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 Review by danawhitaker 
UPDATED: 240 days ago
member for 6.6 years, 1442 visits, last login: 1 days ago
 Urbandale,Polk,IA
 $38 per month
 about 14 days
 Qwest
 "Connection was stable."
 "DSL train speed tanked like a rock in 2007 and techs offered no solution."
 "It depends on your situation. A year ago, I wouldn't have switched for the world."
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I originally ordered the 256/256 plan in late August of 2001 for $39 per month with no contract. My connection was up and running on September 11, 2001. I ordered the service through the website, and received the modem from MSN very quickly (Arescom 800 modem). I now have the 640/256 package, which costs $49 per month (I made this chance in August of 2002). The upgrade was delivered as per the quoted delivery date.
The only problems I have had are fairly small, and often not the problem of MSN. One was a major outage that lasted 12 hours on Thanksgiving Day of 2001. The other problem was that my connection was completely unstable (on again, off again) for about a week in early April. This turned out to be a problem with the line on my end, and was easily resolved after I contacted Qwest and had them come fix it. Since then, my connection and speed have been absolutely stable, and my IP address has not changed since April 3rd.
I would definitely recommend this service to other people living in/near the Des Moines area who are able to get it.
UPDATE: I cancelled my service with Qwest as of February 11th, 2008. Late spring and early summer of 2007, I began having numerous disconnections and speed problems with my connection after my phone line was cut for the 5th or 6th time. Long story short, Qwest came out, put a new NID on the house, and told me that there were too many errors on my line and the only option for me to was to drop the 1.5/896 speed tier down to 640/256 or 256/256. This was not an option for me, as I do a signficant amount of downloading and uploading. Since one of my chief complaints WAS in regards to speeds being too slow, that seemed illogical to suggest anyway. I kept my 1.5 service against the advice of the tech dispatched to my house and the tech he called. It rarely trained higher than 512kbit, although the upstream continued to train at around 800kbit. I called several times over the next few months but was given no other solution than to drop speeds. The connection was at least stable, meaning I wasn't disconnected multiple times per day, but incredibly slow. Mediacom finally made an offer that I could no longer refuse.
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Review by otterwhf
Posted: 334 days ago
member for 334 days, 1 visits, last login: 332 days ago
Cheyenne,Laramie,WY
$47 per month (24 month contract)
Qwest
"Faster (?) than dial up"
"MSN tech support is NOT. Have been on phone for over 4 hours trying to get my FASTER premium service...not I am down to 81 Kbit"
"Bleah"
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I used MSN regular, which is better than dial-up. I then opted for MSN Premium which has never worked properly. The current speed rate is 81 Kbit/sec with a ping time of 998ms! Weekends are even worse, if that is possible. I have been speaking with a "tech" for over 4 hours with no improvement or satisfaction. I gave up and have been trying to "fix" it myself. It is MSN that is the culprit.
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 Review by OldschoolDSL
UPDATED: 1 year ago
member for 2.6 years, 671 visits, last login: 12 days ago
Holyoke,Hampden,MA
Contract price not specified.
about 1 days
Verizon
"Its normally free with other ISP's and comes with free safety tools"
"no comment (n/a at this time)"
"It's great as an add on, but I wouldn't pay for it"
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My review speaks for The MSN Premium Software and not MSN as an ISP directly It was offered to me for free via Verizon DSL
MSN (Microsoft Network) first made its public day view at the start of Windows 95. It was a cross of trying to offer something for the business world, which did not want something an flaky as AOL, but user friendly and eye catching for the home user as well.
MSN Explorer for the most part, started off the "kick off" for MSN Premium over time. Which when first released was free. MSN Explorer allowed the user to access their Hotmail.com or MSN.com e-mail, directly through their computer with the look and feel of normal e-mail, as you would in Outlook or in today's Mozilla Thunderbird. As they improved the browser they also included Messenger (know known as MSN Messenger), Encarta Online, MSN Money, and many more.
Today with a wide range of other useful services included into MSN Premium, Microsoft has also partnered with McAfee to help secure people's pc's with McAfee Anti-Virus and McAfee Firewall. To much of many people's surprise, they have also teamed up with Webroots Spy-sweeper to improve users awareness of spy-ware, ad-ware, and root-kits. This was unexpected as Microsoft is currently offering their own free program, Windows Defender.
Over all, I would say it does make things a little easier for users who do not want to visit Hotmail.com and have to log in and wait for pages to load. It's also cool they've included Webroots & McAfee into the deal. However its best as an add on.
As much as I do like it, I do not ever see myself paying for this. Most of the Premium content and services, I can now get for free. I no longer use McAfee, as I paid for Kaspersky (Kaspersky.com) and Webroots does make for a nice add on, but if I had to buy it I would and could do so cheaper then MSN. I normally use AIM, Google, or Skype over Messenger. And most of everything else they offer I could get else where.
In truth, I use it only to view my MSN account without having to visit their web page.
UPDATE - 09-17-2007 - MSN now being fully replaced by Microsoft Live or known as Windows Live. The MSN Browser service is still out there, but I've ended my service about 1 month ago. The above all remains true.
~ END REVIEW ~ 09/17/2007
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 Review by bilydkid1970
UPDATED: 2 years ago
member for 4.9 years, 530 visits, last login: 1.4 years ago
Ogden,Weber,UT
$45 per month
about 7 days
Qwest
"1.5M down/ 1M up Fast Connection - Easy Setup - Cheap Price and Now it's Cheaper"
"none"
"Just Get it."
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Below the asterisks is my last review. Since then, things have gotten even better. With a one year agreement, your monthly payment is now 25.99 plus taxes and fees for this same connection. In regards to the "what about ports other than 80" question posted previously - I can open and close all the ports I need just fine with my actiontec modem. If you're like me and must have a landline phone at home, there's no cheaper alternative than Qwest/MSN DSL where it's available. They offer faster connections now for a little more money, but I'm very content with 1.5 mbps. My bottom line is still the same...Just get it.
-BdK
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This was easy to set up. The connection is alot faster than dialup. There is no contract required.
I've had a 640K line, the 256K for awhile, and now qwest/msn have dropped their prices again! $40 plus tax for 1.5 mebabits down and 1 megabit up!
DSL is inching closer to cable speeds, and I'm not sharing a line like cable subscribers do. My bandwidth is MINE. I have 1.5 megabits 24/7.
This package is a winner.
Just get it.
-BdK
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 Review by Dave Steggs
Posted: 2.4 years ago
member for 2.4 years, 58 visits, last login: 1.4 years ago
Grand Island,Erie,NY
Contract price not specified.
Verizon
CLEC party: Verizon
"None"
"Bad interface, popup blocker dosent work, email is hard to check"
"At least its free."
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I got msn with my verizon dsl (wich btw is awesome!) and i hate it. I never use it to browse, bacause i hate the interface and the popup blockers are bad. Also the download manager is horible! So instead i use Mozilla Firefox. But unfortunatley it is the only thing i have for e-mail.
Update: i just tried to log on for e-mail and it gave me an error... friggen hate this thing
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 Review by thorgod
Posted: 2.7 years ago
member for 7.2 years, 3361 visits, last login: a few hours ago
Socorro,Socorro,NM
$45 per month (30 month contract)
about 5 days
"It's DSL"
"It's expensive"
"It's quick, and you pay for it"
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I really wish I could have a naked DSL setup, but the local phone company denies any such thing is possible. The line goes out at least once every two weeks, maybe more. But hey I've got DSL in the middle of no where, so good.
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Review by bigamps
Posted: 2.9 years ago
member for 4.1 years, 1366 visits, last login: a few hours ago
Spokane,Spokane,WA
Contract price not specified.
Qwest
"MSN/Qwest combo is the best for price/speed ratio in this area."
"You're stuck with MSN bloatware to easily use your mail."
"Excellent reliablity, fair price, MSN software really dogs your machine down."
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I have had MSN thru Qwest for about 5 years at this writing, with maybe 2 down times. At the time of sign-up, my only choice was MSN as an ISP. They luckily have changed that now. If I were to do it today, I would go with go with Qwest basic ISP to cut down on cost. But I still have MSN today for two reasons, I like my email address and they do offer McAfee security for all of my computers. All of the DSL configuring and DNS servers are all through Qwest, so any speed upgrades will easy to do. I started at download speeds of 256 kbps and now have 7186 kbps, which will be the fastest I think I'll ever see for a long time unfortunately. We just need Qwest to now start updating their system!
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Review by marc420
Posted: 3.1 years ago
member for 3.1 years, 0 visits, last login: 3.1 years ago
Denver,Denver,CO
$50 per month
about 45 days
Qwest
"simple, if you want ISP for dummies"
"too many to list. Bad service, no support, limited use"
"I'm here looking for a new ISP"
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Well, lets start with Qwest. This is a joint op, with Qwest providing the DSL connection, and MSN serving (sorta) as the ISP.
I discovered with Qwest service that the date they tell you something will happen is actually just the date someone opens your folder and starts coming up with excuses as to why they can't do anything. When I moved last year, it took me over a month to get my DSL and my phone connected in my new house.
I chose MSN as it was the cheapest option Qwest offered. You get the DSL from Qwest, then get to chose an ISP. And Qwest and MSN have this special package deal. Buyer be ware, you probably don't want this.
When I was setting up, instead of a DSL modem, Qwest sent me this sorry Actiontec modem/router combo. This meant I had extra problems in figuring out how to connect this to my existing home network/wireless system. Just a modem would have been much simpler.
This is when I discovered that you can't contact Qwest. I was looking for help in how to set this up. All Qwest gives you is a phone number no one answers. I sat on hold for an hour a couple of times, and all I got was their recordings saying how important my call was to them. Finally, some gracious support person at the company that made my wireless router had pity on me and gave me the tip I needed to get it working. Qwest was useless. BTW, I have to pay them $3 a month rent on this piece of equipment I didn't want.
Now to MSN. First off, as someone who's used to a regular ISP, MSN annoys me. You can't set up a POP3 email account. You have to use their hotmail webbased system. You basically have to use their provided software for everything. You don't have the flexibility you get from a real ISP.
There is no one you can contact for support or customer service. The links for help all lead back to the web page that gives that same Qwest phone number that no one ever answers. No email support. No online chat support. Nothing. Basically the support for this service called MSN Premium says "go away and leave us alone".
Right now one problem I have is that I'm paying for the highest speed DSL connection. But my Actiontec box says I'm constantly connected at 640/280 kb. I'd love to ask someone at Qwest/MSN what I'm paying for versus a check of what I'm getting. But the only option I get is to call that same phone number that no one answers. I'm not really ready to sit on the phone for hours on hold, then talk to some %@% who will just likely give me a corporate run-around.
My final verdict on QWest\MSN .... well I'm out here looking for a better ISP. I want to ditch these people.
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Review by mullican
UPDATED: 3.1 years ago
member for 4.8 years, 83 visits, last login: 3 years ago
Port Angeles,Clallam,WA
$49 per month (12 month contract)
about 5 days
Qwest
CLEC party: Qwest
"Setup, connection, and MSN 9"
"None"
"Great service for a good price"
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Recently upgraded from 1536/1024 to 7168/896 for $10 more than what I was paying for previously and changed the modem from the Arescom NetDSL 800 to the Actiontec GT701-WG which I'm paying $5 a month. I'm really impressed with the increase. I'm connecting on average just above 5mbps and would highly recommend this upgrade to anyone that is still on the 1.5mbps. It's worth it.
UPDATE: Qwest has an online-only special that is going on with the 1.5 DSL. It's 19.99 for a year, free activation, and the modem is free for a year if you decide to rent ( if you decide to buy it the cost of the modem will be put on the next bill and not a year from the date of purchase). This is a great way to see if you like DSL and be able to pay dial-up price for it for a while. The regular price of this package is 39.99. The offer expires in October.
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Review by KUppiano
UPDATED: 3.4 years ago
member for 5.6 years, 840 visits, last login: 49 days ago
Ferndale,Whatcom,WA
$30 per month
about 5 days
Verizon (ex GTE)
"Fast, no down-time, always on"
"Lobotomized, unreliable modem provided with service."
"Good for basic browsing, e-mail (hotmail, not POP3)"
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I have been with MSN since it was The Microsoft Network, the non-internet dial-up service that came with Windows 95. My e-mail account has not changed since that time. Not that I'm all that committed to MSN, but it's fine for what my family and I do. Now we have three computers networked through a GigaFast Broadband Router connected to the MSN DSL 1000 modem. The modem connects to the CO using PPPoE. The IP address is not static, but it hasn't changed since I set up the modem.
There is only one connection speed offered here, I get upwards of 680KBPS on downloads. I don't know what the advertised speed is. The order/install process was quite painless. I ordered the service online, the line was set up by the time the modem arrived (about 5 business days). Everything worked the first time I plugged it in. I had a little trouble with setup. I thought the computer had stopped responding and shut it off during the setup process, which made things much harder for myself. The modem was only partially configured, but it wouldn't re-install. I finally managed to get it figured out without having to call customer support.
You wouldn't want to call customer support. I don't know why they bother, really. Maybe they're able to help the yahoo that doesn't know that little drawer in their computer isn't a cup holder, but if you call them to find out if there's a known issue with the DSL 1000 modem not running more than two or three days without a reset, they'll tell you it will last longer if you turn it off at night anyway. Number one, not true, and number two, it's on a network, in a closet, hard to reach. And how do I know when it's not in use without polling every member of the family?
I have flashed the DSL1000 modem to an SMC7401BRA. It's much more reliable, and the router/firewall/DHCP server is fully configurable. About a week after I flashed the modem, MSN announced that they are discontinuing as a DSL service provider, and they migrated me to Verizon. Basically the same service, and less money, because it's now part of my regular phone service. I still have my MSN8 software and account, e-mail, etc. in addition to a new Verizon account and SMTP/POP3 e-mail. Not too bad. The protocol is RFC1483 Briged IP LLC instead of PPPoE. We just pull a DHCP IP address off the net. They sent me a Westell 2110 modem, which seems to be just fine, but I'm still using the SMC because of the integrated router. Less clutter on the desktop. Both modems sync at 864/160 and I'm getting about 650/140 down/up.
Verizon upgraded me to 1.5/384 down/up several months ago. Still reliable, no complaints. Nearly 100% up-time. DHCP lease time recently changed to 15 minutes, which seems rediculously short, but it seems to cause no problems.
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