Review by emjayef Location: Pleasant Hill, Contra Costa, CA, USA Cost: $30 per month Install: about 5 days Twice the speed I got from Comcast for 1/3 the price Extra connections for fiber box; 300 GB/month cap Very few problems, friendly service, amazingly cheap without bundles

Pre Sales information: Install Co-ordination: Connection Reliability: Tech Support: Services: Value for money:

I decided to disconnect my home phone, which ended my Comcast bundle of phone + internet, and they were charging over $80/month. There were no worthwhile bundles for existing customers, and I had recently gotten a promo from Astound for $29.95/month for 55 mb/s download that I had been a little afraid to try. To be honest, it sounded too good to be true.

But I decided to try it out, and called the number. Found out not only was it 29.95/month for a year, and then $10 higher for the next year, but I'd get free modem rental for 90 days, and no connection fee. Sounded pretty enticing, so I scheduled them to come hook me up.

A few days later, someone came and ran a fiber cable to my house, and put a box next to it on the side of the house. Another 2 days later, on the scheduled day (slightly early), a very friendly guy arrived to connect it all. He seemed pretty competent, and quick. Did a few tests and showed me how it tested very clean, everything OK. Gave me a little Motorola SB6141 modem that connected to the existing wiring, and everything worked perfectly. I was pretty happy about the modem, as this is the same one I was thinking of buying for my Comcast service (a newer model than the generally recommended 6121, and not yet fully approved by Comcast). So, after the 90 days, I can buy this fairly cheaply from Amazon to avoid any rental fees. I could have gotten a wireless gateway, but I'd rather use my own router, so he gave me the modem without any hassles. I wasn't able to get a modem-only from Comcast.

I don't know anything about their TV or phone service. I gave up on TV long ago, and stick to Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc. Netflix runs much smoother now - mainly just loads faster - no interruptions so far, no problems with my streaming Pandora, which I do a lot during the day.

Got my first bill, and was happy to see the exact price with no added fees or taxes - exactly the price they said.

Tech support has been friendly, though not especially knowledgeable. Fortunately, I have had no problems, only questions about buying a modem, which I did buy on Amazon and had no problems activating it. But when I asked about firmware updates, I never got a competent answer. I was concerned about whether it would get the normal updates, and was told it would. But when I got the modem, I compared it to theirs (same model Motorola SB6141) and saw that my firmware was one revision lower than theirs, and every time the modem was rebooted, it would attempt to upgrade, and fail due to not finding the file. I asked about this, and was told to contact Motorola. I didn't really think that would be helpful, but I did, and the guy there told me it wasn't a problem, and not to worry about the firmware, unless I had a problem.

Then, when I turned in the old modem, I asked again, although that person wasn't really technical support; I kind of hoped she might be able to get someone there to talk to me, but she just punted and said she didn't think they would upgrade the firmware on my modem (but then admitted she didn't really know).

So, I'm assuming that either they will upgrade when the next firmware version comes out, or if I have a problem. Until then, I'm not really worried.

UPDATE: the modem has since updated itself.

One bad thing might be the wiring to the box on the side of the house is a little uglier than the previous Comcast, due to the need for a box that needs power to convert the optical to electrical. The wires are black, and my house is light, but I can paint the wires pretty easily, and it won't show much. Fortunately, the box matches the house color pretty well.

Well, I've had a couple of partial outages, where certain websites work fine and others don't work at all (including Astound.net, strangely enough). Usually, it was only for a short time, but tonight 11/5/14, it's been partially out all night so far. I could not get Netflix or Amazon Prime on my TV, so I'm a little perturbed. I called, and their recording said they were aware of the problem, and had no estimate. Considering this has happened before, I think they should at least know what's going on. Don't they learn anything? Or maybe they don't communicate the fixes.

I may have to let them know this is not acceptable. I'm willing to pay more for reliable service, if necessary.

UPDATE2: June 2017

They doubled my speed, but raised the cost. Since they still advertised the old speed at a cheaper price, I called to ask about it, and the agent was so nice. He said they only offered the old speed in certain markets, but he wanted me to have the faster speed, so he gave me one year at $29.95/month for 100 mb/s. He said to call back after a year, and he'd give me a new deal. No obligation/term, so I can't lose.

Latest results: [img]»/speed ··· ng[/img]

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Nick1 join:2008-11-08 Columbus, OH Nick1 Member 2017-Jul-15 1:14 am Well Since you are using a cable modem, you aren't on fiber but on a coaxial cable. The same thing comcast uses. Nice that you have another option. 2017-Jul-15 1:14 am: · hey mods ·
	emjayef join:2007-11-25 Pleasant Hill, CA Ubiquiti EdgeRouter X TP-Link Archer C9 Obihai OBi200 emjayef Member 2017-Jul-15 2:51 pm Re: Well Actually, I have fiber coming to my house from the pole, then it goes into a powered converter in my garage near the outer connection. From there, it connects to the same coax cable that Comcast used. It's probably not inherently faster than Comcast now, but at the time I got it, Comcast's fastest speed was less than 30 mbps. Astound (now Wave) was fairly new, and left a flyer at my door with a great promotion. Comcast refused to lower my cost, so I told them I would be trying Astound. I did, and have been very happy. So, it's nice to have the option but I'd hate to leave them now. 2017-Jul-15 2:51 pm: · hey mods ·
		Nick1 join:2008-11-08 Columbus, OH Nick1 Member 2017-Jul-15 8:11 pm Re: Well That's a really awkward setup! Wonder if that is unique to your location. 2017-Jul-15 8:11 pm: · hey mods ·
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Review by keithhr Location: Daly City, San Mateo, CA, USA Cost: $39 per month (12 month contract) Install: about 4 days My astound service (now Wavecom) is really good none best internet service I've ever had

I started out with dialup in the beginning, went to mindspring (coolest name ever) then earthlink , then I got the amazing rcn when they

installed a brand new fiber optic network in my neighborhood. I moved a mile away, couldn't get rcn at first and used, sonic, comcast, and

finally they installed a brilliant all new fiber optic network and I went from the 15 year old 7mb standard to my current 55mb service. I do not

have breaks or outages in my service, I couldn't be happier, it is an amazing company, now going by Wavecom

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Review by TommyJ Location: Walnut Creek, Contra Costa, CA, USA Cost: $35 per month (month by month) Install: about 2 days Caps of 300 gigabytes/month Works perfectly, phone support great. Billing and usage are two different online accounts

Pre Sales information: Install Co-ordination: Connection Reliability: Tech Support: Services: Value for money:

Only have the internet package.

Ordering was really easy and technician came on time. I had my own cable modem (Motorola 6580) but was handled easily.

I did have some initial hang up right after it was installed, there seem to be that magic window of a few hours from install to where it will fully work, but got it resolved quickly with the phone support, which didn't have me navigating a lot of menus, I just talked to a real person that was friendly and helpful.

Haven't reached the capped yet, so not sure if enforced or what any overage might cost.

Great experience over all and I have had this service for 9 months now and haven't had any outages.

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Review by rameus Location: Martinez, Contra Costa, CA, USA Cost: $85 per month Install: about 7 days Caps of 300 gigabytes/month No contract. Promo priceing. Data caps I won't know untill some time passes.

Pre Sales information: Install Co-ordination: Services:

I ordered Enhanced Basic TV/ 100Mbps internet /VOIP PH via FTTH from Astound.net now owned by Wave Broadband in Calif. Order to live in 7 days. Astound has installed fiber in Martinez, Pleasant Hill, Concord and Walnut Creek. Before this I had Internet and phone from Sonic.net and TV from Dish. I'm conflicted because I still want my line powered phone but can't afford to keep it. I have a generator and gas. Problem solved. Sonic Fusion went from 13Mbps ADSL2+ to 6Mbps ADSL for stability. Dish was too much $$.

Back to Astound. The fiber dropped 1 day before premise install. It's aerial to my 1941 neighborhood. Went in well enough. The premise install went well until he tried to get dated equip. to work on my dated CRT TVs. Once he went to HD cable TV boxes, problem solved. (I don't have or pay for HD TV.) The internet comes with an Arris Touchstone telephony modem that I don't pay monthly recurring for. Seems fine. I'm getting inconsistent speed tests but we'll see over time how this 100 Mbps bad boy works out. I did have to choose a router that supports over 100Mbps+ WAN to LAN throughput.

The price goes up in 1 year and again the year after that. Hope this helps.

rameus

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emjayef join:2007-11-25 Pleasant Hill, CA Ubiquiti EdgeRouter X TP-Link Archer C9 Obihai OBi200 emjayef Member 2014-Nov-15 1:56 pm Cost for modem My deal had free modem rental for 3 months; when that was up, I bought my own, but I don't have a telephony modem, so it was only about $60. If you need to pay modem rental after the 3 months, I don't know if it would be worth it to buy one, as they are about twice as much, I believe. I have my own VOIP home phone service using a fairly cheap adaptor, and a few dollars/month for service with free incoming calls, and about 1 cent/min outgoing - but I have unlimited cellular outgoing, so it's no big deal. Hope you have good luck with the service. I have only internet, and it's been good most of the time. I'm in Pleasant Hill, btw. 2014-Nov-15 1:56 pm: · hey mods ·

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Review by roreglia Location: San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA Cost: $200 per month (month by month) Cable TV, Internet service, and install technicians excellent Astound Home Phone Service unreliable--problem for almost two years. I would give a top rating except for home phone service and support.

Pre Sales information: Install Co-ordination: Connection Reliability: Tech Support: Services: Value for money:

UPDATE: home phone service continues to be unreliable; Internet and cable TV are good. Three requests for escalation to supervisor have been unanswered.

I had RCN cable TV, telephone, and Internet service install about 10 years ago. Ownership was transferred to Astound several years ago. The installation was excellent and all services were reliable until about a year ago.

The phone lines were originally POTS lines--plain old telephone service. About a year ago noise on the lines became so bad the it was impossible to send a fax. I agreed to have a new cable modem installed with VoIP service. Line quality has been great but the connection fails on a regular basis. A reset of the modem solves the problem. Time between failures has varied from 3 weeks to 2 days. Currently it is failing on a weekly basis.

Repeated visits from technicians simply confirm that the line quality is good. While one technician did call and say that there was excessive noise in the network I connect to, Astound has been unable to correct the problem and does not seem to be escalating the issue to other technicians.

sparky007 join:2011-08-25 Phoenix, AZ sparky007 Member 2013-Oct-21 12:20 am Go with www.basictalk.com Drop the phone and go with www.basictalk.com. I have had it for 4 months now and it's great!!! I have had no problems with sending faxes. Walmart sells the adapter for around 10.00. For about 12.00 per month I get unlimited phone with no long distance. It uses Vonage's servers so basically it Vonage in a cheap stripped down form with basic features. I only had to reboot the phone adapter once since I've owned it. 2013-Oct-21 12:20 am: · hey mods ·

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Review by (hidden by request) Location: Concord, Contra Costa, CA, USA Cost: $120 per month Great techs who (usually) show up on time Everything else - TERRIBLE equipment Wish there were an alternative

Pre Sales information: Install Co-ordination: Connection Reliability: Tech Support: Services: Value for money:

The only reason I have stayed with Astound is because their techs have
been attentive. They recognize that there are problems with
installation and service at my home. However, they don't automatically
credit me. I have to beg, plead, threaten and cajole to get results.
Also, it is difficult to get through to a knowledge person on their call
line. Their primary offices are in Seattle, and their telephone support
has next to no clue how horrendous the service in Northern California
can be. I have a bundled service, and never have all three things
(internet, phone, basic cable) all working properly at the same time.
The biggest problem has been cable television. What Astound neglects to
tell its customers in the Contra Costa County area (Concord, for
example) is that the cable boxes (which they are now phasing out) are
pieces of junk. I am on my fifth cable box of 2013, and it will not
pause nor rewind live TV. Scientific Atlantic piece of rat filth. The
Cisco boxes were even worse, PLUS the software was defective. Astound
never enlightened its customers to that little fact, however, and
expected Northern California area customers to continue to pay full
price for marginal service. The only way you find out is if you do some
serious digging and get a truthful technician come to your house.
Astound should be ashamed of this, it borders on being actionable. If I
had the energy (I am disabled), I would file a complaint. I still might.

Now Astound is trying to talk me into getting the whole house system;
what they are basically telling me is "We can't provide you a reliable
cable box, but we CAN offer you a (more expensive) whole house system."
I don't want their whole house system. They can't make my simple set up
work properly. Yet, they have expected me to continue to pay full
rental and cable fees on a piece of equipment that is not delivering
what I was promised. It is really a bait and switch operation at this
point. I am a long term customer, and have also noticed how dismally we
are treated as opposed to newbies. I guess these companies just expect
us to continue to shell out without even looking at our bill.

I wish there were an alternative. Comcast is one of the only other
options available to me, and my first experience with Comcast (10 years
ago) made me never want to do business with them again. True
competition is the only thing that will get these companies to listen.

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Review by JD5 Location: undisclosed location Cost: $40 per month (12 month contract) Install: about 120 days Solid 50Mbps download & 6Mbps upload for $40/month

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- $40 / month for 12 month for rock solid 51 Mbps Download & 6.5 Mbps upload
- No downtime at all so far
- Crappy Comcast has high speeds for a few seconds (to look good on Speed test sites) & then they drop their speed to DSL speeds.
Astound holds its 50Mbps download/6Mbps upload speeds continuously. ALWAYS FAST! No problems!

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Review by (hidden by request) Location: Daly City, San Mateo, CA, USA Cost: $50 per month Price vs/ Speed Connection is unstable, not for gaming or extreme uploading I'm going back to comcast. I would rather pay twice the price for a good connection

Pre Sales information: Install Co-ordination: Connection Reliability: Tech Support: Services: Value for money:

If you're looking for an affordable broadband connection for surfing the web, Astound is great for the price. Although I guess the area would vary, but here in San Mateo, CA it's not too bad. On the other hand, If you are crazy about bandwidth or into gaming astound is not for you.
Myself, I'm a online gamer and can't deal with the lack of consistency. A gamer would understand what I'm saying. I need a steady broadband connection with a speed that remains the same, regardless of how fast.
I recently swapped over from the high prices of Comcast to the much more affordable Astound. It seemed like a good idea because Astound was offering the same speed for half the price that I was paying with Comcast. While speed testing aprox 20MB down and 9MB up, I'll admit it's fast. Unfortunately speed isn't everything.

Let me sum my review up by saying this....
Astounds connection is garbage!!! I would rather have DSL lite with speeds under 1mb, but thats just me.

Bryan C

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Review by tvtek Location: Concord, Contra Costa, CA, USA Cost: $89 per month (12 month contract) Install: about 5 days Installation was done the day they rescheduled it to. The installation was rescheduled! Not as consistant as Comcast !

Pre Sales information: Install Co-ordination: Connection Reliability: Tech Support: Services: Value for money:

First of all they sent me an email informing me that the scheduled date that was originally set up was not available. The day of the installation the installer was 1.5 hours late (however Astound did call to inform me). I had Astound over a year ago with HD then switched to Comcast. The internet consistancy with Comcast was better than Astound, but the HD picture quality with Astound is superior with less noticable artifacts of compression.

Update 11/16/09: Cable TV hasn't really had any issues with an exception of a few lock ups on the cable box. At that point I just unplugged the box for 5 minutes to reset it and all was good again. I have had more than 5 times I have lost internet connection and it has taken more that 10 minutes each time to obtain sync again. At this point I will go back to Comcast. When I had Comcast I never lost sync once during the year that I did subscribe.

Update 02/28/12: As of over a year ago, I have been back on Comcast since I use Netflix. Comcast has a 250 GB cap, whereas Astound gives you a measly 100 GB cap

spin @comcast.net spin Anon 2012-Mar-12 7:17 pm cap astound now gives you 300GB cap. 2012-Mar-12 7:17 pm: · hey mods ·

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Review by socal88 Location: Pleasant Hill, Contra Costa, CA, USA Cost: $40 per month (24 month contract) Install: about 62 days Delivered what and when they said. none so far The introductory rate is great and we will see what the end of 2013 brings.

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I left AT&T DSL for Astound an have not looked back. Price was slightly lower, but the speed and service has been excellent.

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