Ted Gould wrote:
> On Wed, 1 Nov 2006, Josef Lowder wrote:
>> I have called both Qwest-DirecTV and Dish Network to see
>> what they might offer, but now the mass of confusion from
>> both of them is simply incredible.
>>
>> They all advertise all great come-on deals, but then they
>> want to add on $10 for this and another $10 for that and
>> it just goes from bad to worse. Every time I call Qwest,
>> I get a different story ...
>
Sadly, I kinda prefer this. I dont use callerID on my land line. Why
should I have to pay for it? Same with my cable/sat vendor.
> This seems to be the business model of choice today, in TV, but also cell
> phones, land lines, etc. I hate it too, but I think it's here to stay.
>
> Full Disclosure: I work for DirecTV, so I'm not unbias about this, but I
> don't represent the position of the company in any way (and I don't care
> what their opinion is).
>
> In my experience, the cable guys still really haven't figured out HD.
> They have a few channels, but they really need to upgrade their networks
I have to disagree here. I can get (rent) an HD DVR for a few extra
bucks a month. I can record one show while at the same time record
another show. Sure, it has a few issues, but its affordable, I dont
have to worry about it breaking (it's rented, remember? It breaks, I
swap it out. No sweat), and it works.
Most sat. companies? They want mucho money for the same thing. I'm not
going to shell out $500+ for an HD DVR. period. So, the cable
companies might not have the bandwidth to do it correctly, but they're
doing it good enough for me.
Disclosure. I absolutely hate Cox. Not for the customer service
(although its in there too) but more for political reasons (I wont go
into). If Dish or DirecTV offered to rent a HD dvr box like Cox does,
I'd jump on it in a heartbeat. They dont. They lose.
> If you want local channels, stick up an antenna. You'll get full digital
> quality HD signal by just watching ATSC broadcasts. It's actually
> probably better than the local signal you'll get from the cable/sat guys
> because the local broadcasters aren't bandwidth constrained, so they have
I agree here. I've seen HD through straight antenna. Breathtaking. I
have yet to set it up for myself, though.
> The satellite guys have upgraded their network, the HD boxes are a true
> second generation from the other boxes. Not really an HD bolt on like the
> cable boxes. I like DirecTV's solution better, but as a consumer you
> probably can't tell the difference. The downside of sat is the dishes,
> and for HD they're large as your connecting to up to five satellites to
> get the job done. They're getting much, much better -- but still larger
> than the original dishes.
Still too expensive for me (and most people I know). Make it a rentable
unit, its a done deal.
So, to answer the original question:
It depends on if you want to pay out the ying-yang up front(Satellite),
or are more comfortable with smaller monthly payments(cable). I went
the latter. I've been very pleased.
David
---------------------------------------------------
PLUG-discuss mailing list -
PLUG-discuss@lists.plug.phoenix.az.us
To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change you mail settings:
http://lists.PLUG.phoenix.az.us/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
(text/plain)