TV/Internet provider - who do you use?

[woodson_28]

I only ask because I just started looking around and I had never heard of fios before, but was pretty interested in what they had to offer. Unfortunately they do not service my area. My current 12-month plan w/ Comcast is set to expire this month and I've been shopping other providers. I've heard that there are good deals if you call and talk to living people, but so far I haven't found anything great.

Currently I'm shelling out around $95 a month (w/ taxes/fees) for 2 DVR (1 HD) w/ around 200+ channels and a internet speed of 12 mbps. If I stay, I'm looking at around $130 a month.

I went to AT&T to see if they could compete and for the same price ($95) all I could get was: 1 HD/DVR box and a 6 mbps internet speed. That was $95 w/out taxes and fees AND it was a 6 month promotion, after which the price would increase by $25.

I was considering going DirectTV and then trying to get a $20 internet service. Anybody try DirectTV? Any suggestions?

[Neato Torpedo]

I'd be interested to know the answers too...I'm REALLY hating Comcast right now, with this digital conversion, week-long "This channel should be available shortly" messages, loss of HD channels, and constant yet fruitless assurances of being able to watch MLB Network.

"You have HD, but we're offering a FREE digital converter box so you can get more channels if you pay more, of course. We're going to take HD channels away from your current plan without permission and charge $7.95 more a month so you can get said HD channels back!" I don't see how this bait-and-switch BS is legal.

[Metroid]

Color me curious as well. I'd love to give Comcast the finger.

[The Artful Dodger]

I think FiOS is a better value than DirecTV, but I'd say it's the next best thing and U-Verse is quite pricey (here in the L.A. area, you can't get a 6mbps without forking up $120+ a month). The sports packages on DirecTV are more comprehensive than Comcast/Time Warner and you still have a wide selection of HD content. You also get discounts on hardware/equipment upfront.

If you do move to an area with FiOS, well, it's absolutely worth it.

[bigh0rt]

I used to have DirecTV and now have Verizon FiOS. I absolutely love the service and it's cheaper than DirecTV was. I get all the premium sports channels that I didn't get with Cablevision (which I had prior to DirecTV), like NFL Network, MLB Network, etc. and I don't have to have a gigantic HD Dish hanging off my back deck anymore. The only thing that DirecTV has that FiOS doesn't is NFL Sunday Ticket, and the Mix Channels for sports and special events (which were cool as hell, but really not a big deal). My FiOS internet is the fastest I've ever had, even faster than when I lived in Albany and had RoadRunner through Time Warner Cable.

[woodson_28]

Not confident that FIOS will be available for me anytime soon. Here's a quote from their website:

Although Verizon FiOS is consistently expanding to other states, Verizon FiOS may never reach Missouri.

Despite the fact I live in a major city, no FiOS anytime soon.

EDIT: Honestly, I"m a pretty big TV guy. I have a good amount of shows I follow, and probably watch 10+ hours a week, but I'm almost sick of all the "extra" charges they sneak in. "Digital Service charge", HD/DVR Service charge, etc...

I'm considering dumping TV altogether and just going w/ internet only and doing Netflix or something.

[wake]

I'm considering dumping TV altogether and just going w/ internet only and doing Netflix or something.

That's what I do. I'm not a big tv guy anymore so I just have internet and netflix. When I want to watch TV, I stream an instant TV show or movie from netflix to my XBox to watch.

[jfg]

"You have HD, but we're offering a FREE digital converter box so you can get more channels if you pay more, of course. We're going to take HD channels away from your current plan without permission and charge $7.95 more a month so you can get said HD channels back!" I don't see how this bait-and-switch BS is legal.

You were never paying for HD hence you are not receiving them now. Your HDTV was picking up over the air HD channels through Comcast's cable but it was never being sent from Comcast's headend in your area. Comcast's HD channels are on totally different frequencies. Every other company makes you pay for HD at some point, or gives it to you free if you package your services but if you really want to stick it to the man and not pay for HD like the rest of the world just get an A/B switch since you can still plug a cable into your TV and get locals including HD ones (again not provided by Comcast).

[The Artful Dodger]

Not confident that FIOS will be available for me anytime soon. Here's a quote from their website:

Although Verizon FiOS is consistently expanding to other states, Verizon FiOS may never reach Missouri.

Despite the fact I live in a major city, no FiOS anytime soon.

It's still expensive for telcos to expand their FiOS network. Even certain cities/suburbs in a metropolitan area are slow to support FiOS for that reason.

I'm considering dumping TV altogether and just going w/ internet only and doing Netflix or something.

Relying on the Internet as a TV medium can be quite an inconvenience. You can get a nice stream from Netflix which is of decent DVD-like quality, but Hulu doesn't have perpetual storage of complete episodes (agreement with the studios) and buying episodes from iTunes will eventually add up on your computer's storage. It'll be more convenient when we have streaming video from the cloud (instead of from your PC's storage), but we're not quite there yet.

Personally, I don't watch that much TV, aside from sports and the few shows I manage to stumble upon watching. I also watch games abroad which aren't broadcast here Stateside on the Internet. Ultimately, I'd still pay for the convenience of watching whatever I feel like without any aggravation until the Internet becomes a more mature TV broadcasting medium.

[bleach168]

Combo of Directv and Time Warner Cable. I absolutely hate TWC and refuse to buy their TV package deal. The only reason I'm with them is they are the only broadband internet provider in my area.

I'm eagerly anticipating how ESPN will bring live sports to XBOX owners. If it's any good and Google TV is good as well, I may drop Directv.