woot. I agree with your conclusion. Though I would have said it was foregone from the getgo. 
nice post.
Dish Network vs DirecTV
By The Guru
If you’re in the market for satellite television, there are two main players that you are probably looking at: DirecTV, and Dish Network. Both are completely viable, well-thought-out solutions that deliver the product that they promise. Both offer competitive home television solutions, good picture quality, and good customer support. In essence, both are services that are deserving of your consideration (and money).
However, we are blessed with a free market economy, where one product will always trump the other one. Superiority of design, engineering prowess, and the actual company behind it generally outdo the competition, and it is by this formula that many products have come and gone from the market. This is the very concept that has shaped our economy, and by now you’re probably wondering why this is relevant.
We’ve prepared a bit of a death match between the two main satellite providers in America – DirecTV and Dish Network – and have begrudgingly set them at each other in an epic battle to the end. Who will remain? Keep reading.
DirecTV – Features, Benefits, and General Information
DirecTV is a name that is synonymous with satellite television. When satellite television service was in its infancy, DirecTV was there. As the service expanded and grew, DirecTV was there. And, as the industry transformed into a complete multimedia solution, DirecTV was there. You could say that DirecTV is in it for the long haul.
DirecTV has gained a good reputation for being a quality satellite provider that offers value, customized packages, and ease of use for the customer. One of the main attractions to DirecTV is the fact that it is seemingly plug and play- once the technicians leave your home, your TV just works. There are no games to play, no hassles to experience, no hoops to jump through- just a working television set (err, up to four of them actually).
DirecTV’s lowest package (the Family package) runs $29.99 a month for 40 channels. At this price, which is pretty low considering the quality of the audio/video and the fact that the channels included are good channels, the customer is also given the option of having up to four receivers installed for free- how’s that for value?
Of course, there are packages that soar right through the entire pricing spectrum: $29.99 a month (Family), $49.99 a month (Choice), $54.99 a month (Choice Xtra), $59.99 a month (Plus DVR), $64.99 a month (Choice Xtra HD), and $69.99 a month (Plus DVR HD). The base package (the Family package) includes 40 channels, whereas the top end Plus DVR HD package includes 195 channels, HD content, local channels, as well as 68 XM Satellite radio channels. That’s a whole lot of TV.
Dish Network – Features, Benefits, and General Information
Dish Network is not as well known as DirecTV, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t making a big splash in the market. In fact, since Dish Network launched a few years ago, customers have been flocking to the service, credit cards in hand, literally begging Dish to take their money. Why?
Dish Network has everything going for them: high-quality broadcasting, capable hardware, desirable packages, great rates, and plenty of customization. Their HD DVR units are second to none, offering the whole experience and enough technical features that they blend in perfectly to any home theater setup.
While the hardware is probably the best on the market, what really makes a good television provider is the content that it is able to deliver. On that note, Dish Network really shines. Their packages range in price, starting at just $19.99 a month for 40 channels and reaching as high as $94.99 a month for 280 channels and, of course, packages and pricing everywhere in-between.
Which Service is Better?
Pitting DirecTV against Dish Network was a difficult task, as it was hard for our testers to focus on the task at hand. Both providers have excellent services, and on that level we are able to say that we liked them both. However, in the interest of Darwinian science we’re going to find just one contender that does the job better than the other.
That contender is Dish Network, and here’s why: throughout the duration of our testing we couldn’t help but feel more at home with the software provided by the Dish Network. It flowed better, looked better, and was a lot faster too. Scrolling through various options menu’s was simple and easy to accomplish, and though that could be done on DirecTV as well, we found it easier and faster on Dish Network.
The Dish Network HD DVR is the best around right now, and though DirecTV’s incarnation is a very good example of what a HD DVR should be, the one offered by Dish Network is just a teeny bit better.
We predict that Dish Network will start to gain ground in the market, and we’ll be glad to see that. You can sign up for Dish Network here.
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Topics: DirecTV, Dish Network, Information, Reviews | 11 Comments »
11 Responses to “Dish Network vs DirecTV”
steve - February 8th, 2009 at 9:18 pm
Micah - February 8th, 2009 at 11:44 pm
I am doing research on the Dish Netwok Corp. and I was wondering how Dish earns their income besides the subscribers. Do the channels like TBS and FOX pay Dish for a slot? Please explain this process to me, asap if possible.
Thanks,
Micah
clyde - February 22nd, 2009 at 2:38 pm
I have had both, each for many years. I recently returned to DirecTV. Boy am I glad. I should have done so two years ago, especially after what transpired after I discontinued Dish service. Here are just a few reasons DirecTV is superior.
1. DirecTV uses only one roof satellite receiver for local channels. Dish, in areas, requires two dish satellite receivers on the roof to receive local channels. I tried for years, purchasing three TV antennae, to get reliable local TV reception; to no avail. I could not get the Dish second roof top receiver because of my neighbor’s trees.
2. DirecTV includes local channels in their price. You pay extra with Dish.
3. DirecTV HD DVR will record two HD channels at once. Dish records two channels at once, but only one is HD.
4. DirecTV receiver stays on if you leave it on. If the Dish receiver is left on, the picture is replaced in the middle of the night with an annoying Dish logo on the screen. So, if you want to record a Dish recorded program to your VCR or DVD during that period, your program is replaced with the Dish logo.
5. DirecTV has at least two weeks of programming information on their system. Dish programming is limited to one week.
6. DirecTV DVR has output options for HDMI, component and two analog AV outputs that operate simultaneously. Dish has HDMI, component and one analog.
7. Dish has a policy, as I unfortunately discovered, that destroys your personal property if you mistakenly return your expensive DVD/hard drive recorder instead of their receiver. Both were out of my media tower and looked almost the same, and I just hastily grabbed the wrong one. They just destroyed it, without any notification, or giving me any opportunity to even pay for it’s return. I noticed their receiver, a week after the mistake, but they had already destroyed my equipment. They have consistently, and adamantly refused to compensate me. Yet, I returned their receiver, or my credit card would have been charged. I have No recourse. I certainly would not trust such a company that treats people this way!
ryan - June 2nd, 2009 at 11:34 pm
to correct clyde on his points he must be retarted and is wrong.
1. dish only needs one dish for locals AND regular programming
2. dish does charge for locals but even with that directv just tacked on $5 dollars for that in the regular price. atleast with dish you have the option not to pay for locals if you dont want them.
3. The vip 722 dvr can record 2 hd shows at once. i have no idea what hes talking about. if you set the box in “dual mode” then you can record still two things in hd or one in hd and one standard since it can power one HD tv and one standard tv.
4. go into the options and change it are your that retarded?
5. 14 days with dish wrong again.
6. and your point is? you only need one to operate. lol
7. sounds like you just had a bad experience and used the previous points which most are not true or not even relevant. learn the facts before you post your negative opinions…
go with dish if you do want the best equipment and price. directv is good but dish is better.
Scott - September 1st, 2009 at 10:33 pm
They both are equally good except that dish offers a split reciever you can record and watch in two different rooms. That is nice. Direc does not have this capability.
Direc offers NFL Sunday Ticket, Dish does not.
I need my Bucs football up here as a transplant in Nebraska.
carlos - September 24th, 2009 at 9:48 pm
All I gotta say is NFL Sunday Ticket..Have a nice DAY
Pat Mann - October 3rd, 2009 at 8:54 am
I’ve had both DirectV and Dish Network. Directv is overall the best satellite provider. The color is lifelike and sharper. With Dish Network the colors fade out and the picture quality is not nearly as good
Chris - October 9th, 2009 at 5:37 am
Hi.
Live in Bend Oregon.
I have Directv
I have to pay for local channels. That is I pay for the ones I get. FOX and NBC refuse to allow me to have service though I have requested it 3 times over a year. There are trees that make using an other method impossible. So no “House” and limited football.
Michael in South Bend IN. - October 12th, 2009 at 6:33 pm
We had Directv for many years. We switched about 3 years ago. Directv customer service was very bad. The outages were much longer in bad weather than Dish Network (maybe because of the older equipment). We love the customer service and the lower monthly price of Dish Network. The customer service representatives will credit your account for mistakes, even when I screwed up and forgot to cancel premium channels after the free period. They also offer 1 penny Cinemax for switching to paperless billing for a year. If after a year you still want 1 penny Cinemax, all you need to do is tell them to start sending the bill again and they restart the offer. The onscreen menu structure is much easier to navigate with Dish Network. I don’t like the fact that the Dish Network receiver needs to be plugged into the telephone line or else they charge you extra. I don’t order pay per view, I just like the privacy. The receivers for Dish Network are much more reliable than the Directv receivers. We were having to send back Directv receivers often. The last replacement receivers that they sent were wedge shaped, so they had to be at the top of the A/V component stack.
Rick - October 26th, 2009 at 11:53 am
Dishnetwork is by far the best TV service. I had Dish for over 10 years and wanted to get HD and dish only had 1 of my locals in HD. So I switched to Directv, signed a 2 year contract and was miserable. Picture problems, sound problems and signal problems. Constant calls to customer service, Equiptment replaced multiple times and no fix. I finally convinced them to break my contract, which I was told was impossible to do, but I did it and went back to Dishnetwork with new HD DVR receivers and now with my locals in HD I am in heaven with the better TV service. Everything with Dish works much better than Directv.
Neal - October 28th, 2009 at 4:41 pm
The NFL Sunday Ticket service is costing Directv millions in losses with the lack in demand, so I wondered why my service went up $3 back in January ‘09 to keep this service above water. I dont even have NFL Sunday Ticket, I and others are paying for it. Been a Directv subscriber for 4 yrs and I luv it but another price hike to supplement something that I dont have myself will send me to the competition, hello DISH.
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