TV, phone, internet all from the cable company?

[jyl]

We're moving into a new place next week and I've got to get the utilities together.

The confusing part is cable TV, phone, internet. I am thinking about going with Comcast for all three - Comcast cable TV, VOIP phone, and internet-over-cable. Looks like this would cost about $120/month, which is a fair bit cheaper than we've been paying for cable TV, landline phone, and internet-over-DSL from three different companies - closer to $200/month.

What's the downside of doing this? Any hidden gotchas or horror stories I should be thinking about? Any alternative I should look into? How much do you worry about not being able to call 911 when the power or internet goes out?

Also, I read the thread about skipping the home phone and using cellphones instead. I'm going to see how the reception is - I might consider that. However, anyone know of a normal-looking phone system, with extension phones, that works off the cellphone network? Our cellphones are ergonomically not so great (Blackberries) and I'd like a more normal phone to use at home. Plus I don't want the kids using my Blackberry to call their friends.

Oh, one other thing - suppose I got cable TV and internet-over-cable from the cable company, then used Vonage for the home phone? Comcast VOIP phone service is $50/month, Vonage is $25/mo, I could save another $25. I know there are some Vonage users here. Still happy with it? Do Vonage and Comcast internet play well together?

Comcast CS sucks more than any $2 hooker. As a matter of fact, I wrote a poem.....

Ode to Comcast



I call you up, you make me wait,

Die Comcast, Die,

I say you suck, you say you're great,

Die Comcast, Die,

Broadband is out, you don't know why,

Die Comcast, Die,

Unplug the modem, give it a try!

Die Comcast, Die,

It doesn't work, great big sigh,

Die Comcast, Die,

We'll send a tech, he'll have a smile,

Die Comcast, Die,

In a week between 8 and 12, or after while,

Die Comcast, Die,

He doesn't show, Oh what a surprise,

Die Comcast, Die,

The anger's showing in my eyes,

Die Comcast, Die,

I call em back, temper ablazin,

Die Comcast, Die,

Simmer down, says the agent,

Die Comcast, Die,

We'll send him back, in two days,

Die Comcast, Die,

**** you too, is all I say,

Die Comcast, Die.


Mark Wilson

[jyl]

Ouch. Not a glowing recommendation, then.

[craigster59]

Is that what they call "iambic pentameter"? Cause it sure ain't Haiku

Main problem with comcast is that it can take up to a week to get a tech to your house if there is a problem you cant fix on the phone. I had an appt once after waiting a week. Stayed home from work and guy didn't show - called in and got -we're sorry, can we set you up with another appt next week? Finally got to the right idiot and had them out next day. Ask yourself if you can do without those services for a week at a time.

[jyl]

It's true, the regular phone company gets out there and fixes things pretty pronto.

I can live without cable TV for - well, indefinitely, I guess. I can live without phone service for some time, since we have cellphones. I would find being without internet a real inconvenience, right away.

[Eldorado]

my sister has the exact same package you explain in the house she just bought... her service provider is Rogers, which is basically the comcast of canada.

as for quality of the VOIP... you cant tell the difference. Wayne, you probably realize a loss in quality because your voip phone goes over the internet, reaches it's destination, and then taps into the local switching network...

the difference here is the VOIP service offered direct from the cable company goes into the public phone switching network right away, then gets routed to it's destination. it's basically only offered as a more cost effective way for the service provider to provide the same service. They only need to run one set of lines into your home, which goes to a central hub in the neighbourhood, which then gets transmitted out.... not to mention it's easier to implement services such as voice mail and caller id...

my sister has no complaints about it... and has had zero downtime with her phone.. i'd say go for it... worst case scenario is you activate a copper phone line in the house and cancel the voip service... you're not out anything but an experience.

[RoninLB]

I read an article that said if you want ViOP to have a cheap service land line.

[Halm]

John, I am about to face the same thing, but with Time-Warner. There are a few things to consider. First, the phone quality may be pretty bad. Cable compaines have plenty of bandwidth and think that it substitutes for QOS (Quality of Service) where by they could / should give VoIP a high priority over the wire. The other issue is pretty much what Mark said, they still think of themselves as an entertainment provider, not a critical services vendor. Until that mentality changes, I will probably stay with know providers.

[legion]

I have Insight for my cable and broadband. Small, regional company in a handful of states. I've never had a problem that couldn't be fixed over the phone, and their service center is on the other side of town (local phone call) and available 24 hours.

They recently switched to their own backbone (their were leasing from AT&T, but they started screwing Insight). Some customers had broadband outages for as long as a week. They gave everyone who had an outage free service for double the length of your outage (if your broadband didn't work for one week, you got two weeks free). They also called every single customer to apologize, whether or not you experience an outage personally. They've also been running commercials with the CEO apologizing and taking responsibility for the problem.

[Don Plumley]

We have comcast for cable modem and digital cable. I can't think of more than 2 interuptions in internet connectivity in two years. Digital cable with the DVR box is a "won't live without" device.

But we have copper land line phone. For only $20 odd bucks a month, it sounds clear, always works, and is a redundant source of outside communications. Plus - if we ever had a major cable outage, I could use it for dial-up internet access in a pinch.

Cell phones just don't have the call clarity where I live to abandon a fixed land line. Yet.

[IROC]

We have all three through our cable provider (Knology) and it works like a charm. Phone works great (got our old number ported over from Bellsouth and Knology did all the leg work). They even discounted our bill by $20 (I think - it's been awhile) for getting all three through them.

We had excellent service. No outages, fast service...it's been great.

Mike

edit: our phone service is cheaper than Bellsouth (about $23 a month) and works great - no loss in quality...

[rrsrsr]

I use Comcast for cable & internet and Sunrocket for phone service.

It is acceptable (just) in terms of clarity & reliability. If you do not have cellphone reception in your home it is not really an option though- there are definitely occasional outages.

The best part is the price- $16 a month for unlimited national calls, tax included if you sign up for a full year and pay in full (you can still backout & get the unused portion refunded) . They also gave me 2 free wireless phones.

[Deschodt]

Re: Wayne's comment... Ironic: I think the sound quality on my Vonage phone is undistinguishable from the old real phone ! In some cases (int'l calls) it's better !!!

And I think the VOIP offer from cable companies is a rip off, generally $45 or so while Vonage has it for $25 for the same thing ! I haven't paid more than 27$ a month in phone since I switched, I love it... I especialyl like not having $50 of taxes on my bill anymore ;-)

[Hugh R]

My comcast high speed goes down about once every week or two. Can't get VOIP cause SBC has it locked out of the local contract. Don't think any VOIP will call YOUR 911

[red-beard]

We had all three through Time Warner Cable in Houston. Serious problems with the cable and the phone, but not the cable TV. Once a technician who knew what he was doing came out, he fixed everything. 5 Mbps cable, Vonage phone works like a charm and the cable TV is still great.

As far as the Vonage phone, we installed a DSL line in Mexico (256K bps) in my sister-in law's place and then added a US Phone number Vonage phone. Works great and the sound quality is better than direct dial to Mexico.

[jyl]

I looked at Vonage, but their selection of phones was limited and the only phones I liked wouldn't work with Mac. So Vonage was a non-starter. Too bad, I would have liked to go with them, saves another $20 or so.

But with Comcast (I decided to try the big bundle) I can use my regular phones, don't have to buy new ones. Plus Comcast says they'll work with the alarm system, couldn't figure out if Vonage would.

Verizon also offered a bundle - DSL, DirectTV, and landline. Looked okay too, but I didn't want to pay for a satellite dish.

Well, I'll post back here to say if it all worked out. Or if I have to sing the Mark Wilson love song to Comcast . . .

[jyl]

Reviving this thread just to report on my experience with Comcast all-in-one (phone, TV, Internet) since June.

It's been excellent. In 7 months, Internet went out once for a few hours, this was during some intense storms when i was kind of worried about the power. Otherwise, trouble-free.

Speed has been good. Latest test showed 7.6Mb/s down. I'm thinking about upgrading the wireless network to 802.11n since it is such a bottleneck, for all except the iMac (which is wired to the cable modem).

Here's with a wired connection to the cable modem:



Here's in the study upstairs, going through the Airport 802.11g accesspoint and an Airport Express set up as a repeater: