TV, Phone and Internet

[Big Country]

I'm looking at maybe switching my DSL and phone over to Time Warner (who I get cable through) as it seems like I could probably save a bit of money by doing so.

 

My question is, other than the DSL vs. Cable debate, (any input on Cable Internet service appreciated), has anyone used the cable phone service?

 

What other options are there? My DSL is through SBC/Yahoo/AT&T (whatever they are called now), as is my phone service. DO they have any deal with say DirectTV or something for combo services?

 

Separately, I know I get my DSL cheaper than the cable alternatives, but as a package to get my cable, phone and internet service seems like a good deal (about $135 a month plus fees and taxes, so prob in the $160 range total to cover the same set of channels I get now, add the HD DVR box, get the 10MB down, 1 MB up cable service and get the local/long distance phone)

 

The main thing I am unsure of is the cable phone and how well those work, and if there are any other companies offering similar bundles that would save me more.

[Big John]

What other options are there? My DSL is through SBC/Yahoo/AT&T (whatever they are called now), as is my phone service. DO they have any deal with say DirectTV or something for combo services?

Not sure on the other areas. But SellSouth owned DirecTV, and AT&T bought out BellSouth. In this part of the country, there are bundling deals with AT&T and DirecTV. Not sure if that is the case in California.

[twiley]

The main thing I am unsure of is the cable phone and how well those work, and if there are any other companies offering similar bundles that would save me more.

 

We have the digital cable phone. The only time we have any issues is if the power goes out, other than that no complaints. As for price, can't help you much, the wife gets us free phone, cable, and reduced internet rate through her company. $15 total...can't complain.

[MrTed46]

I wouldnt get internet phone from anyone else BUT my cable provider. They maintain everything on their end and the line is as good as internet phone (VOIP) can get.

 

Vonage and other VOIP companies suck a big one.

 

IF you want internet phone go with Time Warner without hesitation. The question is do you want VOIP over land line. The main problem is IF your internet ever goes down (due to ANYTHING) you will not have phone service period.

[Easy n Dirty]

DirecTV has changed hands a couple times recently, but I don't believe they were ever owned by BellSouth - they may have had some sort of co-marketing and co-selling arrangments and may still have one, not really sure.

 

Voice over Ip (VOIP) is an excellent product, IMO - very reliable, and the price can't be beat ($35 per month for me, unlimited calling throughout the country and price includes all fees and taxes). As several have mentioned, it is not a lifeline service, meaning that if your pwoer goes out, your phone service will also be down. Not a big deal IMO because every household has multiple cellphones, so your cellphone becomes your lifeline service in the event of an emergency.

 

I know in my area the cable company offers a Triple Play promotion where you get special introductory pricing if you take all 3 products from them - this pricing lasts for 12 months I think, then it gets bumped up but you still get discounted versus those who only take 1 or 2 products.

 

On cable broadband versus DSL - I think cable broadband has proven to be the better product, but there are others on this board far more qualified to address this than I am. I think the quality of your DSL service has alot to do with how close you are to the nearest central office or something like that, so the answer may not be the same for everyone, but overall cable modem is the way to go IMO.

 

The other option you might look at is Fios - this is a service being rolled out by Verizon, it's called an FTTP service (fiber to the premises). The video product is supposedly very good, at least comparable to cable if not better in most areas. The broadband product is better than what they offer through their DSL service from what I hear, and presumably the phone service is at least comparable as well. Because this is a new product trying to make inroads in markets dominated by incumbent players, it is typically priced below competing cable or satellite services. I'm not sure if Fios is even being rolled out on the West Coast currently, though.

 

Satellite has long tried to come up with a competing broadband product but has failed - they just cannot offer themselves a broadband service via satellite that comes close to cable. Consequently, they have partnered with companies like SBC and others to offer together a triplle play-like service that can compete with cable - three services, one bill, combined customer service, etc. I don't have any experience with this and I'm not sure how seamless it is, but I would be surprised if something like that isn't available to you in your area.

 

Disclaimer - I work for a cable company and am admittedly biased.

[Big Country]

I know in my area the cable company offers a Triple Play promotion where you get special introductory pricing if you take all 3 products from them - this pricing lasts for 12 months I think, then it gets bumped up but you still get discounted versus those who only take 1 or 2 products.

 

The other option you might look at is Fios - this is a service being rolled out by Verizon, it's called an FTTP service (fiber to the premises). The video product is supposedly very good, at least comparable to cable if not better in most areas. The broadband product is better than what they offer through their DSL service from what I hear, and presumably the phone service is at least comparable as well. Because this is a new product trying to make inroads in markets dominated by incumbent players, it is typically priced below competing cable or satellite services. I'm not sure if Fios is even being rolled out on the West Coast currently, though.

 

Time Warner is offering the deep doscount for taking all three. It is what I am considering once my contract with SBC is up for DSL. Introductory rate lasts 12 months then goes up $25-30 after that.

 

I know Verizon is looking to roll out FIOS in our area soon as they actually had a guy working on the pole in our neighbors back yard. He dropped something into ours and when he came by to pick it up I was talking to him for a few minutes and he mentioned that they were up there fixing some of the stuff so it could accomodate FIOS. As I think my contract is not up with SBC for another couple months, I may look into that as an alternative.

 

Cable deal seems pretty good. Can keep the same phone number, Keep the same cable lineup which please my wife as she would fear having to learn a new system like say DirectTV, and the switch of Internet service is easy enough. Not much would change other than the hardware... though I would lose the FLickr photo storage account that comes with having the sbcglobal DSL - though I am not sold on how good it is (I don't really find it the most intuitive tool and don't care for the layout options.. much preferred the Yahoo format)

[CaP'N GRuNGe]

I have Cox for internet, phone, and digital cable with DVR. Runs me about $162 a month. I don't have any premium movie channels however. I love the speed of high speed cable innernets. Never had DSL so I can't compare. I actually think Qwest was a bit better for phone service, but really not that much noticeable.

[darin3]

I'll be tracking this. When we move, I may dump Time Warner Cable and go back to DirecTV and go with AT&T for phone and DSL. I've been mildly unimpressed with cable internet.

[CaP'N GRuNGe]

I'll be tracking this. When we move, I may dump Time Warner Cable and go back to DirecTV and go with AT&T for phone and DSL. I've been mildly unimpressed with cable internet.

 

It's my understanding that cable innernets are much faster than DSL.

[darin3]

It's my understanding that cable innernets are much faster than DSL.

I thought so too.

[Big Country]

I thought so too.

 

I know that my local Time Warner, offering RoadRunner, has 3 levels of service, top one being the 10mb down, 1 mb up.

[rocknrobn26]

I've had Comcast's "Triple Play" for about 3-4 months now. I had their cable and BB for many years. Many of you have read my complaints about Comcrash, so I'll just stick "since I got "Triple Play":

 

Cost=$193/mth, that includes everything and every pay channel.

Outages: I have had outages totaling ~45 hours, but one was a power outage for 30 hours. I have received $40 in credit. Yup, I keep a log now w/ specific dates and times. Paranoid?

Phone: The quality is very good. No difference in sound when compared to a land line. The features (12) are plentiful and decent, though I only use their VM and CID/CW. There was no install charge. All/Unlimited Local and Long distance, I believe including Mexico and Canada. Europe rates are fairly pricey, but that does not apply to me.

VOIP: Difference between let's Vonage and Comcast, as I understand it is they have a different server for each service, so in theory the BB & TV could be out, but the phone would still work. That has to be partly true, because prior to getting their VOIP I had a few BB disruptions, but the TV worked fine. BUT since I have gotten VOIP either they all went down or they all work.

Value: I used to pay ~$175 for BB and TV w/ one HD/DVR box and one digital box. My Minimum bill from AT&T was $73, w/ only 100 minutes of Long Distance used or not. After the 100 mins. I was charged ~$0.09/minute. My avg monthly bill over the previous year was ~$90 and I minimized my LD. No my cell is not a good substitute for LD calling (I have discussed this before also). So for extra $18 per month w/ Comcast, I'm saving $864 this year, and I can make an unlimited amount of LD calls w/ no worries.

Downside: The Price will go up after the first year. Supposedly $25/ month. But I'm still saving money w/ more features. The billing is screwy, as they dropped the Premium channel package, added them back in ala carte, and then give a discount so it equals the same as before. Voice mail works well. I have it set up to send me an email w/ every VM. That helps, because if you don't pick up the phone, you have no idea that there is a VM waiting. The web site allows you to retrieve those emails and look at every call made over the last 3 months. That saved me last week when I lost an old friend's phone number I had scribbled on a piece of paper and lost. We had just gotten back together after 40 years, so I looked up a range of dates on the called list, looked for a certain area code that I rarely call, and bingo I found it.

 

All in all, I'm satisfied, but still evaluating.

[sunysteelfly76]

The question is do you want VOIP over land line. The main problem is IF your internet ever goes down (due to ANYTHING) you will not have phone service period.

 

Vonage has an option that transfers calls to an alternate # (my cell) if cable goes out.

[MrTed46]

Vonage has an option that transfers calls to an alternate # (my cell) if cable goes out.

 

 

The problem is lets say someones cuts your power and is trying to break into your house. you pick up the phone and dial 911 but no dial tone. I dont think they can help you there.

 

So thats what I mean by IF your internet ever goes down (due to ANYTHING) you will not have phone service period.

 

If your CELL is providing the phone service then this is not Vonage. They are just offering you a forwarding service for when people call you.

Edited September 25, 2007 by MrTed46

[Easy n Dirty]

Vonage has an option that transfers calls to an alternate # (my cell) if cable goes out.

 

 

Most phone services offer a call forwarding feature - in the event of emergency (e.g., power outage), the issue is whether or not you can make outgoing calls. With a land line service, you can - with VOIP, you cannot. But again, I think this is less important now that cellphones are so prevalent.

 

And as far as Vonage goes...

 

More Trouble for Vonage

A federal jury in Kansas City, KS today ruled that VOIP service provider Vonage infringed six Sprint-Nextel-owned patents and ordered the company to pay $69.5 million in damages for past use. According to reports, the jury also ordered Vonage to pay a 5 percent royalty on future revenue. In March, Vonage lost a similar case involving patents held by Verizon and was then ordered to pay more than $58 million in damages and a 5.5 percent royalty on future revenue. After going public in May 2006 at $17 per share, Vonage stocks closed today at a new all-time low of $1.30.

[billay]

We did exactly what you're talking about around a year ago, BC, with TWC. For the most part, we've been happy with it. It did save us about $50 a month on the 3 services combined. Nationwide long distance is free (for us anyway, i think they now have a 2 tierd system for long distance calls) Just realize that VOIP is still a new technology (relatively) and our phone service can be alittle funky sometimes. Sometimes, there's no dial tone when we try to make a call. Hang up, try again, it's there. We went into it knowing this, so it really didn;t bother us. We knew we were saving money.

 

The main bummer is that when I find myself contemplating something like Direct TV, NFL package, I remember, we've bundled phone, cable, and internet together. You can't tinker with one anymore. They've got you right where they want you.

[Avernus]

I am against having all 3 of these services through one company...

 

I had the plan from Comcast where we had the Silver package for HBO and HD, Digital Phone and Cable Internet (99 bucks/33 each).......but when the cable went out, so did everything else....

 

I am against putting all my eggs in one basket....

Edited September 27, 2007 by Avernus

[PSULions]

The main thing I am unsure of is the cable phone and how well those work, and if there are any other companies offering similar bundles that would save me more.

 

I had Time Warner with a passion. I had them for my cable modem to take advantage of VoIP through a company called VoIP Your Life and was very pleased with them. My cable connection for the phone was spotty thanks to a poor connection with Time Warner and I had dropped calls on a regular basis. I spoke to the President of this company and got great tech support, but in the end, I opted to go back to a regular phone with a bundle package for Unlimited Local and Long Distance coverage, Caller ID, Voice Mail, etc. and the Mid level DSL package for around $70 per month including taxes. The DSL is much better than the Cable Modem, at least where I am, as the DSL is faster the closer you are to the central network. I have had DTV for years and they are so much better for TV, wtih DVR and extra channels added to your lineup without having to petition for new Channels. I got the NFL Network, MASN and the BigTen Network when they all started. DTV just added them to my lineup, but MASN and the NFL Network are all part of a higher tier with TWC.

 

Everyone I know that had the Time Warner phone did not like it.

[theeohiostate]

I have been a Time Warner subscriber for 15+ years, i have business class broadband, the digital phone and several HD DVR boxes with maxed out channel subscribtions. I never have any issues with the broadband, the HD DVR boxes are hit and miss, i've traded mine in several times due to getting locked up or heating issues. The digital phone is okay, i love the savings , but if your cables out, your phones out and that happens every so often. The other drawback is security systems have issues with using the digital line, so if you have a security system , check with them before switching.

[whoopazz]

I have bundled TWC for TV, internet, and cable phone service. It costs 148 per month. Service has been fine with very few power outages. The internet service is real fast, and I could probably get a better deal on TV by going with Direct, but I'm busy, not a shopper, and the Mrs. won't let me ditch the land line. So this works for me.

[The Irish Doggy]

We've have that program - Cable, internet, and phone - for about 4 months now.

 

I think the phone sucks. Its incredibly squirrelly. Sometimes the phone only rings once. Sometimes calls get put straight to voice mail. Sometimes there is no dial tone at all and you have to reset the modem (unplug, sit for a minute, plug it back in). It even drops calls like a bad cell phone from time to time.

 

We've had two visits from tech support and a whole crew working on the street poles for the whole neighborhood. We only have it because the mrs. is convinced we need a land line for some mysterious safety/security reason. I would ditch it in a heartbeat and just keep the cell phones.

 

I didn't have much trouble with just the internet & cable.

[rocknrobn26]

We've have that program - Cable, internet, and phone - for about 4 months now.

 

I think the phone sucks. Its incredibly squirrelly. Sometimes the phone only rings once. Sometimes calls get put straight to voice mail. Sometimes there is no dial tone at all and you have to reset the modem (unplug, sit for a minute, plug it back in). It even drops calls like a bad cell phone from time to time.

 

We've had two visits from tech support and a whole crew working on the street poles for the whole neighborhood. We only have it because the mrs. is convinced we need a land line for some mysterious safety/security reason. I would ditch it in a heartbeat and just keep the cell phones.

 

I didn't have much trouble with just the internet & cable.

 

That's the only problem, from what you mentioned, that I've had.

I blamed the wife for not using the call waiting feature correctly. Cooking my own dinner once in awhile isn't too bad.