The 40 dollar deal
Written: Jun 01 '01
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Pros: fast internet access that is always on. No need for second phone line
Cons: nothing major, tech support can solve one small issues with my web site.
The Bottom Line: I'm sold on this service. I used to be a skeptic, but I love the always on and faster than a regular modem service.
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| pweisenberg's Full Review: AT&T@home |
AT&T Broadband is the nation's largest provider of broadband services and delivers High-Speed Cable Internet, Digital Cable and Digital Phone - all through a single pipeline. Their network runs past nearly 28 million homes and serves more than 16 million households. Their Cable Internet called @Home , provides fast and "always-on" Internet connection through the same cable lines that provide you with your cable TV service.
I have only been using @home for about a week, but have really enjoyed not waiting for my modem to dial up ever time I want to check my email. I also signed up for services like Napster and game sites for my kids since I got the high-speed access. These sites where much too slow in the 56K world, I couldn’t bear to waiting a couple of hours for files to download, but now its no problem.
A few months back, my area experienced wide-spread outages of the @home service and they vowed that this wouldn’t happen again. I patiently waited about 6 months afterwards before I signed up to makes sure the have worked all the kinks out of the system. It appears they have and I am sold on Cable Internet access. Although it could be cheaper.
Installation:
When I signed up I got the free basic installation. That means that ATT will provide me with the cable modem and wire my house and bring the line into the cable modem, but won’t connect the modem to the PC. If you want them to do everything, its like an addition 100 bucks.
Since I already had a network card in my PC, the installation was a snap. With the self-installation QuickStart kit I just put in the CD and followed the user-friendly on screen instructions. I was up and running in about 10 minutes.
Configuration:
I did have an issue getting my mail configured. I had Outlook 2000 and not Outlook Express installed on the PC and the instructions were only for Outlook Express. After trying a few things with Outlook that didn’t work, I installed Outlook Express and then configured the mail POP settings in a few seconds.
I also wanted to set up a personal web site using their service, Webspace. They have an FTP upload tool build in to their web site, but the instructions also said I could use Frontpage 2000 to publish the whole site at once. @home’s Webspace gives each user 10 Megabytes of space to create their home pages. It took a while to create my area and make it frontpage ready. (activate FP 2000 extensions). But, after a few hours I was able to publish the whole site. Great! But the next day, I made some changes and the publishing feature bombed in frontpage. I was getting and error the I didn’t have rights. I called tech support and they were unable to figure out the problem. I still can use the FTP tool to upload 1 file at a time, but I’d rather use the easier Frontpage method.
Use:
I wanted to access my email from work, but they don’t have a web based email like my current ATT account and other sites offer. But, you can put the POP server in another web based email account to retrieve you email. That seems to be working except you have to remember to shut down your mail client when you are at home, otherwise the mail will never get to your POP account.
The always on feature is great, I like that more than the speed. My wife also doesn’t yell at me to get off the phone. (Yes, we only have one phone line) The speed varies. Since everyone in my neighborhood is sharing the same broadband pipe that is expected. When everyone is off, I have lightning fast service. When their own, its still faster than 56K. A lot depends on the speed on the other end when your trying to access other web sites. Downloading is really where you see the speed. Files that used to take 20 minutes are downloaded in less than a minute. (most times)
My son is now addicted to the toondisney.com site and all their shockwave games. I sure this would have worked on my old computer, but its really fast switching between the games now too.
Cost:
At around $40/month, @Home is cheaper than many dial-up ISPs when you figure in the cost of a second phone line. But if you were like me and only paying 10.00 dollars for 10 hours a month, then the price has tripled for me. Although, I am getting the first 3 months at half price. But, If you have your own cable modem, the price will drop to $29/month. But, you get what you pay for. If you want always on fast Internet access, its going to cost you.
Conclusion: So far so good. Yes its only been a week, but I am really enjoying the service. I have to let you know how it is when half my town is logged in and the network crashes. But, until then, I’m sold.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 39.99
Version Number or Year: 2001
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Epinions.com ID:
pweisenberg
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Member: Peter Weisenberg
Location: Hartford, Connecticut
Reviews written: 261
Trusted by: 444 members
About Me:
Enjoying the ride, only 19 more years til I retire!
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