I keep paying more and getting less from Comcast and the prices for the two Dish companies seem totally reasonable. What am I missing?

Before you ask, I've got nothing but open land and clear skies to my south.

I know people's opinion vary vastly. But I'm a DirectTV user and I love it. I've never had much of an issue - only in really extreme weather. I found the picture clearer and hardward to be much superior.

I've got DTV and love it.

I had Dish several years ago so I can't comment on it's current incarnation, but I do know it still doesn't offer the sports packages that I require. That's pretty much the reason I get DTV is for the NFL ticket, NCAA packages (football and basketball) and the MLB. Since I live outside my sports team's region of interest (Seattle), the sports packages are a must for me.

Yeah, if I didn't live in the ATL area, I would definitely go with DirecTV for the sports.

Comparing both services, so far Dish seems slightly better for what I need.

I'd love to switch back to DirecTV when my Comcast contract runs out (Comcast had a special on internet, cable and phone at the time).... do you know if DirecTV works if you have a digital land line? Also, my land line is NOT in my living room, but rather my office.

Also, does DirecTV still offer TiVos, or is it their own DVR now? I've got an old TiVo still, but it's not HD-ready, so it doesn't make sense to use it.

i haven't paid for cable/sat in 3 years, and man, i don't miss it.

I have Uverse now, but I had Dish before that and I thought they were excellent...they had the best DVR that I've used (never used a Tivo) and I always had a great picture...prior to them I had DTV and I like them too...I only switched because Dish had more of what I wanted for less

I don't think you can go wrong with either one...so if you're not in a Uverse/FIOS area, one of the sat companies is the way go...ditch Comcast

It's probably because they only have The Fail Package, but I fucking HATE the in-laws Direct TV package.

I like DirectV and I'm sticking with them mainly because of their sports packages, but man is it expensive as fuck. They nickle and dime you for everything. Oh, you want HD? 10 more a month. Oh, you you want THOSE HD channels? That's another $10 a month for that package. Oh, you want HD-DVR? and so on...

And speak of the fuckin' devil, I just got an e-mail from DTV this morning saying they're raising the pricing on all their packages on Feb. 9th.

This is pretty much my current beef with Comcast: I have no problems with the service or the equipment, but I'm paying about $50 more a month than I should be.

And yet, it's cheaper than the Charter cable we had before this. I like DirecTV, even though they pulled a fast one on us when we got it: they told us that with installation they'd give us free DVR. What this meant is that they'd give us the physical DVR box, but we still had to pay for the service. So watch out for crap like this. Also, no Versus.

My 'rents have DISH and have had a HELL of a time with their customer service in regards to getting local major networks via satellite. They've done everything by the book and have even gone outside of the "zip code" rules that dictate who gets what local channels. Based just on their experience, I'd say avoid DISH.

My parents used to have Dish, but switched because of the local channel and sports packages issues mentioned above. I have DirectTV and am very happy with it, but couldn't see paying more than I do now and I don't even have HD channels.

I'm digging DirecTV's multi-channel coverage of the Australian Open.

My cable company offers a Suoer Sports Package that includes every game of:

NFL
MLB
NHL
NBA
College Football/Basketball
Minor Hockey
European Soccer

And 6 channels of Nascar for every race.

All for $29.99/month

I hate cable companies as much as the next guy but that is a hell of a deal

I've dealt with Comcast, Time Warner, and now AT&T U-Verse. They are all ridiculous in their own way. Between the "promotions" that run out every 6 to 12 months, the charges for extra boxes, the charging for HD, DVR, etc. They all fuck you one way or another.

I will say though that I've never been happier with U-Verse. Except their music channels SUCK.

I've often wondered if Direct TV is worth the switch. I'd love to be able to listen to XM again without the sub. And the Dan Patrick TV feed would be fun. Not to mention the opportunity to have the NFL ticket.

So Bloor, get Direct TV and tell me if it's worth it.

Still stewing on it. I did turn in my HD/DVR boxes with Comcast though so somethings gotta give.

i've had DirecTV since '99 or 2000 i think...and solely for the NFL ticket. if i lived in miami (god forbid) and had all the games on regular telly, i'd probably bail on it and get whatever was cheapest.

they're not bad, plus once you're there for a while you get some nice "loyalty" bonuses. my upgrade to HD was completely free. and every year on my "anniversary" i get Showtime for free for 3 months...but it pisses me off because it always ends right after the first 1 or 2 episodes of a new season of Dexter or Californication. i'm sure they do that on purpose.

Just pulled the trigger and went with Dish...I started getting flooded with offers and theirs made the most sense for us right now...plus just so you know how garbage we are, these are the three things that pushed me over the edge:

1. Watching the NFL playoffs in non-HD for the first time in four years has seriously bummed me out.
2. Survivor starts this week, it's my wife's favorite show and she has to work late every Thursday night...we need dat DVR back.
3. Three months free HBO means I'll at least get to see this season of Big Love before I cut it off.

Check your email.

I use a locally owned cable company in Toledo, and they're great, though their HD selections suck. $100/month gets you a package with TV/phone/internet (HD DVR costs extra). Never had to wait more than 2-3 minutes to reach a customer support person, and only have to press 2 buttons to get to them.

Planning on a move to VT. I think its either Comcast or Time-Warner there. I won't deal with either of them, so I guess I'm dish and DSL bound.