Getting Cable/Internet in my Apartment (Austin, Round Rock: apartment complexes, rental, neighborhoods)

[Denver303TJC]

Hi All,

To be honest, I haven't moved into a new apartment until recently (and I'm new to Austin), so I'm not as up-to-date on what is the best option for getting cable tv and internet service. I live in North Austin and am looking for a basic cable lineup and basic internet, which will suffice to surf the net and that. I know there is AT&T U-Verse and Comcast and even Netflix. For someone who wants a basic offering of cable and internet, which company is good to go with? I realize technology is always changing and I assume there may be ways to get the service for cheaper, as opposed to going with one main providers.

Thanks! :-)

[mark311]

I didn't have a choice in the two apartment complexes that I lived in here in the Austin area. Both were Time Warner or nothing. One of the complexes allowed satellite dishes so you could go with Dish or DirecTV if you really wanted to, but I would contact the apartment's rental office to ask them. Some complexes have special deals with Time Warner so you get a much better deal anyway and you aren't tied into a full year contract.

[CptnRn]

I have had Time Warner and AT&T Uverse, I prefer AT&T, but either will suffice.

[Aquitaine]

I know there is AT&T U-Verse and Comcast and even Netflix.

Netflix doesn't provide Internet service or TV service like AT&T do - their service (and/or Hulu and others) lets you skip out on ordering TV from your cable provider, is all, though they're not entirely comparable.

In Austin we have four major Internet providers:

Google Fiber - It's a unicorn. If your apartment building has it, that's fantastic, but if it doesn't, don't sit around waiting for it. They're coming, but they're slooooooow to roll out. They offer Internet and TV.

Time Warner - Decent service now that they've updated their modems; several tiers up to 300 megabits, which is nothing to sneeze at. They offer TV, Internet, and (I think) digital phone service....if you actually want a land line.

AT&T - very good if you live in one of their 'Gigapower' neighborhoods as their service is comparable to Google Fiber's speeds and actually exists (like you can order it today and they'll come out and set it up next week). Gigapower has a fishy pricing structure where the lower rate gives AT&T permission to peruse how you use the Internet, but it is $20 cheaper a month if you let them, so I guess if you don't care that AT&T knows what kind of, er, Kitten videos you like to watch, it's a good bet. Otherwise $100. If you don't live in a Gigapower 'hood, their service is slower than Time Warner's top end but their mid-level stuff is about the same. They also offer TV and phone service and if you use them as your mobile phone provider as well you can get one giant, incomprehensible bill rather than several separate, smaller, incomprehensible bills.

Grande - a local ISP that serves parts of Central Austin, like two blocks in Round Rock, and a lot of San Marcos. No personal experience with them but folks seem to like them. You can plug in your address on their site and it'll tell you if you're in their service area.

[Denver303TJC]

Thanks for the help, everyone! I will research those companies and hopefully find a decent enough deal.

I remember the days of old when I lived in Denver and had Comcast (in 2010 and 2011) and I'd talk about downgrading my service to something basic and at first they'd say, "Well, sorry, we can't give you a better deal, you need to stay at this package"; Then I'd call back a few days later and politely say, "I don't watch much cable, I'd like to cancel it" and they'd say, "Whoa, whoa, whoa...Well for YOU this one time we can offer you a package for $19.99 or ($24.99) per month." I think nowadays they have more pricing power, so I doubt they are as "wheeling and dealing" now, lol. But, oh well, those were good times for the consumer. But, I digress. I will research AT&T and Time Warner and Grande. I live near W Parmer and McNeil, so I'll see if Google Fiber is by chance here, as well as Grande.

Thanks again!

[Denver303TJC]

I just checked on TWC's website and they have basic cable and internet starting at $44.99/month. Maybe that could be an ok option!

[iamwayne]

Purchase your own cable internet modem instead of renting it from TWC. The TWC has a recommended cable modem list and the cable modem if you purchae it will pay itself off in about a year vs $6.99+tax monthly rental.

If you are by yourself go for the cheapest $14.99 plan. 2mbps is fast enough for HD streams.

$100 for wireless modem ($70 for wired) + $15 for 12 months = $280

Vs

$7 for 12 months rental + $45 for 12 months service = $624

$344 difference in one year...

[iamwayne]

Forgot to say you'll have to decide if watching tv shows on the tv shows websites after broadcast is ok. Unless you can't live without dvr tv.

[Denver303TJC]

Thanks for the advice, Wayne! That's definitely a good way to save! :-)