dvr

An interesting comparison between Verizon FiOS the first communications service provider to offer fiber optic connections directly into your home and Dish Network a leader in satellite television. Both companies offer tons of HD, great features, such as remote operation of your DVR receiver, interactive guides and menus, multi-room DVR units, and robust programming options, like NFL RedZone, and Video-on Demand. In all Verizon FiOS provides customers with 320-total channels, 75-HD channels, and Dish Network 295-channels, 140-HD channels. It is important to note that the FiOS Multi-room DVR has significantly less capacity (80-hours of Standard definition programming and 20-hours of HD programming), compared to Dish Network's ViP722 HD-DVR (355-standard definition, 55-HD programming).

Verizon, like cable companies has the ability to offer video, Internet and voice solutions to its customer base. Dish Network concentrates its efforts in delivering the very best television experience possible at the most affordable prices possible. Dish does partner with many DSL and phone providers for those looking to acquire all three services. Verizon bundles aren't available everywhere, because FiOS is not yet available everywhere. Check your local area.

There is no doubt when it comes to television that these two providers are hands down the most innovative, in terms of technology and quality they offer customers. With these two the decision may come down to value, price and content provided in each package - lets examine the options.

FiOS offers just two programming options, FiOS TV Essentials and FiOS TV Extreme HD, lets start with FiOS TV Essentials. This package offers customers, more than 250-channels; 14-available in HD. The package includes local channels, on-demand options and some 95-commerical free music selections. The price on this package is $47.99 per month.

Dish Network’s comparable package, Classic Silver-200 provides customers with more than 220-channels, 70 of which are available in HD. The package includes local channels, video-on-demand options and Sirius Satellite Radio Stations; the price is normally $52.99 per month, but in promotion for the first year of service at $37.99 per month.

FiOS TV Extreme HD offers over 320-channels, 65 available in HD. The package includes all of the programming found in TV Essentials, plus 14-sports channels and over 60 additional channels, 40-of which are in HD. This package is priced at $57.99 per month.

Dish Network counters FiOS TV Extreme with Classic Gold-250, which provides over 260 channels, 80 of which are available in HD. Sports offerings here include, the Big Ten Network, CBS College Sports Television, all of the ESPN Networks, Golf Channel, NBA TV, NFL Network, Tennis Channel, Speed Channel, Versus and other regional sports networks. The package is normally $62.99 per month, but in promotion for $47.99 for the first year.

With FiOS if you wish to add Premium Movie channels to your lineup such as, HBO, Showtime, Starz or Cinemax, your options are as follows:

•HBO, Cinemax and the FiOS Movie Bundle - 70 movie channels for $35.00 per month.
•HBO & Cinemax bundled - 25-movies channels for $21.99 per month.
•Cinemax offers 12-channels for $11.99 per month.
•FiOS Movie package has 45-channels (including, Showtime, Starz, The Movie Channel, Encore, Flix, IFC and Sundance) for $14.99 per month.
•FiOS Epix package, the first and only service to offer unlimited access to every monthly movie choice on TV, On Demand, and Online is $9.99 per month.

Dish Network allows you to subscribe to each premium movie channel individually, for example:

•HBO has 8-channels, $15.99 per month
•Showtime has 10-channels for $12.99 per month
•Cinemax 5-channels, for $12.99 per month
•Starz 8-channels for $12.99 per month
•Playboy - $15.99 per month

Bundling Premium channels is very straightforward with Dish Network as well:

•Bundle any two premiums - $22.00 per month
•Bundle any three premiums - $31.00 per month
•Bundle any four premiums - $40.00 per month
•Bundle all five premiums (32-channels) for $50.00 per month

Of course you can always subscribe to Dish Network's Americas Everything Pak and get every channel offered, including all of the Premium Movie channels, and Multi-Sports pack for $102.98 per month, $87.98 for the first year of service.

Verizon FiOS offers promotions only if you get television and Internet services, then you would receive $150 cash back in the form of a prepaid gift card issues by MetaBank - you only get this offer once you have service for 60-days and assuming you have no late payments on your account.

If its sports you desire FiOS offers:

•Football - NFL Network and NFL Red Zone $49.99 for the season
•Baseball - MLB Network, (FiOS does not offer MLB Extra Innings)
•Basketball - NBA League Pass, (FiOS does not offer NBA TV)
•Hockey - NHL Center Ice, Versus, (FiOS does not offer NHL Network)
•College Sports - ESPN Full Court, ESPN Game Plan, Big Ten Network
•Soccer/Other Sports - Setanta Sports, WWE, MLS Direct Kick, Fox Soccer Channel, Speed Channel - Plus all of the ESPN networks and Regional Sports Networks

Dish Network Sports compares this way:

•Football - NFL Network and NFL Red Zone, however Red Zone won't cost you $50 like it does with FiOS. Customers can add the Multi-Sports package to their lineup for $5.99 per month and get Red Zone as part of that package as well as over 30-other sports networks.
•Baseball - you can watch your local teams, but MLB Network and MLB Extra Innings are not found here.
•Basketball - NBA League Pass is available and NBA TV is available in Classic Silver and above.
•Hockey - Dish offers Versus, NHL Network and NHL Center Ice
•College Sports - ESPN Full Court, ESPN Game Plan, Big Ten Network and CBS College Sports are all part Dish Networks, sports offerings.
•Soccer/Other Sports - MLS Direct Kick, Setanta Sports, Cricket, WWE, UFC and more - Plus all of the ESPN networks and Regional Sports Networks.

When it comes to choosing a television provider, value usually rules the day for most consumers and the comparisons reveal that Dish Network offers the most for your hard earned money.

Look out Directv, the good old satellite television provider known as Dish Network is thriving in today’s difficult economy. The new Dish motto “Why Pay More?” has drawn the attention of satellite TV customers across the nation. Many people ordered Directv because they were told that it offers the most high definition and delivers a better signal but the truth is both services a very much alike. Customers decide to switch their service to Dish for many reasons, the most important one being price.

It is ridiculous during a time when every dollar counts to spend more money on one provider when you can get the same thing for less through another. That’s like asking someone which Snickers bar they want to buy- the one that costs $1.00 or the one that costs $1.25. There is just no doubt that people who are educated about their television service would not switch to another service of the same quality for less money. This is a no win situation for Directv unless they cut their monthly cost, upfront deposits, receiver charges and give more advanced equipment, if not dual receivers, to first time customers.

Directv has lost the Versus channel even though they’ve spent years talking about how Dish is the provider that doesn’t want to spend extra money to carry great networks. Dish Network has Versus and it also has more premium channels for the money including Showtime Beyond (horror and sci-fi movies), 5StarMax (Cinemax channel dedicated to award winning films only), Starz Comedy, Starz Kids & Family and HBO Comedy, HBO Zone (all movies in HD). Directv requires customers to pay extra for the Encore premium channels but Dish offers them in the package below America’s Everything Package.

Dish Network does not have the NFL Sunday Ticket but football fans will still have access to Red Zone for $5.99 per month. Directv requires customers to subscribe to the Ticket before they can order Superfan on top of it, then customers are able to get Red Zone $400.00 later. Football fans that are mostly interested in game-only content available in HD will be more than satisfied with Red Zone.

Dish is being humble in their approach when they ask you why you would pay more for the same service because they have so much more to offer than Directv including International channels. As a previous Directv customer with the Premier Package, 1 HD receiver and 2 standard receivers, I can attest to the fact that Dish Network is better. I switched and was able to change my boring existing equipment to 1 HD-DVR that records and plays on 2 different TVs (1 standard-def TV and 1 HD TV) as well as 1 HD only receiver. I had no upfront cost. I have America’s Everything Package and will save a total of $1,044 in the next two years because I have finally made an educated decision.

If my testimony is not enough, let’s look at the facts. The CEO of Dish Network has just announced a dividend of $2.00 on each of the company’s shares. The 3Q09 report also reflected that Dish has exceeded expectations with its gain of 241,000 new subscribers. Dish closed the market day with 5.17% at $20.14- Not too shabby.

The ABC Network premiered "Wanna Bet", their latest game show creation last night on Satellite TV. After seeing and reading numerous trailers and hype about the network giants latest gamble I thought the show would have little entertainment value and would just be a move on the part of the ABC Network to fill air time, rather then run repeats of shows already in their line-up.

As Gomer Pyle would say, Surprise! Surprise! Surprise! I was actually surprised that I enjoyed the show. While all of the contestants performed quite admirably only one of them really stood out in last night's premier show. It was the contestant who was able to tell the name of a band and their album title just by licking a CD. Mind you he was blindfolded (he actually wore some kind of goggles or glasses with cds attached to them). If that isn't an unusual talent I don't know what is.

The hosts of the show, British comedians Ant and Dec, without even breaking a sweat, were actually quite funny. These two were so spot on with their line delivery that they didn't even need to come up with any over the top jokes. Perhaps Ant & Dec could give lessons to John(Henson) & John(Anderson), the hosts of ABC's other madcap game show "Wipeout", whose commentary seems somewhat lacking in humor.

Anyway, if you missed the premiere of the show either because you weren,t home or were watching something else at the time, then be sure set those DVRs to record the remaining episodes. You don't want to miss out on all the quirky, zany and over the top tricks and challenges performed by the contestants.

 

 

Satellite TV, Inc., the nation's leading satellite television service provider, launched its highly anticipated Satellite TV on Demand service to customers across the country on June 30th. The platform is available at no additional charge to customers with a Satellite TV Plus® HD DVR or R22 DVR receiver, and offers more than 4,000 standard-definition and HD titles, 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week.

The service allows customers to download the programming of their choice from the Satellite TV on Demand library to their DVRs to enjoy whenever they want. The service offers one of the easiest-to-use on demand interfaces on television, with unique features that make navigating through titles simple and quick, including:

• Customized Programmer Homepages - Each programmer has its own on demand channel that highlights the latest shows and movies available from the network. Each programmer page consists of rich graphics and posters that highlight the most popular content. The customized home pages correspond to the programmer's regular channel number with a "1" in front of it (i.e. The Discovery Channel is on 276, The Discovery Channel on Demand is at 1276.) Channel 1000 is the main home page for Satellite TV on Demand.
• Internet Remote Scheduling - On demand customers have access to DVR Scheduler, which will allow them to remotely schedule on demand programming to their DVR from an internet-connected computer or mobile phone.

The Satellite TV on Demand service offers content downloaded via a broadband connection, while other content, primarily blockbuster movies, is pushed to the customer's DVR via satellite. Much of the content, depending on the speed of the customer's broadband connection and type of content, can be viewed in real time as it is being downloaded.

To begin receiving the Satellite TV on Demand service, customers can choose professional installation or request a self-installation kit. Customers will need broadband high-speed internet access, a router or Internet gateway with an available Ethernet port, and equipment to network the HD DVR or R22 DVR.

 

By the second quarter of this year, Satellite TV will have its own version of On-Demand service. This is a good thing for those who love to spontaneously choose their programming and who don’t want to be limited to what happens to be playing at a particular time. Programming for Satellite TV’s On-Demand service will initially include 3,000 titles, with the number increasing over time.

Think of the variety that Satellite TV already has, and then add more. There will be movies, tv programs, specials and more. Do you want to see a hit movie? Or a classic? All of these will be available with On-Demand’s new and promising collection. You won’t have to subscribe to Netflix or any other additional service. You can turn to Satellite TV for all of your programming needs. On-Demand will work by combining satellite technology and internet technology while making use of the Satellite TV DVR. Note that it does not work in the same way as Comcast’s On-Demand service.

Many people have already chosen Satellite TV because it offers reliable satellite signals and 100% digital quality. Now there’s yet another reason to choose Satellite TV -- On-Demand, coming soon! This new service is sure to make Satellite TV even more competitive in today’s market and fulfill customers' need for impulsive tv-watching.

More bad news for Dish Network. TVPredictions.com reports TiVo CEO Tom Rogers said today that EchoStar will feel the "full impact" of a DVR patent violation unless it complies soon with a court order. That's according to an article by The Hollywood Reporter. TiVo last year successfully sued EchoStar after charging the satcaster with violating its patents on Digital Video Recorders. With interest, EchoStar now owes TiVo close to $100 million and a subsequent court injunction calls for the satcaster to disable its four million DVRs. However, EchoStar, which has since split into two companies -- EchoStar and Dish Network -- says its DVRs are not in violation of TiVo's patents due to a software upgrade. Rogers wasn't buying that today in remarks to the Bear Stearns Media Conferece. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the TiVo CEO said the delay "plays into TiVo's hands" and he said EchoStar is risking a contempt proceeding. Dump Dish and order Satellite TV today!

There are some definite advantages to choosing a tv provider that is both a national company and very established. Satellite TV has a definite presence in the satellite tv market and is able to offer its customers more because of it. As soon as you subscribe to Satellite TV, benefits and special deals become yours. FIrst off, don’t worry about having to pay for your HD or DVR Receiver, as you’ll get an instant online rebate! You’ll see this deal up on the website. You’ll still have to pay the low monthly fee for HD, DVR or HD/DVR service, but equipment won’t cost you a thing. And you can also know that you’re getting a good quality receiver that has received favorable reviews from customers and offers the latest in advanced features. Other companies often charge for their equipment and may charge for installation. This isn’t true with Satellite TV.Right now you can lock in savings for an entire year, after a mail-in-redemption, with the offer ending February 26, 2008. You can save $10 per month on qualifying packages and receive 4 premium networks -- HBO, SHOWTIME, Starz and Cinemax -- free for a full three months! This gives you tons of entertainment and movies of every genre.Too often, smaller companies are so strapped financially that they can’t even consider offering these special deals. They simply don’t have the financial backing. With Satellite TV it seems like the only thing that doesn’t change are the special offers. The promotions, deals and instant rebates are all just par for the course.

Satellite TV has always been synonymous with interactive, cutting-edge tv. Now there is more good news about how you can make Satellite TV work for you. You can now schedule recordings on your DVR from any PC or hand-held device with an internet connection, such as a mobile phone. The new DVR Scheduler Mobile Beta is a small application that allows you to search for shows by title, description or channel and remotely select them for recording at home, even though you’re not there. Talk about convenience! This new capability allows you to see schedules up to 3 days in advance and even select programming that is currently being aired. The feature is essentially snafu-free, though you might miss the very start of the show if the desired programming is currently on air and you didn’t set the receiver to the channel beforehand. This DVR Scheduler is mostly text based and works wonderfully from mobile devices. The requirement for the beta version is that customers have the HR20-700 HD-DVR and that the DVR already be hooked up and ready to go at your house. Other models of receivers should be supported by Satellite TV starting in the first quarter of 2008.Other new and improved features for the Satellite TV DVR include the ability to jump to 15-minute tick marks on your recorded programming, Fast Forward Correction, an Improved Prioritizer for even better control over your To Do List and the new One-Touch Record available on all screens.Plus, you’ll still be able to use the long list of original DVR features. You can record up to 100 hours of programming, record two shows at once and pause and rewind live tv. As you can see, Satellite TV is always adding new features to make life even easier.

Satellite TV Digital Video Recording (DVR) is yours for a low monthly fee of $5.99 and is included with the Plus DVR and Plus HD DVR packages! Equipment is free after an instant online rebate! Compare this to the cost of taking the family out to the movies and a light bulb might go off! This is just one of the ways Satellite TV saves you money. If you sign up with a cable company such as Time Warner, Comcast or Charter the situation is more bleak. In this case, it might indeed be cheaper to take the family out to the movies! Cable companies often offer movie options like Video on Demand, but at a higher cost. What’s more, these are usually add-on packages and not included with the basic package tiers. So although you may get premium networks with cable, it’s bound to cost you more.Satellite TV’s PREMIER package includes premium channels like HBO, Cinemax, SHOWTIME and Starz Network, a whole slew of options for movie buffs. From Hollywood classics to mysteries and comedies, Satellite TV doesn’t skimp when it comes to movies. In addition, since Satellite TV now has nearly 100 channels in High Definition (HD), you might even want to get HD Access for only $9.99/month (included with the Premier package). Note that cable doesn’t have nearly as many channels in HD.Satellite TV is riding the new wave of interactive tv. The Satellite TV DVR’s advanced features are a perfect fit for the modern, busy lifestyle. You can watch tv on your time, pause and rewind live tv, record a total of 100 hours of Satellite TV programming and even record two shows at once. So why not save money, make your own popcorn and tune in to one of the many movie channels in the comfort of your own home? The advantages are simply too good to pass up! You won’t even be limited to the handful of titles that happen to be playing at your local theater!