For many years, people who wanted cable TV only had one source, the old cable television company. In the mid 90’s, satellite TV companies Dish Network and DIRECTV were finally able to break the cable monopoly. Now in many areas, consumers have a third option, as Verizon and AT&T have rolled out new technology allowing cable TV service to be delivered through the phone network. In this article, we will compare two of these relative newcomers:
Dish Network vs. AT&T U-verse
Dish Network and AT&T have a bit of history, as in the past they used to be business partners. AT&T used to sell Dish Network satellite TV until early 2009. So you might wonder, why did AT&T sell Dish Network and now DIRECTV service when they have their video service?
The reason for this is because U-verse is still in the early stages of deployment. AT&T cable packages are introduced slowly as the needed technology is deployed from city to city. Plenty of red tape must be overcome by AT&T in applying for a cable TV franchise for every area they intend to serve with U-verse.
This of course is the first major difference when comparing U-verse vs Dish Network. AT&T uses their existing network of copper lines to deliver U-verse, while DISH Network of course installs a small satellite dish unit to deliver content. AT&T does have fiber optic lines going to the neighborhoods it that have U-verse, then the signal travels the rest of the way to each hope on copper pairs. Many are under the impression that U-verse uses a satellite dish, but this is not the case.
If you are concerned about reliability, you should be fine with both U-verse and Dish Network. Satellite TV has been around now for more than 15 years, and usually only goes out during very intense storms. With AT&T U-verse, the issues usually only come up during installation. Once the U-verse installer has you up and running, you shouldn’t have any significant downtime.
So how do Dish Network and U-verse compare when it comes to pricing and programming options? Of course AT&T wants you to buy more than one product when you are buying their U-verse TV option, so if you are in the market for high speed internet or home phone service it is a good idea to price out the U-verse bundle options. AT&T U-verse now offers a triple play package which also combines your AT&T wireless service with your TV and internet service, so you don’t have to have a home phone line if you don’t need or want it.
There was a small U-verse price increase in February 2009, so these prices reflect the current pricing for just U-verse TV service with one receiver.
The U-verse Family and the U100 packages are both quoted at $49 per month. This is a $5 increase over the price in 2008 which was $44 per month. The U-verse family package has 70 channels, and the U100 has 130 channels, so why you would select the U-family package at the same price is quite a mystery. The U-100 package is comparable to the Dish Network Classic Bronze 100 package, which has around a hundred channels total, and regularly priced at $39.99 per month.
The AT&T U-200 package is next up, and has up to 230 channels of programming depending on your area. Currently priced at $64 per month, the U-200 increased $5 from last years price of $59 per month. Here you will find all of the major cable channels, but no premium movie networks. There is also a U-200 Latino package which adds quite a bit of Spanish language programming for an extra $10 per month. The comparable Dish Network package would be the Classic Silver 200, which has in the area of 200 all digital video and audio channels. The Classic Silver 200 is regularly priced at $52.99 per month.
The next offer from U-verse is the AT&T U-300 bundle for $79 per month. Here you will basically find the U-200 package with the AT&T Movie package added on to bring the channel count up to nearly 300 networks. The movie package contains 31 commercial free feeds from Starz, Showtime, Encore and Flix. You won’t get HBO or Cinemax channels here though. The closest comparision to this from Dish Network is probably the Classic Gold 250 package which is offered at $62.99 per month, though is does not contain the premium movie channels like the U-300. With Dish Network, you can add on premium movie channel feeds and get discounts based on the number of channels you want. For example, you can get two premiums for $22 a month, or three premiums for $31 per month.
Finally, we come to the all inclusive packages offered by U-verse and Dish Network. The U-450 offers nearly 400 channels for $109 per month on a stand alone basis. In addition to all of the channels in the U300 package, the U-450 adds several HBO and Cinemax channels. It also adds the Sports pack, which carries dozens of regional sports networks from around the country. The U-450 compares to the Dish Network America’s Everything Pack, which has over 280 channels of service for $102.98 per month. This Dish Network package does include several feeds of the premium movie channels like HBO and Showtime.
Now if you are a big sports fan, there may be some things to factor in when comparing Dish TV vs U-verse. While both Dish Network and U-verse carry the main sports channels like ESPN and Fox Sports, they aren’t equal when it comes to premium sports packages. Both are locked out of the NFL Sunday Ticket package which is only on DIRECTV. But when it comes to the NBA League Pass or the NHL Center Ice packages, you won’t find them on U-verse yet. Dish Network does offer both of these packages, which currently run in the area of $200 per season. ESPN Gameplan is available through both Dish Network and Uverse.
Now when it comes to promotional deals, you should closely compare Dish Network vs AT&T U-verse and see what they are willing to offer you. Currently, both Dish Network and U-verse offer free installation, so you don’t have to worry about having a big upfront cost with either service. They also will throw in equipment such as the U-verse Total Home DVR or the Dish Network ViP 722 DVR. These advanced DVR devices allow you to watch and record television programming on your terms, and save you plenty of time as you can skip through commercials on programs already recorded. Keep in mind, you do have to pay additional monthly service fees for DVR service with Dish Network, which is about $6 per month. AT&T includes DVR service for the first unit in the package price.
U-verse and Dish Network do offer other deals though to entice you to subscribe. AT&T has been big on their “cash back” offers with U-verse, which can net you anywhere from $50 to $250 back when you subscribe as a new customer. One thing U-verse has been pushing is the online ordering process, so if you decide to go with U-verse, you can usually get a bigger check back in the mail by ordering U-verse service online. Dish Network deals currently offer a monthly discount on programming during the first year of service, which is $15 off of any programming package except for the DishFamily package. So basically you will save $180 during the first year with Dish Network, while you will get a nice check within a few months if you go with AT&T U-verse.
If you are looking for lots of high definition content, you really can’t go wrong with either Dish Network or AT&T U-verse. Right now, Dish Network offers 140 national HD channels, though they do count pay per view HD in there so it is a bit inflated. AT&T HD currently offers more than 110 channels in almost all areas that have U-verse. One thing you will find is that if you are a premium movie channel fan, U-verse has quite a few movie channels in HD than are not yet deployed by Dish Network HD. As far as cost goes, right now Dish Network and U-verse charge a $10 fee for access to HD channel content. The only exception to this is the U-450 package, which currently includes HD access in the package price. Dish Network Turbo HD used to be an option for those who only wanted HD content, but it looks like this has been eliminated for new customers.
Both U-verse and Dish Network offer DVR service, though depending on your situation you may want to go with one company over another. AT&T U-verse offers a fairly unique device called the Total Home DVR. Basically, the unit allows you to move from room to room and still watch the content saved on your DVR device. The AT&T DVR also allows you to record up to four shows at one time, while with Dish Network you can only save two shows at a time on the ViP 722 DVR. Dish Network’s DVR does offer Duo DVR service, which allow you to save and watch content on two different TV’s in your home. As far as storage capacity goes, the AT&T DVR can hold up to 133 hours of SD content or 37 hours of HD programming. The Dish Network ViP 722 holds 350 hours of SD or 55 hours of HD content. U-verse does have an offer for their higher end customers that promises a DVR with larger capacity. Customers subscribing to the U450 can get 233 hours SD/65 hours high definition DVR device from AT&T.
Remember when considering Dish Network vs U-verse your personal situation. Research each company and get a price quote based on the number of HDTV’s and regular TV’s you want hooked up. Additional charges will apply based on the number of receivers needed, so keep that in mind when reviewing the prices here. For addition information, we invite you to read our AT&T U-verse review, and our collection of Dish Network articles.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
But now IP Television is also coming. What do you think about that ?
People are saying with this technology dish or cable TV will be history and no one would like to use it.
Any thought on this.
I am a customer of dish network, and was an AT&T customer until they sold it. Yes, as explained to me by AT&T, U-verse is now the service they provide.
Dish network as a service is fair to good, but the installation by their contractor was a nightmare!
Dish Network has been great for us. We previously had DirectTV and they were a nightmare. Between the triple charging and customer service, I would never recommend DirectTV.
Dish has the best HD channels, quantity and quality-wise.
I wish they were a little cheaper on their package prices. But hey, at least they are reliable and tech support has been very helpful.