The best for San Antonio
Written: Dec 08 '00 (Updated Dec 08 '00)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: cost, speed, reliability
Cons: need for a new cable run in many cases
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| jrjohnston's Full Review: Road Runner (includes MediaOne) |
Those that know me know that I rarely jump into a purchase or move without evaluating all the options. Here in San Antonio we have two options for high speed internet access: Roadrunner through Time Warner and DSL through SWBELL and other resellers.
When I started looking at high speed access, both of these options were beyond my price performance. Roadrunner was around $60 if you did not have cable service and DSL was close to $100 for the same speed level. Roadrunner had a $50 startup fee and DSL was at $200 with a 1 year contract required. Roadrunner had no contract.
I started out leaning to DSL as I did not want to get involved with the local cable company. I was in the mind set of "My access now is a phone line, it will be better to just get a faster connection that way". The problem was DSL was not in my area and was not scheduled to be deployed for 10 to 12 months. I decided to wait and see what would develop over time.
Well, DSL deployment here kept getting pushed back further and further and from watching the newsgroups, it was getting very poor reviews from users. Missed appointments, service going down frequently, and slow speeds. Additionally, three people I know at my work location had tried DSL and all three cancelled for one or more of the above reasons. These people are highly trained computer professionals so you can not account their problems to end user issues.
Four people at work had gone with Roadrunner, one since it was still in the beta test phase for this area. All claimed reliable connections, great speed (faster than we have at work), easy install, and good customer service. I decided to look into Roadrunner again even through I did not want to have to run cable to another location.
When I called Time Warner I found they had changed their requirements from what was still posted on their web site. The price now was $40 a month for the service, with or without cable service. Also, they were no longer charging any install fee if you did a self install of the modem (the part where you configure your computer to talk with the modem). They also offered a 30 day money back guarantee and no contract. I decided it was time to give it all a try, nothing to loose.
The appointment for the install was 6 days after I called to arrange service. The installer arrived on time and did a great job of running the new line. When he attached the modem to the new line, we did not get a sync with the network. He then ran another new line from the house to the interface at the street bypassing the underground line. Still no sync. He tried a number of other fixes but was not able to get the modem to sync with the network. He promised another tech that had access to testing equipment would be out the next morning. Sure enough, around 9 the second tech arrived and 10 minutes later I am online.
Now for my part of the install. I ran a CAT5 cable from my computer to the modem, configured TCP/IP to use DHCP, then went to a command line to check if I had received an IP address. I HAD!!!! I brought up a browser and was able to go to a web page. That was as hard as it was to get online. Since Roadrunner here uses true DHCP, no extra software or logon was required. When the computer turns on and initializes the network protocols, you are connected to the internet.
Roadrunner supplies a CD with software that you can use to configure your PC also. This software will setup your NIC properly as well as configure your mail program with the correct information. I preferred to setup all manually so I just told the program not to complete actions as prompted. The software will install a custom version of IE if you let it and also perform modifications to you registry to optimize your computer for cable modem access. All items offered by the program can be refused to allowed individually.
Roadrunner provides one dynamic IP address, five email accounts, personal web page, and will act as your ISP. Your master email account will already be active when you get your service. This master ID can not be changed but you can create up to 4 additional email addresses as long as noone else has taken that ID. These extra accounts are created and configured through the Roadrunner member serve web page. You can also use these web pages to access most other aspects of your account.
Now for the experiences using Roadrunner. Even through the IP address is dynamic, the DHCP lease if 24 hours. I have kept the same IP address for over a month. Speed is fantastic! Downloading from IE from various sites is usually 150-200K during peak hours. Off peak I have seen as high as 500K sustained. Connections reliability is very good. In the month I have been using Roadrunner, I have had one down period during a thunderstorm which lasted 10 minutes. Customer service is also very good. They are quick to respond to problems and give service credit if you do experience problems. One friend of mind is the only Roadrunner user in his neighborhood but when he called to complain of slow speeds, Time Warner send 4 trucks into his area to find the problem. The news server is very complete with the groups they carry.
Overall, I have to give Roadrunner high marks. My only problem with them has been slow work to get the cable they had to run to the street buried. I can not really blame this one on Roadrunner though as the group that does this service is a private contractor.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
jrjohnston
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Member: James Johnston
Location: San Antonio, TX
Reviews written: 22
Trusted by: 3 members
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