no_one
@QWEST.NET | There may be some higher speeds coming.
Just not for the VDSL service in Phoenix as far as I know. So nothing for me. Pricing may have at least one attractive tier. Must have fiber to the node. So not everyone will qualify but a lot will where it is being rolled out. |
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no_one
@QWEST.NET | It is fast enough to make me jealous and want to switch to cable since I am on VDSL. For all I know they have some plans there also but with my luck probably not.
Also it is soon enough for those that may qualify to start wishing. |
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christcorp
Premium
join:2001-05-21
Cheyenne, WY
 ·VOIPo
| reply to no_one
Being someone who has installed, repaired, and serviced a lot of residential and business DSL; as well as the dslams on the end; I sort of have a different opinion on "bandwidth". Most times, unless you DOWNLOAD a whole lot, I haven't really seen any major advantages between the 1.5mb and 7mb dsl. The millisecond different in loading webpages or getting email is not that noticeable. If you download a lot of music, video, large files, etc... then there are some advantages. But for normal surfing, it's just not there.
Plus, the 1.5mb service is much more tolerant and forgiving than the 7mb service. Just as the 256kb service is more tolerant than the 1.5mb. As such, I have gone more than 5 years without even the slightest hiccup. Not counting when the neighborhood lost power or when someone hit the pole outside with their car.
As far as cable goes, In my area I prefer 1.5dsl over 8mb cable any day of the week. It's $15 cheaper and much more stable. The 8mb cable fluctuates all day depending on how many people are using it. The qwest 1.5mb dsl is always rock solid and consistent. Anyway, I've used enough 7mb qwest and 8mb cable to compare, and if 7mb qwest was available in my neighborhood, I'm just not sure I would spend the extra money for it. Not unless I was really in need of the download. Later... Mike.... |
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no_one
@QWEST.NET | I believe adsl2 or a variant. Also, 14 or 20 (I think the 14 is going to be the affordable option) compared to 3.
I think that may be a difference. I hope the backbone where it all comes together can keep up. |
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bleagh
join:2004-03-11
Salt Lake City, UT
| reply to no_one
I upgraded from 1.5 to 7meg to get the free modem Qwest was offering. And quite frankly I would go back to 1.5 if I could keep the modem...
1.5meg was VERY stable. I never had it drop below 1meg actual download speed. Not even once. With 7meg, I've had it drop well below 1meg several times. Even below 700kbps a few times.
And if Qwest cannot keep their 7meg up to speed, how are they going to do with something even faster?
I expect I will go back to 1.5meg when I can. It was MUCH better than the 7meg is. And I'm just going to assume that anything faster will be at least as bad as 7meg. |
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knkayotte
join:2001-02-02
Camp Verde, AZ
·Packet8
 ·Qwest.net
 ·Black Mountain Bro..
edit:
April 19th, @06:13PM
| reply to no_one
How about those hooked into the CO? Have to say my 7Mb is more then adequate though.
Bleagh, if your speeds are dropping like that with a 7Mb line, you've got issue somewhere. Lowest I see is mid 5Mb range during peek hours.
I tend to download a lot of game demo's and betas so enjoy the higher speeds |
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no_one
@QWEST.NET | reply to no_one
The new speeds will be offered only with fiber to the node or I also presume fiber to the co. If the dslam is copper fed then the speeds will not be offered. |
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danawhitaker
Space...The Final Frontier
Premium
join:2002-03-02
Urbandale, IA
·MSN
 ·Mediacom
| reply to christcorp
"The millisecond different in loading webpages or getting email is not that noticeable."
I beg to differ. I really do. I think you're fooling yourself if you truly believe that. And I say that as someone who used to believe that. My e-mail loads instantly with 10 meg cable vs. 1.5 DSL. As for webpages, the work I do from home loads much faster, allowing me to accept jobs more quickly and get more work done. A lot of the jobs that I work on have lots of graphics (usually scanned documents or photographs). It means an extra $5-7 a day for me vs. when I was on DSL because the images can load that much more quickly and allow me to complete the job that much more quickly in turn. I've looked at my records from before cable to after cable, and it truly is that much of a difference on many days. It means getting the jump on someone else who's trying to accept the same job because I don't have the long loading times to contend with anymore. Even with the pages that aren't graphically-intensive, it still goes much faster. When I'm looking up, for instance, property records, they load so much more quickly that I can do an extra 20-30 per hour. I used to spend that time waiting for the pages to load so I could get the information I needed from it.
In terms of stability of given speed, you may very well be correct. I download, but it's so much faster on cable now that I don't notice if I'm only getting half my speed because a file still only takes maybe 20-30 minutes instead of the 3-4 hours it was taking on Qwest. I also understand that with cable I'm not guaranteed a constant 10 meg pipe, but that I can - and have gotten - those speeds on many occasions. And with Qwest, they certainly made no guarantees about speed either, toward the end - they flat-out refused to fix my DSL even though it was only training at 1/3 of my advertised package downstream. Their only solution was to downgrade me (and anyone else in my neighborhood who complained) to 640 or 256kbit.
--
You're watching Sports Night on CSC so stick around... |
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wingman99
join:2003-12-18
Bettendorf, IA
·Qwest.net
edit:
April 19th, @11:07PM
| Your both correct it all has to do with internet and the servers you connect to if there not fast enough then it won't make a difference, if they can keep up with the load then they are fast enough. I've seen it both ways on different days.
Some web pages do come in over 1300 kbs like the weather.com, tv guide and others |
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knkayotte
join:2001-02-02
Camp Verde, AZ
·Packet8
·Qwest.net
·Black Mountain Bro..
| reply to no_one
Cable has gotten much better, speeds are much more stable and pings are usually nice an low. I often work on my buddies PC's and am envious of his 12Mb connection, pings are 1/3 of mine and his speeds are for the most part stable 24/7.
Hard to make blanket statements about DSL vs Cable as both sides have their good and bad providers.
Having said that, Qwest DSL is going to get left in the dust if it doesn't lay out a plan for the future, but that's another topic. |
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danawhitaker
Space...The Final Frontier
Premium
join:2002-03-02
Urbandale, IA
·MSN
·Mediacom
| reply to no_one
I stopped by the Qwest booth at the mall today to chat with the sales guys and asked them where in Des Moines this was going to be initially deployed. My area isn't in the zone yet (still only qualify for up to 1.5) but they told me I should check back every month as they plan to expand outward from where they've initially deployed. The area they specifically mentioned to me that could get the new service was the Jordan Creek area of West Des Moines and then north and east to the Valley High School area. They didn't mention any areas other than that specifically. I would be nice if they actually did move north into Urbandale, depending upon the final price of course. I think the check back every month thing is a load of BS that they're told to tell anyone who doesn't qualify for a given service, but at least they were polite. I'm not surprised at the area in the Des Moines metro that they chose though, as that's one of the wealthiest development areas.
--
You're watching Sports Night on CSC so stick around... |
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christcorp
Premium
join:2001-05-21
Cheyenne, WY
·VOIPo
| Nothing again Qwest reps in the mall; but they are about the very lowest in the food chain. They have absolutely no insight on what is coming. They have their standard answers to question; usually, "Keep checking back. Qwest is continually expanding it's service". Online chat is not any better. The most accurate information will come from techs you see in town. Especially the construction crews. But, at least their words give some sort of hope to some. |
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alanhdsl
Premium
join:1999-10-09
Phoenix, AZ
·Qwest.net
| reply to no_one
Unfortunately, the VDSL service was great -- 10 years ago. They've only bumped the data rate to 3MB and added a HD stream, but it's not CableCard compatible and they don't offer their own DVR. As much as I hate to admit it, I'm thinking of jumping to Cox. |
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jinjimbob
Troy Mcclure
join:2001-11-13
Enumclaw, WA | reply to no_one
I wish we could get the 7Mbp DSL, we can only get the 1.5Mbp.
I would see the difference, watching netflix online shows just how poor the download is. |
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AthlGrond
Premium,MVM
join:2002-04-25
Aurora, CO
·Comcast
| reply to alanhdsl
said by alanhdsl  :As much as I hate to admit it, I'm thinking of jumping to Cox. As a friend of mine once said about Cox: "That company's name is strangely appropriate."
--
"You are technically correct. The best kind of correct." -Bureaucrat 1.0 |
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questionable
join:2005-10-18
Phoenix, AZ | reply to alanhdsl
I created my own DVR and loving the abilities it has given me.... only a minor issue when change channels |
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alanhdsl
Premium
join:1999-10-09
Phoenix, AZ
·Qwest.net
| A standard def DVR is no problem (I have a TiVo right now), but I didn't think it was possible to do an HD DVR (from cable) due to the bitrates involved, without having access to the compressed/encrypted streams, which requires a CableCard. You can of course use a PC HD tuner for over the air recordings. |
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questionable
join:2005-10-18
Phoenix, AZ | reply to no_one
Sorry didn't realize you meant HD.. I'm still in the SD (Stone Def) age |
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wingman99
join:2003-12-18
Bettendorf, IA
·Qwest.net
| reply to questionable
said by questionable :I created my own DVR and loving the abilities it has given me.... only a minor issue when change channels How much does it cost. |
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spectra
join:2000-07-21
Tempe, AZ
| reply to no_one
Hey all,
I just typed in my zipcode (85281) at the qwest website, and the prices for the new speeds popped up. Just to prove that it isn't photoshopped or what not, I took a screenshot of my whole screen.
The bummer is that I put in my full addy and it only gave me an option for up 5mbps (Which is what I had before with qwest). If they can get the 12mbps at my place, I'll check it out. I'm going to give them a call tomorrow. Right now I am on 12mbps with Cox for $59.99. |
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