Anyone have DirecTV HD w/ DVR?

[darrin]

Thinking of dumping Time Warner Cable. The HD channels are all the time freezing or have a lot of artifacts.

Anyone have any experience with DirecTV with HD? I had DirecTV years ago and liked it at the time.

 

[bmudd14474]

The company I work for sells DTV and I do tech support for them. Picture quality is great. minimal issues. A ton of HD channels and you will get great pricing for the first 12 months.

 

[fired up]

I have Direct tv with dvr, no HD though. I love it.

 

[forluvofsmoke]

We dumped Dish Network (Dish 500) after they somehow lost our 4 year-old account in their database, and then wanted a reconnect, install and equipment purchase fee to continue service...NOT!

We've had Direct TV for about 7 years, the DVR for maybe 2, and the HD DVR for about a year. I don't think there's a true perfect system, as our service has a few glitches too (freeze-frame during storms, etc.), and the dish has to be kept clear of snow. I think all satellite communications will have the same faults. Even our cellular/satellite communications with our truck computers at work have problems. I haven't had cable for about 15 years, so I don't know about channel availability versus cost.

We have a $74.00/month package which includes about 45 pay-movie channels, one HD DVR reciever and one regular DVR reciever. $5.00 of that is for the old non-HD DVR.

Hope this helps with your decision.

I know changing service can suck, and hopefully you don't get put on a long wait list for an install, but, it sounds to me like it might be worth waiting for.

Good luck;

Eric

 

[graybeard]

This is an easy one. DTV is Grrreat! Go for it! I've been with DTV for 7 or more years and got on the HD bandwagon the first year it was available. We had like 10 HD channels back then but oh, was it great!

Anybody remember F, H and HU cards??

beard

 

[carpetride]

I've got DTV DVR w/HD, came over from Dishnetwork and the Picture quality was noticeably better on all channels. I've had it for about a year and a half. You might check out DBSforums.com for more specific info.

Be sure to ask for a deal as they are constantly doing better than they state. I had free HBO and CineMax for a year and a couple of other things but had to ask more than once. Tell them your a cable customer and play hard to get.

 

[davidmcg]

We got Direct-TV HD last year, or I mean we upgraded to it with the DVR from the regular Direct-TV. Haven't had any problems yet as far as the weather goes. We didn't get but about 8 inches of snow all winter and that was an inch here and there. In years past we never had a problem with the snow. We spray our dish about once a week with PAM. It helps with the snow and dust build-up from the gravel road. But as has been said, good thunderstorm and thats a different story. I am sure we will get the "no signal" message again in the next couple of weeks as the real weather season kicks in here. Doesn't really bother me I don't watch a lot of tv anyhow. What blows worse than losing that signal is the increased price for the HD reception. Its not a flat fee like you would think. They charge I think 5 bucks for each receiver, we have 4 of them. Why? I don't know why but it makes my wife happy. It keeps her off of my back for other stuff and free's me up to be the grown up kid all men are meant to be.

 

[gotoleep]

Thinking of switching from TWC to Directv also. Have heard horror stories about the "free basic install". It is never basic, there is always something they have to charge for. Would love to have the options with DTV though>

 

[memphisbud]

I've been with DTV since just about the beginning (because of probs w/TWC). Love it...just upgraded from my old 18" round dish to regular DVR, and two HD boxes...Picture is awesome, and the only signal issues I've experienced have been when those 60,000 + ft high storm clouds come in (comes right back, and the new digital broadcasts make for a good in between signal).

I love the way you can change your set up just by going on line...it's instantaneous, and the adjustment to your bill is automatic.

I'm satisfied.

 

[jaye220]

I've also have DirecTV for ages and the HD DVR for about 3 years. It's a great product and I have no complaints about the service. If you like sports, DirecTV can get you the Sunday Ticket NFL package and other expanded sports options that you can't get on other providers.

Overall, I'd definitely say to go for it. One thing to keep in mind is that they might try and charge you for your HD DVR. You can sometimes get different answers if you hang up and call back again. Good luck.

 

[got14u]

I was a direct tv customer for about 10 years but had to switch to my local cable company do to the cables already in the house i am renting. I hate cable...go with the direct tv. it's great and has waaaaaay more hd channels

 

[jfoust]

I've been with DTV for about 2.5 years now.. Can't say enough great things about them! The service easily beats the local cable Co, Charter, and Comcast (all available around me). I like their interface better than Dish Network's, and I think their DVR is more responsive than Dish's, but that's a matter of personal opinion, I guess.

Their HD selection is second to none, and if you like sports, DTV is the place to be with the MLB, NFL, NCAA, NHL, NASCAR, etc... packages!

 

[luv2camp35]

A couple of things to keep in mind.

For the HD-DVR you will need multiple connections at the same box to be able to watch one channel and record another (not the case with cable).
This could drive the cost of install way up.

If you decide to cancel the Direct service, it can get expensive AND FRUSTRATING. It took 3 months to get Direct to send me the boxes to ship their equipment back to them.

We like the DTV service better than the Time Warner we have now but the way this house is constructed I can't pull any additional cables without some major expenditure.

 

[booya tribe]

My mother has had DTV since the satellites first went up. I worked for Hughes Aircraft (now Boeing) and we built the first fleet. We were given an employee discount for which I pay for. We finally got DTV in our household and have had it for 2 years and never had a problem. We wanted HD and they told us that the box was going to cost $200. We told them that we were going to switch to Dish because we could get it free as a first-time subscribers. They changed their minds real quick and they gave us a HD w/DVR box for free plus 6 months primium channels for free as well. They're good at negotiating deals, especially if you say you're going to jump ship.

 

[darrin]

How much do they charge for additional standard receivers? I have 5 TVs but only 1 is HD.

 

[forluvofsmoke]

I pay an extra $5.00/month for a standard DVR reciever to go with the HD DVR..

Eric

 

[jaye220]

If you don't need HD on the other ones, you could likely get the rest of the receivers for free. They do charge $5/month per box, though, and I don't think that's too negotiable.