Review by Oedipus 
member for 8 years, 2380 visits, last login: a few hours ago
updated 1.7 years ago
 Clovis,Fresno,CA
 $130 per month- (12 month contract)
 about 14 days "Fast, seems solid" "Questionable install, high price after promo, caps suck" "Fast and reliable"
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(ratings match consensus)
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I love DSLX, but 5mbps is just not scratching my back like it used to. I decided to sign up for Comcast's base tier once my area went D3, which it did a few weeks ago. I ordered online and was able to get a rate of 19.99 per month for six months for 12/2 service, plus a $50 install fee. I thought the install fee was pretty irritating because I took the time to run the cable, but it turned out to be worth the price.
The installer arrived on time and set to work. All he had to do was terminate both ends of the RG6, connect the modem, and provision it. Unfortunately, the modem (a D3 Ambit model) was not being recognized by whoever provisions the modems. The upstream light on the modem was blinking, and the installer could not figure out why. To his credit, this was only his second install using that particular modem, but for some reason he was focusing more on the fact that my computer was pulling down a local address from the modem (192.168.x.x) than the lights on the modem clearly indicating that something was wrong. After a lot of futile motions on his part, his supervisor came over and together they discovered a corroded connector in the cable box across the street. Once that was fixed, I was up and running. My upstream power level is marginal (49-50) but it's been very solid so far.
The speed is good and it is very consistent. Powerboost takes me above 2MBps, but once it wears off I am at 1.5-1.6. It's interesting to note that my max rate is capped at the modem at around 21Mbps down and 3mbps up, whereas I could speedtest at 30/5 on SB5100s pre D3. I guess capping the max burst rate is one way to differentiate between tiers.
Uploads sit at around 250KBps consistent, with powerboost pushing me over 300. I have seen no evidence of any throttling so far. The 250GB cap may become an issue, but I'm trying to alter my habits.
Once my promo runs out I'd imagine I'll upgrade to Ultra or Extreme if I can get a decent rate, as well as sign up for CDV. Well done, Comcast.
Update January 2010: I recently upgraded to Extreme and got hooked up with CDV at the same time. Speedtests are consistently 60/12 or better. Everything is working well.
Update May 2010: Now that it's heating up, we'll see how the outside plant copes with it. Performance has been flawless, though. Now that I've settled into the 50 mbps groove, I could get behind the idea of raising the caps. How long Comcast plans on sticking with an across the board 250GB is beginning to worry me.
Update June 2011: I have seen no downtime at all since I last updated, even with my marginal signal levels and the oppressive heat that is once again upon us. Upstream bonding is here, also. The cap is still 250, though, which is irritating. I always go over, though.
Update September 2011: After seeing my signal levels enter the range of "how is this still working" and yet still keep me online (mostly), I contacted comcast on a Wednesday and they promptly scheduled a tech visit. Their first suggestion was the following day, which I found impressive even though I had to postpone it to a weekend due to my job. The rep gave me several two hour windows of availability on Saturday, rather than the usual 8-5 window. I chose 2-4 and the tech arrived right around 4. I was happy to see that the tech was not a contractor. He immediately noticed a problem and he went outside and found that my home run is not in great shape, but that the real problem is a poor signal at the tap across the street. He tinkered with it for about a half hour and made it work as well as he could, but I was still out of spec on my downstream power. He decided that the tap would need to be replaced. He said it would be replaced on Sunday, which it wasn't, but today I came home and my levels have improved substantially and my logs suggest that they replaced it today. Good job, comcast. Keep it up.
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