Review by MrBungle87  - Location: Durham,Durham,NC
- Cost: $85 per month (12 month contract)
Good "VDSL is great; better modems and hardware on VDSL."
Bad "ADSL is slow and oversold in many markets. Customer support is hit and miss."
Overall "If Frontier's VDSL packages are available in your area, they become a lot more compelling."
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(ratings match consensus)
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UPDATE, 8/9/2013: so far, so good. Haven't encountered any real issues since being switched over to VDSL in January. Still getting consistent 25Mbit (usually 30) downloads. Ping times could be better (around 60-70ms now), but this is the nature of interleaving, I suppose. My only real complaint is upload speed, or lack thereof. At the time of installation, uploads averaged 1.6Mbit (while being advertised at 3Mbit), and have since decreased to an average of 1Mbit. I'm not sure why uploads are low, but I'll have to talk to our local Frontier manager again to figure it out.
UPDATE, 1/24/2013: VDSL (25/2) is installed using the Actiontec V1000W modem/router, and speeds are great. 30Mbit down, typically, and roughly 1.3Mbit upload, which is less than I expected, but still double what I was seeing on ADSL. The only problem is ping times are higher now, at about 80ms (probably due to interleaving instead of fastpath). Will update if and when anything changes.
If you're relocating to the Triangle area of North Carolina and value a fast Internet connection, avoid Durham at all costs. In this area, Frontier and Time Warner have all but cornered the market on broadband (though, Frontier has no real claim to call what they sell 'broadband'). Time Warner will offer you up to 50Mbit/5Mbit service (down/up), provided you pay them $7-11 per month for their modem/router on top of the $99 standard (non-promo) rate you'll pay for their highest speed tier. By all accounts, Time Warner is a ripoff--though, in all their beneficence, they've deigned not to cap your usage, yet. The nominal pricing for TW's 20/2 tier is about $55 a month here, and you can use your own modem in this instance (read: no monthly modem rental fee to line their pockets). So, that might be more attractive, value wise, but still expensive.
Then, your only other option: Frontier. Ah, Frontier. When Verizon sold their decrepit copper infrastructure to Frontier in mid-2010, we didn't know what we were in for. It turns out, my worst suspicions about Frontier were realized. From the very beginning, the changeover involved Frontier taking on aging equipment it couldn't or wouldn't maintain, overselling DSL, delivering infuriatingly slow peak time speeds, and engaging in highly questionable customer service practices. We were on Verizon's 3Mbit/768Kbit plan and, for the most part, we got the advertised speeds and decent ping times (even during peak hours). Amazingly, Frontier managed to shoot that all to hell with their mere presence. Download speeds plummet daily to sub-1Mbit, and any sort of Youtube/Hulu/Netflix/ESPN3/Skype activity is out of the question. This goes on for HOURS.
I'd spoken with so many different customer service reps and technicians at Frontier that I had a better handle on their problems than they did. Being the aficionado for networking that I am, I got tired of their piss poor answers and decided to take this to Frontier's General Managers for both my county and the state of North Carolina. Finally, a GM was giving me some concrete answers. I live 4224 feet from the CO and according to technicians, our line quality is great, as are the SNR/attenuation numbers, yet we're still stuck on 7Mbit service that suffers nightly and drastic slowdowns. The GM tells me I am easily eligible for the 12/2 "Ultra" package, and I should be eligible for the 25/2 "Ultimate" tier. But he's still researching things at our CO, and I'm waiting for the final word on where we'll go from here.
So to all of you weighing Frontier as an option, I would suggest you do your homework before pulling the trigger, because their VDSL deployment seems spotty at best, and you probably won't be able to get the information you need from call center people in Washington state. Considering we pay $35 a month for Internet, we definitely don't get $35 worth of service. I'd gladly pay another $10 a month for consistent 12/2 speeds, and the GM claims the VDSL network runs on different hardware and isn't oversold like the lower speed tiers. Time will tell. I'll be updating this when we move to a higher speed tier.
But take this as a cautionary tale for broadband in the Durham area. Many other points around the Triangle have AT&T U-Verse as an option (like Cary), but U-Verse is also highly localized to various towns and neighborhoods here, and if you live in a rural area, your options will be even more limited. The price you pay for living in a "less profitable" region.
member for 260 days, 113 visits, last login: a few hours ago
updated 58 days ago
Comments:
 | | In regards to VDSL availability To be sure, VDSL availability is typically when available when you are withing 8000 feet from the central office to be capable for speeds up to 25mbps, we have been doing a lot of work since verizon was around, keeping in mind it has only been 2 1/2 years since we took over and started improving upon Verizons Antiquated networks. I apologize if you didn't get good answers from here in the Washington Call Center, I am extremely proficient in the systems and can definitely assist in this as well. If the issue has been addressed and investigated, then you should be good to go (at the very least being able to get bonded DSL for the 12/2mbps speed), I've checked the terminals in Durham/Raleigh area and do see that the Central office is equipped for VDSL (up to 40mbps for Business, 25mbps for Residential). We have a number of people available for VDSL but like with all internet providers (except wireless) it is distance related. | |
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 ·Frontier Communi..
| Re: In regards to VDSL availability Thanks for your reply. The technician who installed VDSL (25/2) told me he wasn't sure whether VDSL or bonded ADSL2 would be used since we were the second house in the area they've installed VDSL. But, it seems to be working well. I also have to give credit to the technical supervisor for our area who called me and gave me information about our true total loop distance (which was longer than I thought due to a large cable loop on another street), but they either removed or replaced a tap and loop length decreased.
I do have one question for you, though: I'm seeing a lot of errors (presumably) under "30 Minute Near End FEC Interleave" and some under "30 Minute Near End CRC Interleave". Fastpath is disabled so I guess there must be a distance consideration in still using interleaved mode on VDSL2? Either way, my download speeds are great, so I don't know how accurate the SNR and attenuation stats the modem is reporting are. I've attached a screenshot for your perusal. Hopefully, you can make some sense of the FEC numbers.
I'm also seeing higher pings than before (75-100ms), which I'm guessing is due to interleaving. Is there a way to test whether fastpath would cut ping times? | |
| | | | | | I have Frontier DSL on Camano Island, WA zipcode 98282. Do you know if anything can be done to improve speeds? I am on the south end of the island, so I imagine I am far from the CO, and it looks as though we're routed through the Everett, WA pop. Do you know if VDSL is available, and can I bond two DSL channels together if I add a second phone line with Frontier? You can write me back at jakej1978 AT g mail dot com
Thank you. | |
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