We've had both services time and again over the years and they pretty much deliver the same channels, and as of late Dish has all the specialized sport packages that Directv at one time had more exclusivity to.
As for customer service it can be poor and good from either service, just luck of the draw when calling in. Both services start with good pricing and over time go up to normal pricing but you can at times negotiate better pricing.
Locals can be switched to the city you are in with Dish by calling in or through their online chat, locals at home change too. Directv prefers to give you East or West coast feeds so you can keep up with OTA network programming.
We get our locals throughout NM and outskirts of CO, UT, and AZ. Outside our spotbeam we use rig's antenna should we desire OTA network programming, we just use our phones and local news apps for what's happening at home.
For whatever service we have we purchase the very same dish that is mounted on our home along with a home-made stand or tripod from CW. Pointing is simple once you get the hang of it, practice at home first.
We prefer dry-camping and boondocking in the four corner states which can make getting OTA signals challenging. Even set up dish at private RV parks where cable is available due to poor video quality and generic channel selection.
Many fret the cost of satellite service and to be sure it can get pricey. We purchased our rig to explore our country with home-like amenities. We choose to have sat tv on the road and with little effort have all the same channels.
