[Hidden-tech] Comcast VS. Earthlink

Chris Hoogendyk hoogendyk at bio.umass.edu
Wed Dec 5 12:47:16 EST 2007



DAVID F. FARKAS wrote:
> This thread is the first time I've learned that Earthlink is an option 
> and that it runs on the Comcast infrastructure in Amherst. Prices look 
> good.
>
> Could folks who have been using this Earthlink alternative to Comcast 
> or Verizon chime in with pros and cons? I'm on Comcast and it's 
> expensive. I've been thinking of dropping TV cable (increasing 
> Netflix?,) but that doesn't save much because of the bundling discount 
> for three services.
>
> So, some questions for those of you who have used more than one of 
> these companys...
>
>     * how does EL Internet connection compare in Comcast cable in
>       terms of browsing and download speeds?
>     * Is the phone connection quality as good as Comcast?
>     * Does VOIP create any issues in terms of calling into or using
>       bridge lines for conference calls? Is Comcast phone essentially
>       VOIP or another technology?
>     * Of the three choices Earthlink, Comcast, Verizon, I think
>       Earthlink is the only one that require a one year contract and
>       has an early disconnect penalty fee. Any thoughts / experiences
>       around that?
>


Unfortunately, I've never used the whole Comcast package or the 
telephone option on Comcast.

I would say that in general the VoIP option is not as 100% Rock Solid 
Reliable as the old fashion Bell Telephone. However, it is close to 
100%, and having it run over Cable makes it somewhat independent of 
other line outages. I have an APC UPS that my cable modem, VoIP box, and 
router are all plugged into. Those don't use much power, so the UPS 
should carry them through a moderate power outage. That means I can 
still call the power company, the fire department, etc.

I know that Comcast uses (at least sometimes) an all-in-one cable modem 
VoIP device with built in batteries. I don't know how it stacks up for 
reliability. It does make trouble shooting a bit more difficult if you 
ever need to do it, because you cannot easily turn off the device and 
restart it (I set up wireless for my daughter's Land Lady, and that's 
what she had). I've had a few instances over the past couple of years 
when Comcast has done something that has required that I turn off my 
cable modem and then restart it.

As far as comparing Verizon vs. Earthlink TrueVoice, think a la cart vs. 
it comes with it. Verizon nickle and dimes you to death with all the 
options. With Earthlink, I got all kinds of extras and even things that 
would have been impossible without VoIP. I can now do conference calls 
and I get call waiting. Through my account web interface I set up my 
answering message and set it to send messages by e-mail to my work 
e-mail. So I get voice messages at work and don't have to wait to answer 
important calls until I get home, which would in some cases be too late. 
I can also look through the history of recent calls and see who it was 
that called that I missed and what the phone number was. And, I can pick 
a number that corresponds to a bothersome caller and block it. When I'm 
on vacation, I can redirect my home phone to my cell phone. When my wife 
was job hunting, and there were important calls that had to be answered, 
I could redirect the home phone to her cell phone. Also, since it is 
VoIP, we end up getting free calls anywhere in the continental U.S. and 
no longer need a long distance carrier. And they do deal with 911 
properly. All for less than $20/month.

When I got Earthlink TrueVoice (added on to my Earthlink internet which 
they subcontracted to Comcast cable without requiring that I have TV or 
anything else), they sent me a small silver Linksys VoIP box that was 
totally preconfigured for my phone number and their service. Once it 
arrived, and I had set it up, they switched over my connection from 
Verizon. There was maybe a hiccup in the process, but their tech support 
was excellent and I was up and running on the day of the switchover. The 
house telephone could just be unplugged from the wall and plugged into 
the VoIP box. The way wire phone signals work, I actually loosened the 
outside wire where it came in in the basement, and then plugged a wire 
between the VoIP box and a phone outlet in the wall. The 2 phones that 
were elsewhere in the house just worked with that.

As far as browsing and download speeds, I think they are exactly the 
same between pure Comcast and Earthlink over Comcast. The difference 
would be that you are connecting to Earthlink servers for DNS, DHCP and 
e-mail. Since their tech support is better, that should be a good thing. 
This comment should also apply to the phone services. Comcast phone has 
to be essentially the same thing, but different boxes, services and 
policies.

I should note that the VoIP box is not available to end customers. I was 
able to find documentation for it online, but it is sold only to service 
providers like Earthlink. It ends up being my router as well. So I 
plugged my wireless hub into it and set the wireless hub to be in 
bridging mode so that the intranet routing is controlled by the Linksys 
VoIP box. It also has built in QOS (Quality Of Service) algorithms that 
give priority to the voice connections. So, if my daughter is 
downloading movies, and I get a phone call, my phone call is more 
important. With typical web browsing and email, you would never notice 
any conflict.

I hope that's useful and not just me talking too much. ;-)



---------------

Chris Hoogendyk

-
   O__  ---- Systems Administrator
  c/ /'_ --- Biology & Geology Departments
 (*) \(*) -- 140 Morrill Science Center
~~~~~~~~~~ - University of Massachusetts, Amherst 

<hoogendyk at bio.umass.edu>

--------------- 

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