Source: Tom's Guide | Keywords: Comcast, Internet | Themes: Networking, Business
Chicago (IL) - Comcast has begun to quietly, but very aggressively pitch an "economy tier" Internet service to its customers - a service that is generally "not recommended", but squarely aimed at dial-up users and perhaps one or the other DSL Internet users. As all Comcast residential Internet services, this entry-level service also comes with the firm’s mysterious bandwidth cap.
Comcast customers may receive "an exciting" automated message from Comcast these days: Comcast is now actively marketing a "blazing fast" cheaper Internet service for the "every-day low price of $24.95". Every-day low price means that this service is not a 3- or 6-month time limited offer but a regular price that is substantially below the standard 6 Mb/s downlink (1 Mb/s uplink) the company offers for $42.95 per month (excluding taxes and fees).
So, what do you get for $25 per month from Comcast? We had no idea, but if it is blazing fast and Comcast can make fun of DSL speeds with its current "Slowskys" commercials that compares DSL to turtles, it should be fast, right?
The first call we made to Comcast in fact brought enticing news. We were told that the phone call promoted the company’s "economy tier" offering, providing provides 4 Mb/s download speeds and 384 Kb/s upload bandwidth. There was enough confusion about this offering on the side of the sales representative to convince us that we should make at least two more calls to Comcast’s sales department as well as a PR contact.
The second call we made confirmed the 4 Mb/s bandwidth, but mentioned that the service would only be available to non-Comcast subscribers and not in my area (Chicago suburbs). In my case, the cheapest offering would still be the $42.95 service. The third call to a sales rep and a response from Rich Ruggiero, vice president of communications and public affairs for Comcast in Illinois then squashed our hopes, stating that we can’t get 4 Mb/s for $25. Instead, $25 buys a "blazing" bandwidth of just 768 Kb/s (down) and 384 (up).
Interestingly enough, this speed is just half what you could buy from the Slowskys over at AT&T for the same money. AT&T currently offers a downlink speed of 1.5 Mb/s (384 Kb/s up). 3.0 Mb/s (512 Kb/s up) service for $30 per month. 6.0 Mb/s is priced at $35 per month. However, if you are willing to spend substantially more, cable still outpaces DSL: Besides the 6 Mb/s service, Comcast also offers 8 Mb/s for $52.95, 16 Mb/s for $67.95 and 50 Mb/s for $149.95 per month.
It is worth noting that, as part of its residential offering, Comcast sales associates explained to us that the economy Internet plan has the same bandwidth cap as every other residential plan. Comcast declined to specify this cap, but noted that normal use, including music and video downloading, would not hit or exceed this cap. However, in the case a user exceeds the preset limit, Comcast will send a letter, inform the subscriber of "excessive use" and "suggest" an upgrade to commercial Internet service, a sales associate, said.
Note: If it sounds to good to be true, it probably is.
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another botchup by a phone rep
what a surprise
comcast phone reps are not the only botchers though
I get the botch job everytime I call medical, credit, and government phone reps, almost every time I call
nothing new
btw
my comcast tested yesterday is 16mb down 1.5 up
eat that dsl
even at 8 or 4 mb down when will I ever need it?
give me a break
if you are that cheap then use the un-secure wifi in your neighborhood and move on already
btw
my comcast tested yesterday is 16mb down 1.5 up
eat that dsl
lol lets see you try and use all that bandwidth your paying for. Next thing you'll get is a threatening letter or phone call during the middle of the work day saying you are actually using the bandwidth you payed for but we still think its too much and you've hit our magical limit that doesn't exist if you ask ahead of time. If you don't stop what you are doing we will terminate your account and ban you for a year.
if you are that cheap then use the un-secure wifi in your neighborhood and move on already
thats right genius, if you can't get it... steal it.
if they send a letter to you, then why did my neighbors suddenly turn off. then he was charged $200 more than his usual bill! they told him that he magically reached and exceeded the cap by a mear 130GB. no letter, no call, no sudden knock on the door. just shut off the internet, phone, tv. about 2 days after he was shut down and already went down to yell at them... he got a his bill, then the bill said to call in for any mistakes
LAWLS! You honestly think DSL is faster than Comcast? You are so cheap that you would take the time to write an article that isnt even factual just because your crying about Comcast not offering a "cheaper" service in your area? If you have Comcast and you are getting speeds that are to fast for you *cough* Slosky *cough* then cancel and get dial-up.
P.S.- Im downloading @ 21Mbps and Uploading @ 2.2Mbps and i LOVE IT!
--Shapie--
Seriously.. Comcast is WAY faster than DSL. Comcast Gives you speeds (atleast here) up to 12Mbps; I get that FULL speed 100%. However that speed is split between my two computers and the XBOX360. Spr!nt DSL here has a MAX speed of 384Kbps; and since we live so far from the station, the speed degrades even more to only 100Kbps! So WHY would I pay 50 bucks for a speed double that of Dial-Up when I can buy a Comcast connection with THREE times faster for the same price.
@Shapie.... seriously,
DSL is faster than Comcast's "Economy Tier". The article compares the speed of the $25 "economy tier" [(768 Kb/s (down) and 384 (up)] service which IS slower then some DSL services. Perhaps read the article before you start criticizing it ;-)
@Agent Smith....
My god people.... read the article. The comparison is between the Comcast's "Economy Tier" and DSL.
READ article....
here are the FACTS:
Service Type DSL
Downstream Speed 256 Kbps
Upstream Speed 256 Kbps
Email Accounts 11
Firewall Y
Parental Controls Y
Pop-up Blocker Y
Spam Filter Y
Customer Support Hours 24/7
Standard Pricing
$31.99 Monthly Charge
$108.99 One-Time Charge
Pricing Notes
Explanation of Charges
Monthly charge does not include modem purchase ($59.99) or rental ($5.00 per month).
One-time charge assumes self-installation and consists of $99.00 activation fee plus $9.99 shipping and handling fee.
Additional Equipment Fees
Standard modem - purchase ($59.99) or rental ($5.00 per month).
Taxes & Surcharges
Taxes and fees are not included.
------------------------------------------------------
Service Type Cable Modem
Downstream Speed 768 Kbps
Upstream Speed 384 Kbps
Email Accounts 7
Firewall Y
Parental Controls Y
Pop-up Blocker Y
Spam Filter Y
Customer Support Hours 24/7
All Included Features
Standard Pricing
$24.95 Monthly Charge
$99.99 One-Time Charge
Pricing Notes
Explanation of Charges
Monthly charge does NOT include modem rental.
One-time charge assumes professional installation.
Additional Equipment Fees
Modem Rental - $3.00/mo.
Additional Service Fees
Self-Installation Kit - w/ shipping - $39.90
Taxes & Surcharges
Taxes and fees are not included.
........................................
Hmmm. so in comparing the two? I would say for $7 LESS!!!! Comcast gives you ALOT MORE SPEED!
Does that help a lil peeps?
Shapie
Yeah well if the article is about Comcast's economy tier maybe it should say that in the headline.
Downstream Speed 256 Kbps
Upstream Speed 256 Kbps
Where did you even find these numbers?
DSL for 19.99 is (Los Angeles area)
Downstream Speed: Up to 768 Kbps
Upstream Speed: Up to 384 Kbps
using unsecure wireless is not stealing
who is the genius?
lets see you build a real network
can you even use visio?
do you know what a Variable length subnet mask is?
I wont even get into spvcc's and pix configs
dont tell me how to network nub
The information i listed is for the Seattle Market and surrounding areas. I dont know speed's / pricing in other states etc.
All in all my point that im trying to get accross is that Comcast Economy Tier and dsl are "about" the same speed.
The headliner says "Comcast's Blazing Fast Internet Is Half The Speed Of DSL" Obviously this is somewhat misleading and for a purpose im sure.
Comcast does not advertise there Economy Tier to be FAST! (FASTER, etc.) It is for the people that only check there email twice a week or use aol,msn,yahoo messenger every so often. NOT FOR THE HARD-CORE gamers....
I think you just went to general in your article with the comcast products and were more specific about DSL.
Shapie
(next time try and quote locations and the actual products that are being compared)
LOL damn theres a lot of fanboys for comcast.. Read the article before commenting damn... Hes simply saying that this offer sucks! When you can get dsl for the same price and a lot better...
With that said not all speeds are the same all round the world/usa.. It varys a lot. Around were I'm at dsl/cable *comcast* are both pretty evened up..