Answer – depends on what you want from your cable service provider. Time Warner cable internet (and TV, the package is a whole-deal kind of thing) is best for some users, while The Dish is better for others.
Nice to sit on the fence, isn’t it. But of course the kind of question that asks whether one service is better than another – unless it is being asked by representatives of one or the other service, in which case it’s just meaningless advertising – requires a person to sit on that fence and have a good long look at both fields.
So let’s start with Time Warner. The Time Warner cable internet and TV package (which also includes digital telephony) is absolutely ideal for people who want convenience, one bill for everything, and a way to communicate through what is effectively a single hub. So if you never use your home phone, maybe it’s not so effective for you. Everyone has mobile phones these days: how many times have you ever taken a call on your home number?
That said, if your home phone is free to use then you may use it a lot to make calls. So Time Warner cable internet and TV and phone becomes a better idea again.
The Dish has opted to target a different market than Time Warner, Comcast and all the other triple play advocates. The Dish provides TV. Ergo, if you are happy with your existing computer and phone setup and don’t want the hassle of cancelling contracts before you can pull in a triple play offer from Time Warner or similar, The Dish is probably a better option – in that, as a standalone TV service, it sells itself as offering more TV for the money.
Don’t forget, before we go further, that coverage is of paramount importance in any decision about which cable TV company to use. If you can’t get The Dish, you can’t have The Dish. And if you can’t get Time Warner, you can’t have Time Warner.
You can easily Google coverage for your selected provider to check that you will get the signal you want. Not many of the company websites show their own coverage, or if they do they don’t advertise the fact very week – so just type in something like “Time Warner cable internet coverage” and see what you get back.
The kinds of programmes you will get for your money may sway your decision too. Do your research before you choose one provider or the other. Most companies carry most channels – certainly when you buy their most expensive packages – but you need to be clever about which you go for when you buy anything other than the top viewing bundle, or you’ll end up having to pay extra to watch your favourite shows and movie channels.
Don’t forget to compare the price of additional boxes as well. If your chosen provider charges you per box per TV and you have several units, your monthly price could increase dramatically.
So what’s our conclusion? Time Warner cable internet and digital TV has plenty to recommend it for the customer who likes to have everything controlled by one bill. The Dish is great for people who just want a TV provider. Here we are, still sitting on the fence!