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 Review by hjdiet 
member for 9.2 years, 1039 visits, last login: 1 days ago
updated 12 days ago
 Bethlehem,Northampton,PA
 $150 per month- (36 month contract)
 about 1 days "Pix quality almost as good as DirecTV.. Excellent speeds. Mine is currently around 15Mbs" "Extended power outages will leave you w/o phone service." "RCN has nice package deals... can't beat them..."
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After having DirecTV for almost 14 years... made the switch to RCN completely... (also got rid of Verizon telephone).. RCN gave me a package (good for three years) that's saving me almost $60 a month (with a Tivo). I had some reservations about their phone service (now VOIP)...but it's been fine. I couldn't tell the difference after I was switched over. One thing to be aware of is that if you have a extended power outage (greater than five/six hours), you'll be without phone service. When your modem powers down, that's it (unless you have the modem plugged into an extended UPS). We found that out during last year's Halloween snowstorm.
The Package increased my Internet speed from 5Mbs to 15Mbs...
A local competitor just finished cabling up our area and their prices aren't even close to RCN's... and they have usage caps!
Very pleased with the service and support... just added Starz for $2.00 per mo....
It's been over three years now and I continue to be pleased with the service...
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Review by Pacomartin
member for 61 days, 67 visits, last login: a few hours ago
updated 60 days ago
- Bethlehem,Northampton,PA
- $144 per month
- about 10 days
- "Excellent Service, good value for money"
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RCN, was sold to the private equity firm ABRY Partners in March 2010. You should consider reviews older than that to be obsolete.
You should check the website periodically. Whenever, they are offering something new and different to new subscribers call them. They may not be able to give you the same deal, but they often find something to offer for you that will improve your service (they have upgraded my service about 8 times in the past 3 years).
Price: $144 (includes taxes and fees and $5 wire maintenance).
ServicesShowtime, Starz, The Movie Channel, Signature TV, Phone, 25 Mbs Internet.
Equipment: Tivo Quad with 500 Gb disk, one satellite Tivo box, ARRIS model TM602G/115, Linksys E1200 Wireless N-300 Router, Moca Bridge, and one Motorola standard definition setup box. The price was $10 cheaper until two months ago at anniversary.
The only other option for broadband was DSL, and it wasn't fast enough. We've had RCN since they bought C-tec in 1996.
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Review by jlgalley
member for 9.5 years, 26 visits, last login: 97 days ago
updated 97 days ago
- Wakefield,Middlesex,MA
- $97 per month
- "Many years of reliable service"
- "Long hold times on ISP tech support line; billing system unreliable"
- "Can't find a reason to change"
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I've used RCN's basic cable TV service and basic 25/2 internet service since 2006 at this location. There is very little to complain about.
Generally I can't say that I get the full speed that is advertised. I often get better than 5Mbps downloads, but just as often get less. It doesn't bother me unless it is less than 1.5Mbps or so, which happens occasionally.
I've twice had TV technicians come to visit. They were pleasant to deal with and efficiently located the problem (in both cases, it was inside my home). I have a TiVo of my own, not provided by RCN. The technicians are competent with a setup involving non-RCN PVR gear.
The customer service center is 100% American operated. It can take a while to get through to discuss billing questions or internet technical support. But the staff are friendly and knowledgeable.
There have been a few service disruptions over the years, but they are generally brief.
I have never tried RCN phone service.
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 Review by Ryno
member for 12.1 years, 4391 visits, last login: a few hours ago
updated 114 days ago
- Danielsville,Northampton,PA
- $35 per month
- about 2 days
- "Fast, way faster than DSL"
- "Nothing so far"
- "Dropped Verizon DSL for RCN cable."
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Verizon DSL just wasn't getting it done any more. Connecting at 2.8 MB in today's world doesn't cut it. There are too many toys connected at once.
I switched to RCN once they finally upgraded my lines after living here 15 years. Took them long enough. I got the 25/2 plan and so far it has not tested out less than 26/2.4 for me. Was down for a couple hours one day but they tell me they were still upgrading some of the system and that it was scheduled.
The price is supposed to be $39.99 mo but I got my ow modem so it's $5 less... Same as Verizon was charging me. I know in year 2 and 3 it goes up $5 per month more but it's worth it to get speeds that are 9 times faster in the real world. Also if I want to I could upgrade to 50 MB or75 MB. I figure I have no need for that now since this seems blazing fast compared to DSL.
I can now watch HD videos, use my slingbox HD, and not wait forever to download stuff. Overall, I can't complain as of now. Hopefully they continue to be reliable in the future.
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 | | RCN > Verizon Me too! I did the same thing. I had Verizon business dsl for 30$/month was promises 5Mbps upload and 2Mbps download. It was so slow, couldn't watch Youtube at 360p. I upgraded to RCN 25/2 plan and I never get less than 25.5Mbps download and 2.2Mbps upload. Now I can load 4+ youtube videos at 1080p without problems. I also had outages my first month. Onetime it was because someone disconnected the cable, don't know who but I managed to find the problem. But month 2 and 3 not one outage. I rate RCN 5/5! | |
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 Review by TweakFreak88
member for 9.7 years, 161 visits, last login: 132 days ago
updated 132 days ago
- Chicago,Cook,IL
- $50 per month
- about 5 days
- "No official data cap, quick latency"
- "Not getting full speeds"
- "Decent speed for the money"
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The install tech was professional. He even gave me his email address if I were to have problems in the future.
I'm using a BYOM Cisco DPC3008 to terminate my RCN connection. According to RCN's diagnostic page, my signal is well within their specifications and my throughput cap is 53Mbps and 6.3Mbps. The modem is 8x4 channel capable, but it's RCN is only using 4x1.
I've yet to see more than 45Mbps downstream and 4.5 upstream regardless of what test servers I use, even RCN's own servers. The latency has been pretty good, it takes about 10-12 ms to leave the RCN network to the general Interwebs.
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 Review by grapkoski
member for 8.9 years, 592 visits, last login: 23 days ago
updated 138 days ago
- Washington,District Of Columbia,DC
- $132 per month
- about 5 days
- "TiVo, Value, Smaller Player"
- "Nothing too major"
- "A great alternative to the Philly Bully"
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I am lucky enough to have a choice between RCN and Comcast in my building.
So far RCN has been exceeding expectations. Channel lineup is pretty comprehensive and speeds are very consistent. Only had one minor billing issue but was able to email my account rep - yes, a HUMAN and it was fixed. Their customer service is pretty unparalleled compared to any other cable company I have had.
Only two minor issues - OnDemand content isn't as wide ranging as Comcast (missing FOX and CBS) and won't be able to use RCN OnDemand on my owned-TiVo.
Overall, it is nice to support a company that is re-investing in the USA.
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Review by steve1111
member for 3.6 years, 467 visits, last login: 8 days ago
updated 159 days ago
- New York,New York,NY
- $66 per month
- "A good package for cable internet and copper-wire phone"
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Cable internet at 25mbs and phone service. No TV.
Negatives:
It took two visits to install cable internet and two visits to install phone. For the first visit for each occasion, the technician arrived late and did not work.
Technical support seems to be in India. Most of the technical support provided has been good. But these are jobs for Americans which should not have been outsourced. Also sometimes I cannot understand people speaking English with Indian accents.
It is annoying that RCN tacked on a one dollar charge for paying online.
Positives:
No fixed-term contract with penalties.
The sales staff gave me a good promotional package and, at the end of the year, Customer Support gave me another good package. The staff have been polite, friendly and professional. The phone service has always worked well and I remember only three internet outages.
I switched over to RCN from Verizon more than a year ago and I am so pleased I did so. I considered Verizon FIOS but thought that it was too expensive for my needs.
Given the monthly cost and quality of the service and quality of the staff I have been more than satisfied with RCN.
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amended November 2011. RCN have come up with a new bundle, $50 plus charges, that is $65. With the one dollar charge for paying online it is $66. Not pleased about RCN's rate increase in a Recession. But Verizon and Time Warner charge even more..
amended December 2011. Now that there is an uproar that Verizon has tacked on a two dollar charge for paying online, perhaps there will also be an uproar that RCN has a one dollar charge for paying online.
amended February 2012. RCN have upgraded Internet service to 25mb download. For Free! Hooray!
amended May 2012. It has been a long long time since I've needed to call for technical support. Time Warner had a promotion in the neighborhood and offered to knock a few dollars from the price. I decided to stay with RCN because RCN promised no rate increase, because the Internet and Phone service has been so completely reliable and because I have found the staff at RCN to be so nice and professional.
amended July 2012. RCN now provides tech support from Pennsylvania instead of India. A wise decision. They have such pleasant and competent tech support people and I feel more confident. Bravo. I've just bumped up their score for tech support to 100 percent.
amended December 2012. Phone and Internet service went down for a few days because of Hurricane Sandy. All is now well. RCN is doing a good job.
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 Review by Maggs
member for 10.4 years, 3238 visits, last login: a few hours ago
updated 172 days ago
- Woodside,Queens,NY
- $130 per month
- (12 month contract)
- about 65 days
- "Stable Service"
- "Phone goes out when you don't have power for a few days :("
- "Make sure you watch the techs, they are nice, but tend to not really go above and beyond."
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11/2012: RCN gave us a credit for the long Sandy outage due to power loss. I love the fact they have a new insert in the bill advertising the fact they now require converters and they are free. Turns out they have been charging us for over a year for the "free" converter. My cable modem rental fee credit negates the converter charge but that's not the point. They really need to unify their communications and get everyone on the same page here. I'm going to request a credit for the time period we have been paying for the "free" converter. All in all, the speeds were increased on the cable modem service, which is good. 25/2 service is nice, but I don't really need all that speed. I love how they now require an EMTA to receive digital phone service that needs to be plugged in for your phone to work, and how they unceremoniously shut us off and I had to call and find out they shut off service to customers who have not upgraded their phone service. It's nice that they decided to leave the piece of trash RSU bolted to the back of the house, it's their property and they should remove it when it is no longer needed as part of their service. The unit was discontinued and the manufacturer is out of business, so there's really no need for the unit to be bolted to the brickface of the house anymore. RCN really needs to up their game in the customer service arena in some cases. Also I love how people are so critical of RCN for outages of their service due to Hurricane Sandy, remember people it's a hurricane. They can't control the weather.
7/2011 RCN has got way better since I last reviewed them. I have the occasional "hungry squirrel" problem but that's not too wild. The TV service is TMC (Too Many Channels) but their cable modem service has been great for a while. I got upgraded to 10Mb service when they got rid of the 5Mb service. The bill however is slightly confusing since they don't really itemize too much anymore. All in all RCN has gotten way better. Knock on Wood.
10/2008: I had a problem with RCN, as noted by the newspapers with them charging for the 1st basic cable box which is free. I had to haggle with them for 2 months to fix it, but it was resolved after a complaint to NYC DOITT. Made my mother feel like a dope at the Woodside office, but you don't get good employees sometimes. Sludge happens!
4/20/2008: Haven't had any problems with RCN yet, except for the DNS, which is easily remedied by changing DNS servers, and the 20 second dropoff in phone conversations. The price has increased due to the cable programming being jacked up. With the introduction to all digital TV next year be prepared to pay another $7 a month for extra converters. Speeds on the internet service exceed spec most of the time. RCN forum support folk are awesome, they must really like their jobs. Inept construction crews decide to slice through RCN fiberoptic cable at times making internet service use a PITA at points, but that's very rare, but it happens. Con Ed sometimes decides the nodes don't need power in the summer, and they go offline during brownouts due to things outside RCN control.
All in all there's decent service, the 20 second dropoff in the phone at random times is something I still have to check out.
1/12/2006: RCN has GREATLY improved. The service has gotten immensely better since they have a new management team. You know what they say about fresh blood, it does all the good.
I had a couple of hiccups with the phone service lately, outages for a couple of hours but nothing really major. Cable modem service runs exceptionally well, and I haven't had ANY issues with my Motorola Surfboard 5100 modem, which I own, and save $5 a month with RCN.
Overall customer service, is very helpful, but you have to watch out to make sure they are doing things according to spec. Kudos to the cable modem team, for running a tight ship. I like the responsiveness of replies, and have helped the Cable modem team on occasion diagnose some issues in the area.
All and all, RCN is now worth the money, I only pay $115 for 2 TVs, Internet, and local phone.
1/10/03: I have had 7 techs out since I started service in Sept. They replaced the lines and everything. I even bought my own modem to use on the network. I was not able to get a solid cable light for 3 months in a row. At this point, it seems to be fixed. I had to end up going alll the way to the top of the RCN food chain to get my problems resolved. I just got a call recently from the operations manager of the RCN netowrk in Queens. They are monitoring my connection to make sure I don't have any downtime. I had constant downtime for 2 weeks a while back.
They blocked my node from accessing Newsgroups, and still charge me full price. I talked to RCN support and they said they would credit me 1 month of cable internet service for all the troubles I have had over the past 5 months, and that has not happened. So this company is full of broken promises and half truths. If you have a good connection with them, you are lucky. If not, like me your experience will be utter hell. I hope they don't raise the rates too much whe my year deal is up. If they do, I will complian about how horrible the service has been since the get go.
They send us advertisements offering new services, but we are already customers and not eligible for the promotion, so why waste the paper and send us the mailings.
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Doctor Ping Score 69.20
Doctor Ping Score 63.80
Doctor Ping Score 64.60
Doctor Ping Score 68.70
Doctor Ping Score 102.80
Doctor Ping Score 59.60
Doctor Ping Score 63.70
Doctor Ping Score 75.10
Doctor Ping Score 73.30
Doctor Ping Score 70.00
Ever since that point on Sept 26th, I have never has so many problem with RCN cable.
I have to admit their bundled package was cheap, 2 TVs with basic cable (no converter needed) saves $6 a month each, Local Phone with same # as before for $20 unlimited to the 5 boroughs on NYC, regional 5c a min, no Long Distance (since we use cards to call LD anyway)
Total for the whole package with a base of $75 comes out to $95 with the $20 the govt gets in taxes. All and all , I think this is a great deal.
My old bill was for $150 with all the mentioned stuff. I even save $5 a month by using my own cable modem which I bought on Ebay for $50, the same type as TW the RCA 245R.
Great Choice if you have it in your area, but only in the 2 way cable modem markets though.
5000/800 Down /Up speed
4 emails (con need to be called into the head office to setup)
10 Mb webspace per mailbox
Usage checked for mail and ftp
7/18/04
Routing issues are a constant pain. Sometimes it takes 3 mins or more to resolve the DNS. I have had 3 cable modems on this line since install about 10 months ago. I have had over 15 techs out to my house to fix various problems. Many of these issues have not bee resolved to this day. If I were you I would stick with TW, much more expensive, but hey you get what you pay for, but in the case of RCN, you DON"T get what you pay for.
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 Review by robgraves
member for 2.8 years, 639 visits, last login: a few hours ago
lodged 244 days ago
- Chicago,Cook,IL
- $117 per month
- about 5 days
- "TiVo offering."
- "Service can be spotty at certain times for Internet. Line noise."
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TiVo service is great. US based customer service is easy to all to. Hard to negotiate better pricing but prices are very competitive to begin with. I get Starz and Showtime included.
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 Review by MrWhsprs
member for 13 years, 3294 visits, last login: 3 days ago
updated 281 days ago
- Skokie,Cook,IL
- $40 per month
- about 1 days
- "Great DL speed; no contract; decent price; friendly (USA based?) rep."
- "No discount for using your own cable modem."
- "Much better value than the regular price of Comcast."
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The only other option in this area for cable internet is Comcast. We (my wife and I) had been using Comcast cable internet at a $35/mo promotional price under a two year contract. The contract was about to expire and the price would then go up to more than $60/mo, so I called Comcast and asked what promos or pricing deals they could offer. I spoke with two different reps, including one in the retention department, and explained that RCN's 25/2 cable internet is $40/mo. I also stated that for financial reasons I could really not do more than $40/mo for internet. Though the reps were friendly and seemed sympathetic, the best they could offer was $10 off of the normal (>$60) price.
I called RCN on a Friday afternoon and very quickly got through to a real human, and one who spoke English in a very clear and understandable manner at that. Also, she gave me not only the 866 number in case I needed to call back, but also her specific extension so I would be able to get through to her specifically! I don't recall ever being able to do so with Comcast.
I asked some questions about various service options and that went smoothly, with the rep being very helpful and friendly. It was slightly disappointing to find out that there would be no discount for using our own cable modem (which we'd been using with Comcast) so we chose to have RCN use their own modem instead. I placed the order for internet service and that was also a smooth process. They had install appointments available the following day, Saturday, with our choice (as I recall) of 8-11a, 11a-2p, or 2p-5p. We selected the 2p-5p option.
The installer showed up shortly before 4p as I recall, and he was done by 4:15p. As we'd been connected to Comcast previously and already had the drop in place and the wall jack and such, he only had to go up to the line on the utility pole and switch our drop from the Comcast to the RCN box, then come into the house and hook up the RCN-supplied cable modem.
While he was up on the ladder by the utility pole, the installed pulled the cable drop more taut at the pole to raise it higher over the yard. It had been so low previously that I could almost touch it just by reaching up. That seemed like a very nice, above-and-beyond-what-was-required thing for him to do. The Comcast installer two years ago had not bothered to take the 30 seconds to do so.
The cable modem that RCN provided is a Scientific Atlanta DPC2100R2 ver 2.1, manufactured in August 2008. The information accessible via 192.168.100.1 is somewhat sparse compared to our owned SB5101 we were using with Comcast, but that's not a big deal.
The service we ordered is the 25Mbps download / 2Mbps upload, and so far speed tests bear out those speeds as accurate. Ping times seem to be low and we haven't noticed any slowdowns or lag during peak times of day. For a total price of $39.99/mo (including use of RCN provided modem), it seems like a pretty good value in general, and a much better value than the >$60/mo Comcast internet plan at similar speeds.
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