Premium Technology Consulting & Concierge Services

I really love living in the Washington, DC area, except for one thing. I hate the Redskins. First, let me say that I'm not a Dallas Cowboys fan. In this area, you are typically one or the other. I was born and raised up the block in Baltimore and I'm a die-hard Ravens fan.

Redskins fans do however provide a good source of entertainment. It's always their year. Every year, they spend more money and just like their political neighbors on the Hill, it never works out the way they planned it. This annual punching-in-the-gut performance really keeps my spirits high and makes me appreciate  the Ravens more and more. And before you say it, this is all relevant.

I'm constantly asked: "Which is better, Satellite TV or Cable TV? Which should I get?" And I always ask three questions, in this order:

1. Do you have the option for both where you live? Cable is not always available and some homeowners associations ban satellite dishes. However, this prohibitive practice has been recently ruled illegal in many areas. In other words, the haters have been defeated.
2. Have you looked at the programming (channel) options for all the available providers? It's not a given that all the channels you want will be available on all the providers.
3. How sensitive are you to monthly and overall costs? This may be number one for most people but I like to know what people want before I consider costs.

My shoot-from-the-hip response is go with cable (Note: I'm deliberately leaving out Verizon  FiOS,  AT&T U-Verse and other options because they aren't as readily available). Cable usually has enough channels for the average consumer and installation is usually much more straight forward. Many homes are already wired for it and almost all TV's are cable ready. There's nothing special here, just simplicity.

All things not being equal and you aren't just looking for simplicity, here's what you should consider:

1. The NFL Sunday Ticket is not available on cable. DirecTV has the contract until 2014. This means that if you go with cable you may be stuck watching the local NFL team, like the Redskins, and having to listen to stupid songs, like "Hail to the Redskins." The song isn't that bad because they only sing it when they score.
2. Satellite requires a set top box for every television. I don't know of any satellite ready TV's. That can equal added cost and/or clutter.
3. Satellite typically can provide more dollar-for-dollar programming and the picture quality of their High Def programming is typically superior.
4. How can I say this? Cable DVR's suck! Tivo is the platinum standard and satellite providers typically come the closest.
5. Depending on which and how many channels you want, you may have to pay more monthly for satellite. Also, you may still need an antenna to get your local channels.

So, it's not a clear cut winner. You have to consider who you want to bump with. Just be careful, Joe Tex warned you. Don't bump "with no big fat woman." When in doubt, Denity Technology Solutions can help.

"You can't give a hug without getting a hug." - Author Unknown

---

denity... a premier techlife concierge

for when you need to choose & use^sm technology
www.denity.com

subscribe and follow on twitter (@TechHugger)

serving the washington, dc metro area