Review by ernliz 
UPDATED: 165 days ago
member for 8.2 years, 794 visits, last login: a few hours ago
 Abilene,Taylor,TX
 $30 per month (12 month contract)
 about 1 days
 AT&T
 "Inexpensive and simple to use"
 "The new WIMAX system is very flawed!!!"
 "If nothing else is available, get it, and weep."
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(ratings below consensus)
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Wireless ISPs in the Abilene, TX area are expensive and erratic. When Clearwire finally came to town, it was a dream come true. For $30/mo. I now get approx 800 kbps down, approx 225 up and it's steady. For $10/mo. more you can get 1.5 mbps down. Setup is extremely easy and the hardware footprint is only a few square inches. IP is dynamic, if you turn the modem off, which is OK. I live way out in the sticks and Clearwire told me I was out of luck; however, I tried anyways, and got top notch broadband. It's also very secure, operates on a licensed freq (2.5+ GHz...). The sales people in town are very customer-friendly and go out of their way to please. Bottom line: why would anyone use dial-up (or the expensive WISPs here) when there's Clearwire! No, I don't work for the company!
Minor update: I've only had the service for less than a month, so things may change. Other users who have had longer service are having no problems. I also haven't experienced the few problems other posters are having -- perhaps I'm just pleased I don't have to deal with the other local WISPs any more. More later, if anything changes.
SEP 2006......................
Major update: one year later, Clearwire is continuing to slide downhill here in Abilene, TX, in terms of performance. Lag times are horrible. When you click on a web link, wait 5 seconds before ANYTHING happens, then half the page will load, wait another 20 seconds, and the rest of the page "may" finish loading. And on and on...... The local people haven't a clue about their jobs nor about the technical aspects of Clearwire, but the Tech Support people at the 1-800 number are still quite good. Download speeds are not as advertised -- mostly due to the horrible stalling. And again, most annoying, there's NO ONE to talk to in the area who will listen or care! Oh well, it's better than dialup, and when nothing else is available, what else can many of us do!
Sep 2007.......
What a difference a year makes. Apparently Clearwire in Abilene, TX has made major improvements in reliability and overall service. I get very steady connections and haven't experienced a down day in many months. Perhaps the upgrade to VOIP has forced them to upgrade the HTTP Internet reliability somehow. In any case, all is well. And............ after reading many of the negative reviews by many, I just wonder if these people actually know how much they can do to improve their reliability and speeds. You ACTUALLY have to CALL tech support and tell them of your problem, work with them, work with the local folks, and "find" the best signal area in your home. It's not that hard to get it right!
August 2009.....
How things change! I've recently "upgraded" to the new Clear WIMAX system here in the Abilene, TX, area and the news is bad. I've gone from 5 lights (signal strength) down to almost 2. My speed, which is supposed to be 2 mbps, and which I'm paying for, is around 450 kbps. I've set up my modem for perfect placement and tested my connection with at least 3 other computers. All show the same speed problem. Unfortunately there is nothing I can do! Clear technical support goes through their script, and that's that! Others are having the same problem, as noted in several Internet blogs. My neighbors are likewise affected. Is anyone at Clear aware of this, and doing anything? I guess not.
August 2009, again...
Please see previous update review from yesterday. This should have been placed in the "Unhappy Campers" side of the site review.
Anyway, today, the Clear speeds are even slower than yesterday: about 340 kbps, although my plan is for 2 mbps speed. Twice when I was surfing (with 2 lights on the modem) the modem decided to start cycling, then finally locked on to 2 lights again. I suspect strongly that this is a tower problem. More later....
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