Comcast Saga

[snitzel]

I had heard so many bad things about Comcast on TOTV that I thought that it would be interesting to post my experiences (good or bad) BEFORE they happen rather than just complain after the fact. So, to bring you up to date... We will leave RI on June 26 to move to TV permanantly hopefully arriving on June 29. So I began investigating television and internet ahead of time so that I can get an appointment for installation soon after we arrive. Here is what I learned.

1. You can't really get satellite for $24.95. When you add internet and phone (that I don't want) it quickly jumps to over $100.

2. Centurylink makes it very difficult to price it out on the web without phone service. Although I have heard it is possible to get.

3. Comcast constantly has an error message on their website which asks you to call for information after you put in your address. I don't think they want you pricing it before you call. They want to talk to you. I even emailed them requesting a quote. The response was they needed to interact with me in order to quote it properly.

4. When calling Comcast be careful the question you ask, it will either cost you or save you money.

So I called Comcast on their toll free line. Here is want I wanted. Setup for 4 televisions, HD DVR on 1 television, Basic cable on 3 televisions, 1 meg Internet.

My question to the nice lady was "I will be moving to Florida in 3 weeks and would like to have cable and internet installed." She gave me a price of $120.00 + tax per month + installation. I didn't bother asking how much the installation was. I thought that was a little high since they were advertising 6 month specials and said I would think it over.

I called the same toll free Comcast line two days later. But this time here is my question. "I will be moving to Florida in 3 weeks. What kind of bundles or specials do you have?" The nice gentleman quoted $85 + tax per month for 6 months + $74 installation and then after 6 months it goes to $120.

This sounded fair so I asked for an installation appointment for July 1. He said that date is totally open so I have an appointment between 9 and 12.

So far so good. This first part was easy. We will see what happens when and if the tech arrives on July 1. My experience with Cox Cable in RI has always been very positive. I hope the same will be said about Comcast. I'll let you know either way.

[pooh]

I had heard so many bad things about Comcast on TOTV that I thought that it would be interesting to post my experiences (good or bad) BEFORE they happen rather than just complain after the fact. So, to bring you up to date... We will leave RI on June 26 to move to TV permanantly hopefully arriving on June 29. So I began investigating television and internet ahead of time so that I can get an appointment for installation soon after we arrive. Here is what I learned.

1. You can't really get satellite for $24.95. When you add internet and phone (that I don't want) it quickly jumps to over $100.

2. Centurylink makes it very difficult to price it out on the web without phone service. Although I have heard it is possible to get.

3. Comcast constantly has an error message on their website which asks you to call for information after you put in your address. I don't think they want you pricing it before you call. They want to talk to you. I even emailed them requesting a quote. The response was they needed to interact with me in order to quote it properly.

4. When calling Comcast be careful the question you ask, it will either cost you or save you money.

So I called Comcast on their toll free line. Here is want I wanted. Setup for 4 televisions, HD DVR on 1 television, Basic cable on 3 televisions, 1 meg Internet.

My question to the nice lady was "I will be moving to Florida in 3 weeks and would like to have cable and internet installed." She gave me a price of $120.00 + tax per month + installation. I didn't bother asking how much the installation was. I thought that was a little high since they were advertising 6 month specials and said I would think it over.

I called the same toll free Comcast line two days later. But this time here is my question. "I will be moving to Florida in 3 weeks. What kind of bundles or specials do you have?" The nice gentleman quoted $85 + tax per month for 6 months + $74 installation and then after 6 months it goes to $120.

This sounded fair so I asked for an installation appointment for July 1. He said that date is totally open so I have an appointment between 9 and 12.

So far so good. This first part was easy. We will see what happens when and if the tech arrives on July 1. My experience with Cox Cable in RI has always been very positive. I hope the same will be said about Comcast. I'll let you know either way.

We had Cox in CA and they were great. I missed them when we moved here, however, interactions with Comcast have improved in the 4 years we've had their service.

It was difficult to get quotes online because for a while, The Villages had services or offers that weren't available out of the community. It is good to call a couple of times if you don't feel you're getting good information. We just went through that with Mom in law's service. First person we talked with said what she wanted she couldn't get. Called again about 20 minutes later and guess what? She could get what she was asking for.
Honestly, it's better to talk to them on the phone or head up to the local office on Rt. 441.

When you use Comcast for phone service, you can get more of a reduced rate, but their service is a bit different than what Cox had where we lived before.

Congratulations on your move to The Villages. You're going to love it here.

[getdul981]

I don't know about the Comcast service in TV .......YET, but, here in VA, we have been pretty satisfied with the service. We've had it for several years and it is pretty reliable. Of course, it costs, but if it's something you can depend on, then that makes a difference. We have the degital service on 5 sets and HD-DVR on 2. We also have High Speed internet, but I'm not sure how high, but it seems to be fast enogh for most everything we do, although Skype does seem to get a little pixely at times when we talk to our friends in CA. Our price is about $150 per month. Hopefully, we'll be able to stay within that price range when we move to TV.

[nkrifats]

When I was setting up the phone and cable. Embarq now centurylink was easy doing it over the phone. Ran into issues with the web. Comcast was a bear as I was trying to set it up over the phone. Finally got someone in Fla and it was an easy process. I now have to make the decision. Comcast or Direct TV as my bundle is running out in July and cost jumps. From what I can see, my pricing will be almost the same for either package. I have one more year in RI before I am full time in Villages.

[graciegirl]

I don't know about the Comcast service in TV .......YET, but, here in VA, we have been pretty satisfied with the service. We've had it for several years and it is pretty reliable. Of course, it costs, but if it's something you can depend on, then that makes a difference. We have the degital service on 5 sets and HD-DVR on 2. We also have High Speed internet, but I'm not sure how high, but it seems to be fast enogh for most everything we do, although Skype does seem to get a little pixely at times when we talk to our friends in CA. Our price is about $150 per month. Hopefully, we'll be able to stay within that price range when we move to TV.

The service is good. It is the difficulty interacting with the folks there. It made Sweetie want to bite and he is NOT a biter.

[784caroline]

It sounds like you have Comcast internet back home...Just be aware your existing Emails will not automatically transfer with this account. Your Comcast email is on a different server up north...it was fairly easy to transfer the email address but all the stored (inbox/sent etc) emails and the address book was a hassle. However after a number of calls to Comcast here in Florida they were able to bring all of that online for me also. It is alot easier if you use Outlook.

[Shirleevee]

I had heard so many bad things about Comcast on TOTV that I thought that it would be interesting to post my experiences (good or bad) BEFORE they happen rather than just complain after the fact. So, to bring you up to date... We will leave RI on June 26 to move to TV permanantly hopefully arriving on June 29. So I began investigating television and internet ahead of time so that I can get an appointment for installation soon after we arrive. Here is what I learned.

1. You can't really get satellite for $24.95. When you add internet and phone (that I don't want) it quickly jumps to over $100.

2. Centurylink makes it very difficult to price it out on the web without phone service. Although I have heard it is possible to get.

3. Comcast constantly has an error message on their website which asks you to call for information after you put in your address. I don't think they want you pricing it before you call. They want to talk to you. I even emailed them requesting a quote. The response was they needed to interact with me in order to quote it properly.

4. When calling Comcast be careful the question you ask, it will either cost you or save you money.

So I called Comcast on their toll free line. Here is want I wanted. Setup for 4 televisions, HD DVR on 1 television, Basic cable on 3 televisions, 1 meg Internet.

My question to the nice lady was "I will be moving to Florida in 3 weeks and would like to have cable and internet installed." She gave me a price of $120.00 + tax per month + installation. I didn't bother asking how much the installation was. I thought that was a little high since they were advertising 6 month specials and said I would think it over.

I called the same toll free Comcast line two days later. But this time here is my question. "I will be moving to Florida in 3 weeks. What kind of bundles or specials do you have?" The nice gentleman quoted $85 + tax per month for 6 months + $74 installation and then after 6 months it goes to $120.

This sounded fair so I asked for an installation appointment for July 1. He said that date is totally open so I have an appointment between 9 and 12.

So far so good. This first part was easy. We will see what happens when and if the tech arrives on July 1. My experience with Cox Cable in RI has always been very positive. I hope the same will be said about Comcast. I'll let you know either way.

Please be SURE to confirm you installation date before you arrive. We did the same as you and when we arrived, Comcast never showed up on the scheduled date. When we called, they had no record of our order and we had to wait ten days for cable/computer hookup. Welcome, you are going to be so :clap2:happy here!

[kb8tpw]

Just a couple of comments. based on past 30 days since we arrived. i did the 'get everything set up in advance" routine too, and it worked out pretty well, though I decided to do Centurylink for internet and DISH for cable as we were with DISH in Ohio. Had planned to not have a home phone and deal strictly with our cell phones. We however went with a home phone too, which seems to have been a wise decision as DiSH wants you to have a land line. We packed up our DISH satellite receivers, brought them with us and by noon on the scheduled day we were back in business with a new pole and dish in the backyard. I sent the form to community standards, it was processed and I picked it up at Laurel Manor after our arrival. The DISH technician was very impressive and thorough. I'm not quite as happy with Centurylink, the internet was sporadic for several days, now doing better after a phone call. Also, with the telephone - they apparently used a number that had not been out of the system too long and I get many phone calls a day from relatives, friends and finance companies. I hope that will go way in time. It appears the only oversight was that we won't have access to the Channel 2 marketing outlet, but we'll live without that - at least for a while as we scurry around getting all of the other things required when you arrive in the villages....... where ARE those palm trees......

[tpop1]

....nice lady & Comcast in same post. !

you're blessed

[MelZ]

you're blessed

I set up a triple play installation with Comcast for our July arrival. I worked with folks at their Orlando call center and found them knowledgeable and professional.

We currently have comcast for TV, no internet and Embarq for phone.

Let's hope my good luck with them continues

[getdul981]

It sounds like you have Comcast internet back home...Just be aware your existing Emails will not automatically transfer with this account. Your Comcast email is on a different server up north...it was fairly easy to transfer the email address but all the stored (inbox/sent etc) emails and the address book was a hassle. However after a number of calls to Comcast here in Florida they were able to bring all of that online for me also. It is alot easier if you use Outlook.

We do have Comcast, but only as a provider. We use (I'm sorry, but my wife likes it) AOL for our e-mail accounts and they work anywhere, even if we're traveling and have to use dial up.

[TrudyM]

We do have Comcast, but only as a provider. We use (I'm sorry, but my wife likes it) AOL for our e-mail accounts and they work anywhere, even if we're traveling and have to use dial up.

We have moved allot so have always used hotmail. Don't have to move it or change my email address. Now going on 16 years.
And it's free.:MOJE_whot:

[Pturner]

I had heard so many bad things about Comcast on TOTV that I thought that it would be interesting to post my experiences (good or bad) BEFORE they happen rather than just complain after the fact. So, to bring you up to date... We will leave RI on June 26 to move to TV permanantly hopefully arriving on June 29. So I began investigating television and internet ahead of time so that I can get an appointment for installation soon after we arrive. Here is what I learned.

1. You can't really get satellite for $24.95. When you add internet and phone (that I don't want) it quickly jumps to over $100.

2. Centurylink makes it very difficult to price it out on the web without phone service. Although I have heard it is possible to get.

3. Comcast constantly has an error message on their website which asks you to call for information after you put in your address. I don't think they want you pricing it before you call. They want to talk to you. I even emailed them requesting a quote. The response was they needed to interact with me in order to quote it properly.

4. When calling Comcast be careful the question you ask, it will either cost you or save you money.

So I called Comcast on their toll free line. Here is want I wanted. Setup for 4 televisions, HD DVR on 1 television, Basic cable on 3 televisions, 1 meg Internet.

My question to the nice lady was "I will be moving to Florida in 3 weeks and would like to have cable and internet installed." She gave me a price of $120.00 + tax per month + installation. I didn't bother asking how much the installation was. I thought that was a little high since they were advertising 6 month specials and said I would think it over.

I called the same toll free Comcast line two days later. But this time here is my question. "I will be moving to Florida in 3 weeks. What kind of bundles or specials do you have?" The nice gentleman quoted $85 + tax per month for 6 months + $74 installation and then after 6 months it goes to $120.

This sounded fair so I asked for an installation appointment for July 1. He said that date is totally open so I have an appointment between 9 and 12.

So far so good. This first part was easy. We will see what happens when and if the tech arrives on July 1. My experience with Cox Cable in RI has always been very positive. I hope the same will be said about Comcast. I'll let you know either way.

Excellent post. Let us know how everything turns out.

Oh, and :welcome: to TV! I'm excited for you.

[snitzel]

This is part two of my saga with Comcast. I read with interest this morning another Comcast post by brostholder. Here's hoping that my experience with Comcast tomorrow goes a little bit better. We arrived in the villages yesterday and Comcast is scheduled to come to my house between 9 and 12 tomorrow. Yesterday morning when we were in Savannah, Georgia I called Comcast to confirm the installation for July 1. The lady confirmed that we are in their system and that someone will be at our house tomorrow, July 1, between 9 and 12 for the installation.

I'll let you know tomorrow how it goes.

[tudacee]

As someone soon coming down to TV to do the same, I'm looking forward to what happened to you. Good luck. You can be our knight in shining armor, paving the way for other newbies. :crap2:

[snitzel]

This is part three and hopefully the last of my Comcast Saga. My appointment with Comcast was from 9 to 12 AM. At 8:40 the Comcast technician called and said that he was on his way. He arrived at 8:59. It took him about an hour and a half to set up five televisions and the Internet on my computer. The technician was efficient and knowledgeable. So far everything is looking good. I only have one minor concern. The DVR box is louder than the one I had with Cox. You can hear the disk drive inside. I don't know if this is normal with this model. Maybe someone else out there knows. I'm going to let it be for right now and see what happens.

So as you can see with me, I am one of the lucky ones. I made the appointment with Comcast well in advance and everything went like clockwork. They did what they said they would do when they said they would do it. Here's hoping my luck continues. :a040:

[ajbrown]

. You can hear the disk drive inside. I don't know if this is normal with this model. Maybe someone else out there knows. I'm going to let it be for right now and see what happens.



They make an audible hum, which surprised me when I first got DVR. From my research this is normal. I get a new box every fall when I arrive at TV and they have all had a hum.

One of mine began making a clicking sound when accessing the drive. This is not normal and I returned that one.

[TrudyM]

They make an audible hum, which surprised me when I first got DVR. From my research this is normal. I get a new box every fall when I arrive at TV and they have all had a hum.

One of mine began making a clicking sound when accessing the drive. This is not normal and I returned that one.

I too have a Comcast DVR here in Seattle. When they hooked it up the one they put on had a hum and the internet wouldn't work either. The guy said "crap not again" and said he would have to come back. I asked what was wrong and he said the line coming into my house must have a break in the shielding as he stared at some meter thing. Not having a clue what he ment I just said OH. He called and set up an appointment for a different team to come and replace the line from the house to the street (three days) When he came back the internet worked but we still had a little hum. He went off and came back with a new DVR still in the shrink wrap and no hum. So all in all an ok expierience except he ran lines up and down and all around instead of discreetly under the eve which I didn't notice before he left or I would have made him redo them instead I pulled out all the clips and tucked them out of site myself. I hope to get a good installer next time but it is a crapshoot.

[snitzel]

I solved the hum problem with the DVR. It was my fault. I had it and a DVD recorder both crammed into a small space and it was not getting enough air. The sound that I was hearing was the fan trying to kool the thing off. It was like it was gasping for breath. Once I took it out so that it could breathe it sounds normal.

[Pat_RI]

I had Comcast installed at my mother's house in TV and Comcast came and installed it at the day and time they said but they had no HD boxes so we had a 50 something inch TV but no HD. The installer said he would be back in a few days to replace the box and he never came back. After a couple of calls to Comcast they brought an HD box and everything is peachy now. Now do I dare call up to have internet installed? hmmm.

[barb1191]

We do have Comcast, but only as a provider. We use (I'm sorry, but my wife likes it) AOL for our e-mail accounts and they work anywhere, even if we're traveling and have to use dial up.

I too prefer AOL as it works anywhere you can get online. We chose the Comcast bundle which seems to work fine, however Comcast is our provider and AOL, which is free, is our ubiquitous browser.