uVerse vs. Direct TV

marddin · Jul 2, 2012

I normally lurk in the MBP forum but I had a few questions and wanted to get some outside opinions.

I currently have uVerse. While the service is great, the price is not. I signed up for an introductory promotion and was paying around $120 for u300 and 12mbps internet. It was great. As soon as the promotion ended (6months) they charged me out the ass. I had a bill for $190. I called uVerse and expressed my concern. I asked for a similar promotion or a discounted rate seeing as how I paid on time every month and was told by the salesman an equal/similar promotion. They only offered me the basic retention policy discount which was some percentage I can't remember. I ended up dropping down to u200 and keeping the same internet speed. I still pay $170 a month. My 3 bedroom home electricity bill in the texas heat is cheaper than my uverse bill. I am not happy.

I am looking into Direct TV and keeping uVerse internet.

Direct TV seems to have great prices for their channel packages. As well as free NFL Sunday ticket for the first year. Now Direct TV does require a 2 year contract as well as a heft upgrade charge for HD DVR Receivers. And lastly, the dreaded bad weather aspect which I have never experienced.

How is everyone's experience with bad weather (strong winds/strong rain) and Direct TV's service?

Does anyone have any suggestions as to lowering my uVerse bill?

Any other comments/criticism/suggestions will be much appreciated. Thanks.

Martin.

WoodNUFC · Jul 2, 2012

marddin said:
How is everyone's experience with bad weather (strong winds/strong rain) and Direct TV's service?

My parents had DirecTV for over 10 years and recently switched to Dish. DirecTV worked great for us. We had fewer outages due to weather than we did with Time Warner. It would really have to be raining hard for the signal to drop. Really the service worked very very well. It just got to the point where it was too expensive to keep. (Not sure if they tried calling to lower their bill or not.)

They did recently switch to Dish because of price. They had a massive storm this weekend and signal never dropped. (Just wanted to throw that out there as well.)

marddin · Jul 2, 2012

WoodNUFC said:
My parents had DirecTV for over 10 years and recently switched to Dish. DirecTV worked great for us. We had fewer outages due to weather than we did with Time Warner. It would really have to be raining hard for the signal to drop. Really the service worked very very well. It just got to the point where it was too expensive to keep. (Not sure if they tried calling to lower their bill or not.)

They did recently switch to Dish because of price. They had a massive storm this weekend and signal never dropped. (Just wanted to throw that out there as well.)

Thanks for your input

neiltc13 · Jul 2, 2012

Can you not get free TV where you live?

In the UK you get about 30 channels for free through an aerial on your house with no subscription fees at all.

If you put up a satellite dish you can get about 100 channels for free as well.

Lots of the free channels are very high quality - BBC, ITV etc.

I think the only reason a lot of people here subscribe to pay TV is because they want to watch sports. And then it gets very expensive.

416049 · Jul 2, 2012

neiltc13 said:
Can you not get free TV where you live?

In the UK you get about 30 channels for free through an aerial on your house with no subscription fees at all.

If you put up a satellite dish you can get about 100 channels for free as well.

Lots of the free channels are very high quality - BBC, ITV etc.

I think the only reason a lot of people here subscribe to pay TV is because they want to watch sports. And then it gets very expensive.

But doesn't BBC and ITV stream major things though?? Like the European Cup etc.?

in regards to sport or soccer in this case

neiltc13 · Jul 2, 2012

maril1111 said:
But doesn't BBC and ITV stream major things though?? Like the European Cup etc.? in regards to sport or soccer in this case

Yes but they don't show FA Premier League, Ryder Cup golf, lots of cricket and half of the F1 races though.

Rodimus Prime · Jul 2, 2012

That is insane. My parents have 3 TVs same speed and HD and the phone and they are paying like $150ish and we are on U200. Mind you they are grandfathered in and do not have to pay for the extra 2 boxes but still.

Also Uverse is worlds better than Crapcast which I sadly am having to go with.

marddin · Jul 2, 2012

Rodimus Prime said:
That is insane. My parents have 3 TVs same speed and HD and the phone and they are paying like $150ish and we are on U200. Mind you they are grandfathered in and do not have to pay for the extra 2 boxes but still.

Also Uverse is worlds better than Crapcast which I sadly am having to go with.

I came to Uverse from comcast, it was horrid. And to your first comment. Yes it is very insane. I have called many times trying to get it bumped down or something but they are the worst with working with you.

Rodimus Prime · Jul 2, 2012

marddin said:
I came to Uverse from comcast, it was horrid. And to your first comment. Yes it is very insane. I have called many times trying to get it bumped down or something but they are the worst with working with you.

Must be because I was an early adaptor like my parents were so we got pretty well grandfather in at the time we both had a lot of choices in the area.
My parents have crapcast, Dish, and Uverse and for internet there are even more. Sadly where I am moving to for hi speed internet there is Comcast, Comcast oh and Comcast.
Because of that I am going to get internet only from them and saw screw the rest.

Do you have any other packages added on.

As I said my parents have the same speed as you, Uverse 200, and phone and they pay around 150ish a month.
It should be 120-130+ what ever the phone part is what they pay.

My bill was from 3 years ago and it was 190 but that included my cell with Uverse.

marddin · Jul 3, 2012

Anybody else have any input?

adk · Jul 3, 2012

I had DirecTV for about 3 years while living in the midwest. I can remember one or two occasions where a severe storm interfered with the signal over those years. I had to melt ice and snow off of the dish once to make it work, but I don't think that will be a problem in Texas.

mscriv · Jul 3, 2012

I'm a Uverse user in the DFW and have been ever since it became available in my area (Grand Prairie). Like Rodimus, I have a grandfathered plan where I don't pay for extra boxes. Our package is the U200 with HD and a DVR with 18mbps internet speed. We have a second box for the bedroom, but just the one DVR in the living room. My current bill is around $120 -$130 a month. It breaks down like this:

U200 - $72
HD - $10
Internet Max Plus - $55

For discounts I have:
U200 Promo offer - $10 credit each month
Max Plus internet offer - $5 credit each month

So my total bill is $142 minus $15 in credit for a subtotal of $127 + taxes & fees.

I consistently call in and ask for promotions and discounts (every 3-4 months). I let them know about competing offers from their competitors and let them know that if the price gets too high that I will be forced to change providers due to my family's budget. This has worked thus far and the customer service I have gotten has been very good. When/if the phone communication stops working then I will go into a local corporate store and speak to a manager. I also consistently get free HBO and other Movie packages for 3-6 months at a time by asking about promotions.

Keep a detailed communication log for all of your interaction with them. This should include the name of the rep you spoke with, the purpose of your call, what they offered you in detail, and any other pertinent information regarding the circumstances at hand. Often this log has saved me when there has been a problem or I have had to call back.

You should also call to complain any time your service is interrupted or there is a problem with your equipment. Ask for a credit on your bill due to the problem and you will usually get one, at least I do.

The whole model of giving new customers big discounts while jacking up the prices on your faithful and longtime customers is just ridiculous. I'm never rude or mean to people on the phone. I'm just matter of fact and let them know what it will take to keep me as a happily paying customer.

marddin · Jul 5, 2012

mscriv said:
I'm a Uverse user in the DFW and have been ever since it became available in my area (Grand Prairie). Like Rodimus, I have a grandfathered plan where I don't pay for extra boxes. Our package is the U200 with HD and a DVR with 18mbps internet speed. We have a second box for the bedroom, but just the one DVR in the living room. My current bill is around $120 -$130 a month. It breaks down like this:

U200 - $72
HD - $10
Internet Max Plus - $55

For discounts I have:
U200 Promo offer - $10 credit each month
Max Plus internet offer - $5 credit each month

So my total bill is $142 minus $15 in credit for a subtotal of $127 + taxes & fees.

I consistently call in and ask for promotions and discounts (every 3-4 months0. I let them know about competing offers from their competitors and let them know that if the price gets too high that I will be forced to change providers due to my family's budget. This has worked thus far and the customer service I have gotten has been very good. When/if the phone communication stops working then I will go into a local corporate store and speak to a manager. I also consistently get free HBO and other Movie packages for 3-6 months at a time by asking about promotions.

Keep a detailed communication log for all of your interaction with them. This should include the name of the rep you spoke with, the purpose of your call, what they offered you in detail, and any other pertinent information regarding the circumstances at hand. Often this log has saved me when there has been a problem or I have had to call back.

You should also call to complain any time your service is interrupted or there is a problem with your equipment. Ask for a credit on your bill due to the problem and you will usually get one, at least I do.

The whole model of giving new customers big discounts while jacking up the prices on your faithful and longtime customers is just ridiculous. I'm never rude or mean to people on the phone. I'm just matter of fact and let them know what it will take to keep me as a happily paying customer.

Wise, wise words. Thank you. I will definitely try this after searching for different providers prices.

mentaluproar · Jul 8, 2012

My mother has Uverse and my sister has directTV. They both deliver much better picture quality than time warner, and the boxes are smaller, faster to boot, more responsive, and very intuitive. They are great services.

There is one thing I despise about DirectTV: the proliferation of those damn dishes all over the place. Go with Uverse.

Roller · Jul 9, 2012

I had DirecTV for eight years. Picture quality was great, but the signal dropped during heavy rainstorms, often just when I most wanted to watch the local weather forecast. Switched to U-verse a couple of years ago for TV and Internet. It's been great so far. We've even kept our Internet access during power outages because the gateway box comes with a backup power supply.

lysdexia · Feb 23, 2013

marddin said:
I normally lurk in the MBP forum but I had a few questions and wanted to get some outside opinions.

I currently have uVerse. While the service is great, the price is not. I signed up for an introductory promotion and was paying around $120 for u300 and 12mbps internet. It was great. As soon as the promotion ended (6months) they charged me out the ass. I had a bill for $190. I called uVerse and expressed my concern. I asked for a similar promotion or a discounted rate seeing as how I paid on time every month and was told by the salesman an equal/similar promotion. They only offered me the basic retention policy discount which was some percentage I can't remember. I ended up dropping down to u200 and keeping the same internet speed. I still pay $170 a month. My 3 bedroom home electricity bill in the texas heat is cheaper than my uverse bill. I am not happy.

I am looking into Direct TV and keeping uVerse internet.

Direct TV seems to have great prices for their channel packages. As well as free NFL Sunday ticket for the first year. Now Direct TV does require a 2 year contract as well as a heft upgrade charge for HD DVR Receivers. And lastly, the dreaded bad weather aspect which I have never experienced.

How is everyone's experience with bad weather (strong winds/strong rain) and Direct TV's service?

Does anyone have any suggestions as to lowering my uVerse bill?

Any other comments/criticism/suggestions will be much appreciated. Thanks.

Martin.

There is no uVerse; the price was not; there are no u300 or mbps; there is no Direct TV or "seems..their"; DirecTV's prices seem smaller, not great, but without the compulsory fees.

During two years of U-verse, the gateway has dropped TV service several times at 2–20+ minutes, a few channels (SD) were often choppy, and 2 or 3 times one to a few channels would black out for hours, and AT&T had no such records of these.

tigres · Feb 23, 2013

I have direct TV and uverse for Internet.

I pay 83.00 for a really old package (10+years) I think 200 channels- mostly garbage. Uverse I have the highest they offer @24mg.

As far as direct TV is concerned, I may have a brief outage 1 time every year and a half. The customer service is always top rate to be honest. I call one w a year when discounts fall off, tell them I want to switch to another carrier- and 10 min later I have all the movie channels for 6 months, and other discounts to lower the bill. I have 3 HD boxes, 2 with dvrs.

Uverse I have had for 3 years. I paid 24 a month the first year, now I pay 45.
I thought of lowering it, but the speed/cost difference is minimal over all.

I would vote for direct TV for certain; but uverse is AT&T and we all know how hard it is to get anywhere with them. I remember my install on uverse like yesterday- a disaster. All worked out well on price- but they are so big they can't seem to get out of their own way.

Good luck OP.

Jessica Lares · Feb 23, 2013

Old thread, but I will say that I HATE U-Verse.

They have had to redo our wiring at least three times. That and replace our gateways which seem to always spaz or die on us. And the box is setup at the edge of the curb, so it's very easy for someone to just hit it and disrupt our service. But mostly rain and wind are the biggest issues.

I think they're starting to throttle me now, which is even worse.

Search

Search

uVerse vs. Direct TV

marddin

macrumors 6502

WoodNUFC

macrumors 6502a

marddin

macrumors 6502

neiltc13

macrumors 68040

416049

macrumors 68000

neiltc13

macrumors 68040

Rodimus Prime

macrumors G4

marddin

macrumors 6502

Rodimus Prime

macrumors G4

marddin

macrumors 6502

adk

macrumors 68000

mscriv

macrumors 601

marddin

macrumors 6502

mentaluproar

macrumors 68000

Roller

macrumors 68030

lysdexia

Suspended

tigres

macrumors 601

Jessica Lares

macrumors G3

Our Staff