Review by nerworks 
member for 10.7 years, 26 visits, last login: 144 days ago
updated 170 days ago
 Rockwall,Rockwall,TX
 $30 per month- (12 month contract)
 about 3 days "Quick install, works as advertised" "Nothing yet" "In Rockwall, best deal"
| Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection Reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:
(ratings above consensus)
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9 years Ago - Charter Pipeline - Rockwall, TX:
Oh boy, where do I begin. I have had cable internet service since @home and through it's transition to ATTBI and Comcast in the Dallas area. A few light problems over my 5 years with them, but overall solid, reliable service. Moved to Rockwall and was very relieved Charter Cable internet was available. Was paying $50/mo for ATTBI for 1.5/256. Once moved, Charter's Gold plan was $70/mo for supposed "1.5/128". Bit the bullet and got the service. Upon sign up, I was told Gold plan was available, but line upgrade were in plans. That was OK, I was hooked on cable internet. Installation time arrived and it was a nightmare. Made install appointment...technician never showed up. Called and they said he would be out the next day. The guy showed up the next day, installed internet, but forgot cable boxes, but said he would go to office and get them. He never returned. I had to call the local office and their solution was either I had to wait for this unreliable person to show up at a later date, or go to the office and get and install the boxes myself. The manager was very kind and helpful, however, I couldn't believe I was having to do all this, and it didn't seem to bother them. That was OK, all I wanted way my service up and going no matter what I had to do. I went to the office and got the boxes and installed them myself. That was my WELCOME to Charter Communications!
Ok, so initially my speed were about 1/128, not the 1.5 as advertised. I didn't complain seeing as how they had line upgrades in the plan, and speeds could only get better. That was december. Well, over a 6 month period, my speeds gradually got slower over time. Download speeds dropped to 768, 500, then 250 approximately. I won't even mention the upload speeds, which were a joke. My file speeds got down to around 25kbps.........hey that's like dialup! I got the same story of line upgrades when inquiring about service degradation.
Their e-mail is a total joke. It looks like something from 1995. No functionality and the worst user interface I have ever seen. That's what you get for $70/month. No big deal, I just used a client program. But for the money you pay, it's a slap in the face. I'm not even sure if a moderate PC user could figure out how to use their web based e-mail, it's that bad.
Hopefully their service is better now for new subscribers so they don't have to relive what I have gone through. Bottom line is with all the bad reviews of Charter I've read before signing up, I should have known better. When reading this, please remember this is for Rockwall, not ALL of Charter's service areas. However, I do feel sorry for subscribers who have only Charter as their option. I ended up going with SBCYahoo! DSL and they give what they advertise; please read my review. There's a company to model after Charter! Please beware of Charter Pipeline in Rockwall unless you start seeing some GOOD reviews. Sorry for the bad info, but it happened to me.
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OK...........that was 9 years ago.........let's fast forward to today, 11/13/12:
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I've had ATT Yahoo! DSL for most of the nine year period preceding this review after my much disappointing experience with Charter here in Rockwall, TX. The DSL service from ATT was mostly 99% reliable and speeds were as advertised throughout that nine year period. But at speeds less than 6down and 1.5up, ATT Yahoo! DSL (not uverse - can't get it south of I30 in Rockwall) is NOT competitive anymore with their prices and I'm frankly tired of waiting for ATT Uverse to expand throughout the rest of Rockwall. Charter advertises a promotion of 30mbps down at $29.99/month for a year, with regular price of ~$45 the 2nd year. At one point I was paying close to $200/month for 6 static IP dsl service through ATT Yahoo!. So, prices have dropped and speeds have increased. So, with much reluctance, I decided to give Charter another try, and hope that after 9 years, they have improved here in Rockwall, TX.
I ordered the special online and even made the install appointment online. Come install day, I got a call that they were on their way, and they showed up promptly within the scheduled appointment time. 2 techs, with "Charter" written all over their truck and their shirts, showed up. 9 years ago the tech was an independent contractor, wearing personal clothing, that obviously didn't know what he was doing. It was a relief to see that these techs actually worked for Charter.
They asked me where I wanted the modem setup and they got to work, checking lines to the house, and verifying the cable to my designated location did not interfere with my satellite tv service. Within 30min to an hour, they had everything setup. Since I was leery about my previous experience and what speeds I would actually get, I waited to ask the tech to do a speed test before leaving. I didn't get a chance to ask because he did a speed test at the end to show me everything was working as advertised. Actually, the 30mbps download speed advertised was exceeded in this test by the tech with a result around 70mbps down. This was with cable modem connected directly my computer. I've never had speeds that fast even though over the years I've continually looked for providers that could provide that type of internet access in Rockwall, TX without paying hundreds of dollars a month. I was impressed to say the least.
Talking with the install tech, he mentioned that Charter is concentrating on improving their digital TV service. He even admitted that the TV service right now is sub par compared to satellite providers, but they are investing in improving their service to compete. Basically, bottom line stated....they got their internet service rounded and polished in this area supposedly now. I hope so, because internet options in the Rockwall, TX area are very limited. I don't want to be stuck with shoddy service and poor connectivity with regular calls for tech support. So, we'll see.
Charter has a 30 day money back guarantee, so let's see how this month goes. It has been one week since I've had internet installed in my home. Here's my speed tests:
-Upon install by tech, he stated download speeds would be anywhere from 30-70mbps and he even showed me......with computer connected to modem, it was well over 70mbps.
-With a wireless router connected to the modem, here's my speeds from the router, both wired and wireless:
Wired:
»www.speedtest.net/result/2305232217.png
Wireless:
»www.speedtest.net/result/2305229376.png
Beyond my expectations to say the least. If Charter can improve this much over a 9 year period, there's no telling what the future will hold. I may even give their TV service a go if things continue in this direction. Way to go Charter! I have to believe in you because you've got the competition beat in this area as far as internet service goes, and their isn't much competition worthy to look at.
One thing that I will say about pre-ordering information is READ THE FINE PRINT! When ordering online, there are links to terms of service and promotional disclaimer documents that you must read. Big points are: there is a 30 day money back guarantee, there is a monthly data transfer limit of 250GB, and after the 1st year the price goes up to their regular price of ~$45/month. I gave their pre-service information a "3" because it's not intuitively easy to find when ordering their service, but it is there if you dig around a bit on their site. The major information in these documents should be listed on the order/information pages clearly before ordering, not buried in a document only accessible through a difficult to notice link at the bottom of the web page. But because the information IS there, I gave a "3" for pre-ordering.
Also, I gave their "tech support" a "3" as well as it's only been a week and I have not had any issues that require me to call in to tech support. I'll update that when I actually have that experience. For now, I'm giving a middle of the road rating to be fair.
The install coordination went smoothly and as scheduled, plus the techs were concerned about their own quality of install as they told me of a phone call I would receive after install to rate their work. The reliability of my connection has not flickered since install a week ago. Their internet service is top notch at speeds untouchable by other ISP's servicing this area and at a promotional price of $30 for the 1st year, it shames the competition. So, the remaining 4 categories got a "5".
I'll keep this review updated as time passes. From all the bad reviews I've read about Charter internet and with my own disappointing experience 9 years ago, I'm crossing my fingers and remaining hopeful.
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 | | router Is your router a gigabit router and a dual/band? | |
|  | | | Re: router I'm using an older Netgear Wireless-G Router WGR614v9. I'm wanting to upgrade the router at some point though. Any suggestions? | |
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