I think customer service with both verizon and comcast sucks.
part of the problem is they are huge companies.
service is a cost center and they try and keep it at a minimum.
it usually takes 5-10 minutes at a MINIMUM to begin talking to a human,
who may or may not be on this continent.
9 times out of 10 when you call to report a service disruption they will put you on hold for 2 minutes to come back and tell you that there are no problems in your area.

tech support is even more frustrating.
the first tier folks are usually trained to verify that the unit is correctly plugged in.
they have no real understanding of how to solve the problem but are reading from a script. Having a background in computer design make makes matters worse becuase you just confuse them.
most of the time their primary job is to keep you fetching rocks until the real tech people can get the problem fixed.

it's not unusual to have the problem resolve itself before you ever actually get through to tech support.

 

Well at the risk of getting into this can-o-worms again.

I have FIOS, I had Comcast for 20+ years. The difference IMHO is night and day. I have had billing issues with Verizon in the past and they did get a bit frustrating. As far as Comcast, billing issues never resolved in a way that I found acceptable. As for tech services, FIOS people are more professional at the first level and I have had them resolve every problem (admittedly, that hasn't been many) quickly and correctly. When I have called Verizon TS, they have given me answers including when they are having an issue, and when that issue will be resolved.

I do not wish to get into another of those discussions here, so this will be my only comment.

Picture quality with FIOS is significantly better, Internet speeds are very much higher, and my bill did drop a bit. I currently have the following:
20G/5G internet (real numbers)
Telephony with voice mail and free log distance to US and Canada
TV-I have every channel with premiums, an HD DVR and 2 additonal HD settop boxes

I pay ~$180/month.

Conclusion, for me, I would not go back to Comcast if it was free.

 

Lainey, I only have basic cable at both places. I have the slowest high speed in SC and supposedly have the highest speed in Virginia. My landline is with Verizon and is a little over $40 a month. Comcast is $101 a month for basic cable and internet. Timewarner is about $75 a month for basic cable and internet. On a side note, TimeWarner gives me about 75 channels which includes Natgeo, Health Channel and several other crappy things I can't remember in addition to all the channels I get with Comcast. With Comcast I get only about 40 channels, no NatGeo, no Health Channel, etc. I get better service with TimeWarner and the slowest internet speed with Timewarner beats the stuffing out of comcast's high speed. I get no premium channels from anyone, but I certainly do like National Geographic.
Communications become expensive when I add it all up because I'm also paying a little over $100 a month for cell phones.

 

I just got off line with Verizon and got confused about how much speed I would need. I think I saw 1MB, 3MB and 7MB. (did I read that right?) I usually go for the higest I can get but I'm wondering if I need it in this case. I must admit I am spoiled by this T-1 line at work. I'm trying to do as much research as I can before I talk to an actual tech so I'm picking you guys' brain before I get ripped off. Thanks again for any input.

Zippy, I did see 50G but wasn't sure what that really meant in terms of say up/download for pictures, which is about all I'll be doing. I'll try not to choke on $200 a month. And what's with this teaser rate of $80 for a year? Does it then junp through the roof?

 

Val, even with just basic cable, it's not cheap is it?

My Verizon phone bill (not including internet) is being discounted by $25.00 every month until May. I like being able to call anywhere in the US or Canada, but I really don't use it all that often. Separate long distance packages are a thing of the past. Most push the unlimited plan. You can buy a pay as you go long distance plan, but there is a fee if you use them or not, just a few $ /month, (I don't want to pay for something that I don't use), and your price per minute is high.

Before I made the deal with Verizon, I tried to use my cell phone for all out of state long distance, but the reception isn't the greatest at times, and I found it annoying to try to carry on a conversation when the person I was talking to kept telling me I was "breaking up."

The "bundling" with ComCast makes sense, but I'm still holding out.

 

I'm now wondering what Comcast is going to counter with. I'm narrowing it down, though. Thanks V.

 

zippy,
did you mean to type 20M/5M instead of 20G/5G ?

i'd be suspicious of a link that was faster than the 10/100/1000 ethernet connection into your computer.
Granny,
a T1 connection is typically 1.5Mbits per second.
so the 1Mb would be about the same with 3Mb and 7Mb being faster.

 

G,
Please keep in mind that what I'm paying includes Basic, Extended, HD+ package, HBO, Max, the movie package with SHO, Encore, and all the rest.

I also have 20Mb down and 5Mb up for internet. I believe that their lowest speed for FIOS is 10Mb down and 5Mb up, but I am not sure if that is geographically dependent.

One thing that is very different with internet is the way info is handled in cable-modem vs. FIOS. Cable-modem distributes bandwidth over a server. That server can service as many as 20 homes and each home can have multiple computers all using that same fixed bandwidth. Comcast talks about "high speed" but it is still shared, this is why their ads say that "your bandwidth may vary form what is advertised". And because they use coax (copper) in the network, their bandwidth will deteriorate the farther you are from the hub (distribution point).

Disclaimer: I have been out of this business for a while now, so if I am incorrect on anything that I have said, just let me know.

One point for Comcast, they do have a more extensive free on-demand library.

 

Can you tell I am a little embarrassed?
Yep, I meant 20Mb/5Mb

 

Here is a great site to check your actual download/upload speed vs. what your provider is telling you: SpeedTest.Net