Review AT&T U-Verse in AT&T U-verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r17147349 en Thu, 21 Aug 2008 04:41:25 EDT Thu, 21 Aug 2008 04:41:25 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20964233 MacZero : Have been using U-Verse for a few months now and over all it's good. We opted for the fastest internet at 10mbps and love the speed. Uploads are 1.5 and work reasonably well. This system is significantly better than the Comcast, 6 down 1 up, system we did have. U-Verse is consistently around 9mbps on most of my speed tests.

I hate the 2Wire VDSL2 gateway you get. The wireless system seems to have problems loading images on some websites. I don't use it but MySpace is a good example of a site that doesn't work right and images just won't load or are very slow. Other sites seem to have the same problem if the images are not hosted on the that site but are linked in from another site. You can turn off their wifi and run your own to get around this issue. It's a little complex to explain the issue and fix here. I also don't like the management interface you get it's just too limited for a geek like me. You can open one device on your network to the full internet and not have any firewall on it. This is part of the wifi fix and you can add your own wifi router that way. Or you can run a game system or limited use server.

With AT&T also get WiFi options in a large number of business around the country and the combined billing for cell, TV, home phone and internet are very nice. But then you realize just how much you spend on all of this stuff.

The TV/DVR aspects are just OK in comparison to Direct TV DVR that I did have for 3 years. AT&T should drop the Windows based DVR in favor of the TiVo system that Direct uses. The TiVo/Direct system is just more intuitive and has more recording preference options. You can record up to 4 standard def programs on U-Verse which is better than you can get with Direct without getting a second DVR. U-Verse doesn't record anything you haven't told it to record so if you like the feature on the TiVo that records things you might like based on your "Thumbs Up" settings then you won't like the U-Verse DVR. There isn't anything like that feature on the U-Verse DVR. With 4 SD recordings though you can record almost everything you might want. Other than the lack of recording features the U-Verse DVR does have some better channel surfing options with PIP and I like their guide a little better than Direct. The ability to get online anywhere in the world and tell your DVR to record certain programs is very nice.

I haven't tried the HD option yet (I don't have an HD TV) but I like the idea that I can just go to a web page and subscribe then have HD right now. With Direct you would have to get a new DVR in most cases.

I would absolutely keep the internet connection but I would seriously consider dropping the TV option in favor of Direct TV. I'll gibe them until Spring 2009 to make things better. If you love HD then Direct or even Dish are probably better options for you unless you can get HD via a normal TV antenna. You will probably always get a better image from the air than from satellite or wired TV services.

As I understand it U-Verse does have a better HD image than most cable systems but it isn't as good as satellite and a normal TV antenna.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20964233 Sun, 17 Aug 2008 13:50:16 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20945861 djrobx : Both U-Verse and Dish use MPEG-4 compression.

There's a lot more to it than just broadcast format.

U-verse has a 25mbps pipe to the home, that also has to carry up to 10mbps internet. AT&T is not currently doing any "mixed-use" of their streams, I've personally tested that I get my full 10mbps when I'm using all 4 streams.

So, that leaves 15mbps for TV. Within that 15mbps, they fit 2 HD and 2 SD TV streams. I have yet to see hard facts about their HD data rates, but you can do a little calculating. They advertise that their DVR holds 133 hours of SD and 37 hours of HD. That means HD streams are 3.6x the size of the SD streams.

So:

x + x + 3.6x + 3.6x = 15
x(1+1+3.6+3.6) = 15
x = 15 / 9.2
x = 1.63

Using these calculations, SD is 1.63mbps and HD streams are 5.86mbps.

For comaprison, someone posted the file sizes for shows captured from their DISHnetwork box at MPEG-4. Their recorded "Battlestar Galactica" in HD was at 7.7mbps. Their local MPEG-4 NBC was a whopping 11.2mbps!

So, given that Dish is delivering higher MPEG-4 data rates, it's easy to see why they might have better picture quality. Interestingly, the most common complaint about U-verse is not breakup during high action scenes, but rather a "stepping" motion in the background of practically still video. Seems like that's something that could be improved in the compression algorithms.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20945861 Wed, 13 Aug 2008 16:30:18 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20930577 anon : There's a lot of chatter about Dish HD quality better than U-Verse. Its not clear to me how that is possible unless it is simply broadcast in lesser format (e.g. 1080i vs p vs 780i or p). Does anyone have the facts?

We get approx 170 HD channels on Dish which far surpasses the approx 50 on U-Verse, but I suppose they'll keep adding.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20930577 Sun, 10 Aug 2008 20:36:27 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20905963 anon : I have been reading a lot of the reviews posted on here, and it seems like there is some arguments taking place. Lets take some things into account. The negatives are ALWAYS noticed. We all hate our cell phone carriers, our banks, our car insurance, our boss, etc. You get the picture. One thing I love about my U-Verse is that, unlike cable, I didn't sign up at a really low bundle price just to have it jacked up on me every month. It is new technology, and it is always going to be getting better. On top of that, they know the problems they have, which is one of the reasons they give it out for free for the first month. Plus more channels at a equal price to cable. Just one guys opinion...]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20905963 Tue, 05 Aug 2008 23:54:53 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20889373 Reese1972 : ATT your world delivered.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20889373 Sat, 02 Aug 2008 14:41:43 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20811251 mareastrum : U-Verse was installed on Tuesday. The tech called SO about 11:45 to let him know he was running behind due to a difficult install with another customer, would it be okay if he made it a little after 1 or so.

The tech was still there when I got home at 6pm, but he was mostly cleaning up and explaining to SO how the system works.

We spent time checking out all the features and discovered the free VOD (Classic Doctor Who, yeah!).

The speed for the internet is much faster than what we were getting on DSL and the wireless works much better. We actually have the modem out of the basement too, which has made us very happy.

All in all, we are very very pleased with the service. ]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20811251 Fri, 18 Jul 2008 10:57:03 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20750155 underscore_ : Got U-Verse installed yesterday. Since I am unable to receive regular AT&T DSL service they didn't hassle me about just ordering the VDSL only. the install took a little over an hour. I ordered the 6/1 package, i believe it is the Elite.

Speeds are awesome, very stable. The pings are outstanding. I used to have ISDN, where the pings weren't stable at all and ranged from 95ms - 150ms. After a day of gaming online with buddies, my pings are from 35ms - 75ms SOLID. 68ms was the highest I saw and it was to a server in Southern California, & I live in Michigan.
I am extremely pleased with U-Verse thus far.
]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20750155 Sun, 06 Jul 2008 19:13:08 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20737842 MyDogHsFleas :
said by rldtx :

My complaint now with U-verse is that even though they ran cat5 everywhere, they cut up my TWC coax.
Did you ask them to keep your cable active? I hope so, because installers can't read your mind. If I were you, I'd call and lodge an installation complaint and make them run new coax. Maybe they will.

I do hope, however, that they let me keep the Internet (which is fine) so I don't have to go through getting my old DSL back.
My experience was that they allowed me to cancel the TV and keep U-verse Internet, but they were a bit prying about why I wanted to do it. You seem to have a decent list. ]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20737842 Thu, 03 Jul 2008 16:05:43 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20736647 anon : Ok, I tried it and not keeping it.

I may be picky, but here's why I'm not keeping it.

1. Existing remotes can't be programmed to access Moto VIP boxes - no codes.
2. U-verse remotes don't change sources on any of my TV's
3. Interactive options are really slow
4. Freezes on some functions that essentially lock up the TV.
5. No page up/down on menus
6. Music channels are kind of crappy.
7. HD quality isn't up to TWC - sorry.

The additional content just wasn't worth the hassle.

My complaint now with U-verse is that even though they ran cat5 everywhere, they cut up my TWC coax.

I do hope, however, that they let me keep the Internet (which is fine) so I don't have to go through getting my old DSL back.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20736647 Thu, 03 Jul 2008 12:08:38 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20732024 Traxless : Read this entire thread ... took parts of 2 days. I'm not eager to make the plunge with AT&T. I'll just stay with my antenna a while longer.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20732024 Wed, 02 Jul 2008 14:21:12 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20692812 gdm : Not sure where you get that. Pricing is up front and they don't do any bundling discounts. They used to give $10 off if you had TV and Net but not now. I ordered U-Verse when they did offer that luckily.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20692812 Tue, 24 Jun 2008 17:10:25 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20692779 kjl1977 : Seems to me that U-Verse isn't that great of a deal. I current get dry loop DSL (1.5-3.0) and Dish HD DVR for less that the basic U-Verse package. Seems like AT&T is just doing what Comcast did and disguising packages as 'savings'. ]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20692779 Tue, 24 Jun 2008 17:03:05 EDT Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20692738 anon : Internet. 1st week my speeds are 99% of what my plan calls for. The latency times are 11ms to 29ms. Now that is speed. Our older copper DSL system ran about 40-60% of what the plan called for and latency times ran 49ms to 98ms. Uverse (fiber optics) is a major step forward. The future looks " Bright " to me with ATT !]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20692738 Tue, 24 Jun 2008 16:51:27 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20678943 jtmarshiii : Customer service sucks big time. If you though At@t cell phone service was bad just wait!
-Install Tech One NO SHOW (he lied about contacting me and was fired for it according to dispatch) Reschedule for Saturday.
-They give me a $100 credit for me taking a day off work and upped me to U400 for 6 months.
- Saturday is here but no tech! Call dispatch they say they can't help and transfer me to someone that can. I was transfered to the main At@t number and had to go through all the prompts and several more transfers.
- Uvers rep. tells me my order was CANCELED Monday. He couldn't figure out why because he saw dispatch rescheduled and customer service gave me credit!
- They couldn't come out Sat. some they need to reschedule BUT their PC is down so he writes down my name and number and said I'll call you Monday or Tuesday. Sound like a big blow off to me! So I'll wait until Tuesday then is't no more At@t for me and I'll become the biggest loudest anti spokes person for this and any service At@t crries.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20678943 Sat, 21 Jun 2008 22:02:43 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20677001 anon : After having ATT U-Verse for 3 months the three most outstanding things that should be noted are customer service, HD clarity, library of movies. Of course these are all negative. The pro is the price! My first issue when I looked at the HD in 1080i compared to Comcast and my neighbors Dish, it was definitely not as crisp. I won't use the word my neighbor used, but he was right. More grainy, or pixel looking and not as crisp. I decided to just put up with it. Then I noticed that compared to the movies that comcast had ready to view, there was just no comparison in amount. Last but not least, and definitely the most frustrating was the support. For some reason I noticed that showtime would appear on and I thought it was just free days here and there, then I noticed HBO, and then it would be gone. I didn't pay too much attention to it because I didn't care to watch them. Now the kicker is when I suddenly moved out of the home I was in on 5/7, I called in to cancel my service. Keep in mind I had a bill in front of me said I owed from a charge period of 4/07 to 5/6 total of 113.51 I was told that my service would be cut off that day and I might be expected to pay for 1 day prorated charge since it was into the new month by one day. I was also told that boxes would be mailed out to my new address so I can ship the equipment back. 3 weeks goes by and no new bill and no boxes. I call in. I am now told that my service is still active at my old address and its not off, and it doesn't show that I cancelled it. Keep in mind that on this day I was transferred by four people hung up on, and on this fifth person, and over an hour later I was just able to sink my teeth into this person that is now telling me I owe for another whole month. Being a cop for 19 years and facing death a couple of times I wasn't losing this battle. When it was all said and done, they realized I had made contact on 5/7 and new the procedure for shipping back equipment and that I must have talked to someone about canceling my service on that day. They told me I wasn't even going to be pro rated that one day for the 7th. 3 weeks later no boxes, but new bill for 147.31. After talking to one person this time for 20 minutes and us going over my new bill there was no backing down that instead of owing 113.51, I really owed 147.31. Even though I had called one day after my charge period and cancelled my service. They also said I had ordered Showtime and ENcore, which I never did and didn't waste time watching it when I noticed it was there.

Conclusion: You decide for yourself. I'm just one person, but read through all the rest of these and then make your best guess. Is saving 30.00 a month worth the picture quality, movie availability, very poor service?]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20677001 Sat, 21 Jun 2008 11:50:41 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20672395 anon : The sales rep came by and sold us on the Pro U400 and convinced me to switch by saying that it could record 4 things at once and that the recorded shows could be streamed to any other TV or computer in our house. This is not true. Our confirmation email verified that recorded shows can only be watched on the TV that has the DVR hooked up. I thought it sounded too good to be true and questioned him extensively on it, (like how can that work??). This would never work in my household with teenagers who want to watch their recorded shows at the same time as parents!

Staying with my Astound service!

Buyer beware, the sales reps are not technically well informed! ]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20672395 Fri, 20 Jun 2008 11:54:44 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20660646 The Drake : Hey Rockwall, TX; make the switch from Charter! Its been less than a week for me but I can't believe the better quality! You are missing out if you stay with Charter.

The Uverse DVR needs some work, and I don't think even 2/2 is enough but those are so minor for for you get with Uverse. The internet is better too. I work from home a lot and must upload large graphic files. The 3 mbps I had worked but 10 mbps/1.5 mbps is so much better!

All I have to say right now is make the switch from Charter in Rockwall. Uverse; please work on your DVR.

I did get my Tivo box working but I would rather have a better quality from Uverse and get rid of Tivo too.

Still happy for now. I keep keep everyone updated.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20660646 Wed, 18 Jun 2008 07:58:06 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20649760 The Drake : Installed June 13 2008. So far it is great! I have already cancelled Charter! Maybe too soon on that but I got refund of bill I just paid which will take care of first month bill for Uverse.

Installed with CAT5. Have 2/2. The HD is so much clearer than Charter with more HD programming. Charter never could fix their HD problem after multiple attempts.

We had Tivo service on all 4 TVs in house. I promised my wife she could still use Tivo service through Tivo. Oh no... I am in HOT WATER. Many failed attempts so far to get it going on her TV. We had two dual tuners and 2 single tuners with TIVO. We were use to recording whatever/whenever and transferring to different TVs. We record a lot of TV and it is rare occasion to watch 'Live TV.'

The tech arrived on schedule at 9:00am and it took him until 6:00 pm without lunch. Seems a little long considering I have central location for all equipment except 3 STB which are in three rooms still within 50' of each other.

Installed RG, 4 STB. Attempted to use my router for extra ports with no luck. Turned off 2wire wireless and got in once than it shut down. Also when using my wireless it had conflict with TV and slowed everthing down. 2Wire seems fine but I need more than 4 ports. Guess I am out to buy gigaswitch today.

Can't wait until WHDVR. ha-ha... Until then I need to make wife happy even though she will lose dual tuner and HD. I thought the answer was to use the 4 streams to allow her to record all her stuff. WRONG! It disabled viewing on all other TVs when it started recording three shows at once and she was watching one live show on her TV. That is a pain!

I know, boo-whoo on Tivo thing. But that is they way we are use to watching TV. We watched more live TV this weekend just trying out new toy. We normally go all week without TV and then catch up on our programs.

Bottom line is happy in Rockwall, TX. Must make wife happy. Goodbye Charter! ]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20649760 Mon, 16 Jun 2008 08:50:15 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20502530 travanx : yeah i think a bridge is it, my terminology is terrible for what is what for wireless. i was hoping to use the dgl-4500 as the routing portion, but i am realizing there is probably no point to doing this except that i want to use the gigabit ports on the dlink router. I do want to put my 2 wrt54g routers through the house to extend the wireless connection. I still cant believe how great the TV is, HD on so many more channels than Dish with much clearer picture.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20502530 Sun, 18 May 2008 16:48:04 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20496643 koolkid1563 : I am a bit confused on what you are trying to accomplish. You want to use your 4500 as the access point, which is understandable for N access. You said you want to use the 54G as an access point as well, but I suspect you actually meant as a bridge? If you don't have any other N clients that will be using the 4500, I would just use the G access point already in the RG and use the 54G as a bridge.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20496643 Sat, 17 May 2008 01:26:21 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20495948 travanx : Signed up online on tuesday and had the install today. Took from 10am until 5pm and they had a lunch in between. Wired for 2 computers and 3 TV's in a house with a crawl space basement. The installer was really cool and very friendly and knew what he needed to know for the install. We also got a new drop on the side of the house.

So far extremely happy with the 10meg speed and the HD is much much clearer than HD on Dish. Ping on speedtest is 23ms as well. The HD is currently hooked up to a 48" mits RPTV through component. I love how the channels change fast as opposed to satellite.

Now the only thing to do is figure out how to change all the default stuff on the gateway and bring my D-Link DGL-4500 into the network and let that give wireless out, and then have a WRT54-G as an access point to that. Anyone have a good link on step by step on how to configure this??]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20495948 Fri, 16 May 2008 22:19:19 EDT Re: Tried it, final update, http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20487843 MyDogHsFleas : Your alarm service may not work with VoIP. You may want to keep your POTS line, which you certainly can do.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20487843 Thu, 15 May 2008 14:57:51 EDT Re: Tried it, final update, http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20470773 anon : Wait, it may not be necessary for the alarm installer to do anything since Uverse will replace my current phone service I guess having two CAT5e lines pre-wired is good enough, the Uverse technician will know how to hook the alarm back up to the new phone service too?]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20470773 Mon, 12 May 2008 16:09:13 EDT Re: Tried it, final update, http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20470740 anon : Thanks for the info. I checked out my cable box there are two CAT5e service lines coming from the junction box at the curb, one is currently used for phone, the other used for alarm. I guess I can ask the alarm installer to come back to tie the alarm into the phone line, and vacate the other CAT5e line for Uverse?]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20470740 Mon, 12 May 2008 16:02:40 EDT Re: Tried it, final update, http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20468583 gdm : Best method is run cat3 or 5e from the NID to the RG. The RG should be inside not out.

As far as speed and reliability it's been rock solid for me. Had it almost 3 months and no issues, on the 10meg plan.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20468583 Mon, 12 May 2008 08:00:42 EDT Re: Tried it, final update, http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20468289 anon : I just ordered Uverse triple deal, intended to cancel the TV service after one month of free viewing. I ordered the $55/mo 10 mbps new Uverse broadband, I wonder if anyone has experience with that in reliability and speed?

Also currently I have no spare coax runs going into the house, they are all used up by satellite TV service. From what I read it is possible to use CAT5E run for the service, that will save from drilling holes and run additional RG6s. Is this ture? If so I guess the bulky gateway must be at the cable box outside? Not a good idea.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20468289 Mon, 12 May 2008 03:18:39 EDT Re: Tried it, final update, http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20460839 MyDogHsFleas :
said by urstoeger :

ATT told me that I keep the internet service if I cancelled Uverse TV. Internet is only available as a package deal (at least in my California area).
It seems to depend on who you talk to. Most people reporting on this forum and other uverse forums have no problem canceling the TV portion and keeping the Internet. I certainly had no problem doing that, personally.

My advice is, if you get someone who insists that you have to cancel the U-verse Internet if you cancel the TV portion, just politely say "OK, thank you, goodbye" and call back to talk to someone else. You do NOT have to cancel the Internet and revert to AT&T DSL just because you've cancelled the TV portion. ]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20460839 Sat, 10 May 2008 09:56:51 EDT Re: Tried it, final update, http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20460098 anon : ATT told me that I keep the internet service if I cancelled Uverse TV. Internet is only available as a package deal (at least in my California area).]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20460098 Sat, 10 May 2008 01:13:11 EDT Re: Tried it, final update, http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20396792 MyDogHsFleas : hey wings -- two things --

1) you do NOT need a landline phone with U-verse. I don't know what gave you that idea.

2) Why would you cancel U-verse completely and switch back to DSL if you were getting more speed for the same money with U-verse? You could have just canceled the TV service and kept the U-verse Internet. That's what I did. ]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20396792 Sun, 27 Apr 2008 20:36:00 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20382175 anon : I joined AT&T U-Verse last year, thinking that it sounded like a great idea from a great company. If you like multiple day long visits from technicians, poor quality, resetting the box, pixelation, delays from remote to receiver, horrible customer service, long waits on hold, overcharges, undelivered promises, and an almost impossible task of getting a refund; then by all means get U-Verse & AT&T phone service in San Diego. I don't *ever* complain about service, but this is the worse I've ever been treated by any company regardless of their size. Cox cable is great, with Time Warner a distant second in San Diego]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20382175 Thu, 24 Apr 2008 20:19:24 EDT Re: Tried it, final update, http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20373468 A P CC : More UNTOLD/UNKNOWN to the consumer information for those that have or are using U-verse,
First I have used Directv for the last 10+ yrs,plus AT&T DSL "Elite" package & am NOW back to these same packages,,,,Last week I tried AT&T Uverse,(television & internet service) from April 9th through April 15th,
FOR those that think I have an axe to grind against Uverse, or started out hating U Verse even befor I ordered it,
Hey YOUR WRONG, why should I hate it or exaggerate about this?,Since I can afford what I want to get.
example:telephone / bill has every option that AT&T offers, (except Uverse & web networking) and that includes separate cinguluar account, my dsl Elite package, & paying for a Friends DSL pro package ,
My Drectv Bill is just over a "Franklin" every month, so I can & often try new items to see if I prefer one thing over something else,
For THOSE that have U verse & HELPED me so much during the installation & trial period, I THANK YOU so much for your help, I RALLY Appreciate it)
===========================
Uverse works for you, & I hope you enjoy it,but as DIRECTV works for me, but maybe you have had problems with it in the past & it doesn't for for you.U Verse isn't for me,
======================
I did find out some Interesting information, from the new ATT U Verse tec's, (separate from AT&T telephone or Dsl tec's) something At&T doesn't tell you about U verse-

On the Plus side Uverse television is superior to Time warner/ Comcast tv picture in clarity,sound quality,HD, ect it is a a nice picture,and there are many different packages to choose from I tried the U 300
************************************
On the bad side,(unknown or untold to the consumers) for the phone service & Internet part of U-verse,
1, YOU HAVE TO have a land line-wall based telphone jack installed (no problem there)
2, The router /modem is really a "mini computer",(big,& bulky ) approx 4-5 times bigger then the AT&T/Gateway 2 wire modem/router.
2,If your a game player or need-want the speed, then U Verse works great,(see pict comparing Dsl Elite to Uverse internet speeds I was getting, side by side )
over all u verse worked good (but as 2 U Verse & I DSL) tec have said it is still in the trial & error stages of development stage,and "still has some bugs to work out of its system" since coming out last year.
3. With a landline phone installed, Uverse tech must by pass the telephone wall jack & install a separate (wired directly into the telephone wall wiring,so you have a separate line coming out of the wall behind the wall jack

Most importantly what is not told to consumers,
(an AT&T Telephone tec friend let me know after I had U verse installed & a U Verse tech confirmed this)
When U Verse is hooked up & working ok,
1,U Verse places "restricted access" to your telephone line,(about what options/service's & and or equipment can be added to your phone line)
2, If you no longer want U verse in your home,
(a) a AT&T UVERSE tech must come out & un wire the u verse wiring,
(b) No he cannot-or shouldn't take back the receiver nor the router.
(B) Then you have to start your DSL all over again & it has to be installed by an
AT&T Dsl tech

This post was started as "INFORMATIONAL" for those that might be thinking of switching to either dsl or u verse packages from AT&T.

speed tests here side by side,
»Re:DSL Elite vs,Uverse Elite,

and I hope that any response's can be kept informational about what you have experienced,(like or dislike ) while trying your/using your internet connection and/or tv (ota,,cable,U-verse,satallite system)& not critized anyone for trying one service over another,..
--
SOME people make use of a chat forum the same way public walls are used for graffiti,I don't feel compelled to respond to their graffiti ,then I feel equally at ease about ignoring they're post,I'll go about making my post & talking wih FRIENDS.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20373468 Wed, 23 Apr 2008 10:54:02 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20249640 Doctor Four : The install tech arrived today at around 12:40 PM, after
first calling to say he had to do some preliminary work at
the VRAD.

He put the 2-Wire RG in the room where my computer is at, and
ran coax to all of the TVs except my WinTV card. For
that he used Cat-5e to hook the STB to the 2-Wire. For my
mother's computer, we used the default security settings on
the 2-Wire, and made a wireless connection, which seems to
be much more reliable.

He had to run new drops to the RG and to the TV in my
bedroom as the front part of the house still used the old
RG-59, and could not run a drop on an exterior wall. So he
ran coax along my floor by the wall to the STB in my
bedroom.

Picture quality for SD (we have no HDTVs) is much better
than Time Warner: it looks like we'll be cancelling TWC
pretty soon. There was an initial problem with the RG as
my connection speed was registered as Express when it
should have been Elite. A simple call to AT&T by him was
all it took - my most recent speed test was 5505/919.

Time from start to completion was about 6 1/2 hours.
--
"The trouble with computers, of course, is that they are very sophisticated idiots." - Doctor Who (from Robot)
]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20249640 Sat, 29 Mar 2008 20:22:58 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20182143 gdm : I have the DVR TV on RG6 and the other TV on Cat5e. That TV was on 59 but had issues so they came back and replaced it with Cat5e.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20182143 Mon, 17 Mar 2008 22:18:53 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20182113 Doctor Four : I think it might be RG6 - we had the house remodeled and
extra space added, and part of that was rewiring the cable
through the attic. It would be easier if he were to use the
B side of the cable for the STBs (currently Time Warner runs
on only A - they used to have an A-B system, so we have an
unused B coax run in the house now); that way if we decide
we want to keep the cable, it is a simple matter just to
switch it back (no need to go into the attic and connect/
disconnect cabling).
--
"The trouble with computers, of course, is that they are very sophisticated idiots." - Doctor Who (from Robot)
]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20182113 Mon, 17 Mar 2008 22:12:13 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20182054 gdm : Is your existing coax 59 or rg6. If it's 59 then you want rg6 or cat5e.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20182054 Mon, 17 Mar 2008 22:03:31 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20182003 Doctor Four : Signed up for the U-Verse 200 package with 4 TVs* and 2
computers earlier tonight. First month's bill is going to
be $25 (TV service will be free for it), with no contract.
Afterward it will be $89/month before taxes, etc.

*One of the TVs is a PVR card on my computer.

Currently we have AT&T Elite ADSL, and Time-Warner Cable for
TV. The TV is only the basic and expanded basic services,
no digital, movie channels, sports programming or DVR. And
it is in SD.

In the house right now I have the DSL connected to a Linksys
wireless router, with one computer connected through Cat 5e,
and the other through wireless. The wireless one drops out
quite frequently; it is the one my mom uses, and she has to
repair the connection daily.

I plan to have both computers wired through Cat 5e, and
have the install tech run fresh wiring to the other
computer (hers is most likely going to be closest to the
RG).

As for the TVs, would it be better for the tech to run
new Cat 5e to each STB vs. them using our existing coax?
I've heard a lot of comments saying that picture quality
on the latter is poor compared to Cat 5e.

The tech is going to come out and install on March 29th,
arriving between 12-2 PM. Install is estimated at 5-8
hours (though the sales reps said typically it is about 4).
--
"The trouble with computers, of course, is that they are very sophisticated idiots." - Doctor Who (from Robot)
]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20182003 Mon, 17 Mar 2008 21:56:10 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20111525 Flippant : I agree completely with you, the service is too limited for my household and my family viewing preferences as well. By fortune or misfortune I have 3 HD sets and the HD just looks so much better on them. Sure it can be argued that there is only limited HD programming now, but I do not see compounding the problem by having limited access to the programming that is available.

Never mind who is watching what and where if it is desired to do so in HD I can easily do that with my crappy cable service and cannot with uverse. It may be fine for some but not for my household.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20111525 Wed, 05 Mar 2008 08:40:24 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20106176 wingrider01 :
said by ccallana See Profile :

Its true that AT&T has this limitation, and its your right to not choose them because of it. What I think is odd however is getting the service installed without already knowing this limitation. I've said it 3 times now - its not a secret, its in 50 threads on this board and every other discussion board that deals with this topic. Its on AT&Ts web site. Yes, their sales people are idiots, but in this day and age, to buy anything without some simple research and then blaming somebody else for your lack of knowledge seems a bit backwards. caveat emptor I suppose...
I agree, knew the limitations, told the sales weasels to take a long walk on a short pier and come back when they either unbundled the internet from the TV or got a viable real world senerio for HD and DVRs - this includes the Whole house solution being able to record the same number fo streams as HD/SD dvrs that I have, allow me and my family to watch TV in the correct format also and have the ability to add more storage to the unit - past the single TB range.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20106176 Tue, 04 Mar 2008 11:54:10 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20105534 ccallana : Its true that AT&T has this limitation, and its your right to not choose them because of it. What I think is odd however is getting the service installed without already knowing this limitation. I've said it 3 times now - its not a secret, its in 50 threads on this board and every other discussion board that deals with this topic. Its on AT&Ts web site. Yes, their sales people are idiots, but in this day and age, to buy anything without some simple research and then blaming somebody else for your lack of knowledge seems a bit backwards. caveat emptor I suppose...
--
"We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us.... We are far too easily pleased." C.S. Lewis]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20105534 Tue, 04 Mar 2008 10:16:14 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20105065 wingrider01 :
said by johnnymicro See Profile :

said by jrb531 See Profile :

So because my wife often watched TV in the bedroom while I'm on the computer and the kids are watching cartoons means I'm heading toward a broken marriage and messed up kids?

We all have to sit on the couch and watch the same show?

Thank you for saving my life... I had thought the time we spend together at the library, at dinner, playing board games and other such "together" time was enough. Apparently I have to watch soap operas with my wife and cartoons with the kids or we'll all turn out to be some weird sickos.

Funny how this does not seem to be an issue as long as we watch separate SD shows.... HD... well with HD (thanks AT&T) we have to watch the same HD show.

I am going to call AT&T tommorow and thank them for saving my family. After all the ability to only watch one HD show at a time is "not" a technical defect of Uverse but a decision from AT&T to help families spend more quality time together.

-JB
OK I must have totally misunderstood. You "Need" 3 HD feeds so that your wife can watch an HD program in the bedroom while you're watching TV in the basement, (which of course must be in HD while you're on the computer) and your kids are watching cartoons which of course look like crap unless they're in HD. I totally understand now and apologize for my rudeness.
No what you seem to misunderstand is the fact the OP, like myself have multiple HD sets in the house, why have a HD set if you cannot get a HD feed to each set, for that matter why have a HD DVR to record a program in High Definition an restrict the end user from watching a second High Definition program at the same time. Come on, this is not rocket science, Directv, Dish, and even the cable companies have been doing this for years, and AT&T comes out with a 1950's series solution like this? Like I mentioned before - AT&T can come back when they have a real world solution and not a mickey mouse one.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20105065 Tue, 04 Mar 2008 08:20:18 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20102238 jrb531 : Your rudeness was in suggesting that my family was heading for a train wreck because "I" do not prescribe to your predefined definition of what a family is.

When I pay for HD I want HD without silly limitations that are imposed because AT&T has technical issues.

If I can get HD on all of my HD TV's with Dish then for me to accept a 1 HD stream limit with AT&T it had better be substantially cheaper to account for this "serious" limitation.

BTW I'm still laughing just thinking about possible ads to promote Uverse....

"Sure we only support 1 HD TV at a time but we do this because we care about American Family Values and if we gave you more than one HD TV then your entire family structure would fall apart"

"AT&T... the company that cares about families and the quality time they spend together as you are all forced to share that 1 HDTV in the home"

*smiles*

-JB]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20102238 Mon, 03 Mar 2008 19:02:01 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20099492 gdm : Looks like the got yahoo tv listing show att u-verse as a cable provider now. So for those that use yahoo to see what's on tv it should work. Did for my zip code today.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20099492 Mon, 03 Mar 2008 11:14:58 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20098976 johnnymicro :
said by jrb531 See Profile :

So because my wife often watched TV in the bedroom while I'm on the computer and the kids are watching cartoons means I'm heading toward a broken marriage and messed up kids?

We all have to sit on the couch and watch the same show?

Thank you for saving my life... I had thought the time we spend together at the library, at dinner, playing board games and other such "together" time was enough. Apparently I have to watch soap operas with my wife and cartoons with the kids or we'll all turn out to be some weird sickos.

Funny how this does not seem to be an issue as long as we watch separate SD shows.... HD... well with HD (thanks AT&T) we have to watch the same HD show.

I am going to call AT&T tommorow and thank them for saving my family. After all the ability to only watch one HD show at a time is "not" a technical defect of Uverse but a decision from AT&T to help families spend more quality time together.

-JB
OK I must have totally misunderstood. You "Need" 3 HD feeds so that your wife can watch an HD program in the bedroom while you're watching TV in the basement, (which of course must be in HD while you're on the computer) and your kids are watching cartoons which of course look like crap unless they're in HD. I totally understand now and apologize for my rudeness.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20098976 Mon, 03 Mar 2008 09:25:31 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20098306 jrb531 : So because my wife often watched TV in the bedroom while I'm on the computer and the kids are watching cartoons means I'm heading toward a broken marriage and messed up kids?

We all have to sit on the couch and watch the same show?

Thank you for saving my life... I had thought the time we spend together at the library, at dinner, playing board games and other such "together" time was enough. Apparently I have to watch soap operas with my wife and cartoons with the kids or we'll all turn out to be some weird sickos.

Funny how this does not seem to be an issue as long as we watch separate SD shows.... HD... well with HD (thanks AT&T) we have to watch the same HD show.

I am going to call AT&T tommorow and thank them for saving my family. After all the ability to only watch one HD show at a time is "not" a technical defect of Uverse but a decision from AT&T to help families spend more quality time together.

-JB]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20098306 Mon, 03 Mar 2008 01:43:56 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20095882 johnnymicro :
said by jrb531 See Profile :

I'm sorry but the days of trying to suggest that anyone who has more than one HD TV is some form of nutbag are over.

-JB
Thats not my suggestion at all. My suggestion would be for you and your family watch TV together.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20095882 Sun, 02 Mar 2008 16:42:00 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20093960 wingrider01 :
said by ccallana See Profile :

I'd say I feel sorry for you, but 1) anyone with 3 HD TVs that need to be watched simultaneously doesn't need people feeling sorry for them, and 2) its clearly stated all over their website that only 1 HD stream is available at any one time, plus its all over any forum or review site - do your research and you are never surprised by stuff like that. :)
Why, have Directv here, 3 HD DVR's, 1 SD Dvr. each one of the HD DVR's have external SATA drives installed giving me 1 TB of program record storage each. The 3 HD sets are mainly on most of the day, and definately all on in the evening, wife watches one set of programs, kids watch another and I am watching the 3rd. You have not need to feel sorry for us.

This exactly is the reason I told the AT&T person thanks but no thanks, come back when you have a real world solution, or you unbundle internet access from the rest of the services]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20093960 Sun, 02 Mar 2008 10:02:22 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20091520 ccallana :
said by jrb531 See Profile :

I guess I'm rich and if a company "LIES" to me then it is somehow ok because it's "MY" fault that they lied.

I think not.

-JB

P.S. I watch 3 HD sets at one time all the time. My wife, myself and the kids. I guess having 3 sets on at one time is somehow whacko :)
I certainly don't think its ok that the sales people lied to you, I guess what I'm saying is that the 1 HD stream limitation is no secret. This board is coated with complaints about it, and we are not alone.. :) The sales people are not being completely honest this is probably true.

Now having 3 TVs on at the same time being wacko, that is a personal decision, and some people would tell you even having 1 TV is wacko... I'm not in that camp, but I know plenty of people who are... for the most part TV is a waste of time, and I admit, I waste a ton of time with it (almost as much as I waste here.... :) )
--
"We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us.... We are far too easily pleased." C.S. Lewis]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20091520 Sat, 01 Mar 2008 19:17:55 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20089868 koolkid1563 :
said by jrb531 See Profile :

While this is technically true it is underhanded and dishonest to not tell people that while you can connect 10,000 HDTV's to Uverse that you can only watch one at a time.
Not completely true, but your point is still valid and I see where you were going with it. You can have all 10,000 HDTVs watching an HD channel, but currently it has to be the same channel, not different.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20089868 Sat, 01 Mar 2008 13:15:58 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20089555 jrb531 :
said by ccallana See Profile :

I'd say I feel sorry for you, but 1) anyone with 3 HD TVs that need to be watched simultaneously doesn't need people feeling sorry for them, and 2) its clearly stated all over their website that only 1 HD stream is available at any one time, plus its all over any forum or review site - do your research and you are never surprised by stuff like that. :)
Why is the internet required to have Pay TV service? Say someone has cable and heard about Uverse and calls up and asks on the phone about the service. Since when do you then have to double check what the sales rep tells you to see if they are lying?

AT&T told them that 3 HD TV;s could be used with Uverse. While this is technically true it is underhanded and dishonest to not tell people that while you can connect 10,000 HDTV's to Uverse that you can only watch one at a time.

They know darn well what they are doing and I hope a big lawsuit results. I'm not a fan of lawsuits but this is dishonest and many people would never sign up for the service if they knew the "true" limitations.

As a side note... what is having 3 HDTV's in a home somehow only for rich people or unusual? HD sets have been sold for years now. Is it not possible, like myself, to have bought one HD set every 2 years and have 3 or even more by this time?

It's not like HD TV's just cam out a few months ago and this person ran out and bought 3 sets. It's also possible that he does not own 3 $2000 HDTV's.

I have a 26" Tube HDTV in the bedroom that I got for $350 two years ago, an old projection HDTV I got 6 years ago for $850 and just got a new DLP 50" HDTV for the basement for $800 on closeout.

I guess I'm rich and if a company "LIES" to me then it is somehow ok because it's "MY" fault that they lied.

I think not.

-JB

P.S. I watch 3 HD sets at one time all the time. My wife, myself and the kids. I guess having 3 sets on at one time is somehow whacko :)]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20089555 Sat, 01 Mar 2008 12:09:14 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20089521 jrb531 :
said by johnnymicro See Profile :

3 HD tvs at the same time? how many families live in your house?
I have 3 HD tv's. Many people have multiple HD TV's. We have know for years that HD was the future so over the years as my SD sets went out I made sure I bought HD sets to replace them.

So my wife watches HD in the bedroom, I have HD in the basement and the kids watch HD. I pay for HD with Dish network whether I have 1 HD or 10 HD sets so why would I not want to take advantage of the HD channels I pay for?

How many TV's total do you have in your home? As they break and you replace them what type of TV will you buy? :)

I'm sorry but the days of trying to suggest that anyone who has more than one HD TV is some form of nutbag are over.

-JB]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20089521 Sat, 01 Mar 2008 12:02:24 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20087720 ccallana : I'd say I feel sorry for you, but 1) anyone with 3 HD TVs that need to be watched simultaneously doesn't need people feeling sorry for them, and 2) its clearly stated all over their website that only 1 HD stream is available at any one time, plus its all over any forum or review site - do your research and you are never surprised by stuff like that. :)
--
"We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us.... We are far too easily pleased." C.S. Lewis]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20087720 Sat, 01 Mar 2008 00:06:39 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20087577 johnnymicro : 3 HD tvs at the same time? how many families live in your house?]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20087577 Fri, 29 Feb 2008 23:26:00 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20087552 anon : i had uverse installed this morning and i was pissed off royal. there salesgirl walked through the house last week where i pointed out the 3 sony hd tvs i asked specifically if i could get 3 hd at the same time, she says yes, great sigh me up. install went fast and easy, 1st tv comes on good picture leave it on and set up the second box message comes on screen only 1 can be on hd at a time. installer guy says this happens all the time and the sales people dont know what they are selling.he tells me he would ask people with multiple hd tvs if they were aware that they would only get one stream of hd before he would start the install, but the company told him to stop asking. told the guy to pull it out,called the sales people and vented on them for awhile, they offered me 20 off for the first month to keep it. screw them]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20087552 Fri, 29 Feb 2008 23:20:35 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20082929 anon : I disconnected the run that was using rg59 (removed the cable from the rg entirely) and continue to have issues with the dvr and stb freezing and being very slow to change channels.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20082929 Fri, 29 Feb 2008 10:03:33 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20057645 gdm : Yeah 59 is the issue. I have one TV on 59 the rest of the house was done in RG6 except this one. I called u-verse up saturday have an appt. tomorrow for them to run a rg6 or cat5 to the STB.

Once you get switched it is much faster for channel changing and you shouldn't freeze. I am coming from comcast cable and it beats that hands down for channel changing. It's almost like OTA broadcast as far as how quick it can change the channels.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20057645 Mon, 25 Feb 2008 09:55:06 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20057205 anon : Well one week with u-verse and there are a few issues. The overall picture quality is not bad. There are annoying problems with the motorola tuner boxes, both dvr and the plain hd boxes freeze from time to time when trying to change channels. T brags about the "instantaneous" channel change, not true. My channels changed much quicker with comcast and never had problems with channels freezing. Comcast provided a Motorola 1200 Dvr versus the 1216 that T provides.

All the music channe; "urge" have the same issue. There is an annoying "miss" in the sound tracks. Similar to having an old 45 record with a scratch on it. This annoying skip happens at least 2 0r 3 times per song.

Lastly, I called T to have them come back out and run cat 5 in place of the rg59 back feed they left me with. I get a run around from some young kid that wants to do some "tests" on my system. I don't need tests. The installers told me the 59 probably wouldn't work, but gave me no indication how difficutl it would be to get somebody else back out here to run that last cat 5 line.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20057205 Mon, 25 Feb 2008 07:35:10 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20039214 anon : Glad your happy with ATT. My post was because I was told things that weren't true. $225 is $75 per box for 3 boxes. Cox didn't charge me extra to run cable down a wall. All my tv's are on internal walls. I was told by the salesman that came to my door and again by a rep at one of the stores here in Edmond that they would run cables at no charge if needed, that even if I had exising available cables they would test them and run new ones at no charge if they didn't test out good enough. Well since there were no cables available for use "they were needed". Cox guarantees me an 8Mb dload and I'm always at the very least able to get 12Mb and have on most occasion gotten 18 Mb and above even reaching 29Mb a few times. They never say "if you're too far from the source then you won't get our stated rates of 8 Mb". Last year Cox and ABC channel 5 in OKC were having contract disputes and 5 was not broadcast in HD for several months. ATT told me that 5 wasn't being shown in HD because the cable didn't have enough bandwidth. I find that patently dishonest. They were broadcasting 5 in HD before their contract disputes and I don't think they lost bandwith and said "let's not broadcast ABC so we will have enough bandwidth"! I know ATT the company didn't lie directly to me but the people that did are acting as "agents of the company" and I am deeply disappointed in them.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20039214 Thu, 21 Feb 2008 18:39:35 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20038666 koolkid1563 : You have some things right, but you also have some things wrong. First off, yes, you get a dynamic IP but currently the IP stays with you for a long time. My IP has only changed once in the year I have had U-verse and that was when they had to change out my RG. I have had to power down my RG for various reasons, mainly wire changes that I have made over time, and I have kept the same IP when it comes back up. I am currently on their Max internet tier which is rated at 10/1.5 and I get very close to that for the majority the time. The RG is not exactly the size of a computer, maybe about the size of laptop with the lid closed width wise and maybe about the height of 3 DVD cases. It takes up about the same amount of space a cable modem and third party router takes up IMO.

$225 for installation is the first I have heard about of an installation charge. Some techs will run new wire for free, some don't. If they don't, it can be as high as $75/drop, but I believe that is only if they have to fish it in between walls. Outside runs are cheaper. I am almost surprised they gave you a flat rate...

I don't quite understand your reasoning for having a TV service, internet service, and a TV + internet service all running at the same time, unless for comparison or backup?

You are correct on the 1 HD stream limitation, and it is a big turn away. However, they are supposed to be adding in another stream here sometime soon (they haven't really confirmed how many, just 'multiple'), hopefully before summer.

It is your choice though, and that is one big thing about U-verse. If you don't like it, that is fine. It is all about how much value you feel like it is worth to you. If you can get a better deal that works for you with more bang for your buck, I say go for it. In many cases, people will do anything to get away from their cable company or satellite company or what have you, and this is that 'other choice'. Will it be the best choice for everyone? No, and I realize that. Is this post meant to bash you or your choice? No.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20038666 Thu, 21 Feb 2008 17:05:25 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20038493 anon : Cancelled ATT Uverse before they even set foot on my property. Salesman told me they would wire my house with cat5 cable if there was no existing cable to use. Well I have Directv and Cox cable and am not cancelling either one so there is no existing cable to use. Cox ran cable with no charge when they installed just like they told me they would. ATT said "we'll have to charge you $225". Doesn't seem like free installation to me. I also found out you can't record and watch a HD channel at the same time. Sounds like someone besides Cox may have bandwidth issues (ATT said Cox had bandwidth problems, but Cox keeps adding more HD channels) . They said their Internet was faster than Cox also but today I used speedtest.net and received a 24.06 Mb from Plano and 23.00 from Atlanta, even on the slowest days I still get around 12 Mb. After being told that ATT guaranteed their stated connection speed at 6 Mb, their elite package, they started backing off saying, "well it may not reach 6, that is just what the maximum might be". So basically they wanted to charge me $225 for "free" installation, not run cat5e as I was told they would do to make sure they have a good signal, give me less channels (they have several West coast channels so they count those as extra channels to up their "number" and I realize they are channels but they don't have different content), take away being able to watch and record HD at the same time, put in a modem the size of a small computer and for doing all that great stuff for me they wanted to charge me more per month. Oh yeah, they told me I would have a dedicated IP address, very important to me, unless my modem lost power, then it would get a different IP address, so it appears that their knowledgable staff doesn't really know what a dedicated IP address is. I'm probably not real smart having both Directv and Cox at the same time but there are some channels that one gets that the other doesn't and vica versa. We don't have kids so cost isn't important and I am a gadget guy that is always trying the newest and latest stuff. As I stated above, I may not be real smart but I'm not an idiot. See ya later ATT.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,20038493 Thu, 21 Feb 2008 16:35:41 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19893579 koolkid1563 : Not really. AT&T's U-verse product currently has the same feature set no matter how you are connected in.

By quality, are you referring to image quality, overall service quality including uptime, speed?]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19893579 Tue, 29 Jan 2008 00:34:46 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19892672 anon : I live in 10 year old sub-division with fiber at the curb and cat-5 wiring in my house. Will that mean if i subscribe to U-verse it will be of the same quality as Vz's FIOS system? ]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19892672 Mon, 28 Jan 2008 21:54:34 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19863511 anon : I am having it installed this Friday....I will come back and write a review then. I have friends who have had it installed, and have no complaints at all...I just hope that its a painless install here.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19863511 Thu, 24 Jan 2008 00:04:38 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19831085 vinnie97 : If Time Warner goes through with their usage cap pricing plan, I may be a U-Verse user rather quickly.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19831085 Fri, 18 Jan 2008 21:22:49 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19792030 candell : Intro:

i initially had att dsl installed when i purchased this home 4 years ago and had a solid internet pro connection for 19.99 / 12 months. 1/2 way during this time i noticed a lot of activity a few blocks away from my home and a few weeks later lost internet connectivity for a good 24-48 hours. my connection came back up and it was downloading @ 4 times the speed of what att customer service claimed i was able to get due to the distance to the CO/RT. i knew it was BS since i had been experiencing speeds and testing it for the week prior to my call to have them reprovision my modem and actually pay for the service they were not providing me. big mistake. they dropped me back to pro speeds and continued denying my requests to the point of frustration on my part.

Finances:

it was at this point that charter released their 10/1 setup in my neighborhood and i bit @ the chance of having it along with everything charter had to offer at that point. this home is an older home, so charter techs came out and installed new rg6 throughout the whole house and away i went @ $204 + $17 taxes/surcharges / month for their premium channel package, 10/1 internet, Rental Modem, 1 Moxi DVR, 2 HD receivers and Howard TV. Charter has always treated me as a premium customer and provided me with solid service, but i'm always willing to have others earn my business and loyalty.

Having a wedding in the next few months and uncertain market conditions in socal led me to find a few ways to save a little more money since $221 / month is insanity by normal standards. I went on ATT's website and tried once again to see if i could get qualified for elite service, and was politely declined by their availability link. I then noticed the uverse link and said what the hell, and clicked it and the response was it was available in my area and started reading up on the technology and decided to give it a shot.

Goodies:

i called att on 01/08/2008 and had an appointment set up for 01/12/2008 @ 8am for U400/Elite that came with 1 @ VIP1216 DVR, 3 @ VIP1200's, 1 @ 2wire 3800HGV-B, 6/1 Mbps (V)DSL, Cat5e into 4 rooms, 1 @ New NID, 1 @ Homerun for Data, 1 @ Homerun for Phone, 1 @ Cat5e for Switch, 1 @ Netgear GS108.

Free! :)

I was trying to justify my cat5e and supplies purchases to the missus and had someone come out here before uverse was installed to give us a quote on what it would cost us to do what we did yesterday, and they gave us a quote of $625 just for supplies... another $50/hour for labor and said would take a good 8-12 hours. psh, rookie...

Promotions:

$10 / month bundle credit for TV/DSL - 12 months free HD - $100 Cash Back - First Month of TV Free - $50 Visa Gift Card and I'm going to call ATT Billing to see if they will honor the 3 months of free internet if you're switching from cable internet to ATT DSL Service. In total I figured that ($10+$120+$100+$94+$50)/12=$31/month so my total would be $123/month for uverse if i kept it for the next year.

paying charter $204/month vs. att $123/month was a no brainer even though i have 3 HD TV's in my home as it's almost $975 in savings for the first year.

Install:

I explained to the tech that came to my home that i was planning on keeping my charter internet service and reusing the rg6 would be out of the question. the tech initially wanted to have a quick and painless install by backfeeding the rg6 through the rg and into each set top box and being outta here into another home. i offered him something to eat and some refreshments to keep his involvement and attention span towards providing good customer service. i asked him if we could drop cat5e throughout the whole house and he initially refused as it would create extra hours of work, but im persuasive to the point of everything working out in the end. i explained to him that i was already going to drop new cat5e throughout the whole attic while he was here to have all the rooms have biscuits so i could plug in either an rj11/rj14/rj25/rj45 and he was sold. we started @ 9am and finished late evening as its a large older home. we dropped a gs108 into my closet and i made a larger hole in my ceiling going into the attic so i could have enough room for future upgrades. he dropped a new homerun from the newly installed nid into my office and then backfed cat5e into a closet with the gs108 and then fed the room on the other side of the house with another drop of cat5e. while he was doing that i dropped another cat5e into my other office and bam... in business.

i had real crappy wiring that a previous tech had done on the outside vs. wiring it through the attic and would have a constant crackle throughout the phones in the house. well, i was able to pull all the wiring on the outside of the house down and i installed new cat5e telephone wiring into each room with a phone, so now i have crystal clear telephone service to boot. i suggested we just use the unused portion of the cat5e cabling he was using as a homerun into the RG, but he felt more comfortable allowing me drop a new line into the garage so i could continue on my business and he the same. no issues there :)

All of the above with ZERO commitment or upfront costs on any of the equipment or installation.

SOLD!

Tech Review:

It seems ATT had several customer service agents train on how to install the uverse system, with a majority of them having zero networking skills and coming from a customer service background. a few key techs were sent out to TX to have hands on training while the pilot program was going out there and came back and trained a majority of the new people which have been doing the installs for the past 6-12 months. my guy was a newer tech and was not jaded by the jerks they call customers... yet. he stated ATT wanted to train CS people to do the uverse installs as they felt that customer service was going to be @ the forefront of their installs vs. having seasoned techs that dont want to hear anything from the customer and say the wrong thing to a customer.

i know a majority of you guys out there are like myself... have every channel and pay over $200 / month for TV/Internet services on a monthly basis - and thats not including any PPV or extra premium on demand services we like to spend our money on. thats $2400 a year before any of the fees come into play. you figure a lifelong customer @ the above rate can bring over $100K in revenue during a 30 year timespan. you get the picture. customer service @ the end of the day is what makes or breaks a company sometimes. only issue i ever had with charter was their customer service agents where minor billing issues and charging me for service calls they stated would be complimentary. id usually pay the fees as it would cost me more to stay on the phone than go about doing my daily routine.

this techs customer service was above and beyond the call of duty. he was more than willing to do what i wanted when he realized i knew exactly what i was doing and was willing to go the extra mile for him if he did the same for me. we did a killer job on this place with a minimal amount of time invested on each of our parts. i would like to state that i *did* not help him do any portion of his job, as i know them managers like to roam these forums, heh.

i would like to take this time to state the obvious. a lot of the techs that come to your home has some leeway in the decision of how hard they are going to work for you. if you treat them like a service person then you're going to get minimal service, but if you treat them like a person and cater to them they are more willing to do what they need to do to make you a satisfied customer. his professional attitude and 100% attention to customer service has made me an att customer willing to overlook some of the limitations (1HDfeed/slight overcompression on certain channels) of their existing IPTV service, but having the above installed for free has made me an ATT customer for life as long as im in an area that is serviced by them.

Review After Tech Left:

I currently have charter / uverse installed side by side into each of my tv's through HDMI and the SD signal from uverse is outstanding and above and beyond charters signal. also, the HD through uverse is a better quality picture when there is moderate motion, but slight blurr when there is fast moving items on screen, but switching the 1200's between 720p/1080i seems to fix this issue nicely. Also, switching from an RG6 to Cat5e connection into the STB creates a noticable difference with volume and picture quality through component cables.

I have each TV hooked up through HDMI connections and suggest anyone out there with an RG6/Component Cable setup to hit up a local Fry's during their insane weekend sales and hook up a box of cat5e, a few rj45 heads and pick up HDMI cables (if your tv supports it) on the cheap (got 3 HDMI's 10' for $5.99/each). The picture quality has a noticable degrade while using rg6, so if you're one of the people who are complaining about picture quality or stutter then i suggest you drop some cat5e into that bad boy.

My main concern was trying to sell the missus on only 1 HD feed @ a time, but didnt have to go very far once she saw the SD signal zoomed in to fit the screen :)). she thought she was already watching HD, so I suggest you men out there not mention anything and set their TV in a way that you get to keep the HD feed, haha!

Distance:

1642FT 2 VRAD
45.32% Line Capacity - 0 Errors

Elite:



^^^ with HD Feed going... nuff said.

Haters:

stop your bitchin' and whinin' about what works / what doesnt work. there are several reviews online about uverse and what you're going to expect. go drive around and see if you can find the closest vrad cabinet and when you see someone working on it stop by say hello and ask them if its the one that services the block you're on. see if you're 0.55/mi (+-2700/ft) while driving in your car. buy hdmi cables and ensure that nothing other than cat5e connects your ipv1200's and have a homerun done from the nid to the 2wire gateway/router. if you gotta pay the line drop fees and jack fees... pay. if you're gonna do it yourself... do it yourself. its easy.

do some prep work before the tech gets there. move stuff away from walls and drill holes where you want things to go. have the attic opened up and ready to go, or have the entrance underneath the house open and cleaned up of black widows or nasty crap in their way. you want cat5e dropped into the rooms? let em know you already took care of the drilling and bought cat5e just in case he ran out... believe me sometimes its the thought that counts. a majority of the uverse (if not all) installers are not independent contractors and have their supplies provided by ATT. the equipment is not on their dime, its on ATT's so make it work to your advantage!

is it their job to get dirty? yes. is it their job to install your service? yes. is it their job to ensure you're happy? yes. is it their job to ensure your service works and your computers work? yes.

why not make their job easier? install the batteries into the remotes. take out the 1200's and start putting the 1200's where you want them to go. dust your TV's. use some frickin' common sense. the time / frustration the installer would use towards your lack of common sense can be used by him/her enjoying their time in your home making you a satisfied customer. in the end its their job to provide you with service you're happy with, but you dont have to make it your job to remind them of it every chance you have.

the newer techs are only expected to do between 1-2 installs per day and believe me they would rather be @ a nice customers home than a prick that treats them like garbage. if a newer tech isnt doing what you want then check yourself... not the tech.

was i well informed? yes. did i know what i was talking about when the tech was here? yes. did the tech recognize my interest and grasp on what he was doing and what i was going to do while he was doing his job? yes. did i ever belittle him or contradict what he said? no. did i ever challenge him or get in his way or cut him off when he suggested things i would have done differently? no. did we end up doing things the way i wanted them to be done without him/her feeling as if i was telling him/her what to do? yes.

get my drift?

a majority of the negative reviews out there have zero details on their distance to the VRAD or how their service is connected from the NID or how their 1200's are being backfed from the RG's... etc.

Linux:

to all the people who claim Linux does not work on uverse... WRONG. all my boxes / laptops work through the uverse service and have had ZERO issues within the past 24 hours. everything in terms of networking works perfect @ this end.

VIP1200's:

these motorolla VIP1200's are pretty sweet and run off a sweet windows CE interface thats looked pretty good so far. the missus was a little worried and hard to convince as shes been a hardcore moxibox lover since we got one, but shes pretty happy with the VIP1216 DVR and the thought of recording bridezillas, desperate housewives, big love and american idol @ the same time was a dream, haha!

one thing i already miss about the moxi box is its capability of switching between 480p/720p/1080i resolutions on the fly depending on what chanel you're watching at that point and no user intervention other than switching channels. it does create some lag on the moxi box, but the lag is much less than going through the menu and manually switching. hopefully this can be addressed as a software update in the near future.

Conclusion:

SOLD. remember, we're sometimes willling to sacrifice certain luxuries or willing to pay more depending on the service we get on the other end. can i watch more than 1 hdtv @ a time? no. can i use that $975 and put it to better usage during the year? yes.

treat your tech like gold and as a valued person in your home and accomodate them in what they need and you might find a kickass person on the other end of that att shirt.

once again, att made a wise choice in having their newer techs be more customer service oriented and going above and beyond their call of duty. i am 100% satisfied with the professional service and install provided by the uverse installer and recommend anyone in the riverside area to sign up before a majority of them are sent to the fontana location.

this has been the best installations and experiences ive had with any of my internet and television service providers. if you're reading this... thanks dude you did a great job. i wish more people enjoyed their job and gave it their 100% like you did yesterday. seriously, ive had a smile all day today.

woot woot - uverse/att rocks!]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19792030 Sun, 13 Jan 2008 12:25:42 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19775469 anon : That's the real deal-breaker for me.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19775469 Thu, 10 Jan 2008 14:59:03 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19775119 ccallana : No - only 1 HD stream is allowed into the house at 1 time. So if you are recording HD, you can not even watch another HD channel. Or if you have 2 HD TVs, you either both have to watch the same channel, or one has to watch the SD version.
--
"We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us.... We are far too easily pleased." C.S. Lewis]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19775119 Thu, 10 Jan 2008 14:09:45 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19774979 anon : Can the DVR record more than one HD show at the same time? I know that originally it could only record one HD show...is that still the case?]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19774979 Thu, 10 Jan 2008 13:50:08 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19769056 anon : Interesting...I have the Charter Digital DVR now and I'm sick of it! Charter sucks cow balls! The price keeps going up so I'm signing up for U-verse and my installation date is Feb 04th...so I'll be back with a review then!]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19769056 Wed, 09 Jan 2008 15:37:09 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19761504 anon : Well I just canceled u-verse, well I canceled it a week ago and they still have not shut off the service and my dsl is still not back up. Just some info for people. After you have had your u-verse installed call and have them remove your dsl service removed from your phone line, it will save you alot of hassle if you switch back to dsl and drop u-verse. Well I like the service and hate (I mean hate) equipment. To me this the worst hardware available. Now i may be spoiled since I have had directv tivo's for 6 years now and while they are not perfect I have only missed may be 10 ten recodrings in 6 years. So far I have had 14 missed recordings in 3 weeks with u-verse. The guide is constantly wrong and does not show if the show is repeat or when the original air date was. The software is really bad as well since there is no way to select the day on the guide you want to browse you have to keep hitting the jump button on the remote to get it jump 1 day at a time. Now for me I have to hit the buttons twice to get the box to respond, now this happens on all the box's but mostly on the dvr. They wired with cat 5 not coax directly to the RG and the box's have the last software on them. The video quality is not bad and I like the video on demand but most of the video on demand is not in HD so I won't be watching them. The 1 only Hd feed is a real downer, they say they will have 2 soon. 24 hours of HD content is not enough I had about 30 on my Directv Hd tivo 3 years ago. I tried U-verse since I am looking for a replacement for my Directv service with more hd content. Directv's new Hd dvr which is also not tivo is just as bad as the u-verse dvr. I know that directv doesn't want to pay tivo, but in this day and age of technology why are we now having better equipment with worse software. If att allows me to use Iptv tivo box that I am willing to pay for or at least something comparable and more hd streams, I would consider coming back since the service it self is not that bad. But until that day I will keep searching. It seems to me most providers are almost the same on content bu the hardware and user intrerface is big for me and my family but the service providers are forcing you into there hardware which is sad. ]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19761504 Tue, 08 Jan 2008 13:12:52 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19755902 anon : ATT Uverse techs have been to my house 8-10 times and have no idea what to do to fix my problems. I never get the same none twice and the people I talk to on the phone spend a lot of time with me (one hour or so) getting detailed information and doing all sorts of tests and then impart none of the information to the techs. I have requested that the same techs be sent out and this has NEVER HAPPENED. Every tech has a different solution to the problem (no service on one tv and bad service on another and internet periodically kicks me off) but noone seems to know what the deal is. It is incredibly frustrating the amount of time I have spent at home on the 10 different occasions they have been out here for hours at a time. Also there is NO follow up to see if the problems is corrected, they tell problem fixed and to turn on tv in couple of hours when they call and it will be fixed. this has never worked and they simply disappear and I have to start the process all over again. Oh yeah and if they have been at your house six hours and are still working and you have to go pick up your kids they will leave without finishing if your arent there and have to start all over again. The techs are great guys but seems confused about the product. I wish I still had satellite.....]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19755902 Mon, 07 Jan 2008 15:31:22 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19661963 anon : I live about 40 miles Directly North of Indianapolis and it's not available here yet. Any idea's when it will be?]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19661963 Fri, 21 Dec 2007 01:10:05 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19658437 anon : I just had Uverse installed this past monday, my major complaint is with their customer service. The technician that came to install tv portion had almost no idea what he was doing. The sales person quoted me the wrong price for the vdsl, and for my trial period for the tv service failed to add the only component that I wanted to test out.

So now I'm sitting here with a lot of useless TV that is not normally watched. To make matters worst, the technician disconnected my cable service from all the other tvs in the rest of the house. So now I have one working TV with nothing that I want to watch.

I spent probably 2 hours waiting on the phone and being transferred back and forth until I was finally able to speak to someone to get U-Verse removed from my house. The earliest they will be able to send someone out to resolve a problem that they CAUSED will be this friday, so I'm without tv for basically a week.

The internet was basically the same speed as my old roadrunner connection. The only real benefit is that my upload is twice as fast and the cost for internet is 5 dollars cheaper a month. ]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19658437 Thu, 20 Dec 2007 14:42:15 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19643897 koolkid1563 : Maybe you could copy and paste this into the ISP review? »/docontrib/ISP/2911]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19643897 Tue, 18 Dec 2007 11:19:55 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19642957 marcinko6 : Another review, this one from St. Louis...a little long winded, but generally I like the service.

The Installation
Based on other reviews, the installation actually went rather well. The main installer, I’ll refer to him as the 1st installer, arrived at about 9am…just like he said he would. I was actually expecting a different guy because about a week prior to the installation 2 tech’s came out and did some testing over at the VRAD for about a half-hour. One of the tech’s said his name was on the install order and that he would probably be the one out there. Anyways, so the installer arrived and immediately began over at the VRAD which is ~200ft. away from my front door, give or take. After that he came back over to the house and surveyed where everything was going to go. That’s when the first issue became apparent…when my condo was built, the original tenant had a T1 line installed. Well, when the original installer put in the digital box, he decided it would be a better idea to make my NID a hole in the drywall on the inside of the garage. This was an apparently an issue since the hole was up about 4 feet from the ground and the installer didn’t think it would be a good idea to leave the coax block just dangling there. Also, with this setup, they didn’t have any outside access to the home without cutting it off at the VRAD. So, the installer got on the phone and confirmed that he was going to put a new NID up and away he went. He also tested the line coming into the current block for the VDSL signal…there was none or it was very sporadic. Another call and 2 more techs showed up within about 15 min. The 3 of them discussed it and made some more calls and the 1st installer went back to installing the NID. I was talking with one of the other 2 techs and he seemed to think that it was an issue of them not doing a disconnect on the ADSL connection and that the two data streams were fighting each other. He said that’s been an issue that the tech’s have brought up before, but all the bosses said it would be ok. While that was a little concerning, it sounded like this guy knew a lot of the other techs, so I’m sure the word about that is spreading around and it will probably be worked out, if not already. So those 2 tech’s went off to troubleshoot that, and that would put the time around 11:30. It would take to about 2pm before the NID was completely in place and hooked up correctly. Part of that was we had to get permission from the landlord to place something on the outside of the building. The installer handled all that though, and I really didn’t need to do anything at that time. Next the installer proceeded to run coax up to the room where the remote gateway would reside. Luckily for him, it was the room directly above the garage, so he just drilled a hole in the ceiling and ran the coax up along the wall. That took us to about 3:15 and just as he was done, the other 2 techs came over and said they had it working now. They tested the VDSL signal at the NID and everything looked ok, so they left. Another tech arrived to make some finishing touches on the NID and he would stick around to observe the next step. The installer hooked up the RG, this was around 4pm, and it started it’s sync process. For some reason, these newer RG’s take a while to sync up, they aren’t quite as quick as the old ADSL modems. At about 4:30 it was done getting it’s updates and the installer hooked up the DVR box. Since this was a single room installation and DVR sits in the same room, he just used the cat5 cable that was in the RG box. The DVR started up fine and ran it’s updates…that was to take another half hour and the installer cleaned up the installation in the garage as it was updating. The installer and the other tech came upstairs and showed me how the DVR worked and everything…nothing really new to speak of there. About 5:15 and the install was done, yay. The installer finished cleaning up and he went out to his truck. For some reason, my order didn’t have HD enabled, so I proceeded to the phone to call and request it…no dial tone. Luckily the installer and tech were still out at the truck and they came right back into the garage and had it fixed in about 2 min. Unfortunately, the sales office is only open normal business hours(8-5), so even with the phone fixed, no HD for me that night. I did get to play around with it though, and I’ll outline more about that next.
In all, the installation went well. The installer wasn’t really experienced yet in how to install stuff in people’s homes. I heard him say multiple times that this was his first actual customer install. Even though that wasn’t particularly encouraging, he did know the basics and he had no shortage of more experienced tech’s and a support line to give him everything he would need. They were all very prompt and very professional. If you take away the time to install the NID, the install itself actually went pretty quick and this would probably be the case for most people since most home’s have them already. It was good to know that even if you need one, it can all still be done in the same day.

The Service
You’ve probably noticed by now that I’m not really posting any pictures or giving really an overview of the basics…that is mainly because most of the base stuff is identical to other reviews/installs you can read about. No sense in reinventing the wheel. So, I’ll point out the key things I noticed and re-iterate some things.

Some Background
Just to give you all a little history of where I get some of the info in this review, I will be comparing Uverse to a few services I have had/still have. Before I moved to this condo(about mid-April), I had Charter video with their MOXI DVR. From what I hear, they are phasing those out a little and they are in high demand, so if you know nothing about it, don’t worry about it. When I first moved to the place, I got Dish Network’s ‘everything’ package with HD and a Dish 625 DVR. I have been very happy with that, so it was interesting to see how Uverse would stand up against it. I will also make occasional references to Windows Media Center, as I have used it sporadically in the last year or so for OTA HD recording.

SD
I am a bit of a videophile and I do love my HD dearly. Nevertheless not every channel I watch has an HD equivalent yet, so I do go back to SD on occasion. I’d have to say SD quality was excellent, as the box did a fantastic job of upconverting and making the image look fairly crisp on my 32” Olevia. I would definitely say it was on par or better than the Dish SD.

HD
This is where things separate a bit for me. First of all, the lineup that Uverse provides, as of today(12/17), is actually very close to Dish’ normal HD lineup. By normal, I mean minus the VOOM package and all the sports HD channels. Since I rarely use either of them, I don’t really consider them to be competing bullet points. So basically Uverse has just about every normal HD channel as Dish and even as has a few extra’s like CNN and WGN. CNN looks pretty nice and is a nice alternative to HDNEWS(which is part of the VOOM package with Dish). Uverse also has more local’s in HD like PBS and CW…not really a selling point for me personally, since I don’t watch them usually, but I’m sure there are people that would appreciate them. The quality of the HD is comparable to Dish. There is more color it seems, but they are definitely using more compression. For most people, you will not notice this and even more won’t notice without having them side by side, but there is shadowing and pixilation that occurs…it seems more prevalent in dark scenes with more motion and occurs more in the negative space. Nothing too new from what other reviewer’s have said, but it really is only noticeable to the trained eye, and if you are sitting the recommended distance from your TV you shouldn’t have any issues with it.

Other Points
The scheduling was pretty standard and is actually very similar to what you will find in Windows Media Center…not surprising since this is MS software. I did like the addition of a manual timer, which is missing on the Dish DVR. You can set it to record a specific channel from a certain date and time to another. Haven’t played around with that too much yet, but I’m sure I will when baseball season returns. One thing I found odd about the scheduling is the priorities. On the Dish DVR, and even the MOXI, you basically have a priority list of the series’ you are wanting your DVR to look for and record. I think even Windows MC had that feature, though I don’t recall. It seems to be missing and the manual they give you has like a paragraph on conflict resolution. It wasn’t very straightforward on it though, but it seems like you can modify some of the series parameters and after that, the box will add another column for conflict resolution when it occurs. I really can’t comment on that any more since it’s December and all my regular shows are on hiatus for the month. Basically I don’t have any conflicts to test out as of yet, but I may try and create on to see what happens. Another key feature which I have yet to find is how to tell how much space you have left for recording. This was something that was always missing on the MOXI and I was so happy to have it after coming back to Dish. Even though the Dish counter is not completely accurate, it at least gives you a sense of what is going on, space wise. The nearest thing I could find was by going to the system resources and checking the disk usage…it gives you a percentage of the amount still available. Kind of a pain and not very intuitive. Again, I do remember that Windows MC had this feature as well.
Channel changing is, as advertised, fast, even on HD channels. This is one thing the MOXI did not do well, nor did Windows MC and Dish was a little better at it. Though the guide browsing on the Uverse box leaves a little to be desired. The guide is about as quick as Win MC and definitely faster than the MOXI. This is definitely an area where the Dish DVR shines, though I do like the PIP while browsing each channel on the Uverse box(I just wish they had actual PIP like the 625 has). The guide and searching are incredibly easy on the Dish DVR and basically respond as I am pushing the buttons. The Uverse box was a little more sluggish, which was a little disappointing considering how fast it would change channels. The Uverse box, however, was able to search by like individual actor, even though it doesn’t have a ‘one-click’ search for the name of the current show like the Dish box has. I actually found it much easier to search using the online remote DVR interface, which brings me to my next selling point. I LOVE the remote DVR functionality that the Uverse box has built-in and will probably do most of my scheduling from there rather than from the remote itself. The other cool thing about the remote DVR is that I can view all my scheduled recordings, my current recordings, and the series information from my handheld. You can’t schedule anything new, but you can remove items from each category I listed. I don’t know of any other service that has this functionality(the handheld stuff anyways) and it will be a definitely selling point for geeks like me.
One feature, or functionality I guess I would call it, that I haven’t tried out is being able to play recorded content while not connected to the RG. This is something that most people probably wouldn’t care too much about, but I do use it on occasion. I sometimes like to record certain programs and then take the DVR down to my parents house to show them on their big screen since they don’t have cable where they are. The Dish DVR does this very well and I have not had any issues with it. The MOXI worked alright, but for some reason it wouldn’t allow you to use any time-shifting functions while not connected to Charter. Like I said, I haven’t been able to try it yet, but it would be another nice feature.

Conclusions
This is definitely a great service and should definitely give Charter a challenge to keep it’s customer base. It is also a very comparable alternative to those who may not be able to get a dish or who want a slightly cheaper alternative. Combine it with the Uverse internet service and it is a solid deal. Hopefully AT&T will continue to keep up with the demand of HD and maybe work out a few of the little bugs with software updates. It is a young service, but definitely shows promise.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19642957 Tue, 18 Dec 2007 08:08:09 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19605820 anon : I have Uverse milwaukee and have had minor problems in getting the system up and running.

It took AT&T 4 weeks to get out here and finally install the system (which took about 9 hours). A week after the installation the cable modem crashed so we no longer had a wireless signal. I called a tech, who came out to fix it the next day. It took him about 2 hours to fix the RG (actually he had to switch out RGs and was really slow in coming to that conclusion).

Now that we have the service and it has been working well for 3 weeks, i will have to say the UVerse kicks ass. Internet seems faster than advertised (@ 3meg); the channel line-up is outstanding, and plenty more HD channels than time warner. I pay A LOT less than i did with TW and i wont go back!

Also we just recieved a notice that 7 more HD channels are being added in the middle of the month, which brings me to over 30.

UVerse rocks]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19605820 Tue, 11 Dec 2007 18:17:22 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19580308 marcinko6 : I am in STL and am due to have it installed on 12/11. I'll make a note to post a review after I've had a few days to review.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19580308 Fri, 07 Dec 2007 10:58:56 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19577767 anon : I have had comcast for over 2 years and was missing 4 HD channels. They would send techs out and they would run cables all around and replace ends and then leave telling me that "it is at the head" other people will be out to fix it. This never happened. I had to bear 3 other visits from techs only to get the same line.

Recently the HD got worse and the channels that I did get were corrupting and I had a tech come out and he did the same thing again with the same "it is at the head, other people will be out to fix it sometime, but I couldn't say when." Well a week later, nothing.

The AT&T people came by and sold me on U-verse and they hooked it up today and all is well.

I really don't know what is wrong with comcast. I let the tech put signs in my front yard and back yard advertising the service.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19577767 Thu, 06 Dec 2007 21:28:12 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19577758 anon : Thanks Chief. Seems like us "Show me State" ers want to stand on the sidelines. Despite the price, I don't need multiple installation trips to get a picture that folks say is less than cable HD quality. Correct me if I am wrong, but that is what I gather from the Texas users and the Comcast (MI?) users.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19577758 Thu, 06 Dec 2007 21:26:58 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19577630 anon : I've just heard about U-Verse coming to St. Louis, too. I'm not 100% sure I want to be the guinea pig, but the features and price are attractive...]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19577630 Thu, 06 Dec 2007 21:05:04 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19576578 anon : Uverse is new to the St. Louis area. Does anyone have experience with Uverse in St. Louis? The other cities seem to have their problems and I don't want to be the lead dog. I would rather they work out their issues.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19576578 Thu, 06 Dec 2007 18:01:51 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19564975 anon : Set the recording options to end 5 or 15 minutes late. Problem solved.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19564975 Tue, 04 Dec 2007 22:24:08 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19563503 vgbaron : I can't pinpoint the truncating either. It looks more like the Guide is wrong and the DVR is synced to the guide. It doesn't help that the broadcasters are p[laying games like starting at 9:01 and running 62 minutes to 10:03 and crap like that. But still, the system should be able to get the correct times and stay with them.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19563503 Tue, 04 Dec 2007 19:03:24 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19552995 jjgk : I have had similar issues regarding the truncation of recorded shows...it is really frustrating when you want to know what the ending was. I can't figure out if it is the time on the Guide, which appears correct and matches my computer or the DVR is stupid. However, I have found the Guide listings to be incorrect on a number of occasions.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19552995 Mon, 03 Dec 2007 05:30:05 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19552983 jjgk : Maybe it is my age, KK1563, but I need a microscope instead of my progressive lenses to read the paper format of the line up. Oh, and do not change the fav's set up on the box either 'cuz when you go to the next room, the channels are still in the original line-up. How about a feature that prompts you to set all your boxes to the same 'fav' channel line up?]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19552983 Mon, 03 Dec 2007 05:08:50 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19546165 anon : I had AT&T U-Verse installed Thursday. I had never even heard of it until Thanksgiving when Troy Aikman mentioned the Cowboys/Packers game would be on NFL network. I did some research and signed up ... picked a Thursday morning install and it was done in about 3 hours.

I had Time Warner before, and I really had no major complaints with them other than my Showtime on-demand not working and occasional really slow speeds with Roadrunner's 6/768 package.

I signed up for the U-Verse 400 with elite internet. The installers told me my wires were really old and he did not think he would be able to install it, but when they did the speed test the tech at my apartment said it was the fastest he's ever seen. Pretty sweet. He said I was the only person in the area on the box, so I think that might have something to do with it.

My U-Verse has been problem free so far. Some of the pluses are that my internet uploads are faster, the whole system in general is much faster than the Moxi I had with TW, I get more channels for about $20 cheaper than I was paying TW, NFL network (go Cowboys), and the ability to record 4 shows at once (though I doubt I ever will).

I have kept my cable active since it's paid through 12/16/07, but unless something goes drastically wrong I'm sold on the U-Verse. I've had no problems to speak of in the first couple of days. Thumbs up.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19546165 Sat, 01 Dec 2007 19:09:42 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19519047 vgbaron : I had my Uverse installed on 11/2. Tech said it was an easy install - took about 3 hours. However, it took two more weeks to get it working properly. Seems like the RG would lose sync every morning and come back around 4:30PM. When it ran it was superb but nothing during the day. Over two weeks I had more techs come out than I could count. Put in a new drop from the pole - no joy. Two new RG's - no joy. New port configured - no joy. Completely replaced the NID - no joy. Finally, they rewired from the NID to the RG using coax rather than Cat-5 (a suggestion I made when the first tech was there, BTW) and it worked and has been working almost perfectly ever since. On 6K/1K broadband tests, I'm getting a solid 5600/960. Only issues I have is an annoying 3-4 second 'freeze' on the HDTV sometimes when the programming switches from a commercial to the show and vice versa. Mainly on CBS and only on HD but doesn't do it all the time.

I have a few minor gripes. like the DVR truncating the show, etc but all in all I'm happy and can't really complain about the techs and the service.

Vic]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19519047 Tue, 27 Nov 2007 15:18:42 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19405919 anon : Well, I can concur with your pain. It took 1 day to install, and they had to come out and replace the DVR. The DVR had all sorts of reception issues, dropped segments of film, etc. I still have odd pauses, but right now I cannot swear that it's the feed. IPTV is obviously not quite ready on AT&T's fiber, but my connection is good enough that I can live with it.

I had TW cable modem service, and my wife's VPN would drop sporadically throughout the day. My VPN connection was better, but still dropped occassionally. Since switching to AT&T's mid-tier service, I have had 0 VPN drops, and my wife only a couple. So AT&T's uverse is a definitely win over TW for internet service, even if the max speeds are slower.

On the TV front, I had DishNetwork. Their SD service is fair to good, depending on channel. AT&Ts uverse service provides significantly better SD pictures on all channels. The HD channels are better yet, but not as good as OTA or HD DVD (only 1080i... ;) Yes, they compress the heck out of the HD picture. I've been able to record 2 SD and 1 HD program while watching another streaming SD program. It seemed to work quite well. There are still occasional drops up to 1s in the feed, but I haven't traced this down to whether it's the incoming feed or the uverse service. Since getting the DVR replaced, recorded content seems almost 100%, while live local channels seem to occasionally have a skip.

I've dropped Dish already, current package was $60, and moving to HD would have gone to $80/month with a $100 DVR upgrade fee for the one I wanted. TW is being dropped as soon as I finish changing emails. TW was also about $60/month. Uverse complete service is $89/month for both, with more channels, and the movie pack for a year until I drop it. Definitely a win for now. If they raise prices, I'll review options at that time.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19405919 Thu, 08 Nov 2007 11:33:25 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19392526 anon : WOW! Only 1 day for the install? That's good. Besides that, it took an additional 3 days to get the other two units to come up then another 3 days to get the On Demand to work. I am going to keep this service even though the issues mentioned are also seen here. I had the highest speed internet and HBO and a HD DVR from Comcast and paid $238.00 a month. Here I am paying $119.00 a month for EVERYTHING under the sun. I can live with those numbers. I can take a soft HD image. The freeze here and there and the hesitation of the remote is a bit at times. The remote responds well most of the time. I'm in Detroit. I've had Uverse completely up and running for a week. I have CAT5 to the boxes. ]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19392526 Tue, 06 Nov 2007 10:47:20 EDT Re: Review AT&T U-Verse http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,19388586 anon : I got Uverse installed last Monday and have had to call customer service almost every day since. I was using Comcast, and wasn't dissatisfied with the service, but did want the Big 10 Network, which isn't currently offered through Comcast.

I want to like AT&T. I like the features on the DVR better than Comcast's. And I like that you can record more programs at once than you can with Comcast (even though not being able to record two HD programs at once is a pain). Additionally, I work out of my home, so the Elite Internet package really appealed to me as I typically conduct quite a few web-based meetings every week.

Unfortunately, the service has not worked for me at all. I expected some bugs and glitches since they just rolled out the service in southeastern Michigan, but the only consistent element so far is its inconsistency. The Internet has not been stable, and I can't typically stay connected for longer than 30 minutes at a time. I was disconnected from my VPN 27 times in one day. We have yet to record a program without chunks of the programming missing. During one half-hour show, we lost 32 seconds at the beginning, 5 minutes at the end, and at least 3-5 seconds a handful of other times during the show. And I can say without any exaggeration that it’s been the same story with everything we watch or record. There hasn’t been one show in the week we’ve had the service that has not had segments of sound or picture that didn’t come through.

The picture quality isn't bad, but my HD digital tier with Comcast was definitely clearer. And I can’t tell much of a difference between AT&T’s digital tier vs. standard channels. So either the regular channels are really good, or the digital channels aren’t as good as they should be. I suspect it’s a combination. We also haven't been successful getting HD sound out of the box, but that might be our own wiring issue.

Five times since the box was installed, the entire system froze up and I had to unplug every cord and let it sit before I re-plugged and tried again. I’ve also had to reset the gateway a few times as well.

Technical support keeps trying to identify the problem, but they just keep telling me that everything "should" be working fine, as their tests of my signal strength indicate that I'm getting the speeds required for service. I'm happy that everything should be working, but it's frustrating to have such consistent issues that can't be resolved.

I'm glad I haven't canceled my Comcast service yet, as I will probably call it quits with AT&T if they can't provide some resolution to the problem by the end of the week. I might be able to get over the annoyance in the TV programming if they could give me some assurance that it will improve. But I can’t work on the Internet. And because the problem seems to be occurring at the gateway, I can’t even hardwire my computer to get more constant connection sp