Which is a Better Choice, Cable or Satellite TV?
You may very well be unclear about which service makes the most sense for your home. It’s no wonder! While clever marketing campaigns make satellite seem like the best choice for entertainment, there are some things consumers should know. Following are some of the biggest misconceptions, inaccuracies and old wives tales clouding the TV picture. With this information, Cox Communications aims to clear up the static.
With digital cable, it’s easy to get a lot of programming choices and more value for your money! Cox Digital Cable® provides access to up to 260 channels of TV and music. Plus, you’ll have access to On Demand, a library of thousands of movies and programs, many free – available at the touch of a button. Satellite companies often lure subscribers by boasting hundreds more channels than cable, which is untrue when compared to digital cable. Also, their number-of-channel-claims do not always reflect the programming that is actually available to any individual household. Sometimes their claims indicate the total number of channels delivered to every city nationwide – inclusive of local broadcast stations that differ by city. So don’t believe the hype. Not only does Cox Digital Cable give you a vast amount of channel selections, but many more viewing options beyond standard channels with On Demand!
Satellite providers may boast large numbers of HD channels but the numbers they are touting are misleading. Their HD channel counts include part time channels with only a few hours a week of HD programs, multiple channels tied to subscription sports packages, and alternate time zone feeds of premium channels like HBO. Plus, you’ll pay a lot more money every month to get the HD feeds offered as part of a sports package or premium subscription – and that’s on top of the monthly fee required for cable channels like ESPN HD and TNT HD. Trust Cox to give you HD channels at no additional programming charge – including those channels for which you’d pay extra with satellite.*
Cox offers a strong line-up of programming for the true sports fan including more than 400 football games, both NFL and college, more than 200 NBA games and more than 300 Major League Baseball games – just to name a few! Plus Cox offers some of your favorite match-ups in Hi Def on networks like ESPN HD, ESPNII HD, TNT HD and local broadcast stations. Plus you can check out the best highlights with On Demand like NFL Network on Demand including NFL Replay – showing extended highlights of each and every NFL game during the season! Cox also offers sports packages like MLB Extra Innings, NBA League Pass or ESPN Game Plan, giving you access to even more games of your favorite sports.
On average, Cox customers pay less per month for cable service than do DirecTV or Dish Network subscribers for satellite service. Price comparisons often made by satellite companies strive to paint the picture that their service is less expensive often using bare bones satellite packages on only one TV set. The harsh reality of satellite is that there are extra costs tied to things like equipment that’s required for every single extra TV, multiple dishes to receive certain channels, monthly HD programming fees and repair fees for things for which Cox does not typically charge.
On Demand service from cable and satellite are not the same. Satellite either forces On Demand content onto customers’ Digital Video Recorders (DVRs), filling up valuable hard drive space, or delivers the content via an Internet connection using an Ethernet port with a router to only select types of satellite receivers with such a connection. (If it is too far, you must also get a connection kit.) In contrast, no DVR or Internet connection is needed to receive On Demand service from Cox. On Demand from Cox is available to all digital cable subscribers with any digital set top receiver and offers thousands of movies and shows, with most available for FREE. And with Cox , you have access to the entire On Demand library of movies, shows and videos in an instant. Trust Cox to give you On Demand at its best!
It's ironic that satellite companies try to paint the picture that cable companies are the only ones raising prices. Both satellite companies have raised rates this year with DirecTV increasing prices by over 10 percent on some packages. Plus both DirecTV and Dish Network have raised prices every year for the last 5 years. So don’t believe the hype. Satellite companies raise prices and have done so quite consistently!
According to satellite subscribers, their TV picture is subject to interference from rain, snow, wind or even when trees grow to obscure the view of the satellite and prevent the signal from reaching their TVs. And while satellite companies often tout their 100 percent digital quality picture advantage over cable, they can’t say that about Cox! Having invested heavily in our digital fiber-optic network, Cox Digital Cable now has the advantage of 100 percent digital picture on your favorite channels. And that fiber optic network means reliability you can count on, even in the worst of weather – reliability backed by service technicians that are a single call away and located in your neighborhood. Cox will continue to upgrade our network to meet the increasing needs of more HD channels, On Demand and new interactive features.
Because satellite TV is broadcast nationally, you don’t get the local weather updates around the clock on the national 24-hour weather channel. Many consumers aren’t aware of that fact because they see the channel listed on the satellite TV channel line-up. What they don’t understand is that satellite subscribers cannot receive these local forecasts that are available to Cox customers.
Installation of satellite dishes can be tricky, time consuming, dirty and frustrating. For instance, do you know how to bolt a dish to your roof? And do you know where your transponder is? A satellite dish must point to a precise area to receive its signal, which limits the number of places that dishes can be installed and can lead to conspicuous dishes in your yard, or on your roof or deck. Once you locate that one spot for receiving the signal – which must face southwest and not have any trees, buildings or other items in its way – the real fun begins. Spend a day climbing up onto your roof with dish in tow and running wires through your home to the TV set, which must be within several feet of a phone outlet for the satellite receiver. And did you know you that a phone line connection is required on any TV to order pay-per-view (PPV) or use your DVR? Whether you self install or opt for professional installation, why bother with those ugly dishes? Cox, on the other hand, makes it easy… whether it's an easy self-install or done by a professional, no one will have to wield a wrench, climb a ladder to reach the roof, fuss with a drill or search fruitlessly for that darn transponder. And there’s no hassling with phone lines to enjoy On Demand, PPV or your DVR.
For the most part, satellite technology is limited to delivering one-way video services and cannot offer high-speed Internet, phone service or video-on-demand. When they do attempt to offer additional services, mimicking the bundle of services available from Cox, they must rely on another company to deliver those services to your home – like the phone company. Cox is a true one-stop shop for all of your communications and entertainment needs and offers great savings when you bundle services like digital cable, high speed Internet and telephone.
While satellite companies want you to believe their service is the best, most reliable way to get entertainment and communications, smart consumers know it's all a bunch of hype. With a clear picture of the landscape, you can see that digital cable is a sharper choice and Cox is your true trusted provider of communications and entertainment services.
Names and logos of featured programmers, DirecTV, Dish Network and program services are the property of their respective owners. *Separate monthly programming fees are charged in Cox Orange County/Palos Verdes service areas only for HD Theater, HDNet, and HDNet Movies.
