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Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 2:34:58 AM

pinksugarsub

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Having reached my 'boiling point' with my cable company, i have an appointment next week to have satellite tv installed. i was persuaded in part by the ad blitz ATT has run here, claiming their satellite tv is cheaper and offers better programming than cable.

i asked repeatedly about costs. The ATT customer service guy i spoke to told me i would not be billed for satellite tv during the 1st three months and would also receive a $50 check from ATT for agreeing to the service. (Sounds almost too good to be true.)

Once ATT does begin billing me, satellite tv should cost me about $12 a month less. This may not seem like much of a savings, but one reason i decided to make the change is that my cable bill has been climbing steadily over the past few months and their customer service reps cannot explain why my rate is going up.

i wondered if A/anyone had any strong opinions about the benefits of cable vs satellite tv.

Thank you.

pinksugarsub

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 2:37:23 AM

Asherdelampyr

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it depends a lot on your area (im a satellite tech)
if the area is prone to lots of heavy rain (not snow, unless its that sleet crap) then you may notice issues with the satellite signal, other than that, the only thing I missed fom cable was the on demand feature, but I gots a DVR, so its all good :)

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 2:45:01 AM

Vaughner

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Having been a Cable Tech Support Agent for TV and Cable here is my recommendation
Asher pretty much covered the TV benefits well and in your case I'd agree with him.
However for your High Speed Internet I'd highly advise staying with the Cable Company.
Depending on your location you probably have either Cox, Comcast, or given your furstrations Charter. Some of their services are more expensive than what AT&T offers, but they are faster which is what high speed is all about. Also keep in mind 90% of Cable Internet problems can be fixed in 10 minutes by speaking to a competent tech support agent. If a DSL Line craps out on you, unless its a simple problem like a NIC problem or renewing an IP, you may have several days worth of work to get it back. (Considering that AT&T is forcing 6 Meg of RF through phone lines only meant to handle a max of a couple hundred K. They talk big about their fibre but its still going to be awhile before its all-encompassing.)

Personally I have Cable TV and Internet, but I only have the former because the association forbids dishes. (Damn old people have to have something to gripe about)

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 2:49:07 AM

Asherdelampyr

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Vaughner

Having been a Cable Tech Support Agent for TV and Cable here is my recommendation
Asher pretty much covered the TV benefits well and in your case I'd agree with him.
However for your High Speed Internet I'd highly advise staying with the Cable Company.
Depending on your location you probably have either Cox, Comcast, or given your furstrations Charter. Some of their services are more expensive than what AT&T offers, but they are faster which is what high speed is all about. Also keep in mind 90% of Cable Internet problems can be fixed in 10 minutes by speaking to a competent tech support agent. If a DSL Line craps out on you, unless its a simple problem like a NIC problem or renewing an IP, you may have several days worth of work to get it back. (Considering that AT&T is forcing 6 Meg of RF through phone lines only meant to handle a max of a couple hundred K. They talk big about their fibre but its still going to be awhile before its all-encompassing.)

Personally I have Cable TV and Internet, but I only have the former because the association forbids dishes. (Damn old people have to have something to gripe about)

this is the only thing the mormon valley has going for it, we gots honest to gawd fiber-optic!!!!!

of course, I cant get it in my area (aint it always the way?)

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 2:52:25 AM

Vaughner

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Usually yeah, only people you've never met get the stuff you really want

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 2:58:39 AM

DomAviator

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I have Direct TV, and am generally pretty happy with it. Their customer service is great. However, with the Houston weather (tropical so there are nearly daily thundershowers) I DO loose reception several times a week - usually at the least opportune moment. Like I will be watching "The First 48" and just when the guy is about to confess it will go to blue screen with "Searching For Sattelite"... However, on the upside, as soon as the weather improves its back instantly. So in the event of a Hurricane or something I wont have to wait weeks for the cable to be restrung....

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 3:27:33 AM

pinksugarsub

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Vaughner

Having been a Cable Tech Support Agent for TV and Cable here is my recommendation
Asher pretty much covered the TV benefits well and in your case I'd agree with him.
However for your High Speed Internet I'd highly advise staying with the Cable Company.
Depending on your location you probably have either Cox, Comcast, or given your furstrations Charter. Some of their services are more expensive than what AT&T offers, but they are faster which is what high speed is all about. Also keep in mind 90% of Cable Internet problems can be fixed in 10 minutes by speaking to a competent tech support agent. If a DSL Line craps out on you, unless its a simple problem like a NIC problem or renewing an IP, you may have several days worth of work to get it back. (Considering that AT&T is forcing 6 Meg of RF through phone lines only meant to handle a max of a couple hundred K. They talk big about their fibre but its still going to be awhile before its all-encompassing.)

Personally I have Cable TV and Internet, but I only have the former because the association forbids dishes. (Damn old people have to have something to gripe about)

Right now, i have ATT dsl internet and Time Warner cable tv. i don't know what a DVR is or does. My tv upstairs has a cable box, so i get a 'tag' when i change channels that tells me what program is on -- a feature i really like and would miss.

i haven't had any bad experiences with ATT dsl Tech Support. They've been almost always excellent and i have no complaints about my line speed. Maybe i just don't know what i'm missing with cable, but it costs more, and i don't want to spend the extra money.

i also live in a housing association. i have a lot of hoops to jump through to get satellite tv installed, including approval from the Board. My installer will not be allowed to begin work until after he has gone to the association office and consulted some particular employee in maintenance.

When i called ATT back to review these requirements with them, the 'repair' department guy was a bit hostile about it. It may end up that i just can't get the two organisations to cooperate enough to even get satellite tv installed, LOL.

pinksugarsub

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 3:32:57 AM

Asherdelampyr

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DVR stands for Digital Video Recorder, (think TiVo)
basically it is the coolest thing to have if you work a lot (like me) and dont want to miss that new season of The Tudors or some such :P
you set it to record, and it records to a hard drive in the box, then watch it and get rid of it whenever ya need room

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 4:07:43 AM

pinksugarsub

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Asherdelampyr

DVR stands for Digital Video Recorder, (think TiVo)
basically it is the coolest thing to have if you work a lot (like me) and dont want to miss that new season of The Tudors or some such :P
you set it to record, and it records to a hard drive in the box, then watch it and get rid of it whenever ya need room

But my lil upstairs tv has a bult in VCR....doesn't it do the same thing?

pinksugarsub

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 4:12:12 AM

Asherdelampyr

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it does, but you have to use tapes, and it can be more difficult

for example, I watch a show you probably havent heard of called Xplay (Basically its a show about video games) its on at 8pm, when I work days I dont get off until 9pm, and when I work nights I have to catch the 7:30pm bus to get to work on time, so Im never home when its on

Solution, I told my dvr to record the series, so now every time its on, my DVR records it, even if its a longer than usual episode, or it gets pushed back by some special (breaking news or what have you) it records it when its on, without changing the channel, so that the other members in my house can watch whatever they want

the main advantage is that I can set it and forget it, I set it to record Xplay 6 months ago and havent missed a single episode, no worries about making sure there is a blank tape in the vcr, or anything like that, it is wonderfully hassle-free

I could go on about them forever, but I think you get the point :P

ETA: Almost forgot, when I am watching "Live TV" (as oppose to something recorded) I can pause it to go pee/make a sammich/care for my um/take out the trash/have some personal time :P
it is beyond awesome, and I can rewind it if I miss something :)

< Message edited by Asherdelampyr -- 6/14/2008 4:14:49 AM >

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 4:12:46 AM

Aileen1968

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I've had Directv for almost 13 years now and still love it. I can tell when a storm is coming in though when I start getting those pixelated frozen frames. My only complaint about it. Tivo is a god and much better than a vcr. You can program in the programs you want to watch and it will automatically record them even if the day or time gets changed one week. I get the full package and only keep it because we've had the full package for 13 years and the price is grandfathered in. If I was to drop it and only get the channels I actually watched it would cost more than what I pay now. We also get the football package...gives every game of the season.

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 4:53:33 AM

Asherdelampyr

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Direct tv isnt too bad, they at least know how to waterproof thier dishes most of the time so frequent rain doesnt end up completely destroying the signal

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 5:26:14 AM

MmeGigs

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I have DirecTV. I got it because I live out in the boonies and satellite is my only option. I lose signal in a heavy rain and I can't get my local channels (I get local channels from Minneapolis/St Paul, but not from Rochester or other nearly towns), but other than that I'm very happy with the service I have. My boss has cable. My bill has stayed about the same for 7 years, hers has gone up pretty much every year.

I think that satisfaction with internet service depends largely on who your provider is. I get DSL through my small-town mom-and-pop telephone company. When I call them with an issue (which hasn't happened often), a person answers the phone, they know who and where I am, and someome gets working on my problem right away. If a tech isn't available to talk with me, I get a call back within minutes. My modem went bad a while back and they had a tech out here and had me back up and running in less than 2 hours from the time I placed the initial call, and that's with a 20-minute drive to get to my house. On the other paw, there isn't much suppurt available outside of business hours. With just a few thousand customers they can't afford to do around the clock staffing.

My friends in town don't get that kind of service whether they have DSL or cable. This is annecdotal, but I hear quite a bit of griping from those with cable internet service, very little from those with DSL.

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 6:02:10 AM

DesertRat

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Way out here (in the Paris of the Southwest), I use Dish Network for TV and have loved it for years. Unfortunately, on the internet side, you'll find that even if you buck up all the way for the fastest satellite package (as I have) it's still much slower than DSL or cable. It's faster than dialup, and I can download video and music, and send and receive 10+ mb pics, but satellite service is definitely the orphaned bastard child of high-speed internet. I'll be very happy on the day I can sign up for DSL or wireless and kiss Wildblue goodbye.

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 6:06:51 AM

Asherdelampyr

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quote:

ORIGINAL: DesertRat

Way out here (in the Paris of the Southwest), I use Dish Network for TV and have loved it for years. Unfortunately, on the internet side, you'll find that even if you buck up all the way for the fastest satellite package (as I have) it's still much slower than DSL or cable. It's faster than dialup, and I can download video and music, and send and receive 10+ mb pics, but satellite service is definitely the orphaned bastard child of high-speed internet. I'll be very happy on the day I can sign up for DSL or wireless and kiss Wildblue goodbye.

I was almost hoping that knoone would bring up sattellite internet

I have a huge pet peeve with it
you are getting anally fucked without consent or lube, by the satellite company

Trust me, this is what I do for a living, the difference being that my company doesnt do that shit (or will at leasst buy ya dinner after, and maybe cuddle)

basically what they do is put you on a network that is maxed out at whatever speed they quoted you (usually up to about 1/2 a MB) which is cool, until you find out that there are over 200 other people on that same network, and it quickly turns from cool and groovy into traffic jam from hell on the information superhighway (I havent used that term in forever :P)

ETA, one thing to ask before you buy any internet you arent familiar with, especially satellite is what kind of network it is, and what the share is
(TDMA is the standard shared type)
if they say anything larger than 16:1, tell them to kiss your ass

< Message edited by Asherdelampyr -- 6/14/2008 6:08:26 AM >

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 8:54:38 AM

soul2share

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I have Cox digital cable and internet...just got it about a month ago, haven't had any real problems, but the one complaint I have is the signal quality on the cable sucks....I'm talking the picture breaks up into the little squares, or it freezes altogether. Maybe I just don't understand how digital works vs the old analog cable, but it's a pain in the ass to be watching something and then have the picutre and audio start the old hopping around/freezing thing. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to it, the skies are crystal clear, well as clear as they can be here, anyway, there's no rain, no wind kicking up dust, yet it acts like satellite TV during a storm. There's usually a pretty fair amount of particulate pollution hanging around the valley area, but it's only a few hundred feet in the air.....I know that radio signals can be interefered with by this crap, maybe that's the problem?

Thank goodness I have a pretty extensive dvd library! When it gets that bad, I pop one of those in.

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 9:07:59 AM

bipolarber

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I'm basically a repeat of MmeGigs, I'm out in the country, and cable isn't an option. Small dish satillite, like Dish Net, or Direct TV, does give you more options for the price. However, as one of the other posters has mentioned, "rain fade" can be an issue. When a heavy rainstorm is coming near, your signal will be partially blocked, and you'ss see the image break up into cubist art, then drop out completely. Annoyingly, it seems to happen right in the middle of your favorite shows...

But, otherwise, I'm really happy with dish over cable. More variety, it goes out less, and the sound/audio is top notch. Plus, our local cable supplier doesn't carry many of the channels that I love: no Sci Fi, no BBCA, no WE (with Talk Sex with Sue Johansen) not even Toon.... Honestly, how do people get through a week without "Adult Swim?" It's a mystery!

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 9:31:39 AM

Quivver

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I just broke down and had Direct installed (been without TV for years)
(so strange to not have to search news online!) ........... amazing

But I have a question for all you Satellite people.. is it true that the switch over that's coming
to Televisions wont effect those using a Satellite due to the box acting as the adapter?

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 9:39:43 AM

camille65

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Vaughner
or given your frustrations Charter.

Oh jeez. I had to go and read that. Yup I have Charter, yup I really and truly hate that company. There is not much in this world that I hate but Charter managed to get onto my list.
I had to lay my own cable in my crawlspace, use my own drill and go through my wall.
At one point I had 17 freaking splitters in the house.
I was one of the customers who 'were accidently deleted' last year, losing everything.
Last summer my interrupted service added up to just under 45 days.
Daily the sound on my cable tv blinks out.
There is an unexplained 'dead area' that I live in according to them which causes huge flucuations in signal strength.
In ten years I've logged 300+ service calls from them.
They continue to charge me for a second box despite the fact that 2 techs went through my house and verified one cable/one tv, going on 3 years for that one. I have the serial number but golly they can't find out what happened to the box they took back.
*gasps for air & hiccups*
Charter is evil. Annoying. The only choice I have where I live.
They make all day appointments so I'm trapped for 10 hours waiting for their help.

I need a doobie now. And some fresh air lol.

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RE: Cable vs Satellite - 6/14/2008 11:20:07 AM

PanthersMom

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since we're in the same area i'll give you my input. sattelite sucks. with the recent rain we had this past week we seemed to lose signal constantly. not a good idea when you're trying to get the weather report from the weather channel, and the tv8 weatherline is being discontinued on monday. we have att for our dsl, which is generally ok, but when they do screw up it's been at bad times, like when trying to submit a paper this last semester or during a final online. a real pain in the butt. i actually miss time warner's programming, it didn't go out unless there was a power outtage, period. same channels as i have now on sattelite too. i guess they're going to get you coming and going no matter what. cub signed us up for sattelite awhile back, our contract will be up soon, i'm seriously considering looking at alternatives. like no damn tv at all!
PM

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