Verizon Pushing Troublesome DSL Users Toward FiOS > Dumb users

Dumb users

Even my grandparents (my grandfather is 89) have cable internet.

PHONE CARDS? What are they living in the '90s? As much as a I hate U-Verse, triple or quad-play could deal with all of that, but voice is pretty much free these days. GV has free long distance, Skype is 2.2 cents a minute, the Vonage app is free. Time for them to get with the times. And that's assuming their cell phones are Tracfones or the like where they have to pay per minute.

Well, they may be behind, but it might also be because people are looking for simple things, nothing that requires more than what is needed. I guess DSL covers that base nicely. No router or ONT to deal with.

I have several relatives that have FiOS, and there's no correlation to what they get based on their age. They either get Cable if it's available, FiOS if it's available or DSL if they absolutely must get it. Price isn't really an issue for them as they simply want something fast, as they know that when everyone comes over to visit they will probably bring something to entertain them on the Internet.

reply to BiggA
FiOS is available in my area and I don't subscribe. Why? I'm a single-person household. My data needs are met perfectly by 3Mbps DSL. Any slower and I couldn't stream Netflix; but anything faster would be a waste for just me.

So what's dumber: not subscribing to superior technology when it's available, or paying an extra $30 per month for bandwidth I don't even need?

reply to Smith6612
No matter what you have, you have to have a modem and a router, and the ONT is just a modem that's permanently mounted.

Just because there's one person in a household doesn't mean they should have crappy bandwidth. One person still needs good bandwidth.

3Mps is not crappy bandwidth if it is all you need. I gave up my DSL because of the price increase in my cable bill. Getting RR through Time Warner on a triple play wound up cheaper than my cable alone would have been. Otherwise I would still be very happy with my 3Mps DSL.

reply to BiggA

reply to BiggA
I understand and fully agree, which was why I made my statement. Many of the DSL modems can have their router functions shut off, and even if they do, they often have only one port so users don't connect additional devices to them already. My own experience with the router in a Westell modem from Verizon is that they work, but if you throw torrents at them the modem will load down a little bit.

I'm still on 3Mb VZDSL. While I'd love FIOS, there's none to be had. Yet, a friend in adjacent Braintree is rocking on it!

reply to CCarson

reply to Madness
You can't get cable? Cable now is most often around 12-15mbps on the lowest tier. Comcast is pretty solid, they have a tier that's reasonably priced (maybe $65 bundled) that's like ~24mbps down. The downside to cable is the uploads aren't that great, although they are a lot better than they were a few years back.

@norbert26: They don't have to install stuff on your computer, and you can use your own router, in a variety of different configurations with or without theirs (although you have to use theirs at some level if you use their STBs. you could go all on your own with cablecard DVR(s) and your own router though). You also have the advantage that if you really want to be annoyed at them installing, Comcast has had to make massive improvements in FIOS areas, and cable is all self-install except for multi-room DVR, which is them screwing a little filter on the main splitter.

All providers have promotional deals. I can only dream of having FIOS access. If I move to the Boston area, one of the criteria (not 100% absolute, but a factor) when picking a place will be the availability of VZ FIOS.

reply to BiggA

Copper is obsolete. Most people aren't using landlines for their primary phone anymore, and DSL is slow as molasses.

FIOS is worth it for the speed and video quality. What a bunch of ungrateful curmudgeons you people are. I would pay a LOT for FIOS access.

If you're really that concerned about copper reliability, you could keep a POTS line, and FIOS for the other two, but you won't get the bundle deals. Or you could have a Verizon cell phone, their cell towers are backed up for 8 hours on lead-acid batteries, and have diesel power on top of that.

reply to norbert26
Then in that case, just refuse access to the computer and ask the tech to simply set up what you use using their own gear. They should have something like a Toughbook or some other laptop available to ensure it works and take off.

I always tell people if they're going to get FiOS, is to use it, and use it to it's fullest. That means HD YouTube by having a Greasemonkey script force it, adding whatever devices you can to the network, and taking advantage of online content. If they're going to e-mail and just get FiOS, then that's still fine with me. It's just my tip if people complain about FiOS's price. It means they don't use it enough.

reply to BiggA

It is worth it. Period. People should all value good services.