[quote name='ScottBigGame']Here's my $0.02
This is something I've dealt with in the past myself. I've only been with Comcast, Verizon FIOS and Directv.
1. Comcast is the worst. Customer service is terrible, price is ok , and instillation is fine. This would be a last resort company. They have cable internet and the price is fine, and they are the biggest TV company in my area (Philadelphia suburbs). I would not recommend.
2. Verizon FIOS is good. If you can get it, its very good. The FIOS internet is second to none. The price for the internet is great for the speed you get and the bundled price with that and HD-DVR TV is really good. You won't get any internet close to the speed FIOS will give you. They are very competitive in price. The only problem is that the charge a ridiculous price for each set top box. So if you are a heavy HD and DVR user like myself they want something like $14.99 for each HD-DVR. You can get a multi-room HD-DVR for $17.99 if I recall correctly, but i like having each set top box separate. If I wasn't such a huge NFL fan I would absolutely have FIOS, but be warned their customer service is absolutely awful. Good luck getting anyone that can help you. So make sure when you get your service set up, its exactly the way you want it. Also, FIOS is the smallest "cable" company and they strive to do better. My mom has it and its great.
3. Directv is great. The price, unlike some people said, is great. The picture is great, the channel lineup is great, and unlike any other service I've delt with, the customer service is great. The trick is when you call, you say "cancel service" 2x when prompted and you get transferred to the customer retention dept and they are great.
I have to have Directv because of the NFL Sunday Ticket, but there are other reasons I stick with them. They only charge $4.99 for every set top box. Unlike FIOS you can have 4 HD-DVRs and they're only $4.99 each box. Thats a huge savings. Most other pricing is the same.
I am lucky enough to have a great deal with FIOS internet, but thats a big problem with Directv, they don't have an internet service. That's why I'd say get FIOS. If you were just looking for TV service, Directv is absolutely the best. Price, customer service, channel lineup, picture quality. They are #1.
I've been through what your going through a bunch of times throughout the past 10 years. If you have any specific questions you can PM me. Good luck![/QUOTE]
Great post, thanks. I've already committed to Direct TV, but it's good to hear another person tell me how great they are (especially customer service, that's kind of a dealbreaker for me after dealing with TW), makes me feel better about the switch I made. And yeah, they have a great selection of channels (more than I had before for a basically similar package) plus great quality.
For internet, I decided to keep Time Warner Cable for now. I'm still looking at my options though. You make Verizon Fios sound great, but sadly I looked into it and I don't get them in my area. If I could though, I would switch in a heartbeat, just so I don't have to deal with TW again.
You pay $4.99 per box? I guess things are different in California with Direct TV, I looked at my account and it looks like I'm paying $6 per box (1 HD DVR and 1 regular basic receiver box), but they automatically waive the fee for the first box. You might want to call and ask if you're entitled to that saving too? Don't know how long they keep waiving that fee for, but I hope it's for life, because I like it. I'm also getting a $10 discount for the HD fee with the Choice Xtra package (fee is $10, so the discount pays completely for HD access) every month because I use autopay, which is cool too. I think that's supposed to be for life.
Am I right in saying Comcast is the same company as TW, just named differently for a different region? When I returned my receiver boxes to TW the other day, they both had "Comcast" labels.