DIRECTV vs. DIRECTV STREAM | What's the Difference?

directv versus directv stream which is better seeing as we encourage people to cut the cord on cable and satellite tv every day you probably assume we're going to say directv stream and guess what you're right we do think that the fees second year price hike and contract requirements make directv stream the better choice but we also think it's important that we make a video comparing the two at a very high level because we get a lot of questions from viewers about how they're different that's right lots of people ask us if they're the same and we get it but before we begin comparing the two services we want to mention that we really don't recommend either one of them while directv stream has made some good recent changes like unlimited cloud dvr for new users they still have very expensive plans and feel way too much like cable so much so that it's easy for people to get confused about the difference between the two services for starters all the channel packages have the exact same names so it's very easy to get confused for that reason alone we think a directv stream versus directv review video is in order first let's be clear right up front directv and directv stream are not the same thing while they are owned by the same company directv is a satellite service and directv stream is a streaming service that lets you access channels through an internet connection we're not going to go into all the nitty gritty detail if you want to know more about directv stream you can watch our review video of the cable replacement instead we're going to do a high level overview comparing the direct tv stream versus directv channel lineup specifically what the satellite tv provider has that directv streaming service does not we'll explain what's the same between the two and we'll compare the price fees and dvr options for each and we'll wrap up with who directv is right for all right let's start with a comparison of the price fees and contract situation it makes sense to start here because you'll see right away that directv and directv stream are absolutely not the same while directv stream is one of the most expensive live tv streaming services it has no contract and that's a very important distinction to keep in mind when comparing the price of directv versus directv stream as you can see directv stream has four channel packages entertainment choice ultimate and premiere entertainment is the cheapest at 69.99 a month at time of filming putting it at the same cost as hulu live and just five dollars more per month than youtube tv and fubo tv at time of filming now there's a pretty big jump to the choice package which costs 89.99 a month then the ultimate package costs 104.99 a month and the premiere package costs 149.99 a month now we'll get into what's different between the packages in just a minute but for now just remember that directv stream prices run from 70 to a month and that there's no contract and no activation fee and you can cancel anytime with no fee now let's look at the directv plans and prices the plan names are the same the prices are a little different and you have to sign a contract to get directv at time of filming the entertainment plan costs 74.99 a month choice is 79.99 ultimate is 99.99 and premiere is 149.99 these prices seem pretty good right well keep in mind those prices are for the first year only now when you dig a little deeper you'll see that this is the price for the first 12 months and the listed price includes a five dollar discount if you sign up for auto pay and paperless billing if you don't select those options your price rises by another five dollars after 12 months the price will rise to the prevailing rate right now that rate is 107 for the entertainment plan 129 for choice 159 for ultimate and 214 for premiere we hate those second year price hikes and there's fees we hate those too you'll pay an activation fee of 19.95 and more fees if you want to connect more than one dvr in your home and if you decide to cancel before your contract period is up you'll pay an early termination fee of twenty dollars a month for each month remaining on your contract period you'll also pay a fee of forty five dollars for each standard hd or genie mini receiver and a 135 dollar fee per dvr hd dvr and genie hd dvr you fail to return to directv there's also fees with directv stream contracts it baffles the imagination but in true a t fashion they have chosen to offer a two-year contract option with their directv stream service if you choose that and cancel before your two-year period is up you will be charged an early termination fee of fifteen dollars per month for each month remaining on your contract period up to as much as 360 additionally it offers its own streaming device and remote which you can purchase for an extra five dollars per month per device and they will let you have up to six yeah but we wouldn't recommend that option and here's why it requires a 24-month plan they don't call it a contract but if you cancel you have to pay the entire device balance honestly it's really disheartening to see all the fees charged and to see a contract option even offered by directv stream we would caution you against that plan for sure if you end up thinking directv stream is the best option for you stick with a month-to-month option and don't choose the equipment to avoid all those fees now let's move on to the available channels and compare the channel lineup at a very high level for each first it's important to note that both the directv and directv stream channel lineup include your local channels yeah and both services also carry a number of the same live tv channels for instance a e amc bet cnn disney channel disney junior espn espn2 espn news espn u fox sports and hgtv are in both the directv and directv stream channel list exactly which channels you'll get varies depending on which package you choose but overall directv plans include more networks directv stream channels in the entertainment package number about 65 while channels in the directv entertainment package number 160. choice has 185 compared to 90 ultimate has 250 compared to directv streams 130 and the premiere plan has a whopping 330 plus channels compared to directv streams 140. yes but many of those channels are music stations you really have to take a close look at the channel lists of each package and see which one has the most number of your must-have channels for the cheapest price possible remember more isn't always better that said directv does have something that directv stream doesn't nfl sunday ticket we've done videos about how to watch nfl games without cable and have been following what's been going on with sunday ticket directv has already said it is not going to renew the rights to stream sunday ticket after the 2022 season but for this upcoming season you can still get nfl sunday ticket when you sign up for the choice ultimate or premiere packages this will let you watch all out of network nfl games which is nice directv stream does not offer nfl sunday ticket yeah but both services do offer access to rsns or regional sports networks in the choice plan or above the bad thing about directv is that you will pay a monthly fee for rsns even if you don't want them whereas with directv stream you'll pay more to get them if you choose one of the three higher priced plans but you won't pay a fee well more could be said about channel packages but let's move on to the next thing to compare dvr and screens at time of filming directv stream is offering unlimited cloud dvr with all of its channel packages for new customers it is also testing a feature where recordings will delete after nine months but you can fast forward through commercials and record multiple shows at once which is nice you can stream on unlimited numbers of screens at once on your home network and up to three at a time when you're on the go or away from your home network directv includes a genie dvr with 200 hours of recording capacity the nice thing about the genie is that it can record 4k content direct tv receivers also support dolby atmos and dolby digital sound direct tv streams support streaming content in dolby and 4k as long as you have their device having considered the major points of comparison at a high level we think directv stream is the better choice between the two for most people however there are a few reasons why you might choose directv if you live in an area where you don't have access to high-speed internet directv may be better directv stream requires internet speeds of 8 mbps per stream on tvs or 2.5 to 7.5 mbps per stream on mobile devices another reason directv might be a better choice for you is if you want nfl sunday ticket you can't get it with directv stream however remember you'll only get it for your first year and you'll be locked into a contract and higher prices in your second year and remember directv won't have sunday ticket anymore after the 2022 season finally if you need international channels directv is going to be the better option for you ultimately you need to do what we encourage all of our viewers to do identify your must-have channels the ones you watch most and can't live without then find the cheapest and best way to watch them that may not be direct tv or directv stream if you value flexibility to start and stop your tv options directv is not the choice for you and directv stream may not be either another one of the top live tv streaming services could be best for you you can explore those in our video comparing the best ones yeah and let us know what you think of directv stream versus directv in the comments below which is better in your opinion do you think nfl sunday ticket is worth the contract and if you haven't already don't forget to like subscribe and turn on notifications so you can get all our latest news and reviews when they drop thanks for watching and we'll see you in our next video

Channel: Frugal Rules with John and Nicole Schmoll

Views: 51,928

Keywords: directv vs. directv stream, directv stream vs. directv, directv stream plans, directv vs. directv stream channel lineup, directv vs. directv stream picture quality, directv prices, directv stream prices, directv stream app, directv streaming box, directv streaming service, cut the cord on cable and satellite, directv stream setup, directv stream review, directv stream device, directv music, directv stream box, directv vs. at&t tv, at&t tv vs. directv, directv stream dvr

Id: eMvWXW4yapU

Length: 10min 21sec (621 seconds)

Published: Mon Mar 14 2022