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Shaw Direct Complaint, Rant, Leaving SD Thread

325K views 1K replies 235 participants last post by  P2B 
#1 ·
This thread is for frustrated members to air their beefs and grievances over Shaw Direct.

If you have a technical problem that needs solving, please check out other threads, as this one is just for rants and complaints.

Please Note:

Although this thread is for rants and complaints, you are still expected to follow the rules of the forum when you post so No swearing, no oversized fonts, images etc.
 
#151 ·
Good Job! Give them a reality Check.

I'm walking as well and I only have 2 HD OTA channels to go to, but I'm covered 99% with that and the balance from the internet.

With most of the internet providers also having a TV divisions, somehow, we'll all get it in the end.
 
#152 ·
on saturday--18th-- i was /more likely to watch something else on tv instead on SPEED on 406 picture was so awful that it was like filmed with a junk camera. no i don't have SPEED in HD. but everytime i had to press the guide as you know the picture gets small and it was clear like hd!! maybe it was so compressed? i don't know. i tested it and it was the same for all the sd channels picture was real good when the guide was on.. but when watching it regulary it was tasteless.. only at 406 picture was real bad to look at. all ordinary channels are respectable in HD they are splendid. that was my complaint . when hockey season will start i will subscribe to the HD sports i will watch speed -274-all winter long until hockey ends tsn+tsn2 HD.
 
#153 ·
While watching the Lions/Bombers last evening on TSN HD I experienced several picture and sound dropouts lasting anywhere from a couple of seconds to about 10 seconds. Nearly all occurred in the first half. I also have noticed that happening occasionally on other CFL games and Blue Jay games on Sportsnet HD Ontario & One. These occurences only seem to be happening on live broadcasts, not on the normal HD programming. Any one else experiencing these dropouts?
 
#156 ·
Watching the Houston vs, Oakland Game yesterday on NFLST on channel 435 (I Beleive).

With about 6 minutes left in the game it went to commercials, then all the sudden I'm watching the Chicago Blackhawks preseason game. Keep in mind the football game was on CBS and the Blackhawks game was on WGN....

Call SD to talk to someone - "We don not control what the individual networks put on thier networks and when they may cut to another program."
Okay, I get that, but please don't tell me CBS switched to cover a hockey game on WGN.
"Let me look into that sitr"
While on hold, the channel changes again from Blawkhacks game to the Chargers/Cardinals game (broadcast by Fox), then back to the Blackhawks game. Then once again from the Blackhawks game to the Houston/Oakland game.
He came back after me holding for about 7 minutes and apologized but had no idea why it would have been doing that.

Someone was active at the switch yesterday ;)
 
#158 ·
Bell TV is the best!

I've move in a brand new house recently. When I call Bell for moving my phone, they offered me a very good deal to subscribe to Bell TV. I accepted! I was a Starchoice subscriber since 2003.

My God what a good move. Bell TV is way over shaw Direct in every aspect. Mostly in hd channels availability and PVR performance.

Do it if you can!!!
 
#163 ·
rebooting every day

In 2 days either channels disappeared completely or could not be seen unless I did a physical reboot. Then the programming showed my programs but no available dates. If you change channels too quickly the unit reboots. Just turning it on today I changed one channel and the unit rebooted.
Getting ready to give this unit the boot, and maybe rebuy when the firmware is updated to .14 or evem .15. My tuners vary showing S and N/A inconsistantly, but with good signal strength. No line is split.
Called customer service many times, have done physical reboots (wiping out recording, of course), rearranged the co-ax line feeds. Customers service suggested maybe I should turn off my internet from Rogers for a few days, and I suggested I could live without Shaw first as I use it for my business. My house is 'smart-wired' and there will be no further wiring. Before I was using the 505 and a dvd recorder, and was much more reliable, even if more work and less quality pic.
probably will ask Shaw to reverse the PVR credit and wait a year for the bugs to work out. I get constant calls from Rogers with free PVR for a couple of years, and having had the 505 from the start with all its initial bugs leads one to wonder. However, I am told Rogers has their own issues, so may just go back to simple and no pvr.
Sorry I am rambling, just tired from long work weeks and frustration at not being able to enjoy what I paid for.
 
#167 ·
Cheaping out on Discount

I have been requesting bpm:tv for some time. I also have the 530 and I know that many people are getting discounts on their bills because of issues. I was getting a $5 discount/monthly for a year. When the year was up, they said they would renew it for a further three months. Now they no longer want to renew it. After further complaining, they agreed to a further $3/month discount for 12 months. I don't see any point to nickel and dime a customer nickel and dime. I guess they think they won and saved the company $24/year. Telus is looking better each day.
 
#171 · (Edited)
o.k....but did they ever say it would continue past one year? I have yet to hear of a company giving a discount per month for more than a year. And if your experience is so bad...then why not look elsewhere? If you go to a restaurant once and have a bad experience then that can be a one off....if you continue to go back and have a bad experience each time then why continue to go?
 
#174 ·
Install from hell…

I originally ordered Shaw Direct back in June of this year, I arranged the install for a Saturday, waited the whole day for the tech, he was a no-show, not even a call… I cancelled the whole transaction.
Fast-forward to Nov, I decided to give it another try. I ordered my HDDSR 605 online two weeks ago, install was scheduled for last Saturday. There was a dish already on my townhouse, but needed a switch to correct a weak signal & allow HD channels to come through, this took another full day. He installed the switch, I was in the garage, he didn’t talk to me & promptly left… I turned it on, and nothing, no signal. This started a full week of phone tag with both Shaw & the install company (Solo cable out of Brantford) resulting in two no-shows by the installer, the latest excuse I got today was the van broke down… yeah right!!

Shaw has been as helpful as they can, but sadly, they seem to be at the mercy of the installer… I cant believe such an incompetent company is awarded a contract to install online orders. Anyway… I had to find another company to come fix the problem myself, Shaw’s hands were tied, they are a local Shaw/Bell satellite dealer/installer, Shaw says they will reimburse all costs to fix the problem if I fax them the invoice.

I guess the moral of this story is if you can purchase your system from a local seller/installer, do so!! The $10 I saved for doing it online was not worth all my wasted time!!

I’m wondering what I can do about this contract installer… how can I make my complaints heard?
 
#175 ·
I dunno-if you have a "troubleshooter/consumer advocate" person on TV
(say, a local person and a local station) call 'em up and let 'em know. Make
a stink anyway you can. Tell your friends and family about this installer/company. The way it may work is this-one person gets good customer service, he/she might tell two people, but if he/she gets bad service, he/she will tell up to 10 people. If you can find out the head of this company's address, an EECB might work (that's Email Executive Carpet Bomb)-be polite, though, and document everything. You'd be surprised what may happen when
Company "G" doesn't want its name and reputation dragged through the mud


who knows, maybe even the Better Business Bureau may help??

GOod luck

JB
 
#177 ·
As verified by someone here, switching to Ontario Value package, you encounter some increases in your bill monthly so the aggregate effect is you creep back to your original pricing.

Shame on Shaw Direct for reneging on its pledge to provide free HD sports (TSN and Sportsnet) and the reasoning for the charges, 'exorbitant rates from these channels' is a load of crock. In the interim, Shaw Direct was enjoying record profits. Customers seem to be always lost in the shuffle.

A search has not located the new "Free HD" or not so free to launch in 2011.

Anyone have an update on this outfit?

Otherwise, its OTA and Netflix and web viewing for me.
 
#179 ·
No warm and fuzzy for Shaw so far

Because we were paying Bell over 400.00 a month for our various services, we decided to change everthing Bell. After some research I decided to go with Shaw Direct (mainly for prices). Last Saturday was our long awaited hookup day. The installer showed up an hour late ( he did call tho) and spent about two hours installing the dish, receivers etc.

Once he was finished, I didn't have any channels except channel 299, the dreaded fireplace channel. He told me that the uploads were taking some time but I should have stations in about an hour. Then he left, this was about 5:00 Saturday night. At 7:00 we still had no stations so I called customer service and waited on hold, and waited on hold and waited on hold I finally gave up in frustration at 8:45, still without talking to anyone. I then called back and used there handy call back feature thinking I would never get a call back, but they did call me in about 20 minutes. The CSR then gave me some steps to go through and told me rather than me having to call back, she would call me back in a half hour. I waited an hour...no one called. So once again I called Shaw and asked how many minutes are in their half hour because apparently it is different than mine. Anyway after talking to the new CSR for several minutes he determined that the problem was that I had a Bell multi-switch and that was messing up our signal. He said that installers don't carry them on their truck and it would take a week to ship. He did say I could purchase one at Future Shop the next day and likely install it ourself and all would be hunky dory. Shaw would credit my account for 89.99 and if I got one cheaper than that..bonus, if it was more than that, well 'sucks to be me'. He then said that he would call me back at around 6 the next evening to make sure everything was working.

I went the next day to Future Shop, Best Buy and the Source, but had no luck getting this multi-switch. I waited for Shaw to call me back at 6 that night as promised.....no call.

At 8 I called them again (I'm a little hostile at this point). I have already poured out 677.00 bucks for equipment and now I have no TV at all. This NEW CSR tells me that the multi-switch isn't the problem and that it being Bell shouldn't matter (hello, is there two different manuals with two entirely different processes). So here I wait until next Saturday until I have TV.

Yeah, I'll get right on recommending Shaw to anyone.;)
 
#186 ·
He said that installers don't carry them on their truck and it would take a week to ship. He did say I could purchase one at Future Shop the next day and likely install it ourself and all would be hunky dory.
The installer should not leave until verifying that the TV functions. It shouldn't take that long to dowmload channels. They should have sent the installer back right away.

I don't believe that Future Shop, etc. ever carried multi-switches.

Normally, if a multi-switch is required, they will ship it to the customer and arrange installation once the switch arrives.
 
#180 ·
Pivot, sorry to hear about your problems. I think your experience is the exception rather than the rule. Bell however has been a nightmare in terms of their phone service. I have been a Star Choice/Shaw Direct customer for ten years and perhaps with the exception of the first year when long waits on the phone were common, service has always been very good. Hopefully they will resolve your issue in a timely manner. CB
 
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