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criggs
join:2000-07-14
New York, NY

criggs

Member

What Do I Do Now? New York City

Well, my deal with Verizon, for $190 a month including taxes, runs out at the end of January, and I'm facing a $40 a month increase in my monthly bill, too rich for my blood.

So I'm looking at switching to the other provider in my building, Time Warner Cable. They're doing a promotion for one year at $90 a month, which, including additional fees and crap, averages $102.

Since I want to keep my copper Verizon line in case of power outages, that would work out, with taxes, to $75 a month to Verizon.

So my total monthly bill would average about $180 a month, about a $10 a month savings; not bad.

Still, I'm not thrilled at how expensive all of this is getting. Anyone got some innovative cord-cutting suggestions, instead of just switching to Time Warner Cable? I'm in midtown Manhattan. Yeah, I suppose at the end of the year, when my monthly Time Warner Cable bill balloons, Verizon will probably wave some pretty promo in my face, good for a year, so I will be switching back at that point. But that means that I'll be hassling a de-installation/re-installation switch every twelve months or so, and I'm not that crazy about having to deal with that every New Year's.

I do not need HBO; I do not need Showtime; I do not need Cinemax; I do not need ANY sports channels.

Here are my needs: Will some combination of cord-cutting solutions of which you're aware cover them?

I want to be able to receive seven broadcast channels in my area in HD (2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11 and 13). And I want to be able to receive ten cable channels: CNN, CNN International, BBC World News, C-Span 1, 2 and 3, Al Jazeera America, MSNBC, Fox News and SyFy.

I need Internet with a minimum download speed of 25 mbs and a minimum upload speed also of 25 mbs (my ftp service can't run any faster than that, so anything above 25 is overkill). I normally download/upload a cumulative total of 100 gigs a month. (It's even occurred to me that things might have changed in recent months; when I switched to Verizon FIOS Internet a year ago, there were no longer any unlimited wireless Internet providers; Wireless 'n' WiFi was the last one, and they switched to a 60-gig cap when I finally had to give up. Has that changed? Is there some unlimited wireless Internet service now available again?)

Is this switching back and forth every twelve months between TWC and Verizon FIOS my only option at this point? Or is there another way to skin this cat?

Additionally, regarding Time Warner Cable, are there folks here who've had experience with Time Warner Cable one-year promotions? Are there magic words to say, or magic buttons to push, that can get a one-year promotion extended another year or so? If I take the Time Warner Cable offer, the one-year promotion will run out on January 28th, 2016, unless you can teach me how to pull a Time Warner Cable rabbit out of a hat to get that extended an additional year or two.

I've taken the liberty of posting a similar message in the Verizon forum, though I've included some Verizon specific questions there that don't appear here.

It goes without saying that any ideas or suggestions will be gratefully received. Thanks!
patt2k
join:2009-01-16

patt2k

Member

I know this is TWC forums but did you even bother checking new promo bundles on fios website? they have 3 Year price lock right now called Holiday Bundle.

Or calling retentions etc.. also if you move out from FIOS and come back in sometime you will have fios pre-wired home pricing much cheaper as well.

Going back to Time Warner man.. I would only do it if I had 0 choice.
criggs
join:2000-07-14
New York, NY

criggs

Member

Well, thanks for the suggestion. I just talked to retentions for almost thirty minutes. They refuse to do anything for me as long as I keep my copper line, though they certainly worked their tails off to get me a good deal if I surrendered it; but there's no way in hell I'm doing that. So that appears to be that.

So it looks like my choices are to either go with Time Warner or to figure out some cord-cutting arrangement that gets me the 17 channels I want plus the 25/25 Internet I want. I simply can't afford more than $200 a month for phone, TV and Internet, that's the bottom line.
omghi2u
join:2001-02-05
.

omghi2u

Member

said by criggs:

Well, thanks for the suggestion. I just talked to retentions for almost thirty minutes. They refuse to do anything for me as long as I keep my copper line, though they certainly worked their tails off to get me a good deal if I surrendered it; but there's no way in hell I'm doing that. So that appears to be that.

So it looks like my choices are to either go with Time Warner or to figure out some cord-cutting arrangement that gets me the 17 channels I want plus the 25/25 Internet I want. I simply can't afford more than $200 a month for phone, TV and Internet, that's the bottom line.

Do you have trouble picking out what clothes to wear in the morning?

To most it would be ridiculous to spend $75/month for POTS which isn't even that reliable in NYC.
criggs
join:2000-07-14
New York, NY

criggs

Member

I'm not giving up my copper line; I don't want to be without a phone during an outage (and I've lived through two over the last twenty years, both of which lasted longer than the measly eight-hour battery life of the Verizon phone fiber option). So if it's a choice between getting a good deal with Verizon but giving up my copper line, or keeping my copper line and getting a good deal with Time Warner, for me the TWC option is a no-brainer. Not ideal, of course, which is why I came here; you guys usually come up with good alternatives which hadn't occurred to me. To be blunt, however, giving up my copper doesn't belong in the "good alternative" category for me, that's the bottom line. Nothing personal!

OpTiC
Premium Member
join:2014-03-08
West Covina, CA

OpTiC

Premium Member

75.00 for copper is expensive. I have Verizon copper line and it cost 30.00 with tax. I also pay for TWC voice.
omghi2u
join:2001-02-05
.

omghi2u to criggs

Member

to criggs
said by criggs:

I'm not giving up my copper line; I don't want to be without a phone during an outage (and I've lived through two over the last twenty years, both of which lasted longer than the measly eight-hour battery life of the Verizon phone fiber option). So if it's a choice between getting a good deal with Verizon but giving up my copper line, or keeping my copper line and getting a good deal with Time Warner, for me the TWC option is a no-brainer. Not ideal, of course, which is why I came here; you guys usually come up with good alternatives which hadn't occurred to me. To be blunt, however, giving up my copper doesn't belong in the "good alternative" category for me, that's the bottom line. Nothing personal!

You don't have a cell phone? Have you considered getting a backup battery such as one made by APC and extending your online time during a power outage?

How the heck are you even paying $75/month? That seems absurd unless you have some premium calling plan tacked on.

In the past decade or so there have been major interruptions to POTS in Manhattan where outages lasted longer than a typical cable internet/fiber outage. Anything from terrorist attacks to Hurricanes, water main breaks, steam breaks, other NYC underground issues/construction. I may be wrong but my understanding is that many Sandy-impacted buildings scrapped POTS instead of attempting to repair. RCN pulled the plug on their POTS service altogether I'm pretty sure and forced folks to switch to their VoIP phone service.

Any ways, back to my point...you can see the line up options for the various service providers and their offerings online. You have enough information to make an informed decision yourself. At this point its like asking the internet to pick out what clothes you should wear to work tomorrow.
criggs
join:2000-07-14
New York, NY

criggs to OpTiC

Member

to OpTiC
said by OpTiC :

I have Verizon copper line and it cost 30.00 with tax.

My Verizon Freedom Essentials costs $54.99 a month. That includes an unlimited long-distance plan.
criggs

criggs to omghi2u

Member

to omghi2u
said by omghi2u:

Have you considered getting a backup battery such as one made by APC and extending your online time during a power outage?

I'd be interested in a battery that would last for one week; then I would consider dropping my copper line. Otherwise, fuggedaboutit.
said by omghi2u:

How the heck are you even paying $75/month? That seems absurd unless you have some premium calling plan tacked on.

As mentioned above, I'm paying $55 a month, and Verizon has an average of $20 in taxes per month tacked on on top of that.
said by omghi2u:

You have enough information to make an informed decision yourself.

No, I don't. You might want to reread what I wrote. I'm looking for info regarding

a) magic buttons to push or magic words to say which others in this forum may have successfully employed to extend promotions past their sell by date, whether regarding Time Warner or Verizon,

b) some combination of cord-cutting options that will gain me access to the seventeen broadcast and cable channels I listed in the opening post and which will provide me Internet running at least 20/20, and

c) the availability, if any, of unlimited wireless Internet options, since all three of my computers laptops.

While the tone of most of your message is unhelpful and generally seems more focused on belittling my questions rather than assisting me, I find your reference to an APC battery as potentially of some use. I have no idea what sort of animal that is. Could you elaborate? Thanks.
omghi2u
join:2001-02-05
.

omghi2u

Member

said by criggs:

said by omghi2u:

Have you considered getting a backup battery such as one made by APC and extending your online time during a power outage?

I'd be interested in a battery that would last for one week; then I would consider dropping my copper line. Otherwise, fuggedaboutit.
said by omghi2u:

How the heck are you even paying $75/month? That seems absurd unless you have some premium calling plan tacked on.

As mentioned above, I'm paying $55 a month, and Verizon has an average of $20 in taxes per month tacked on on top of that.
said by omghi2u:

You have enough information to make an informed decision yourself.

No, I don't. You might want to reread what I wrote. I'm looking for info regarding

a) magic buttons to push or magic words to say which others in this forum may have successfully employed to extend promotions past their sell by date, whether regarding Time Warner or Verizon,

b) some combination of cord-cutting options that will gain me access to the seventeen broadcast and cable channels I listed in the opening post and which will provide me Internet running at least 20/20, and

c) the availability, if any, of unlimited wireless Internet options, since all three of my computers laptops.

While the tone of most of your message is unhelpful and generally seems more focused on belittling my questions rather than assisting me, I find your reference to an APC battery as potentially of some use. I have no idea what sort of animal that is. Could you elaborate? Thanks.

a) there are none
b) there are none
c) there are none

Google and looking at the providers packages/channel lines ups should yield you enough information. Do some research.
criggs
join:2000-07-14
New York, NY

criggs

Member

I have done so; Time Warner Cable is the best option, financially, that I have located within my parameters. Keep in mind that my apartment building only affords me access to Verizon FIOS or Time Warner. Other than those two providers, my only options are cord-cutting and/or wireless Internet, as I've now made clear repeatedly in this thread. Maybe it's time now that you stood aside and let others take a crack at my questions; your attitude is not very helpful, and you're starting to hijack the thread.
omghi2u
join:2001-02-05
.

omghi2u

Member

said by criggs:

I have done so; Time Warner Cable is the best option, financially, that I have located within my parameters. Keep in mind that my apartment building only affords me access to Verizon FIOS or Time Warner. Other than those two providers, my only options are cord-cutting and/or wireless Internet, as I've now made clear repeatedly in this thread. Maybe it's time now that you stood aside and let others take a crack at my questions; your attitude is not very helpful, and you're starting to hijack the thread.

You stated your requirements and what you wanted to achieve. It is not possible. If you change your requirements, then maybe there are options.
criggs
join:2000-07-14
New York, NY

criggs

Member

Sez you. Now let's see with what ideas others in the DSL community come up. They've never let me down yet.
omghi2u
join:2001-02-05
.

omghi2u

Member

said by criggs:

Sez you. Now let's see with what ideas others in the DSL community come up. They've never let me down yet.

I know what I'm talking about. I'm not pulling things out of thin air.

Others are suggesting the same in the thread you cross-posted in the Verizon forum.

You state that your cell phone battery doesn't last long enough during a power outage - then buy extra batteries, an external battery, or even UPS to charge it! Everyone is giving you ideas but you refuse to be flexible on your requirements.

Good luck!!
jarred
join:2014-02-27
Amelia, OH

jarred to criggs

Member

to criggs
I am pretty sure you can find a UPS that will easily supply power to the cable modem for a week. I have a Cyberpower 1000VA model has a 66 minute run time while drawing 60-70 watts (powering a six core media server, cable modem and router) ... I would imagine it would be pretty easy to get a week out of a device drawing only a couple of watts.

PhoenixDown
FIOS is Awesome
Premium Member
join:2003-06-08
Fresh Meadows, NY

PhoenixDown to criggs

Premium Member

to criggs
My thoughts: Keep FIOS but move the phone line from copper to FIOS VOIP (forget the name of the package) which should save you money and provide you with good service.

Time Warner Cable doesn't have the uploads your looking for unless you get a really high package. even then I'm not too sure.
criggs
join:2000-07-14
New York, NY

criggs to jarred

Member

to jarred
said by jarred:

I am pretty sure you can find a UPS that will easily supply power to the cable modem for a week. I have a Cyberpower 1000VA model has a 66 minute run time while drawing 60-70 watts (powering a six core media server, cable modem and router) ... I would imagine it would be pretty easy to get a week out of a device drawing only a couple of watts.

That's very interesting, thank you. I have no idea how the fiber phone line works. If the modem still has power, does that mean that the phone will also have power?
criggs

criggs to PhoenixDown

Member

to PhoenixDown
said by PhoenixDown:

My thoughts: Keep FIOS but move the phone line from copper to FIOS VOIP (forget the name of the package) which should save you money and provide you with good service.

Quite correct. However, since I don't want to give up the copper line, that's a non-starter for me.
said by PhoenixDown:

Time Warner Cable doesn't have the uploads your looking for unless you get a really high package. even then I'm not too sure.

The Time Warner Cable Internet package I've tentatively selected is the Ultimate 200, which gives a 200 mbs download speed and a 20 mbs upload speed. 20 upload is my minimum requirement so, if TWC's Ultimate 200 performs in spec, I should be good to go. Are there folks here who have used the Ultimate 200 service? How has it performed? Has it given the upload speed promised?

PhoenixDown
FIOS is Awesome
Premium Member
join:2003-06-08
Fresh Meadows, NY

PhoenixDown to criggs

Premium Member

to criggs
I'm addition to what Jared shared - and I'm simllifying this here - instead of the fiber going right and connecting to the old school equipment at the verizon office it goes and connects to the VOIP equipment on the left. Both equipment ties to VOIP behind that.

OpTiC
Premium Member
join:2014-03-08
West Covina, CA

OpTiC to criggs

Premium Member

to criggs
I have the 200/20 plan and I get 216/22.
OpTiC

OpTiC to criggs

Premium Member

to criggs
I have the 200/20 plan and I get 216/22.
criggs
join:2000-07-14
New York, NY

criggs

Member

Happy to know it; thank you.

maartena
Elmo
Premium Member
join:2002-05-10
Orange, CA

maartena to criggs

Premium Member

to criggs
said by criggs:

I do not need HBO; I do not need Showtime; I do not need Cinemax; I do not need ANY sports channels.

Here are my needs: Will some combination of cord-cutting solutions of which you're aware cover them?

I want to be able to receive seven broadcast channels in my area in HD (2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11 and 13). And I want to be able to receive ten cable channels: CNN, CNN International, BBC World News, C-Span 1, 2 and 3, Al Jazeera America, MSNBC, Fox News and SyFy.

The good news is that you don't need any sports. This will make cord-cutting a lot easier, as for programming options you have a lot of different online streaming options available which WILL contain (although with a full season delay most of the time) most current television series. I don't mind watching the Walking Dead season 5 NEXT year, instead of THIS year.

That said, no one is offering a tailored channel package that has the channels you need. If you need live feeds of the SOME of the channels you mentioned, you may have to take on some form of television subscription. It depends on how much of a dealbreaker it is.

C-SPAN channels are public and can be watched for free online. With something called a SmartDNS (about $5 a month) you can circumvent geo-blocking, and watch BBC World News, as well as Al Jazeera English (not America). You can also watch a plethora of other news sources, such as Australia's ABC News (they had the best coverage of the Sydney hostage situation), Birtain's Sky News, and channels like Russia Today. CNN International can also be viewed this way through Zattoo.

Fox News, MSNBC, and CNN however, is a different story, just like SyFy. SyFy offers many of their shows online, and CNN offers a live stream, but the caveat is that you need a television subscription login to use it, so that defeats the purpose of cable cutting.

Your local channels can all be received over the air for free with an antenna. That said, I don't know if you have problems with building blocking the signal. (Do know that signals "bounce" off of buildings, so you may get lucky anyways). That is something you will need to try. If you can get an outdoor antenna, I would recommend it.

Everything added up, I believe you CAN cut the cord, but you will have to weigh the importance of the channels you mentioned against the cost of having them in the form of subscription TV.

As far as your phone is concerned you are getting ripped off. You can take a vonage box for $25 a month and get nationwide, Canada, and half of Europe and the Caribbean included. If you are worried about 911, keep a POTS line without ANYTHING on it, no phone plan, no long distance, no nothing. They are still required to connect you to 911 as long as you pay for the line itself. And are power outages really that big of an issue in Manhattan? Your cell phone will likely continue to work with a power outage, as the towers are all battery-backed for at least 12 to 24 hours.
maartena

maartena to criggs

Premium Member

to criggs
said by criggs:

Quite correct. However, since I don't want to give up the copper line, that's a non-starter for me.

I think this is your biggest dealbreaker in saving any sort of money. One thing you could do is to get a generator. You are allowed to put those on a balcony (and since they aren't any bigger then an old style laserjet printer, no one is going to care either). You can get a 2k watt one for around $200, a 4k watt one for around $300, and if you really are without power for a week you can not just run your phone system, internet, and computer off of that, but you can most likely run a cord to your fridge in the kitchen, and keep the TV on as well as a few lights. As long, of course, you have fuel and the ability to refuel it. (a week power outage likely means you will have gasoline supply problems, so keep a week's supply as well).

You'd certainly make BACK the money for the generator and the fuel within the first year of service to an "all-in-one" package deal, whether it is Verizon or TWC.

One should also note that POTS lines working in a long power outage is no longer a guarantee as it does require powered back-ends that convert your POTS signal to digital. Although those are likely covered by a generator, how often have we seen that even HOSPITALS lose power because they forgot to test their generators once a month. One other thing you should not, is that if you do not have an old wired phone without features wired to it, you will have the same problem. Any wireless handset type phone requires power to operate. Many people forget that, and don't have an old style phone at where the phone line comes in.
omghi2u
join:2001-02-05
.

omghi2u to maartena

Member

to maartena
said by maartena:



As far as your phone is concerned you are getting ripped off. You can take a vonage box for $25 a month and get nationwide, Canada, and half of Europe and the Caribbean included. If you are worried about 911, keep a POTS line without ANYTHING on it, no phone plan, no long distance, no nothing. They are still required to connect you to 911 as long as you pay for the line itself. And are power outages really that big of an issue in Manhattan? Your cell phone will likely continue to work with a power outage, as the towers are all battery-backed for at least 12 to 24 hours.

Based on my Hurricane Sandy experience, cell phones did not function in impacted neighborhoods. It would appear that most cell towers in Manhattan are not backed up by generator and become overloaded very easily. That said, POTS also died along with anything else saltwater touched. Best bet would be satellite phone if you require uninterrupted service.
omghi2u

omghi2u to maartena

Member

to maartena
said by maartena:

You are allowed to put those on a balcony (and since they aren't any bigger then an old style laserjet printer, no one is going to care either). You can get a 2k watt one for around $200, a 4k watt one for around $300, and if you really are without power for a week you can not just run your phone system, internet, and computer off of that, but you can most likely run a cord to your fridge in the kitchen, and keep the TV on as well as a few lights. As long, of course, you have fuel and the ability to refuel it. (a week power outage likely means you will have gasoline supply problems, so keep a week's supply as well).

BBQ grills (coal or propane) are not allowed but generators are? LOL

Great advice you are giving, that can potentially be deadly.