Review by CSU 
UPDATED: 1.7 years ago
member for 5.9 years, 331 visits, last login: 18 days ago
 Lagrange,Troup,GA
 $49 per month (12 month contract)
 about 7 days
 "It works sometimes, but never at anything close to what was sold."
 "GET DSL IF YOU HAVE THE OPTION - LaGrange Techs Lie."
| Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection Reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:
(ratings well below consensus)
|
I was sold the 1.5Mb service in May 2002 and still to this day haven't received anything close to that. When they installed the service, it seemed like it was going to be ok, until I pulled a speed test (480k down and 25 up). Well, needless to say I was mad, becuase I had DSL from Bellsouth before I moved and was getting 1.8 down and 175 up. I told the tech that this isn't the service I ordered, His response "We don't have to give you the 1.5Mb service because we don't have any competition in our area", so I called customer service. It took them a month to finally get my service provisioned to the right speed. I am now getting only around 700 - 900k depending on whether or not the service is ever on.
After they provisioned the modem to the correct speed, they seemed to keep putting it back to the 512k service that they started out trying to give me. That lasted another 2 months. After they stopped changing speeds on me they started having problems just keeping the service running. I started having to call monthly, then quickly turned to weekly, then it is was everu other day. Now I have given up. I just keep getting credits for time down. I never pay for more than half months service.
I have requested more than 60 times to have someone from another area to come to our area and see what is going on for the service to be off as often as it is, but as usual, requests always go unheard.
Advise to people of LaGrange, Ga. - (1)Call Customer Service Regularly, (2)Complain Loudly, but calm, (3)Demand Service you are supposed to have, (4)Request to make an Official Compaint, (5)Don't Let them Lie to you, (6)Do your homework, so they can't Lie to you, (7)Ask to speak to a Manager, don't deal with customer service(they don't know anything), (8)Take names of every person you deal with, (9)Keep track of dates and times, (10)Always request a credit for time down.
Follow this 10 step program and maybe one day the service in this area will improve.
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Today server in local office is down again. I am only getting 16/8k, how can these guys keep doing this? I have requested multiple times to have someone sent to my area because the techs here can't keep the service up, but nothing is being done.
I have been made aware by sales people from Bellsouth Fast Access, that they are now in my area. Soon I will be finished with my agony of Charter. I may even dump their unrespectable cable package for Satellite.
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These are some speed tests that I've run lately on dslreports.com starting with the most recent:
who Zip ISP SpeedDwn/up UserHas DayHour
CSU 30240 Charter Pipeline 147/71 1500/512 7th 09:xx
CSU 30240 Charter Pipeline 922/127 1500/512 6th 15:xx
CSU 30240 Charter Pipeline 943/676 1500/512 2nd 08:xx
CSU 30240 Charter Pipeline 893/640 1500/512 30th 00:xx
CSU 30240 Charter Pipeline 384/379 1500/512 29th 15:xx
CSU 30240 Charter Pipeline 175/573 1500/512 26th 23:xx
CSU 30240 Charter Pipeline 281/302 1500/512 26th 20:xx
CSU 30240 Charter Pipeline 905/474 1500/512 25th 13:xx
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12-8-02
I called Corporate Office Last Month(314-965-0555) and reported all my issues. I got a call back from Corporate Office informing me that someone from local office would be in touch with me. Later on that morning someone from my local office called for more information about the situation, which I explained to him. A few hours later the problem seemed to be fixed. Speeds that ranged from 400-900k went up to 1200-1400k, which is close enough to the 1.5Mb service that I'm paying for. Almost a month later, my service has been without notice or any kind of reason been changed to a 256k service. I have talked to 5 different people which include customer service and tech support and they can't seem to fix the problem. I guess I'll have to wait till normal business hours before they can fix the service again.
Also, as a note - someone else from my area has posted a petition trying to get Bellsouth or another DSL provider to come to our Apartments. I hope this attempt is successful.
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01-12-07
I am now using Charter's 5Mb service since my last post. I originally got Charter because of a promotion advertising (flyer) a service which offered the highest high-speed service bundled with all movie channels for a set price that will NEVER increase in price. Well, a few months ago they up and decided they would end a promotion that states it will NEVER end (What is the definition of Never if it ends?).
Service has been better but anytime there is a problem, tech support is non-existent. On 1-11-07, my service was slower than usual and I did a few speed tests here and at speedtest.net. The results were horribly slow coming in at 400-700kbps when I normally get over 4000kbps. The tech I spoke with came to the conclusion that I must have a virus, worm or something is wrong with my network card. All this was determined from this program they like to use (qcr) which runs traceroutes and pings to various ip addresses. Well, I told him I have another computer that can be used, so I connected it and ran the same speed tests with the same result. At this point the tech starts making excuses why this could happen but none that would result in it being Charter as the problem. I told him I had enough of his excuses and I would try things the next day and if the problem continued I would setup an appointment. The next day 1-12-07 at 6a.m. the speed was back up to normal, so whatever was going on with Charter seems to be fixed for now. My compaint like many others is the lack of knowledge displayed by charter support, online, telephone, and at home.
Followup comments:  Travel_2002
join:2002-10-13
Lagrange, GA
| Get DSL If You Have The Option - LaGrange Techs Lie Are you finally getting the 1.5 with the 5 meg service? I had the stuff five years ago and went thru pretty much the same thing you did. I wouldn't go as far as to say that they lie. It seems that way. All it boils down to is that they DON'T know what they are doing. They have a hard enough time keeping the basic and expanded part running. The they added digital. Then the now defunked "WorldGate" that rarely ever worked, excepted at the Mayor's house and at City Hall. Now we have internet. They have a couple of people there that know how to turn on a computer or better yet know how to log in on one and now suddenly they know how to maintain all these services. Charter has too many irons in the fire and not the "know-how" to keep up with them. Remember they are doing the best that they can with what they have to work with.  | |
| scrumpy450
join:2007-01-15
Carrollton, GA
| charter cable internet service in carrolton is absolutely redic...it's the only internet that I am able to get here b/c of being in an apartment complex...and it's horrible. I play online games and the latency is almost impossible to play ANYTHING with...I have the 5meg service...and I sometimes get close to those speeds....but the packet loss is what makes the service absolute trash. | |
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