DirecTV question

rwmidl

Currently we have cable in our house. However, the provider is a small one (granted they do offer FTTH) so their cable offerings aren't all that great. Plus price wise I think they are a bit high. We are thinking of possibly switching to DirecTV. I keep seeing all their adds for service for $31/year for the first year. How do I know what my rate will be for the second year? Also, I know they throw in NFL package, which I don't care about. Are they going to charge me for that for the second year, or can I tell them I don't want it. Also, when we built our house we did some custom wiring in the house. When they install the dish, are they going to have to bore holes in to the house to run their own coax, or can they just tie in to what we have (I "think" there are at least 2 coax runs to the outside of the house and that goes in to a central box where I have coax and CAT-5). Is it possible to have the installer come out first and do a site survey before I sign up for service, so I can find out exactly what they have to do?

Also, if you have (or had) DirecTV what did you think of it?

cyberguypr

I got DTV earlier this year. It's been running solid for 9 months. It's been through rain, snow and Chicago winds and only had fading issues once or twice. I got and HD DVR receiver for the family room and one HD receive for the bedroom. I got the whole home package and it is a beauty. Works flawless.

My advice, read the fine print. I think they did a very good job of documenting the details. For the NFL thing it will most likely auto renew at the end of the year, unless you cancel it. This seem to be the norm everywhere. If you go to DTV's website and add everything you want to the cart, select the receivers, then see what your total would look like. You will also see the rebates they apply to the first year. Even better, there's a tab "VIEW COST FOR 24 MONTHS" which will show you what your total will look like after 1 year.

Last thing, check Slickdeals or similar website for coupon codes or rebates. I was lucky enough to find an offer and got a nice $150 Costco card via mail.

rwmidl

I liked the 24 month option, but what throws me off is they tack on the NFL package and the 3 months of free movie channels at the end of the promo, so I think it skews what the price is. As long as I can cancel them without penalty I'm fine with it.

I'll remember to check Slickdeals. A $150 Costco card would be nice!!

earweed

Those freebies they throw in like premium channels and NFL package are nice and you aren't penalized if you cancel them after your free period. DTV customer service can tell you what your fee will be after the first year.
Be sure to make note of the fine print and also note that your contract renews anytime you do an upgrade (like getting a DVR) or you do a move. Their cancellation penalty is pretty high.
As for the cable issues when I got mine they used the existing cable at my house with no problem.

cyberguypr

Update: They have a $120 card right now: The DIRECTV Costco Connection Center

SteveLord

They're all baloney and seem cheap on paper. They all raise rates at some point. They all use a lot of cheap sub contractors for support. Their channel selection is going to vary. Often the 1-2 channels you really want (something basic like History), require you to upgrade packages just to get it.

I personally avoid any kind of dish like the plague.

Devilry

I did an enormous amount of research before dumping comcast tv for satellite earlier this year. I consulted about 15 friends and family with DirecTV and not one of them would recommend it, it was pretty much certain that after 12 months it would end up being 2-3X more expensive than any other service.

I ended up going with Dish, I could use google TV, they have boxes that allow you to use 2 TV's to one box (saves monthly), service is good, and the price only goes up $10-20 depending on your package after 12 months.

They have been great, only time I had service lost was when I had a very very serious storm here knocking down trees. It was only out for about 10 minutes.

flash23

I used to work for dtv you have to sign a commitment there is an early termination fee if you disconnect within the 24 mos
and if you don't pay it the commitment entitles them to charge the card they have on file so be careful. It is expensive after the new customer offer your getting. Any more questions feel free to ask I'll try and answer them.

crrussell3

Just swapped to Dish from DirecTV. We are going to save around $1000 over the course of two years and get the same channels we had before. While DirecTV's signal was pretty much flawless (no issues with storms, wind, rain, snow, etc), its not worth the price. Dish has been just as good so far for us, and so much cheaper.

Stiltz79

You should check to see if they have U-Verse in your area. I've had it for 4 years and never had a problem. I told them over this summer I was shopping around and they gave me $50 off my bill for the next 6 months...