DISH Network adds 15 more HD channels
DirecTV and cable are busy arguing over who will add the most HD channels, meanwhile, DISH Network keeps racking 'em up. As if they weren't already the undisputed HD provider, now they have announced eight new regional HD sports channels that will launch tomorrow and seven new national HD channels in Auguest and September including; The History Channel HD and Discovery HD -- not to be confused with Discovery HD theater. Now, most of these channels require the latest MPEG4 equipment to enjoy, The full list of new HD channels after the break.
Read -- DISH Press release
Read -- Satelliteguys.us retailer chat coverage
Regional HD networks to launch on 7/11/07
SNY HD
FSN Arizona HD
FSN Northwest
FSN Cincinnati
FSN Pittsburgh
FSN Detroit
FSN North
Sportstime Ohio
National HD channels to be added to the Dish HD package
MHD
Discover HD
Learning Channel HD
Animal Planet HD
The Science Channel in HD
GolfHD/VersusHD
History Channel HD Which launches September 1st
SNY HD
FSN Arizona HD
FSN Northwest
FSN Cincinnati
FSN Pittsburgh
FSN Detroit
FSN North
Sportstime Ohio
National HD channels to be added to the Dish HD package
MHD
Discover HD
Learning Channel HD
Animal Planet HD
The Science Channel in HD
GolfHD/VersusHD
History Channel HD Which launches September 1st
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
The Aggie CEO™ @ Jul 10th 2007 3:47PM
Discovery HD???
damn........I need that...........
Hurry up Time Warner!!!
I wanna see Mythbusters in HD!!! Explosions are COOL on TV..........lol
SuperChuck @ Jul 10th 2007 4:03PM
Still no NESN... Discovery HD would be cool, though... Kari Byron in HD. :)
Seriously, though, this is exactly what I've been looking for in HD: stuff I already watch (Food, History, Discovery), but in HD.
Still need NESN before I can switch, though... :(
DeadPlasmaCell @ Jul 10th 2007 4:05PM
Right now I have have Comcast (Formerly Time Warner) in Houston.. I've been seeing all these stories of all this HD programing Dish has and It's very intriguing.. I have an HDTV and want to get the most out of it.. can anyone tell me their experiences with Dish?? Like Quality and stuff like that?? And how about those claims that "If the weather gets rough, you'll loose signal, etc" Those arguments legit?? or just fanboy speak? Also I'm guessing you don't pay for the equipment upfront or anything right?? They rent it out to you monthly?
DEEZNUTZ @ Jul 10th 2007 4:34PM
Having had both (currently with CABLE), I would say that interruptions due to weather were not a huge factor. Yes I experienced it at times but not to the point that most exaggerate about. Now I was in NYC so I don't know about your regions typical weather patterns... I had DIRECTV but same difference.
With CABLE, I've had ZERO interruptions over the past 18 months and HD looks great. I didn't have HD with Satellite so I can't really compare experience but from what has been widely publicized, it seems (at least for DIRECTV) that HD is not as good as CABLE'S HD.
You may want to visit some SATELLITE forums and read about user experiences
Garrett Twogood @ Jul 10th 2007 6:18PM
I have Dish HD and can't complain about it. I have a 60" sony rear projection tv and the HD quality looks great. I don't really watch the majority of the HD channels(VOOM's) but the espn's, local, discovery, tnt are good. I am really excited to see all of these new channels. I bet direct are kicking themselves now. I would recommend dish HD to anyone.
They have some good deals right now when you sign up. You should definitely check it out if you are serious about HD.
Jimmyz408 @ Jul 12th 2007 5:55AM
I HAVE A NEW HD TV, I AM SICK OF COMCAST!!!! SO I GOT THE DISH AND IT HAS SUPER HD CHANNELS LIKE THE VOOM CHANNELS THAT INCLUDE ALL KINDS OF DIFFERENT PROGRAMING, SOMETHING LIKE 30 HD CHANNELS TOTAL. BEST HD IVE SEENBY FAR. AND IT WAS LESS THAN COMCAST BEST PACKAGE (IHAD THER PLATNUM PACKAGE EVERYTHING FOR DISH) SOMETIMES IN THE AFTERNOON WHEN THE SUN IS JUST THE RIGHT SPOT THERE WILL BE A BREAK IN SIGNAL FOR A MOMENT (SECONDS) AND DEPENDING ON YOUR SIGNAL STREANGH CLOUDY OR RAIN AND SNOW IT WILL BREAK UP FOR A MOMENT, BUT IF YOU GOT GOOD SIGNAL 90%-100% THE EFECT IS MINIMAL AT WORST. I RECOMEND THE DISH OVER ANY OTHER PROVIDER (ESPECIALLY DERECTTV SUCKS) I LIVE IN A CONDO TYPE UNIT AND THE RULE DOES NOT ALLOW ME TO HAVE A DISH, BUT I DID IT MY SELF BOUGHT THE EQUIP ON-LINE AND SET UP MY SELF. CHECK OUT THE INTENET THERE ARE GREAY DEALS ON EQUIPMENT AND GOOD INFO TO KNOW WHAT TO DO. I MOUNTED THE DISH ON MY SUV WITH QUICK DISCONNECTS BUT THEY STILL MADE ME TAKE IT DOWN. THE FIGHT CONTINUES!!!! GOOD LUCK
linemup @ Jul 16th 2007 11:54AM
dish has the most hd and will continue to. yes the 129 signal fades when it rains. just hook up a ant to the port on back of your rec and it will pick up local during storms. mine does. i have a samsumg 63 and its great. i have the hd package and i always see new hd channels updated every now and then. discovery is the best! well espn drag races are great too..
Jean @ Jul 10th 2007 4:51PM
Discovery HD is a separate channel. its content is different from that of Discovery itself. no Mythbusters that Ive seen; but, its the one channel that I feel showcases HD the way it should be and its a must have.
Ron @ Jul 10th 2007 6:26PM
I agree with DEEZNUTZ about the interruptions... not a huge deal, but they do happen. Dish has some birds up there with problems. The key to getting better reception is to use 2 dishes. One pointed at the HD sat and one pointed at the 2 SD sats. Right now dish wants to use the Dish 1000 to try and point to all three sats. Some installers will do this for you.
Here is a great site... http://www.dbstalk.com/index.php?
Im glad for Dishes new channels... the more the better. :)
venk @ Jul 10th 2007 9:02PM
One of the big reasons I switched from Dish Network was the lack of FSN Detroit. I'll wait for the great deal that comcast gave me to expire and then I will switch back.
horngreen @ Jul 10th 2007 9:27PM
Golf, Learning, and Science are nice additions as well. Cable-the two hundred pound golith- is always slow to add channels :(
Kenzo @ Jul 10th 2007 10:09PM
No wonder their HD picture quality looks like crap. They keep trying to cram more and more stuff into their system. More channels doesn't mean better quality. Infact, in the HD world, it may mean WORSE quality.
Jeru @ Jul 11th 2007 5:28PM
By switching all Voom channels to the new MPEG4 compression Dish will have more than enough room to fit the new channels and not degrade quality.
Mark @ Jul 10th 2007 11:16PM
They shouldn't count those VOOM channels--they are horrible. Also, all the new channels will probably be on sat 129 which has known issues unless you get the larger dish 1000 or two smaller dishes. Their DVR is nice though.
armin @ Jul 10th 2007 11:27PM
it's not discovery HD, it's discover HD, it's in the list spelled right, but spelled wrong in your article.
JD3 @ Jul 11th 2007 10:04AM
I switched last year to Dish Network, best choice I ever made. Yeah sometimes I get signal loss, but only if there is a severe storm with lots of thunder/lightning and if it get extremely hot which I guess is from my dish baking in the sun. I don't know what Mark is talking about, but I love the Voom network channels. There is no better television than the Spanish Primera League on World Sport HD with the surround sound going. It's like being in the Camp Nou.
Dominic @ Jul 11th 2007 11:23AM
The full list of new HD channels after the break.
What break? i'm confused by this remark.. does Engadget have TV commercials prior to reading the articles?? ;)
"we'll be right back after this..."
Ben @ Jul 11th 2007 11:34AM
When we break an article in two, so it doesn't take up so much space, you have to click the "continue reading" link to see the rest.
WASD John @ Jul 11th 2007 12:40PM
How good HD looks on your HDTV has to do with well obviously with the HDTV itself, but also the source. Cable and Satellite have limited amounts of bandwidth to deliver channels to customers. So compression and bitrate then comes into play with how well a picture will look. Some channels and even some programs have a different amount of bits that a provider gives at any given time to a particular channel/program. With this in mind Satellite has the potential to offer better HD picture than cable b/c to increase their bandwidth to their customers nationwide they only need to send another satellite into space and then provide their customers with the appropriate receiving equipment (another dish, or upgraded dish) to increase bandwidth and eliminate bottlenecks on their "network." Cable however has to look to run new lines, or use other means such as switched digital and complete analog cut off as that takes a bunch of bandwidth on their network. Each has their advantages and their disadvantages, but it seems that for the most part with the advances in technology it will be a cat and mouse game for some years to come. With the launch of the new DirecTV 10 satellite it looks that satellite may have the upper hand nationwide as the cable companies have vast amounts of physical networks in all kinds of markets that needs replacing/upgrading. Bottom line is that if your not happy with Cable and their supply (or lack of) HD channels Dishnetwork is your best option right now, and DirecTV may be the better option in the future.
As far as signal going out, every particular installation is different as not everyone will be pulling the same amount of signal (that just depends on the installer and how dedicated they are to doing a good job as opposed to doing the best job possible). I found when I have DirecTV that I only lost signal during the rain bands produced by hurricanes were over head, which could also be a strenght as if a hurricane was to hit your area and knock out cable line poles you won't be back up and watching TV for sometime while a dish could have you up and running just fine given that you have power, or a generator.
Ron @ Jul 11th 2007 12:48PM
Mark... yes you are right about the 129 issues.
To expand on your comment and my previous comment... I am hearing that the best way is to use the Dish 1000 for the 129 sat and get a smaller Dish 500 and point it to the 119 and 110 sats.
Right now I'm just using the 1000 for all three sats and have problems losing the 129 signal. This summer seems to be getting worse though and I have a spare 500. Time to get on the roof. :)
I hope with the addition of these extra channels that the quality does not go down. Past experiance with the SD channels lead me to believe that my hopes are too high though. Hopefully the networks will demand that Dish keep some kind of minimum standards.
michelle @ Jul 19th 2007 6:42PM
I sell both DIRECTV DISH Network and have Cable service myself- DISH Network is the best in HD selection. DIRECTV has a lot of advertisement but they really have nothing on DISH Network in compare to HD service. DISH is also giving 10 month free service away for their HD customers...Really great deal.
Feel free to email me regarding to all HD satellite relate questions.
jim @ Jul 23rd 2007 11:19PM
Michelle - Since you sell both directv and dish, what is your take on the new satellite direct just launched? Messages boards suggest Dish is better for HD, but could the new satellite for directv change that? I'm a current Dish customer, getting ready to upgrade to HD. However, directv will soon have 5 STARZ channels in HD (in september they claim - due to new satellite, and STARZ web site says the same thing). Therefore, I'm seriously thinking of switching to Directv since I get more from the as a new customer than Dish gives me for upgrade and new commitment. Interested in your comments.
David @ Aug 4th 2007 8:39PM
Yeah, this is nice...i jumped on the dish bandwagon a few months ago and been happy ever since. My only problem is that i have a 500 and a 26" dish and HD reception on the 129 is sketchy. It sucks, right when somebody is about to score a touchdown...or when your about to find out who's the killer, you get the "Reconnecting" screen.
Tony @ Aug 26th 2007 6:10PM
I'm in Los Angeles and have had Dish HD for the last 11 months. I previously had DirecTV and I am EXTREMELY happy with Dish's signal and HD programing as compared to what I had with DirecTV. The VIP622 HD DVR is amazing. I would highly recommend Dish.
Eideard @ Aug 30th 2007 2:12PM
This is still pretty much a ho-hum for anyone who's been tracking the final tests on DirecTV 10, their latest bird. Screenshots from folks with Engineering Test access show 80 HD channels streaming, right now.
This includes 18 of the FSN critters - which I would hardly count.
Guesstimates for release run from this weekend through the 29th - which is the Emmy Awards and D* has an HD party scheduled for afterwards.
No surprise to see engadget trolling for someone like Dish, though.
Gabriel Martin @ Oct 12th 2007 3:27AM
The highly-acclaimed ViP622 DVR(tm) is the perfect complement to DISH Network's extensive lineup of HD programming -- and it's free to new customers who qualify. One of the most advanced multi-room HD DVR receivers on the market today, the ViP622 DVR boasts the only true 30-second skip feature in the industry -- allowing subscribers to watch television commercial-free.
Who will tell me now that directv or any cable companies have better quality in clarity for their channels...Im from AUSTIN,Texas and had time warner cable serices, then as my uncle is working with a subcontractor for dish and directv, we have both their services (we have also their top of the line hd dvr, but dish hd-dvr is way better than directv hd dvr < and its so expensive...)and i can categorically say to all of you chatter and bloggers that from January 1,2007 until now DISH NETWORK is way better in ALL ASPECT than directv-pricing,picture quality,hd line-ups, sd programming and anything. We had directv for 8 yrs. now and dish for 2 yrs. and we replaced everytime the dish satellite and the receiver from DIRECTV but still its not as almost perfect like DISH. If you want to know more just e-mail me sir1jaguar@yahoo.com and ill send to any of you the pictures of our dish satellites(DIRECTV & DISH) in the roof and the picture quality at our SONY WEGA and PIONEER hd tv's. That's why my uncle said to me that in a day of their work - they will have 5-6 dish and 1-2 of directv to be installed. And the interface of dish is much simpler and easier to use than directv, thats why they dont need to stay that
long to those houses who will have DISH rather than the one with DIRECTV. And the programming is keep on adding up especially in HD side of DISH but the suckin DIRECTV still just blah blah blah ( in media )saying they will add 150 HD channels this year, where are those??? All lies, believe me because they said that sinced 2005 that they will have 100 HD channels by the end of 2006.
All those people here trying to read blogs of others then keep on filing it and they will do their own analysation is moot and void because get first the services of DIRECTV and DISH at the same time, get their new hd-dvr, then buy a brand new SONY WEGA or PIONEER HD TV'S then go back again here and say whats really the score-dont say lies because other people taught that your saying the truth even your not because youve just heard it or just read it in some online chattings thats full of idiots.
Dont waste your time in nonsense rebuttal if you didnt had the real experiences in this real world...
Hoping that all of you will be awaken by this real statement and wishing for all of you a better life in the future!!!
May GOD bless you all...
Thanks!!!