Pulled the plug, Dish free

[toto]

I have been tossing and turning on switching from Dish to Direct for awhile now, but am scared to because of the negative DVR reviews I am constantly reading about.

After 11 years with Dish, I switched in November. The 2 HR22s have been rock solid. The machine, remote, and menu guide are all more elegent and are in the words of another generation, cool. The cost of the second receiver was defrayed, a couple of times, in a year with programming credits. The owner of 2 622s.

 

[jsq]

I can get all those channels with D*. The only reason to even consider TWC is the triple play. However, if I did drop dish TWC would be the easiest to install and setup with them being able to use all the existing wiring. D* would most likely require additional installation of cable, unless they use the single wire method

As for dvr, I am sure that I am spoiled with my 722..

I had cablevision and recently switched to dish. Cablevision rates went up over $50 a month after promo. Dish is much better than Cablevision.
My parents use Time Warner, and have the DVR. I think that it works great. It is very comparable to Dish from what I have seen. I get the feeling that so many people love the dish dvr for features that the average person could care less about. I'm not complaining, it works great, but I don't see what all the fuss is about. I had PIP with cable and never used it. You will get your locals with TWC, so you won't need the ota tuner that dish has. You will be able to record two things at once, with TWC. (In my opinion, if you have to record 3 things at a time, like the dish DVR allows, with an OTA, then you need to get out a little more anyway.)
Also, my parents promo just ran out for the truple play, and the bill only went up about $10 per month. The good thing is that you can try out TWC, and if you don't like it, I beleive that you don't have to sign any contracts. (just check before you do sign) If you like it, use it for the promo period, and if the bill goes up, then switch.

 

[Rey]

I have been tossing and turning on switching from Dish to Direct for awhile now, but am scared to because of the negative DVR reviews I am constantly reading about.

i went through the same thing for a whole year. the dvr's for D are good and not as bad as some think. The vip series for E is the best dvr out there IMO. But the dvr's for Direct are really good and the biggest difference to me is responsiveness. the Vip series reacts quicker to commands than the HR series. besides that the features are pretty much the same. I personally like the HR series.

 

[hendrix04]

the responsiveness is what turned me away from the HR series... Hitting a button to have a 5 second delay is annoying to me.

 

[Ronnie-]

the responsiveness is what turned me away from the HR series... Hitting a button to have a 5 second delay is annoying to me.

Are you using IR mode or RF? I find RF to be much faster, but even in IR mode, I have never had the lag time that some here claim on either of my HR-20s

 

[Islandguy43]

I had cablevision and recently switched to dish. Cablevision rates went up over $50 a month after promo. Dish is much better than Cablevision.
My parents use Time Warner, and have the DVR. I think that it works great. It is very comparable to Dish from what I have seen. I get the feeling that so many people love the dish dvr for features that the average person could care less about. I'm not complaining, it works great, but I don't see what all the fuss is about. I had PIP with cable and never used it. You will get your locals with TWC, so you won't need the ota tuner that dish has. You will be able to record two things at once, with TWC. (In my opinion, if you have to record 3 things at a time, like the dish DVR allows, with an OTA, then you need to get out a little more anyway.)
Also, my parents promo just ran out for the truple play, and the bill only went up about $10 per month. The good thing is that you can try out TWC, and if you don't like it, I beleive that you don't have to sign any contracts. (just check before you do sign) If you like it, use it for the promo period, and if the bill goes up, then switch.

One biggie though.....No NFL Network and that means no Thursday Night Football

 

[jdmacor]

Are you using IR mode or RF? I find RF to be much faster, but even in IR mode, I have never had the lag time that some here claim on either of my HR-20s

My girlfriend's mom is on Direct and I experienced that lag big time when she first had the HR series installed (don't know the number; it is the shiny black one). Anyways, she is pretty loaded and has all of her media stuff stowed in a separate room, with RF to IR transmitters stuck everywhere. The remote is a Universal Remote Control MX-850 and only the receiver had that horrible delay. It wasn't just the responsiveness though, also the guide info loaded one line at a time in a way that seemed to take forever. Now, I haven't watched tv there in a while, so maybe there has been a software fix (this problem was in August), but it left an impression on me.

 

[Ronnie-]

My girlfriend's mom is on Direct and I experienced that lag big time when she first had the HR series installed (don't know the number; it is the shiny black one). Anyways, she is pretty loaded and has all of her media stuff stowed in a separate room, with RF to IR transmitters stuck everywhere. The remote is a Universal Remote Control MX-850 and only the receiver had that horrible delay. It wasn't just the responsiveness though, also the guide info loaded one line at a time in a way that seemed to take forever. Now, I haven't watched tv there in a while, so maybe there has been a software fix (this problem was in August), but it left an impression on me.

I wonder if the remote and the transmitters are causing the lag? Not sure. I also dont have the black HR, I have the silver 20 series.

The guide info sounds like it was set to scroll. Turn scrolling off and its much much faster

 

[jsq]

One biggie though.....No NFL Network and that means no Thursday Night Football

Forgot about that one. That was another one of my reasons for switching.

 

[Rey]

Are you using IR mode or RF? I find RF to be much faster, but even in IR mode, I have never had the lag time that some here claim on either of my HR-20s

i find both modes to be pretty much the same. this has to do with the HR2x processing power or lack of. not a huge issue and it's a lot better,i mean a whole lot better with the latest software updates but still a little slower than the Vip series.Not a major issue

 

[Rey]

I wonder if the remote and the transmitters are causing the lag? Not sure. I also dont have the black HR, I have the silver 20 series.

The guide info sounds like it was set to scroll. Turn scrolling off and its much much faster

these are the little things that do make a difference.

 

[Ronnie-]

i find both modes to be pretty much the same. this has to do with the HR2x precessing power or lack of. not a huge issue and it's a lot better,i mean a whole lot better with the latest software updates but still a little slower than the Vip series.Not a major issue

That I can accept even though in my case with the 20 series I think that the RF mode is a bit faster (maybe I dont have the IR remote pointed directly at the box?). Enough have said that the ViP is a little faster, and I can understand it when its put as a little. I cant understand those that say the lag time is HUGE though, unless something else is playing a role, such as a bad box or outside interference.

 

[Rey]

That I can accept even though in my case with the 20 series I think that the RF mode is a bit faster (maybe I dont have the IR remote pointed directly at the box?). Enough have said that the ViP is a little faster, and I can understand it when its put as a little. I cant understand those that say the lag time is HUGE though, unless something else is playing a role, such as a bad box or outside interference.

sorry for the misspell. (processing power)

 

[jsq]

sorry for the misspell. (processing power)

Hey Rey, big fins fan here. I live up here in hostile territory. (Actually I live in PA, but I'm right on the NY border.) Hoping for a late Christmas present this Sunday.
Would love to see Chad stick it to them.

 

[Rey]

Hey Rey, big fins fan here. I live up here in hostile territory. (Actually I live in PA, but I'm right on the NY border.) Hoping for a late Christmas present this Sunday.
Would love to see Chad stick it to them.

thanks jsq

 

[Blazer]

what options do you have available in your area? I assume directv, perhaps cable, fios/uverse?

at this time i am going with HD ota antenna, satelite providers have it stuck in thier head they are the only HD providers, theres alot going on right now with HD content providers and i am tired of fooling with the incompitence provided by the satelite CSR's and installers.

 

[Blazer]

Make sure you do your homework next time.

maybe you could have someone read the 'HD Possible' post for you and explain it, when an order is placed that should be what you get, get it.


http://www.satelliteguys.us/dish-network-forum/156496-hd-possible.html

 

[Ronnie-]

I kind of agree with both of you. Homework should have been done (and may have been done for all we know). That being the case, I cant fault a guy for expecting the company he pays to make things right, and when they dont to cancel. In any case, I hope you find and get what you are looking for. If we can help you decide where to go, keep posting in this thread or another

 

[paja]

finally, after a long aggrevating affair with customer service and thier field rep/installers inability to deliver i had enough, ill get my HD fix by some other means.

Good move. The best way to make your displeasure known is to cancel. And believe me, it hurts them. Get this.

Yesterday I got a call from DISH. I dumped them back in Aug., when after my first 18 month commitment was up, they refused to give me a second hd dvr unless I gave then a 24 month commitment. I didn't want to get locked in for that long knowing DISH's propensity for dumping stations in disputes. After haggling back and forth and speaking to some idiot csr's, I bailed. Fortunately for me, U-verse just started in my suburban Chicago neighborhood. Got them now(51 movie stations 39 in hd and a bunch of stations that DISH won't carry)and couldn't be happier. The lady from DISH asked me why I left and I told her about the hd dvr business and the rude csr's and the fact that I now was thrilled having U-verse. Then she proceeded to offer me two hd dvr's with no commitment, a special phone number that bypasses the csr's, and 5 MONTHS FREE PROGRAMMING, the everything package I had went I dumped them. Guess they must miss the 137 I was paying a month with a perfect payment record. I told her thanks but no thanks. And to think, they could have kept my business back in Aug. when all I wanted was that hd dvr.

 

[Rlanham]

I am very happy with Dish. Got my bill down to $74/month and have all the HD, and OTA HD locals I want.. and a great HD-DVR.

Customer service isn't any different than any other big tech support organization. Have you called DELL, AT&T lately? Everyone reads off scripts.

Never ceases to amaze me why someone that is switching from Dish would want to take the time to make a separate post in a Dish Network forum?

I visit this forum all the time to keep up on the latest happenings with Dish, that granted should be coming directly from Dish to its customers.