[hoopsbwc34]

Dish Network finally has my local broadcast networks, and I'd love to get the PVR 721 and start my life without cable! However, I have one little problem. I don't have a home phone line!

My wife and I have managed to avoid the $40 a month fee by using our cell phones exclusively and signing up for broadband internet access. So that brings me to my question...

Has anyone figured out a way to get around having a home line? Some ideas I've had, but I don't know if they exisit or work are:

- Voice over IP hardware to use to "dial up" via my broadband connection.
- Hardware to connect my receiver to my cellphone each night to allow for updates (probably way too slow)
- Asking a neighbor to somehow tap into their phone line (I think I've seen it in the movies )

Anyone done this or have any other ideas? Or am I just cheap and should I just shell out the $40 a month

Thanks!

 

[HTguy]

1st of all, you don't report your location but it's surprising that it would cost you $40 to get a land line. I pay less than half of that for a month including all taxes, local LD, LD connection, etc.

But you don't need a phone line just to have a DISH Network system.

They want you to have it for 3 reasons:

1. Interactive applications on the DISH Home Channel
2. PPV billing for events ordered by RC
3. To prove that the receiver is in your home, particularly when you have more than one
   [/list=1]
   
   But they will not keep any of the above from making you a customer if there is no land line available.

 

[hoopsbwc34]

I'm in Tucson, AZ... and unfortunately, the price is between $35-$40 plus another $50 for "installation" for a basic line without caller-id, call waiting etc.

I have a friend who has DirecTV. He said he moved to a home where there was no phone line and they discontinued his service because as far as they knew, he could run up unlimited PPV charges. The only way they can track that is through the phone line.

Also, without a land line how would I get software updates for my PVR 721? Seems like a necessary addition to be a subscriber.

In fact, I remember seeing in ads that it is REQUIRED to have a phone line.....

 

[HTguy]

Just contact a good local independent full-service retailer. He will get you signed up & installed w/o a problem.

If you order PPVs w/the RC at a certain point you will not be allowed to buy anything else until the bill is paid. This is controled by the "Smart Card."

SW updates are downloaded from the satellite (110 in the case of the PVR721).

Yes, the small print in the ads say phone connection required for the reasons I listed above. But again, they won't keep you from becoming a cust if you don't have one. Believe me, there are many, many, many DBS subs w/o phones hooked up to their IRDs.

The only suggestion I have is that you might want to wait a bit for the next production run of 721s (actually, you probably will have to anyway) because of some SW issues in the 1st batch.

 

[Timco]

You don't need a landline. Both my receivers have never been hooked up to the phoneline. Of course, I never order PPV either.

 

[Doug E]

I echo Timco. I have both D* and E* and do not have a phoneline connected on either. Nor do I order PPV either, so they have no knowledge that no lines are connected.

All software is downloaded from the satellite, NOT a phone line.

 

[Steve Mehs]

Don't blame you for getting rid of your landbased phone line, i'd drop it in a heartbeat if I could. In 4 years never had my recievers connected to a phone line as I see no purpose to.

 

[Bill Mullin]

We have phone lines here but no hookup to the PVR. I told Dish during the installation that I would never order PPV so saw no need for a phone line hookup - he agreed. FWIW, I had C-band from 1994 through about a month ago, again I never hooked up the phone, and again there was no problem.

- Bill

 

[hoopsbwc34]

So it sounds like as long as I don't order PPV, it's not a problem. What happens if I do? Does the SmartCard lock me out of the system at some point? (Maybe this is what happened to my friend).

Thanks for the info guys.

 

[Steve Mehs]

The IRD wont let you order unless is phone connection is detected, when you goto order and press OK twice, the IRD will check for a phone line, if no phone line is detected you get an error. If you wanna order PPV you can always call the automated 1-800 PPV phone#, but an additional $1 will be tacked on to the PPV purchase price. Additionaly, the phone number of the phone that you call to order a PPV with must match the number on your account. Lets say the phone# of your cell is the one listed on the account, you go out, and your wife wants to order a PPV, she can't unless you leave her your phone. She could always call 800-333-DISH to order the PPV but that would result in an additional $5 change, and is really not worth it, IMO.

 

[Bill Mullin]

PPV costs about $3.99/movie with DN. There's a video store a 5 minute walk from my door that rents new release DVD's for $3.50. Really doesn't make sense for me to pay for PPV when I don't feel like waiting the 6 months or so for a movie to move from PPV to the Premium channels! I'd guess others have similar good reasons for not hooking up the phone line to the PVR.

- Bill

 

[Steve Mehs]

another note- my orginal installer never hooked up our 2700s upto the phone line, and the guy that did my 501 upgrade didnt either. I suspect this may be the case is most other installations.

 

[MikeW]

Originally posted by Steve Mehs
The IRD wont let you order unless is phone connection is detected, when you goto order and press OK twice, the IRD will check for a phone line, if no phone line is detected you get an error.

Not entirely true, unless recent software revisions have been made. My four year old was playing with the remote and ordered 5 movies in 1 hour's time. I haven't had a phone line hooked up since day one and those five movies have been on my card for a year. I password protected PPV after that, but I know those movies were authorized.

 

[Steve Mehs]

Ive tried that many times on the 2800s and once or twice with my 501 and have never exerienced that. Each time I would get and I quote "Information 083- No Dial Tone. Your receiver is unable to dial-out. Select YES to try again."

Mike, what IRD do you have?

 

[MikeW]

4900

 

[Marcus S]

You can order PPV's on-line or call. No phone line connections is required. What I have seen after 2 years of no phone line connection, i.e. PPV orders via the receiver, no phone line connection, is the receiver simply locks up requiring an RMA. Expect to get a wonderfull suprise in your next bill after that.

 

[Guest]

I never have my PVR501 hooked up, even when I order PPVs. They have online PPV ordering at the dishwebsite (takes 3 clicks and I'm done especially nice when you have a wireless laptop).

 

[Jacob S]

I believe if you do not connect 4-6 receivers and keep it 3 ore less receivers you should be fine without having phone lines connected, am I correct that they start requiring it on receivers 4 through 6 ?

 

[EdF]

Steve - not sure about the phone line number being important - the phone number of record with Dish is my cell phone. We recently watched a PPV to use a free coupon and connected the Dishplayer to an unlisted house line (used only for internet service). Dish has no record of this phone number. We just ordered a second PPV last night and there was no problem with the unknown home phone line calling.

Jacob - we have 5 dish receivers and they have never said anything about having the phone line connected. I've called Dish several times in the past year for service changes and additions and only once was I asked to read off the "Location ID" for each receiver to the rep.

 

[Guest]

I've been a disk subscriber for about 5 years.

I only connect a phone line to my recievers when I want to watch a PPV. ( I don't have a jack in the closet where my reciever is housed.)
When I'm done watching I disconnect the line. The ordered movies que to about ten and after that you can't order any more until you connect a line to the reciever and allow the phone line to connect to dish and register the movies you've watched.

The bottom line. E* will want you as a customer with or without the line attached. The disadvantage to not being able to connect a line is that you wont be able to get SW upgrades to the reciever.