FiOS not expanding, Google Fiber just a pipedream; What are Angelenos to do for high-speed internet? (Los Angeles: 2014, apartment)

[MordinSolus]

I live in WeHo and have no options for internet speeds above 25 down/5 up and I'm lucky if I actually get that speed. This sucks. Aside from the issues I have with regular internet use, like Netflix being chuggy and constantly buffering when I'm downloading something, it impacts my work. I work from home and I regularly have to upload and download files, sometimes 10 GB or larger. When I first moved here just a short while ago I looked into getting Verizon FiOS internet but was told it wasn't available in my area yet. When I recently inquired as to when it will expand beyond the Santa Monica area(where it's currently essentially exclusive to in the LA area) I was told that they're not expanding FiOS at all. So if you don't live in Santa Monica then you can't get fast internet, and even then the fastest you can get in Santa Monica is 75/35(a far cry from Verizon's touted 500/100). Plus, if you do have FiOS available to you Verizon has notoriously awful service and customer support, on the same level of awfulness as Time-Warner Cable.
So what does that leave? Google Fiber? Nope. Google has no plans to expand Fiber to Los Angeles. And where they are rolling it out service areas are small and expansion is excruciatingly slow. Not to mention Google's plan with Fiber is to force other ISPs to improve speeds and coverage, not to make Fiber the leader in high-speed internet. So far that plan isn't working at all, even in the small areas that Fiber is available.

What are Angelenos with a need for speed to do? Move to Santa Monica and just hope FiOS service is reliable?
Shouldn't the city be doing something to expand fiberoptic coverage?

[bpeeps]

TWC subscribers in WeHo and Costa Mesa should see a triple in speed increases by the end of the year (they say June). Wait it out. This is something I've been refreshing article links on, because I too, have been waiting for faster speeds for a while now.

Time Warner Cable Begins Major Internet Speed Increases in Los Angeles and New York City | Time Warner Cable
Time Warner Cable to upgrade Los Angeles, New York service - Los Angeles Times

[ccm123]

How about a 4G mobile hotspot?

[TheGreatUnwashed]

Originally Posted by ccm123

How about a 4G mobile hotspot?

That will be no where close to his current 25megabit connection.

[HyperionGap]

Originally Posted by MordinSolus

I live in WeHo and have no options for internet speeds above 25 down/5 up and I'm lucky if I actually get that speed. This sucks. Aside from the issues I have with regular internet use, like Netflix being chuggy and constantly buffering when I'm downloading something, it impacts my work. I work from home and I regularly have to upload and download files, sometimes 10 GB or larger. When I first moved here just a short while ago I looked into getting Verizon FiOS internet but was told it wasn't available in my area yet. When I recently inquired as to when it will expand beyond the Santa Monica area(where it's currently essentially exclusive to in the LA area) I was told that they're not expanding FiOS at all. So if you don't live in Santa Monica then you can't get fast internet, and even then the fastest you can get in Santa Monica is 75/35(a far cry from Verizon's touted 500/100). Plus, if you do have FiOS available to you Verizon has notoriously awful service and customer support, on the same level of awfulness as Time-Warner Cable.
So what does that leave? Google Fiber? Nope. Google has no plans to expand Fiber to Los Angeles. And where they are rolling it out service areas are small and expansion is excruciatingly slow. Not to mention Google's plan with Fiber is to force other ISPs to improve speeds and coverage, not to make Fiber the leader in high-speed internet. So far that plan isn't working at all, even in the small areas that Fiber is available.

What are Angelenos with a need for speed to do? Move to Santa Monica and just hope FiOS service is reliable?
Shouldn't the city be doing something to expand fiberoptic coverage?

That sucks. When I called up TWC to set up internet at my new apartment in Orange i was offered up to 100 meg down.

[disgruntled la native]

Yep. We're stuck with the horrible TWC and the marginally better AT&T Uverse. I really hope the supposed speed increases happen. It's sick to pay $160 a month for an Internet/TV package and it barely work half the time.

[DinsdalePirahna]

I feel your pain. Our HOA just had a general vote for a FiOs install, we missed quorum by 2 votes, so we will not be getting it. When we were renting we had FiOS and it was 150x better and about 20 dollars cheaper than TWC.

Now we are still stuck with the awfulness of Time Warner. Throttling down and lost connections are de rigueur. Now its only worse. My favorite was dealing with customer service in Philippines and having them tell me that I lost my internet because I was on a Mac. Then telling me to call apple support when i clearly was a Time Warner Issue.


Net Neutrality has been struck down
Mergers between the ISP are taking place and we are all screwed.

[nightlysparrow]

Try Ventura County?

[MordinSolus]

Even if TWC makes good on their promise for faster speeds, they never actually give you what you pay for. I'm in shock if my download or upload speeds ever actually hit what they're supposed to and TWC is a nightmare to deal with when problems(inevitably and frequently) occur. Just getting my internet set up and cable card installed in my TiVo took 6 visits from 4 different "technicians." Everything was already pre-wired(my house even has high-grade fiberoptic installed, ironically enough...) but it was apparently too much for even 3 technicians to handle. The one who finally got it working is also the only one who knew how to install cable cards(and she was the only one who wasn't a know-nothing know-it-all).
At least if I had FiOS I would be getting 3 or 4 times the speed to go along with the headache. If I switched to TWC business class for the improved customer service I would be sacrificing even more speed because the highest available to me is 20/5. And that's at about 75% higher cost per month because I would have to have business internet and residential cable.

As silly as it is, I've been giving serious thought to moving to Santa Monica for FiOS. Even though I love WeHo and there isn't much for me in SM I will have to consider it for my work. I guess trading a 45 minute drive to the beach for a 45 minute drive to all of my favorite hangouts might be worth it...

[disgruntled la native]

Eh, closer to 25-30 minutes without traffic. Always better to live where you work, and if your work is high speed Internet, Santa Monica is a better choice. Anyway, most hangouts in WeHo can be replicated in Santa Monica minus the SMB scene