 Review by Redshirt 24 
UPDATED: 178 days ago
member for 6.2 years, 1146 visits, last login: 16 days ago
 Plano,Collin,TX
 $45 per month (24 month contract)
 about 45 days
 "Extremely stable and fast connection; comparatively affordable pricing"
 "Supplied router good for basic use, but not really geared for advanced users; ONT power concerns"
 "On its own merits, a good service to have if it is available in your area."
| Pre Sales Information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection reliability:
Tech Support:
Value for money:
(ratings match consensus)
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Where I live, there were at the time and are still only two choices for broadband access: Verizon or Comcast (now Time Warner) cable. Since Comcast's cable service was...less than exemplary...the initial choice, Verizon DSL, was easy. FiOS came later.
The initial annoyance with ordering FiOS is that it requires a fiber-optic line to be run to your house, which is usually done by a subcontractor, and after that that an interface box--an ONT--be installed outside to provide telephone and broadband services (and/or later cable TV) to your home. Being one of the first FiOS installs in my area, this was actually done in a relatively neat and tidy fashion--especially since they had to run the fiber-optic line underneath my driveway.
My one problem with the installation side of things is perhaps based in a bit of paranoia--while the ONT has a battery backup in the event of a power outage, that backup is only rated for about four hours or so of usage. Not good if a sustained outage happens to occur. (I've been lucky enough not to see that yet, but I do live in an area which seems to have a lot of power grid fluctuations in stormy weather.)
As for the service itself? I honestly have no serious complaints. None. Phone service has basically been transparent after switching from copper wire to the ONT, and from a broadband standpoint...FiOS has been almost beyond reproach consistently for the few years I've had it. No major connection or lag issues that weren't related to some sort of regional issue...Verizon's newsserver could be a little more robust, but that's more an ISP symptom than a service symptom. The routers I was supplied with from my original FiOS install (and the later FiOS TV install) were D-Link wired and wireless routers--the VDI-604 and VDI-624 respectively--which are adequate if not exemplary for basic use; I've been using a ZyXel X-550 and more recently a TRENDnet TEW-633GR with my connection with no problems whatsoever.
(The flip side of the above is that I've literally almost never had to contact Verizon technical support about any issues with the connection itself. I have no idea, therefore, how efficient and/or knowledgeable they are as a rule.)
A final note: when my original FiOS install was set up, they ran a new Ethernet line from the ONT for my router to use. In newer installs, it appears that they prefer to run coaxial cable in order to use the current supplied router, which is made by Actiontec. You may have to explicitly ask for an Ethernet line to be run if you want one.
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5/15/2009 update: while FiOS TV seems to be slacking off a bit in some ways, FiOS Internet service is still incredibly rock-solid for me--there have been no major local outages or speed issues of any sort since I wrote the original review. (A sidebar: while my service was initially 20M down/5M up when I had the service installed, I ended up with 10M/2M service for about a year due to an order mishap; I had 20M/5M service restored after I wrote the original review.) Of course, now that it's officially popular, Verizon has slowly increased the tier pricing across the board--not significantly, just incrementally for non-bundled services; I believe I'm currently paying what I was paying when I had the service initially installed in 2006.
One caveat for people who have both TV and Internet services has manifested--if you have a DVR and are using a non-Verizon-provided router, you may not be able to use Verizon's Remote DVR service without jumping through a lot of hoops, if at all.
Followup comments:  dhughes248
join:2008-03-02
Herndon, VA
| increasing backup power time It is a simple matter to have longer-lasting battery backup for your services. Purchase a UPS and plug the ONT onto that device. The larger the UPS, the more time you have. I have my ONT, Router/Switches and cordless phone base plugged into my $150 UPS and I have up to 24 hours power for phone, Internet (using wireless router) | |
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Redshirt 24
Premium
join:2003-08-08
Plano, TX
 ·Verizon FIOS
| Re: increasing backup power time Reportedly, the way the ONT is set up, it automatically shuts off Internet access after either a few minutes or an hour or so to conserve power in the event of an outage. (This popped up in a thread here, but I don't remember which one.) That said, even if just for maintaining phone service in a sustained outage, a small UPS really isn't a bad idea...
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The Young and the Restless: cheaper than having your own life. | |
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