A DirecTV customer who had used the same satellite equipment for more than 20 years got an unpleasant surprise when the equipment broke. An even bigger surprise came when the company reportedly told them the aging hardware was theirs to keep.
They then asked Reddit whether obsolete equipment owned outright is still useful.
Here's what to know
In their post, the original poster wrote, "I'm seriously thinking about cancelling my DirecTV (satellite) subscription. … I recently had an issue (the antenna LNA was full of water, it had cracked from age in the sunlight), and they told me I owned the equipment and it was no longer leased."
"I have no desire to post them on Ebay or other," the OP continued, "just wondering if there was a 'hack' to retask them on my home network."
Responses indicated there is not much use for most DirecTV-specific boxes after service ends, but commenters did mention a few narrow exceptions.
One person said, "If you disconnect the DVR box from phone and internet before cancellation, you should be able to continue watching whatever you have recorded. (it'll be slow accessing the list until it times out trying to find a signal), but you wont be able to record anything new."
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"Because the launcher is tied to a Gemini version of the DIRECTV app, I think it becomes a boat anchor," another commenter stated.
More background
The discussion also widened into whether keeping older satellite service still makes sense compared with newer streaming bundles.
One person said they had canceled DTV satellite for the streaming genre packages and were saving $100 a month.
That same person later said they went with a sports package for $50.00 that included ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox, plus "Probably 30 channels I pay for, and 75 that they give you for free."
Others in the thread said calling the company can still produce a different outcome.
A commenter who said they had been a customer since 1998 wrote that, after contacting DirecTV about deteriorating dish equipment, the company installed "the newest satellite, the newest genie and boxes in four rooms."
What can be done?
Before shutting off service, commenters suggested clarifying several basics like whether DirecTV expects any equipment to be returned and if the company might offer another plan.
"Once cleared, as you note, you can repurpose the drive," one commenter suggested. "If you have the [remote] with the DTV/TV/AV1 slider switch, the remote(s) may be usable for the indicated equipment, at least for on/off/volume."
Where can I learn more?
If old hardware can't be repurposed, proper disposal is crucial, and there may even be some trade-in options.
• Best Buy customers can get money for old devices instead of storing dead electronics.
• Redwood Materials showed people where to put old cables instead of tossing them loose.
• Carnegie Mellon students helped build a robot for e-waste that recovers valuable materials.
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