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DirectTV Poll

DirectTV


  • Total voters
    12

MaggieD

DP Veteran
Joined
Jul 9, 2010
Messages
43,244
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Location
Chicago Area
Gender
Female
Political Leaning
Moderate
Last evening, we ordered DirectTV plus Internet. It costs $90 a month plus tax for the same channels we are paying $180 a month for thru Uverse. PLUS it's guaranteed for two years and we get a $100 gift card. No install costs.

We hope we like it. Have you had any experience? Poll up shortly.
 
Last evening, we ordered DirectTV plus Internet. It costs $90 a month plus tax for the same channels we are paying $180 a month for thru Uverse. PLUS it's guaranteed for two years and we get a $100 gift card. No install costs.

We hope we like it. Have you had any experience? Poll up shortly.

I've had it before and the TV wasn't bad, but if your internet is going through their satellites you're going to have a pretty serious delay (~500 ms) which means no online gaming and there will be a lag in skype or video calls.
 
I've had it before and the TV wasn't bad, but if your internet is going through their satellites you're going to have a pretty serious delay (~500 ms) which means no online gaming and there will be a lag in skype or video calls.

Now that ATT owns them, Internet is provided through them. Thanks for the feedback.
 
Last evening, we ordered DirectTV plus Internet. It costs $90 a month plus tax for the same channels we are paying $180 a month for thru Uverse. PLUS it's guaranteed for two years and we get a $100 gift card. No install costs.

We hope we like it. Have you had any experience? Poll up shortly.

I've had direct tv for awhile now and I like it. The signal can be lost during bad weather but with the newer satellites not so much.

The only complaint I've really had was they installed a satellite on my roof when I first signed up and last year when I went to upgrade the new one didn't fit the base of the old one. They can't remove the old one and cover the holes so it was either leave the old base up or have holes in my roof. I kept the old satellite in the end and got them to take off more money from my bill and got the NFL Sunday ticket for free for the inconvenience. I do think the customer service is pretty good.
 
I've had direct tv for awhile now and I like it. The signal can be lost during bad weather but with the newer satellites not so much.

The only complaint I've really had was they installed a satellite on my roof when I first signed up and last year when I went to upgrade the new one didn't fit the base of the old one. They can't remove the old one and cover the holes so it was either leave the old base up or have holes in my roof. I kept the old satellite in the end and got them to take off more money from my bill and got the NFL Sunday ticket for free for the inconvenience. I do think the customer service is pretty good.

Yeah, the sales rep gave us that Sunday Ticket for a year, but told us to remember to cAncel or we'd get billed.

We're not going to let them put it on the roof. Either on a mast or pole or she. The last time we had a dish on the roof, EarthLink, we eventually got a leak when the screws rusted. Drywall and paint job. Yuck.

Thank you.
 
We had direct TV for two years. Did not use them for internet.

When the weather was good, the reception was ok. Sometimes during bad thunderstorms the quality would go down. We went back to cable TV. The main reason was during the winter when it was snowing we would loose the reception. I got tired of cleaning of the sat dish.
 
Yeah, the sales rep gave us that Sunday Ticket for a year, but told us to remember to cAncel or we'd get billed.

We're not going to let them put it on the roof. Either on a mast or pole or she. The last time we had a dish on the roof, EarthLink, we eventually got a leak when the screws rusted. Drywall and paint job. Yuck.

Thank you.

I have had DirectTV for five years. Big fan. Good price compared to competitors and I can count the number of times we lose signal per year on one hand. Now a days with DVR we almost never watch live tv anyways, and if your recording gets messed up the DVR is smart enough to go and record the re-run later on so you can watch.

After they jack the prices up on you when the contract thing is up, call them back and say you're thinking about switching because someone is offering a better price and they'll bring it back down for you. I've done that every year and they always reduce the price for another 24 months since I'm a loyal customer. The only reason the prices jump up is cause they figure people are too lazy to switch to someone else so they can charge whatever they want. If you call they bring it right back down.

Internet I have AT&T uverse. It's ok, but not lightning quick. Very mediocre considering I have the fastest package offered.
 
I've had them for about 12 years. I really like that I have all my gear is always updated at no cost because I have the service plan. Since I have never had any equipment failure, I guess I am just paying for updates.

Not too long ago we got the Genie. Now, I am in DirecTV heaven; being that I can watch my shows even while traveling.

Have fun with it. You will love their service; its the best in the industry.
 
Last evening, we ordered DirectTV plus Internet. It costs $90 a month plus tax for the same channels we are paying $180 a month for thru Uverse. PLUS it's guaranteed for two years and we get a $100 gift card. No install costs.

We hope we like it. Have you had any experience? Poll up shortly.

I've had DirecTV since they launched in 1990, and use their internet service when deployed for disasters. I have UVerse internet at home because I have no other choice in service where I live that can give me the up and down speeds that AT&T can right now (not happy about that because I do not like AT&T), and would never have their TV.

I like DirecTV. They have always given me service like I actually matter. They respond respectfully, and quickly when anything does happen, which is not very often. Their improved signals allow for the non-HD channels to come through even when it's raining hard which used to be a problem, and the HD channels only get rain fade if it's a frog strangler of rain with the darkest of clouds that look like Lucifer himself is inside them. I get all the channels. My bill is a bit more than yours will be, but Yes Ma'am likes all the (I call them) weird channels like Hallmark and I like all the sports and news channels, and we both like all the movie channels. So... we get them all, and the big old bill to go along with them.

I've always been happy with them. Their service guys are pretty good, and we've only had one that was basically a brain dead idiot, but when I called back to politely tell them that the guy didn't have a clue what he was doing, they sent a supervisor that day to fix the problem right then. I couldn't ask for better customer service. So far, AT&T hasn't screwed up the phone tech service folks. I was concerned that it would be shipped off to India or Bangladesh when AT&T bought DirecTV, but so far (fingers still crossed) I still get a polite person here in the US that we can both understand each other and that actually can understand what I'm telling them, and they can tell me what to do to fix it in ways that's easy to understand as well.

What I like about the system's tech support, is the TV will give you a three digit code, like 712, that you give the tech support when you call. That'll be the receiver telling you what's wrong so you can tell the tech support the way they need to hear it without nontechnical terminology that just confuses everyone. The numbers stop me from saying "the thing-a-whatchie is not working" and you saying "I can't get the do-hickie to work right" when in fact we have the exact same problem. Most times, it's a simple fix that doesn't take long, and you're good to go. Every now and then the problem may take a little while to fix, but if you ask, they'll give you credit on your bill for the down time - you have to ask though. Most problems can be fixed by unplugging the unit from the wall and letting it reset on its own.

Don't worry though, problems are few and far between. I may have made it sound like a lot, but remember, I've been dealing with them since 1990, and their system has improved by light years since then.

Plus, when a tree goes down and takes out the cable, you'll still have DirecTV up and running. All you'll need is a generator in case the same tree gets the power line as well.
 
I've had DirecTV since they launched in 1990, and use their internet service when deployed for disasters. I have UVerse internet at home because I have no other choice in service where I live that can give me the up and down speeds that AT&T can right now (not happy about that because I do not like AT&T), and would never have their TV.

I like DirecTV. They have always given me service like I actually matter. They respond respectfully, and quickly when anything does happen, which is not very often. Their improved signals allow for the non-HD channels to come through even when it's raining hard which used to be a problem, and the HD channels only get rain fade if it's a frog strangler of rain with the darkest of clouds that look like Lucifer himself is inside them. I get all the channels. My bill is a bit more than yours will be, but Yes Ma'am likes all the (I call them) weird channels like Hallmark and I like all the sports and news channels, and we both like all the movie channels. So... we get them all, and the big old bill to go along with them.

I've always been happy with them. Their service guys are pretty good, and we've only had one that was basically a brain dead idiot, but when I called back to politely tell them that the guy didn't have a clue what he was doing, they sent a supervisor that day to fix the problem right then. I couldn't ask for better customer service. So far, AT&T hasn't screwed up the phone tech service folks. I was concerned that it would be shipped off to India or Bangladesh when AT&T bought DirecTV, but so far (fingers still crossed) I still get a polite person here in the US that we can both understand each other and that actually can understand what I'm telling them, and they can tell me what to do to fix it in ways that's easy to understand as well.

What I like about the system's tech support, is the TV will give you a three digit code, like 712, that you give the tech support when you call. That'll be the receiver telling you what's wrong so you can tell the tech support the way they need to hear it without nontechnical terminology that just confuses everyone. The numbers stop me from saying "the thing-a-whatchie is not working" and you saying "I can't get the do-hickie to work right" when in fact we have the exact same problem. Most times, it's a simple fix that doesn't take long, and you're good to go. Every now and then the problem may take a little while to fix, but if you ask, they'll give you credit on your bill for the down time - you have to ask though. Most problems can be fixed by unplugging the unit from the wall and letting it reset on its own.

Don't worry though, problems are few and far between. I may have made it sound like a lot, but remember, I've been dealing with them since 1990, and their system has improved by light years since then.

Plus, when a tree goes down and takes out the cable, you'll still have DirecTV up and running. All you'll need is a generator in case the same tree gets the power line as well.

Great review! Thank you. I'm looking forward!
 
Great review! Thank you. I'm looking forward!

Yeah, I just read above that they gave you the NFL Sunday Ticket for a year. I have to admit, I'm a little jealous. I've been with them since 1990 and all I get is a nice "thank you for being a such a long term valued customer" when I call them. No freebies for me. I'm sad now. Okay, I'm over it.

Enjoy your new TV experience. I know you will.
 
I've had DirecTV for about 14 years now. I constantly get offers, cheaper offers from TW and FIOS to switch to their TV service. But I never have. I have no problem with DirecTV's equipment, their channel selection is 2nd to none, and their CS has always been top notch.

All that said they were recently bought out by ATT. So now color me just a wee bit worried. Actually more than a 'wee bit'.
 
I had it for several years. They were pretty good in most respects, though I did have some minor quibbles a couple times. Canceled them about three years ago, and to be honest I hardly miss it at all. A couple things I miss in a minor way, but not many. I sure don't miss the bill, and I also don't feel that my life has suffered a setback in any way because I don't have it.

We have chosen to use an antenna and services like Netflix and Amazon Prime. Much much cheaper, and still decent variety of programming.
 
I had Directv...
The problem is the rain and wet snow getting on the dish. I lose the signal which causes the picture fading to black. Depending on the amount of snow and rain the signal can stay off for a half hour or more.
Upside ?
The all day PPV ticket,if they still offer it. I should of of mentioned this was back in '07.
Downside:
Billing cycle...
For some reason they take their time posting your payment and having different addresses to send the payment. There are payment centers who post two to three weeks later after you send in the payment. When the next statement arrives,there is a double payment due...then you it's up to you to get everything straight and Directv will cut off your signal. I had to send in another double payment via moneygram because they wouldn't accept my checks for 90 days as a penalty.
I was fed up and changed to Comcast...which I have more channels at less price.
 
We had DirecTV for years, in fact, I pulled down the dish about a week ago when we moved and it's sitting in my new garage. It isn't a bad service, at least back then, I can't speak to how it is now that it's owned by AT&T, it just didn't have the channels we wanted and prices kept going up. We also lost reception during storms. I'm sure they've made it better since then, but we've moved on and now, we just cut the cable entirely and don't bother.
 
my only major complaint with DirecTV is the ridiculous boot-up time on their receivers after a power loss.

they are better then Dish
 
Last evening, we ordered DirectTV plus Internet. It costs $90 a month plus tax for the same channels we are paying $180 a month for thru Uverse. PLUS it's guaranteed for two years and we get a $100 gift card. No install costs.

We hope we like it. Have you had any experience? Poll up shortly.

Cauliflower.

I had DirecTV (just the tv service) for several years and liked it a lot. Reliable. Less costly than the cable I had (which lost connection every month, it seemed). No unethical billing practices. Excellent customer service. BUT THAT WAS BEFORE AT&T BOUGHT IT. AT&T is notorious for shady billing practices, and has been sued by the fed govt in recent years over it. I had AT&T cable once (yes, it had cable), and I found their billing practices very shady. I caught them trying to charge me a vague $25 fee twice...they couldn't even tell me what it was for, when I called and asked. I didn't have to pay it. It was bogus.

One thing that was not great was that the picture was slightly less clear. Something about compression of the signal, I think. But just slightly. Some people wouldn't notice, I think.

I no longer have it now because I cut the cord from cable/satellite entirely. Now I'm free! Free again, free again, Thank God almighty, free again!
 
You darn kids with your newfangled cole vegetables! I remember when I first joined this forum and rutabagas were all the rage for funny poll options. Those were the good days...
 
I'd like to add a comment about losing the picture due to weather. I didn't have much of a problem with that at all. I had the tv service for years (5? 6? 7?), and although I must have lost service in a thunderstorm momentarily, it was so brief that I don't remember those occasions. There was only one time that I lost service for any length of time. That was when it snowed uncharacteristically a lot so that the dish got covered in snow. I lost service just for an hour or two, while waiting for the snow to melt. As it melted off, the programs were coming back one or two at a time as more and more of the dish was exposed. I THINK, but am not sure, that I was planning on taking a hose to it, to get the rest off. But I can't recall if I did that.

I didn't live in an area that gets snow more than once or twice a year, though, and it wasn't much snow. That year it was just a bigger snow.

I had much more trouble with losing cable service...transformers blowing out or whatever. Whenever my cable would go out, it would be out at least two hours, for some reason. And there were a few times it was out two days. I still remember that all these years later. So I was pleased with the reliability of DirecTV.

DirecTV was definitely less expensive than the cable I could get. And I liked the selection of channels better.

I'm a cord cutter, but if I had to go back to cable/satellite, I'd go back to DirecTV for sure. If it's not the same because AT&T owns it, only then would I change to cable.
 
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