Any advice on switching from DirecTV to Comcast?

[Fourtyfive]

Hold your breath and wait for Google fiber. I've not signed a contract with Comazz in 3 years but I'm paying for it in extra $. I will be glad to get rid of them and their constantly changing bills......

Edited September 14, 2016 by Fourtyfive

[DaveTN]

9 hours ago, Fourtyfive said:

Hold your breath and wait for Google fiber. I've not signed a contract with Comazz in 3 years but I'm paying for it in extra $. I will be glad to get rid of them and their constantly changing bills......

What is Google Fiber going to have to offer over Comcast?

[Fourtyfive]

1 hour ago, DaveTN said:

What is Google Fiber going to have to offer over Comcast?

Hopefully better customer service and bills that don't change every month. I have to call them constantly to have a modem that I don't rent removed or box that I don't rent removed. It's ridiculous .....

[NoBanStan]

I hate Comcast. No no... I LOATHE Comcast. I hate their support, I hate their ever changing bill. I hate their misc fees. I hate their on site service. I hate their ever changing acceptable use policy, I even hate people that I know who work for them.

Outside of that, the service itself isn't bad. The X1 package is pretty slick.

Just don't expect them to ever handle your account properly. I currently have 2 Comcast accounts. I don't know why, they can't explain why and they can't seem to get rid of the second one. They charged me for a set-top box for 3 years that I didn't have. I had to get a replacement DVR and they sent me 4 and said I needed to pay a month for them as well as the cost to ship them back. I use my own modem and for whatever reason, they won't delete my old ones. If I call in for an issue I have to grill the rep to verify they are checking the correct modem. You can expect almost every call to get a Philippine female who reads from the script and knows almost nothing about basic networking. If you ask for a manager, they are usually transferring the call to the gal in the seat next to them who doesn't provide any more insight.

A few rules of thumb

1.) When it comes to equipment, try to deal with your local office. The people on the phone will screw it up EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

2.) You're going to be paying your bill a month in advance. Don't let their website fool you. If it says your bill is $300, you probably only owe $150 for the month you used

3.) Escalate immediately. I find its best if you can get someone in billing. They seem to have just as much capability as the phone rep, and they can work on your account

4.) If you have problems, you can pretty well get a $20 credit on every call. You'll need it because your bill will change on the wind. Just say "I want some compensation" and they'll usually give it to you.

5.) NEVER TAKE THE DEAL. If they tell you about some package that is going to give you more and cost you less....there are strings attached. Usually it's for 6 months, maybe even less and then your bill will skyrocket

6.) Sometimes they will offer you something like 1 year of free HBO to make you feel like you're getting something of value. It's a lie, I've been through this 3 times and the billing people have told me over and over that the MOST they can even give is 3 months. A lot of those reps will lie to get you off the phone. There's no accountability for the reps, I've tried to get them in trouble and the lies just keep coming.

7.) Contrary to #5, Threaten to cancel with Billing and billing only at least once a year. You'll suddenly pay less and have better service. It's never permanent but you can relax for awhile.

8.) ALWAYS check your bill. it will change (already said this, but it's important enough to mention again)

9.) Buy your own modem/router. They charge you monthly for a crap modem and a crap router. Ask @BigK. I moved him to an AC router and his signal strenght went through the roof!

10.) Always remember this video (bad language)

 

[btq96r]

14 minutes ago, NoBanStan said:

7.) Contrary to #5, Threaten to cancel with Billing and billing only at least once a year. You'll suddenly pay less and have better service. It's never permanent but you can relax for awhile.

This is the apex of my long term strategy in dealing with Comcast.  After my promo deal time frame ended, I negotiated to a $10 raise for the same services (they wanted much more).  A few more negotiations and almost three years later, I'm still at that same price, give or take the changes in fees and taxes that come from the government.  I simply tell them that I have a budget for internet/cable services, that I can't go over it, and ask them to find me a deal that meets that budget, while still beating AT&T's advertised prices, because that's where I'm going if they can't help me.  It takes 40-60 minutes being passed along the chain of customer service people, but the hassle is worth it.  The actual delivery of their service is top notch.

[jgradyc]

Update: On Thursday, the installer arrived on time. He was everything you'd want a professional installer to be. He hooked up the TV, my Yamaha receiver, my new Xfinity Arris modem, and the X1 platform at the 2nd TV. Wifi went from 30 Mbps to 80 Mbps.  Hardwired went to 91 Mbps. I can't remember what I signed up for... was it 100 or 300 Mbps? I'll check after this and call if it was 300 Mbps. 

The xfinity remote is awesome, but it should be since I'm comparing it to our existing 2010 Directv system. I can just say "ESPN" and it will change the channel to ESPN.

My combined internet/TV bill should drop about $150/month. 

Edited September 15, 2016 by jgradyc

[NoBanStan]

1 hour ago, jgradyc said:

Update: On Thursday, the installer arrived on time. He was everything you'd want a professional installer to be. He hooked up the TV, my Yamaha receiver, my new Xfinity Arris modem, and the X1 platform at the 2nd TV. Wifi went from 30 Mbps to 80 Mbps.  Hardwired went to 91 Mbps. I can't remember what I signed up for... was it 100 or 300 Mbps? I'll check after this and call if it was 300 Mbps. 

The xfinity remote is awesome, but it should be since I'm comparing it to our existing 2010 Directv system. I can just say "ESPN" and it will change the channel to ESPN.

My combined internet/TV bill should drop about $150/month. 

Think you'll need 300mbps? I have a family of 4 who live on streaming sites and 90 serves us fine. I ask because you could possibly save some money.

I don't know your expertise in the field but a common misconception is "I need as much speed as possible". 300mbps is the size of the pipe coming to your house. It doesn't mean you'll be downloading videos, games, etc at 300. If you download a video from a remote server and they limit their bandwidth to 30mbps, you get it somewhere around 30mbps. Almost every business that serves up content is going to have a bandwidth cap, otherwise their pipe would be eat up constantly and we would move back to the days of dialup speed.

You may know all this, just food for thought.

[jgradyc]

The Comcast package I ordered included internet up to 300mbps. I understand there are reasons why I wouldn't get 300Mbps, but it's probably worth a call to see if they can improve my speed. I live in the country. Maybe they need to run a new line to my house. I'm 150 yards from the main line on the highway.  Maybe they need some sort of booster. Whatever, I'm going to call and complain/ask for faster service.

[Sam1]

On 9/13/2016 at 8:48 PM, Fourtyfive said:

Hold your breath and wait for Google fiber. I've not signed a contract with Comazz in 3 years but I'm paying for it in extra $. I will be glad to get rid of them and their constantly changing bills......

Google fiber is cutting back man, they are refocusing resources on wireless now.  I didn't realize how difficult it was for them to come into a place, apparently they have to have a permit for every single telephone pole they use and the other companies have to respond to requests - that's why it was going in so slow.  Think the news article said they were still waiting on responses for 44,000 applications (poles).

Here's an article about them repositioning to wireless.

http://www.theverge.com/2016/8/25/12652734/google-fiber-access-alphabet-layoffs-wireless-internet

[analog_kidd]

Here are some instructions on reprogramming the box / remote so that when watching recorded or On-Demand shows, the Page-Up button will skip ahead 30 seconds. My remote is a newer one that is more rectangular looking, but this worked on it too.

 

 

 

[DaveTN]

My main complaint with Comcast (other than price) is this....

I pay a lot for my TV service. Advertisers are not paying for what I watch; I am. Therefore I shouldn’t have to watch commercials, and that’s part of the reason I picked them. Now they are putting “Fast forward has been disabled” on a lot (and becoming more all the time) of on-demand programs. I suspect a class action suit will stop that; but Comcast should stop it on their own.

[Sam1]

It will not be stopped, it's the same thing as watching a broadcasted tv show.

[DaveTN]

17 minutes ago, Sam1 said:

It will not be stopped, it's the same thing as watching a broadcasted tv show.

It may not be stopped; but it’s not the same. Free OTA broadcast TV us paid for by the advertisers. I have On-Demand; it is paid for by the subscribers. And I as a subscriber do not want to have commercials forced on me. Comcast is running the show. If tell the networks they aren’t going to allow fast forward to be disable in on-demand; that is what will happen. What will the networks do, leave Comcast?

I don’t expect Comcast to take the side of their customers; but it would be nice.

[Sam1]

on demand is just the same as any broadcast.  The availability of a rebroadcast may come with constraints from the channel itself, or it could be as a service charge type cost from Comcast to its customers.  OTA has nothing to do with it, since you're not watching it OTA.

[DaveTN]

6 minutes ago, Sam1 said:

on demand is just the same as any broadcast.  The availability of a rebroadcast may come with constraints from the channel itself, or it could be as a service charge type cost from Comcast to its customers.  OTA has nothing to do with it, since you're not watching it OTA.

On-demand is “pay per view”. I am paying for it. I fully understand the networks can negotiate anything they like; and Comcast can tell them…No. What will they do then? My guess is they will shut-up and sit down. 

[analog_kidd]

On many On-Demand shows Fast forward is disabled, however on the X1 remote, pressing the Pg-Up button will skip ahead 5 minutes, even if FF is disabled. 5 minutes is usually too long to skip past the commercials (except on some like FX who have no commercials the 1st half hour, then make up for it with long ones at the end). But, if you use the reprogramming trick I linked above, you can change the Pg-Up to a 30 second skip. Just hit that button 5 or six times, and you are back in the show.

[jgradyc]

15 hours ago, analog_kidd said:

On many On-Demand shows Fast forward is disabled, however on the X1 remote, pressing the Pg-Up button will skip ahead 5 minutes, even if FF is disabled. 5 minutes is usually too long to skip past the commercials (except on some like FX who have no commercials the 1st half hour, then make up for it with long ones at the end). But, if you use the reprogramming trick I linked above, you can change the Pg-Up to a 30 second skip. Just hit that button 5 or six times, and you are back in the show.

Thanks! I'll definitely do this. So far, my wife is loving the new system. 

Concerning the router, I have the brand new Arris router being sold as the Xfinity modem at Best Buy so the router shouldn't be slowing down my internet speed. I've tried a hard reset, but it didn't have any effect. Usually I'm getting 40Mbps, but occasionally I'll get 80Mbps. There doesn't seem to be any in between. It's either 40 or 80. Hardwired, it gets 92. 92 is pretty fast. I'd be content with that if I got that consistently. However, I'm supposed to be getting *up to* 300Mbps. 40 and 92 aren't up to 300. I was expecting about 100-200.

Edited September 18, 2016 by jgradyc

[jgradyc]

I'm updated this thread because most people switch cable providers and this will help them make a better decision. 

 

I called Comcast about the slow speed. I got someone in India reading from a script. Literally... it was almost laughable.

Me: I'm having a problem with my router. It's slow.

Rep: How can I help you today?

Me: I'm having a problem with my router, it's slow.

Rep: I'm sorry to hear you are having a problem. What is the problem?

Me: I'm having a problem with my router. It's too slow

Rep: I'm sorry to hear you are having a problem with your router. What is the problem?

 After 20 minutes she finally transferred me to a tech guy who spoke unaccented English and diagnosed the problem quickly. The Arris Gateway router/modem being sold at Best Buy is NOT the latest model used by Comcast. He suggested that I either rent their router/modem or get a separate router and modem. Separate units are better than the combined units. I thought that was good, unbiased advice. 

Score so far...

Bad Service 1

Good Service 1

I went to Xfinity in Cool Springs and rented the new model for $10/month. The wait was 4 minutes and the process of getting it was... not kidding... less than 2 minutes. What great customer service!

Score Good service 2, Bad Service 1

I got home and hooked it up. My wife's Wifi speed jumped from 42 to 146Mbps, but my older laptop couldn't get online!  I stayed online with customer service for 91 minutes and finally gave up because I needed to be somewhere.

Score Good service 2, bad 2. 

I assumed it might be a problem with my 4 year old laptop, so I ordered a Netgear AC600 USB wifi adapter for $23 on Amazon. When it arrived, I installed its software and then connected it. Checking this morning, I'm getting 156 Mbps download speed on wifi. I'm satisfied with the speed, but I'm disappointed that my webpages aren't loading 4x faster. After all, my download speed is 4x faster. I'd say that web page loading is maybe 25-50% faster. Again, I'm guessing it must be my old laptop, so I ordered a new one from Dell. It should arrive today. 

When I returned the Arris Gateway to Best Buy, they were very nice about taking it back after the 14 day return had expired. I explained that comcast had been delayed two weeks in installing my new system so I had only had it working for 5 days before returning it. 

Again, I talked to a tech guy at Best Buy who suggested the best choice for best speed would be a separate router and modem. He recommended the Asus RT-AC1900P router ($175) and the Arris Surfboard SB6190 modem ($135). Since that's $310 or nearly $340 after tax, I decided to stay with the rental router/modem from Xfinity for $10/month, since I get free support and can replace it free when a newer model comes out.

 

[NoBanStan]

8 hours ago, jgradyc said:

I assumed it might be a problem with my 4 year old laptop, so I ordered a Netgear AC600 USB wifi adapter for $23 on Amazon. When it arrived, I installed its software and then connected it. Checking this morning, I'm getting 156 Mbps download speed on wifi. I'm satisfied with the speed, but I'm disappointed that my webpages aren't loading 4x faster. After all, my download speed is 4x faster. I'd say that web page loading is maybe 25-50% faster. Again, I'm guessing it must be my old laptop, so I ordered a new one from Dell. It should arrive today. 

Again, I talked to a tech guy at Best Buy who suggested the best choice for best speed would be a separate router and modem. He recommended the Asus RT-AC1900P router ($175) and the Arris Surfboard SB6190 modem ($135). Since that's $310 or nearly $340 after tax, I decided to stay with the rental router/modem from Xfinity for $10/month, since I get free support and can replace it free when a newer model comes out.

 

The pages not loading 4x faster could be your laptop but as I mentioned, it depends on how faster the pipe is coming from the website. If your speed was 4 billion Petabytes per second and their upload is 30mbps, you'll get it at 30mbps or less.

Honestly at 157mbps over wireless, you're not exactly hurting. Even if it is half the speed you would get wired. An AC router connecting to that AC adapter would likely put you around the full 300mbps, but that's just more money for speed you're not likely to need. The modem portion of the modem/router combo is fine but the wireless sucks. At best it's probably B/G/N.

[jgradyc]

New Dell Inspiron 17 (5755) AMD A6 7310 w/6GB of RAM arrived today. It is downloading at 243 Mbps on wifi, so I'm happy with that. Web page loading is about the same as it is on my old computer. I was unaware that web page loading was a factor of the website and not the computer. I'm trying another browser to see if it is faster. I'm currently using Chrome.

Edited September 30, 2016 by jgradyc

[DaveTN]

I have a rock solid 120 Mbps. At that speed; download speed is no longer an issue for web pages. But I still wait on some websites. 

David has posted here that he is in the process of changing the server. So until everything is established you may see slower speeds here than you saw before.

[10-Ring]

FYI you can buy Comcast service on Amazon now. I do t know if it sucks any less to go that route though. 

[A516]

Move to Chattanooga and get EPB Fiber Optics.  Great TV, Internet and Phone service.  Great customer service.