High Speed Internet Providers (Washington: 2014, how much, townhouse)

[mosley06]

My wife and I are buying a townhouse in the Farmwell Hunt area in Ashburn (20147). Can someone recommend a good (fast speed, less congestion) high speed internet service provider for that area? Thanks!

[Ashburnhome]

In Ashburn, you have 2 options

1 ) Adelphia ( now comcast )

2) Verizon - FIOS

I have 1) past 2 years and happy with that.

Verizon has been installing FIOS past 6 months and they are offering total package cable+internet+phone for a decent amount, so I would try FIOS.

[memiller]

If FIOS is offered, get that. Comcast couldn't spell customer service, much less deliver it. The Comcast office is about 2 miles from your new home. If you go with Comcast, you'll be spending a lot of time there.

[nmlarkin]

If you are thinking of getting FIOS, call NOW! I called August 31st and they are not coming to install it unitl September 18th! They said it will take from 6-8 hours to set up (I am getting the triple play... phone, cable, internet). 1.888.get.fios. Good Luck!

[saganista]

Keep in mind that when Verizon installs your FiOS setup, they will often by default remove the old copper wiring that your landline either does or used to run on. This makes it all but impossible ever to leave Verizon as your phone service provider without paying a lot to reinstall new copper or new cable. By law, whatever phone company owns your copper must allow other service providers to use it for free. There is no such sharing requirement once you make the switch to a cable. If you make the switch, at least insist that they leave your copper alone.

It's well to keep in mind as well that despite the seemingly high tech nature of FiOS as portrayed in the TV commercials, there is nothing cutting edge about it at all. It's the same fiber-optic cable that has been used elsewhere for years and years. Be sure to ask about HDTV compatibility with FiOS. There may be issues. Be sure to ask how much of the available programming is actually delivered via IPTV and how much as plain old cable signals. If you happen to have a home security system that calls the police when tripped, ask what will happen to that. Be sure to ask about the battery backup that will allow your phone to continue working if and when the power goes out. How often do you have to replace it? Where do you go to get one? How much does a new one cost? Once pressed into service, how long is it supposed to last? How long does it actually last? How long does it last if you try to surf the net on it?

All in all, it's better to be informed rather than just impressed...

[ateo]

Comcast is a notoriously awful ISP. I've had them in Maryland and I've had them in California, they were terrible in both locations.

Get DSL or Fios through Verizon. You'll have a dedicated line for yourself so you won't have to worry about your neighbors suck up your bandwidth and dsl/fios are simply more consistent than cable.

If you download a lot but never play games or do anything that requires low latency then cable is acceptable.

If you mostly browse the web and check email, get the cheapest DSL you can. Your bandwidth is irrelevant in that case.

If you want the best connection, get Fios.

[New Hampshire]

Originally Posted by memiller

Comcast couldn't spell customer service, much less deliver it. The Comcast office is about 2 miles from your new home. If you go with Comcast, you'll be spending a lot of time there.

If I could give you 100 Reputation points for this post I would. I gave you the 1 point allowed.

I am laughing hysterically. Your comment is soooooo true. Washingtonian magazine in July 2007 rated Comcast the worst company for customer service.

I have been trying since December, 2006, to get service and a correct bill from Comcast for a simple move from one address to another - it is now September, 2007. I tried writing a letter to the president of Comcast listing the 8 items that were incorrect, but that didn't work, so I am now in the process of writing separate letters for each item, waiting for that to be resolved, sometimes with follow-up letters, and then moving on to the next item.

Two new items showed up.

Now 4 to go.

(As an example, Comcast insisted upon billing me for television service which I do not have with Comcast. I only have internet service with Comcast. The installer knocked on my door and said the order didn't have television service on it, but he activated service at the outside pole before knocking because he thought the order was a mistake. I assured him it wasn't a mistake, but on the way out he forgot to disconnect television from the pole. The installer also couldn't get my internet service working - he left that to me to follow up with Tech Support.)

Comcast is the only high speed option I have in my area. Took it over from Adelphia.

P. S. Comcast advertises "up to 12 mbps" but I am getting 1.4 - 1.6 megabits of download speed. I haven't even addressed that with them yet.

[Tish Thompson]

Originally Posted by memiller

If FIOS is offered, get that. Comcast couldn't spell customer service, much less deliver it. The Comcast office is about 2 miles from your new home. If you go with Comcast, you'll be spending a lot of time there.

Amen to that Memiller! If Comcast were the only option I had for high speed, I'd suffer with dial up. I dumped Comcast about a year ago because the service was out 90% of the time, but I was expected to pay for service whether or not it worked.

They usually told me one of two things when I called to report outages: if you're tv is working, there's a problem in your house (that I'd have to fix myself) OR because less than 100 families live in my neighborhood, they could do nothing to help me....they only troubleshoot outages after 100 trouble reports are submitted.

[unionjack007]

How much does the weather affect the DirecTV signal during rain, fog, snow? I am looking at the VZ Triple Play bundle but I'm not sure about signal quality during adverse weather.

Also, regarding Saganista's recommendation to ask VZ to not touch the old copper wires during a FIOS install: has anyone actually made that request and did the VZ installers do as told?

[DJReuben]

It is actually not technically feasible to be connected to both the copper and FIOS unless they wire your entire home - at your expense. Sort of like plugging your fridge into both AC and DC if both were available at your home. You can't have them both at the same plug. The copper cables will remain at your POP, the problem will be getting them reconnected and what will be the state of this copper if it's disconnected by Verizon at the Central Office or relay point? They rip everything out as per the direction of Verizon - they are mostly sub-contractors doing the installations. I used to work for Verizon - they are not only installing FIOS, but making it extremely difficult for you to switch back to anything else. Doesn't make business sense for them to leave an outlet for another vendor if they can eliminate the link. Don't have anything against FIOS, you just better be extra sure that's the way you want to go before you make the swith. You'll be stuck with your choice.

I posted this on another thread:
I think I have enough experience on both of these. I was one of the first to have FIOS installed in Loudoun County. I loved it, but they do sever your copper lines so you will have no choices in the future. Got divorced and my wife got the FIOS. I was bummed and was forced to go to Comcast as it was the only option available. I've had Comcast for 10 months now. Two problems so far, one was an idiot installer, and the other was another idiot issue - yes ME. Have had no real problems to speak of and the downloads are considerably faster - yes faster - than with FIOS. I'm a computer engineer by trade - 30 years experience - government contractor. I'm moving and am considering what I'll install in my new home as both are available. Sounds like Comcast for me. We have had FIOS in my aparttment complex since the third month after I moved in, so I've had the option to change as I do not have a contract. It's kind of difficult to switch from something that hasn't given me any problem, to a slower speed. By the way, I had only two problems in several years with FIOS, and they were resolved by Verizon. One was a router that wouldn't work and the other was a back-up battery issue. You will be replacing back up batteries, but they provided me the first one. I then plugged my unit and an extra phone to an UPS and didn't have the problem again. Their battery basically became a back up to my own back up. I had an extra small UPS. One can be purchased for a few bucks at Microcenter. They will both charge you for service calls. Comcast speeds are dependent upon how many customers on a particular trunk so FIOS should be faster, just not my experience as I've experienced speeds several times faster on Comcast using multiple speed testing sites. Plus I can simply tell the difference in download times. Both packages I had included TV and phone - bundled. Comcast is a few dollars cheaper, but they are both very similarly priced.