bought my own, but signed a 12 month contract Saturday for my new 622 upgrade. I would highly recommend you get a DVR. They are AWESOME!

 

[RedWings]

I'm the same as you and analyze/research things before making a purchase/decision. You have to remember that most of the time, you'll only hear bad reviews. People with bad experiences are more inclined to go out and tell their bad story and complain. People with good experiences will just keep to themselves because they have been satisfied.

I had DISH installed last week and so far i'm happy. I"ve been a D* fan for a long time so it was a hard decision to switch. The install went quick and the guy did a good job. So far the equipment works as its supposed to and I haven't had any issues.

I chose to not commit to them just in case. All they were offering was free activation if I commited. I got it free by getting a reference # from a current subscriber (if you want, PM me and i'll get you one).

 

[bhelms]

I've been with E* for almost 8 years, very few problems. I now have 3 receivers (622, 811, 301) working and I sub. to the HD Bronze package with locals and 2 "ala carte" channels. My total is around $80 per month, and I find that acceptable for what I'm getting. It's the 25+ HD channels in decent (not the best) picture quality (PQ) that works for me, more than any other provider in my market. In terms of PQ, E* is at least equal to D* based on my casual observation of D*'s HD quality in several locations.

Welcome, BTW...!

 

[rockymtnhigh]

While E* has been the cause of many rants since the last software upgrade on my 622 last week, I have 99% of the time been a happy Dish customer for 6+ years.

WHy no DVR? A DVR changes the way you watch tv. Its the greatest thing ever invented for television, IMHO. I'd die without my DVR.

 

[scoony]

Why no DVR?

Mostly because I don't have a land line and i find it hard to pay an extra $5 just because a cell phone does everything i need it to do. I understand why they charge it, just don't agree with it.

 

[Tom Bombadil]

If you are going to go with DBS, then unless you have to have NFL:Sunday Ticket, or the New York YES channel, then I can't see picking DirecTV over Dish.

So then it would come down to your cable options vs Dish. For many of us, our cable options are terrible.

Dish does provide a lot of channels and their equipment is usually reliable. The cost per channel is competitive. The picture quality for both standard definition and high definition is acceptable/good for the non-critical consumer.

Most customers are happy with the service, but happiness is no guarantee. Dish does lose a few more customers than the industry target for customer "churn", and they have more calls to their Help Desk / Customer Service Representatives than the industry average. So all is not perfect in Dishland.

Dish does retain many customers for years. I suspect the percentage of their customers who rate them as satisfactory or better would be in the 80%-90% range.

 

[osu1991]

The 622 would be the same as what you are getting an hd receiver and a standard receiver. You will pay the extra receiver charge for the standard receiver as you would the 622 and no phone line. The only difference on your bill would be for the dvr fee.

 

[VegasVoomer]

Why no DVR?

Mostly because I don't have a land line and i find it hard to pay an extra $5 just because a cell phone does everything i need it to do. I understand why they charge it, just don't agree with it.

You dont need a phone line for DVR to work. They will probably charge you the $5 no matter what receiver you have if there is no phone line connected but its not for the DVR.

 

[felterated]

cool!

 

[CDH]

Just FWIW I think you did the right thing ordering through a local dealer. I had some problems with some of the local subcontractors in my area, all of which were completely resolved once I went to a dealer who had experienced professional installers on his staff. (The guy that Dish sent out had only had 2 weeks of on-the-job training, had never done an HD install let alone seen a relatively new 942 at the time and had absolutely no idea about how to use the existing high-grade cabling in my house. He wanted to drill holes everywhere and run cables around the base-boards of the living room! Yeah, right! Oh, and using a dual tuner receiver to feed programming to another TV - he tried to tell me it was impossible.)

The local installers are the way to go. Tip the guy/gal well. You'll be glad you did if you ever need them back for something.

CDH.

 

[Wylwrk]

522 and 322 for four tv's total connected to a DPPTwin for 2 years now...

Not ONE problem.

 

[datwell]

scoony: You are far from alone - I too analyze things from top to bottom.

IMHO, E* meets my needs best (value & cost) and yes, I can get Verizon's FIOS.

The 622 DVR is to DIE for! Period. We wouldn't be without it. If old Charlie would just get off his hind parts and get the external storage thing going, it would be just about perfect!

---Doug

 

[iafirebuff]

A DVR is a MUST!

 

[pilkingtonm01]

You dont need a phone line for DVR to work. They will probably charge you the $5 no matter what receiver you have if there is no phone line connected but its not for the DVR.

The $5 phone line fee only applys to dish pro dual tunner recivers (322,522,625,942,222,622). This fee has nothing to do with weather or not the reciver has dvr or not, or any effect on that dvr working.

 

[Jolard]

I also agree with pushing the DVR. You will NOT regret it, as it makes all the difference in the way you watch TV. Well worth $20 a month extra; for $5 a month extra you will kick yourself that you even considered not getting it.

As for experience? I have been a Dish customer for 4 years now, and I have been VERY happy. I have had my run ins with them, and a few episodes of crappy service, and even one incredibly bad run with a bad receiver and CSR's that wouldn't help me.

After all that I still love my Dish, and wouldn't consider any of the other options available right now.

I started with a 510 DVR, changed my life.

Moved to a 522, and discovered the wonders of dual tuner DVR's, and being able to watch something while recording something else

Moved to a 622, and my world changed again as I discoverd HD.

I tell you, if you like TV, the VIP622 is the way to go. There is nothing that compares right now to the combination of a 622 and Dish HD package. Nothing. Even the new TIVO HD DVR is not much better and it has to deal with your local cable's HD packages.

 

[Phils]

I've been with Dish since they started. At one point a few years ago my original receiver started "forgetting" favorites, sometimes adding its own. The remote was getting difficult to use. Time for a replacement. A reman unit was $150 (and I shy away from ANYTHING remanufactured).

For $200 I got a brand new 501 plus a new Dish 500, more channels, a new remote AND a DVR that I expected never to use.

Boy was I wrong.

I recently upgraded to the 622, mostly for the dual tuner and dual DVR but since I had an HD ready TV I figgered "what the heck".

I never realized that all the SD channels would look so much better when they were sent to my TV via 1080i. The HD programming is even better but now I look for the day where it's not HD Lite.

Go for the DVR! It'd be worth $20/month to me just for the dual DVR feature.

Phil