Community poll forum: Which is better, digital cable or satellite?

I tried satellite, but lost my signal everytime we had a thunderstorm. I got tired of loosing my signal so frequently, so I returned to cable.

I agree. I had cable for years. I get more from the satellite & Hi Def is much better on satellite than cable Rainouts are few & far between. You get more for the money from Satellite.

On the Dish 500, if you are only picking up the 119 and Not the 110, I'd try a few things.

1) Verify the 119 with the verify key on the sat buddy to see if you really have the 119.

2) Check your line of site, if there is any blockage to it could knock out the 110. You can download an app on a smartphone and it will give you a great estimate of where the satellites are located.

3) Run a test on the check switch with your receiver. (Menu - 6 - 1- 1, test) Maybe the receiver has not accepted it on the check switch.

I used to have Herritage cable which became TCI and is now ComCast in Dallas. I have neighbors with ComCast also, digital and basic. My Apartment includes Free Basic.

I will not give up my DirecTV though, because the cable signal is garbage. During the worst of a storm sure I lose my sat signal briefly. The cable signal is usually gone at the same time as well, not to mention it stays off for LONGER! Sat comes right back when worst of storm passes, cable well when they decide the rain has slowed enough to get wet and I'm less than 5 miles from downtown Dallas...

Quality of picture cable can not even compete. My Cable delivered FOX and NBC local brodcast are UNWATCHABLE for the static and 80+% noise in the picture. Its is so bad, one might as well just use a radio with a TV band. Actually that would deliver better audio. Even rabbit ears would be better.

All digital all the time satelite smokes cable in oh so many ways.

Then only thing that I use my free basic cable for TXCN-Texas Cable News which refuses to license for Sat broadcast. Far to many cable channels are cluttered with noise (video and audio) in the signal.

Anyone with Cable should be getting paid not paying for service

Been there, done that!

dish lost another customer do to rain and not being able to keep local channels,Sorry i got have my tv here i come cable tv comcast help me

I know this is an old post, but if you happen to read this ...

Can you still have Tivo with Satellite? I didn't think it was possible.

Thanks

I recently dropped Adelphia as my cable service.
We had Adelphia's service for 16 years total and their overpriced digital system for three years along with cable internet. It was costing me 110.00 a month for two TV's and internet.
The digital service was better than regular cable, but it does not compare with satellite.

We installed Dish Network (180 package) on four TV's for 75.00 a month with one premium package included. Sure I don't have internet added, I know that. We went back to dial-up.
The service has been great. A few equipment troubles but all was fixed quickly. We did have a problem with signal loss, but a realignment cured that. So far, the only time we loose signal is during a severe thunderstorm. In Florida it's best to turn everything off during storms like that anyhow.
We have a 13 year old Philips projection TV and satellite has provided the best picture I've seen yet. Better than cable/digital cable ever could.

And yes, we can get HDTV, SIRIUS Satellite Radio, any PayPer View, and a DVR for free.
On-Demand programming is not offered. So?

When I get the funds I'll looking to insatall a DirectWay satellite internet system. Monthly cost is comparable to cable.

Several channels exhibit variations in volume that is very annoying. No, not the kind when a commercial comes on, I mean a low frequency modulation in a short period of time, like one or two spoken sentences. The cable company says that's what they get for a feed. They don't care. I am getting ready to switch.

Its weird how alot of these people say you loose your signal in satellite. I mean think about it, if that were true would 50 million americans really have it? I have had it rain and snow like crazy and my pic is fine. I lost my pic. with cable way more than i did with dish network. About that cost being similar thats funny too, satellite tv is WAY and i mean WAY cheaper than cable. I have 100% Digital tv with dvr and its STILL cheaper then my old basic cable. Dishnetwork is the leading provider in HD as well. And dish-network just came out with movies on demand so you can get movies ANYTIME you want and they are constantly adding new programming to it. And about cable internet, you can get 5 meg dsl-1 meg slower than cable (BIG DEAL)however it wont go down every 5 min. like cable does and unlike cable it stays the same speed ALL THE TIME!!! Satellite tv is 1000 times superior to cable. You can tell the cable boys are getting desperate. And by the way, you can get up to four rooms free with dishnetwork with a measly one year contract, and on all four rooms get dvr. Half of these people who lose there signal are the ones that try to install the system themselves, LET THE INSTALLERS DO IT THATS WHAT THERE, THERE FOR!!! and it doesn't cost anything for them to install it either. Overall, satellite tv is way superior to digital cable.

Rather than relying on some centrally-maintained and distributed system, each home's satellite system is self-contained, and therefore not subject to central server outages. There's a certain elegance in having no physical connection to the outside world - you have a dish on your own roof and a short coax cable leading from it to your TV receiver ... and that's it. The signals are fully digital. The availabe DVRs are truly phenomenonal because they do not record the digital signal, they *COPY* the pre-compressed signal untouched as it comes off the satellite feed, meaning your recordings are not very good copies but are instead *identical* time-shifted duplicates of the original broadcast, and commpletely indistinguishable from a live feed. Anyone with DirecTV who does has not purchased a $100 DirecTV DVR is entirely missing the point - the synergism between the two is beyond belief, and not to be missed. With the ''Pause Live TV'' feature, tune into your favorite live show 15 minutes late, and you never have to watch another Zelnorm commercial again - it's TV paradise! My only compaint - and it's a big one - is that the satelle system cuts out completely in a rain storm. If you live in a stormy area, cable may be your better choice.

I live in South Jersey and there is no way Directv is better than Comcast, unless you talking their NFL package. I have 19 HD channels and I don't think Directv can match that anywhere!

satellite is much better but apartment complexes wont let you set up a satellite antenna. i think they are in bed with the local cable companies, so to speak. plus satellite is much cheaper.

FCC ruled years ago that condos and apartment buildings cannot refuse the instalation of satellite dishes.
As for quality of picture satellite wins as for customer service.. well they still win over Comcast but DirecTv is slipping because of the maze of extentions needed to reach a live operator.