There's an article up on Digital Landing all about cable and satellite TV. Learn about costs, equipment, high definition, the works.
Q: How do the costs for cable and satellite TV service compare?
Most experts generally rule the cost equation slightly in favor of satellite, even when you have to buy the equipment you use to receive (and sometimes, to record) TV, be it standard television or HDTV. That’s because the costs of renting cable equipment generally exceed those for buying satellite equipment over time, and because the regular monthly fees and taxes that get tacked onto cable TV charges also add to the overall cost. That confers only a slight edge, however, and shouldn’t be the only factor involved in your selection.
Q: How do costs of equipment purchase compare to rental costs?
When satellite providers offer equipment at no charge, they generally require at least a one-year subscription commitment or a contract of similar duration. When they charge for the equipment, it usually costs anywhere from $49 for a basic standard TV set-top box, to as much as $299 for a set-top box that can record HDTV signals.
Cable operators generally charge $3 per set-top box per month ($36 a year) for basic standard TV devices, and up to $10 a month ($120 per year) for set-top boxes that can record HDTV signals. If you stay with either provider longer than two or three years, the satellite service costs come out somewhat lower than the cable service costs because you’ll typically pay off that equipment somewhere in the second or third year of ownership, as compared with cable TV costs. But such equipment generally needs to be replaced every five to seven years (if not more often for real equipment aficionados), so equipment costs do continue to factor into the overall burden for either type of service.
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