Comcast Testing 'Economy' Tier? - 384kbps symmetrical for $25
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jstack @ 26th Feb 06:16PM:
Terrible Pricing
AT&T has 3.0/512 for $24.99 with no contract.
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Matt @ 26th Feb 06:17PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
said by jstack :
AT&T has 3.0/512 for $24.99 with not contract.
+ POTS = $40+ a month
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Dominokat @ 26th Feb 06:19PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
said by Matt :said by jstack :
AT&T has 3.0/512 for $24.99 with not contract.
+ POTS = $40+ a month
POTS here STARTS at 40+ p/mo.(after added fees and tax) Let alone adding DSL to the mix.
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Matt @ 26th Feb 06:19PM:
Time Warner
Time Warner Road Runner offers "Lite" and "Basic" here in the Triad:
$29.99 for Lite (1.5Mbps/256Kbps) and $24.99 for Basic (768Kbps/128Kbps)
»www.timewarnercable.com/piedmont···ing.html
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Matt @ 26th Feb 06:20PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
said by Dominokat :said by Matt :said by jstack :
AT&T has 3.0/512 for $24.99 with not contract.
+ POTS = $40+ a month
POTS here STARTS at 40+ p/mo. Let alone adding DSL to the mix.
I was providing the benefit of the doubt, so some Yahoo doesn't come along and post an ad for a basic dry pair or something for like $9.99/month. :)
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RayW @ 26th Feb 06:23PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
said by Matt :said by jstack :
AT&T has 3.0/512 for $24.99 with not contract.
+ POTS = $40+ a month
Which most people have anyway. For me, "Cable-TV or Digital Voice customer" would be an extra expense if I chose to degrade my service and go with Comcast.
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I am not lost, I find myself every time.
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RideRed @ 26th Feb 06:26PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
said by Matt :said by jstack :
AT&T has 3.0/512 for $24.99 with not contract.
+ POTS = $40+ a month
Comcast does the same thing with their $15 how dare you not have our crappy CATV penalty. Thankfully Time Warner's is only $5.
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There's only 10 types of people in this world. Those who understand binary, and those who don't.
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dadkins @ 26th Feb 06:41PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
said by RayW :said by Matt :said by jstack :
AT&T has 3.0/512 for $24.99 with not contract.
+ POTS = $40+ a month
Which most people have anyway. For me, "Cable-TV or Digital Voice customer" would be an extra expense if I chose to degrade my service and go with Comcast.
As opposed to me, having cable TV *AND* Comcast HSI.
Gotta have TV, 8mbps for $52.95 is worth it to me!
I have the fastest *residential* connection in Hercules!
CDP(not CDV) here - NO POTS!
DSL would not be cost vs speed effective(efficient?) for me.
384/384? Oh HELL NO!
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cdru @ 26th Feb 06:46PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
I understand the point you are trying to make, but I would bet a considerable sum of money that the majority of people that would subscribe to this "lite" service already are paying for a POTS line, so it's no additional expense above and beyond what they already are paying.
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Go Colts
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Matt @ 26th Feb 06:47PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
said by RayW :said by Matt :said by jstack :
AT&T has 3.0/512 for $24.99 with not contract.
+ POTS = $40+ a month
Which most people have anyway. For me, "Cable-TV or Digital Voice customer" would be an extra expense if I chose to degrade my service and go with Comcast.
Most people being who? I can honestly say, I don't know a single person who has POTS. Not one. Matter of fact, I don't know anyone who has DSL either, so perhaps it's a regional thing.
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Use the OS tool for the job.
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Matt @ 26th Feb 06:49PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
said by cdru :
I understand the point you are trying to make, but I would bet a considerable sum of money that the majority of people that would subscribe to this "lite" service already are paying for a POTS line, so it's no additional expense above and beyond what they already are paying.
Not true. My sister inquired about this the other day because she wants a low-cost broadband service and can no longer justify paying $45+ a month for a service she doesn't use. She is cell only by the way.
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GlenQuagmire @ 26th Feb 06:55PM:
Sweet
I know my parent would love this if Comcast went nationwide. They mostly check email, online banking, paying bills. Why should they pay $45 when they use it only and hour a day. For me though it would not work me since I am addicted to it and of course how am I going to download pr0n at 384k :D.
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RideRed @ 26th Feb 06:56PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
said by Matt :
Most people being who? I can honestly say, I don't know a single person who has POTS. Not one. Matter of fact, I don't know anyone who has DSL either, so perhaps it's a regional thing.
NO ONE you know has POTS? Not a single person you know? I find that hard to believe. Not a single friend, neighbor or relative has POTS?
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There's only 10 types of people in this world. Those who understand binary, and those who don't.
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tmc8080 @ 26th Feb 06:58PM:
real value
OR they'll see how much they're getting $crewed for when the node gets oversold and you actually $ee lite tier $peed$ when your paying FULL PRICE!!! Another reason for canceling the service!
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milkman82 @ 26th Feb 06:59PM:
Re: Time Warner
Here Time Warner has the $24.99 deal ad a speed of 256/128 which is Bad deal. Yeah I won't pay it.
Thats why I got DSL $12.99 a month 1.5/384. I also need the phone line for fax machine; so the deal is worth it to me.
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sonofjay @ 26th Feb 07:00PM:
Ecomony Tier discussed a month ago in Comcast HSI
Actually this was brought up in the Comcast HSI forum last month.
»Re: [Connectivity] Punished by Comcast for cancelling !
Personally, I think its an excellent option for those that want just the bare bones for a cheap price.
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RayW @ 26th Feb 07:15PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
said by Matt :
Most people being who? I can honestly say, I don't know a single person who has POTS. Not one. Matter of fact, I don't know anyone who has DSL either, so perhaps it's a regional thing.
Not many friends?
In my immediate neighborhood for POTs:
Going east - yes, no (VoIP and cell, and is a WISP owner).
Across the street going south - no (cell only), yes, yes, yes, don't know, don't know, yes.
Across the street other side going south - yes, yes, yes, don't know, yes, don't know.
Across the street going east - yes, yes, empty, yes, yes, don't know.
There are others, but those listed are the ones within sight.
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I am not lost, I find myself every time.
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Matt @ 26th Feb 07:25PM:
Re: Time Warner
said by milkman82 :
Here Time Warner has the $24.99 deal ad a speed of 256/128 which is Bad deal. Yeah I won't pay it.
Thats why I got DSL $12.99 a month 1.5/384. I also need the phone line for fax machine; so the deal is worth it to me.
You can fax over Time Warner Digital Phone.
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Obliteration @ 26th Feb 07:26PM:
Give a DECENT SPEED FOR 2007!!! We are not in 1998!
Give me 1Mbps/1Mbps for $30 and I'm on board. Anything less is a rip off.
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truocchio @ 26th Feb 07:35PM:
Re: Time Warner
have you tried? Fax over VoIP works very poorly.
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hamburglar_ @ 26th Feb 07:39PM:
Re: Time Warner
Time Warner is digital phone, not VOIP. There's a difference.
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cpayne5 @ 26th Feb 07:39PM:
Comcast -> My Service
I had Adelphia's Basic package (256/256) at $24.95/month. I was transitioned over to Comcast a few months ago. My speeds are now at 384/384. The cost is still $24.95.
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Hail To The Redskins
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MrChupacabra @ 26th Feb 07:44PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
But Dadkins. You've been asking for symetric speeds for a while. :p
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David @ 26th Feb 07:45PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
said by Matt :
Most people being who? I can honestly say, I don't know a single person who has POTS. Not one.
Hi! my name is David and I have a pots line my wife uses quite frequently to talk to her friends.
said by Matt :
Matter of fact, I don't know anyone who has DSL either, so perhaps it's a regional thing.
Yea I have one of those too. One of them 6Mbps/768k speed ones.
Nice to meet you Matt
:D
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kpfx @ 26th Feb 07:50PM:
Re: Time Warner
Have you tried faxes over AT&T or Verizon's POTS in some of these cities in Texas? They all have problems :)
Yes, faxes and alarm systems on 100% internet based VOIP are iffy. However, these on-network based digital phone services have built-in QoS which does lead to a much better success rate with faxes (older machines, however, seem to have more problems).
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quatrix @ 26th Feb 08:16PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
This will probably change after the merger is complete, but BellSouth give you just 256/128 for $25... 1.5/256 for $33, 3/384 for $38, and 6/512 for $43. Cable "lite" (doesn't anyone know how to spell "light"?) would be a better deal.
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creeperz @ 26th Feb 08:31PM:
omg
symmetrical 384kbps speed for $24.95 a month. OMG that is great deal for most user the people that just check their Email and Surf the Web.
most the folks here are elitists myself included when it come to Speed I would start twitching it somebody took my 15/2 Fios Away.
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Vamp @ 26th Feb 08:33PM:
384 != broadband
384kbps should not be considered broadband anymore.. Broadband should be defined as service that can take advantage of high speed web services... Most good streaming video is higher than 384kbps. Even the very small resolution streams on sites like Youtube would push 384 to it's limit just to keep up.
When I think of value broadband I think of 1.5/384 or 1/384.... 768 should be the min.
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inurenegade @ 26th Feb 08:35PM:
make it 2/2 and im all over that !
if they made a 2 down 2 up tier id definately go for that!
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dadkins @ 26th Feb 08:38PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
Yeah... but just a wee bit faster than YAWN per second. :p
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toadlife @ 26th Feb 08:52PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
I only know one or two people *without* POTS.
Personally, I would never get rid of my POTS line to try and save on internet access.
100% reliable 911 access is worth the $20/mo to me. Maybe when the kids are grown up.
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havoxx @ 26th Feb 08:56PM:
Re: make it 2/2 and im all over that !
lol, what's pots?
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AMDUSER @ 26th Feb 08:59PM:
Re: Time Warner
Locally, in Milwaukee: Time Warner Road Runner 'Lite' is $26 (768k/128k, regular 5Meg /512kbps = $44.95 or ($35 w/contract), Turbo is also available
DSL is available as well from AT&T / Resellers:
From AT&T directly:
Upto
1.5 Meg /384k = $19.99 /month
3Meg/512k =$24.99/month
6 Meg /768k = $34.99 /month
Reseller: (Add $10 per month not prepaid)
1.5 Meg/384 = $9.99 /month (prepaid)
3Meg/512K = $17.99 /month (prepaid)
6 Meg/768k = $44.95 / month
Note: the reseller pricing listed here is for resold AT&T DSL services.
DSL services listed require basic phone service.
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JosephStalin @ 26th Feb 09:13PM:
Re: 384 != broadband
quote:
Even the very small resolution streams on sites like Youtube would push 384 to it's limit just to keep up.
I got into the "Economy" tier earlier today and after seeing your comment I decided to test Youtube. I tried the following link and it managed to play it without pausing, and finished downloading the entire video at 3:33, I'm satisfied.
»www.youtube.com/watch?v=reepo6bnr6g
Would I like more speed for the same price? Certainly, I would love it if Comcast would increase the 384/384 tier to something like 768/384. But right now I think this "Economy" solution is better than continuing to pay $42.95 per month, at least for me it is, I barely ever download anything. At $24.95 that's a savings of $18 per month, $216 per year.
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swintec @ 26th Feb 09:23PM:
Re: Time Warner
said by hamburglar_ :
Time Warner is digital phone, not VOIP. There's a difference.
No there isnt. TW's phone service is in fact VoIP, however in contrast to services like Vonage and such, it does not touch the public internet. VoIP stands for Voice over Internet PROTOCOL, do not equate VoIP as having to traverse the public internet, it just simply has to use an internet PROTOCOL. Which TW's phone service does use.
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Goober @ 26th Feb 09:57PM:
Triple Play at $79.99
My parents were offered this by Comcast recently in a flyer. The internet speed was 384 kbps and it was enhanced cable (not digital).
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Vonage User5 @ 26th Feb 10:50PM:
Re: Time Warner
Have RR lite for 25$, and use Viatalk $200 for 2 year deal
with no complaints, i'll never go back to $45 a month.
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iLive4Apple @ 26th Feb 10:56PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
said by toadlife :
I only know one or two people *without* POTS.
Personally, I would never get rid of my POTS line to try and save on internet access.
100% reliable 911 access is worth the $20/mo to me. Maybe when the kids are grown up.
In my area everyone was without POTS for over 14 hours because of a Central Office problem. A few weeks ago the tandem that connected people in my area to the 911 centers failed and nobody on my Central Office had the ability to call 911 for a few hours. I would not say POTS is all that reliable either....
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mjgould @ 26th Feb 11:11PM:
Re: Time Warner
Here in Bowling Green I have only Time Warner internet, no TV, at 5/384 for only 34.95 for 12 months.
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Joe12345678 @ 26th Feb 11:16PM:
Re: Triple Play at $79.99
WOW cable does same thing the internet is offered at the low speed of 112kbps (x2 56k!) for basic internet
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Vchat20 @ 26th Feb 11:34PM:
Re: Time Warner
Exactly. DP may still be VoIP, but it remains completely separate from your HSI connection and never leaves Time Warner's cable infrastructure as VoIP data. As well, this gives them the opportunity to use higher quality codecs with a higher bitrate so it creates less havoc with fax or data phone connections. Last I read somewhere (this is largely an assumption mind you though I vaguely remember reading an article on TWDP somewhere with this.) that Digital Phone uses the same or similar codec to what most PoTS providers use for digital interconnects between regions.
I've faxed and made dialup connections on my DP line numerous times without a problem. I am regularly capable of getting a stable 48kb/s connection depending on which access number I dial into.
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bogey780 @ 26th Feb 11:41PM:
Re: Time Warner
Digital Phones is a marketing term. What TWC does is more akin to traditional POTS remote architecture. The chief difference being they bring it closer to the home.
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NormanS @ 26th Feb 11:43PM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
POTS doesn't cost $40+ a month; not here, anyway.
Comcast cable Internet requires, at the least, Basic TV for $13 and some change, around here, anyway, to get cable Internet for $42.95 a month. Without it, I'd have to pay $56.95 a month.
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~To Konnyu, with the Lion and the Drum
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dvd536 @ 27th Feb 12:06AM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
said by Matt :said by jstack :
AT&T has 3.0/512 for $24.99 with not contract.
+ POTS = $40+ a month
Even more after you add in all those BS fees!
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Goober @ 27th Feb 12:17AM:
Re: Triple Play at $79.99
Yeah, my parents had that for a couple of years. They were fine with it since all they ever do is light duty web surfing and email.
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KoolMoe @ 27th Feb 12:43AM:
Re: Sweet
My mother-in-law has no internet. VZ has not DSL-ified her neighborhood as it's fairly new, so it's all fiber. All options are too much change (satellite) or too expensive (Comcast or FIOS). This would be perfect. I'll tell her to ask Comcast about it tomorrow...
They would gain a customer in this situation.
KM
--
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cdru @ 27th Feb 05:52AM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
I said majority. I didn't say all. Your sister would obviously not fall in the majority category.
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Go Colts
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MZR @ 27th Feb 06:28AM:
Re: make it 2/2 and im all over that !
POTS(Plain Old Telephone System) also a cooking tool.
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Brianv5 @ 27th Feb 07:40AM:
I have it!
But I'm paying for the 6mb connection.
I'm in a former Adelphia area that can't even provide 3mb, much less than 6mb.
The national helpdesk, call center whatever has no idea what this network is like in my area.
Every tech from my local office has been to my house. Everyone agrees I should be seeing more than 384K, but no one can find the problem. Meanwhile I'm supposed to pay for 6mb service?
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Its not a bug.. Its a "feature"
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anon @ 27th Feb 08:20AM:
Re: Terrible Pricing
It's both a generational and a regional thing. In areas where the local phone company really rips people off on POTS service (which is a fair chunk of the country, especially when you get outside the major population centers), people tend to just use their cell phones and forgo the POTS. But also, people over 50 are FAR more likely to have a POTS line than people under 25. And to throw in a third variable, the more comfortable someone is with computers, the more likely they seem to be to use an alternative to POTS (such as VoIP or a cell phone), unless of course they need the POTS line for a dial-up modem or perhaps a FAX machine.
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cork1958 @ 27th Feb 08:22AM:
basic users
This would be a good deal for just a basic user, but I'd feel like my skin was crawling or something, waiting for things. In todays world, that's like a 33.6 dial up modem!!
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cdru @ 27th Feb 09:04AM:
Re: omg
said by creeperz :
symmetrical 384kbps speed for $24.95 a month. OMG that is great deal for most user the people that just check their Email and Surf the Web.
Verizon and others have long had a basic rate plan that beats this deal. Verizon's $15 plan was 768/128, 2x the download bandwidth but only 1/3 the upload. Upload bandwidth for the casual user that just checks their e-mail or surfs the web is really not all that important. 128 is usually more then enough for such people.
The requirement to have a POTS line aside (which Comcast likely has as well with CATV), I think Verizon's and other comparable telco offerings is a better overall deal for the casual surfer where speed isn't paramount.
--
Go Colts
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milkman82 @ 27th Feb 12:19PM:
Re: Time Warner
yeah ok the phone service alone is $39.95. I have my internet and phone from ATT for that price. Again I am not paying it. If I am able I drive my costs down not up.
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GhostDoggy @ 1st Mar 05:30AM:
That ain't no econoy tier!
Part of the AT&T+BellSouth concession is to offer a 768k product for $10/month. Comcrap is half the speed and 2.5x as expensive.
But then again a frame of [mental] reference is needed since I have their basic non-economy service and its almost $60/month.
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theelviscerator @ 1st Mar 10:22AM:
Re: 384 != broadband
I got the whole vid by 4:14 but i have seen youtube run like crap before also.
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jmdomini @ 1st Mar 11:56AM:
Re: That ain't no econoy tier!
I believe the AT&T deal is 768/128 though, which isn't going to work terribly well with VoIP. That said it would be nice to see at least 768/384 from Comcast.
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