UPDATE: DirecTV is now offering customers 50% off for their first 12 months, and other awesome deals – you can sign up here.

If you’re in the market for satellite television, there are two main players that you are probably looking at: DirecTV, and DISH. 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 – and have begrudgingly set them at each other in an epic battle to the end. Who will remain? Keep reading.

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 55 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 55 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 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 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 has a lot 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 decent, what really makes a good television provider is the content that it is able to deliver. On that note, DISH does well. Their packages range in price, starting at just $19.99 a month for 55 channels and reaching as high as $104.99 a month for 320 channels and, of course, packages and pricing everywhere in-between. DirecTV however has landed an exclusive deal with the NFL for Sunday Ticket which provides total coverage of football and the NFL this is one major thing that DISH currently lacks.

Pitting DirecTV against DISH 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 DirecTV, 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 DirecTV. 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 DISH as well, we found it easier and faster on DirecTV.

The DirecTV HD DVR is the best around right now, and though DISH’s incarnation is a very good example of what a HD DVR should be, the one offered by DirecTV is just a teeny bit better.

We predict that DISH will start to gain ground in the market, however we still recommend DirecTV because of their superior content and hardware. You can sign up for DirecTV here.