Asking about cable vs satellite in the villages
 

New to the villages. Wonder on whether to get cable and how many to pick from ...OR....go the satellite way....direct vs dish? Idea on costs?

Depends where you live. If you are in a newer section Prism from Century Link may be available. I have Prism and the cost is $165.00/mo. for HD, 4 boxes, DVR capable of recording up to 4 shows at once, all premium channels (HBO, Showtime, Cinemax, Flix ) and internet. Tonight internet is 14.37 Mbps download and 1.02 Mbps upload.

We have Century Link and the TV's keep freezing up - we live south of 466A - called and issue fixed yesterday but freezing up today - you may want to check all Companies before signing.

We have Dish - had it up north and brought it with us. About a year ago we upgraded to the Hopper - whole house DVR - and love its features and the quality of the picture. And yes, we loose reception occasionally with some storms. But I keep reading about Prism freezing up for unknown reasons. At least I'm always sure that my reception will return when the storm lightens up.

There were just a couple of long threads about satellite vs cable. Have you done a search for the subject? There are too many to list, but do two searches: one for DirecTV and the other for Comcast. You will get many opinions.

Directv
 

We have Directv in Lynnhaven and it works fine.All services have pluses and minuses.For us Directv had the best programing and costs.$60 a month.(At least for the first 24 months)If you go with Directv,use the refer a friend promotion with my account #71382469.You and I will save $10 a month for 10 months.Directv has the best vacation plan,no charges when the service is on vacation.A good deal for a snowbird.

If you can get bright house it is worth it

I live south of 466A and have Century Link Prism and the service has been very good, no issues with the picture freezing up. I have had Bright House & Direct TV, I no issues with Bright House but with Direct TV the weather was an issue. Price was never a concern for me but it pays to shop around and see what specials they are offering, that's what got me to switch from Direct TV to Century Link.

Brighthouse works best for us
 

We are in Gilchrist, south of 466A and I just tested and got 32.6Mps download and 2.68Mps upload. In addition, we just got back from upnorth and we were able to put all services (TV and Internet) on hold for up to 6 months for a small fee, then no other charges until turn on. In addition, through the Brighthouse Rep, we got a special first month, no increase promise for 2 years and plenty of channels and higher speed internet.

Dish, dish.

Here are a few dumb questions about cable. Thanks in advance.

1) If your home is new, is cable already run to the house or is that done only when you order it?

2) If you switch cable providers, does the new provider lay new cable or is the original used? I assume the latter.

3) Is the cable (used regardless of whether your provider is cable or dish) in a typical cement/block/stucco home run through the attic? The reason I ask is that I want to know how difficult it would be to put cable on a wall that doesn't already have it.

It is really your choice and preference. The only one I have heard a lot of BAD about is Century Link. We had it at a rental house in January and it was horrible. When we moved into our home we went with Brighthouse and like it a lot. Dish & Direct have a lot more recording options if you are a TV nut.

Antenna
 

Antenna and HuluPlus, Netflix, and Amazon Prime works for us. Tom from Villages A/V showed us how to get network channels plus a few others. Cost per month: $0. Then we use HuluPlus, Netflix and Amazon Prime to get TV and movies from all over the world. Cost per month: $25. Did you know that UCF has a channel called Create that's a travel, cooking, home and garden channel? Way better than HGTV. Anyway, my frugal soul is so much happier than it was when we were spending $100 for 700 channels we never ever watched.

magic jack
 

How many have tried AT&T's "Magic Jackk" when going from one service to another and dropping the first service phone coverage. Did you like Magic Jack?:read:

I have used a VoIP service for years and it works well. I wouldn't use it if I didn't have a cell phone, but it is fine if you want to keep a house phone. The one I use is Voipo, which costs $185 (total cost including taxes) for 2 years. Another option is Ooma, and there are many more. You can definitely beat the phone company or a company like Comcast. You just need decent internet service.

We have used Magic Jack for years, and it works just fine for us. We got the one that plugs into the router as opposed to plugging into a computer, as we only use laptops. It cost a little more at first for the flash drive (or dongle, or whatever it's called that goes into the router), but after that it's $39 or $49 a year (hubs and I disagree on which it is). We have a base cordless phone with answering machine, but you can have the messages come to your computer.

Others have said that there are better options than Magic Jack. We just keep it because we're used to it. You should check the ones Gordon listed.

I love having a real-size phone to talk on, with clear sounds. Cell phones drive me nuts. There's a delay, then you both start talking at the same time... oh, but that's off topic.

Absolutely the best idea!!! Just get hooked up for internet, buy a Roku box (about $80) and have an antenna installed in your attic to get all the major network channels for free, and with better reception than cable or a dish. Subscribe to Amazon Prime for loads of content and free 2-day shipping on loads of items (about $99 per year) If you are paying for a service back home, you can buy and install a Slingbox there, and watch and control everything you have back home on your tablet, computer, or Roku box here in The Villages. You would be nuts to go with cable or dish IMO. Don't waste your money!

Change
 

We had Comcast however they continued to send bills that were either wrong or continual increases in rates. It became almost a monthly requirement to spend 1-2 hours on the phone arguing about their bills. On the 15th of this month we cancelled Comcast who we had for years and had Direct TV installed. It is, so far terrific. The picture is much better and they provide what is like DVR's for all rooms. The hard part is trying to find the channels we like on the new lists on Direct TV. BUT it is more than worth it to get rid of Comcast. :eclipsee_gold_cup:

I have Dish and I have been happy with them. I was going to make a change to Prism as I already have telephone and internet from them. Problem was they never told me that HD was not available in my home. Long story but I threw Prism out and went back to Dish. Yes sometimes a big time thunderstorm with be an issue but that is it. Great HD and lots of HD channels. So if you decide to go with Prism, make sure to ask if the wiring to your house is correct for HD. The reason some of the Prism subscribers are having freeze issues it the do not have the wiring to their homes that is needed for Prism. CenturyLink sales does not tell new subscribers and just sells you the Prism deal. Don't fall for it.

Yes.