5 Things to Consider Before You Buy DTH Set Top Box

If you are planning to buy DTH Set Top Box for your TV set, but confused about which one to opt for, then these 5 points will solve your doubt.

Things to Consider Before Buying New DTH Connection

While DTHConnect.com offers you a variety of DTH options from Dish TV to Tata Sky to Videocon D2H to Airtel Digital TV, as a consumer, it becomes difficult to choose one. Prima facia, all DTH products appear similar and it has been a trend to opt for the Set Top Box as suggested by the local shop or recommended by acquaintances. Blindly believing a person and not making an informed decision can not only cost you money, but may also derive you from the benefits provided by DTH services.

To help you in making a wiser decision, I am putting down a list of 5 things that you must consider before booking a DTH Connection-

1.DTH Package Price and channels–

Majority of the customers compare the initial cost of Set Top Box to make their decision. They do not realize that monthly cost of packages are more critical than the one time fees of new DTH Connection. All DTH service providers provide 4-5 Basic packs to subscribe starting for as low as Rs. 99 per month and going to Rs. 800 per month. They have given fancy names to such packages as Titanium, Ultra, Gold or  Dhamaal Packs.

While it might be  little time consuming exercise, but before buying a DTH Connection, prepare a draft list of channels you want to see. Check what is the minimum package that you would have to subscribe to get all the required channel. It might be possible that the particular channel you want, might not be available on your preferred DTH service platform. Opt for the DTH service provider which has all your required channels at minimum price.

Tip: Add the subscription cost of HD channels, while calculating cost of channel packages.

2. Set Top Box Type–

For a normal customer, it is difficult to differentiate between different types of Set Top Boxes offered by companies. Broadly speaking, there are 3 types of Set Top Boxes- Standard Definition (SD), High Definition (HD) and 4K (Ultra HD). The thumb rule is to choose the Set Top Box based on the specification of your TV. If you have a LCD/ LED go for HD and for tube TVs choose SD Box. If you are having a television with 4K picture quality, then don’t look at the cost, book a 4K DTH connection. There might not be enough 4K content as on date, but in very near future, you will have plenty. 4K to DTH industry is what 4G is to mobile industry.

The second thing to consider in Set Top Box type is the recording feature. Set Top Boxes of Dish TV, Airtel Digital TV and Videocon D2H supports recording via USB pen drive. However, you can not record a channel while watching another one. For simultaneous recording facility, opt for Recorder Set Top Boxes having inbuilt storage capacity. These are available at a premium price.

3. Warranty–

Dish TV, Airtel Digital TV, Tata Sky and Videocon D2H- all provide 1 year warranty on new connection. However, coverage of warranty may vary with each DTH service provider. For example, Videocon D2H do not cover remote, accessories (Universal LNB) in their warranty. Considering the extreme weather conditions and frequent fluctuations in power supply, Set Top Box failure rate is on the higher side in India. Hence, warranty plays a crucial role. Call customer care number of all DTH service provider to know the details warranty, before making your decision.

Tip: Look for DTH service provider that offers Annual Maintenance Contracts for extended warranties.

4. Service-

This is probably the most important factor and the most difficult to judge. Support of customer care is constantly required by a DTH customer, be it re-alignment  or any account related issues . One of the simplest and reliable method of comparing service quality is to call the customer care of each service provider and note their waiting time. The company with least waiting time is probably  the company which cares the most about its customers. This test mostly give appropriate result and can be applied for mobile and internet services. Online reviews of DTH services is the second method for judging quality of services.

Tip: In case of small towns, villages or outskirt city areas; please take the address of nearest service center to know how far they are located.

5.  Long Term Offers-

All DTH Companies offer huge discounts if you opt for annual or other long term packages. For example Tata Sky offers 1 year free HD Access worth Rs. 2100 and 2 months free TV viewing, on opting for annual offer for new DTH Connections. Similarly, in case of Dish TV by paying for 7 months subscription, you can get the new connection virtually free. If you have cash, then always opt for long term offers and you can save up to 40% on your annual cost.

Keeping these 5 points in mind, will always keep you safe from making an incorrect decision.