[joemama127]

Specifically Dish or Direct. My entire adult life has been spent in apartments..and recently a townhome but I still have only cable and know nothing about sattelite tv. This won't be for my personal use, but rather a family hunting lodge that is under construction. Cable isn't an option, so one of the two companies will be our only choice. We do want HD, dvr is a maybe and definitely need an HDMI capable box since we want to run one HDMI from a surround receiver to a Panasonic 54" plasma. Which company has the best equipment and offers bang for the buck programming? Even though cost will be shared between 3 families....the lodge won't be occupied year round, so paying too much for service not used will be an issue.

 

[mjones73]

There's a number of Dish vs Directv threads here worth searching for...


PQ for HD is similiar between the two, Dish has a better HD DVR and I believe an HD only package, Directv has more sports offerings. You can view pricing and channel line ups for both on their websites.

 

[joemama127]

I didn't think this would be a unique topic, but a quick scan of the subforum didn't turn up what I was looking for. Like I said, it makes me no difference which company we decide to go with, but I have been given the task of deciding since I'm the closest thing to a "tech guru" in the family.

One of my main concerns is having a local installer give us an older, outdated HD box simply because we won't know the difference and the cabin is in the middle of nowhere.

 

[Scooper]

You can't go wrong with either - I'd base my selection more on what PROGRAMMING for what cost works best for you.

 

[Ken H]

HD Sports = DirecTV

HD Only Packages = Dish Network

Slightly better HD image quality for national HD channels = DirecTV

Best HD DVR = Dish Network


You pays your money, you takes your chances.

 

[joed32]



Quote:
Originally Posted by joemama127 /forum/post/16937298


I didn't think this would be a unique topic, but a quick scan of the subforum didn't turn up what I was looking for. Like I said, it makes me no difference which company we decide to go with, but I have been given the task of deciding since I'm the closest thing to a "tech guru" in the family.

One of my main concerns is having a local installer give us an older, outdated HD box simply because we won't know the difference and the cabin is in the middle of nowhere.

They will have to give you a box that receives all of the channels that you pay for so old or new is nothing to worry about. You don't own it anyway.

 

[joemama127]



Quote:
Originally Posted by joed32 /forum/post/16940285


They will have to give you a box that receives all of the channels that you pay for so old or new is nothing to worry about. You don't own it anyway.

That goes without saying, however what I am concerned about is the fact that sat/cable settop boxes often introduce HDMI handshake issues, degraded PQ or other anomalies that show up onscreen as lines, dots or incorrect aspect ratios. I know that electronics are not all created equal...and if one company had much better equipment than the other, then it would justify a higher monthly fee. For my personal use, I bypass any kind of box (and issues it may have) by going with expanded basic and using a QAM tuner.


I know that neither Dish or Direct can afford to give out defective/buggy equipment to everyone....just wondering if one companies offering was more prone to such than the other.