Ok, I’m soooo sick of Charter Communications…it’s time to move on….
Thoughts about dish packages, and other types of internet service? Does anyone have the Midwest Wireless internet/DSL?
Which is better, Dish or Direct? In terms of price, quality, service, etc?
Would love any and all opinions.
D
i agree with ya big 
can someone help us with whats better for dish and maybe a good highspeed internet provider charter just don’t cut it no more and they are way to expensive 
Charter is absolutely miserable, I just moved and need cable hook up, they had an appointment on a Friday afternoon and called and said nobody was home. Obviously we we home because we spoke on the phone with a customer rep. Long story short we were on the phone for 3 hours with St. Louis and and North Carolina and after 3 hours they said sorry, we will have to send somone next week because we screwed up and also we will be there between the hours of 1 and 7 p.m. so you will have to take another afternoon off of work and wait for us. Then after we exchanged some unfriendly words the customer service rep from St. Louis started prank calling me and laughing on the phone. Charter has horrible service and when I was in Rochester I constantly had my high speed internet down. I wish they would dissolve and I hope someone from charter is reading this.
I purchased a high definition TV a few years ago so I was looking for HD content to view on the new TV and Dish Network was the obvious choice. Direct is supposed to be catching up with their HD packages soon, but their regular/SD channels are really terrible in terms of picture quality and that’s pretty well known. Even without a HD TV, you’ll have a better picture with Dish when viewing the SD channels. I don’t know what the price comparison is between the two because I was looking at the price compared to my cable TV service I had at the time, and it blew it away when looking at channel content and quality. Dish is releasing another 1/2 dozen HD channels next month too!
Dish is supposed to be offering Wild Blue internet (via a dish) but haven’t followed it that much so I can’t say how that is progressing. It’s slower than a cable internet but on par with a mid-speed DSL package from what I’ve heard.
If Direct is cheaper I wouldn’t say it’d be worth it because of the lack of picture quality. Depending on how picky you are with the quality, you’ll be complaining about it every time you turn on the TV and wish you had something else. When you go to a satellite package you run the risk of losing your signal from time to time depending on the weather too, but this year it hasn’t been very bad since it hasn’t rained much!! Even at that, it comes back fairly quickly but it can be annoying at times when you’re right in the middle of a good show.
I have the Dish HD package with DVR and really enjoy it. That DVR is the best thing ever. I record more shows than I ever did when I had a VCR since it’s so easy to use and convenient. It’s nice to be able to just hit the REC button at any time and shut off the TV and go to bed or leave without having to mess with timers or putting in tapes, etc. Really a time saver too when you can set up a recording schedule for your favorite shows and then sit down and watch them when you have time bypassing all the commercials.
so does dish have local channels included in there packages and if not are they cheap
I prefer Direc TV over Dishnetwork……Satellite Internet is not cost effective in my opinion yet at THIS time.!
Dish network offers the best rates and the most HD. And you pay nothing up front for advanced equipment. (Unlike direct TV) I used to have both direct and Dish……..yes at the same time. I finally got rid of direct and haven’t looked back. The only thing Direct has going for them is the NFL Sunday ticket if your a football fan.
You should be able to get your local channels out of Minneapolis. Double check when you call to order.
If you want me to sell you a system and install it for you feel free to send me a PM, or answer any other questions
Locals are $5/mo I believe, but I get my HD locals via a rooftop antenna for free.
If you’re watching on a B&W TV, then DirecTV is for you. If you have a TV of any quality you’ll want Dish.
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Locals are $5/mo I believe, but I get my HD locals via a rooftop antenna for free.
If you’re watching on a B&W TV, then DirecTV is for you. If you have a TV of any quality you’ll want Dish.
Thats laughable to say the least. 
sad but true!
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Dish network offers the best rates and the most HD. And you pay nothing up front for advanced equipment. (Unlike direct TV) I used to have both direct and Dish……..yes at the same time. I finally got rid of direct and haven’t looked back. The only thing Direct has going for them is the NFL Sunday ticket if your a football fan.
You should be able to get your local channels out of Minneapolis. Double check when you call to order.If you want me to sell you a system and install it for you feel free to send me a PM, or answer any other questions
Good information, I’m guessing you don’t want to drive down near rochester to install though….if you would, pm me, let’s talk…I have a buddy with dish, and he recommends it highly
I have Midwest wireless internet and dish network cable. I would highly recommend either one. I have never lost my internet service even during the storms! The dish has gone out before but very rarely. I believe that our internet service is about $35.00 per month and that is with highspeed service. The cable has many different package options to choice from! 
I have Midwest wireless internet and it works just fine. Fairly quick download times. I live in the country and the only other option was direct TV satelite.
Can you compare the $35 MW internet to cable? 1/2 as fast? 1/3? As fast?
I don’t do gaming or anything exotic, just fishing, wrestling, and football sites, reading the news, etc, etc.
PM sent.
PM replied
I don’t really notice it, I suppose that it is a little slower than the DSL that I use to have at work, I know that they have a couple different speeds that you can sign up for. I don’t do any gaming just research things.
Here’s a speed test that those of you with Midwest Wireless can run to check your speeds and others can then compare to after running the same test. I usually select the Chicago location. Obviously there will be differences between people with the same provider, but it should be interesting to see how consistant it is.
605 download speed and 120 upload speed. I am guessing that it isn’t that fast, don’t know what to compare it to being in the sticks.
Dish internet is way over priced and it is really slow!
trust me ive had bothe the 1 way systems and the 2 way! I would say go with the midwest wireless connection for your internet!!,
I think the consensus is Dish Network and MW Internet…any Direct TV guys here, or (whoa boy) Charter guys to talk me out of it?
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…any Direct TV guys here
I have DirecTV and have no complaints. Actually I have the DirecTiVo unit (R-10 I think). I love it! (More later).
About DVR’s… DirecTV cut ties with TiVo not long ago and are making their own DVR’s, and I’ve heard a bunch of complaints about the new DirecTV’s DVR equipment. If I had to start over, I’d buy a receiver from e-bay that was also a TiVo unit like the R-10, or the HD equivalent. ($oon I hope).
To me it comes down to the equipment…I love TiVo! They are the pioneers in DVR equipment, and IMO they have it right. Everyone else is trying to copy them. (DirecTV included).
I have never had Dish network, so I can’t comment on that. I’m sure they are comparable as far as programing (basic stuff). Same argument with XM vs Sirius, and Ford vs Chevy.
About picture quality… Direct vs. Dish…Educate me, I thought it was all the same…a digital signal, you either get it or you don’t. Is it not the same signal coming from space? What is it, MPEG-2? I think if you are comparing the 2 side by side, I would think it would come down to antenna aiming.
Same is true about loosing the signal with weather…If you have your antenna set up right, you only loose your signal in the worst of conditions (not that often).
(If I’m wrong about my facts, let me know)
You’re correct about signal in that either you get it or you don’t, but the quality of the signal can vary in how it’s compressed and handled either at the head end or on the receiver end. You can go to any satellite forum or message board and even the DirecTV people will admit their PQ isn’t as good as the Dish. It’s not Ford vs. Chevy, it’s just the way it is.
I’ve also had Direct TV for about 10 years now. No complaints from me. If the weather is real bad (rain or snow) we can lose the signal. This will happen whether its Dish or Direct TV. I also think both will charge extra for local stations (5.00 per month). I’ve never had anyone complain about my picture quality either. Direct TV also charges extra for each additional reciever you have. I think this is 5 or 6 bucks per receiver. I’d assume Dish also has this charge (not sure though). I chose Direct TV several years ago when I also ordered the NFL ticket. This made my choice easy.
I don’t think Dish charges extra for receivers…correct me if I am wrong
I had direct tv for years and LOVED it!
Great menu options to find the channels you want to watch, easy navigation, and price is cheap.
Big D,
Larry could probably answer that for you. I checked out their website and found these statements. I don’t know if your only renting/leasing their equipment or if you own it. The additional receivers charges is where DirectTV has a tough time comparing to the traditional cable system.
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What is a Service Access Fee?
The Service Access Fee is a $5.00 monthly fee applied to all accounts that do not subscribe to one of our basic programming packages. The costs we incur to deliver specialty programming are far greater than what we pay for our basic packages. This small monthly charge allows us to provide specialty programming at a reasonable price.Why does DISH Network charge a $5 leased receiver fee under the DISH’n It Up promotion?
DISH Network charges this fee for each receiver leased through the Existing Customer DISH’n It Up promotion. This fee helps cover the costs associated with broadcasting programming to you through the additional receiver.Why does DISH Network charge an equipment rental fee under the Digital Home Advantage promotion?
A $5.00 equipment rental fee for the first receiver activated is included in the promotional base programming package price. An additional equipment rental fee of $5.00 per month will be charged to your account for each receiver activated beyond the first.
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You can go to any satellite forum or message board and even the DirecTV people will admit their PQ isn’t as good as the Dish. It’s not Ford vs. Chevy, it’s just the way it is.
Thats more NONSENSE from Dano to go along with ridiculous comments like his earlier post.
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If you’re watching on a B&W TV, then DirecTV is for you. If you have a TV of any quality you’ll want Dish.
http://www.dbsforums.com/vbulletin/
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=871573
If anyone wants to come over and check out both Direc Tv or Dishnetwork I have had both for over 8 years and I drink Premium!!!!
I would say for the average Joe that just wants to watch some TV either would be fine really.
For me its a total no-brainer if I had to give one up Direct TV from top to bottom blows Dish away starting with Customer service all the way down through quality and reliability of equipment.
Again the average Joe would be fine either way unless you needed the NFL ticket or Baseball Package which Dish does not have at this point.
My reason if I had to choose to keep one would be along with the above stated reasons the ability to improve “hack legally” my Tivo like I have with the addition of a 500 gig Hardive versus your standard 80gig plus my Tivos are also networked wirelessly amongst themselves and I can control my recording via the Internet which is cool if your into that techy stuff… 
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Thats more NONSENSE from Dano to go along with ridiculous comments like his earlier post.
Say what you want, but it’s the truth. I guess some people get off on HD-Lite and horrible SD. To each his own. 
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I guess some people get off on HD-Lite and horrible SD.
What is HD-lite? Are you saying Dish has a higher high-def than the other?
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