DSL in the East Valley?

[DeAnna]

Tried Qwest 'cause I want to get dsl but they don't have it available in my area (northwest Gilbert). Don't care for Cox cable - heard too many bad things about them. Are there any other options? Other than satellite which is way pricey. Anyone know?

Thanks.

 

[kps0001]

I have had Cox (internet) now since it was first offered in my area like 5 years ago. Have never had one problem or one complaint. Download speeds are fast a little slow on the upload but I don't upload anything. Don't really of any others except maybe Cable America.

 

[jf-08]

I have had Cox (internet) now since it was first offered in my area like 5 years ago. Have never had one problem or one complaint. Download speeds are fast a little slow on the upload but I don't upload anything. Don't really of any others except maybe Cable America.

Have Cox - had Cable America.

No problems with either. I had a cable modem problem and a problem with the connection coming into my house, but those are fixed now.

 

[maddogkf]

I live in Gilbert - Cooper & warner area. I got Cox. No problems what so ever with anything - phone, cable, cable int connection.

We had Cable America when we lived in Mesa (Country Club & Guad) - Cox has been better than CA.

 

[Mike Olbinski]

Go with Cox...forget DSL

Mike

 

[jw7]

Go with Cox...forget DSL

Mike

The Max Qwest offers is 1.5 Mbps download. I'm on Cox Cable and always between 2.0 and 4.0, and no problems. The tech support is fantastic in my experience.

What bad things have you heard about Cox?

 

[DeAnna]

Mostly that you have to share the connection with the entire neighborhood and I can get really slow. I'm on Cooper and Elliott.

I guess Cox is my only option....$50/month and they're offering free activation and free installation.

 

[Sandan]

If you can get it, Qwest Choice on-line is cheaper and better than Cox, if you care about upload speed.

Technicaly they call it VDSL, as it uses their digital TV infrastructure (TV option not required). I get 1MB bi-directional and I don't share the bandwidth as you do with Cox.

Cox upload speed is limited to 128 kbs, a real problem if working from home or playing games online.

 

[DeAnna]

Tried QWest but it's not available in my area.

I guess a need a firewall....any good ones that are free out there?

 

[jw7]

Mostly that you have to share the connection with the entire neighborhood and I can get really slow. I'm on Cooper and Elliott.

I guess Cox is my only option....$50/month and they're offering free activation and free installation.

That is true that it is shared bandwidth, but I haven't seen anyone here complain that it has been a real issue since tech corner got started.

Nidan makes a good point that if you are constantly uploading huge files, that upload speed might be a consideration. But I telecommute 3-4 days a week and do email and file uploads. Plus both Chandler Mike and myself run these multi-megabyte vbulletin sites and applying upgrades really has not been a noticible problem.

Here is a place you can test your speed: http://bandwidthplace.com/speedtest/

They say the average connection speed for cable in Phoenix is 1.93 Mbps which is still 30% better than DSL. I have a bunch of neighbors with cox internet in the neigborhood, and am sharing their bandwidth, but I'm doing almost 2x the DSL speed.

 

[Mike Olbinski]

That is true that it is shared bandwidth, but I haven't seen anyone here complain that it has been a real issue since tech corner got started.

Nidan makes a good point that if you are constantly uploading huge files, that upload speed might be a consideration. But I telecommute 3-4 days a week and do email and file uploads. Plus both Chandler Mike and myself run these multi-megabyte vbulletin sites and applying upgrades really has not been a noticible problem.

Here is a place you can test your speed: http://bandwidthplace.com/speedtest/

They say the average connection speed for cable in Phoenix is 1.93 Mbps which is still 30% better than DSL. I have a bunch of neighbors with cox internet in the neigborhood, and am sharing their bandwidth, but I'm doing almost 2x the DSL speed.

Wow, I had 3.6...pretty sweet.

Mike

 

[Chaz]

Mostly that you have to share the connection with the entire neighborhood and I can get really slow. I'm on Cooper and Elliott.

I guess Cox is my only option....$50/month and they're offering free activation and free installation.

I had the same concerns about Cox at one time. I think when they went into a new area sometimes the demand would outpace the bandwidth. They have done a really good job of shortening the loops and adding capacity. I switched to Cox a couple years ago and I recommend them highly.

Also Cox upgraded and I think the upload is up to 512M now.


Deanna, for firewalls a standard DSL/cable router will work pretty well and allow you to share the connection. For a software firewall the ZoneAlarm basic (www.zonelabs.com) works well and is free.
I also recommend Norton Internet Security It comes with firewall, antivirus, and antispam features. I have also been impressed with Panda software firewall/antivirus programs.

 

[FischerKing]

i've had Cox internet for over a year now and haven't had any trouble with them at all - i had tons of trouble with QWest though - i can't stand that company.

shawn

 

[SweetD]

Had issues with Qwest for years no longer now that Cox has service were I live I will never never never use Qwest again.