When we first moved into the home we're in now, Comcast was the only game in cable TV. Ameritech (now WOW) wasn't available in our zip code, so we signed up with Comcast and received free digital cable for a month. At that time it was a huge disappointment - the picture on the digital channels kept on pixelating, making it useless. When the free month was over, I canceled it and didn't look back. Until recently.
Since we have preschool age kids, we discovered the Noggin channel and quickly adopted it as the station of choice when the TV was on with the kids. Because WOW still doesn't offer Noggin as part of their analog package, we've never seriously considered switching as the boys still enjoy many of Noggin's programs. In the past year plus, the advertisements for Comcast's digital cable and their 'On Demand' feature have become more frequent and to be honest, more compelling. When I recently purchased a new cable modem to replace the one I had been renting from Comcast, I decided to give digital another try. They were offering a 3 month deal at reduced rates- losing the cable modem and cable guard off the bill made the price comparable to what I had been paying all along anyhow.
Although still skeptical about digital overall, I was curious about the On Demand feature. It has been a pleasant surprise- especially in the area of programs for the kids. They offer quite a few programs from WTVS Channel 56 - many of which are new to us because they usually air during work/school hours. It's great to be able to play these programs when Noggin is done for the day (after 6pm) and instead of videos/DVD's. Jay Jay the Jet Plane has been a big hit in our house. I'll admit that I haven't had a lot of time to explore the other options more for adults - the basketball playoffs have taken up most of my TV time.
Whatever the problem was with digital cable on our first go-round, it seems to have been solved since then. The channels on the digital tier come in just fine - and in fact the picture overall with the converter has been better than just running the cable directly into the TV. The only drawback is the continued overall high cost of Comcast's services. It's hard to get used to sending a cable company so much money for what we get -- but then again I still pay it. If you can stomach the cost, digital cable with the On Demand feature is a good product- especially if you have young kids that watch TV.
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