Drop DHP and switch to owning equipment?

[Hopper27]

Ok, here is my situation. I currently am on the Digital Home Plan with two receivers. I'm paying $54.99 a month to get the AT150.

I want to switch to a single 721 box and own it. Do I need to completely cancel my service, have them pickup the boxes, and resubscribe as a new customer through a local dealer who sells the 721 box?

What are my other options?

Thanks,

Jason

[BobMurdoch]

No, you can just add the unit to your account and stick one in your closet as a backup in case of a receiver failure.

Buy the receiver at any retailer or from Dish directly. Hook it up, after disconnecting the one you want to replace, call Dish and tell them you want to deactivate a reciever and add another one in it's place. Make sure you specify the 721 as your "primary" receiver, as some PPV events will only activate on the primary receiver.

You will be happy with the 721 unit. I've had it for 6 months and having two tuners makes a big difference. The only down side is that you'll wind up recording so many shows that you may feel like it is work to watch them all.

And that doesn't assumes you've used a PVR before. If you haven't, this will be the biggest thing to hit your world as you will never have to rush home to catch a show again. You can skip commercials in recorded shows and watch most of your shows in 2/3 of the time as your 1 hour average TV show has 20 minutes of commercials.

[BobMurdoch]

By the way, don't forget that the 721 will require TWO cable feeds to the receiver, so you will have some additional wiring to do. You may need another switch as well as you have four recievers and may be maxed out. Others here may be able to help you as I have had a professional do my hookups so I am not as well versed when it comes to the wiring challenges you will have to face.

[boba]

Hopper27 if you deactivate a receiver you will have to return that receiver to DISH Network under Digital Home Plan they own the equipment. If you do add the 721 to your account the DHP service contract should automatically cover the 721 and from the forum accounts you will need that coverage

[Hopper27]

Originally posted by BobMurdoch
No, you can just add the unit to your account and stick one in your closet as a backup in case of a receiver failure.

True, but I don't want to keep paying the higher price of the digital home plan. I'd rather be on the regular plan so I have my choices of what package I want, etc.

For example, I could get just the AT150 for $42.99 a month, that is $13 cheaper than I'm paying now.

And that doesn't assumes you've used a PVR before.

I currently have two boxes, a 501 and a 301. I want to replace both with a single 721, wired to both my TVs.

Jason

[motjes2]

Originally posted by Hopper27


True, but I don't want to keep paying the higher price of the digital home plan. I'd rather be on the regular plan so I have my choices of what package I want, etc.

For example, I could get just the AT150 for $42.99 a month, that is $13 cheaper than I'm paying now.



I currently have two boxes, a 501 and a 301. I want to replace both with a single 721, wired to both my TVs.

Jason

Have your 1 year commitment expired already with HDP? Otherwise, there is a penalty of about $200...

[Hopper27]

Yep, I've been with Dish for about 18 months now.

Jason

[boba]

Jason the DHP is only costing you $5/mo. and you get a service contract included in that fee. Wether you own the equipment or rent from DISH you still pay $4.99/mo. to duplicate the programming on each additional receiver. Even though the 721 has 2 tuners it only has 1 output so you can't watch one channel on each TV you would not be able to replace your two receivers with one.

[Hopper27]

I wasn't planning to have a second box anymore, don't really need it. I just wanted to run a RG-6 out from the 721 to my second TV and have the same set of recorded programs on both TVs. I don't need to watch two different things in two rooms at the same time.

As for the service contract, why wouldn't I pay the $1.99 to get that from Dish?

What I really want is the $59.99 plan that includes the Top 150 + HBO + Cinimax. That is only $5 more than I'm paying now and it gets me two premium packages. Then I pay $2 a month for the protection plan and $5 a month for the locals and I'm happy.

If I can somehow do the same thing under my current plan, I'm all ears. But I don't plan to keep either the 301 or 501 box. Couldn't anyway because my Dish 500 only has two outputs and both are required for the 721.

What I really want is to be able to access my recorded shows on either TV, going with single 721 box solves that issue. The second box does nothing for me anyway.

Jason

[Hopper27]

What is a shame is that Dish does not offer a way to upgrade my current DHP with the 721.

I'd gladly pay $5 a month more to send them back these two boxes and get a 721 box without having to spend all that money out of pocket. Shame they don't offer that as an option.

Jason

[rtt2]

You know I am in the same situation as you I want to upgrade my receiver but my options are limited.

[Mark Holtz]

That is something that I will bring up with Dish in May.

[angiodan]

If he is on the AT150 PVR plan, I believe the DHP charge is $10/month.

[Hopper27]

Yep, I talked to Dish an hour ago and made two changes to my account.

I switched to the HBO/Cinimax package for $3 extra more per month and dropped my 301 box saving me $5 per month. With the $2 increase, I'm back to what I paid before, without the 301 but with Cinimax added.

Yes, I'm paying $10 a month to lease the 501 box. I would love to pay $15 a month to lease a 721 box (I'd even commit to another 12 months to do it), but that isn't an option. Thus I'll have to buy a 721 box at some point and return the 501 box.

Jason

[BobMurdoch]

Originally posted by boba
Hopper27 if you deactivate a receiver you will have to return that receiver to DISH Network under Digital Home Plan they own the equipment. If you do add the 721 to your account the DHP service contract should automatically cover the 721 and from the forum accounts you will need that coverage

I have deactivated BOTH receivers Dish "owns" as I have added two Dishplayers and a 721. I bought all of my receivers from Dish Depot.

Dish did NOT require me to return them, although I am still paying for them (it cost $10 a month for the lease fee. But it is really only $5, because my second receiver would have incurred a $5 additional receiver charge. I pay the $5 charge, but only on one of my secondary receivers. I figure the other $5 which includes my in house service plan, and also protects me from two price hikes since I signed up is basically a wash until June. At that time I will send the receivers back. It also is conforting to know that if one of my DPs flake out, I have spare receivers ready to go.

[Hopper27]

Does that mean that if I drop the 501 box and return it, I also lose the service plan protection and by default, return to a "normal" subscribtion?

In other words, if I buy a 721 outright, then return the 501, I can just pay the $59.99 a month for AT150 + HBO/Max?

Jason

[angiodan]

Originally posted by Hopper27

In other words, if I buy a 721 outright, then return the 501, I can just pay the $59.99 a month for AT150 + HBO/Max?

Jason

Yes, if you send your 501 and 301 back to them, tell them you don't want the DHP anymore (be sure you have fulfilled your commitment) Just add the $1.99 service plan to cover your 721.

I'll be in a similar position when I get the 921. I started with DHP with two 301's and a 501. I replaced 1 of my 301's with the 6000. The 921 is going to replace my 501. At that point, I'll just have one other 301 that is property of Dish. I'll probably buy a 301 as well, and send all of them back to get rid of that extra $10 a month. Which will probably go toward more programming.:lol:

BTW, I've always wondered why wouldn't Dish want their equipment back sooner? You would think it would make more sense them having it in their possession rather than sitting in someones garage or basement.

[Jacob S]

Maybe DHP is not such a bad deal after all since you get up to 4 receivers for $5 extra a month in which is like only $3 since you get a $2 extended warranty on all the hardware.

I think there should be an option to buy your equipment after the first year.

[Hopper27]

I've paid Dish $300 over the course of 20 months to have my 501 and 301 boxes. If I kept them another 20 months I could simply have bought it all outright, then sold it on eBay and upgraded to a 721 for the same money and owned it forever.

Leasing the equipment isn't a great long term deal.

Jason

[Mike123abc]

With DHP you only play $5/month extra, so in 20 months you have only paid $100. Remember you have to pay $5/month for each box anyways, so the savings is cut in half.

[Hopper27]

Err, actually $10 extra a month, you're half right.

The $5 extra a month my 301 box cost is the same price as an extra receiver fee. The $10 extra a month my 501 box cost is just money directly out of my pocket.

So in 20 months I've paid $200 towards the 501, and I still don't own it.

Jason

[boba]

Jason you should not be paying $10/mo. for the 501 that was supposed to end at the end of the 12 month contract. The original DHP did start off with a $10 fee for the PVR but in later versions they changed it to a $50 upgrade fee. At that time they were supposed to stop the $10 fee at the end of 12mo. and revert to the $4.99 duplication fee. Check with customer service to see if this did happen on your account.

[angiodan]

boba, right on the back of my bill, it states that the AT150 PVR fee is 10 bucks a month. The only thing I can think of is that I did use Dishmover, and that meant I commited to another 12 months of programming. Does that mean 12 months of DHP as well?