Microwave Internet
January 28, 2015 11:52 AM Subscribe
Is switching to a small local provider of microwave internet from Comcast a good idea?
My home was recently offered the chance to switch to a local provider of microwave internet from Comcast. We haven't really been happy with Comcast but its the only residential provider available. Commercial tenants in the building have reliably used the local provider for years and recommend them, or at least have had no issues.
The price would be MUCH cheaper for slightly slower downloads and the same upload, or slightly more expensive for MUCH faster downloads and faster uploads.
Its a large apartment with 6 roommates in Seattle. The primary uses are streaming media, Steam, torrenting and the occasional upload of large AV (youtube, dropbox) files. No one uses cable TV or xfinity to watch cable, so that aspect of Comcast's service doesn't matter.
We've had trouble with Comcast's reliability in our neighborhood and frequently have to call tech support to reset the connection in our building. (or something, I'm not making the calls.)
So what's the deal with microwave internet?
My home was recently offered the chance to switch to a local provider of microwave internet from Comcast. We haven't really been happy with Comcast but its the only residential provider available. Commercial tenants in the building have reliably used the local provider for years and recommend them, or at least have had no issues.
The price would be MUCH cheaper for slightly slower downloads and the same upload, or slightly more expensive for MUCH faster downloads and faster uploads.
Its a large apartment with 6 roommates in Seattle. The primary uses are streaming media, Steam, torrenting and the occasional upload of large AV (youtube, dropbox) files. No one uses cable TV or xfinity to watch cable, so that aspect of Comcast's service doesn't matter.
We've had trouble with Comcast's reliability in our neighborhood and frequently have to call tech support to reset the connection in our building. (or something, I'm not making the calls.)
So what's the deal with microwave internet?
Best answer: I think the main factors to consider for an ISP are speed, reliability, price, and customer service/policies. For customer service you probably won't do worse than Comcast. Speed & reliability will vary with location, but your neighbors are giving you good reports, and you're getting bad reliability with Comcast.
I don't know anything about Atlas, but in general I feel like the big national ISPs (including Comcast) are all awful companies that treat their customers badly, while trying to change the laws to allow even worse treatment. So personally I encourage anyone who has a viable local alternative to use it.
posted by aubilenon at 12:12 PM on January 28, 2015
I don't know anything about Atlas, but in general I feel like the big national ISPs (including Comcast) are all awful companies that treat their customers badly, while trying to change the laws to allow even worse treatment. So personally I encourage anyone who has a viable local alternative to use it.
posted by aubilenon at 12:12 PM on January 28, 2015
Best answer: What's the commitment with Atlas? Is there a hefty installation fee or contract required?
Basically, can you sign up with Atlas, try it out before cancelling your Comcast service, and then make a decision?
posted by zachlipton at 12:18 PM on January 28, 2015
Basically, can you sign up with Atlas, try it out before cancelling your Comcast service, and then make a decision?
posted by zachlipton at 12:18 PM on January 28, 2015
Best answer: I work for an ISP that somewhat recently sold its wireless customers off to a smaller local company.
I think the big issue with wireless was that it'd be installed and work fine, and then a tree would grow up in front of the antenna, or the foundation of the porch that the antenna was bolted to would settle and change alignment, and then people had flakey connections.
Having first gotten online in the age of 300 baud modems, and gotten Internet first through dial-up, so based on having developed web surfing habits for dial-up... I'd re-order aubilenon's list: reliability, customer service/policies, price, speed. It's unclear how reliable point-to-point wireless will be vs cable, but the smaller ISP is almost certainly going to cream Comcast on customer service and TOS policies.
I'd switch.
posted by straw at 12:34 PM on January 28, 2015 [1 favorite]
I think the big issue with wireless was that it'd be installed and work fine, and then a tree would grow up in front of the antenna, or the foundation of the porch that the antenna was bolted to would settle and change alignment, and then people had flakey connections.
Having first gotten online in the age of 300 baud modems, and gotten Internet first through dial-up, so based on having developed web surfing habits for dial-up... I'd re-order aubilenon's list: reliability, customer service/policies, price, speed. It's unclear how reliable point-to-point wireless will be vs cable, but the smaller ISP is almost certainly going to cream Comcast on customer service and TOS policies.
I'd switch.
posted by straw at 12:34 PM on January 28, 2015 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Well there's no contract and no set up fee.
We just have to buy a router.
Plus I called and talked to an adult human immediately.
We're going to try the cheap option, then move to the fast option if it feels too slow.
Thanks for the advice!
posted by kittensofthenight at 1:09 PM on January 28, 2015 [1 favorite]
We just have to buy a router.
Plus I called and talked to an adult human immediately.
We're going to try the cheap option, then move to the fast option if it feels too slow.
Thanks for the advice!
posted by kittensofthenight at 1:09 PM on January 28, 2015 [1 favorite]
I'd be a bit concerned about how well microwaves penetrate fog and mist.
Another issue I've had with smaller ISPs (Wave in my case) is that their infrastructure can't necessarily keep up with the bandwidth they promise.
posted by wotsac at 8:29 PM on January 28, 2015
Another issue I've had with smaller ISPs (Wave in my case) is that their infrastructure can't necessarily keep up with the bandwidth they promise.
posted by wotsac at 8:29 PM on January 28, 2015
I know several people with good experiences using fixed wireless in urban environments. If the speed they promise is good, try it! Like wotsac mentions I would worry about whether the link is reliable in fog or rain; it's a bigger problem with the fastest 5 GHz links, but 2.4 GHz links can also have a problem. In Seattle I imagine they have a lot of experience and hopefully will give you an honest answer.
Comcast is a terrible company and a bad ISP. Avoiding them is a mitzvah.
posted by Nelson at 5:41 AM on January 29, 2015 [1 favorite]
Comcast is a terrible company and a bad ISP. Avoiding them is a mitzvah.
posted by Nelson at 5:41 AM on January 29, 2015 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by ryanrs at 11:55 AM on January 28, 2015