Should I Switch From Cable?

[TexUs]

New poster. I'll keep this short!

I currently have Suddenlink Internet (15meg) and HD TV (SL200 package), running $91/mo for both. Now, if I switch to DirecTV and cancel my Suddenlink Internet, my wife can sign up as a "new customer" to get the Internet for $35/mo. So over two years, the difference in prices between Suddenlink and DirecTV are $4/mo, not drastic.

I don't think I'll be too worried about weather: we never get rain here anymore it seems and there's enough people with it that seem OK with it.


The biggest two reasons I'm drawn to DirecTV are:
1) HD Quality
2) Genie (Suddenlink box has 2 tuners MAX, unless I want to shell out $17/mo more to get Tivo in which case... DTV just became cheapest).

Also, Suddenlink's internet is buggier than it can be- so dumping the TV side means less money for them.

Thoughts? Should I stay away? Am I crazy for dumping land-based cable for DirecTV? I hate the contract talk but frankly if I end up being happy I won't care.

 

[raoul5788]

to Satelliteguys TexUs!

I think content is the most important factor in choosing a provider, but price and equipment are pretty much tied for second. I'm sure you will like the Genie. At a reduced monthly cost it seems like a no brainer.

 

[mdavej]

Yep, sounds like a good plan to me. DirecTV has a better lineup than Suddenlink and PQ is just as good (except SD content). You'll save a lot of money, get more channels and a far better DVR. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. You can always back out within 24 hrs if you don't like it.

 

[raoul5788]

Yep, sounds like a good plan to me. DirecTV has a better lineup than Suddenlink and PQ is just as good (except SD content). You'll save a lot of money, get more channels and a far better DVR. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. You can always back out within 24 hrs if you don't like it.

Are you sure about this? Some states have three day rescission rights but they probably don't apply in this situation.

 

[Claude Greiner]

Yep, sounds like a good plan to me. DirecTV has a better lineup than Suddenlink and PQ is just as good (except SD content). You'll save a lot of money, get more channels and a far better DVR. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. You can always back out within 24 hrs if you don't like it.

There is no 24 hour grace period. Once your installer, your under contract.

 

[Jimbo]

There is no 24 hour grace period. Once your installer, your under contract.

Once your Installer leaves, your under contract.

 

[markfp-1]

Most states don't have a "3-day cancellation" law and some that do are very limited. Here in New York the law only applies to sales made in a person's home by a salesperson and doesn't apply to phone, internet, mail or other sales.

 

[TexUs]

I think content is the most important factor in choosing a provider, but price and equipment are pretty much tied for second. I'm sure you will like the Genie. At a reduced monthly cost it seems like a no brainer.

It's not a reduced monthly cost, actually $4-5 more a month over two years- so about the same but not less.

Yep, sounds like a good plan to me. DirecTV has a better lineup than Suddenlink and PQ is just as good (except SD content). You'll save a lot of money, get more channels and a far better DVR. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. You can always back out within 24 hrs if you don't like it.

I have a massive TV and the SD looks like JUNK on it, I never watch SD anyway. I don't see how I'll save lots of money though?
Channel lineup seems roughly the same (SL200 vs Choice)?

 

[Xizer]

New poster. I'll keep this short!

I currently have Suddenlink Internet (15meg) and HD TV (SL200 package), running $91/mo for both. Now, if I switch to DirecTV and cancel my Suddenlink Internet, my wife can sign up as a "new customer" to get the Internet for $35/mo. So over two years, the difference in prices between Suddenlink and DirecTV are $4/mo, not drastic.

I don't think I'll be too worried about weather: we never get rain here anymore it seems and there's enough people with it that seem OK with it.


The biggest two reasons I'm drawn to DirecTV are:
1) HD Quality
2) Genie (Suddenlink box has 2 tuners MAX, unless I want to shell out $17/mo more to get Tivo in which case... DTV just became cheapest).

Also, Suddenlink's internet is buggier than it can be- so dumping the TV side means less money for them.

Thoughts? Should I stay away? Am I crazy for dumping land-based cable for DirecTV? I hate the contract talk but frankly if I end up being happy I won't care.

So... let me get this straight. You're drawn to DirecTV because you want inferior HD picture quality? Am I reading this correctly? You realize that DirecTV is near the bottom of the heap when it comes to HD picture quality, right? Generally speaking it goes from worst quality to best quality: AT&T U-verse > Dish Network > DirecTV > Cable providers > Verizon FiOS > Google Fiber

DirecTV re-encodes everything to H.264 and they bitrate starve it so badly that I'm seeing an increasing number of Internet services kicking their ass in the bitrate department - that's pitiful. Netflix & VUDU both have higher bitrates on their HD content than any DirecTV channel and I've even encountered some webstreaming events like Yahoo! streams and the iTunes Music Festivals with 1080p video and bitrates at ~8 Mbps - twice what DirecTV provides on their HD channels. It seems like false advertising to even call what they call HD "HD."

Now as for your second reason; well, that should never be a reason either because Suddenlink is a cable provider and as such they must adhere to the CableCARD™ standard. A CableCARD tuner will blow DirecTV's "Genie" out of the water.

Just order a CableCARD from Suddenlink and stick it in a CableCARD tuner and all of your woes from having to use a sh!tty cable company box will be gone.

Check out the Ceton InfiniTV 6 and Ceton Echo.

Here's what Windows Media Center's guide looks like:

 

[mdavej]

I actually have pretty much the same system as Xizer above (WMC, InfiniTV and 4 Echoes). It does blow DirecTV out of the water in features, quality and value. But most people have no interest in such a thing, so I didn't bring it up.

When I said you'd save a lot of money with DirecTV I meant in the short term and compared to using a crappy overpriced cable DVR. WMC is a completely different animal and far cheaper and better than DirecTV. But for reasons I'll never understand is a really hard sell. So I don't even bother trying to convince anyone anymore.

So with WMC off the table, I still think DirecTV would be a big upgrade since you'd get a DVR that uses technology 20 years ahead of your cable DVR. PQ will be a step down, but probably not noticeable on HD. If you thought SD couldn't get any worse, you ain't seen nothin yet.

I guess I was misinformed on the 24 hr cancellation.

 

[acostapimps]

Why does everybody says SD look worst on Directv, umm hello you do realize you're watching in a big HD TV screen which it wasn't meant to look good on a flat screen, That's what SD tube TV's are for, It all depends how the TV does it's video processing, some look better than others, For example and this is just my opinion, SD looks better on plasma's then LCD's of a similar size, but it's usually 42 inch or higher when we see the difference, and usually can't tell on smaller screens, Kind of like blowing up a very small picture that wasn't meant to see in bigger size, What I notice is that channels that are broadcasting HD shows but only available in SD looks a lot better.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Xizer]

I'd say it's probably because DirecTV's HD channel lineup is still so lacking that people have to watch SD on DirecTV.

Just look at this sea of red:
http://www.avsforum.com/t/1462894/o...-lineups-cable-dbs-fiber-iptv-updated-4-24-14

DirecTV carries 141 HD channels vs. a company like Time Warner Cable that carries 192.

 

[Jimbo]

I'd say it's probably because DirecTV's HD channel lineup is still so lacking that people have to watch SD on DirecTV.

Just look at this sea of red:
http://www.avsforum.com/t/1462894/o...-lineups-cable-dbs-fiber-iptv-updated-4-24-14

DirecTV carries 141 HD channels vs. a company like Time Warner Cable that carries 192.

Are we REALLY going down that road again ?

If you look at the link you posted, you'll see an awful lot of OTHER companies that also have a lot of RED as you put it.


Once again, I'll take QUALITY over Quantity, any day.

 

[raoul5788]

I'd say it's probably because DirecTV's HD channel lineup is still so lacking that people have to watch SD on DirecTV.
Just look at this sea of red:
http://www.avsforum.com/t/1462894/o...-lineups-cable-dbs-fiber-iptv-updated-4-24-14

DirecTV carries 141 HD channels vs. a company like Time Warner Cable that carries 192.

Yeah, I sure care about all of those third and fourth rate channels in hd! BTW, how am I supposed to get TWC in my town if they don't offer it? Should I move just to get all of those "great" channels?

 

[clovett]

So... let me get this straight. You're drawn to DirecTV because you want inferior HD picture quality? Am I reading this correctly? You realize that DirecTV is near the bottom of the heap when it comes to HD picture quality, right? Generally speaking it goes from worst quality to best quality: AT&T U-verse > Dish Network > DirecTV > Cable providers > Verizon FiOS > Google Fiber

I'm not doubting your list, but where I live it's a choice of Charter ,Dish or Directv

We chose Directv because we liked the lineup better. We had Charter for 14 years and still have their internet. The picture quality (at my house) between Charter and Direct is not a comparison at all. On almost every HD channel we get picture quality that is comparable to DVD from Directv. Charter HD is just slightly better than Directv SD on my 60 inch Samsung. Maybe the processor in the TV is a factor.

 

[mdavej]

I'm in a Charter all digital market and the lineup and PQ is far better than DirecTV. Had been for a couple of years now. I've got something like 50 more HD channels than DirecTV, and SD is watchable. My 5 room whole home DVR setup costs me a whopping $2 versus $50 DirecTV would charge in equipment and DVR fees.

 

[raoul5788]

Four extra dvrs only cost $2/month?

 

[ejb1980]

I love that guide. I do not understand about using Roku or Windows whatever that is - can anyone get that?

 

[mdavej]

Four extra dvrs only cost $2/month?

One DVR, 4 clients like Genie or Hopper/Joey.

 

[mdavej]

I love that guide. I do not understand about using Roku or Windows whatever that is - can anyone get that?

I do too. Anybody with cable or FIOS and a PC can get it for free (no fees like TiVo). Roku can do something similar but I wouldn't recommend it.