What It’s Like to Switch to DISH

Written in partnership with DISH. After years of deliberation, we finally switched to DISH. Unfortunately, it took us so long. I want to walk you through why we hesitated, in case you’re in the same position, and tell you about why it’s such a fantastic solution for our family.

Before DISH

For many years, we were happy with our television set-up, but it wasn’t perfect. Then, our equipment started to fail repeatedly, requiring multiple calls to customer service. The calls became more frequent as did the hold times and transfers between departments to try to find a solution.

We thought about switching for a long time before we finally pulled the trigger. We had a satellite dish drilled into the side of our house. What would happen to that? Would there be damage to fix?

Our 65″ television is mounted to a brick fireplace. Years ago, we paid a lot of money to have its wires hidden and funneled to equipment inside a closet by the front door.

Our universal remote was more expensive to have professionally programmed than it was to buy.

My husband, the person most tied to television for sports and news, was convinced that switching providers might lead to more issues than we faced already with a somewhat complicated setup.

And, would we have the same issues with a different provider?

I started to learn more about DISH through word of mouth, digital conferences I attended where they were also present, and personal research. I told DISH about my issues, and they gave us an opportunity to try their services.

We almost said no. And, that would have been a terrible decision on our part.

DISH Installation

DISH standard installation is free. A technician called to schedule our installation appointment. At that time we ran through our list of concerns. He put my mind at ease, but my husband was still skeptical and a bit worried. A sports fanatic and news junkie, he watches much more television than my daughter and I do.

Our installer could not have been more helpful. Long story short, the installation took a full day between mounting a new satellite, sorting out wires in our attic and getting the new equipment up and running on four televisions.

He ran into a few hiccups that he was able to sort out and went over and above the call of duty to make sure we were happy.

(Be sure to take advantage of DISH’s Smart Home Services. They’ll install sound systems, hide cables inside of walls, and more. You need don’t need to be a DISH customer to request this service.)

The most important thing is that our overall television experience is so much better than it was before. Let me tell you why.

Aspects That Have Become WAY More Convenient

It took us no time at all to learn how to use our new system and all three of us were immediately hooked.

Better Remote Controls

We were unable to use our prior provider’s remote controls without opening the door to our otherwise hidden equipment. With DISH, now we can. And, better yet, our living room remote has voice control that can search for stations, launch apps, change settings and more based on you speaking commands to it.

If this sounds unnecessary, wait until you try it. Convenience is an understatement for someone like me who doesn’t memorize station numbers.

Amazon Alexa Integration

Or, go completely hands-free by using Amazon Alexa to control the television. This is especially handy when the remote control is out of reach, such as when I’m cleaning up the other side of the room or in the middle of a project.

This setup would be handy in a kitchen setting. When cooking, instead of washing your hands and locating the remote, simply tell Amazon Alexa where to change the channel.

See also: 6 Reasons Why You Need Hands-Free TV

Improved Signal Reliability

So far, we haven’t received any signal interruption. We were able to watch television during rain, which was problematic previously.

We have had a few times where we’ve needed to reboot the receiver by unplugging it (as suggested by tech support, the one time we called in) but nothing other than that.

Based on a nationwide study of customers, DISH has 99% Signal Reliability and we believe it.

Consistency Across All TVs

My favorite DISH feature is the Whole-Home HD DVR System. Recorded shows can be watched on any television in the house thanks to the Hopper 3 primary DVR.

Through the Hopper 3, you can watch and record up to 16 shows at once. Shows can be recorded, played, paused, resumed, deleted and more from any TV in the house. This is because every other TV has a smaller, secondary receiver called a Joey. The Joeys sync with the Hopper 3.

Access to DISH While Traveling

There are two ways to access DISH while traveling.

The first is through the DISH Anywhere app. If we’re chilling in a hotel or airport lounge, it’s easy to pull up the app which communicates with our home’s Hopper 3 DVR and allows us to watch live TV, our recorded shows, and On Demand programming. You’ll need WiFi for this. It’s truly a savior when traveling with kids.

When a good WiFi connection isn’t available, that’s where the HopperGo Pocket DVR comes in. Before departure, we load recorded shows from our Hopper 3 DVR to the HopperGo Pocket DVR which then connects to the DISH Anywhere app and allows you to watch shows on your device.

Tip: I would learn how to use both systems prior to departure rather than fumbling to figure it out at 35,000 feet.

See also: 5 Reasons Why Dish Network Entertains Traveling Families Better Than the Rest

The Price Is Right

DISH offers channel and equipment packages to suit a variety of needs currently starting at $59.99/month.

We have the America’s Top 250 package which includes 290 channels. That’s about the number of channels we had previously and we were paying more for a way more antiquated system. I like having a smart home!

Wish List

If there’s one thing that we wish DISH had, it’s BBC World, a channel we watch a lot overseas.

Other than that, we don’t have any complaints, and I’m so relieved to have made the switch.

This post is written in partnership with DISH.