DirecTV HDTV (1 Viewer)

[Mark*L]

Is the package that DirecTV has in HDTV worth the money thatyou have to fork over? Remember: The price of the tuner and then the $11 a month they want for the package...

 

[Tino]

Yes.

 

[JeremyFr]

Depends on where you live honestly.

For instance here in the Seattle area you can get quite a few more channels of HD through Comcast than you can DirectTV many of which will never be available on DirectTV like the Locals and INHD1 & INHD2.

Unfortunately satellite is starting to fall behind the Cableco's for HD content since they dont have the bandwidth to offer local affiliates or really much of any HD content and if & when they do add the bandwidth to be able to they still dont have as much sway as the larger Cableco's to get the channels as quickly.

Your options definately depend on the area/city you're in as well as what services/companies are available to you. Here in Seattle is pretty cut and dry there is no comparison other area's are not as fortunate.

Jeremy

 

[Lew Crippen]

I would not pay for the tuner just for the HD content on DirecTV. But as those tuners also tune in the OTA telecasts, it is worth getting the tuner.

 

[Steve Schaffer]

What Jeremy said.

As a contrast to Seattle, I'm in Fresno where only 2 local ota stations are doing HD (ABC and NBC), although I do receive a total of 9 or 10 local SD digital channels. I get the 4 channels included in the DirecTv package plus HBO and Showtime HD. So with a DirecTV box, oval dish, and roof antenna for OTA I can get a total of 8 channels that broadcast in HD, 3 of which do HD 24/7.

Comcast here offers only one of the 2 local HD channels, none of the SD local digital channels, plus HBO, Showtime, and INHD, for a total of 4 available HD channels, only one of which is HD all the time. They do not yet offer HDNet, HDNet Movies, Discovery HD, or ESPNHD, all of which are in the DirecTV HD pack.

Comcast does a much better job in larger markets, of course, and in my opinion should be lauded for doing so much HD in big towns, but their offerings in the hinterlands are a joke.