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Review by MichelR See Profile

  • Location: Ottawa, ON, Canada
  • Cost: $78 per month
Rock-solid connection for 6+ years
Prices should be lower and usage caps should be higher
Safe, but expensive without a discount and restrictive due to caps
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection Reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

I just moved and switched to an independent ISP, but figured I'd review the service while the details are still fresh.

I had Rogers Hi-Speed Internet for nearly 6 and a half years. Connection was not a problem: the technician showed up early in the time frame provided when I ordered the service and from then on, the service was rock-solid for most of the time I was a client. There were the occasional hiccups like the service going down for a short period of time, but that happened very, very rarely. I pretty much got the advertised speeds (first on Express, then on Extreme) and doing things like streaming HD on Netflix worked flawlessly 99% of the time (I don't know if the minor problems I got there were due to Rogers or Netflix).

The only times I had to deal with technical support were when I went from Express to Extreme. I had to change my trusty old Webstar DOCSIS 2.0 modem for a SMC Gateway (DOCSIS 3.0). The SMC came with no manual, and I wanted to make sure that wireless was protected. I wasn't sure whether to use the built-in wireless router, so the technician just told me to give it a try and call back if I didn't like it and they'd put it in bridge mode. After that first call, everything was set up without a hitch. After testing the built-in router for a bit, I decided I wanted to use my own router and called back. After no more than 5 minutes I was in bridge mode, using my own router. So no problems there.

I was a bit horrified by them just handing out a modem without any manual or any instructions from the store rep. I know wireless security has to be on, but how many non-technies out there have no clue about this? I also hate that they force us to get a gateway like that, rather than a simple modem. Stupid. Many people out there already have a router.

I had a 20% discount on Extreme for the first year, but when I moved and called to cancel the service, I was offered a 15% discount - they couldn't do better (I have no other services with them now, so that doesn't help...) No higher usage cap either. Not that ever reached 120Gb (though I had to be careful a couple of times), but I like the idea of not having to worry about it. Once your discount is over, you have to phone them again to beg for another discount, and you may end up with a deal that's not as good - just from reading comments on the DSLR forums, experiences vary a bit.

The main advantage of being with Rogers is that, unlike with the independents, you don't have to wait for Rogers to look at the ticket to eventually act on it, I guess. The service is great in my area. Rogers could keep a lot of customers by just lowering their prices a bit and increasing the ridiculous usage caps.

member for 12.7 years, 5830 visits, last login: a few hours ago
updated 11.3 years ago