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Comcast reluctantly agrees to stop its misleading "10G Network" claims

arstechnica.com

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Re: Comcast reluctantly agrees to stop its misleading "10G Network" claims

#51
post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The article says it provides 10Gbps of service to 98% of customers upon request, which would be powered by fiber-to-the-home. I don't need 10Gbps, but I do want symmetric upload and download speeds. Does anyone know if it's possible to ask them to run fiber and have only an upload speed increase?

> The article says it provides 10Gbps of service to 98% of customers upon request This part is funny to me because I've tried to sign up for their FttH and they declined despite it being in the area, and the same thing happened to others I know. I'm not sure how they came to that percentage but I don't believe it.

+1. I've read in various forums they will only install it if the construction cost is less than a few thousand dollars. This means they will say it's "available" on the order page, but then decline to install it.

Re: Comcast reluctantly agrees to stop its misleading "10G Network" claims

#52

Slimecast constantly lies at every tier of their organization. I won’t overwhelm you with example as they can be easily searched for, but here’s three good ones: https://www.reddit.com/r/Comcast_Xfinity/comments/17cdku6/li... https://forums.xfinity.com/conversations/plan/i-was-lied-to-... https://forums.xfinity.com/conversations/customer-service/xf... I personally have experienced the lying on every recent interactio…

They thanked me for my loyalty as a business class customer when I moved by charging me money for equipment I had returned + continuing to bill me after I cancelled and had moved away from the location. I ended up having to go through a local regulator to bludgeon them into submission, at which point an upper management level Comcast employee called me on the phone and begged me to sign a paper to make the regulatory…

Ditto

Re: Comcast reluctantly agrees to stop its misleading "10G Network" claims

#53
post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Last I knew, they still needed to finish working with their counterpart monopoly on their collaborative new Xumo device and get all the systems lined up to use it. Then they need to kick the little old grandma's still watching traditional cable off their network and set them up on a new Xumo streaming box instead. Then they drop the old video channels and use their frequencies to provide faster service on the same ol…

I don't know how coax internet works, or how the channel allocations work, but it seems to me if they can offer 2Gbps/200Mbps already why can't we opt for a channel reallocation and get like 1Gbps symmetrical, or at least 1Gbps/500Mbps or something? I do understand the legacy channel allocations were designed for almost entirely download - but 2Gbps? That can't be...

The way those cable modem systems work is essentially laying a data channel (usually several) on top of the existing coaxial cable network, similar to DSL laying data on top of the existing telephone network. However this means the cards which transmit and receive are still very much analog beasts, pumping out some incredible signal levels to as far as possible. Similar to DSL, the download centric focus is built into the design. Also, your small modem can't scream nearly as loud as the downstream signal can so some signal loss is more likely, limiting the upload channels. Finally a cable modem network is usually quite shared, with something like 8 transmission lines feeding entire neighborhoods or cities. Depending on node congestion you may not even get your advertised speeds. At least with DSL your line is basically dedicated to you lol

Re: Comcast reluctantly agrees to stop its misleading "10G Network" claims

#54
post #45

Slimecast constantly lies at every tier of their organization. I won’t overwhelm you with example as they can be easily searched for, but here’s three good ones: https://www.reddit.com/r/Comcast_Xfinity/comments/17cdku6/li... https://forums.xfinity.com/conversations/plan/i-was-lied-to-... https://forums.xfinity.com/conversations/customer-service/xf... I personally have experienced the lying on every recent interactio…

Comcast was the only available provider at a home I rented years ago. The router arrived and I set it up, only to find that the WiFi range was (literally) a couple of feet a most. The antenna must not have been connected right internally. Comcast Support's response? This must be because I am not on their higher priced plan. You can get faster speeds and longer range if you upgrade! The guy on the phone refused to bel…

I found that after a month of working fine, my packet loss jumped up to 50%. Support recommended upgrading my plan.

It seems like they must massively oversubscribe their network then just drop packets based on your tier, with a honeymoon period for new customers so they don't immediately cancel.

Re: Comcast reluctantly agrees to stop its misleading "10G Network" claims

#55
post #47

Even if 10Gbps to the home is technically available, it's not posted on their website, and I would be willing to bet majority of consumers will be denied due to installation costs (it's not trivial to run a fiber just to your house). So, why on earth was their network called "10G" if near zero percent of Comcast customers are even aware of that service, let alone actually have that service? Further muddying the water…

Yes, and:

> The Comcast "Gigabit Pro" fiber connection that provides 10Gbps speeds costs $299.95 a month plus a $19.95 modem lease fee. It also requires a $500 installation charge and a $500 activation charge.

For reference, I’m paying €25/mo for 10Gbit symmetric. Modem “lease” and installation included. To be fair, I get ~8Gbit/s in practice, but that’s well worth it.

Re: Comcast reluctantly agrees to stop its misleading "10G Network" claims

#56
That is great, every time I saw an ad with that stupid phrase it drive me insane. It was so stupid and clearly straight up lying and yet they acted so proud of it.

While we are at it can we stop confusing "Wifi" and "internet" in marketing? Somehow consumers seem to have forgotten that the 2 are distinct (likely thanks to most people probably don't use specific routers and instead they are the same). I want to scream anytime I see a post like "My wifi is down, is anyone else having issues?" on a local group and its like, I am almost sure you mean Internet is down but the distinction is very important.

Re: Comcast reluctantly agrees to stop its misleading "10G Network" claims

#57
post #55
post #47

Even if 10Gbps to the home is technically available, it's not posted on their website, and I would be willing to bet majority of consumers will be denied due to installation costs (it's not trivial to run a fiber just to your house). So, why on earth was their network called "10G" if near zero percent of Comcast customers are even aware of that service, let alone actually have that service? Further muddying the water…

Yes, and: > The Comcast "Gigabit Pro" fiber connection that provides 10Gbps speeds costs $299.95 a month plus a $19.95 modem lease fee. It also requires a $500 installation charge and a $500 activation charge. For reference, I’m paying €25/mo for 10Gbit symmetric. Modem “lease” and installation included. To be fair, I get ~8Gbit/s in practice, but that’s well worth it.

That price reference from Comcast is only if they actually say "yes" to running fiber to you in the first place. It's not very cost efficient to run a single fiber, and at $300 a month they don't have a huge amount of wiggle room for construction cost.

Re: Comcast reluctantly agrees to stop its misleading "10G Network" claims

#58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They thanked me for my loyalty as a business class customer when I moved by charging me money for equipment I had returned + continuing to bill me after I cancelled and had moved away from the location. I ended up having to go through a local regulator to bludgeon them into submission, at which point an upper management level Comcast employee called me on the phone and begged me to sign a paper to make the regulatory…

They are the HOA of the Internet world. I’ve had the exact same equipment scam happen. I ended up paying the first time. The second time I had a full video of me walking into the office (because at the time you had to return the equipment to the actual office, couldn’t ship it) and it took only a few months to get resolved. I don’t think there are many places that aren’t Comcast only. I briefly lived in an area with…

I bought my own router and modem before I signed up for their service as they were the only internet provider in my apartment building at the time. I viewed it as a preemptive measure against bullshit equipment rental fees. Everytime I have had to interact with them since they have tried offer me extra services (none of which I want) for free or reduced price if i would use their shitty box.

Re: Comcast reluctantly agrees to stop its misleading "10G Network" claims

#59

Slimecast constantly lies at every tier of their organization. I won’t overwhelm you with example as they can be easily searched for, but here’s three good ones: https://www.reddit.com/r/Comcast_Xfinity/comments/17cdku6/li... https://forums.xfinity.com/conversations/plan/i-was-lied-to-... https://forums.xfinity.com/conversations/customer-service/xf... I personally have experienced the lying on every recent interactio…

When I moved to a comcast area around 2014, I brought my own modem and they wouldn't let me connect over the phone without an "internet installation kit". I didn't need an install tech to come out since the place was already wired. I think it was about $29, and when the box arrived, it was literally a piece of paper with a url to go to for instructions. Absolute slimeballs.

Re: Comcast reluctantly agrees to stop its misleading "10G Network" claims

#60
post #47

Even if 10Gbps to the home is technically available, it's not posted on their website, and I would be willing to bet majority of consumers will be denied due to installation costs (it's not trivial to run a fiber just to your house). So, why on earth was their network called "10G" if near zero percent of Comcast customers are even aware of that service, let alone actually have that service? Further muddying the water…

Yes, but ATT advertises 1G fiber connections, and it's only available at a small fraction of their service addresses. Or for that matter spectrum with Internet Gig (or whatever they call the 850/30 Mbit service).

I would be in favor of a bit more truth in advertising such that they have to provide a service (not "up to") at, say, 80%+ of their service addresses before being allowed to advertise it. Or, for that matter, they can only advertise the slower of up/down or maybe the average of both if they wish to site a single number rather than both up/down.

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