With new technology emerging often, everchanging rates and packages plus access limitations, choosing your home’s televison service can be a daunting task. There are the basic services you can expect like DVR’s (digital video recorders) and internet services, but if you look closely at the comparison, you’ll see some differences that may push one over the top and into your home.

Cable
This term has been used loosely in previous years to refer to any television service – digital, analog, HD, - and has been dominant in the television industry of those companies providing service over coaxial lines. What we now call “traditional cable” like Comcast, provides digital cable content, including HD service, largely via underground cable lines.

Pros & Cons

Easy installation & sign-up Bundled services (for easy bill paying) Wide range of on-demand options Large HD selection Relatively accessible	Aging infrastructure Cost: lack of competition within market - leads to price increases Compressed content can result in compromised image and audio quality.

Satellite
Satellite television – also called Direct Broadcast Satellite or DBS is credited for bringing digital television to the rural-dwelling masses and others who might suffer a channel-less fate. The most obvious claim to satellite’s fame is accessibility; as long as you can mount the dish facing south, you can bet you can receive satellite television. Direct TV and Dish Network are the most well known, each with their own benefits. Dish Network has one of the best DVR’s in the industry with 55 hours of HD program storage and 350 hours of standard def content. Neither providers offer true on-demand capability. Dish Network has overcome this disadvantage by adding a USB port for internet-connectivity to their receivers. Users with an internet connection can access Dish Networks IPTV services, including pay-per-view and on-demand features.

Pros & Cons

Accesiblity HD channel offerings International channel line-ups	Service interruptions from weather Additional hardware needs for HD & Internet No VoIP No “true” on-demand features No local channels in HD (NBC, ABC, CBS)