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Review by flexoffset See Profile

  • Location: Muscle Shoals, Colbert, AL, USA
  • Cost: $60 per month (12 month contract)
  • Install: about 1 days
It used to be relatively fast and reliable.
Paying for 8000Kb/sec down - consistentlly running below 300Kb/sec
Avoid them if you can - full of excuses; empty promises
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection Reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

Ordered: 6Mb at approx 60 bucks a month
Order and install process went ok. Two service calls went ok. Trucks rolled.
I'm bought a Linksys WCG200, wireless to a Netgear WGPS606 from Best Buy, then using an ethernet cable from the Netgear into my Mac running OS X 10.4.7
I'm set up for dynamic IP.

I've had Comcast HSI for two years. Initially things were good. They even ran a dedicated line to the house since my signal was so noisy. (should have dropped them then).
Anyway, until about two months ago I had pretty good success with download speed. Their upload speed sucks.

Now, I can't seem to FTP work files to our FTP site without it crapping out on me. It's almost like it cuts off in the same spot. Even some downloads are unreliable.

About a week ago, after noticing ridiculously long page load times, I decided to do some speed tests -- both online and also testing uploading and downloading my own files.
Remember, I'm paying for up to 6Mb/sec downloads. I'm getting between 156 and 400 Kb/sec. That is KILOBITS per second.

I spent a good while on the Comcast live chat support site and they simply said it must be something on my computer. Cycle the modem and my wireless receiver and my compter and see if it works. I swear I'm talking to a robot when I contact their online help chat system.

At the end of the chat I simply was tossed about a million pages of documentation to read through (most for Windows users). I'm on a mac. The sites didn't really help anyway.

I haven't changed ANYthing on my machine since the days when I was having good download speeds.

I'm going to talk to my neighbors who also subscribe to comcast and see if they have similar speed issues. If we're all having problems we're going to raise a ruckus until it's fixed.

I'll let you know........

------- update -------
This afternoon I was operating at nearly 4.5 megabits/sec (averaging out 4 consecutive speed tests).
Tonight I'm down to 300 kilobits/s download speed according to some averaged-out speed tests.
I think that should rule out anything being wrong with my computer.
I've tried wireless, and with ethernet hook direct to my computer. No to mention I'm at 90+ percent wireless signal strength.

By the way, here are some test results to show the fluctuation:
Time (EST) Test Results.. Comment..
2006-09-17 22:15:21 612/230 kbps
2006-09-17 20:59:44 902/345 kbps
2006-09-16 21:23:00 3143/351 kbps
2006-09-16 21:20:57 3124/224 kbps
2006-09-13 21:58:26 610/347 kbps
2006-09-12 22:08:58 506/227 kbps
2006-09-12 22:03:04 326/119 kbps
2006-09-12 21:52:38 Line quality 5% loss latency 41.5ms
Here »/quali ··· /2089174 are my line quality results.

Today I thought about cancelling the service call since it may be raining tomorrow but I think I'll keep it scheduled.

--- update 2 ---
For whatever reason, today has been nearly 6 megbits down all day. This is the first time in probably a month I've had a consistent speedy connection. I bumped up my review based on recent experience with tech support. Hopefully this good fortune will last.

--- update 3 ---
Still having pitiful connection on and off since September. I have now called again 4 days after tech came, and a day or two after a supervisor was supposed to have checked the node.
Now connection speeds worse than ever. Average downloads around 300kbps or less. Upload as low as 14kbps.
I called tech support and they said there was another problem with the line. They're coming again and I'll have to blow a saturday waiting for them ... again.

»/testh ··· 67/d9db9

member for 19.8 years, 99 visits, last login: 15.2 years ago
updated 17.1 years ago

canuck999999
join:2004-04-19

canuck999999

Member

Fun times ahead

Raise a ruckus eh? So, what, you and your neighbours are going to just call them up and demand service calls until its fixed? Because from what I have read about Comcasts tech support that is pretty much all that is going to happen. Either that or they will stonewall you and make you do nothing more then reboot your router and modem and/or remove the router until your head explodes. Whichever way it goes it will probably mean you and any affected neighbours will be having quite a lot of fun with them for the next while.
flexoffset
join:2004-06-02
Courtland, AL

flexoffset

Member

Re: Fun times ahead

I hear you canuck999999. I've cycled the modem plenty of times already.
I really think it's something more sinister going on. I may have to blow away my operating system and just start fresh.
I'm gonna pick up my dad's laptop (PC) this weekend and see if the same issue I'm having is also on the PC.

I will ruffle as many feathers as is needed, and go as far up the chain of command I can go. I will use all legal means necessary to ensure my connection is at least at the minimum acceptable levels.

I'll call a few lawyer friends from college, consider class action if enough people in my neighborhood are having similar service issues, file an FTC complaint, Better Business Bureau complaint, contact my politicians, city leaders, you name it. I don't need the money, but I DO want to get what I pay for.

That being said, I had a good discussion with some tech support today and they have made me feel better about the situation. They spent a lot of time with me and realized my frustration. But unless my speed increases, we're gonna have it out.

comcastuser56
@comcast.net

comcastuser56

Anon

Re: Fun times ahead

I've been having similar problems... speeds haven't been quite as bad as yours, but not great either. One of the smarter reps. I talked to said my local node was overloaded (too many people on the hub in my neighborhood).. should be 15%, mine's running at 97%. I called in the other day and instead of telling them about my problem and what I'm experiencing, I told them that my local node was overloaded. The rep. scheduled a maintenance crew to come out tomorrow. They'll be checking the node and putting in a larger one if needed. hopefully that will solve things. Hope this helps.
flexoffset
join:2004-06-02
Courtland, AL

flexoffset

Member

Re: Fun times ahead

Hey, thanks for the info.
Yeah. That info helps.
It may be in line with what the tech told me this afternoon.
Is the overloaded node issue something that fluctuates during the day or is it something that would be a constant readout at Comcast Tech Centers?

I had a technician come out today.
All signals are perfect ... no errors ... nothing.
He spent a LOT of time redoing connections and checking signals. I was very impressed with his help. He went above and beyond the call of duty. I can't speak highly enough about the Comcast tech guys / gals.
The local technicians really are a good bunch of folks making an honest living.
He was very understanding of my frustration and did everything in his power to help. (though it was to no avail).

Back to my saga, we even used his own cable modem as a test but we were getting the same results. He saw the speeds with his own two eyes.

He didn't mention anything about an overloaded node, but he said my house is very close to the 'tree.'
He said he's going to schedule a maintenance person to come and 'check the tree' or something like that.

I think he was as taken aback as I was about the whole ordeal.
His only suggestion was to try the connection on a PC and see if it's something to do with the Mac OS. I tried with 10.3.9 and 10.4.7 with identical results.

Keep me informed as to how your issue gets resolved and I'll do the same.
If it ends up being something I've done, I'll certainly hone up to it in hopes that nobody else has to go through this.

I depend on the speed for my work as much as anything. I hope they can prorate my bills. I don't like to pay for something I'm not getting.

peter p
@comcast.net

peter p

Anon

Re: Fun times ahead

well, the maintenance crew was a little better than the techs. I came home the other day to find 5 comcast trucks outside my house. Unfortunately, they couldn't do too much. They did a little fix on the pole and I haven't had problems with webpages timing out like I used to, but my speeds are still 2.8mbps max. Luckily, the comcast guy wasn't happy with my speeds (should be 6), and said my RCA modem is junk (even though it's brand new, leased from comcast). He's bringing over a new one and a whole bunch of comcast guys including one with a laptop to do testing. I'm hoping that if they see the slow speeds on their own equipment, they'll do something about my node (which I think is where the problem resides). I'm running macs on my network and that for sure isn't the problem. Anyway, I called in today to see what can be done about this node. The tele. rep. said he has "escalated" the problem to the network tech. dept that works on the upgrading of comcast network components (nodes, etc.). So, I'm going to try to convince the maintenance crew to take a look at the node tomorrow if they don't have another fix.

By the way, are you getting burst speeds in your area? At midnight on weekdays, my download speeds jumps to 10mbps sometimes. Only problem is when the whole neighborhood gets online (like Sunday mornings), I can't get anything done because everything times out. I'll have to wait until Sunday to see if the fix on the pole fixed the timing out problem.

I'll let you know how tomorrow turns out.
peter p

peter p to flexoffset

Anon

to flexoffset
thought I'd run a speed test since it just passed midnight.

Last Result:
Download Speed: 14950 kbps (1868.8 KB/sec transfer rate)
Upload Speed: 337 kbps (42.1 KB/sec transfer rate)

these speeds are all over the place! wouldn't it be nice if it was like this during the day?
flexoffset
join:2004-06-02
Courtland, AL

flexoffset

Member

Re: Fun times ahead

For sure!!
Those are awesome download speeds.

My Comcast HSI was completely out from about 8pm last night.
I called their tech service again and asked how many people were on my node.

A tech apparently came by my house yesterday but for whatever reason, we missed him / her. They said everything 'checked out ok' on lines coming into my house. Since my internet was down all last night, it will be later this evening before I can check things out and see if anything was fixed.

She told me there were 175 on my node. I asked if that was a lot and she told me it depends. I asked her what it depended on and never really got an answer I was hapy with. However, the tech was very nice and we talked for a good while about the issue.

I'm days away from tossing this crap in the garbage and going 'dsl'

peter p
@comcast.net

peter p

Anon

Re: Fun times ahead

well, either comcast fixed something or this bursting is working better than normal. I'm consistantly getting between 8-15mbps download. But, during peak times, I haven't gotten lower than 3mbps. I spoke with another comcast tele. rep. after the maintaince crew never came back to swap my modem. He recommended calling my local office but also put through something to his supervisors requesting a node update in my area. I mentioned that lots of people in my area were having the same problem, so he "escilated" the problem as an equipment upgrade request for the my neighborhood. Being over 200 people on my node, each averaging probably $60/month at least... that's $12k a year from my area... they better do something about that node!

Also, give sales a call, and tell them about your probelm. Tell them you know people that are paying $25/month for Comcast internet (that's what I'm paying at the moment) and also let them know it's not living up to what it should be. They'll probably cut your bill in half. I tried going the DSL way, but it was terrible. It went out twice a day, knocking out my VoIP and internet. I'd have to manually reset the modem twice a day... such a pain.

We'll see if I get the timeout problems sat. morning. I wish I was on the East Coast so I could get Verizon FIOS!
flexoffset
join:2004-06-02
Courtland, AL

flexoffset to peter p

Member

to peter p

Re: back to normal for now, it seems

I'm back to 6000 down and 384 up -- for now, anyway.
It's 8:50am. Let's check it in a few hours and I'll see how it goes.

Review by Wachinagi See Profile

  • Location: Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
  • Cost: $67 per month
Speed is great (If you can get online) but no routers allowed it seems
Everything is bad except the speed (When you can get online)
Don't bother if you have more then one computer (Routers don't seem to work)
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection Reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

Ok, so here is the history/backstory. I had MediaOne High Speed (Roadrunner) out in Los Angeles. With a few minor issues aside, it was fantastic. Then AT&T bought them out, but they didn't bother to inform me about it. I hate AT&T, (That's a whole other story, but needless to say I had very bad experiences with them) so when I get anything from AT&T in the mail, I just chuck it. Imagine my surprise when I realize I've been throwing away my bills! Once that got resolved I start asking them about the speed dropping to a crawl, and why my modem stops working every other day. They sent out techs that knew nothing, and eventually after about 6 months, AT&T gets bought out by Comcast. Ok, so now my speeds are great, I'm a happy camper. They are charging me more then AT&T or MediaOne was, but hey, it freakin' works right? Not really. Well after quite some time of intermittent service, lots of service calls, no help whatsoever, I notice that they actually AREN'T charging me more for my service. They've been charging me for a SECOND modem!!! I've NEVER had a second modem! I go back through all my old bills, and see where it starts, and add up what they've over charged me. It came out to over $600.00!!! I get them on the phone, they see the problem, and credit my account. Problem solved? No. Every month the credit doesn't appear, and I have to call again. When do I get my refund? 1 year later! That's 365 days, or 8760 hours later if you prefer. Finally after all this, during a huge DNS server issue with comcast (During which they said there were no problems) I cancel my service. I picked up DSLExtreme and never looked back. I can't say ONE bad thing about DSLExtreme. If you can get them where you live, I highly recommend.

Ok, now we're at today! I just moved from Los Angeles to Chicago. You'd think that these are two VERY different places. I mean one is warm, one is cold. One is made of plastic, the other made of brick. But alas, I am a fool. I thought, "Heck, comcast Chicago must be different then Comcast Los Angeles right?" WRONG!!!!

I call them, explain my history with them, and explain that I'm willing to give them a second chance. Do they offer me any incentive to rejoin their pack of stupid customers? No. I pay the extra cash for the 8mb download package, and ask "Is it going to ACTUALLY BE 8mb?" Oh yes they reply. "I have a wireless router, is that going to be a problem?" Oh no, it'll be fine.

So they come by (On time for once) and set me up. Sure enough, I plug in my Laptop to the modem, and I get 12mb download!!! Holy Jesus! I thank the bestower of shiny internet speeds and off he goes in the truck that brought me my awesome super cool lazer inscribed broadband weapon of destruction. I disconnect my modem, plug it into my wireless router, and head off to my monsterous gaming PC, and check my connectivity. 54mbps solid signal. I'm off to frag! Uh...wait....hmmm...

Something ain't quite...kosher. Better run a speed test.....

1.5 down? That isn't right. And I don't mean just wireless, I mean even plugged directly into my router. So on to the phone calls, and after 2 service calls out to my place, and a bunch of B.S., they say that they don't support wireless routers. Uh...ok? I could have sworn that I asked about that before I signed up. So either they flat out lied to get me to sign up, or these techs don't know squat. They tell me that there IS a wireless router that they do support, but I have to rent it/by it from them. So I think it over, and decide, heck with it, I'll just get it and be done with it. So I wake up this morning, make some coffee, go to check my E-mail and then call them up, but....um....no internet connectivity. Oh wait it's back...oh wait it's gone. 3 hours of "On for 5 minutes, off for 30" plays out and I finally just snap. I am NOT going through this again!!! So I call Comcast, ask to cancel my service and they respond "Uh.....you JUST installed.....?" Damn right, cancel me. They start the troubleshooting script to retain my business, which I stop and say, "Before you start that let me tell you something". One 45 minute rant later they were MORE then happy to cancel my service and get me OFF the phone.

Never again......never again.

member for 17.9 years, 1 visits, last login: 10.6 years ago
lodged 17.1 years ago

rickted3
join:2004-01-22
Denver, CO

rickted3

Member

WOW

Wow, you plug your laptop into the modem and you get 12Mb service. You go trough YOUR router and it drops. Hmmm yep that sounds like comcast's problem. Then you cancel right away cuz you have a problem. You don't have any one come out to look at it. You do realize that problems happen? It happens to almost everyone. You say your going to give comcast another chance, but you have a problem when you hook up to YOUR equipment and you have an intermittent issue and you cancel, Like I said WOW. Maybe there was something going on in your area. Or maybe just maybe the tech that was going to come out and install the wireless would have fixed your problem. But guess you'll never know. Btw routers do go bad, I have had to replace a few myself. Sorry you have had a bad few days with the service. I hope your dsl or whatever you use now never has a problem. Other wise your going to run out of options and not have anything. just my 1/4 of a cent. Good luck and take care.
Wachinagi
join:2006-04-19
Chicago, IL

Wachinagi

Member

Re: WOW

Rickted3, thanks for your reply. There are a few points you miss, but I see where you are coming from. If there was a problem in the area, they should have said so, but they said there was not. The problem was not intermittent, it was very VERY consistant. The loss of connection was intermittent, but the lack of the speed I was paying for was there from the get-go. If you look, you'll see I did in fact have them come out to my place twice. That's when they told me they don't support my router, or any router that isn't theirs. Now, I understand that routers go bad. I have quite a few routers, wireless and otherwise, and they all have the same problem with this Comcast Service. The routers have a solid 54mbps signal, and between PC's I get those speeds. Furthermore, my current router is rated for 108mbps. Up until the day I moved, this router has permormed perfectly. Now, with a wireless router, you have to expect a drop in speed. That's usually 0.5 to 1.0mbps off your expected speed. This was 6.5 off their advertised speed! And 10.5 off what I was getting when plugged directly into the modem. Now, I'll admit that I'm a bit less patient with Comcast then most people, but seriously, after all that I went through with them before, I think I'm justified. When they tell me that there will be no problems using my own personal wireless router (Which has no problems with anyone elses service, I tested it on an earthlink DSL Modem in my building, and AT&T DSL at a friends today) I expect to have the performance I was promised. If I'm only going to get 1.5mbps from Comcast on a router that pushes 6.0 to 8.0 with any other ISP, then my question is , Why spend $67.99 per month to comcast when I can spend $14.99 through AT&T and get the same 1.5mbps speed?

I have a sneaking suspicion that Comcast may have set their speeds to drop when any routers that aren't theirs are connected, but that's not founded on anything other than my natural dislike of large faceless corporations.

I have ordered new DSL service, and once I get it set up (Next few days) I will run speed tests on the same modem, and report back with either a "See? My router is fine" or a "Holy crud, I totally went off the wall for no reason, it seems like some mystical force makes it so that my router can't get correct speeds when placed in just my apartment, I guess I'll have to move again"

Doctor Olds
I Need A Remedy For What's Ailing Me.
Premium Member
join:2001-04-19
1970 442 W30

Doctor Olds

Premium Member

Re: WOW

Good luck with DSL in an Apartment. Speaking from 6+ years of seeing people get horrible DSL in Apartments/Condos due to substandard wiring in the residence and phone closets.

Plus being in an Apartment can degrade the Wireless signal enough to drop your speeds if you are surrounded by other Wireless Routers.

Good Luck.
rody_44
Premium Member
join:2004-02-20
Quakertown, PA

rody_44

Premium Member

say what

a little hint. not having a problem with it and providing support for it is two seperate things.

Review by faxmachine See Profile

  • Location: Oakland, Alameda, CA, USA
  • Cost: $42 per month
Fast, when it works
Service up and down, not reliable
Customer service here in Oakland CA is useless!!
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection Reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

I should have taken my previous experiences with Comcast Cable as an indication of how they would react to problems with internet service, they have absolutely the worst customer service of any company I've dealt with in recent memory. Our problems all center around how the cable runs to our building. Comcast put fiber down in our neighborhood last year and then ran what the technicians call a "hard line" to every building in the neighborhood except ours with the excuse that no one was home! This is a 24 unit loft building and I think they just didn't bother to try to contact anyone. Continued requests and phone calls have been ignored by Comcast here in Oakland. When the service works it is faster than DSL, but as I said before, it's completely unreliable. When a technician eventually shows to check out the complaint the service always seems to be up and running. I should add that this problem crops up every time Comcast comes here it hook up a new customer. The condition of our cable junction box is in is a complete disgrace. It's a jumble of coax and a dozen or more splitters that gets taken apart and rearranged by every technician who touches it, this is defiantly a contributing factor to our poor service in this building. Cable TV does not fare much better here either. My conclusion is that you should avoid ordering services from Comcast if at all possible, cause when you have a problem, which you eventually will, they will take forever to show up at your door and when they do they will do the minimum to get things up and running and then leave.

______________________________________________________________________________

12/26/05.

Quick update. I have a service call for tomorrow 12/27, a full week after my first call to "Customer Service", they blew off the first appointment they made with me for 12/22. I have made at least 6 calls to this sham of a company just to see if it would be possible to find someone who might take ownership of this problem and, as you might have guessed, I have found no one who will take ownership of this problem. I've spoken to all kinds of managers, all in distant call centers who's first word after I've finished speaking is always "sorry", quickly followed by "there's nothing we can do here." I just want to reiterate how dismal Comcast's customer service is, I'll say it once again COMCAST CUSTOMER SERVICE IS COMPLETELY USELESS. Also the local Oakland office is a joke because they are the ones who actually blew off the first service call that was scheduled. Tomorrow should be interesting.

______________________________________________________________________________

11/26/06

Our cable service and High Speed Internet is crap once again due to Comcast never completing the job they started in the beginning of 2006. They decided that putting in two new runs from the pole into our phone room would fix everything. They never bothered to untangle the mess of a junction box which leaves us with the bad daisy chain situation we've always had here. No hard line, 24 units to service, but no hard line. I've got a service call tomorrow, we'll see how this all goes. I have made calls and left email for all of the Comcast players who appeared in the last segment of this never ending story.

member for 18.7 years, 181 visits, last login: 241 days ago
updated 17.3 years ago


tech in sf
@comcast.net

tech in sf

Anon

hope this helps you and other customes with comcas

There are so maney things that can give you problems with the internet service. If fiber or a hard line is at your apartment building, most likely there isn't a problem outside. Alot of times theres something going on with the main line going into your apartment unit. If you can, set up a service call for your internet. MAKE SURE THAT YOU ASK FOR A INHOUSE TECH TO COME TO YOUR HOME.....YOU DO NOT WANT CONTRACTORS. If it is possible, have the tech run a test line from the main cable box straight to your modem in your unit. That can verify if there a problem with your line coming from the main cable box. If your speeds are faster with the test line, you will need a rewire.

Another thing that you can do on your own is to verify if you have the right levels going to and from the modem. In the address bar, type in 192.168.100.1 Depending on the modem type, you should be able to see the power levels and the noise levels. The noise levels should be between +10 and -10. The power levels should be between 32 and 52. If your readings are out of those ranges, configuration will need to be done in your unit and also at the main cable box. Just like you stated with the spliters in the main cable box......to many spliters or improper spliters can give you interminte problems

Hope this helps

comcast tech in san francisco
faxmachine
join:2005-07-20
Oakland, CA

faxmachine

Member

Re: hope this helps you and other customes with co

Hey Comcast Tech! Thanks so much for your reply. That's WAY more information than I've gotten in 5 years of talking to Comcast! On my modem (Motorola SB5120 Surfboard) I can see a signal to noise ratio of 32db, just at the power threshold you describe but there is no separate noise level reading for my modem. I am still experiencing the same problems I have all week. I wake up, start my computer, see that my modem is not connected and receiving service, I reboot the modem, it takes at least 5 minutes for it to acquire a signal, it connects, the connection lasts anywhere from 5-15 minutes and then it drops the connection or signal (whichever is the most correct term).

I do need to reiterate something here. Besides the technical issues that I've described, my biggest gripe is Comcast's abysmal technical/customer support. It is literally the worst customer service experience I have ever had. I have made at least 12 separate phone calls, spoken to 4 or 5 "managers" and still no luck. They are seriously lacking in any kind of technical training, or information, and some are just downright rude and incompetent. The people on the phone can't seem to get the people here in Oakland CA to answer a service call. I had an appointment for a service call yesterday and they never showed, never called, nothing. When I called Comcast "customer support" at 6:05pm they said that the trouble ticket was cleared and there were no reported issues!! Unbelievable, they just basically cancelled the ticket because they didn't feel like coming out here! At this point it's just gotten silly. I now have an appointment for Tuesday 12/27/05. They can't manage to get anyone here before Tuesday (today is Friday 12/23, I started this on Tuesday 12/20). I've already called Sonic and ordered new DSL service, but since I'm still paying for Comcast's "service" I'm going to make them fix this before I cancel, this is how mad and unreasonable Comcast has made me this week. I would suggest to anyone who reads this and has a real need for stable internet connectivity and decent customer service/tech support to take their business to anyone but Comcast-It'S SUCK-TASTIC!!!

I hear great things about Sonic and I actually had a trained and qualified network technician take my order because the sales lines were all busy when I called (probably all of the dissatisfied Comcast customers jamming the lines!). Anyway this seems to be turning into a crazy-person rant so I'll close now, but not before saying that you should never waste your money with Comcast unless you have absolutely no choice.

sanjosetech
@comcast.net

sanjosetech

Anon

Re: hope this helps you and other customes with co

That's a union yard for ya!!!
faxmachine
join:2005-07-20
Oakland, CA

faxmachine

Member

Re: hope this helps you and other customes with co

Another update 12/27/05.

Comcast tech showed up today. The tcch did exactly what I said he would do, moved me around on the splitter to get a slightly better signal. He couldn't believe that Comcast had not been out here since his last visit to fix the situation with the junction boxes and install a hard line from the street. I'm up for the moment. Comcast has definatly lost a customer, and I will tell my tale to anyone who will listen. The tech suggested I call KTVU (local tv station that does a consumer complaint section). I think I will. I'll say it once again, COMCAST IS THE WORST CHOICE FOR INTERNET. My worst customer experience ever!

Ms Roseman
@tci.com

Ms Roseman to tech in sf

Anon

to tech in sf

Re: hope this helps you and other customes with comcas

My name is Jada Roseman and I work for Comcast in the East Bay area in the Oakland office. I am sorry to hear about the poor customer service you have received from our support staff. I would like to discuss your concerns.
You can reach me today and tomorrow 12/27*28. I will be out of the office until 1/3/06.

Thank You,

Jada Roseman
Comcast
Government Affairs/Franchise Coordinator
510-567-9276
Ms Roseman

Ms Roseman

Anon

Comcast

Hello Comcast customer:

I am sorry to read about the poor customer service you have received from my company. I work East Bay area in the Oakland office and my name is Jada Roseman. Please give me a call to discuss your concerns and the wiring of your building. I would like to get this information to our Technical Operations Director. I am in the office today and tomorrow (12/27 * 28; however, I will be off for a few days until 1/3/06/. You can reach me at 510-567-9276.

Thank you,

Jada Roseman
Comcast
Government Affairs/Franchise Coordinator
East Bay
faxmachine
join:2005-07-20
Oakland, CA

faxmachine

Member

Re: Comcast

Imagine my surprise when I logged on to read the above reply.

So I called, and what happened? Well, I spoke with a very nice person who seems to want to take control and responsibility for my problem! Very brave putting your name and number out there Jada. I'm encouraged but guarded. The least I can do is keep you all filled in on how this goes.

hmmmmmm.
faxmachine

faxmachine

Member

Re: Comcast

I'm going to put a short note here to try and keep this thread on the front page links of this website. I've decided to give Comcast a day, without rants, to coordinate their efforts. In all fairness I spoke with Jada last night after 5pm. So Comcast, the ball is in your court and everyone in my building, if not the whole neighborhood is watching this thread to see what happens. Please don't disappoint us!
faxmachine

faxmachine to Ms Roseman

Member

to Ms Roseman
Update 1/4/05. Jada called me on the 3rd. I had left a message on the 2nd. She called from her home where she was recuperating from being ill over the holidays. She was helpful and wanted me to know that she was speaking to her construction manager to see what our building's situation was. She said that I should be hearing from her soon as to what the plan of action would be going forward.

oaklander
@dsl.pltn13.pacbell.n

oaklander

Anon

Re: Comcast

I agree with you on what's happening with the Comcast Service. I guess there's no incentive for them to improve their service because the fact the they have a monopoly int the East Bay cable service.

Still, it it hard to see why the Comcast management is not doing anything when a lof of customers are not happy with their Internet service. I can imagine that Comcast Internet will eventually die out.
faxmachine
join:2005-07-20
Oakland, CA

faxmachine

Member

Re: Comcast

Today, Saturday 1/21/06, Comcast construction showed up at our building, unannounced but still welcome, to bring 3 new lines in from the street and fix the tangled mess that (hopefully) was our junction boxes. Signals, both TV and internet, seem to be stable. I'll post again after I notify the building and see if anyone else sees any difference.

After finding that our building was served by only one piece of RF coax cable (much like a single family home would be) and then split 24 times, it was decided that 3 new cables in from the pole would be installed and each one of those 3 cables would serve 8 units, 3 eight way splitters, each one with it's cable, a much better arrangement.
faxmachine

2 edits

faxmachine

Member

Comcast continuation (11_27_06) Comcast, still Craptastic!!

It's now been almost a year since my last post. Right after Comcast ran new lines into our building in the beginning of 2006 I cancelled my HSI (high speed internet) connection and got DSL from Sonic.net, I just could not deal with Comcast's incompetent technical support staff any longer; I was so mad at the time that I'd promised in my postings that no matter what Comcast did to fix our situation I would be cancelling my service and I did. Sonic.net has been fantastic, my DSL never goes down and when I do have a question Sonic's technical support is top notch. You may ask then, "why are you back posting about Comcast?" Well I'll tell you.

You can never completely rid yourself of Comcast, I still have Comcast cable television and there are people in my building who have Comcast digital cable TV and HSI (high speed internet). I, and they, continue to have problems (I've not had my digital channels for over a week at this point and many here have been without internet for that long or longer). Comcast did indeed run new lines into our building in the beginning of 2006, however at that time they chose not to run a "Hard Line" into the building, nor did they choose to update our junction box. What Comcast did do was run three regular coaxial runs into our building from the pole, previously we had only one run in from the pole for 24 units. They also chose not to replace the "daisy chained" connection situation in their junction box in our phone room. What "daisy chaining" is is one connection split off into another, and then another, and so on with splitters that reduce the signal strength at every connection. If Comcast had run a "hard line" into our building (as they do with all newly constructed buildings) they would have installed the same connection scenario that exists out on the street thereby giving every resident who connects to Comcast in our building the same type of connection they would have if Comcast were to run a line directly from the resident's unit out to the pole in the street. There would then be no daisy chaining connections (which loose -6db signal with every connection) and ours as well as Comcast's troubles in this building would end. This is really the only way to maintain a network in a multi dwelling building that has to include signal for digital cable service, High Speed Internet and IP phone service along with regular (non digital) cable service.

Cascading is a term that I've picked-up from the technicians who come to work at our building. When the technicians "cascade service" it simply means they move the connection of the person who's service they are working on at that moment closer to the "hot" lead running into the building and "cascade" everyone else down a position on the daisy chain (farther away from the "hot" lead into the building). Only the service that's on the first split off of the "hot" lead in from the street gets enough signal to actually carry both digital cable and HSI.

I'm back writing about this now in the hopes that once again someone from Comcast will take notice of our problem and actually do something about it. I've called and left a message for:

Jada Roseman
Comcast
Government Affairs/Franchise Coordinator
East Bay (Oakland CA)
510-567-XXXX (I'll save the complete number for now...)

I hope she gets back to me, she did help last year. Until then I'm going to have to, once again, become a public relations pain for Comcast until they fix the problem properly by running a hard line into our building. Just remember folks, Comcast! It's Craptastic!!

JessC200258
join:2006-11-16
Walla Walla, WA

JessC200258

Member

Re: Comcast continuation (11_27_06) Comcast, still Craptastic!!

comcast actually tries to get their jobs done. It is not their fault that they are backed up in when they can get to people. As for your other posts about there customer service I know for a fact that there customer service is better than some that I have spoke to. However comcast techs actually care about solving their customers issues. Some techs even go outside of the scope of support for customers just to try and help them.
faxmachine
join:2005-07-20
Oakland, CA

1 edit

faxmachine

Member

Re: Comcast continuation (11_27_06) Comcast, still Craptastic!!

Hey Jess,
You may indeed have a different customer service experience up there in Walla Walla Washington, but here in Oakland California Comcast service, at least for the past several years, has been utter crap. I'm glad you're enjoying your service Jess, it gives me hope that maybe somewhere in the vast (dis)organization known as Comcast there might be someone who actually gives a shit, but that person or department unfortunately does not exist here in Oakland, yet.

I'll let you know if this sad fact of life ever changes.
JessC200258
join:2006-11-16
Walla Walla, WA

JessC200258

Member

Re: Comcast continuation (11_27_06) Comcast, still Craptastic!!

well you shouldn't talk so bad about the people that give tech support. If you knew what they had to put up with. They get yelled at when something that isn't there fault and they have to commit a lot to memory. They have a lot to trouble shoot and than when they can't fix the issue and they try to get someone out to the customer that can help and look at the issue further, They get yelled at and called every name in the book.
They try there hardest to get everything fixed and the customer online.
faxmachine
join:2005-07-20
Oakland, CA

1 edit

faxmachine

Member

Re: Comcast continuation (11_27_06) Comcast, still Craptastic!!

Jess,
The only conclusion I can draw from your response to my last post is that either you, or someone close to you, works for Comcast, my deepest sympathy on that.

I'll point out here that my criticism is for Comcast as a company, not the employees as individuals. I'm sure there are many fine upstanding citizens, such as yourself, that go to work at Comcast every day and do 'their' best to help the subscribers who actually expect good service for the close to $100/month Comcast demands for 'their' poor service.

Subscribers get upset and take it out on the tech support personnel because the tech support personnel are the human interface of Comcast and the only contact subscribers have to a large corporate entity that seems more concerned with servicing it's huge debt by cutting maintenance and upgrade budgets, than it is with delivering good service to it's subscribers. This is the reason people are angry and abusive when they call. It doesn't help to get the same (non-helpful) answers every time you call tech support, and it doesn't help that a service person comes out and does the same thing each time they visit, to no avail. (See my original post for more details on that)

I'll point out once again that your customer service experience is most likely different than mine. I have not once, in all the years that I've done business with Comcast, found my solution at the end of a tech support line, not once. I've actually had to go to the local office and beg to speak with a supervisor, so if you think I'm being critical about tech support without reason, you'd be wrong. I'll point out once again that my anger and dissatisfaction is NOT with any particular Comcast employee, but with the company itself.


same
@comcast.net

same

Anon

Comcast

We've had their "service" for four years now, five modems , two total rewirings and internet sevice that's out more then in. I live in Jax florida.
faxmachine
join:2005-07-20
Oakland, CA

faxmachine

Member

I thought I should post again to tell you all how things ended up. Comcast FINALLY installed the all illusive hard-line into our building, and our troubles appear to be over. It happened earlier this month (Feb 2007). I now receive all of my digital cable channels and those of us left here who actually still get HSI from Comcast are getting dependable service. I left Comcast's HSI service a year ago and never looked back thanks to Sonic. I've been after Comcast to fix our building for more than two years. Yep folks, that's how long it took Comcast to fix the problem. I know the only reason this work got done is because I eventually was able to find two fine employees of Comcast (Jada R. and Harold S.) who work in our local Comcast offices. It was because of these two fine employees that I was able to get the problem fixed. The entire rest of Comcast Corporate, of which I'll include "Customer Service", was completely useless and sometimes worse than that. I found "Customer Service" to be rude and punitive at every turn. Hopefully my dealings with them will now cease. It was a long and frustrating journey to fix a problem that Comcast should have addressed long ago, but that's all in the past now. At this point what we need is a competitor to Comcast to get prices to a reasonable range and make them realize just how screwed up their organization is.

Thanks again to Jada R. and Harold S. of our Oakland Branch of Comcast, it's only because of these two fine employees that I and the rest of the residents of our building still subscribe to Comcast.

Hyppie
@travelers.com

Hyppie

Anon

FaxMachine,

glad you finally got something done. I'm in Oak Ridge, TN and dealing with similar customer service problems. I'm paying for a 6MB connection but only getting 1.5mb- 3.2mb. Everytime I call customer service I say two words before I get transfered to some one else (with a 7-8 min hold time for each transfer). Everyone promises to write notes, and promises to send a tech out..the tech never comes and noone can see the notes that were supposedly writen prior.
I finally got to a Level 2 manager last night and all I got was "you are paying for UP TO 6mb" after I protested he said he would have a tech come out.....I doubt that will happen. Unfortunatly for me comcast is the only provider of broadband internet and TV in oak Ridge. Glad you got your problem corrected.

Review by byteshop See Profile

  • Location: Valencia, Los Angeles, CA, USA
  • Cost: $58 per month
  • Install: about 5 days
Stable with 3000kbps dl speed.
Expensive. Uploads are crippled at 25MB. Caps are a mystery.
$58 a month gets you web surfing and email. Forget about working from home.
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection Reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

UPDATED Aug 2006

Comcast is now using traffic shaping. An FTP upload of more than 25MB not only times out but is not resumable. The data is corrupted. I use my connection to update a database at work. Comcast has now become unusable for me.

It's a shame Comcast quietly punishes you rather than simply generating an email explaining that you are not using the service as they want you to. At $58.00 a month, I think it's fair to expect to be able to upload more than 25 megs in one session. I upload once a week and it's usually 80 megs.

The funny thing is that it was AT&T Cable when I first signed up. It will soon be RoadRunner, though I expect the shaping issues will not change. I'm now switching to AT&T DSL. The advertised DSL I have ordered is 3-6m down and 368-600k up. I've already previewed it at the neighbors while uploading my database. The cost is $28.00 per month for roughly the same service I was paying $58.00 for with Comcast.

Old review follows:

I ordered it while it was AT&T and it was $42 a month. Installation was quick and satisfactory. Service was fine and dependable though half as fast as now. Comcast took over and bundled it with cable. Since Im on Dish, my rate went up to $58 a month for the same service. Recently, our speed went from 1500/160 to 3000/228.

It's a love hate thing. DSL in our area is cheaper but less reliable. I have only had to reset the cable modem 3 times in 2 years. My IP has changed maybe 5 times in the same period. DSL IPs change far more often and the speed of DSL is all over the board throughout the day in my area.

It would be a steal at $42 a month. At $58 a month, you need to have a good reason to need the stability. At $58 a month, I want more upload bandwidth.


member for 22.6 years, 1046 visits, last login: 6.6 years ago
updated 17.5 years ago


chRoniX10
Peace sells, but who's buying?
Premium Member
join:2004-05-22
Chatsworth, CA

chRoniX10

Premium Member

expensive

wow, 58$ is really $$$, for the speeds ur getting. Why dont u try SPEAKEASY or sumthing, they offer a faster speed (6.0mbps/384kbps) for less than what ur paying now.

Review by sapo See Profile

  • Location: Sacramento, Sacramento, CA, USA
  • Cost: $56 per month
delete
this
please
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection Reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

delete

member for 21.5 years, 4637 visits, last login: 6.9 years ago
updated 17.7 years ago


ObdH
Premium Member
join:2003-06-11
Abilene, TX

ObdH

Premium Member

Error: * please provide catchy title

ouch, call and complain, bout those prices, thats rediculous



[text was edited by author 2003-07-11 07:26:34]
35375105 (banned)
join:2002-11-20
127.0.0.1

35375105 (banned)

Member

Yup. Those prices are insane.

I pay $45 a month here in NY for Roadrunner, and the speeds are 2000/384. And it's 45$ because I pay for 2 ip addresses, normally its only $40. Sucks to live in california






Review by BlitzenZeus See Profile

  • Location: undisclosed location
  • Cost Contract price not specified.
They no longer exist
Comcast took them over
They are gone, and replaced by a worse company.
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection Reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

I don't have ComCRAP, and since the mods won't delete old reviews I will make this review useless.

member for 24.2 years, 11761 visits, last login: 2 years ago
updated 17.8 years ago


Hayward0
K A R - 1 2 0 C
Premium Member
join:2000-07-13
Key West, FL

Hayward0

Premium Member

EVERY????

***You will find they have the most moronic tech support around by all the providers, *****

And you HAVE dealt with EVERY provider to base that conclusion on????

Blanket statements make you feel real good... and just show to all others that you are just pissed off (rightly or not)

Never say every any more than you should never say never. (unless you caqn PROVE it.)
BlitzenZeus
Burnt Out Cynic
Premium Member
join:2000-01-13

BlitzenZeus

Premium Member

Re: EVERY????

Blanket statements don't make me fell good, and you assumed why I made that statement. Don't assume.... They have quite a following of unhappy customers, and many who have become ex-customers over their quality of tech support since they were not able to take care of actual problems.

No I have not dealt with every single provider in the universe. I have dealt with many local, and national providers. I've talked to more intelligent people consistently with dial-up support(which I rarely had to even call) than Broadband support. If anything, broadband support should have been sent through more training since they are dealing with more complicated issues, but they don't even measure up to dial-up support....

Have you directly dealt with this provider? Even some of the techs wonder where they got these people, and wonder why keep them on. The flaw is they do almost all the training on the phone, and use the customers as guinea pigs. You will find many other people who know that calling support is almost completely pointless with real issues that need to be addressed since you will likely never talk to the right person who can get it taken care of unless you call back many times.

I'll quote an actual tech: (in refer to their tech support)
"as with any companies and work places you have your bad apples. Unfortunately the bad apples make up 90% of the tree"

They use the 'work cheap' theory, and just filter out the ones who don't come up to their standards at the risk of providing sup-par support to their customers on a consistent basis.

Ever have to actually explain that there is a difference between a mac address, and IP address in detail to a tech support agent who is supposed to be helping you with a simple dhcp question they should know? At least be able to quickly get you an answer from an official source?

I have talked to some competent techs who work for them, but most of them you can't reach until doing an hour of BS stuff with with their level ones which only wasted your time. Also calling for support is like a lottery, and your lucky of you get someone who actually knows what they are doing when it comes to real issues.

[text was edited by author 2002-01-27 00:58:20]

Rob A
Adjusting
Premium Member
join:2005-01-17
Pompton Plains, NJ

Rob A

Premium Member

Pay for DSL?

What do you mean you don't want to pay for DSL? Its faster and cheaper! »verizon.net speeds up to 3M/768K for only 29.95/month.
BlitzenZeus
Burnt Out Cynic
Premium Member
join:2000-01-13

BlitzenZeus

Premium Member

Rob A is nothing but a Verizon Shill!

Lets see, his own review of Verizon is 100% across the board when the majority thinks very differently... They are probably an employee, however won't admit it, and they just feel they had to reply to my ancient AT&T Broadband review about Verizon years after it was posted, along with AT&T no longer exists.

Keep your astroturfing to yourself Rob A, and will the mods please delete these ancient reviews for ISP's who no longer exist?!?! Just to make it clear, I don't have Comcrap!






Review by silverbackEE See Profile

  • Location: Atlanta, Dekalb, GA, USA
  • Cost: $45 per month (24 month contract)
  • Install: about 14 days
High speed, good downloads
packet loss, stupid tech support staff, no escalation
I just called Earthlink
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection Reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

I have been fighting with them for 6 months. I have fuzzy channels on TV and packet loss. It is intermittent.
I say I am unable to connect to my workplace. They say everything is fine.
I say check for packet loss, they say Oh, yeah, I see 50% loss.

They have sent 8 guys out for inside wiring when what is needed is a outside tech to fix the line from the drop to the apartment building.

Today they sent another inside tech. I called Earthlink while he was in the apartment.

I am DONE!

- Details
Cable Modem. They claim 6 MB, but I saw speeds between 1 and 7 MB.
I am renting their modem, which they have replaced twice (like that will help a bad line), dynamic IP.

member for 17.8 years, 1 visits, last login: 17.8 years ago
lodged 17.8 years ago


Review by MLaferriere7 See Profile

  • Location: Monson, Hampden, MA, USA
  • Cost: $45 per month
  • Install: about 5 days
Fast downloading when it works
Pathetic customer support, unreliable, lousy company to do business with
I switched to Verizon DSL and am saving $10 a month and getting faster and more service
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection Reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

I used to love my cable modem when AT&T owned the service. Since Comcast took over customer support went from one of the best to worst rated. My cable modem had to be reset every other day, email sometimes didnt go through or was blocked before it got to me. Comcast no longer provides Usenet access but the monthly rate continued to go up. Comcast boasts about 'doubling' the speed. Raising the speed limit on an already overcrowded highway does nothing to alleviate congestion. They could have a really great service if they got their act together.

2006 two years later and still Comcast does not offer Usenet service. Subcontracting out 2 GB per month to Giganews to pacify the message readers. Anyone who has partaken of Usenets music, video etc contect can eat up this in a heartbeat. Especially with Comcasts quick download speeds. I was recently curious and called up about possible package deals for Comcast, cable TV, Internet and digital voice. When I asked about Usenet the sales person was totally baffled. I then tried "newsgroups" and was answered "Oh, you can get the news!" Sheeshe. Before Comcast bought out AT&T's Broadband Internet AT&T had some really great usenet servers! I never missed a section of a binary and the retention rate was pretty good. People who say Giganews is better probably didnt use the old Usenet very much. Two years later and I'm still sticking with Verizon DSL which is a full access provider, not a mere IP address and access to the Internet like Comcast.

member for 20.1 years, 12 visits, last login: 10.3 years ago
updated 17.8 years ago


TraumaJunkie
Premium Member
join:2004-03-05
Knoxville, TN

TraumaJunkie

Premium Member

Interesting....

...did Comcast fire all the AT&T support people? Otherwise these were the same support people you had with AT&T.

Would be interested if they fired them all.
HammondEggs
join:2003-04-08
Antrim, NH

HammondEggs

Member

Re: Interesting....

Usenet access is subcontracted through Giganews and is a free service to Comcast customers. Far superior service than what AT&T or MediaOne offered. The server is news.comcast.giganews.com. You have to create an account with giganews: »online.comcast.net/giganews/

NH Comcast subscriber

obsim
@mts.net

obsim to TraumaJunkie

Anon

to TraumaJunkie
No, we are still the same people that there have always been but as with any tech support position there are often surges of new people hitting the floor which causes some of the frustration noted on these forums.
doctorwu
join:2001-05-05
West Haven, CT

doctorwu

Member

Comcast usenet

Comcast ,long ago (1,5 yrs.) dropped giganews in favor of their own usenet service. I have had 0 problems with either. This is in CT. , maybe diff. in other areas.

Review by bmclee See Profile

  • Location: Jacksonville, Duval, FL, USA
  • Cost Contract price not specified.
Reliable basic connection
Speed is RARELY even 1/2 of what was promised. Most times it's hardly better than DSL. Tech support is without a trace of a clue
Not worth it - if I could get a BellSouth DSL, I'd switch in a heartbeat.
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection Reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

I ordered a "4000/350" ('your mileage may vary') and they largely delivered -- until they started heavily marketing their internet telephone service. The speed has dropped to 1500 to 2500, sometimes less than 1000. Most of the time Clearwire matches or beats them for a lot less money.

member for 18 years, 83 visits, last login: 13 years ago
lodged 17.8 years ago







Review by deejaychrisk8 See Profile

  • Location: Chicago, Cook, IL, USA
  • Cost: $74 per month
  • Install: about 7 days
Great speed, reliable up time
price
ended up switching to SBC yahoo dsl more bang for my buck
Pre Sales information:
Install Co-ordination:
Connection Reliability:
Tech Support:
Services:
Value for money:

At first att broadband had the deal for 4 megs down for 29.99 for 6 months then it went all the way up to 59.99 thereafter service was good but would go in and out ocasionally good service switched to dsl for a lower price.

member for 19.9 years, 52 visits, last login: 16.8 years ago
lodged 18 years ago