There's No Such Thing as "No Cable"

[shadowmoss]

http://www.technomadia.com/2014/02/key-comparisons-bandwidth-att-verizon-tmobile/

Look around their blog and you will probably find the answers to any mobile internet questions you have.

[lisahi]

I looked into ExtremeDSL and I'm actually shocked that my AT&T DSL service is actually cheaper for the speed I have now. WEIRD. AT&T is almost never cheaper than anything.

[Daley]

I looked into ExtremeDSL and I'm actually shocked that my AT&T DSL service is actually cheaper for the speed I have now. WEIRD. AT&T is almost never cheaper than anything.

Two things:

1) AT&T has it set up to where it's not worth going with third party DSL service on their copper due to the inability to go dry loop except from them directly.

2) Even still, DSLExtreme is still technically cheaper if you ignore AT&T's promo pricing (which never lasts) and you already pay for a landline.

[SmilingBob]

Comcast does suck, they always have.  I thought the pricing/speed tiers were pretty consistent nationwide though.

http://www.dslreports.com/faq/15643

They actually told you the $29.95 wasn't available?  That sounds bogus, that would be the "Economy" tier in my area, and that chart has all the provisioned speeds available in my area last year before I fired Comcast for DSLX.  I would call back and ask to speak with a supervisor, advise them of the EXACT tier of service you require, reference that chart on DSLReports.  They absolutely HATE to sell unbundled internet service, and they do not advertise any of the lower tiers and are reluctant to admit they even exist.  Good luck.

[oldtoyota]

Comcast does suck, they always have.  I thought the pricing/speed tiers were pretty consistent nationwide though.

http://www.dslreports.com/faq/15643

They actually told you the $29.95 wasn't available?  That sounds bogus, that would be the "Economy" tier in my area, and that chart has all the provisioned speeds available in my area last year before I fired Comcast for DSLX.  I would call back and ask to speak with a supervisor, advise them of the EXACT tier of service you require, reference that chart on DSLReports.  They absolutely HATE to sell unbundled internet service, and they do not advertise any of the lower tiers and are reluctant to admit they even exist.  Good luck.

BTDT

They say the supervisor is "in a meeting" and will call me back "within 24 hours." Every time. That is part of their script. They say one thing is available and that they will give that to me--and later call say it's not available. I have the IM transcript where this happened. It's pretty clear blatant lying, so I am figuring out what to do with the info..publish it on the internet? Send it to their compliance department? Write some friends who work at large media organizations? Not sure yet.

[smalllife]

Comcast does suck, they always have.  I thought the pricing/speed tiers were pretty consistent nationwide though.

http://www.dslreports.com/faq/15643

They actually told you the $29.95 wasn't available?  That sounds bogus, that would be the "Economy" tier in my area, and that chart has all the provisioned speeds available in my area last year before I fired Comcast for DSLX.

The $29.95 is the bundled price, that same tier is $39.95 unbundled.  If you ask for the $29.95 directly they say it's not available because they aren't looking at the bundled product options, and the only way it is listed on the site is with the bundled prince.  Been there, done that.  Has your local customer service center been giving you the same run around?  That's how I finally had to handle things.

[BlueMR2]

Verizon did offer it and now they are removing as an option for many areas.  They removed it from ours.

Same here, but I was able to get my UNE DSL through Toast.net (over a Verizon circuit) even though Verizon wouldn't sell it to me directly.  :-)

[lisahi]

I looked into ExtremeDSL and I'm actually shocked that my AT&T DSL service is actually cheaper for the speed I have now. WEIRD. AT&T is almost never cheaper than anything.

Two things:

1) AT&T has it set up to where it's not worth going with third party DSL service on their copper due to the inability to go dry loop except from them directly.

2) Even still, DSLExtreme is still technically cheaper if you ignore AT&T's promo pricing (which never lasts) and you already pay for a landline.

I'm off of AT&T's promo pricing and I don't have a landline. My cost per month used to be $50 after the promo ended for speeds up to 3Mbps. They dropped the price to $40 per month without explanation (and that includes all the taxes, fees, etc.). I'm not complaining about that. Now, perhaps I'm misunderstanding ExtremeDSL's contract/no contract pricing system. My thought was that for the 12-month contract price for Standard DSL with speeds up to 3Mbps, you pay $14.95/mo (not including taxes, fees, etc.), and that after the 12-month contract is up, you pay the standard no-contract fee of $34.95/mo (not including taxes, fees, etc.).  If that's the case, then that's pretty much what my AT&T DSL service is already priced at.  So I guess my AT&T is not "cheaper" but around the same price, since the $40 I pay per month includes all the taxes, fees, etc., and I started out with promotional pricing at around $15 per month before my contract ended.

These are, of course, the prices for those within AT&T's reach; using Verizon area prices, the 12-month contract fee for ExtremeDSL is even higher ($24.95), although the no-contract fee per month is the same.

I agree there is no point for me to go with another service provider. AT&T owns this city and has made sure that no other carrier or service gets a foothold.

If I'm misunderstanding the pricing scheme, and you would get to keep the $14.95/month pricing, then fantastic.

[odput]

They say the supervisor is "in a meeting" and will call me back "within 24 hours." Every time. That is part of their script. They say one thing is available and that they will give that to me--and later call say it's not available. I have the IM transcript where this happened. It's pretty clear blatant lying, so I am figuring out what to do with the info..publish it on the internet? Send it to their compliance department? Write some friends who work at large media organizations? Not sure yet.

All of the above?

[lisahi]

Comcast does suck, they always have.  I thought the pricing/speed tiers were pretty consistent nationwide though.

http://www.dslreports.com/faq/15643

They actually told you the $29.95 wasn't available?  That sounds bogus, that would be the "Economy" tier in my area, and that chart has all the provisioned speeds available in my area last year before I fired Comcast for DSLX.  I would call back and ask to speak with a supervisor, advise them of the EXACT tier of service you require, reference that chart on DSLReports.  They absolutely HATE to sell unbundled internet service, and they do not advertise any of the lower tiers and are reluctant to admit they even exist.  Good luck.

BTDT

They say the supervisor is "in a meeting" and will call me back "within 24 hours." Every time. That is part of their script. They say one thing is available and that they will give that to me--and later call say it's not available. I have the IM transcript where this happened. It's pretty clear blatant lying, so I am figuring out what to do with the info..publish it on the internet? Send it to their compliance department? Write some friends who work at large media organizations? Not sure yet.

Lying is part of their script. I haven't dealt with Comcast, but I've had several AT&T salespeople lie to me. One claimed that I needed a landline to get DSL (false); when I discovered that I didn't need a landline, I called and they finally switched me over to Internet-only, but failed to cancel my old landline account, which I was still billed for.  Called back, said they would cancel the landline, but they didn't, even though the salesperson confirmed he just canceled it when I was on the phone. Another salesperson lied to me and said I could get 6Mbps speeds in my area, even though that is physically and technically impossible (3Mpbs is the fastest DSL my home would be capable of receiving). Another salesperson later admitted that was a blatant lie and apologized. And the sad part is they get away with it. Frankly, I think it's part of their strategy to be lying a-holes on the phone such that the customer doesn't want to call to cancel or downgrade services because the customer knows it'll take two or three phone calls to make it happen.

[okashira]

It's funny how not long after Google announed Austin for their fiber service, did At&t start rolling out more fiber and announce their own gigabit service. Yet in areas with no competition, it's still the same shit.

This is why I am considering advocating internet service to be regulated as a utility. The competition is not there.

[Bookworm]

We have the same issue. We can switch to another company for internet service, but we need the strength and speed of Verizon because we have two adults, a college student, and two high school students all using computers at the same time for necessities. It's more expensive to have internet only than to bundle it with local TV service, so we keep it bundled and have the cable box sitting on a shelf in a closet. It's still ridiculously expensive, but this seems to be the best option until we get through the multiple-laptops-on-wifi student years.

[oldtoyota]

It's funny how not long after Google announed Austin for their fiber service, did At&t start rolling out more fiber and announce their own gigabit service. Yet in areas with no competition, it's still the same shit.

This is why I am considering advocating internet service to be regulated as a utility. The competition is not there.

Were you the person who earlier said Google is our only hope? It might just be...We desperately need competition.

How does fiber service work? I should probably Google that. If you know of some good articles, though, let me know. =-)