Bye, Suddenlink

For those of you that didn't read about it on my Facebook page, it's official now. We're no longer with Suddenlink cable TV (except I have to call and cancel my service with Suddenlink). We're now on Dish Network satellite TV.

I don't watch all that much TV anymore, but Connie does. She seemed interested in getting more channels. All we have are the 10 or so very basic cable channels. I switched to that because the plan we were on earlier with all the channels was getting up to $50.00 a month, and I don't watch that much TV so it wasn't worth it to me.

So Connie started hinting at me that Dish Network wasn't that much more expensive and we'd get a whole bunch more channels (although some of the channels are junk). Well, her birthday was coming up so that made an easy present. When I looked at my last Suddenlink bill, it was a done deal. I'm paying as much for the few channels I get from Sudddenlink as I'd be paying for 120 channels from Direct TV, for the first year, anyway.

Seems to me I switched to Suddenlink's lower cost plan ($16.50? a month) about three years ago and it's already gone up to over $24.00. Enough of that!

I called Dish Network yesterday and they installed it today. Not bad.

A couple things Dish Network isn't too upfront about in their advertising, though:

It took about 30 to 45 minutes to set up the deal on the phone. It wasn't until the last five minutes or so the gal told me they'd also be charging almost a $50.00 "processing fee" to my credit card. I chided her a bit for that but it really wasn't any surprise.

It looked outwardly like just a one year contract at the low price of $24.99 for the first year, but it's a two year contract. You get one year at the discount price and have to stay with them one year at the regular price of $39.99. No problem. I don't blame them. Just be aware that if you try to get out of the deal before two years are up, they charge you $17.50 for every month you fall short of completing the contract.

I also noticed, when checking my newly opened online account page they have me listed as paying $6.00 a month for some service warranty. I don't remember ever agreeing to that. The guy that installed the dish mentioned it to me earlier and said if I didn't want it I didn't have to sign for it. I didn't, but it's on my account right now. I'll have to keep an eye on that and make sure it's removed.

Things I like, so far, from my hour or so of experience: There are a lot of decent channels from what I can see and I do get local channels, unlike some others I've heard from. Most channels seem to be available in both High Definition and regular, too, so it makes it look like a lot more channels.

I also like the menu channel where it shows you what's available to watch on your plan. You click on the show you want to watch and it takes you right there. No more going through the paper's TV guide and seeing a show you'd like to see only to realize your Suddenlink plan doesn't offer that channel.

So, good bye, Suddenlink. No real hard feelings. Your prices just go up to fast for someone like me.