View Full Version : Help with hopeful upgrade please.. this can't be right.
jrfarrar
09-30-05, 08:55 AM
I've been an E* subscriber for 2 years now. I have the top 60 plan and rent the equipment. I have 1 508 receiver.
E* recently added locals in my area (Erie, PA) and I'd like to add them, along with another receiver (301) and up my plan to the top 180 plan. I'm out of contract as of now, and use the CC auto pay.
When I called E* to inquire about this upgrade... they told me all of this was going to cost me $200 out of pocket to get the superdish installed, along with the receiver. PLEASE tell me the CR I was talking to was way off base. Surely they don't expect me to pay $200 for this? If so I don't think I can convince myself this is great customer retention. I'm more than willing to sign another contact and stay on auto pay.... am I off base for thinking this should be cheaper?
Oh and she kept telling me what a great deal this was for me. :nono2:
Welcome to reality with DISH Notwerk. Your best deals are as a new customer, they are very poor at taking care of existing customers. That said the receiver as a REMANUFACTURED unit has a price of $79 so $130 for a Stupid Dish and installation labor is a bargin.
psnarula
09-30-05, 09:34 AM
if you cancel and wait three months, you can sign up again as a "new" customer and get the superdish installed for free. it might be worth it to sign on with the local cable company briefly...
jrfarrar
09-30-05, 09:53 AM
If that is true, local cable has great introductory deals for the first few months with no long term contract. However I have heard that once a E* customer, you are never "new" again.
So far the D* plan as a new customer is starting to look VERY appealing. Just got off the phone with them... no out of pocket expense to start... 2 recievers with 1 of them a DVR all for less than E*... only down side is no locals. Man why does E* have to make this so hard. I'd be more than willing to sign a 1 year or even 2 year contract. All I want to do is ADD service.... weird.
Stewart Vernon
09-30-05, 12:03 PM
If that is true, local cable has great introductory deals for the first few months with no long term contract. However I have heard that once a E* customer, you are never "new" again.
So far the D* plan as a new customer is starting to look VERY appealing. Just got off the phone with them... no out of pocket expense to start... 2 recievers with 1 of them a DVR all for less than E*... only down side is no locals. Man why does E* have to make this so hard. I'd be more than willing to sign a 1 year or even 2 year contract. All I want to do is ADD service.... weird.
I guess the question is... Are you just adding programming and leasing another receiver? Or does it require additional hardware (satellite dish) and installation? If the latter, then that would be what the $200 is going towards.
It's one thing to expect additions of service to be free/cheap... but to expect a new satellite dish installation + hardware to be free/cheap is a stretch. Ask yourself, if you were an installer how much free work you would do of that nature?
If you do go with D*, you should make sure that you have all of the hardware needed to receive your locals when and if they add them. You surely don't want to get bit the same way twice. At this point cable sounds pretty good.
..Doyle
jrfarrar
09-30-05, 12:52 PM
I guess I am asking for too much from some of the responses I got.
All I was trying to do was add programming. Locals and upgrade to the top 180 plan. AND add a receiver. I'm willing to understand that having someone come out to add a receiver to my house might incur some installation charge. They want to charge me $99 for that. However why are they charging me $50 for the privildge of renting a receiver??? The total was $150 to add and install the receiver of which I still wouldn't own, and don't want to own. There is a $50 charge to install a new dish. To get the locals I am told. Somehow it is my fault and charge that MY locals can't be received with my current dish. So I total of $150 in install fees, and $50 I'm not sure what for exactly.
I guess this seemed extreme to me for a customer that wants to add service. I guess the numbers I was quoted from E* were right.
I really DIDN'T think I'd be ending all this by going with D*, but considering the costs involved.... I don't see how I could choose otherwise. In two years after the D* contract expires, I'll have to re-evaluate again.
I really do apprecaite the responses. Just wanted to make sure they weren't jerking me around and confirm this is really what they charge.
DoyleS - thanks for the tip. I think I will ask around exactly for that to make sure I get the right equipment the first time.
tsmacro
09-30-05, 12:57 PM
if you cancel and wait three months, you can sign up again as a "new" customer and get the superdish installed for free. it might be worth it to sign on with the local cable company briefly...
Actually you have to have been gone for 6 months. And you can come back as a "former customer" which up until today was the same deal as a new customer. However we just got an e-mail that Dish is changing the "formers" promotion. The info sent to us said that formers would no longer get their $49.99 activation fee back, but they do qualify for the current promo. Of course I haven't heard if this has been made "official" yet, but the e-mail was fowarded from our contact at echostar.
jrfarrar
09-30-05, 01:07 PM
What about after 2 years?
What about after 2 years?If you are asking if you can go back to DISH Notwerk after your 2 years with Directv you will have to see what the promotions are at that time. DISH keeps waffling on it's promotions to the point dealers have to weekly check what is currently being offered. :lol:
You can easily buy a 301 receiver for about $50 and then have no rental fee on it. Install is nothing more than running a piece of coax from your existing Dish 500 (I assume that is what you have) to the new receiver and calling them up to activate it. From there you can upgrade to top 180 with no additional install charges. It doesn't get you the locals but from what you said, you won't be getting those from DirectTV either. That gives you some time to figure out how to get the best deal on a later upgrade for the Locals.
..Doyle
Stewart Vernon
09-30-05, 04:29 PM
I guess I am asking for too much from some of the responses I got.
All I was trying to do was add programming. Locals and upgrade to the top 180 plan. AND add a receiver. I'm willing to understand that having someone come out to add a receiver to my house might incur some installation charge. They want to charge me $99 for that. However why are they charging me $50 for the privildge of renting a receiver??? The total was $150 to add and install the receiver of which I still wouldn't own, and don't want to own. There is a $50 charge to install a new dish. To get the locals I am told. Somehow it is my fault and charge that MY locals can't be received with my current dish. So I total of $150 in install fees, and $50 I'm not sure what for exactly.
I guess this seemed extreme to me for a customer that wants to add service. I guess the numbers I was quoted from E* were right.
I really DIDN'T think I'd be ending all this by going with D*, but considering the costs involved.... I don't see how I could choose otherwise. In two years after the D* contract expires, I'll have to re-evaluate again.
I really do apprecaite the responses. Just wanted to make sure they weren't jerking me around and confirm this is really what they charge.
This post had more information than your first one, so my answer is slightly different!
I also don't like the pay-for-the-right-to-lease plans. If you lease them, it seems like you shouldn't pay for them. Especially if $50 is about the same as what you could buy one and own it outright! So I'm on your side there, though there is probably not much they can do.
As for adding the receiver... it depends on what kind of setup you have as to how easy it is. I, for instance, only have 2 receivers and only have a dual-lnb which means I only have two runs from the satellite to my house. IF I wanted to add another receiver, and it wasn't a dual-tuner one, then I would have to buy new parts for my satellite (a switch or another LNB depending on what I bought) and install that plus run more cable.
Depending on how complicated it gets, parts + labor... $99 could be a good deal for an install... or it might be high if you can do the work yourself. A good installer is worth the money for the more complicated work or if you are like me and don't like being on the roof!
Also, the new dish... others on here know more than I do... but there are some markets that require a different dish when you add locals... and Dish is supposed to do that satellite dish install for you for free... but this may or may not apply to your scenario.
Nightlife1970
10-01-05, 04:36 PM
The superdish is a $200 dish. That is wht is needed for your locals it sounds like. So they are giving you the Dish for only $50.00 thats a pretty good deal. $150.00 for an additional receiver and installation again pretty good deal if you ask me.
How much is a good installer worth?
Also I don't see how going to D* will fix your problem. Sure you get some new equipment free. You still don't get your locals? So when D* comes out with locals you will be right back where you are now.
Wanna go cheap? Get a used receiver off someone. Ebay has them or go to satelitte guys and look on the classified board. Should be able to find a receiver pretty cheap. Then just hook it up.
jrfarrar
10-04-05, 06:18 AM
After a lot of comparing and talking with the wife, decided that we could and would switch to D*, but I would give E* one last chance. If E* wouldn't give in at all, off to D* we would be. Found out install times and everything.
Called E* and got the same answer $200 for what I wanted. I told them I wanted to cancel. Got transferred to a different department. He said I had been a customer for 2.5 years and what was the problem. I told him I wanted to upgrade service and add locals and a receiver and was told it was going to cost $200. That I compared with D* and I could get what I wanted with free equipment. Without even hesitating he said "What if I give you the equipment you want for free?"
You can guess the rest of the story. Install is this week. I just don't know why I had to go through so much to get to that point. All he wanted was a year commitment. Simple and done. I just wish the regular CS reps were able to do that. I just left me with a bad taste.
Just thought I would finish the thread.
Nice playing of the cards. You were in the win win scenario and if they couldn't make a reasonable offer you were prepared to head on down the road. Congratulations!
..Doyle
jessshaun
10-04-05, 09:48 AM
By law, to get locals, Dish Network is SUPPOSED to give the required equipment for locals free of charge.
I should say, that's what I've heard anyway...
BobaBird
10-04-05, 11:46 AM
Not quite. The law requires free extra equipment and installation only if those locals are spread across 2 dishes. The newer law requires Dish to make those markets available on a single dish which will make the extra equipment unnecessary. jrfarrar's locals already come from a single satellite, just not one that can be seen with a Dish500. It's about equal treatment. He does need extra equipment but that's to get all of his locals, not just some. Dish is not out of line to charge for the upgrade but the amount did seem high given that jrfarrar is adding a service, adding rather than replacing a receiver, and willing to commit. Fortunately he did his homework and got Dish to see the light. :righton:
mplsjeffm
10-04-05, 02:53 PM
a person only has to leave E* for 6 months then he is a "new" customer?
I thought it was 2 years or something longer than that
Jeff
jessshaun
10-04-05, 04:01 PM
Not quite. The law requires free extra equipment and installation only if those locals are spread across 2 dishes. The newer law requires Dish to make those markets available on a single dish which will make the extra equipment unnecessary. jrfarrar's locals already come from a single satellite, just not one that can be seen with a Dish500. It's about equal treatment. He does need extra equipment but that's to get all of his locals, not just some. Dish is not out of line to charge for the upgrade but the amount did seem high given that jrfarrar is adding a service, adding rather than replacing a receiver, and willing to commit. Fortunately he did his homework and got Dish to see the light. :righton:
Ok, I knew it was something like that. But the $200.... I'm sorry, even if the dish is worth that much, that's just flat rediculous.
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