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Review by honzik See Profile

  • Location: Los Gatos, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
  • Cost: $139 per month (24 month contract)
  • Install: about 14 days
Fast, low latency, 24/7/365 Availability.
Pricier than the cable, but well worth it.
Great option for a place with semi-regular power outages
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So, I had Comcast for internet alone, and was growing dissatisfied. Why? Because every month they raised my bill by around one dollar, so that over time I was paying $110/month for just internet. On top of that, I had to pay basic TV fees even though we never hooked up the cable box. The final kicker was the power outages. Nothing Comcast can do about that (thanks PG&E), but being without internet access for days on end was just unacceptable.

As a result, I switched to Etheric Networks. I now have a small dish mounted on the side of my house that points to a transmitter on the ridge top, and can be assured of surviving the rain and wind storms that sweep through my area with plenty of bandwidth, even when my power is out and only my generator is running. Ordering was simple and installation was a snap. On top of that, a pleasant surprise: the service was rated an A+ on my ping tests, with very low latency and jitter compared to Comcast. This seems to have the beneficial effect of making my wifi calling on my T-Mobile phone sound every bit as good as a regular phone call. With Comcast, the calls were disrupted on occasion with annoying chirps and dropouts. No more!

In short, this is a great option for those who live in rural or semi-rural areas where the power can go out on a semi-regular basis, providing excellent availability, low latency, and good bandwidth.



member for 22.9 years, 371 visits, last login: 16 days ago
updated 4.3 years ago


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

former qwest

Premium Member

nice review!

i'd never heard of them so i checked out their website. their coverage area is HUGE!

»ethericnetworks.com/cove ··· age-map/

honzik
join:2001-04-20
Los Gatos, CA

3 edits

1 recommendation

honzik

Member

Should label me as a happy customer!

I note that on the reviews page it labels my review as "mixed", but really I couldn't be happier. I suppose that's because I did point out that it was pricier than cable. Still, the extra monthly cost is well worth it given the 99.9+ percent availability and low latency and jitter.

UPDATE: I edited my review to ensure a good rating.
jellis
join:2019-12-02
La Honda, CA

jellis

Member

Re: Should label me as a happy customer!

Thanks for the great review! I work at Etheric and found it as (part of my job). I'm also a new Etheric customer and feel the same. I just moved to a place in La Honda that only has fixed wireless available and am very happy.

Would you be willing to let us use your review on our website? I'd link back to this review and I'll drop the page link in here when published.

Lemme know.

Thanks,

John

honzik
join:2001-04-20
Los Gatos, CA

honzik

Member

Re: Should label me as a happy customer!

You guys have been great, so feel free to use it!

Review by jharrell See Profile

  • Location: Redwood City, San Mateo, CA, USA
  • Cost Contract price not specified. (12 month contract)
  • Install: about 2 days
Setup was quick, Blazing Speed, Symetrical Service, Great Support
Cost
Great for anyone that needs speed, bandwidth and great service.
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We have had Etheric service for almost two years as no other high speed options were available in the area.

Etheric’s SOHO/Small Office Service for home/office has provided us with extremely fast upload and download speeds. Great if you have a home/office and transfer a lot of data between locations. The high speed, coupled with the nearly symmetrical service enables everyone to simultaneously browse the internet, upload and download files, stream data and utilize VOIP phones.

Etheric’s service technicians are very knowledgeable and easy to reach. Outages rarely occur, but when one does, service is restored quickly.

While the service may cost more than some other high speed providers, the availability of service, quick setup, blazing speed, reliability and support made Etheric the right choice for our needs.

member for 10.7 years, driveby review (so far)
lodged 10.7 years ago


Review by (hidden by request)

  • Location: Redwood City, San Mateo, CA, USA
  • Cost Contract price not specified.
Fast setup, reliable connection
Highly recommend
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Using Etheric Networks wireless for business connectivity. Excellent
connection/uptime. Happy to have personal contact when I have
questions.

(review was emailed from domain reputation.com)
lodged 12.1 years ago







Review by xradr See Profile

  • Location: undisclosed location
  • Cost: $179 per month (month by month)
  • Install: about 15 days
Awesome speed, reliability, and low latencies. Very knowledgable and friendly staff.
wish the cost was a little less, but you get what you pay for!
Highly recommend, without reservations
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I have been a huge fan of DSL reports for a few years. I sincerely appreciate all of the great reviews, articles, and forums. I've learned a lot from you all over those years!

I have been using Etheric Network's services for about two months now. I use the service in a dual WAN router with a non-SLA comcast "business grade" service. I'm currently on the platinum plan. From the get go, Lance was outstanding. The location that I was moving to was spec'd for free. They sent a technician out with meters and a dish to get line of site to their tower. Despite being 20 miles away, we got good signal. They were professional in their installation. Aside from some minor hiccups with the initial install and some settings, things went off perfectly. Since that time, I have had a single brief outage and their tech support staff were very helpful in resolving the issue.

Overall, I get about 80% faster download speeds (sustained) than I pay for (usually can get between 7 - 10 mbps download sustained, not burstable). Upload is consistently between 4-6 mbps. My plan is 5 mbps symmetric. The latencies going cross country are better than my comcast line (I see typically about 30% lower latency for traffic to east coast ... I guess they use better peering partners than comcast?). Latencies to local and regional server (under 500 miles away) are comparable to other providers. VoIP services seem to perform well (better than on comcast at the same location).

Lastly, and most importantly the couple of times I've had to call ... the support and sales staff have been excellent. They are respectful, knowledgeable and friendly. Generally speaking they don't sounds like typical "tier 1 tech support" or guys just trying to make a buck. I feel like they have some level of pride in their company and what they are doing. They seem genuinely interested in helping.

Overall, I have had an excellent experience thusfar. I would give them highest recommendation. Thanks much Etheric!

member for 12.8 years, 30 visits, last login: 7.5 years ago
updated 12.8 years ago


Review by hetherington See Profile

  • Location: La Honda, San Mateo, CA, USA
  • Cost Contract price not specified.
Outstanding personal service by highly knowledgeable engineering professionals
None compared to conventional ISPs
Super fast internet signal with active feedback. Personal, highly knowledgeable service lacking from otherISPs
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We have been Etheric subscribers since about 2005-2006. We formerly had Earthlink and Direcway Satellite. Satellite service is slow, can't handle VOIP, and if anything goes wrong, support personnel seem to have no understanding about what one is talking about. They obviously refer to a printout of "canned' responses. Outages would last for days with no resolution. Service became very slow in rain or even fog.

Etheric's competitive advantage resides in blazing fast speeds- faster than 3G, with no latency in rain storms, and what appears to be active feedback on the signal with the ability to dynamically optimize signal strength.

The competitive advantage is augmented by personalized service from highly trained support personnel. The Etheric staff even knows the names of its subscribers, and the routes to their antennas. This cuts downtime to a minimum. Problems are identified and quickly resolved. Service like this is not possible with conventional ISPs or big Telcos.



member for 15.5 years, 1 visits, last login: 13 years ago
updated 13 years ago


Review by corygreen See Profile

  • Location: Moss Landing, Monterey, CA, USA
  • Cost: $150 per month (12 month contract)
  • Install: about 2 days
Realiable. Will come to you with site survey and if their is no imediate LOS they will do everything as far as a tower
A little pricy
Best alternative for low ping high speeds, in different packages.
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ISDL, ISDSN, aDSL, Cable, satalite, wireless, verizon, AT&t, redshift, wbba, dish, comcast, direct tv, fiber, T1, partial T1, 28Kbps, 56Kbps

2Mbps burst 4Mbps

residential 150$

G4 Res

Would like lower costs and higher speed for the money but wheres there is no alternate this is the best solution. As they upgrade theirnew system and fiber becomes more available and cheaper i see the prices on their end coming down and providing cheaper service and a bigger slice of the pie. they are currently doing a major upgrade to provide even better service. Lance is a cool fair and knowledgeable person you can count on to answer his phone. Not once have they failed to answer and resolve any questions. This week they are adding more Ap's to upgrade to G4. This will fix any problems other users may have had in the past. Thomas is an expert installer and you can tell he has terminated thousands of cat 5 cables with a quick pro install. This may be your best option for gaming, streaming, Mp3, Xbox. More to come as they upgrade i will revise my review to the new system which is very exciting. If you have any questions, i am an expert in finding service in the area.

Contact Etheric Sales
877-541-3905 toll free
sales@etheric.net

Etheric serves these Northern California Cities and more:

Alviso
Aptos

Aromas
Atherton
Belmont
Burlingame*
Ben Lomand
Berryessa

Boulder Creek*
Campbell
Capitola
Corralitos
Cupertino
Elkhorn

Felton
Foster City
Freedom
Fremont
Gilroy
Hayward

Hillsborough
La Honda
Los Altos
Los Gatos
Millbrae
Milpitas

Mountain View
Morgan Hill
Oakland (parts)
Palo Alto
Portola Valley
Redwood City

San Jose
San Martin
San Mateo
Santa Cruz
Santa Clara
Saratoga

Scotts Valley
Soquel
South San Francisco
Sunnyvale
Watsonville
Woodside

*partial coverage
Detailed coverage map(280KB!)

Etheric's Coverage Area

Monterey Bay

Silicon Valley, SF Bay Peninsula, South Counties

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member for 13.7 years, 4 visits, last login: 13.5 years ago
updated 13.6 years ago


Review by sercom See Profile

  • Location: Castroville, Monterey, CA, USA
  • Cost: $140 per month
  • Install: about 4 days
Even when it rains it works and it's getting better every time, low latency, and symetric
they disappeared after company upgraded router and inserted socalled device recently
I get very good conectionn and it is 99% up not to say always, even networking is not perfect
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I live in a quiet rural area where everything is so peaceful, and I do enjoy the the best of both worlds thanks to Etheric Networks. I can have access to broadband and still live in the middle of a peaceful area outside the city with speeds that tops those of DSL. I highly recommend it for everyone who might be in a similar situation. The service is just getting better and hopefully if more clients join around my area we my get upgraded to their new generation G4. It is all about a very promising future with this wireless ISP.

member for 17.2 years, 44 visits, last login: 13.6 years ago
lodged 13.8 years ago


Review by MHethering See Profile

  • Location: La Honda, San Mateo, CA, USA
  • Cost: $99 per month
  • Install: about 14 days
Ultra High Speed: High Security; Trustworthy, Reliable and Fast Tech Support
None
Great company, great people
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Etheric appears to have implemented advanced technology. Etheric connection speeds are now the fastest we have experienced with any type of Internet, far faster than Verizon's 3G, even when one is two miles from a Verizon tower. Etheric also provides an optional high security solution for home based offices, enabling substantially secure transfer of commercially valuable data to clients. In contrast, no similar service is available from big ISPs.

Tech support has been outstanding and responsive. We reach a live person 90% of the time who is familiar with our antenna links, and Etheric monitoring equipment appears to show almost instantly what the problem is. In those instances when we don't reach a person, emails and voicemails are acted upon within about 20 minutes or less.

Alex Hagen is extremely knowledgeable about security and has implemented extra security measures that are not possible with other ISPs.

Etheric uses a technology that is substantially immune to atmospheric conditions. DirecWay and Earthlink went down or became unstable every time we had rain, drizzle, or even thick fog.

We highly recommend Etheric. Etheric provides a reliable, cost effective, high speed alternative to satellite, DSL, and cable.

member for 15.9 years, 1 visits, last login: 14 years ago
updated 14 years ago

sghulten
join:2003-04-17
Gilroy, CA

sghulten

Member

Big improvement in southern network

Alex made a network change about 3 weeks ago and the system has been consistently fast ever since. I can't even comment on the tech support since the system has been so stable. Very happy now.

aligzanduh2
@comcast.net

aligzanduh2

Anon

What a nice review thanks !

Its nice to know that the efforts we have put in to our services are bearing fruit!

We will try to keep it that way!

Regards

Alexander Hagen
CEO
Etheric Networks Inc

Review by billhare See Profile

  • Location: Milpitas, Santa Clara, CA, USA
  • Business customer Business customer
  • Cost: $99 per month
  • Install: about 2 days
Real speed, GREAT support!
a few small bumps in the road, but immediately addressed.
Finally internet in a rural area that rivals the big-city folk!
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This is a review of my experience with Etheric so far:

After 10 years of waiting, I finally have great internet service at my house! I tried everything from ISDN to Hughes Satellite, but when it came to doing any real work, I'd have to drive down the hill to Starbucks. Now I can TRULY work from home, finally! Etheric has changed my life.

I'm so happy that someone finally addressed our need - it is no easy task in these hills (Calveras Road/Spring Valley above Milpitas). The system has been working great for several months now, and the few technical problems we've had have been handled by superb customer service - they really seem to care about each individual, unlike every big-name provider I have used.

I was quite impressed a few days ago that I got a call from Etheric to tell me that they would need to take me offline for about 15 minutes while they adjusted something on their tower. Knowing that I am using their service for my business, they cared enough to check first to make sure I wasn't in the middle of a file transfer or online meeting before starting this repair. I mean, if I were a big company with a $1000 a month internet connection it would be one thing, but I have the bottom-rung plan with them, and they still care enough to do that. Consider me a big fan - Etheric has far surpassed my expectations.

-Bill

member for 14.2 years, driveby review (so far)
lodged 14.2 years ago


Review by (hidden by request)

  • Location: Los Altos, Santa Clara, CA, USA
  • Cost Contract price not specified.
fast, realiable, good tech and sales support
pricy, no cell phone support (need to add femtocell)
good experience
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Early user of Etheric. I have direct line of sight to Santa Clara HQ.
Performance is great, minimal tech issues (10 months). Very good people and
helpful. Much better performance than Verizon wireless. Absolutely much
better than Hughes net.

(review was emailed from domain att.net)
lodged 14.5 years ago