Satellite Of Love?

The cable versus satellite debate continues.

Tim from Colorado responds to concerns about the reception issues with the dish:

I just read your follow up post about SatTV. I don't know what the readers were doing wrong, but I've never had wind knock out my service, and on our first house I bought and installed all of our equipment myself. We get our share of wind too; we'll have many days in the spring and fall where winds approach 70 mph. I had a grill and a propane smoker blow off our deck one day. But I still had TV service.

The only way the wind could effect your reception is if your dish mount were not tight enough. And even at that, aligning a dish is not difficult provided you have relatively good access to it. With a compass and internet access you can determine the proper compass heading for your dish. The website will also tell you the approximate angle from the horizon, and the mount has a small protractor etched on the side. The box typically will have a screen with a signal strength meter. After setting the approximate heading and elevation on the dish, with you on a ladder with a cell phone and your buddy on his cell in the family room watching the TV screen, you could get the dish lined up in a few seconds.

Then you just take out your sexton and astronomy charts, shoot a couple of azimuths and you're set. Easy.

When I hear the cable company pitch that their system is better because weather affects SatTV, I say pish. I lose service twice, maybe three times a year, and only for as long as it takes me to go outside and brush off the dish.

And the other readers are right: hockey in HD makes you wonder why you never lost your eyesight watching it on conventional TV.

Forget about hockey in HD, I want my "Shark Swarm" in full HD glory.

Justin says that if you have reception problems, it means you're gonna need a bigger dish:

I saw the list of people who generally liked Satellite but were not fans of the fading due to winds and bad weather.

One suggestion if you'd like to go this route: get a bigger dish. Finding a dish that is about 30" in size will seriously reduce rain/snow fade in comparison to those 18-24 inch dishes that companies give you. Yes, it's bigger and possibly an eyesore for some. However, taking a little bit to install on your own so you don't have to check the forecast before you watch a game is well worth the hassle. You can find them for about $50 or cheaper at some local satellite stores or online.

It would tempting to go all out and get a friggin' huge dish that makes your house look like an NSA listening post just to keep the neighbors wondering what you're really up to. Not sure if the wife would be real crazy about it though.

Rex advises staying old school:

I'm a cable bigot, an early adopter from 1978. There was only HBO and a handful of channels. No CNN. No ESPN. No hockey. No MTV. It was cool!

I have nothing against satellite but once you're used to 10+ mbps download internet speeds, DSL seems out of the question. Plus, we like On Demand.

The DSL versus cable internet speed factor is one that weighs heavily in my considerations.

JB says that no matter what, DVR is a must:

You have to get DVR.

It's the best Jerry, the best.

I go through movie channels and see what's on 3-4 days at a time in like 10 minutes. I "tape" anything that looks remotely interesting and then watch it at my convenience.

That sounds great in theory, but the last thing I need right now is another reason not to get enough sleep.