I love movies and I love to catch up on the latest events of the TV world, so when it comes to connecting the wonderful world of pop culture, news and sports, what do I turn to? When I first moved to Michigan, I was set up with Comcast Cable, but not liking the service (for two personal reasons) I decided to make the switch to DIRECTV.
When you are vulnerable or unhappy with a current service or product, it is easy to see your face in dealing with another company. I was visiting a store that advertised a special with DIRECTV. Satellite, 4-room receiver, and 3 months of free all movie channels (like HBO), plus 3 months of $19.99 per month service. Also, after one full year of service, you have to keep all the items. I was excited to say the least when the opportunity presented itself and immediately offered my current Comcast job (to put it nicely).
I’ll say both have their pros and cons in regards to TVs and directv, but for your television needs, one may appeal to you over the other. In my home, the transition has precipitated costs, negative experiences customer and absenteeism. of ESPN2.
Price
With Comcast, I was paying a monthly bill of something close to $70 and I wasn’t getting what I thought was a fair number of channels for the price. One of the main reasons I switched to DIRECTV was because I only wanted to pay about $40 a month. Unfortunately, you need to read the fine print because you will be using $4.95 per month for each recipient. In my case I used all four. At last I didn’t do save money on car rental, but I accept several posts for the price.
Equipment
Comcast Cable: Arc TV, remote streaming
DIRECTV Digital Satellite: satellite-dish, remote receivers for each room.
Sustain
It’s just a grilled cheese for kids, as it sounds; cable service. Before I switched from Comcast, there were no visible cables running through the house. Not only was I dealing with DIRECTV cables out of shape, but I also had about 8 holes drilled into the walls of my house, including a visible hole that could be seen in the back.
Most satellites are placed on the roof of your house, but in our case the only way to get a good signal was to climb into our backyard on our fences. It also took the technician an hour to determine if the house could be fitted with proper equipment and wiring. Some homes will be a nightmare to set up, others will have no problems at all.
The technician sets up all your receivers and software for you as each remote works. Towing, lifting, it’s easy to figure out yours: the plug connects from the wall to the back of your TV in an easily identifiable spot. With DIRECTV versus someone plugged in the VCR from the television connection and now I have no idea where the cables are connected. I have tried every possible solution and nothing works, now I have a receiver in the room that is not even connected to the television.
With Comcast, I had a television connection in the master bedroom, guest bedrooms (up and down), the pool, the kitchen and the downstairs family room. With DIRECTV, each satellite dish can only support four receivers, meaning you have to decide which rooms are most worthy of television access.
Channel Selection
One of the reasons I switched from Comcast was because of the lack of good channels. My friend is an avid sports fan and has been visiting local bars to catch his favorite college basketball team. ESPN2 is not offered by Comcast, but DIRECTV offers this channel and definitely much, much more. With DIRECTV, you can also receive digital XM radio stations. For me, I’m pretty content with WE, Life Movie Network, Oxygen, MTV, MTV2 and TVOne, while my boyfriend watches a wide range of sports non-stop including ESPNs, NBAtv and NFLtv. Before the start of the season in the NBA could get a discount to order the NBA package, which free loads of basketball games during the season (does not include playoff games).
The Guide
The guide for DIRECTV is much better to deal with than the cable guide. Cable leads the book without pace, showing only 2 hours of programming at a time. Just turn your head and you’ve been waiting minutes for each channel to appear. Unless you have a TV Guide next to you at 3pm, there’s no way to know what’s coming on at 8pm. Individual shows or movies are limited to cable guides, while a decent amount of information is provided by DIRECTV.
The DIRECTV guide allows you to complete searches by time, date, channel and genre. You can see what is playing a week in advance; set channel reminders; and pay order by watching movies with a simple click of a button. At first, the TV controller may seem like too much to digest, but give it time, and in no time you’ll be a surface whiz channel.
Reception
I’ve had no problems with Comcast through rain, sleet or snow, but with DIRECTV, since we’re dealing with a digital satellite provider, rain and snow have the potential to cause your system to send a search signal. In the winter, too, I had a snow fern from the satellite to break off my signal to restore it. When he set up the service technician, he told me that we have terrible reception in the weather, but I will say that I have only had minor inconveniences. Nothing major.
I started to inquire about alternative TV services after a negative experience with the company. I paid my bill directly to the courtesy office. Many times I have been greeted by rude and dismissive employees. The last time I visited the office I wanted to set my personal access code to be used every time someone searched for the account. This great hassle was never properly followed. I never asked for any phone inquiries about the account and access code I posted. I switched to DIRECTV before they stopped my complimentary service (as in the case of DIRECTV not working).
Since things were not working with the digital satellite connection, I told Comcast that I didn’t need their services. The cable went through weeks and was never disconnected. When I called the company, they told me that someone called the office and said they would cancel (that I should be charged an extra $30 for “changing my mind”). When I asked if I was given an access code, they acted like they didn’t know what I was talking about. Of course, the matter was eventually taken care of, but the hassle was clearly unnecessary. As for DIRECTV, I’ve never had to call customer service and can easily pay my bill online with no problems. .
Disconnection alas
I once forgot to pay for my Comcast bill and got disconnected. When I called the company, they said they don’t always notify the customer when a disconnection is approaching. I paid the bill immediately, but had to wait for the operator to come out to the house and reconnect the service. With DIRECTV, since everything is digital, the reconnection is as fast as flipping a switch.
Bottom Line: I am happy with my DIRECTV service because of all the great channels I get for the price. I also enjoy the convenience of a digital channel guide. The only thing I’m a bit put off by when it comes to satellite installation is the holes in the walls, visible cables, and the limitation of 4 installation rooms. Other than that, I have endless possibilities to choose from when I turn to salad.
Report:
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www.directv.com Comcast Cable: www.comcast.net
