Technology catch-all thread

[iamshack]

Anyone have the DirecTV Genie yet?

[RockRaines]

Anyone have the DirecTV Genie yet?

I was wondering this as well, two of the places I've put an offer on in the last couple of weeks have the flexibility for that and I would love to have less wires and boxes around the house.

[Soxbadger]

Steve actually wrote a review lol

 

http://flapship.com/directv-genie-review/

[iamshack]

I was wondering this as well, two of the places I've put an offer on in the last couple of weeks have the flexibility for that and I would love to have less wires and boxes around the house.

I just upgraded...they are giving it to me for free, but I had to agree to a 2-year agreement...which was fine...even if I want to go all internet or something, i can always reduce my package to the minimum level.

 

The wireless thing only works with Samsung smart tvs as of now. Otherwise, you've got to get a mini box that they call a "client" for your other tvs. The new equipment will be leased, unlike previous DirecTV equipment, which I was forced to purchase.

 

They are coming to install it Friday morning...I will let you guys know what I think.

 

She did say that it can access all the stuff on your current DVR and pull it on to the Genie, which is nice.

[RockRaines]

Steve actually wrote a review lol

 

http://flapship.com/directv-genie-review/

I got a techno boner. If I move forward with this house I am looking at in little italy this is going to be installed immediately, especially since I plan on putting a 100 inch projection tv in the basement.

[Y2HH]

I've had both DirecTV and Comcast over the years, my brother and parents both have DirecTV right now. On contract/off contract their prices are almost if not exactly identical. I don't know who wrote that review, but they're misinformed by claiming DirecTV is any less expensive...it's not. You simply have to compare on contract to on contract pricing, and visa versa. Moving from a service you've had for 5 years to a new on contract service isn't exactly a fair comparison. If you aren't on a contract, all you have to do is call and agree to a new contract and you'll get their awesome pricing, which works regardless of provider.

 

The whole home DVR has it's drawbacks, but they're nothing you can't live with, but there are certain restrictions, like I don't believe you can watch the same show in multiple rooms at the same time, though this may have been fixed already. Comcast has a similar offering in certain markets now, too. I simply choose multiple DVR's, since my package gives me one for free anyway.

 

I have Comcast and under my current package I get HBO, Showtime, Stars, etc, basically all channels, 2 HD-DVR's (the new black fast ones, not the old huge silver pieces of junk), phone and 50+ mbit internet for 140$ a month. Off contract with Comcast, I had basic cable, and 30mbit internet (no movie channels, no phone service), and I was paying 175$ a month. That's simply how bulls*** TV works.

 

Yes, DTV has better on-demand, however, it requires a separate internet connection to use it, an internet connection DTV can't even offer you, because you're actually downloading data streams when you use their version of on demand. It has way more content, but it's drawback is it's using bandwidth.

 

I dare anyone here to compare my on-contract price to DirecTV's and show me these mythical savings. 140$ for all the movie channels, locals, hd, 2 hd-dvr's, phone and internet. Show me better from DTV. Yes Comcast customer service sucks, really really badly, but let's not make up savings when none exist.

Edited April 1, 2013 by Y2HH

[iamshack]

For the amount of time I spend watching tv, I just want the best experience possible. I know DirecTV is usually a bit higher than most other providers, but not significantly, especially when I consider I spend about 30-40 hours a week in front of a tv, especially during baseball season.

[Y2HH]

For the amount of time I spend watching tv, I just want the best experience possible. I know DirecTV is usually a bit higher than most other providers, but not significantly, especially when I consider I spend about 30-40 hours a week in front of a tv, especially during baseball season.

 

For tv, I generally don't see a quality difference in Comcast, Dish/Dtv or AT&Ts offering. For a while there Comcasts dvrs were terrible, slow, etc, but their newer ones are a loooot better. Dtv still has slightly better dvrs, but not by much anymore. There are pluses and minuses to all of them, but when it comes to cost, on contract you are looking at similar prices. Where Comcast has its advantage is that their Internet kicks ass, regardless of what people claim.

Edited April 2, 2013 by Y2HH

[Big Hurtin]

For the amount of time I spend watching tv, I just want the best experience possible. I know DirecTV is usually a bit higher than most other providers, but not significantly, especially when I consider I spend about 30-40 hours a week in front of a tv, especially during baseball season.

 

Yeah, I get a lot more channels in HD that I'm interested in that aren't on Comcast (in my area), including WGN America and MLB Extra innings. I think Comcast has 2 HD feeds max. (shared with NHL/NBA)

 

I looked at it one time and figured with the package I would have, there wouldn't be any significant price change to bother.

 

[iamshack]

For tv, I generally don't see a quality difference in Comcast, Dish/Dtv or AT&Ts offering. For a while there Comcasts dvrs were terrible, slow, etc, but their newer ones are a loooot better. Dtv still has slightly better dvrs, but not by much anymore. There are pluses and minuses to all of them, but when it comes to cost, on contract you are looking at similar prices. Where Comcast has its advantage is that their Internet kicks ass, regardless of what people claim.

Generally, DirecTV provides the best overall experience IMO. This includes the NFL package, the extra channels for the major golf tournaments, a better guide, etc.

 

BTW, I'm not going up against Comcast here...we have Cox, which seems similar to Comcast, but maybe a tick below.

[farmteam]

For tv, I generally don't see a quality difference in Comcast, Dish/Dtv or AT&Ts offering. For a while there Comcasts dvrs were terrible, slow, etc, but their newer ones are a loooot better. Dtv still has slightly better dvrs, but not by much anymore. There are pluses and minuses to all of them, but when it comes to cost, on contract you are looking at similar prices. Where Comcast has its advantage is that their Internet kicks ass, regardless of what people claim.

I hated the DVR I had with Comcast, but I like the one I have with DirecTV now.

 

Comcast does have great internet, but their customer service is just so terrible (and I really, really hated that DVR).

 

I also like DirecTV's guide better.

Edited April 2, 2013 by farmteam

[Steve9347]

Thank you Badger for posting my review. Three months in, I couldn't be happier. Never worry about recording conflicts or storage space. We just put everything on a series recording and watch it when we can. I don't think I've ever seen it below 88% free space.

 

The guide can get a but slow when recording 4 other things, but oh well. I'll never go back.

[Steve9347]

I've had both DirecTV and Comcast over the years, my brother and parents both have DirecTV right now. On contract/off contract their prices are almost if not exactly identical. I don't know who wrote that review, but they're misinformed by claiming DirecTV is any less expensive...it's not. You simply have to compare on contract to on contract pricing, and visa versa. Moving from a service you've had for 5 years to a new on contract service isn't exactly a fair comparison. If you aren't on a contract, all you have to do is call and agree to a new contract and you'll get their awesome pricing, which works regardless of provider.

 

The whole home DVR has it's drawbacks, but they're nothing you can't live with, but there are certain restrictions, like I don't believe you can watch the same show in multiple rooms at the same time, though this may have been fixed already. Comcast has a similar offering in certain markets now, too. I simply choose multiple DVR's, since my package gives me one for free anyway.

 

I have Comcast and under my current package I get HBO, Showtime, Stars, etc, basically all channels, 2 HD-DVR's (the new black fast ones, not the old huge silver pieces of junk), phone and 50+ mbit internet for 140$ a month. Off contract with Comcast, I had basic cable, and 30mbit internet (no movie channels, no phone service), and I was paying 175$ a month. That's simply how bulls*** TV works.

 

Yes, DTV has better on-demand, however, it requires a separate internet connection to use it, an internet connection DTV can't even offer you, because you're actually downloading data streams when you use their version of on demand. It has way more content, but it's drawback is it's using bandwidth.

 

I dare anyone here to compare my on-contract price to DirecTV's and show me these mythical savings. 140$ for all the movie channels, locals, hd, 2 hd-dvr's, phone and internet. Show me better from DTV. Yes Comcast customer service sucks, really really badly, but let's not make up savings when none exist.

You clearly didn't read the review. It is cheaper. Year one I save $600 bucks and year 2 I save almost $300, while enjoying a vastly superior product.

[Steve9347]

For tv, I generally don't see a quality difference in Comcast, Dish/Dtv or AT&Ts offering. For a while there Comcasts dvrs were terrible, slow, etc, but their newer ones are a loooot better. Dtv still has slightly better dvrs, but not by much anymore. There are pluses and minuses to all of them, but when it comes to cost, on contract you are looking at similar prices. Where Comcast has its advantage is that their Internet kicks ass, regardless of what people claim.

You are so painfully misinformed in this thread it's ridiculous.

 

I'm getting any channel I could ask for plus HBO and Showtime for $74 year 1 and $94 year 2 then contract ends. The DVR difference is absurd.

 

You are working off of old information.

[Steve9347]

Oh, and one final point. The HD on DirecTV is outstanding. I used to think some channels just had poor quality HD feeds when I had Comcast. No, that was just the technological limitations of cable.

[Y2HH]

You are so painfully misinformed in this thread it's ridiculous.

 

I'm getting any channel I could ask for plus HBO and Showtime for $74 year 1 and $94 year 2 then contract ends. The DVR difference is absurd.

 

You are working off of old information.

 

You say I'm painfully misinformed but have yet to point out how.

 

I'm also getting every single channel, plus HBO, Showtime, Starz, Encore, and all the rest of the movie channels, with 2 HD dvr recorders, and phone service, and 50+/10+ Internet for 140$. Year 2 mine also jumps by 20$.

 

To me, those prices seem very similar, if not exactly the same when you subtract my phone/internet service.

 

Back when I did have DirecTV, yes, my bill was less, but that's only because it wasn't including internet fees, which were upwards of 60$ for me. Combined, my DirecTV+Internet bill equated to about the exact same thing I pay Comcast. That's all I'm really pointing out.

 

Also, for clarity purposes, I'm not saying your review of DirecTV's service was misinformed, I just think you're comparing on contract pricing with one vendor to off contract pricing with another. I see what you pay for what you have, and I see what I pay, and I don't see a much of a difference when adding on Internet.

Edited April 2, 2013 by Y2HH

[Y2HH]

You clearly didn't read the review. It is cheaper. Year one I save $600 bucks and year 2 I save almost $300, while enjoying a vastly superior product.

 

That's not actual savings, it's unrealized savings -- at best. It's savings only when compared to their own old business model where they would force you to buy their dvr's/equipment, and by comparison to that, they're calling it savings. That's a stretch.

Edited April 2, 2013 by Y2HH

[Y2HH]

I hated the DVR I had with Comcast, but I like the one I have with DirecTV now.

 

Comcast does have great internet, but their customer service is just so terrible (and I really, really hated that DVR).

 

I also like DirecTV's guide better.

 

I nearly recently left Comcast because of their crap DVR's, so before I actually switched service, I brought my old ones in and asked for new ones, which they replaced. I went from having these huge ugly/loud silver Comcast branded Motorola boxes to these new black ones which are half the size and Xfinity branded. They're fast, have wayyy more storage space, etc. I do think the guide is better with DirecTV, however (family members still have DirecTV). But the speed made all the difference for me, the guide actually keeps up with me, which is all I really asked for.

 

Yes, Comcast customers service is terrible.

 

Terrible.

 

Terrible terrible.

 

There is no defending them.

[Y2HH]

Oh, and one final point. The HD on DirecTV is outstanding. I used to think some channels just had poor quality HD feeds when I had Comcast. No, that was just the technological limitations of cable.

 

They actually may have been poor quality feeds.

 

Comcast works on RF (though you probably know this), not data streams. So their signal power and signal to noise ratio matters for EVERYTHING. Every splitter you introduce removes power and introduces noise, and I often see people with more than one splitter to feed all of their rooms, which is why some rooms can work better than others.

 

I know how to run cable line, cut/crimp ends and read the power levels coming across them, noise levels, etc. The techs the tend to send out are contractors, and they're not trained very well. This is another ding on Comcast's business model. Depending on the quality of the line, the quality of the cut/end, etc...your signal may have been weak. I actually moved my Comcast line that comes off the pole into my house to a more fitting position on my home, redid everything and it VASTLY improved my signal. I went from having -5's in power to +4's with a LOT less noise.

 

Above/below a certain power levels, and above/below certain noise ratios, some HD channels will turn grainy or not work at all. For most people, a simple repeater will fix any such issues, for others, the line from the pole to their home is bad and of course Comcast will pretend all is fine, so long as it fits into their really broad spectrum of "tolerance".

[StrangeSox]

Above/below a certain power levels, and above/below certain noise ratios, some HD channels will turn grainy or not work at all. For most people, a simple repeater will fix any such issues, for others, the line from the pole to their home is bad and of course Comcast will pretend all is fine, so long as it fits into their really broad spectrum of "tolerance".

 

My parents have been dealing with this for over a decade, and we dealt with it for years at our condo until we finally got a competent tech out there who actually bothered to read power levels for more than 2 seconds. Comcast's customer service is absolutely abysmal.

[Y2HH]

My parents have been dealing with this for over a decade, and we dealt with it for years at our condo until we finally got a competent tech out there who actually bothered to read power levels for more than 2 seconds. Comcast's customer service is absolutely abysmal.

 

I think Comcast suffers from the same issues with customer service as AT&T, they simply have spread themselves too thin and offer way too many products and they can't possibly keep up with everything they're doing. I personally put AT&T and Comcast on about the same tier of really incredibly s***ty customer service.

 

I went so far as to learn about this and buy the equipment that would allow me to redo all of their shoddy work, and I'm not even sure how legal it was for me to be doing all of this. I actually took their run of cable from the pole to my home and moved it, and was able to cut out about 75 feet of cable run by re-routing it to a more desirable (aka more intelligent) location. They were basically going near the front of my house, to connect it to a cable that would then route all the way to the back of my house internally. By re-routing their cable, I was able to cut that entire length of run out of the line, it boosted my signal and cleaned up a ton of noise.

 

I also have 4 connections internally, one to a modem, and 3 to televisions (2 of them to hd dvrs), and all works perfectly. Yes, Comcast, you have terrible customer service when a customer has to actually perform the service themselves to make sure it's done right. I haven't had to deal with DirecTV in years, but it wouldn't be a stretch to believe they're better than Comcast...because I can't see it being possible to be any worse.

 

I also have everything very neat and very 'me' when it comes to wiring. I hate wires. HATE THEM. I have a single cable run going into my house, and from that single point, it's branched off and run through the walls to the individual televisions/rooms, all through the walls so no wires can be seen. I then use 802.11n (soon to be .11ac when everything can support it), to connect to the internet via every computer device in my home. Absolutely nothing is hardwired to my Internet router except the router itself to the modem. I even have cat5 runs to every room (through the walls) in my home, though that goes unused at this point. Even my speaker wires are run through the walls. Wires suck.

[BigSqwert]

What I've learned is you'll need to have Y2HH move in with you in order to properly set up the cabling as well as have him spend 2 weeks arguing with Comcast in order to get the better equipment if you want to go with Comcast HD. Otherwise, just get DirecTv for awesome quality and service with no issues or delays.

[Y2HH]

What I've learned is you'll need to have Y2HH move in with you in order to properly set up the cabling as well as have him spend 2 weeks arguing with Comcast in order to get the better equipment if you want to go with Comcast HD. Otherwise, just get DirecTv for awesome quality and service with no issues or delays.

 

For wiring through your home, that's very dependent on your home. I don't like wires all over the outside of my house and holes drilled through my house to every room I want tv/internet in, which is exactly what most of them do.

 

And if you do have Comcast and have old equipment, just bring it into them, you don't have to call and ask. They'll swap it out for brand new stuff no questions asked.

 

The reality for me is one way or another I need Comcast...they are the only place I can get what I consider good internet service from...so even if I had directv and slightly better dvr's, I'd still have to deal with comcast.

 

Until someone comes and gives me fiber, nothing can compete with Comcast's internet. Not even close.

Edited April 2, 2013 by Y2HH

[Steve9347]

Until someone comes and gives me fiber, nothing can compete with Comcast's internet. Not even close.

No one said cancel Comcast's internet.

 

[Y2HH]

No one said cancel Comcast's internet.

 

That's sort of my point, though, I already *have* to deal with them.