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Review by bobk4000 See Profile

  • Location: Saint Paul, Ramsey, MN, USA
  • Cost: $82 per month
  • Install: about 8 days
Solid, reliable connection and service.
None
Very happy with the service from CenturyLink
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

With my 5 year 12/.896Mb original plan ending I stopped in at a CenturyLink store to look at options for improving my speed and pricing. While I was thinking of 40/5 my line was capable of "up to" 60/5 so I went with that. I dropped unlimited long distance and their Linebacker internal wiring service since I can handle phone wiring within my house. To my surprise the modem sync'ed up at 56/5.5 MB and has been solid when I've done speed tests. I'm amazed that buried copper wire from the 60's or 70's can handle download speeds of close to 60 Mbs.

A little over a year ago I did speak with the "loyalty" department and along with a monthly discount I did get my upload speed increased up to 5 Mbs which I like for uploading large files to cloud storage. Since I'm no longer working remote from home I didn't need the faster upload speeds of bonded service plus I would have had to purchase a different modem along with having internal wiring reworked.

My old monthly bills were running around $93 for internet and phone so the roughly $10 drop per month was worth it. And the sales person I worked with at the CL store was very knowledgeable and offered suggestions for keeping my monthly costs in check.

(Old Review - 5 year plan)

I switched from a 7 Mb/896 Kb with Visi as my ISP and CenturyLink for DSL and phone over to a CenturyLink 12 Mb/896 Kb bundled with their phone package back in September of 2013. Purchased the modem from CenturyLink - they offered to spread the cost over 3 months of bills which I took advantage of.

Ordering the upgrade in service was painless - it took place at CL kiosk at a local shopping center. Staff I worked with were very knowledgeable and answered all my questions and had the DSL modem for me to take home. Did have to call to get my PPP login credentials but in all fairness I may have rushed getting my modem online a bit early.

Modem is an Actiontec C1000A - it has been a solid performer however I've kept all the DSL modems 'elevated' so there is plenty of air flow and it resides in a cool basement and on a UPS with surge protection for the phone line.

I've been very pleased with the switch to a CenturyLink bundle - I'm getting faster speeds (14.7 Mb down / .85 Mb up) than what I ordered and there seems to be less overhead on this VDSL2-8A circuit over the former DMT-ADSL that I had before. Plus the service has been very reliable - the few times I have had any issues (noisy line) the CenturyLink techs had it resolved quickly. I do live about a mile from the Central Office and with all the DSL service I've had from CenturyLink/Qwest/US West over the years it has been rock solid. Apparently the underground wiring in my neighborhood is still in very good shape.

member for 20.4 years, 711 visits, last login: 6 days ago
updated 5.3 years ago


Review by Finalnight See Profile

  • Location: Omaha, Douglas, NE, USA
  • Cost: $66 per month
  • Install: about 9 days
  • Caps of 1000 gigabytes/month
Cheap, reliable, fast
Setting up a separate router and getting the best settings takes some work
Happy with the service and the price
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

Ordered 100/10 Centurylink DSL for $55 a month. Its a bonded VDSL2 package. Scheduled a weekend install about 9 days after ordering. Installer came a little earlier than the window, installed a new nid and line to the house as well as a new jack with a CAT5E home run from the NID. He was here for about 2 hours. I am leasing a Zyxel C3000Z for $10 a month and may buy it out at some point. Decent performance for an ISP provided modem/router, though I ended up hooking my Archer C9 to it using transparent bridge mode. Only real complaint is that the cost of buying the modem/router through Centurylink is quite expensive ($150). So far my service has been rock solid and handled gaming, YouTubeTV, etc just fine. I typically speed test within 90% of my advertised speeds.

member for 6.1 years, 43 visits, last login: 2.4 years ago
lodged 5.4 years ago


Review by Azor50Ron See Profile

  • Location: 36542-6655
  • Cost: $12 per month (12 month contract)
  • Install: about 1 days
Cost and customer service for
Cannot change esixting features
Great for internet on the beach
Connection reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

My cost and days from order to online relates to video DVR only.
Telecom services were ordered/paid by Condo Mgmt & are part of my monthly condo fee.
(I was told that cost for basic cable tv, fiber internet and local calls only phone runs $100+/mo)

member for 5.4 years, 6 visits, last login: 4.4 years ago
updated 5.4 years ago


former qwest
Premium Member
join:2014-01-04
out there

former qwest

Premium Member

what?

i can't take this as a serious review of CTL.

Kiktrix
join:2017-09-22
Colorado Springs, CO

1 recommendation

Kiktrix

Member

Re: what?

I know right. LOL






Review by hairsandwich See Profile

  • Location: Seattle, King, WA, USA
  • Cost Contract price not specified.
It's not Comcast.
It's not great.
If you're sick of Comcast, this is the ISP for you!
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

The order and install process was both easy and a crucible. It took weeks of targeted borderline harassment to get our "1000Mps" internet turned on.

The technician who installed it was a cool guy, however. That makes a big difference.

member for 5.6 years, 24 visits, last login: 4.7 years ago
updated 5.4 years ago







Review by hoffa69 See Profile

  • Location: North Las Vegas, Clark, NV, USA
  • Cost: $45 per month
good price, terms and network performance so far
website downtime, billing system issues, communication problems, IP changes a lot
worth it if willing to go thru the obsticles
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
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Value for money:

It has been about six months now since I got CenturyLink Internet only. I am paying $45 a month for 40MB/s. The install process is not very good because they failed to process the payment necessary for the installer to come out or their website went down during the process of me ordering online. I had fiber installed to house so had some mess to clean up, rocks, small irrigation leak where the trencher guy went which I fixed myself.

The process returning the leased equipment was not very straightforward. I went to Centurylink store with equipment and they rejected me and told me to mail it myself or call the special number. I then requested a return shipping label be mailed to me and that took about two weeks to reach me. I ended up finding a link to print out the label myself in mail during this time so got it sent back, took pictures for evidence. There were several calls I made during the process also.

I also had issues getting my credit card updated on their website had to go back hours later because their website was down. To get the rebate, I had to contact customer service via the help link on the website to get the rebate approved.

On the positive side now that I have the credit card on their system, router returned I haven't noticed any downtime and latency is better than with Cox. Plus I don't have to deal with the explosive bill at month 12 or 13 like I did with Cox where they blow up the bill to a very high amount after this period.

member for 16.7 years, 95 visits, last login: 2.3 years ago
lodged 5.5 years ago


Review by RainX See Profile

  • Location: Rochester, Olmsted, MN, USA
  • Cost: $45 per month
  • Install: about 7 days
Decent value if you can get over the initial installation costs
Decent value if you can get over the initial installation costs
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

So I moved to the Rochester, MN area from Eau Claire, WI to accept a job promotion back in May 2018. As with any move, setting up internet is always one of the many things you have to do. You essentially have three realistic choices in this area from what I can tell. Charter, Centurylink, and Jaguar Communications. Jaguar is an ISP that offers fiber, but unfortunately the part of town I moved into they do not offer service yet. I had Charter on and off for several years where I previously lived and was paying $65+tax for 100MB service from them and could have transferred that down here.

I looked into Centurylink who does also offer fiber in certain areas of the city, but they don't in this part of town yet either, so the fastest I could get from them was 80MB with a soft 1TB datacap. They have their "price for life" promotion where it supposedly won't change as long as you keep their service and it was $45 a month. Trying to save some money from in the long run and having mixed experiences with Charter, I decided to go with them. Charter offers a similar upfront price ($45) for their base 100MB service as well, but it's only a promotional price for the first 12 months and then will go up afterwards and it's only for "new" customers. They don't seem to be as open as in the past to extending the promotional pricing for anyone who threatens to cancel when the initial 12 month promo period is up.

The upfront cost with Centurylink was pretty hefty including a $60 installation fee and the cost of renting the modem for an extra $10 a month or buying theirs for $150. I opted for purchase as I don't feel it was worth it to keep renting it after I could spend enough in a year to buy it anyways.

I scheduled the appointment over a week in advance for my move in day and the tech arrived within the time window and it was pretty painless. Took him about a half an hour with some rewiring he had to do outside, but he was friendly and knowledgeable.

I haven't had any service drops in the roughly two months I've had the service and probably get anywhere from 25 to 60 depending on the time of the day. I get the "up to 80" they advertised. Part of the online promotion was supposedly a $100 gift card that is supposed to be sent out after several weeks but I have yet to receive it in the mail. It's not a deal breaker, but I shouldn't have to go chasing down their customer service people trying to figure out when that is going to arrive.

Overall, it's internet and there are faster options out there. It's a decent value for the price if you don't need uber-fast speed and just want basic internet for online & streaming services and you can get over the initial high cost to get it installed. You can probably save yourself some upfront money by purchasing a compatible modem online elsewhere and return the modem they have to send you if you don't want to rent it.

member for 14.3 years, 1394 visits, last login: 1 day ago
updated 5.6 years ago


Anond5a39
@myvzw.com

Anond5a39

Anon

Dsl

To help out for full speed is to wire a cat 5e cable from network interface box to modem. Always get full speed and no drops in internet or constantly restarting modem. If you need help or questions ask me.

Review by almex See Profile

  • Location: Chandler, Maricopa, AZ, USA
  • Cost: $65 per month
  • Install: about 7 days
Price for life, no contract
Not quite as fast as cable, but those are just numbers on paper!
Cox decided to get greedy with insane data cap overage fees. I voted with my wallet and have been plesasantly surprised.
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

140/20 VDSL2 via DHCP
$65/mo price for life
Technicolor C2100T (bridge mode) to Ubiquiti EdgeRouter X SFP

When Cox decided to offer its customers the benefit of an extra fee to support what it's been offering for years, on top of random and frequent bill increases, I finally decided enough was enough and voted with my wallet. Luckily I am in a location where CenturyLink offers decent speeds and along with their price for life campaign it was a very simple choice. CenturyLink (and formerly Qwest) has not had the best reputation in the Phoenix area for as long as I can remember, but I was very happy to be proven wrong. Nearly 10 months later, I have had zero issues with speed, connection quality, and billing.

Very happy I made the switch!

member for 22.5 years, 4981 visits, last login: 289 days ago
updated 5.6 years ago


Review by Abe460 See Profile

  • Location: Reeves, Allen, LA, USA
  • Cost: $65 per month
  • Telco party @link
New 60Mbps service works so haven't had to speak to tech support.
Service has been good but at some point will have to speak to tech support.
https://www.dslreports.com/forum/r30228611-Talktous-no-longer-responding
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

»Talktous no longer responding

I have a new account number with new 60Mbps service. I'll be starting over with a better, closer to neutral score. That being said. Getting here was horrid due to the tech support and customer care.

There is hope that things will go better this time. Not for any other reason than having good reliable service.

7-14-17 Have had service since 7-10-17 working at speed. Received bill with zero balance reflecting new service and new account number.

9-14-17 60Mbps has been flawless. New fiber appears to be working as should. Speeds are always at 48 to 61 down 3.1 to 5.9 up. Below 59 down is odd. Latency is 50 to 70 area.
service went down once and showed outage when I logged into account at 6:15AM. Service was restored before 8AM. Have not called tech support recently. I can assume that it is still terrible and that the "talktous" is no longer any help.

1-1-18 Still have flawless service. Had one hiccup ,about 2 months ago, with DSL line #1 going out. I had to call tech support, but was stern about not troubleshooting over the phone. It took a few minutes, but got them to send a tech. Had to reschedule because I couldn't get home that fast to meet the tech... good problem I guess? Tech didnt have to come to the house. He found problem way up line. Got that fixed right away and been 55-60 Mbps before and ever since.

1-23-18 Starting to have issues with speeds at half or just above. I'll do a chat with them and they tell me how many devices are connected after the whole "nothing else connected" thing. I disconnect everything from the modem and then get 60Mbps. Then plug everything back in and get 60Mbps for a couple weeks. I test at or very close to the 60 that I pay for even when multiple devices are connected. Then suddenly half. That just seems suspicious.

5-9-18 strange connection issues tonight. Ran a test and getting around 30 down and the norm 5 up. don't have time to call tech support tonight. Will have to wait till tomorrow.

5-10-18 Late day didn't get to sit here till after 8PM. Speed tests show everything back to what it should be. No need to call tech.

6-02-18 Still flawless service since last issue.

***********************************************************************
Edit: BELOW IS END OF OLD SERVICE REVIEW AND PROCESS OF ACQUIRING NEW SERVICE.

We are paying for 10Mbps down. We rarely get 8.0Mbps down for more than a month after screaming for a month. Typical 9 months out of the year we get less than 2Mbps. See above link.
I have an update. for the entire year of 2016 we have been above .5Mbps (yes that is half a Mbps) for only a couple months total time added up. Currently it is 10-29-16 and we have had techs visit and multiple calls this week and can't get it fixed. Stuck at .18 Mbps up and .5Mbps down.

Pretty easy for the install. They pretty much never gave a crap about us after that.

Equipment is a zyxel modem/router. It has it's own issues. Happy to have a modem with an attitude...which is new to me.

It struck me that centurylink cant provide service to their customer. It also struck me that the waste of time with phone support is centurylink's most prized accomplishment.
It also strikes me as condescending that centurylink can't figure out who has these issues and who doesn't. Maybe a record of who has what issue could be utilized to FIX A PROBEM WITHOUT HOURS OF "please check your modem settings" BEFORE A TECH FIXES THE SAME DAMN ISSUE YOU HAVE HAD FOR MANY YEARS. Said Issue being CENTURYLINK EQUIPMENT AT THE CORNER OF SNOOKEYS ROAD AND MARTIN TRAM. THE SAME PLACE EVERY SINGLE TIME.

UPDATE 12/28/16

September and October techs and phone support have said "hopefully it will be fixed by the end of the month". November I sent message via website and received yet another "fixed by end of month".

"Thank you for contacting CenturyLink and I apologize for the delay in my reply to your escalation. We’re aware of the congestion in your area that is causing slow speeds, and we are currently working on increasing the bandwidth to meet your needs. This can take a number of days to implement, but please be assured that we are working to resolve the issue as soon as possible. We anticipate this to be corrected by 11-30-2016 9:00 AM CST. We apologize for any frustration and appreciate your patience in this matter.



Thank you for being a valued CenturyLink customer. We appreciate your business.

Sincerely,

S*****

Technical Support Representative IV

Consumer Escalations Team"

Sent another message beginning of December explaining how frustrating it is to be told "fixed by end of month" and it never gets fixed. Here's response.

"Response from centurylink.

I see that there is some congestion in your area that is causing slow speeds for several customers, and we are currently working on increasing the bandwidth to meet your needs. This can take a number of days to implement, but please be assured that we are working to resolve the issue as soon as possible. We anticipate this to be corrected on 2/28/17 by 3 pm. The outage ID is *******.
I do apologize for the inconvenience.
Thank you,

Consumer Technical Support"

12/29/16

Received text message at 9:55AM stating "your technician is on the way today"

Checked speeds at 10:15. Tests show 2.58 down and 1.43 up with 52 ping.

Received text message at 10:21 am stating "your repair is complete and service(s) restored."

Checked speeds at 10:31 test showed .96 down and 1.23 up with 209 ping.
1-11-17 »[DSL Speed test: 0.03/0.04 700 ms]

After a few weeks of spending hours on the phone, my service was suspended, canceled and then the person tried to sell me 60 Mbps service. I said sure come install it. CTL called (after days of me asking why the tech keeps no showing) to tell me they do not provide internet service in my area.

CTL Kept calling asking if my service had been installed yet. I would tell them no and they would inform me that service isnt provided in my area yet.

6-19-17

Arrived home to find CTL box in door. Hand written message on how to connect bonded service. I connected wires to jack and went through the install process for modem.

Did an initial speed test on DSLReorts.com to show 60Meg download speed...59 or so to be exact.

6-21-17

6-26-17 Still going strong after a week around 60mbps down. Will update review after a while of service.

6-29-17 Modem inoperable after thunderstorm on 6-29-17. Called several times on the 29th and kept getting "disconnected". Finally spoke to someone who was willing to replace the actiontec c1900a modem that had no power light. Agreed to pay overnight shipping and that was that. Then she calls back and tells me I must speak to "customer care" and she can not ship modem. Spoke to customer care who also agreed to ship modem and should receive 6-30-17 by 5PM. Every time I spoke with someone they had trouble finding my account info. Probably have 3 hours on phone total.

6-30-17 8PM or so, no modem. Contacted centurylink tech support chat. After being bounced around forever I think after about 4.5 hours I finally discovered that no modem shipped and I would have to speak to customer care (who kept kicking me back to tech support) to have modem shipped, but now closed so ha ha, jokes on me.

7-1-17 Called and spoke to someone who apologized and said they would ship the modem (I keep verifying a c1900a) overnight again for a charge. Called back (hours later) to ask for tracking number to find out that no modem was ever shipped again. Tech will have to come out and install service on the 3rd.
*getting angry I order a C200t from ebay*

7-3-17 Took off of work for tech. No tech shows. Called and was informed appointment was for the 7th. Work day lost.

7-5-17 UPS Drops off modem. Its a C1100z which does not work with bonded Vdsl2. Starting to figure things out.

7-6-17 Received modem I ordered from ebay. configure it to vdsl2 bonded. Both DSL lines connect. no luck on internet. Call Centurylink and they will not help me configure. Tech has to come out.

7-7-17 Took off of work again. No tech shows. 5:30PM ish Plug in my c2000t bought from ebay and it immediately goes to centurylink config screen. Can't connect past walled garden. Sign into CTL website to find my phone number has changed. enter that information and now have 50meg service.
Will call next week as I don't have it in me to fight with them anymore. Service should be 60 down. Also am leasing a modem that they sent the wrong replacement for.

It seems as though the tech somehow connected 60meg service on 6-19 and didnt tell corporate. Then when we got struck by lightening on 6-29 and had to call, centurylink still showed my old cancelled 10meg connection...hence the c1100z being shipped. I did notice every time I called the person on the phone acted as if I didn't know what I was talking about when it came to my speed or the modem model number. They also kept saying they would schedule an "install".
So pretty much centurylink doesn't care what you say, only what their computer tells them to say. Without lightening I may still have free 60meg down. And yes, when logging into ctl website it showed no balance due or bill since 4-17.

7-7-17 Just received a confirmation letter in mailbox for ordering service from 4-12-17. It says $84.95 for pure broadband under my old phone number. broadband recovery fee of $3.99. In home wifi enabled equipment $9.99.
Total Monthly charge of $98.93.

One time charges for CTL******* which is neither my old or new PPOE info.
TEch Installation fee $59.99
WA-Data Actvation FEe $15.00

Discount and Promotions

Product Level $20.00.

I was told my broadband service would be $6*.** per month...don't remember exactly. This price is why I said go with the 60meg down back in June.

*******STARTING OVER AT TOP***********

member for 18.7 years, 506 visits, last login: 169 days ago
updated 5.7 years ago

IanLee
join:2014-11-24
Woodland, WA

2 recommendations

IanLee

Member

A list of reasons...

1. You probably live out in the boondocks with no other choice.

2. CenturyLink wants to milk that copper for as long as they can while they collect money from hard workers like yourself.

3. DSL is very likely to be retired in a few short years meaning you will be stuck with either wireless or satellite. So for CenturyLink to invest money into their aging copper network, zero chance of that happening.

4. They don't give a flying crap about their own company or for their employees and customers. If you're not part of the executive team or the CEO himself, they don't care about you.

I wonder how high their turnover rate is. I can imagine people who work as CSRs in developing countries get piss poor wages. Heck CenturyLink is just one of many who ship jobs overseas to save money, because the employees who work their asses off to pay their bills aren't a priority.

You want cable or fiber? I'm afraid you will have to sell your home and property and move into town.
Abe460
Premium Member
join:2005-06-23
Reeves, LA

Abe460

Premium Member

Re: A list of reasons...

Cable of fiber would be great. However I'm not asking for that, only what I pay for. Not only 5% of what I pay for.
starry4u
join:2015-10-01
Salt Lake City, UT

starry4u to IanLee

Member

to IanLee
As a matter of fact, CenturyLink does care and that is why every other Internet provider borrows their lines to provide service to people like you. As far as the internet goes, CenturyLink connects the equipment , you connect with our modems, at the speed that is available in your area and sometimes the issues outside your home or inside have problems that need to be repaired. I guarantee you that CenturyLink does care about the customers and as a matter of fact are giving extra speeds (Vectoring) to customers and a free modem at no charge where applicable. You can't have everything, and nothing is that easy but I guarantee you there is always a catch somewhere. If you can find better, have at it and stop complaining.

mediaguy
Politically Incorrect
Premium Member
join:2014-01-22
Guitar Town
·T-Mobile
Netgear CM500
TP-Link Archer A7

3 recommendations

mediaguy

Premium Member

How?!?

Glenn F. Post III, President and CEO of Centurylink - one of the few businesses in America to have a lower customer satisfaction rating than Comcast - was awarded $10,333,862 in compensation in 2015. How can this be?!? Why does the board of this company allow this to continue? Were I forced to be a customer of CL, every one of my Congressmen, State representatives, and local news outlets would know me by my first name from all the complaints I would be making. And the FCC's files would run over with consumer complaints from me and every neighbor / friend / state resident I could find suffering from the same abuse. The sheer arrogance of this man - and his attitude towards his customers - is proof positive that consumer protections in this country have failed miserably.
ham3843
join:2015-01-15
USA

1 recommendation

ham3843

Member

Re: How?!?

said by mediaguy:

Glenn F. Post III, President and CEO of Centurylink - one of the few businesses in America to have a lower customer satisfaction rating than Comcast - was awarded $10,333,862 in compensation in 2015. How can this be?

Wow....OUTRAGEOUS! Another brass tack that has NOTHING but
CONTEMPT for the customers that pay HIS outrageous wages.
starry4u
join:2015-10-01
Salt Lake City, UT

starry4u

Member

Re: How?!?

Our wages are pretty decent as a matter of fact! Choke on that one!
BUTCH3
join:2017-06-23
Morriston, FL

BUTCH3

Member

Centurylink is selling high speed and there is never any high speed !

What can say every one has said it and they are so wright ! every word is wright on my test my down load was 2.23 mb/s and my up was 0.494 mb/s with D S L and I got F's on it all ..

Review by BlueC See Profile

  • Location: Victoria, Carver, MN, USA
  • Cost: $80 per month
  • Install: about 7 days
Decent price for uncapped Gigabit, install techs are more experienced compared to cable companies
Very disjointed billing, promotion originally offered
An OK value, no caps, but just need to stay on top of them for billing issues
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

I expected a difficult ordering process with CenturyLink. In comparison to Mediacom, they were a bit better, but I was displeased that they offered me 10% off the retail rate and then I was later told that promotion doesn't exist. They met me half way on the discount, not going to be truly upset for a few dollars per month but it shows they have poor quality control with their call centers if they're allowing reps to go rogue with fake promotions.

Install process was smooth. Their techs, at least in this area working with GPON, are very knowledgeable and seem to be well trained and experienced. No complaints about the actual install. Fiber was run into the basement where it connects to a Calix 716GE ONT. Once that was installed I connected my own router to it, simple DHCP and no PPPoE to worry about.

Once I was up and running service seemed to be good. Was getting around 940mb/940mb on their own speed test. Over time I noticed upstream wasn't as reliable, I probably average 700mb. Routing quality is a hit or miss. Youtube buffers at times and I can easily resolve this issue by using a VPN, then I see zero problems. Usenet throughput is a bit lower than expected. I see around 300mb on average (compared to 500-600mb with my previous Gigabit provider).

Billing is a nightmare at first. First bill I received had no discounts applied, I was being charged for a rented router (never requested one, tech never brought one) and their "help desk" confirmed I was currently using it and it was connected. Not sure how that's possible when there's no Zyxel router anywhere in our home. Fortunately their customer support agreed to remove the $10/mo charge and acknowledged I had no rented router from them. Concerning that their own technical support would make a claim that a router is connected on our network when it doesn't exist. Makes you wonder how many of their customers are being wrongfully charged for rented equipment. Disappointed that we didn't get 10% off the retail rate ($85/mo) we were originally promised but they offered us $80/mo. Considering they waived the install fee, I'm not going to complain. Also includes Price for Life.

All in all it's a decent service at an OK price. No caps, no added fees, no rate increases to worry about. Just wish they had better throughput to other services, but a VPN can easily fix that. Have not experienced any interruptions since I started the service 45 days ago. Time will tell how well the service holds up but that's mostly a concern over throughput to other services.

===============

06/2018

Speeds have been a bit all over the place depending on what services you're using. It seems the routing quality with CenturyLink is hit or miss depending on the day/time. I don't often see the full 1gbps in both directions. Today I'm struggling to achieve more than 500mbps downstream and 100mbps upstream at times. Steam downloads vary quite a bit. Speed tests (to CenturyLink's own servers) show my connection maxing out at roughly 400-500mbps downstream and 75-150mbps upstream. This is hardwired to my router, no other traffic on my connection.

Time will tell how this service holds up. No outages, but their throughput quality is hit or miss.

member for 14.3 years, 2541 visits, last login: 4.5 years ago
updated 5.7 years ago


Review by efc See Profile

  • Location: Saint Paul, Ramsey, MN, USA
  • Cost: $80 per month
  • Install: about 5 days
great pre-sale, great installer, very good price
needed new router to get better speeds
GPON better than any alternative around here
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

I ordered the 1G fiber GPON (Gigabit Passive Optical Network) service from CenturyLink. Mine is a online offer for a pre-pay plan that costs $80/month (no taxes on this in MN) and is tied to my credit card. This is a "price for life" plan that CenturyLink promises will never be increased as long as I maintain the service and keep up with the payments. They also gave me a $250 visa reward card (still to arrive) that helps cover the install cost ($60) and the modem cost ($150, but more about that below).

I began my ordering process online to get the best price, but then used the online chat to get some detailed questions answered. The chat staff eventually called me and took the order over the phone, honoring the online price. The pre-sales chat staff was the best I've ever encountered, very forthright about the service, very informed about options, and very clear about how to get the very best deal from CenturyLink. I may have gotten lucky, though. At one point I lost contact with the informative staffer and was reconnected to someone else much less helpful, but luckily the informative staffer quickly contacted me by email and we were able to resume the order.

The installer who came five days later to put in the line was also very friendly and shared a lot of information about the GPON service and exactly how my line was connected to the central office. Turns out my fiber goes from my basement to the pole behind our house to a 32 way splitter about three blocks away to the central office about 1 mile away. Light was measured at -20.1dB. The fiber comes to an ONT box in my basement where it is transformed into ethernet.

The installer left me with a ZyXEL C1100Z modem/router to handle the PPPoE connection to CenturyLink. I had ordered the C3000Z, but we agreed that since I already had a Netgear Nighthawk R7000 that did better routing thank the C3000Z, he'd just leave the C1100Z in bridge mode to handle the PPPoE. After he left I found instructions online (»kmwoley.com/blog/bypassi ··· t-fiber/) that helped me handle the PPPoE connection directly from the Nighthawk router, so I removed the C1100Z altogether and returned that to CenturyLink for a full credit of the $150 purchase price. In other words, the only CenturyLink equipment inside my house at this point is the ONT box (Calix 716GE-I R2) in the basement.

Speeds have been better than my previous, more expensive, cable modem speeds. I see 400Mbps down and 450Mbps up from the router (Netgear has a built in Ookla speed test in the dynamic QoS part of the router setup). I see closer to 300/350 from my Mac (just measured under 300 here at DSLReports), but since the R7000 is an AC1900 router, that is not too surprising. I am a bit disappointed, that the router can't seem to get even half the 1G service on the WAN side, though. If anyone has thoughts on how to better test the actual speed of the line or what model router would actually provide the full benefit of the connection to us, I'd love to hear about it in comments.

One other note, the GPON PPPoE connection does reset each time I cycle the router off and on (I've been rearranging things). This takes a few minutes to come up fully, and each time it does we are assigned a new public IP address. If you need to get into a server at your location, count on the IP address changing regularly and consider using a dynamic DNS service to provide a stable address for your server. I am using duckdns.org, which is doing a great job.

I was very impressed with pre-sales and install. The modem return was awkward, but at least it went through. The price-for-life deal is terrific, especially since the cable company annoyed me for years with their annual price hikes and requirement that I call in and argue for an hour to get the next yearly "promotion" I didn't want. I've only had the service up for a week, but it has been solid. I am a very satisfied customer for now. I do have a call in to the install tech to see if CenturyLink can measure my line speed so I can learn if the lower-than-promised speed is an issue with the line or with my own equipment. I'll try to post an update here if I learn anything helpful.

UPDATE: One week later I ask CenturyLink to come back and run their own speed test on their own equipment. On the same line the tech was able to use the dslreports.com speed test to demonstrate over 900Mbps down and up. So I think their line is good and I need to update my Netgear R7000 router to get past the 400Mbps threshold. I'd love to hear from folks about routers that are successfully being used to get to 900Mbps (wired) direct to the ONT on CenturyLink GPON.

UPDATE: Two weeks later I replace the R7000 with a Netgear R7800 and am now seeing the full 900+Mbps on wired connections. It appears the R7000 tops out around 450Mbps.

member for 20.1 years, 28 visits, last login: 237 days ago
updated 5.9 years ago


Anon83b0a
@rylinkservices.net

Anon83b0a

Anon

speed

i have used a technicolor 2100t router.the only way i could get close(about 950/950)was to go hardwired and put my laptop in safe mode with networking.i have nothing that will get close wireless.
BlueC
join:2009-11-26
Minneapolis, MN

BlueC

Member

Re: speed

You don't even need to be in safe mode to test speeds. That should never be required (if it is, you have issues with your computer that should be worked out). I can achieve 940mb/940mb (realistic maximum with Ethernet overhead) with CTL 1G Fiber. That's on my desktop connected to my router with a switch in-between, all wired and no wireless. No need to even bypass my router which is directly connected to the ONT.

Simply connect a computer with an Ethernet cable to your router. Your router should be more than capable of handling Gigabit wired speeds. If you're testing wireless, don't expect much more than 300-400mbps over Dual Band AC (AC1900 specifically).

If your Mac does not have a native Ethernet port and you have to use an adapter, don't expect full speeds either. Those adapters are notorious for providing sub par performance.

For faster wireless speeds you'll want a Dual Band AC router that supports Wave 2 and 4x4, your devices will have to support 4x4 as well, but 3x3 devices will work better with Wave 2. Expect to spend $200+ for a router that has these features.
efc
join:2004-01-24
Saint Paul, MN
Calix 716GE-I

efc

Member

Re: speed

Thanks for the advice, @BlueC. My desktop Mac has an ethernet port, but the cable I am currently using is cat5, which may not be good enough for best speeds. However, since the router itself can do a speed test and reports 400/450, I fear something else may be up on the line.

I don't know what the equivalent of "safe mode" on a Mac would be, really. By my son's Mac laptop which is on a campus network regularly tests over 900Mbps, so I agree that at least recent Mac's are perfectly capable of testing these speeds without safe mode.
Nick1
join:2008-11-08
Columbus, OH

Nick1 to BlueC

Member

to BlueC
said by BlueC:

You don't even need to be in safe mode to test speeds. That should never be required (if it is, you have issues with your computer that should be worked out). I can achieve 940mb/940mb (realistic maximum with Ethernet overhead) with CTL 1G Fiber. That's on my desktop connected to my router with a switch in-between, all wired and no wireless. No need to even bypass my router which is directly connected to the ONT.

Simply connect a computer with an Ethernet cable to your router. Your router should be more than capable of handling Gigabit wired speeds. If you're testing wireless, don't expect much more than 300-400mbps over Dual Band AC (AC1900 specifically).

If your Mac does not have a native Ethernet port and you have to use an adapter, don't expect full speeds either. Those adapters are notorious for providing sub par performance.

For faster wireless speeds you'll want a Dual Band AC router that supports Wave 2 and 4x4, your devices will have to support 4x4 as well, but 3x3 devices will work better with Wave 2. Expect to spend $200+ for a router that has these features.

Those features can be had for around $120 with a Mikrotik hap ac. It is 3x3, which is plenty enough. Also has a SFP port if CTL will allow CPE.
BlueC
join:2009-11-26
Minneapolis, MN

BlueC

Member

Re: speed

CenturyLink GPON will only work with their Calix ONTs. You can't use your own. No point in using your own anyways since the ONT is provided at no cost.

I disagree on 3x3 being enough. If you want to best utilize 1gb over wireless, you'll want to future proof by supporting 4x4 or considering 802.11ax. 3x3 will do 400-500mb at best in most environments.
efc
join:2004-01-24
Saint Paul, MN
Calix 716GE-I

efc

Member

UPDATE: CenturyLink shows me 900Mbps on the line

One week later I ask CenturyLink to come back and run their own speed test on their own equipment. On the same line the tech was able to use the dslreports.com speed test to demonstrate over 900Mbps down and up. So I think their line is good and I need to update my Netgear R7000 router to get past the 400Mbps threshold. I'd love to hear from folks about routers that are successfully being used to get to 900Mbps (wired) direct to the ONT on CenturyLink GPON.
Subsven
join:2017-02-13
Colorado Springs, CO
Ubiquiti EdgeRouter ERPro8
Asus RT-AC87
Asus RT-AC68

Subsven

Member

Re: UPDATE: CenturyLink shows me 900Mbps on the line

The problem is your router. Absolute best case scenario you can get about 940 Mbps. The other 60 Mbps is always lost in the overhead on a 1 Gbps connection.

I use a Ubiquiti EdgeRouter ERPro-8 (~$300, no WiFi) and I can get the full speed. Ubiquiti also makes a cheaper ER-Lite ($50 or so I think) that can also hit those speeds and isn't nearly as big. Again, no WiFi, but you can still use the R7000 as strictly an access point.
efc
join:2004-01-24
Saint Paul, MN

efc

Member

Re: UPDATE: CenturyLink shows me 900Mbps on the line

You were right! It was the router. I replaced the R7000 with a Netgear R7800 and the speed popped up to 900+Mbps.
Gowan
join:2018-04-04
98520-6823

Gowan

Member

email?

I just got this service installed yesterday under the same simplepay program. I was trying to create an email address and finally found out that this plan does not provide email service. I thought there would be 2 optical fiber coming to the ONT but it is just a small box on the wall inside like a phone surface box and a single optical running to an ADTRAN and that converts to Ethernet and connects to the C1100Z router. My speeds have been around 550mbps and the upload is typically faster than the download speed. I'll be keeping my comcast email account(s) since I don't get centurylink email with this service.
efc
join:2004-01-24
Saint Paul, MN

efc

Member

UPDATE: Netgear Nighthawk X4S R7800 gets full gig

I replaced my R7000 with an R7800 and am now getting 900+Mbps down and up (at speedtest.net anyway, not yet here at dslreport.com).
CaW
join:2018-04-19

CaW

Member

Re: UPDATE: Netgear Nighthawk X4S R7800 gets full gig

Hey efc. I'm having mine installed tomorrow. I stupidly outright purchased the modem thinking I needed it when I placed the order.

Where did you return your modem in the Twin Cities and why was the experience awkward?

TIA
efc
join:2004-01-24
Saint Paul, MN
Calix 716GE-I

efc

Member

Re: UPDATE: Netgear Nighthawk X4S R7800 gets full gig

I returned my modem to a local CenturyLink store (in Roseville). The folks at the store were not familiar with the pre-pay plan and just didn't set the return up properly. I needed to call the help line anyway and spend time walking them through it. In retrospect it would have been easier to just called CenturyLink and ask them to send me the return label.

I did get my money back, though. So all OK in the end.

By the way, I think it is _smart_ to buy the modem outright and then return it. When you do this, you can get the full purchase price refunded. If you rent the modem, you can never recover that first month rental, even if you do return the modem.
CaW
join:2018-04-19

CaW

Member

Re: UPDATE: Netgear Nighthawk X4S R7800 gets full gig

Thanks efc! Good point on the purchasing vs rental. As long as the return goes smoothly your out nothing. Looking forward to finally getting this service. I can't wait to see the look on XFinity reps faces when I take back all the equipment next week. My promotional period ended in December and have gotten so tired of the promotional rates still increasing because the taxes and fees are not tied to the 'fixed promotional rate'.

I was paying a promotional $180 rate that started at about $205 with taxes and fees and ended at $225 in the promo period. The last couple of months I was paying $260 after the period was over. I'm just done playing games with them to only offer good rates if you increase your services. I was a good customer for twenty years. I should be getting a loyalty discount and not continually being nickeled and dimed to get more out of me.

I'll be returning a X1 DVR with 4 extender boxes, remotes, a cable card that I forgot to take out of an old network tuner, and a cable modem.

Another cord cut due to XFinity 'fixed' rate BS.