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Cable vs Dish TV satellite (Direct TV and Dish Network): Which is better?

Once upon a time, before cable and Dish TV satellite, there was free

TV. Turn on the tube and there they were, free channels. All you needed was an antenna. Too easy right?

Well there were a few issues. First there were only about 4 real channels. Not much for variety. Second, if you lived out of the line of sight of the broadcast station, or in a rural area miles away, you could forget about a decent picture.

So consumers wanted more and the fight was on... cable vs Dish TV satellite.

An antenna can't give you CNN, MTV, ESPN, and other direct to

customer channels. So if you want such luxuries you will have to choose between cable and satellite. Here's a guide to help make that choice.

Dish TV satellite has been rated better than cable in value for the money and picture quality consistently for the last few years. There have also been higher ratings in customer service and satellite has had fewer price increases in the same time frame.

But that doesn't mean satellite TV is good for everybody. There are several factors to consider, such as, do you have an unobstructed view of the southern horizon, maybe cable's coverage of local access channels is a factor, or maybe you just don't want a satellite dish on your roof.

A Closer Look at Cable vs Dish TV satellite

Here are some other things you might want to consider to make your choice of cable or satellite more clear:

What do you want as far as TV programming and at what level of quality Although cable and dish satellite offer basically the same channels, there are some things to consider when it comes to programming.

LOCAL CHANNELS: Dish Network and Direct TV have an ever expanding list of cities where local channels are offered, so there's a good chance you can get them. But even with that, you still have to consider the local community access, or public access channels, probably available on cable.

HIGH DEFINITION (HDTV): Cable is going to deliver most of the major channels and broadcast that are delivered in HD, vs Direct TV and Dish Network, as of writing, only have CBS broadcast available in HDTV. To get the rest of the major networks in HD you would have to purchase an antenna from the dish TV satellite provider and pick them up over-the-air.

Although a HD satellite receiver used in conjunction with the off-air antenna option will allow you to integrate the off-air HD channels into the regular channel line up. You just have to deal with something else up on your roof. Many cable companies and both satellite providers also carry some direct-to-customer networks in HD like ESPN, HBO, TNT, and Showtime.

Both dish satellite companies also offer special HD channels like HD Net which is a 24 hour network that provides live sports, boxing, drama series, and news in HDTV. HD Movies delivers 24 hours of uncut movies in HDTV.

The increasing demand and imminent growth of HDTV also brought a new provider into the arena of dish TV satellite -- VOOM, which gives you full service HDTV. With VOOM you will basically have every high definition channel and broadcast out there available to you. But the most in HD channels isn't the only factor to consider, so you might want to read my article on VOOM.

MOVIES: You would have to go with digital cable to complete with satellite TV's access to movies. Analog cable and especially over-the-air don't come close. With satellite and digital cable you get pay networks, such as HBO and Showtime in all their glory (HBO2, Showtime Too, HBO East, Showtime East, and so on and so on).

Digital cable and satellite also offer video-on-demand, or pay per view, which allows you to purchase movies for a one-time fee directly from the interactive guide. The fee is usually comparable to the price of renting a movie and the movie selection is too.

SPORTS: With over-the-air, your sports experience is going to be relegated to weekends and major sport championships (Super Bowl, World Series, etc.). If you are the 24-7 sports type you at least have to spring for analog cable, which would included ESPN and a few other all-sport networks. Step up to digital cable or dish TV satellite and you have subscription sports packages such as NBA League Pass, NHL Center Ice, which allow you to purchase every league game in the season. Note though that Direct TV has exclusive rights to the NFL package, NFL Sunday Ticket.

Can you, or do even want to, put a satellite dish on your roof. Since satellite availability is limited your capability to mount a satellite dish somewhere on your home pointed towards the southern sky, there are several obstacles that could hamper you ability to get satellite TV. Any abundance of trees or other similar interference on the southern side of your home will prevent you from receiving a clear signal from the satellites. Make sure you check before you order because if you get the equipment and the tech comes out to install and the southern sky is blocked, you will have to pay to send it all back.

Satellite dishes also can be somewhat of an eye sore, so many apartment buildings and housing districts have placed restrictions on the placement of dishes, some have just outright banned them. Be sure to check with your landlord or neighborhood association to be see if you can even mount a satellite dish where you would need to.

Know the difference in basic equipment requirements. Cable probably won't require you to purchase any additional equipment, vs if you subscribe to digital cable you will need to rent a digital cable box which will probably require you to pay a few extra bucks a month. With dish TV satellite however you will need a dish and a receiver setup to work with your programming choices. You can purchase hardware directly from the service provider or from an authorized dealer.

The basics consist of a dish, receiver, and remote -- cost: about $100. But in most case there will be a special of some kind offering free equipment and free setup. Direct TV will require a one your commitment in exchange, but Dish Network recently started offering setups with no contract requirements.

Will you need service in multiple rooms. Cable has a small one up on satellite in that you don't need a converter box in every room, unless you subscribed to digital cable and want to take advantage of extras on every set. With satellite a receiver, you can only display one channel at a time so, unless you have additional receivers, every TV connected will show the same channel.

Additional receivers are usually about $50 apiece, with a $5 per month charge for all but the first. But just as in the case with installation, there are always deals offering anywhere from 2-4 room setups with the receivers free.

HDTV is going to cost you with satellite. You won't have to pay anything extra with a digital cable subscription to receive high definition programming, other than a HD cable box. And with many local broadcast going from analog to digital, over-the-air reception is chic these days.

If broadcast stations in your area are delivering digitally, you'll have access to the high quality picture and sound of HD for the very attractive price of FREE. As for dish TV satellite you will need a special dish and receiver to decode the HD from the satellite signal. This ensemble can cost upwards to $450 or so, and no specials here.

You may also want to think about if you want your Internet service combined with TV service on the same bill. Advantage here... cable. Most cable companies nowadays are offering high speed Internet via cable modem.

Cost to you? About $40, which is right in line with the other major form of high speed DSL, which is served through phone lines.

Satellite high speed is about half the speed of typical cable or DSL (although still 5-7 times faster than dial-in) and equipment can cost you up to $600 and about $60-$70 a month.

Do you want the advantage of DVR. A Digital Video Recorder gives you the ability to record your favorite shows like a VCR, without the tapes. The DVR stores recorded material on a hard drive, like the one in a computer. And that's not the half of it, together with the on screen guides you can record any show, even whole seasons, whenever they are showing.

You can record by subject, actor names, or genre, even pausing live TV is possible. Direct TV teamed up with TiVo to bring TiVo Direct TV DVR to their customers. Dish Network decided to go it alone and do everything in house, they have several TiVo-comparable DVR satellite receivers and service.

Many cable companies have also gotten in on the DVR craze and have DVR-equipped cable boxes, but the cable boxes are usually lacking some of the advanced functionality of the TiVo service from Direct TV and TiVo-like service of Dish Network.

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Compare Direct TV and Dish Network vs Cable
I took it upon myself to compare Direct TV and Dish Network vs cable to find out which is best once and for all.