S60
Premium
join:2008-01-12
Pittsburgh, PA
1 edit | Getting Comcast, need some help
I read through most of the threads/FAQs, but still have a few questions:
I will be moving [temporarily] to an area where they offer only Comcast. I'm looking to either get the Ultra or Extreme; however I have read the speeds are based on "PowerBoost" which I have not a clear idea to what that is, other than the fact that it is false advertising. What is real speed I would be getting for the Ultra and Extreme packages, respectively?
If do I get one of the these, I would rather buy my own modem, so what would be best choice for a modem? At least how do I tell which of the modems on the approved list will provide the service tier I need? I would prefer one that supports the purchase bandwidth rates and not-incorporate a router (I will buy a separate router). Also can I use non-approved modems—for example although, the Cisco DPC3000 is not on the list, can I use it?
I understand the business service is not yet metered… how would I go about getting business service as a non-business? (I downloaded 3TB+ last month—on 50/20 FiOS—so no metering would be best). Are those advertised speeds "PowerBoosted" or real?
Should I be on the lookout for any "tricks" Comcast would try to pull on me? Like charge me a crap load of "fees"?
Thanks!  |
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Dspairl
Premium
join:2004-06-09
Norwich, CT
| First you have to make sure the D3 speeds are even avalible in that area. You can then look at the following link for the real speeds you will see:
»Comcast High Speed Internet FAQ »What are the actual Provisioned Speeds?
Second, Moto 6120's are rather nice and are required for the D3 service, or any other D3 modem cisco dpc3000v2 etc
Third, everyone is metered at 250gb business and residents....sometimes they do send out letters and emails for going over the cap sometimes not...downloading 3TB will get you a letter i'm sure. |
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S60
Premium
join:2008-01-12
Pittsburgh, PA
| Thanks. Yes I called them and they told me the speeds are offered in my area which is good and the ordering page is letting me order. The issue is the "Professional installation"; it's $99 (which is waste of money IMHO), so can I just do my own set up?
And if they are all capped, then I will cut down my usage a bit and watch my bandwidth. Thanks for that |
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ztmike
Mark for moderation
Premium
join:2001-08-02
Michigan City, IN | All Comcast speed plans are capped at 250gigs/month
The business tier though..is unclear what the cap is for that, if there is even one. But I don't think they offer a D3 business tier anyway. |
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Eth_Rem
Premium
join:2009-06-17
Denver, CO
| said by ztmike  :All Comcast speed plans are capped at 250gigs/month The business tier though..is unclear what the cap is for that, if there is even one. But I don't think they offer a D3 business tier anyway. Maybe not in all areas but in mine, 22/5 is ONLY available with business services right now... and for 189.95 a month to boot.
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** I am a Comcast employee. Posts on this site are my own, not my employer's ** |
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S60
Premium
join:2008-01-12
Pittsburgh, PA | reply to S60
Thanks…
So how do I not choose professional installation? |
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rody_44
Premium
join:2004-02-20
Quakertown, PA
 ·Comcast
3 edits | you cant unless you are a tech and have all the security tools and such and are authorized by them to work on their main lines. if your ordering tv you could just order that and self install a modem later. but thats about it. FWIW, it costs comcast a lot more than 99.00 to have a tech come out and do it. im guessing with the bandwidth your using you dont have any time to watch the actual tv set |
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saratoga66
join:2002-08-22
Saratoga, CA | reply to S60
PowerBoost is not false advertising! If you are only going to be using this service temporarily why do you want to purchase a modem instead of rent? It will take almost 3 years to break even on a D3 modem. |
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S60
Premium
join:2008-01-12
Pittsburgh, PA
| reply to rody_44
said by rody_44 : you cant unless you are a tech and have all the security tools and such and are authorized by them to work on their main lines. if your ordering tv you could just order that and self install a modem later. but thats about it. FWIW, it costs comcast a lot more than 99.00 to have a tech come out and do it. im guessing with the bandwidth your using you dont have any time to watch the actual tv set Yeah I don't own a TV; the problem I had with the cost isn't really whether or not it costs Comcast more or less, but rather the fact that I have to pay for it; since it's unavoidable… oh well.
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How early should I go about ordering the service, so I have it running the first day I move in? |
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wozz007
join:2008-09-09
Greensburg, PA | reply to ztmike
there are no caps for the business tiers, only resi accounts have the 250 cap |
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S60
Premium
join:2008-01-12
Pittsburgh, PA
2 edits | reply to saratoga66
said by saratoga66 :PowerBoost is not false advertising! If you are only going to be using this service temporarily why do you want to purchase a modem instead of rent? It will take almost 3 years to break even on a D3 modem. Well the reason I want to purchase the modem is really simply based on the fact that I can get the modem for really cheap from a friend; I also don't really want the ISP to have control over my modem.
said by wozz007 :there are no caps for the business tiers, only resi accounts have the 250 cap I'm actually looking to get the Comcast Business Teleworker plan (yes it's offered for me, but I have to pay for it oppose to the place I work at)… is that the same as the business plan or am I missing something?
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Also those stories about Comcast technicians not showing up, etc… is that their business model or just a bad few? |
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EG
The wings of love
Premium
join:2006-11-18
Union, NJ
| said by S60 : I also don't really want the ISP to have control over my modem. W.I.W., there is no getting around that even if you do own the modem. |
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S60
Premium
join:2008-01-12
Pittsburgh, PA
| said by EG :said by S60 : I also don't really want the ISP to have control over my modem. W.I.W., there is no getting around that even if you do own the modem. Looks like I just read that as well. Oh well. |
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nate1234
join:2008-08-21
Moorestown, NJ | reply to S60
call them, I didnt cost me anything to have my service installed. |
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K Patterson
Premium,MVM
join:2006-03-12
Columbus, OH
·RoadRunner Cable
| reply to S60
Whether or not you want to cal it a "cap" is up to you.
Comcast can and will terminate anyone that uses an excessive amount of bandwidth as determined by them.
The only difference between the residential and business plans is that the residential plan includes a promise not to terminate or restrict you in any way so long as you are under 250 GBytes. There is no such restriction on the business plan, so they could call you an excessive user at 100 GBytes, but they probably won't.
Having said that, there isn't a lot of detail about when they take action. It would seem that the limits are locally set, and result in action when the network is overloaded. In the last year there have been fewer than a dozen reports here as I recall.
They also have a system that penalizes the heaviest users on an upstream or downstream channel when it gets overloaded. See the thread by JLivingood for details. |
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iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Golden, CO
·Comcast
 ·Qwest.net
 ·magicjack.com
 ·BeeCreek Communica..
·Sprint Mobile Broa..
| reply to S60
A few points:
1. If you have FIOS, keep it. It's that simple. Unless you can't get FiOS at the new location it'll be better than Comcast.
2. No matter what modem you get/buy/rent, Comcast sends their own firmware down, locking out features at will. Buying your own modem won't stop this.
3. If you do want a modem bought of your own accord, the SB6120 is a good, albeit expensive, one.
4. Speeds are 12/2, 16/2, 22/5 and 50/10 in DOCSIS 3 areas. The numbers Comcast likes to quote about PowerBoost mean nothing most of the time; PowerBoost (not available on the 50/10 tier) will pretty much max out your pipe for the first few seconds of a download; I get 30/10 now on PowerBoost and I'm on the 8/2 plan.
5. Residential accounts are soft-capped at 250GB per month. Business accounts have no such cap, though you don't want to do more than a TB or two because they'll want you to upgrade to fiber at that point. There's also congestion managment if you're on a more crowded node.
6. If you don't have TV you have to do the professional install. No way around it. Period. Trust me; if I could've done a self-install I would've saved the $100.
If you've got any other questions, reply to my post so the system IMs me and I'll see if I can answer them. |
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EG
The wings of love
Premium
join:2006-11-18
Union, NJ
| said by iansltx :A few points: 1. If you have FIOS, keep it. It's that simple. Unless you can't get FiOS at the new location it'll be better than Comcast. I'd say that there are some variables here that can be subject to discussion, and a certain amount of your opinion involved as well. |
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nate1234
join:2008-08-21
Moorestown, NJ | I agree with his oppinion EG. I would switch to FiOS in a heartbeat. |
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EG
The wings of love
Premium
join:2006-11-18
Union, NJ
2 edits | Well thanks for letting me know ! 
You are entitled to your opinion as are we all.
Do you not think that there is any room for discussion ? That would be done in another thread of course.
There are pros and cons with both services I'm afraid..
All dogs have fleas.. |
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nate1234
join:2008-08-21
Moorestown, NJ | I agree EG, but I personally have had alot of issues with my comcast service, not to say that wouldn't happen with FiOS. |
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