Might be time to switch..

I had DirecTV for years and switched to cable a few years back. My cable lineup and Tivo are both far superior to DirecTV in every respect except sports content (which I couldn't care less about). Having said that, both satellite and cable now cost far more than I'm willing to pay for TV anymore. I'm going to drop back to OTA and PS Vue, saving about $50/month. If it turns out to be too painful, I'll get cable again. I don't see myself ever going back to satellite unless I have no other choice (move out to the boonies, etc.).

 

After Sandy hit NJ, Cablevision called out for help and I had a chance to talk to some cable guys from Montana. They were appalled at the state our cable service was in compared to what they were used to in Montana.

Rich

 

I'm paying Comcast $150 for the X1 DVR package and 75/12Mbs internet. No phone, I dropped my landline a very long time ago when ATT told me it would take 3 months to get a tech out to fix a problem with my phone service. Haven't missed it at all.

 

Comcast's PQ is objectively terrible. Their channel lineup varies widely by system. But if Comcast's service is good enough for your purposes, then you can save a lot of money by going that way. I'd still recommend TiVo over X1 though. If you get a unit with Lifetime or All-in, then that keeps the monthly fees even lower.

Yeah, if the antitrust law were actually enforced, and Comcast had to honestly break out the TV and internet costs, then they would lose MILLIONS of TV subs almost overnight.

EDIT: Combine posts

 

When I first moved to WA the only cable choice in my area was a substandard mom & pop outfit (later bought by AT&T and upgraded and now part of Comcast) so I went with Dish and was fairly satisfied at the time but about 3 years later I compared it to Directv and found that I could save a bit on the programming my wife and I desired.

That was 13 years ago. Recently I looked at the various alternatives and realized that probably 95% of my viewing was on the local channels so I decided to go back to OTA (with the digital transition I am able to receive many more channels than before). I bought a cheap DVR for my bedroom TV and a more advaned ChannelMaster DVR+ for my main viewing area. Both use external USB hard drives and i already have several. I also looked at the Tablo DVR which connects via wifi using a Roku, which looked quite interesting, as it would allow viewing on multiple devices. I am also going to give Sling.tv (IPTV service) a try to get a reasonable selection of "cable" channels at a good price. I currently have the Entertainment package on Directv and the change will save me over $60 per month (more if I end up dropping Sling), which will pay for the additional hardware in 4 months.

I'll still be around to see how Directv is doing, in case I decide to come back and suspended my Directv account so I can easily return within 6 months if I wish.

 

I've tried a few streaming services and find PS Vue to be head and shoulders above the rest. They have by far the biggest channel selection and are the only one with DVR service (everything going back 28 days is recorded). Works on Fire TV at the moment, not Roku. But unlike other services, you can have it in every room. I've been very impressed so far.

 

Comcast picture quality varies by location. They don't all suck and the x1 is a decent DVR but like any has some limitations.

I'll most likely move to Vue here once my contract is up. I can get Sunday ticket with a VPN through gamepass so that isn't an issue and Directv is very expensive. Great thing is new options are starting to pop up and we should start seeing some more choice available to us.

 

Not to sound like a broken record, but in my opinion the X1 has been flakey but much better than their original DVR. It seems that X1 has been a perpetual beta product. I personally prefer the HR44 over X1, but the Tivo Bolt is almost as perfect as a DVR can be with its quick response and integration with Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu and other apps.

 

I have been a DTV customer since 2000 and my bill was $159 per month. Comcast is $159 per month for Premium TV Package, 150Mbs Internet and Unlimited Phone. Unbundled all of these service combined were costing over $300 per month.

I got the X1 DVR and also the Tivo Bolt to test with Comcast to see if I could live with this service vs. DTV. The X1 DVR is not bad but it is also not good. The HR54 is better. The Tivo Bolt on the other hand is near perfect and 10X faster than the HR54 and does 10x more than the HR54.

The only thing that I could possibly say that is better on DTV vs Comcast with the Tivo Bolt is DTV has more HD Channels. However, most of these are multiple versions of Premium channels like HBO, Max, etc which I never used except for the East Coast feed of HBO, Cinemax, etc. The east coast feeds I will miss but I will definitely not miss the cost reduced HR54 which is slower than the HR24 from 5 years ago.

A couple of more observations:

1.) Picture quality on Comcast is as good as DTV and I do not see any difference.
2.) Comcast On-Demand blows away DTV. Every show, every episode is available for major networks in HD. And while they say you cannot fast forward while watching, 30 Sec Skip works on the X1 and is not disabled when using On-Demand.
3.) The Tivo Bolt is amazing. Press one button and skip all the commercials. Press 3 buttons and instantly load NetFlix, Amazon, YouTube. You are never waiting for anything when using the Bolt.
4.) The HR54 is simply a cost reduced 3rd iteration DVR whose main focus is to build as cheaply as possible with old technology. There is nothing that is cutting edge nor "Genie" like about the HR54. DTV should change the name from Genie to Ancient Ancestor.

I do not see myself switching back to DTV anytime soon.

 

Interesting post. I don't think I've ever read any other posts lauding Comcast.

Rich

 

And having 4 tuners on the Tivo Bolt isn't exactly cutting edge.

 

If I could not get the Tivo Bolt and only had the X1 DVR then it would be tough choice as I really do not like the X1 Interface and it is slower than the HR54. But for the price difference I could probably learn to live with it but fortunately I do not have to compromise with the Bolt.

The other interesting development is Comcast has hired experienced AV guys to work with Customer installers and will shortly have IP Control as well as rackmounted X1's. So it sounds like they will help drive improvements on X1 so that it will become a competitive platform.

 

There are rumors the Bolt Pro with 6 tuners will be out soon. I do wish it had 6 tuners but I can live with 4 tuners all things considered and if I find I need more at some point I can sell my current Bolt and get the Pro. Unlike my HR54 which I purchased to get the "latest" DTV Technology, paid a monthly lease, and then boxed up and shipped back to DTV.

 

Genie has one more tuner. Not a big deal. One can get a second Bolt for second tv, and have 8 tuners, as they communicate well with each other. Besides, TiVo Roamio Pro has six tuners. One model older than Bolt but same interface and same functions, including SkipMode.

I completely agree with the OP. TiVo is much better than any Genie. Time for Directv to come up with a new box and do some catching up with TiVo, Hopper 3, etc.

I have Bolt with a Mini on Verizon, Genie HR44 with two wireless Genies.


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