Switch to DirecTV a good idea?

[DHoll]

I am currently a Uverse customer for the last 3 years. And of course, the jacked up the rates. I was able to get to the retention department and the best they could do was $225 a month with a year contract. I was paying $210. Keep in mind that this is for there highest package (U450) with internet and phone.

Talking to him, i was curious about directv and he can set me up with the premier package and keep my same internet and phone for about $200 a month. I thought i had made my mind up and was going to go with directv, however i am having second thoughts.

I do like that it seems directv does have just about as many of the same channels as i have now. As well as all the movie channels. One thing directv has over my current Uverse is, a ton of sports channels and NFL Sunday Ticket. But how is the video on demand?

Im mainly worried about the potential of bad reliability. I live in Reno and we do get some good wind storms and snow storms and the occasional good thunderstorm. i get that on those occasions, it may go out. But what about just your everyday cloudy/rainy/snowy/windy days?

Also, worried about installation. I live in a rental house and it currently have 2 satellites on the side from the previous tenant. So im guessing that they shouldn't have to tear up the house to much?

Last thing is just the service in general? Having never had satellite before, will i like it? anything i should be aware of?

My only other option is Charter, but i really don't want to do that if i can help it.

Any comments or advice is appreciated.

 

[stardust3]

Welcome to the forum. There are many things in life you never want to try, Directv is not 1 of those things.

Directv has good equipment, channels and excellent pq. The hr44 is the Genie receiver, it has 5 tuners. The mini genies work off the main genie and have the same capability as the genie. Every tv is hd and dvr with whole home.

Systems are reliable as far as weather goes, bullet proof-no. Not familiar with uverse on demand, directv does have this as well. It requires an internet connection for that part of it.

Imo within a week of having this your reservations would be just a memory. For a personal experience your best bet would be looking up a local retailer. Go to their office and test drive the goods. If you like what you see, signup with them and let them do the install.

 

[maestro7]

I am currently a Uverse customer for the last 3 years. And of course, the jacked up the rates. I was able to get to the retention department and the best they could do was $225 a month with a year contract. I was paying $210. Keep in mind that this is for there highest package (U450) with internet and phone.

Talking to him, i was curious about directv and he can set me up with the premier package and keep my same internet and phone for about $200 a month. I thought i had made my mind up and was going to go with directv, however i am having second thoughts.

I do like that it seems directv does have just about as many of the same channels as i have now. As well as all the movie channels. One thing directv has over my current Uverse is, a ton of sports channels and NFL Sunday Ticket. But how is the video on demand?

Im mainly worried about the potential of bad reliability. I live in Reno and we do get some good wind storms and snow storms and the occasional good thunderstorm. i get that on those occasions, it may go out. But what about just your everyday cloudy/rainy/snowy/windy days?

Also, worried about installation. I live in a rental house and it currently have 2 satellites on the side from the previous tenant. So im guessing that they shouldn't have to tear up the house to much?

Last thing is just the service in general? Having never had satellite before, will i like it? anything i should be aware of?

My only other option is Charter, but i really don't want to do that if i can help it.

Any comments or advice is appreciated.

stardust3 gives an excellent summary in response to the above.

I'll add that the Genie DVR is likely the best equipment in the business, certainly as far as storage options and picture quality are concerned.

Further, I'm always talking up the wireless Genie minis. They're wireless on the coax network, not wifi, and they're fantastic.

All VoD is over Internet, so as long as you have a great connection there, you'll have no worries.

Also, as far as rain is concerned, my wife and I will turn to DirecTV's iOS app in the event we're at the house and a heavy rain takes the signal out for a portion of the show. That way we never miss a beat.

Overall, it's a great setup. You will be asking why you put up with everything else for so long instead of going with DirecTV sooner. Seriously.

 

[Jimbo]

stardust3 gives an excellent summary in response to the above.

I'll add that the Genie DVR is likely the best equipment in the business, certainly as far as storage options and picture quality are concerned.

Further, I'm always talking up the wireless Genie minis. They're wireless on the coax network, not wifi, and they're fantastic.

All VoD is over Internet, so as long as you have a great connection there, you'll have no worries.

Also, as far as rain is concerned, my wife and I will turn to DirecTV's iOS app in the event we're at the house and a heavy rain takes the signal out for a portion of the show. That way we never miss a beat.

Overall, it's a great setup. You will be asking why you put up with everything else for so long instead of going with DirecTV sooner. Seriously.

THAT is a GREAT idea, I never thought about it, I don't lose signal very often, but it does happen from time to time if we have a real heavy storm.

 

[NoWhereMan01]

Does the iOS app stream the local stations so you could pick up weather if it's weather that takes the signal out?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Aridon]

The weather thing gets overblown. It does happen. Especially in SE FL where we get a ton of heavy, tropical rain in the summer. We lose signal a few seconds to 5 minutes or more sometimes during heavy storms. While it might be common to have the signal pop in or out maybe once every other day in the summer it usually happens for 30 seconds to a minute and usually not when anyone is watching TV. Say 3pm in the afternoon during the week.

Not to say it's never gone out on Sunday for 5 minutes during football. It has, maybe once or twice in the 5 years or so I've been with D* off and on.

Anyway, where I live, it doesn't get much more rainy in the summer. 70% of our rain comes in 4 months and we get a lot of rain. Most places, especially up north don't see that much at all normally. It's also not nearly as heavy. Rain fade really isn't a big deal and while it can be annoying at times it isn't very likely to impact you.

As far as Pay TV goes, Directv has historically been the best. Who knows what AT&T will do in the future but for now and for the time that you'll be under contract that shouldn't be an issue. Don't fear trying directv out just realize when you signup that pricing changes in year two and you have a 2 year contract. Its very clear when you sign up but people don't read and that seems to be the biggest complaint.

 

[DHoll]

Welcome to the forum. There are many things in life you never want to try, Directv is not 1 of those things.

Directv has good equipment, channels and excellent pq. The hr44 is the Genie receiver, it has 5 tuners. The mini genies work off the main genie and have the same capability as the genie. Every tv is hd and dvr with whole home.

Systems are reliable as far as weather goes, bullet proof-no. Not familiar with uverse on demand, directv does have this as well. It requires an internet connection for that part of it.

Imo within a week of having this your reservations would be just a memory. For a personal experience your best bet would be looking up a local retailer. Go to their office and test drive the goods. If you like what you see, signup with them and let them do the install.

stardust3 gives an excellent summary in response to the above.

I'll add that the Genie DVR is likely the best equipment in the business, certainly as far as storage options and picture quality are concerned.

Further, I'm always talking up the wireless Genie minis. They're wireless on the coax network, not wifi, and they're fantastic.

All VoD is over Internet, so as long as you have a great connection there, you'll have no worries.

Also, as far as rain is concerned, my wife and I will turn to DirecTV's iOS app in the event we're at the house and a heavy rain takes the signal out for a portion of the show. That way we never miss a beat.

Overall, it's a great setup. You will be asking why you put up with everything else for so long instead of going with DirecTV sooner. Seriously.

The weather thing gets overblown. It does happen. Especially in SE FL where we get a ton of heavy, tropical rain in the summer. We lose signal a few seconds to 5 minutes or more sometimes during heavy storms. While it might be common to have the signal pop in or out maybe once every other day in the summer it usually happens for 30 seconds to a minute and usually not when anyone is watching TV. Say 3pm in the afternoon during the week.

Not to say it's never gone out on Sunday for 5 minutes during football. It has, maybe once or twice in the 5 years or so I've been with D* off and on.

Anyway, where I live, it doesn't get much more rainy in the summer. 70% of our rain comes in 4 months and we get a lot of rain. Most places, especially up north don't see that much at all normally. It's also not nearly as heavy. Rain fade really isn't a big deal and while it can be annoying at times it isn't very likely to impact you.

As far as Pay TV goes, Directv has historically been the best. Who knows what AT&T will do in the future but for now and for the time that you'll be under contract that shouldn't be an issue. Don't fear trying directv out just realize when you signup that pricing changes in year two and you have a 2 year contract. Its very clear when you sign up but people don't read and that seems to be the biggest complaint.

Thanks for your responses.
I still haven't set anything up yet. I called on Saturday and talked with someone just in the general customer service department and apparently whom ever i talked with in the retention department, failed to mention a $99 fee for installing the HD box? i was told there was just a $21.50 fee for equipment upfront. This thing with at&t is like a revolving door, i just feel like i want to just sh*t can them and move on to Charter. Although, i will probably just be upset at them at some point because they are all the same. I am calling tomorrow to the same retention department i spoke with previously and find out whats going on and maybe set something up.

Forgive me on my newbieness (that's definitely a word) but can anyone comment on the installation? like i said, there is currently 2 satellites on the house, which tells me that there was satellite service in the past (duh). does that mean it should be pretty straight forward right?

Also, iv'e been seeing the HR44 thing a lot. Is this something i should make sure i ask for? or will i get the newest equipment automatically? Who do i ask, will the customer service rep be able to help me?

Again thanks for your help!

 

[stardust3]

If your credit is good there is no upfront costs period. Check with a retailer.

 

[Zashel]

If your credit is good there is no upfront costs period. Check with a retailer.

pretty much everything revolves around your credit when you sign up as a new customer. if you qualify, you can get the genie and 3 minis for ~free (the wireless will be a 1 time $99.99 charge though). if you dont qualify for the genie then things get kinda ugly as far as what they will charge you up front for the recievers and whatnot. retailers may or may not be able to get you a different/better deal, so its worth a call to check at least.

 

[mdavej]

My 2 cents. I've had Uverse, DirecTV, Dish and Charter. In my market, Charter is far cheaper than satellite and has far more HD (about 80 more channels) and fewer programming disputes. Cable reliability is very high, but I never had significant problems with satellite either. In the southeast, we have a lot more storms than Reno, and I do lose my signal in bad ones, but not very often. Another advantage of cable is the bundle discounts you can get. I assume you have Charter for internet already anyway or will once you dump Uverse.

Price-wise, for phone, internet and mid-level cable (~200 channels + HBO/SHO/MAX) with Charter, I'm paying $125. I have a 4 tuner Tivo with lifetime and Minis in 4 other rooms ($2/month total).

If you do get cable, I highly recommend getting Tivo. Charter's DVR sucks and is more expensive than Tivo. Be aware that On Demand won't work on Tivo (except for PPV). But I've found you can stream just about everything from the network websites or Hulu anyway. I've always found On Demand to be pretty terrible in terms of quality and content, so have rarely used it in the 10 years or so it's been available to me.

DirecTV and Dish have fantastic DVRs and great service, but it comes at a higher price than Charter, in the long term. Dish is a bit cheaper than DirecTV for essentially the same content.

After the promos run out, DirecTV goes up quite a bit, especially Sunday Ticket. But it's great the first couple of years. If your main goal is to get the best deal regardless of the hassles involved, switch providers every year or two.

 

[maestro7]

Does the iOS app stream the local stations so you could pick up weather if it's weather that takes the signal out?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

No, but if you live in a metro area where the local stations make their own smart phone app, they likely have a "Live" feature that allows you to stream.

 

[maestro7]

Thanks for your responses.
I still haven't set anything up yet. I called on Saturday and talked with someone just in the general customer service department and apparently whom ever i talked with in the retention department, failed to mention a $99 fee for installing the HD box? i was told there was just a $21.50 fee for equipment upfront. This thing with at&t is like a revolving door, i just feel like i want to just sh*t can them and move on to Charter. Although, i will probably just be upset at them at some point because they are all the same. I am calling tomorrow to the same retention department i spoke with previously and find out whats going on and maybe set something up.

Forgive me on my newbieness (that's definitely a word) but can anyone comment on the installation? like i said, there is currently 2 satellites on the house, which tells me that there was satellite service in the past (duh). does that mean it should be pretty straight forward right?

Also, iv'e been seeing the HR44 thing a lot. Is this something i should make sure i ask for? or will i get the newest equipment automatically? Who do i ask, will the customer service rep be able to help me?

Again thanks for your help!

The DirecTV installer will have to set you up with what's called a "slimline" dish (do a Google image search for "slimline dish" for a visual).

Then, they'll have to set up for a SWiM device (I would recommend at least an 8 or 16-port version) which the HR34/44 Genie DVRs require.

You likely won't be able to pre-order the HR34 or 44 STB -- that will be determined based on the technician's inventory. But it never hurts to ask at every step of the way.

Regarding installation charges, while you might be able to talk yourself into a deal for free Genie installation (being nice -- attract bees with honey!), you likely won't get out of the wireless video bridge setup fee (if you get at least one Genie mini wireless).

Feel free to keep asking questions.

 

[DHoll]

So i called today to the retention department, and to no surprise, the previous guy i talked to didn't make a good notes and the lady today had no idea how he got the $187 quote from before. (pay about $200 after taxes). This time it was going to be about $208 before taxes. So of course, again, everything i was told before was inaccurate. I just ended up going with what i have for the next 12 months for simplicity sake. I also wasn't told that it is a 24 month contract but a 12 month price lock. I specifically asked the guy, it is a 12 month contract, right? and he said yes.

Anyway, thanks for your help thus far everyone. Im a little disappointed because i was liking the idea of getting Directv but maybe a year from now, i will be back here asking questions.