Direct TV vs Satellite TV

On the surface, Direct TV appears to be the same as satellite TV. However, they are not one and the same thing. So, what exactly is the difference between satellite TV and Direct TV. Well that depends on how you look at it.

The Olden Days
In pretty much all respects, Direct TV is satellite TV, but not in the form that we are used to. When you think of satellite TV, you think of those massive dishes ruining peoples landscapes as you drive by their homes. These old dishes were cumbersome and they often broke down. Plus, there was the added hassle that while you were browsing the galaxy of channels you had to wait for the dish to align itself with whatever signal you could find.

These old dishes were also susceptible to damage by the elements (they are, after all, not much more than giant umbrellas). Also, if the weather was bad, they wasn’t much chance that the satellite dish would be able to find the signal featuring the show that you wanted to watch. On top of that, these dishes were often wildly expensive and cost a fortune to upgrade and maintain. Not surprsingly, not that many were ever sold; they were just too cumbersome for acceptance by the mass market.

A Brighter Future
In the early 1990’s, Direct TV changed everything. It was a big risk, but they felt that if they could provide satellite TV, without all the hardware and massive start-up costs, people would embrace satellite TV with open arms.

Direct TV launched its own satellite and began consolidating programming. In a matter of years, they had all but cornered the American market and were fast become the number one choice for TV consumers.

One of the most notcieable differences with Direct TV is the size of their satellite dishes. Unlike the enormous dishes of yesteryear, Direct TV offers small, inconspicuous disks that are easy to hanging off of a deck and or perch on a roof. They can even be placed on an apartment building balcony, which is something you could have never done with one of those old satellite TV’s.

Getting Better
As the money began to trickle in from these satellites, Direct TV went on the offensive. They knew that they would have to offer programming that was not only better than cable, but that also rivaled that of the existing massive satellite dishes.

They started with sports and the gamble paid-off. Direct TV developed NFL Sunday ticket, a comprehensive compilation of every NFL broadcast in the country. Plus, they offered their channel packages at about the same cost as regular cable packages. It didn't take long before hundreds of dishes hung off of hundreds of roofs beaming excellent programming to hundreds of people.

Today, those massive clunky dished are still around but they are fading fast. You’ll still find them on big Dallas style ranches and on the tops of local sports bars, but they appear to an endangered species.

Onwards and Upwards
Direct TV, being the dominant provider for so long, have decided to press their advantage even further. They now have sports packages for all major professional sports and most college sports.

They have also launched five more satellites, some of the most powerful in orbit. Additionally, Direct TV has diversified its capabilities by adding high definition receivers and TiVo PVR’s into their satellite packages; something large satellites will never have.

With HDTV and PVR you can watch most of your favorite shows with a crystal clear picture and amazing sound. You can also record and watch up to 250 hours of programming whenever you want. You can pause, rewind and fast-forward as much as you like. TiVo will even get a sense of what kind of programming you like and record it for you as a suggestion.

So, get on board with the future of home entertainment. Direct TV is the wave of the future and you’d probably have to say that, in the battle between Direct TV and Satellite TV, Direct TV is the undisputed champ.

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