[DM-MUG] Reevaluating Qwest DSL vs. Mediacom cable after 2 yrs.

[Jon Thompson]

I don't know if Dave doesn't provide to your area or if he is  
restraining himself for ethical reasons, but if it is the latter, I am  
not affiliated with internet solver in any way, other than being a  
happy and loyal customer in both my home and one of our offices. ( The  
other is a dedicated 5 Mb synchronous fiber connection with a Class C  
block of IP addresses from Mediacom Business services.) I would  
suggest checking to see if internet solver can hook you up.

-- 
- Jon
On Aug 13, 2009, at 6:34 PM, John Rearick wrote:

> Depending on where you live, Mediacom for internet can be decent.   
> If you are in a overloaded area, it can really suck.
>
> Mediacom offers several levels of Internet service.  The lowest  
> starting at 3MB down and (i think) 512K up.  The middle of the road  
> service is 8MB down and 1MB up, then they have the 20 MB down service.
>
> Currently, I just set up Mediacom for TV and Internet at my new  
> house in Nevada (serviced by Ames). I've had it for a week now and  
> they didn't get me the TV package I ordered, and when I called to  
> get it they couldn't get it working.  Also, every evening the cable  
> modem craps out for several hours.  It takes them a full week to get  
> someone out to look at the problem.  They will be in sometime  
> between 8am and noon, no evening hours. I've had mediacom in several  
> locations, and it seems the customer service is lacking, but once  
> the service is running i don't usually run into many problems.
>
> The way I see it, just about every service provider sucks.
>
> John
>
> On Aug 13, 2009, at 1:52 PM, James Lagnese wrote:
>
>> If I recall, Mediacom has some terrible upload speeds, like 256K or  
>> 512K. May be this isn't an issue for some, but I do a lot of VPN  
>> from home to work and the speed up and down makes a difference. I  
>> wouldn't switch because of this.
>>
>>
>> On Thursday, August 13, 2009, at 01:37PM, "Chris Tyrrell" <tyrrell69 at gmail.com 
>> > wrote:
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>> Hi all.
>>
>> My sincere apologies to those inconvenienced by off-topic posts.
>>
>> I'm approaching the two year anniversary of my switch from Mediacom  
>> to Qwest DSL/DirecTV, so my bundle contract is nearing expiration.  
>> I was never displeased with Mediacom, but thought I'd be saving  
>> money, but I don't think I probably am.
>>
>> I'm going to call Mediacom to explore my options, but I'm sure I'll  
>> get better information here (I could write a dissertation about how  
>> Mac users are Mac users because they are better informed). I'd be  
>> grateful to hear your experiences in comparing the two, assuming  
>> others have been where I am now.
>>
>> So, I'm paying for Qwest 8Mb DSL service, though <3 Mb is the best  
>> they can deliver in my 'hood (SE Waukee). It's reliable and  
>> generally fast enough. My DSL feeds my flying saucer Airport, which  
>> is used by one G4 desktop, two G4 iBooks, an iPod Touch, and the  
>> ThinkPad I carry home from work.
>>
>> Cable was faster of course, but not as fast as it could have been,  
>> again a limitation of my location. One Mediacom tech explained how  
>> overcrowed their infrastructure is for serving my area. It was as  
>> if all of the western 'burbs went through a single bottleneck in a  
>> little building over in the vicinity of Jordan Creek & Ashworth.  
>> Cable was slightly less reliable in my experience, but hardly  
>> problematic.
>>
>> I also have DirecTV HD DVR service, which allows me to record two  
>> shows while watching a third. No premium channels. There are only a  
>> few shows worthy of recording, and they are generally on at about  
>> the same time, and always before the kids are in bed which means I  
>> won't be seeing them as they're broadcast. Two other TVs in the  
>> house (one is HD, other is SD) each have a plain DirecTV SD box, no  
>> DVR.
>>
>> Cable TV was OK. I understand they have added HD channels in the  
>> last two years. DirecTV boasts about their number of HD channels,  
>> but aside from the few that I actually watch, the number doesn't  
>> matter to me. Both offer music channels (yawn).
>>
>> DirecTV now offers VOD, but it requires an ethernet feed so I  
>> haven't tried it - I'd need a router between my modem and my  
>> Airport and really long RJ-45. Mediacom on demand was cool, but  
>> often timed out.
>>
>> I never did have Mediacom phone service and won't consider it, so  
>> I'll be sticking with my Qwest land line. Neighbors had horrible  
>> trouble and eventually abandoned Mediacom phone service.
>>
>> I can't tell you what I'm paying, but my wife/budget keeper tells  
>> me it's about the same.
>>
>> What say you? Is there a reason to return to cable? Is there a  
>> market for used DirecTV equipment?
>>
>>
>> Cheers,
>> Chris
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