Montgomery county internet: comcast or Verizon? (Ellicott City: sales, home, neighborhoods)

[Aalbatr0ss]

Hi all,
Just moved here, need to get internet set up. Comcast is more expensive, but not by that much compared to Verizon DSL. Are there any other choices out there?

Verizon is cheaper, but I've heard bad things from Verizon customers in other areas. I guess I'm inclined to go with Verizon. Has anyone out there had experience with both providers? The lower speed of DSL is okay, I'm more interested in reliability, etc.

Any advice would be appreciated.

[sundaze]

I have had no problems with verizon dsl.

[MikeK]

No experience with Comcast internet - but plenty bad with Comcast cable. I've been using Verizon DSL for years with no problem. Check to see if Verizon FIOS is available in your area. They offer a package deal with phone (local and LD) Internet and TV for around $100 a month plus all of the taxes the county, state and federal government steal from us.

I'm considering the FIOS switch myself.

[The Dissenter]

LISTEN TO ME!!!!!!!!!! STAY AWAY FROM COMCAST!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The worst company in the US.

I have Verizon DSL, dont give me many problems. As soon as Alexandria gets Verizon FIOS cable I can be done with Comcast and their horrible service for good.

[titaniummd]

I have had very few issues with Comcast. Getting installation is the major hurdle. Customer service and technical support is better than Verizon.

I had Comcast for four years and when I moved to Florida, I still chose Comcast.

[evilnewbie]

I have Comcast but I don't live in Maryland atm but will in 3-4 years. I consider myself a little bit knowledgable in computers and have seen some common trends in different areas in our great nation. First off, cable is faster than dsl... i have had both in multiple cities and I always switch back to cable because its faster and I use a LOT of bandwidth. DSL always ended up costing me more, they tax your phone and internet lines (which varies from several dollars to more, I never understood why taxes vary each month) whereas cable internet is not taxed. The cost of DSL is cheaper BUT you have to have a phone line which ends up costing me more than just cable internet. I have a cell phone and never use the home phone. Did you know that you can actually have DSL without a phone line? You know the reason they don't allow this? Profits of course, you pay more they earn more. So in the end paying more and slower speed = DSL... If you need a home phone line then go with DSL cause it would be cheaper then.

[kjg1963]

I have the digital Comcast package--phone, tv, and cable. I have never had a problem. I may have been out of service for maybe an hour or two during a major storm (2 or 3 times in 4 years), but other than that its been very reliable. Never had DSL, but I am interested in FIOS. I guess we all have different experiences, but overall, I've been very satisfied with Comcast. Service calls and all.

[macroy]

I had Comcast for over 10 years in both Howard Co. and Montgomery County. I have Verizon FiOS now in Ellicott City. All in all... I've seen little difference. Both Customer support isn't what you would consider the best.. but I've had to deal very little with Comcast, and have had not dealing with Verizon on that front.

In terms of pricing, Both are about the same give or take a dollar or two / month. Before I moved, I had comcast's presidential package.. its basically everything you can get on TV (minus the PPV) and their Internet for $125 total. Currently, I have data, TV and VoIP from Verizon (Data/TV via FiOS and phone via voicewing) for around $105. The only difference is that my TV is pretty much one above the basic plan (no premium movie channels). I'd suspect that with all that, it would be about $150.... which would be what comcast would have been had I had phone as well with them.

The data rate for FiOS is less than Comcast (5MB down vs 6?). But FiOS has tiered plans with 15 and as high as 120Mb I believe (you'll be paying dearly for that though). As I said earlier, unless you're trying to serve up data to buddies, the difference is really negligible (there is still network overhead and all... so the actual throughput is not going to be anywhere near that).

Someone mentioned that DSL is slower than Cable.... I don't think there is much difference either from experience. The thing about cable is that is a shared medium, and for the most part you have one speed for residential service. DSL provides more options - but it is distance dependent with regards to your Verizon central office (CO) - this is basically your neighborhoods telecommunication hub. This is the reason why DSL is not available everywhere. The further you are from the CO, the less service options you have.

All in all, I'd go with FiOS if its available. Verizon is really trying to go up against Comcast on that front.. and I've found them to be much easier to 'bargain' with than Comcast. And that's another thing - don't be shy about trying to deal with them. Tell them you are considering both..... and see which one come in better (and not those 60 day deals either... ask for 1 year or 2 year commitments on extended offerings). I got a buddy who has been able to get his premium channels for free now for like 5 years now... on a 6 month special... every time its about to expire, he would call and threaten to cancel. I tried it once... and it didn't work... so a sales mentality must be required.

Hope that helps. YMMV.

[scottfs]

Comcast's service can be an absolute nightmare. I've had a few really bad experiences with them, and have heard many horror stories about them. I read in the paper a while back about some old lady got so annoyed with them she went down to their offices and smashed some stuff up with a hammer.

Verizon doesn't have spectacular customer service either, but in my experience has definately been better than Comcast. I'd personally recommend Verizon over Comcast.

[DjfunkmasterG]

I use comcast, but during peak hours (4-8pm) my internet slows to a crawl. DSL is just as bad, as I have had that as well. I am awaiting the FIOS installation guy to see if it will help improve anything. Right now neither the DSL or Cabel internet in Montgomery county is worth a damn.