PITTSBURGH -- Consumers looking to get their home entertainment fix have plenty of options. Satellite dishes, FiOS and traditional cable will all deliver your favorite shows straight to your home.

Call 4 Action: Cable, Satellite, FiOS Put To Test

They all claim to offer the best picture and service, so which one really is the best?

Channel 4 Action News' Aaron Saykin reported that consumers will have a better idea of how each service really stacks up, thanks to some new customer rankings.

According to Consumer Reports, one company scores at or the near the top in almost every category.

A leading, local technology expert says there are at least two reasons why.

The way we watch television is changing almost as quickly as we channel surf and with so many people switching to high-definition television sets, picture quality is suddenly king.

Among the options available in the Pittsburgh region, the clear winner appears to be the newest kid on the block: Verizon FiOS, which uses fiber optic wires as opposed to traditional cable wires, giving it a slight advantage.

"You've got more room to put detail in, and that shows up on some TV sets," said David Farber, the former chief technologist for the Federal Communications Commission.

In a survey done by Consumer Reports of many of the major cable providers, FiOS was No. 1, scoring of 78 out of a possible 100.

DIRECTV came in fourth with a score of 72. Dish Network scored 69, putting the satellite provider in sixth place in the survey.

Comcast, which is this regions largest provider finished in 14th place with a score of 61.

Farber says the higher rating for FiOS may also have a lot to do with psychology.

"There's also what I would call a human aspect to it -- fiber equals more modern and probably better," said Farber.

Consumer Reports also rated Internet service. In that category FiOS finished second overall with a score of 78, behind Wow Cable which is offered in parts of Ohio. Both scored above AT&T's DSL service which scored 71 and Comcast which scored 63.

For phone service, Vonage with a score of 79 edged FiOS out for the top spot with better value. But FiOS was ranked at having better quality and reliability. Comcast finished 17th with a score of 70.

The one area where Consumer Reports said Comcast is superior is customer service. In that category Verizon FiOs has the worst record for those who bundle multiple services.

Those consumers hoping for more competition locally may soon get their wish. FiOS is currently only offered in a limited number of local areas. But Verizon told Channel 4it recently reached agreements to bring FiOS to parts of Plum, Pitcairn and North Fayette and by late March, it's hoping to do the same in Pittsburgh.

---

Talk About It: Are You Happy With Your TV Service? Share Your Comments Here

previous stories -