hd programming

[lawnpro]

I recently upgraded all of my tv's to widescreen lcd and they have a built in qam tuner, and I am reading on the bh site that I will still need the hd smartbox to view hd channels on these tv's and If this is true I will be looking at other options because I am not paying for 3 more boxes.

[AmelFl]

a hd box is 10 bucks

you need to have three hd boxes?

[Bschneider]

I recently upgraded all of my tv's to widescreen lcd and they have a built in qam tuner, and I am reading on the bh site that I will still need the hd smartbox to view hd channels on these tv's and If this is true I will be looking at other options because I am not paying for 3 more boxes.

Yes, its true unless you want to just view the local HD channels anything else will require a box or cablecard.

That is going to be the case no matter what provider you go with. You could get a Tivo w/ cablecard and share that between two tvs. You would would just need to run a HDMI cable to the other tv.

[lawnpro]

I am going to look into satellite

[lawnpro]

what is the qam thing it states that you can get hd programing without an additional box through cable. that sounds deceptive to me. I pay bh over 120 month and my wife wont let me pay another 30 for 3 more boxes. My 52" has burn in on the sides from watching non widescreen channels and the picture looks bad if you stretch it etc. will I need an ext antennae to view the local channels in hd if so cable is almost useless to me

[Bschneider]

The QAM is unencrypted digital channels in a sense. You will be able to get all of the local stations digital channels so you can watch their HD programming without the need of an antenna.

[Barry928]

I am going to look into satellite
Satellite requires a set top box on each display. I can confirm all local HD channels are available as unencrypted QAM but all other HD channels require a box.

[lawnpro]

I have seen sat offers for 4 rooms but not sure I want sat I here it gets messy during rain storms etc. However I have been getting annoyed with bh and internet issues. Is it possible to purchase the required box?

[Bschneider]

Is it possible to purchase the required box?

No. Your better off buying a Tivo and then renting the cablecards for a few dollars each.

[JamesD]

subscription to digital service will get you the HD service for no additional cost. if you want DVRs, there is a charge on top of that. digital tier requires "box rental" after the first box. $6 per box last i checked, so if you need three total, it would be an additional $12/mo

[lawnpro]

I have 1 hd dvr its the other 3 rooms that will cost me 18/mo more than the 120/mo I am already paying

[JamesD]

yeah... that is true

but you get that anywhere you go.. sat or cable. if you want the content you need to rent either a box or a cable card

you can get the TiVO, but understand the limitations of cable card. it isn't 2way, no guide, no ppv, no features etc.

[pilotbob]

I recently upgraded all of my tv's to widescreen lcd and they have a built in qam tuner, and I am reading on the bh site that I will still need the hd smartbox to view hd channels on these tv's and If this is true I will be looking at other options because I am not paying for 3 more boxes.

Do your TV's support Cable Card? If so, then you just need a cable card for each TV.

BOb

[lawnpro]

no cable card slots I am probably going to go for the 4 room satellite offer

[LonghornXP]

no cable card slots I am probably going to go for the 4 room satellite offer

First that four room free offer will "not" get you HD just basic digital boxes. This will be your best route and best bang for your buck on what you want. First you need HD boxes from DirecTV on all of your TV sets.

This means that your going to want the Plus HD DVR package. I say this because you will need to pay the same amount extra for the extra three HD boxes as you get the first box free. The free first box in this case can be an HD box or an HD DVR so its crazy not to pick the HD DVR when it doesn't cost anything extra except for the DVR fee which is low.

This would be the breakdown on cost for you but you can check it online yourself as well.

297.00 - One time upfront upgrade free for three total HD boxes (99 bucks per box times three just so you know the breakdown).

You get one free HD DVR box with no monthly fees beyond just the DVR service fee which is included in the Plus HD DVR package price.

These are your upfront costs. Your monthly cost is listed below.

72.99 -Plus HD DVR with HD locals.
14.00 - HBO
11.00 - Starz
10.00 - Showtime Unlimited

14.97 - 3 Lease Fees (pretty much a mirror fee for each box beyond the first)
9.95 - HD Access (free for first three months.

You get 35 bucks a month off the above for three months as you get HBO, Showtime and Starz free for the first three months. You can cut these premiums off after the first three months though.

You also get 23.00 per month off your bill for 12 months using their phone or online rebate which is easy enough.

After the promo's are over you can change packages to better match what you want but just know that no matter what you get your going to spend at least 75 bucks a month for anything with a decent amount of HD channels. Your price will be locked in for a couple of years though and you must enter into a two year contract with termination fees so keep that all in mind.

I'm just telling you this to make sure you understand you need to enter into research because right now your basic four room deal is way off on what you do get compared to what you think your getting.

Edit...Also if you have AAA I believe they have a new customer discount that goes above and beyond all the normal DirecTV offers I listed above. I will check on that for you just in case you have AAA.

Edit again...I just checked and if your a new DirecTV customer and have AAA you can get 10 bucks a month off your DirecTv bill for 24 months (240 bucks total) but you must call a special toll free number to order everything. You still can get all DirecTV promo offers in addition to this AAA discount. This is the website listing the details and phone number and I'll post the phone number below as well.

http://www.aaasouth.com/SYCS_services.asp

1-800-242-9114.

I hope this helps you make the best and cheapest choice for you and if you have any questions at all please ask.

[lawnpro]

bh contacted me saying I was out of luck then I got another message saying I was given wrong info
Thank you for your correspondence regarding your Bright House Networks service. We apologize for our previous response. If your HD TVs have an internal QAM tuner, and you have our Basic and Standard lineup, you will be able to watch several HD channels without the need of a HD Digital Smartbox. Here's a list of channels available with a QAM tuner:


Channel Name
Cable Channel w/ Digital SmartBox or CableCARD
Digital Cable Ready TV w/ QAM tuner

Bright House Sports Network
47
47.1

BHN 49 (formerly BHN 21) in North and Central Only.(Not available in Brevard county)
49
49.1

Telemundo
62
62.1

Government Access/Education *
198
98.1

Government Access/Education *
199
99.1

Central Florida News 13
1013
13.1

WESH HD
1020
2.1

WESH DT
1021
2.2

WRDQ HD
1027
27.1

Retro Television Network (RTN)
1028
27.2

WKMG - HD
1060
6.1

WKMG - DT
1061
6.2

WFTV HD
1090
9.1

WFTV Early Warning Doppler
1091
9.2

WMFE HD
1124
24.1

WMFE
1125
24.2

WMFE
1126
24.3

WMFE Encore
1127
24.4

WOFL HD
1135
35.1

WCEU DT
1150
15.1

WCEU2 DT
1151
15.2

WCEU3 DT
1152
15.3

WRBW DT
1165
65.1

WKCF HD
1180
18.1



Additional channels are offered with our HD Smartbox. Please keep in mind that there's an additional cost per box and certain HD channels require a subscription to the HD Pack. If you have any additional questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us via email. Thank you for taking the time to write to us and have a wonderful day.