Thread: Best DTH as per 'Living Digital' Magazine

Living Digital (LD) is a monthly publication by CyberMedia India Ltd. It talks all about Electronic Gadgets/Gizmos, etc. Everything from TV, Mobile Phones, Games, to buying/maintaining tips are discussed in this mag. It costs Rs. 50/- and I highly recommend it to everyone.

But lest I digress, I am not here to offer free publicity to this magazine.

In the Dec issue, LD discusses the DTH scene in India. It compared the five DTH operators - DishTV, TataSky, Sun Direct, BigTV and Airtel Digital. Here are some excerpts:

DishTV
Pros: Neat Top-up Packs, Max recharge options, low cost
Cons: Customer Care, Neo Pack missing
Rating: 90%

TataSky
Pros: Sky's international experience, STB interface, interactive services, customer care, TataSky+
Cons: Missing Zee Sports, Tard expensive
Rating: 90%

SunTV
Pros: Simple base packs, lowest initial cost, excellent for South India
Cons: Many sports channels like ESPN-Star Sports, Neo, etc. missing
Rating: 60%

BigTV
Pros: Impressive channel line up, Lots of PPV movie options
Cons: BigTV logo intrudes viewing, STB glitches/slow channel switch, poor Customer care
Rating: 60%

Airtel Digital
Pros: Universal Remote, Best STB - remembers last channel, Worlspace Radio
Cons: Boasts "HD Ready" but no component out
Rating: 100%

p/s. I somehow question this 100% rating for Airtel Digital. In my opinion, it is too new to have a judgement like that.

There were many things discussed and put forth:

a) MPEG4 has no advantage over MPEG2 in terms of viewing quality. This is what I also have been saying all along.
b) For most operators, the CC numbers look like toll-free, but they are not.
c) BigTV logo appears on the top left corner of the screen and this impairs viewing lighly.
d) DishTV provides best and most convenient recharge options - 7 in all that includes Credit Card, online banking, Recharge voucher, Easybill, Home Pickup (in some cities), Money Order, and DD. Next best is Tatasky.
d) Airtel Digital produced the best quality on flat panel TVs

What LD recommends?
1. Look for channels what you wish to watch and then compare the package cost. Do not go by the number of advertised channels.
2. Confirm many times on hardware (CPE) warranty and repair costs.
3. For first time buyers, LD recommends Airtel Digital or TataSky. DishTV is also recommended because it has many flexible plans to suit the budget
4. If you are already having a DTH connection, LD does not recommend you to switch at all unless you have a serious issue with your current provider or not getting the channels you want. They say that CPE interoperability is in the offering and once that happens, you could switch.

------------- after one day - 41 views ------------------
No comments anyone?

Nice info

Yes. But the info is just an abridged copy of LD magazine article. What do you think?

thanks .. very helpful

Yes, it is a nice info. Thanks.

i always thought airtel was gonna offer something good... but its a waste with no component out!
wtf is HD ready then? ... why is every1 trying to fool the general public around here

they always do something to turn you off... ALWAYS!

thank you... Kix Good Info..................

What they said about TataSky is 100% correct. TataSky is a bit costly compared to others.Other than that, TataSky is the best. Missing Zee sports is not a big deal.

Originally Posted by Rameshjeee

What they said about TataSky is 100% correct. TataSky is a bit costly compared to others.Other than that, TataSky is the best. Missing Zee sports is not a big deal.

ya really, i don't even watch any cricket so it defo doesnt affect me ... so i guess tata sky is the way to go.

To make a clear distinction between TS and DishTV, here is a list of exclusive channels:

Channels exclusive to TataSky:
BBC Entertainment, bindaas, Headlines Today, Jetix, MH1, Metro Nation NDTV, Neo Cricket, Neo Sports, UTI Business News, UTV Movies, World Movies

Channels exclusive to DishTV:
9XM, B4u Music, Boomerang, CNEB, DW-TV, E24, etc, KBS World, Live India, MGM, music India, NHK, SS Music, TBN, TCM, Toon-Disney, Voice Of India, Zee Action, Zee Classic, Zee Music, Zee Next, Zee Premiere, Zee Smile, Zee Sports

Assumptions:
1. If you are a TataSky subscriber, you are subscribed to Super Saver Pack, Lifestyle Gold, Sports Gold, Sports Platinum, and Ten Sports (a-la Carte) @ Rs. 380 pm.
2. If you are DishTV subscriber, you are subscribed to Platinum pack, Starry Pack and CNBC Pack, @ Rs. 377 pm.

You Rock mate was wondering which provider to choose i had zerroed it on Airtel
thanks

cheers

hi, thanks for the information STB/equipment being under interoperability. I am using TataSky and i am satisfied except on price. I am getting tempted to switch to airtel for their universal remote support :-) Now, I will not switch for the timebeing.

Really never trust magazine articles, its always the research that is helpful.
If you look at all the service providers there is a interesting pattern; like one provider having a certain feature/quality/service which the others dont have so in my opinion companies do this to avoid competition amongst themselves just like you'll always get a copy of resource hogs like McAfee/Norton with new Windows PC. [Just like that: "If microsoft was replaced by a rocketing OS like Ubuntu then really all these companies would die flatout"]

AGAIN it seems like that Airtel is the best out there but if to choose between TataSky and Airtel you should go with Tata(Sky as it is the best buy in every aspect. I'm saying that coz I own a Airtel already.

Originally Posted by shady911

Really never trust magazine articles, its always the research that is helpful.
If you look at all the service providers there is a interesting pattern; like one provider having a certain feature/quality/service which the others dont have so in my opinion companies do this to avoid competition amongst themselves just like you'll always get a copy of resource hogs like McAfee/Norton with new Windows PC. [Just like that: "If microsoft was replaced by a rocketing OS like Ubuntu then really all these companies would die flatout"]

AGAIN it seems like that Airtel is the best out there but if to choose between TataSky and Airtel you should go with Tata(Sky as it is the best buy in every aspect. I'm saying that coz I own a Airtel already.

Eggggzzacctlllyy what I said in fine print!!

Originally Posted by just4kix

p/s. I somehow question this 100% rating for Airtel Digital. In my opinion, it is too new to have a judgement like that.

I am hearing a lot about Airtel's crappy CC service ...... surprising result ....it seems like they decided to outsource their CC service for DTH

tata skys costumer service is sooooooooooooo bad they added a few packges which i didnt want and said there is no account balance
im planning to change to air tel due to its universal remote and more channels

I am surprised. Although a DishTV user myself, people have always said good things about TS' customer service.

Any similar review on IPTV. presently we have Airtel and MyWay (BSNL/MTNL) in the market.

IPTV is not doing good right now.

1. People do not understand what it is.
2. Those who do, do not trust it.
3. Airtel has low penetration in terms of telephone lines.

That's why there have been no reviews/comparison. Will see if there is one and post it. All are welcome to do so, in fact.

how about updated review...

thanks for the post

I needed it the most

really interesting post and news

Dish TV Dosen't have chanal in it's list like colors and more

The channel "Colors" is very much in the list of channels available on DishTV. Which country are you from?

"Neo Sports" and "Neo Cricket" are the only major mainstream channels not available on DishTV. But then there are some channels on DishTV not available elsewhere. But this is true of all DTH providers. Every provider has one or two channels that are exclusive.

p/s. Mainstream means not regional.

I was searching for DTH service, and in dish tv's web site colors channel is not listed, that's why i am saying that.

Vasundhra probabbly forgot to update it or is that neo for dish tv?

Dish tv does provide colors channel.