Need Advice From Forum Folks

[Marshal Dillon]

I am moving and I have to change everything. Moving to Moody (temporarily). What do you think is better & why:

Charter Cable
Direct TV
Dish Network

If I want a bundle for tv, telephone, internet, & maybe wireless, what would you recommend? Just wondering & I appreciate your input.


 

[SUPERCOACH]

I have Charter for internet and it is fantastic.  I have the 100M plan and I get every bit of what I am paying for.  I've never had a single problem that was their fault.  I had a bad piece of equipment on my end once that it took me a little while to track down, but that wasn't their responsibility.  I would highly recommend them.

I have DirecTV for TV.  I'm pretty indifferent about them.  I'm actually a little annoyed with both them and Dish.  They will both bend over backwards to get you to switch, but then once they get you as a customer they don't really care any more.  Perfect example:  right now DirecTV is advertising NFL Sunday Ticket for free for new customers.  How about showing your loyal customers some appreciation?  When they come out with a new fancy receiver, they will give it to new customers for free, but they expect their existing customers to pay for it.  Dish is the same way.  I was on Dish for about 5 years because they carried my local channels before DirecTV had them.  Then one day my receiver went out.  This was a receiver they provided and they owned.  If I left the service I had to send it back to them.  They would not send me a replacement, they wanted me to pay $200 to have it replaced.  So I switched back to DirecTV, and got their latest and greatest receiver for free.  I'm not really impressed with either of those guys, but I do like having a satellite.

I don't even have a home telephone, and haven't had one in 6 years.  My wife and I both have cell phones and we never use all of our minutes, so no need to pay extra for a home phone.

If I were moving, I would look seriously at a TV/internet bundle with Charter.  I can't say anything about their TV service because I've never had it, but I would certainly look into it if I had to move and redo everything.

Just my 2 cents.

[SUPERCOACH]

Here is the results of a speed test I just ran on my internet connection.  I am paying for 100M down and 5M up, and as you can see they have it pegged right on there.  This indicates they have plenty of capacity and are actually throttling my connection to keep me from getting more than what I am paying for.



Now, you might get different results in a different neighborhood.  All of your neighbors will be on the same "line", so it will have to be fast enough to give everybody in the neighborhood what they are paying for.  I've never had a problem getting full speed, but you might get different results.  It might be a good idea to have one of your new neighbors run a speed test and see if they are getting full speed for the plan they are on.

[Jamos]

We have the phone, tv, and internet bundle with Charter and I can't say enough good things about them. We have had some equipment problems at times and they were very prompt in getting service restored. Their cost is as good or better than any of the others as well.

[pmull]

I have the Charter bundle with HD TV, wireless internet and phone. The service is great. I have been with Charter for about 20 years starting with TV only and adding as technology changed.

The only problem I have ever had with Charter is their price structure. You will get a good promotional price for a year and then the price goes up anywhere from $30-$60. I have to call and complain and they find me another deal that is the same price. It is just a hassel but I have been doing it for 20 years so it must not be too bad.

[Catch Prothro]

I am moving and I have to change everything. Moving to Moody (temporarily). What do you think is better & why:

Charter Cable
Direct TV
Dish Network

If I want a bundle for tv, telephone, internet, & maybe wireless, what would you recommend? Just wondering & I appreciate your input.


 

Direct TV and Dish require a two year commitment, so you probably don't want them for a temporary gig.  Direct TV's product is great, but like SC says, once they get you in they are indifferent to customer service.  I don't have any experience with Charter.  People in the forum seem to like them -- for a time they were ranked pretty low in customer satisfaction but I haven't looked at the numbers lately.  Knology is cheap if it is in your area (probably not Moody), but their technology is more primitive than some of the other services.  Comcast has the best "on demand" service, but they are a bit more pricey.  I've had Direct TV for 18 months and am mostly satisfied with the service, because it gives you more channels than cable.  If we have a storm during a Bama game, though, I'll be hating it if the signal goes out.

[KoKoPuf]

I have had Charter for about 18 years for internet and TV and they are great. Several years ago there were lots of reliability problems but not in the last 5-6 years. I like the idea of no contract but I never switch anyway.

[ricky023]

I have to tell you MD, if you can get Charter Cable. It has the local news and weather where the others don't. They have always been good to us and when they sold out our package over here I was devastated. So good luck with your choices. RTR!

[Chechem]

I have to tell you MD, if you can get Charter Cable. It has the local news and weather where the others don't. They have always been good to us and when they sold out our package over here I was devastated. So good luck with your choices. RTR!

I've forgotten the name of our local cable service.  We had it for 10 years.  Over time the stations got fuzzier and fuzzier, especially the local networks.  I called the cable-service folks, and they came out several times.  I explained that the reception was so bad on weekends that the Alabama game went black/white for a while.

The repairman checked the pole, power to my house, then told me: "You have a strong signal to your house.  The problem is the cables in your house.  You'll have to route new cables.  Call us when that's done."

I asked him to run a new cable from the pole, through my front door, to the TV.  He did.  The stations were still fuzzy.

I stood and said, "Get the cable out of my house."

We got Direct TV that week.  I miss not having one of the local stations, but otherwise it's beautiful.  My neighbors also switched after that, because their reception also sucked.

[ricky023]

OH my, sorry to hear that Chechem. Out here in the sticks they usually did us right. Now on the other hand making an Alabama game go black and white you should be able to sue for big money. RTR!

[Chechem]

OH my, sorry to hear that Chechem. Out here in the sticks they usually did us right. Now on the other hand making an Alabama game go black and white you should be able to sue for big money. RTR!

  True.

The point is, if they come to your house, ask them to run a direct line to check the cable signal.  Reading the signal strength doesn't work adequately.

[SUPERCOACH]

OH my, sorry to hear that Chechem. Out here in the sticks they usually did us right. Now on the other hand making an Alabama game go black and white you should be able to sue for big money. RTR!

  True.

The point is, if they come to your house, ask them to run a direct line to check the cable signal.  Reading the signal strength doesn't work adequately.

Same thing applies to internet connections.  The whole "it's good up to your house" line is what they say when they don't know what the problem is.  I had a similar experience with my DSL connection several years ago at another house.  "Well it must be your network router."  Fine, lets plug directly into my laptop.  Still doesn't work.  "Well it must be your wiring."  Fine, lets grab an extension cord and go outside and plug everything in right before it comes into the house.  Still doesn't work.  "Hmmm... well it must be something wrong on our end.  I'll call my boss and see what he wants me to do."

[SUPERCOACH]

DirecTV must have heard me.  They just sent me an e-mail saying that I get free HBO this weekend. 

It remains to be seen if there is going to be anything on there fit to watch.

[Chechem]

DirecTV must have heard me.  They just sent me an e-mail saying that I get free HBO this weekend.  
It remains to be seen if there is going to be anything on there fit to watch.

Who could possibly want HBO this weekend?  Where were they before the football season?   They're just driving a wedge between husband and wife! 

[Catch Prothro]

DirecTV must have heard me.  They just sent me an e-mail saying that I get free HBO this weekend. 

It remains to be seen if there is going to be anything on there fit to watch.

A new season of Boardwalk Empire starts this weekend.  They're probably trying to get you hooked.

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