Hey there visitors, SaveOnDish.com’s moderator and top contributor Mr. Roh_Style has posted a comprehensive comparison of all the existing DTH services in the market today. We at SaveOnDish hope that this official SaveOnDish comparison of DTH services will help you decide which DTH service to go for.
This review contains the advantages and disadvantages of each of the DTH services, point by point, and enables you to minutely observe the good and bad so that you may see through everything before actually taking the decision of buying a DTH system. So here goes!:
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Advantages :
(1) DD Direct Plus is India’s first and only DTH service that offers its services absolutely free of cost. No monthly subscriptons to be paid when you are with DD Direct Plus.
(2) Small one-time initial investment on STB and Dish and you can use it life-long.
(3) Apart from all DD chs, DD Direct Plus offers several popular private FTA (Free-To-Air) chs.
(4) As a bonus, DD Direct Plus also offers additional chs, from Dish TV’s satellite which are FTA from time to time.
Disadvantages :
(1) DD Direct Plus does not offer any EPG (Electronic Program Guide) facility, which all other DTH operator provides. Due to this, users are not able to check schedules on channels before-hand.
(2) New channel addition process is very slow. Several ch wait for approval from Prasar Bharati (DD Direct Plus), but its sloggish attitude makes the addition of new chs too late.
(3) DD Direct Plus revises and hikes its carriage fees all of a sudden due to which some channels tend to quit the platform.
(4) Signal fluctuation issues occur at certain times, due to which some chs black-out temporarily.
Dish TV :
Advantages :
(1) The biggest advantage of Dish TV is its cost. (For old or existing customers at this point). It offers most of the popular chs at low cost. The highest pack costs Rs.325 per month, after which only 1 or 2 add-on packs are required to all almost all chs, unlike other DTH where you need several Add-on packs even after subscribing to the highest pack.
(2) Dish TV’s satellite being located very near to DD Direct Plus’s satellite, all Dish TV users enjoy the complete ch offering of DD Direct Plus as well. So any new ch added in DD Direct Plus automatically gets added to Dish TV channel offering.
(3) The software of Dish TV STBs are stable at the moment. This makes the switching speed between chs pretty fast. Also very less hang-ups of STBs reported till now. Thanks to Dish TV STBs’ great software.
(4) Only Dish TV gives its users access to exclusive never-before seen international channels which are not available even in cable till now. The platter includes MGM, TCM and Boomerang. Airtel Digital TV provides MGM India unlike Dish TV which still carries the direct international feed of MGM.
(5) Several new channels added recently are provided at no extra cost for the highest pack users, except for a few chs. (Currently only for existing or old customers). Whereas other DTH operators, have added the new launches in seperate Add-on Packs.
(6) Dish TV has a good no of Transponders to offer more chs to its users, including the recently contracted Protostar which means more chs for its customers.
Disadvantages :
(1) One of the biggest problems of Dish TV is its Customer Care and Customer Service which is definately not upto the mark. The CC executives lack professionalism in their attitude and after-sales support in certain areas are allegedly poor.
(2) Another serious issue is its audio and video quality. Quality on several (but not all) channels on Dish is not upto the mark. Too much of pixelation is seen on some chs and the audio standard is of course not of true CD quality.
(3) Dish TV misses out on few important ch packages which includes the Neo bouquet and the UTV group of chs. Due to this exclusive cricket matches and world TV premier of latest movies on these chs are missed by the Dish TV users.
(4) New ch addition process is extremely slow when it comes to Dish TV. It takes a huge amount of time for Dish TV to enhance its bouquet offerings.
(5) The time taken for activation of packages after renewal is too long sometimes. Users had to wait for as long as 5-6 days for activation even after making payments on time.
(6) Official website is not updated regularly. Official weblog which was meant for the interaction of Dish TV users, too does not work till date.
TataSky :
Advantages :
(1) India’s first and only DTH service to have made a joint venture with a reputed international DTH brand, Sky, which is famous for its exquisite technology.
(2) The audio and video quality of TataSky stands up to the expectations of its users. Customers have reported about TataSky’s true DVD quality picture and CD quality sound.
(3) Only TataSky gives its users an exclusive access to some authentic international channels which includes BBC Entertainment and Ceebebies.
(4) TataSky offers uniform volume level across all channels, unlike other DTH services where the volume level keep varying with each ch.
(5) The STB of TataSky is stable enough. There has been very less or no reports of TataSky STB bugs or issues till date.
(6) TataSky users argue that its Customer Service is satisfactory. Issues are addressed on time and the after-sales support is great.
Disadvantages :
(1) TataSky has too many Add-on packs. Several add-on packs need to be subscribed to for enjoying all the chs, even after going with the highest pack. This makes the over-all package too costly.
(2) The channel strength of TataSky is less compared to other DTH operators. This is because of the less no of Transponders purchased by them.
Advantages :
(1) Big TV is has incorporated MPEG-4 technology unlike other DTH who are still on MPEG-2. The most basic difference between the two is that MPEG-4 is capable of carrying more chs in its offerings which means more chs can be added within a short span of time. After Dish TV, Big TV offers the highest no of chs.
(2) Another merit of Big TV is its awesome picture and audio quality which are much better than any other existing DTH. For the first time, a DTH that lives up to the expectations for a true digital quality experience.
(3) Big TV is perhaps the only DTH that offers several chs in its base pack. In fact, Big TV’s package and pricing is absolutely tailor-made to suit the exact needs of the customers. With this advantage, customer get more chs by paying less.
(4) The Active or rather “Select” services on Big TV allows users to watch 12 chs at a time on a single screen unlike other DTH where you can watch a max of 6 - 8 chs.
(5) Rain-fade is an issue that is common for all DTH. But its Big TV, so you can enjoy your favourite programs even when it rains. Big TV’s advanced technology lets you watch chs even when it rains heavily. Chs may blak-out for just about 5-6 seconds whereas in other DTHs, ch black-out lasts the entire length of the rain.
Disadvantages :
(1) The biggest problem of Big TV is its STB software which is still now not stable. Customers across India have reported about STB hanging problems innumerable no of times. STB gets over-heated, hangs several times, slow channel navigation, does not work after a manual update are some of the many issues that keep occcuring to the Big TV STBs.
(2) Another demerit of Big TV is its Customer Care and Customer Service. The CC Executives lack professionalism in their behaviour. The after-sales support is too not good.
(3) Incorrect package activations have happened with several users at times where the customer was wanting one pack and some other pack was activated instead.
(4) The Big TV logo placed on the top left corner of screens is quite big and not transparent which is irritating. Whereas the logos of other DTH services are relatively smaller and of watermark type.
Airtel Digital TV :
Advantages :
(1) Airtel Digital TV offers true DVD quality picture and CD quality sound which are absolutely flawless. So its customers can be assured of its crystal-clear video and stereophonic sound.
(2) The external appreacnce of Digital TV STB is sleek and stylish unlike the STB of other DTH operators which are huge and bulky. Digital TV’s STB proves to be a fantastic eye-candy.
(3) For the first time, Digital TV is a DTH that offers universal remotes for its users. So no more hassle of using two remotes at a time. (One for TV, the other for STB). Digital TV’s STB remotes (after programming) will work with both your TV as well with the STB.
(4) Only Digital TV exclusively offers 10 popular and premium World-Space satellite radio chs to its subscribers. There is so much to hear, when you have World Space Radio with you, another first from Digital TV.
(5) The Dish antenna of Digital TV is considerably bigger than other DTH dishes. This makes sure that you dont loose connectivity even when it rains wild. The bigger dish has been brought up keeping this aspect in mind.
Disadvantages :
(1) The only disadvantage of Digital TV is its price which is comparetively higher than any other DTH. The highest pack goes up to Rs.424 per month which comes out to be too costly keeping in mind the present cut-throat competition in the DTH market.
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Special thanks to Mr. Roh_Style for writing up such a brilliant comparison document.
Mr. Channel
Good comparison . Thank u Roh-style for ur efforts and thank u to Mr Channel and Mr Dish for posting it..
Brilliant comparison
Congratulations
Hi ,
I wanted to know which DTH would you recommend for Marathi viewers. I guess the competition is between Big and TS. Airtel’s attidute towards Western India does not seem good (shows in their channel line up).
Thanks.
Thanks for the comparison.
Why you don’t take SUN DIRECT into the account?
Dish TV offers maximum no. Marathi Channels like Mi Marathi, Zee Marathi, Zee talkies, ETV Marathi, 24 Taas, DD Marathi
all are good and all are bad
Dear Ramesh, for marathi viewer i recommend you only dishtv because dishtv is the only one having most number of Marathi channels available with them.
Zee Marathi,
Mi Marathi,
ETV mARATHI,
Zee Talkies,
24 Taas,
DD Marathi
HI it is good topic
Hi ,
I wanted to know which DTH would you recommend for Marathi viewers. I guess the competition is between Big and TS. Airtel’s attidute towards Western India does not seem good (shows in their channel line up).
Ravi
Thanks.
sir i want to buy a DTH servies which one you will recommend
Tata Sky is BEST. It has almost all channels and packages are also suitable!
The TATA SKY PLUS looks amazing
TATA SKY has quick installation!
They installed my STB and my friends STB the next day . The CUSTOMER CARE has upgraded and they are true professionals!
I have just purchased a 42 inch LCD TV and I was really confused which DTH subsciber to go in for. Thanks for this great comparison. However I will just add Airtell has a basic package plus add ons which might work out to be more economical than the Platinum pack for Rs. 424/-. sadly the details of the former are not on the airtel website. I have to now visit their dealer to get the details.
Called up the Airtell toll free No. and surprisingly they will not email the basic plus add on package details. They are only “authorisd” to read it out over the phone and they expect us to remember everything.
hey, I also just noticed they do not give Ten Sports on their sports package … God ! this thing is confusing. Talk about being user friendly.
But thanks again for this great comparison.
One correction is needed. Tata Sky is not a joint venture between Tata and Sky. It is a joint venture between Tata and STAR TV. They use the Sky brand owned by Sky in the UK.
Hiii Pls do a review of TATA SKY+ with pics.
I just dont agree with the statement, “big tv rain fade is only for 5-6 sec and other dth looses connection for the entire duration”.
I have experienced big tv,dish tv and tata sky at my home, office and at my best friends place. And out of all the 3, tata sky is any day comparatively better in heavy rains
Thanks for a good assessment of different DTH service brands but SUN is missing.
Look forward to your comments on SUN at the soonest……
Regards,
A very nice comparison, which allows user to decide the DTH services to choose before buying. Thnx to all.
neat comparison ,why dont you compare sun direct,thankyou Mr. Roh_Style…………keep going
hi im manikandan which dth is best to use
thank you Mr. Roh_style. The information given is really usefull
One correction is needed. Tata Sky is not a joint venture between Tata and Sky. It is a joint venture between Tata and STAR TV. They use the Sky brand owned by Sky in the UK.
Thank you Mr.Roh_style. A deep and complete analysis of all aspects. As many pointed out SunDTH is missing. You will do a lot of service if u can include this at yr earliest.
Definitely a good comparision. As a BIG TV Customer residing in Vijayawada (Andgra Pradesh), I’ll have to say that very popular news channels line NTV & TV5 and spiritual channels like Samskrithi, Bhakthi and Sree Venkateswara Bhakthi Channels are not available with BIG TV
Definitely a very good comparison. As a BIG TV Customer residing in Vijayawada (Andgra Pradesh), I’ll have to say that very popular telugu news channels line NTV & TV5 and telugu spiritual channels like Samskrithi, Bhakthi and Sree Venkateswara Bhakthi Channels are not available with BIG TV
hi, can i watch free to air channels on airtel digital tv, and is there any possibility to add some new hindi channels on digital tv
Very good study and comparison, only thing missing is comparising channel contents of each service provider and its prices in a tabular form.
Check out Kameleon Multi Device Remote working with Airtel Set Top Box and Samsung 32 Inch LCD at My Place : http://kool-dude-gaurav.blogspot.com/2009/01/one4all-kameleon-5.html
Very professional in the presentation. For buyers the details are truely helpful. But one thing is true that down the line all the providers charges would be same.
Grading system should have been utilized for smarter comparison.
PLIZZZZZZZZZZ ADD NEW MARATHI CHAINNAIL IN DD DIRECT LPUS
STAR MAZA SAM MARATHI MI MARATHI STAR PRAVAH
PLIS ADD MARATHI CHAINNAL
SAH MARATHI
MI MARATHI
STAR PRAVAH
STAR MAZA
IBN LOKMAT
TARA MARATHI
ETV MARATHI
BIG TV IS BEST ADDED MARATHI CHAINNELS
ETV MARATHI
IBN LOKMAT
ZEE MARATHI
MI MARATHI
DD SAHIYDRI
STAR MAZA
ZEE TAWKIS
Hi ROh,
a nice one, but this one is very lengthy & cumbersome to understand for a layman, i suggest if you can put in a tabular/matrix form where there is a Channel Vs Feature Comparison.
Still 3 cheers 2 u
Gaurav
THERE ARE TWO MORE DISADVANTAGES OF AIRTEL.THEY ARE -
1.WE CAN`T WATCH ONE CHANNEL ON TWO OR MORE THAN TWO TV FROM 1 STB MEANS THAT FOR EVERY TV WE HAVE TO BUY A SEPARATE STB.
2.ON 2ND,3RD,4TH CONNECTION WE HAVE TO PAY FULL PAYMENT OF THE PACKAGE WHERE AS IN TATA SKY & DISH TV WE HAVE TO PAY RS.150 ON 2ND,3RD & 4TH CONNECTION.
IT IS VERY MUCH COSTLY.
cool its great comparison between all the dishes now i can buy the best on e i think airtel digital tv would be better choice
Its like i got Airtel Digital TV. Its awesome.
moreover, it has the facility in which it can upgrade its totsl customer base without a need to change its millions of STB’s. USB is very handy !
I am sorry to differ with you, But from I personal experience I assure you that information provided for Big TV is wrong. This statement is not true at all “Rain-fade is an issue that is common for all DTH. But its Big TV, so you can enjoy your favourite programs even when it rains. Big TV’s advanced technology lets you watch chs even when it rains heavily. Chs may blak-out for just about 5-6 seconds whereas in other DTHs, ch black-out lasts the entire length of the rain.”
I can assure you, whenever it rains, everytime signal for Big TV will go off, unless and until the rain stops completely. It is the biggest disadvantage of Big TV.
Second disadvantage is its Customer Care. Its pathetic and aweful.
Thirdly, pixelization issue persists with many channnels. Whenever there is change in scene you will see huge blurr blocks for milli second.
If dish TV drops TCM and Boomerang then it will go to the bottom of the stack.
I’m using “DishTV”. Unlike you told, switching in between channels is felt too slow. And no. of channel being shown by Digital TV is not discussed.
Any way best comparision I ever read.
I agree with Nikhil above on point 2. (I am not sure about point 1.)
Wih Tata Sky, if we need a 2nd connection (they can give upto 4 connections on the same Dish), we have to pay standard Rs 125/- for each. The package will be the same as on the original STB. This makes it real cost friendly.
I am a customer about to make a decision on a 2nd connection (I already have Tata Sky, and I am happy with everything). I am interested in a comparison between Airtel and TataSKy, as the offer of free Worldspace on Airtel excites me…..
Can I wathc the FTV and other FTA Channels, India’s Crieckt match which are broadcaseted on Doordrasthan.
Thanks for a very informative and comprehensive comparison… It wd add further value if the “offered ” and ” not-so-offered’ channels by each DTH are listed in the form of a table and the regions where the concerned DTH services are NOT available coud be highlighted. For example, Sun Direct is not available in most areas of Maharashtra….
good camparision
i want to buy a dth service with min price .kindly advice me which dth service is good in village area.i am a existing customer of big tv.but its verv bad in rain fall.cust service is very poor.kindly give some advice of sn direct hows the reception.
i liked it but one thing missing that is another dht operator — sun direct
plz mention it too
Excellent post
Nice comparison
I wan to add some additional ,
DD DIrect (Kachra)
Disadvantages : Every Thing
advantages : Nothing
(Foket main sadak per kachra bhi milta hai to kya ghar main le kar rakhna hai)
BigTV (Silver)
Disadvantages : already Explained
advantages : 32 cinema hall a good movies collection
USB port there might be High Speed Internet avillable Further
Dish TV (Silver)
Disadvantages : already Explained
mpeg-2 technology
advantages :
Exclusive Mobile STB
Exclusive VGA STB (support computer monitor without useing TV tuner card)
TataSky (Dimond)
Disadvantages :
Exclusive Services are costly.
Mpeg-2 technology
Paid Movies collection is poor
advantages :
Exclusive TataSky +
Best for Multiple TV User (Parent child offer)
Airtel : (Gold)
Disadvantages :
1. Its Web Site. one scheme and offer running on site and some other on customer care
2. Costly
3. Not good collection of channels ex.: Bindass not avillable (Bindass movis avillable)
4. Jhankar Channal of world space not avillable so there are 0 new hindi songs Music station
advantages : You mentioned already man nothing extra
1. Farista Channal of world space is avillable.Other Dth services have not any 0 old hindi songs Music station
SunTV : (Paid kachra)
Disadvantages :
500rs main dish fake adv say all about the dish performance
No multiple tv support
nothing exclusive
if watch 100% channal it become costly than tatasky
No Tollfree
poor customer support
advantages :
Good for village customer
good collection of regional channel
Good sub. of DD direct
so overall all dishes having some adv. and diadv. nobody satsisfy with DTH services
I prefer , DESI CABLE TV (OLD IS GOLD)
I buy DTH when all channals are avillable @ 100 rs. pm on all of my tv without paying extra with internet lol.
not joking this offer coming soon
Firstly a very nice comparison overall
Nikhil Point numbr one is valid for TaTa Sky, I have recently asked them. You cant even connect 2 TV’s together.
In Airtel the have given a point in their STB which is TV Out, You can connect this output to ur LapTop or a PC having a TV Tuner Card without any additional investment which i believe is a great feature.
The only thing is since the STB is having only one decoder you can watch the same channel you r watching on TV as well as on PC or LapTop.
On Point Number 2 Airtel will charge you the basic STB price for a new connection but the fare for the channel now reduces to 50%.
May be these r the 2 updates. i needed to add on.
Another feature from Airtel is that if you have a PostPaid Connection you get a discount of 250 rupees off on new connection.
I am favouring Airtel in many aspects :
TaTa Sky Plus is another STB which cost you more around 10000/- having 160 GB of Memory for storage of programs while watching another program. I guess its a investment no one would like to put in STB. only when Tata upgrades from MPEG-2 Technology to MPEG-4 Technology i guess its sales will further go up.
there are many tamil channels in tamil in tamilnadu which give more variety of programmes
and each tv has more channels but only a few channels are only provided in the dth services
and the big list of channels provided does not meet our viewing, so viewers prefer cable net work most preferred than dth service, there for dth service providers should change
to the viewers choice ,the language they need and not unknown languages
The comparison is really informative. Please comment on the video connection of STB (HDMI, component, composite etc.) and which is the best for high definition TVs.
Hello sir,I want to purchase a DTH,my need is a basic package at a minimum price,as I have nights to watch tv and I want healthy entertainment,so please tell for which one should I go foward,well airtel or tata sky.
airtel is best…………….
it has awesome sound quality and picture quality……
bigtv & tatasky are also fine bt airtel is best no doubt..
You havent mentioned in Big TV advantages about the Component cable which help reduce the pixelation esp in LCD TV.
overall in all dishes, there is Dish TV is the best option or viewers because only in dish tv we can paid less and get more. no other dish is provid us more channels than dish tv in same cost.
(aur ek do channel ki picture quality kharab bhi huyi to kya hua. baki to itne kam paise mein achhe channel to dekh hi rahe ho… enjoy dish, “DISH KARO , WISH KARO”)
Good Comparesion But Full price is missing expect TataSky and Airtel TV
Nice Comparsion, actually worth visiting for a buy
I think digital tv is the better than tata sky and all other are
not so good.
if wanted to buy then go for tata sky or digital tv.
my friends had tried other and they are having trouble with them
now they are going for digital tv and tata sky
Does Airtel come with an HDMI connectoid?
Hi. i am from Tamil Nadu. I wish to gain an information from you. Which dish is suitable for me? As I am an tamilan, I will view tamil channels, Mainly, NEWS (NDTV 24×7, BBC , CNN etc), Music channels, Entertainment channels, Informative channels Please tell me which will be suitable for me at low cost (Low monthly or yearly cost if it is not DD direct plus . Initial charges doesn’t matter. But of low cost but, nice tv) Please tell me a suggestion. I am waiting for your reply.
dear sir star pravah published
Airtel THe BEST
Hi friends , i have gone through all the comments. |The best rating goes to Airtel