Overpriced cable television

RCN regularly raises prices without providing any substantial improvements in cable television service. I switched to Dish Network, which not only provided more programming that I wanted, but was $10 a month cheaper.
Long wait times for customer service phone calls

No matter what time of day or night that you call, RCN is always "experiencing greater than usual wait times." I've rarely had a customer-service call take less than 15 minutes. Not only that, but their automated calling system is difficult to navigate.
Refusal to provide routers or support customer-provided routers

Our house has three computers: two PCs and a Mac. We needed a router in order to use them all at once, but RCN could not provide us with one. They also clearly stated that if we bought our own router, they would not support it. This became exceedingly frustrating, because when we had problems, we often had to make calls between RCN, the router company, and sometimes even Apple. In the end, we abandoned the router and resorted to using only one computer at a time.

We have since moved outside of RCN's service area and have Time Warner RoadRunner service. They have cable modems with routers built in, which simplified the process enormously. I doubt it anyone at RCN even knows these things exist.
Dismal experience ending service

In mid-August, we left RCN's service area and arranged to terminate service. But leaving RCN isn't nearly as easy as joining up.
Difficulty figuring out how to disconnect service: When calling the customer service line, it was nearly impossible to figure out which number to push to get the right person to disconnect service. Lots of options to add service or move it to another location, but RCN buried its disconnect line way down deep in the system.

Ten-day delay on ending service: This is a relic from the Dark Ages. We called to disconnect service on the day we were moving out, but as of today (two weeks later), service is still on. I can still check my email, and if I call my old phone number, it just rings and rings. No indication that the phone number has been disconnected.

Didn't place a forwarding number as requested: This was really important, because we have a business line and needed to alert potential clients to the change in our phone number. RCN claimed they would put a forwarding number on the line, but to this day, they still have not done so. How much business have we lost because of their ineptitude?

Distant drop-off point for cable modem: I had to drive 25 miles to the nearest drop-off point to return the cable modem to RCN. Great customer service there....

Billed for a month after service to be disconnected: Even though the RCN customer service reps claim that our service was actually terminated in mid-August--and that we would not be billed for service, even after it remained on weeks after our termination date--they still sent us a bill for the following month's service. They claim it will all be adjusted, but I'm not hopeful.

Conclusion

RCN's phone and internet service is fairly good, but the customer service is just appalling. If you have another alternative to choose from, I would recommend avoiding RCN and saving yourself a lot of headaches (and time, and money).

Recommended:
No

Amount Paid (US$): 140/month