Comcast in D/FW: Are You Ready For It?
Written: Jan 24 '04 (Updated Mar 01 '04)
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Pros: Decent channel selection, um, hmmm. Nope that's about it.
Cons: Frequent outages and rate hikes. Unreliable customer service. Oh, and did I mention outages?
The Bottom Line: My choices are very limited when it comes to cable. I cannot believe the hassles I've encountered in only two months of service. Avoid them.
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| bostonlover's Full Review: Comcast |
Here follows a somewhat tedious account of my personal experience with Comcast in the DFW market. I have tried to keep this as brief as possible, but with so many problems in such a short time, I feel compelled to spell it all out. The reader can skip to the descriptions of the Comcast features (or lack of them) if they'd not prefer to read about my own experience. (Nor would I blame that.) It was exhausting to write this and unfortunately it may be equally exhausting to read. Believe it or not, I've only included 'highlights' of my nightmare with Comcast. I have not had a pleasant cable experience for so many years that I've truly forgotten what hassle-free cable is all about.
We're Not In Kansas Anymore
It seems like I can remember being a teenager and getting cable for the first time. A nice man came out to the house, he drilled here and there, flipped on some switches and voila! Our household, dreadfully behind the times was finally in the 20th century. We'd watch the tube, transfixed by options beyond local network TV, enjoy uninterrupted service, receive a bill barely over double digits, and continue through life blissfully unaware it could ever be more difficult. Ah, progress....
As the kids say, "Kick 'em to the curb!"
My most recent provider before Comcast was SBC Home Entertainment. They provide cable TV in a few major metropolitan markets, mainly for apartment communities. I include a blurb here about SBC because at last check SBC cable was not available for review on epinions. Not pleased to give any more of my money to the company formerly known as Southwestern Bell, I was giddy that an upcoming move would force a switch in cable providers. They could get my money for phone service and DSL, but I could now fire SBC for their high cable prices, 'mirror fees' for providing only basic cable on an additional set, lousy to non-existent customer service, and an impossibly difficult to navigate billing system. (Hard to read bills from a phone company?! No way!) For the first six months of my service SBC wasn't even able to mail my bill to the correct address. I'd have to phone each month, guessing to my due date, alerting them once AGAIN to the accurate address, and beg for my balance to avoid late fees. So you can imagine I was only too ecstatic to jump ship. If you live in Dallas and are considering them, please beware. My situation may be isolated and the company may have improved, but something tells me that the sad state of their customer service will not. I have waited over nine weeks to receive the check they owe me from my last month of service...and I am still waiting.
A clear view of the Southern sky or you're ____ outta luck
Once I determined that a clear vision of the Southern sky was keeping me from satellite options, outrageous pricing for The Dish and Direct TV also turned me off. These companies are forever running promotions, but oddly enough these same companies forced me right into the arms of Comcast due to high setup fees. Not that it mattered. Trees are a precious commodity in Dallas. I'm actually happy to have them. But perhaps pulling out the chainsaw isn't such a bad idea.
Comcast plans
Comcast offers two main levels of service: Digital Packages and Basic Packages. The digital packages are broken down into Platinum ($91.99), Gold ($78.99) and Silver ($66.99), which respectively offer 5, 2 or 1 Premium Channel(s) and Pay Per View. The digital service also offers Digital Classic Plus and Classic. These last two packages offer no premium stations or PPV and cost $56.94 and $51.94. The non-digital services are significantly less expensive at $11.49 for the most basic of service (presumably offered simply to receive a good picture in lieu of rabbit ears), and an expanded basic service for $41.99. As of 12-01-03 these were the current prices in the D/FW market.
Ah, but not so fast, Missy
These prices were actually lower the day I called to set-up service. Of course I wasn't 'locked' into them, and within the week Comcast had raised their prices approximately $5.00 for all tiers of service. Just my luck! So the figures the Comcast operator gave me were not technically correct. I opted for the Silver Plan, which gives me all the basic and expanded basic stations, with one choice of a premium movie station. It turns out I would actually be paying more for getting less, something I was convinced was not possible after leaving the arms of SBC. Wrong. My bill for the Silver Plan--expanded cable on one TV with HBO, and basic cable on an additional set--is $78.00 a month.
Week One...really, read on. It's almost funny
*I was promised by the operator who set up my service that if one additional jack needed to be drilled, to accommodate me, the fee would be waived. It would have cost $13.95 if they hadn't so generously offered, but again, I was promised this convenience. When the contractor arrived, not an actual Comcast employee, he refused to do the install for the outlet until I personally called and verified my 'offer'. He said he had a boss to answer to. So I picked up the phone and after wading through the automated system for a human, she verified the fee was waived. The contractor had to stand by, waiting, and then insisted to speak with her directly to get all her operator info. A little awkward. This was not a quick process.
**The contractor arrived over two hours early for the install---not normally something to complain about when dealing with cable appointments---but my schedule was thrown off by his unexpected arrival. This gentleman was a very, very nice man but came equipped with only one drill...which promptly ran out of juice. Due to what he explained was a difficult operation, he was in my home for THREE hours waiting for his drill to recharge. (He'd work a bit, it would die, so on and so on.) Apparently my house is made of sturdier brick than the average home. I don't know. I nearly invited him for dinner, surprised that the nature of his work didn't provide a few more tools for this kind of work. Give the poor man another drill!
***When I balked over the ridiculously outdated A/B switch he installed on my additional set, I was told to go to Radio Shack to purchase a separate remote. Apparently keeping up with technology is not top priority with Comcast. I have not had to use an A/B switch to hop between local stations and basic cable for nearly a decade. When I voiced concern, he acted as if this was standard fare. The switch itself is large and bulky and again, not what one would expect for $80.00 a month and the technology advancements of 2003. I'm out $30.00 for the remote unless I don't want to be lazy. Not the end of the world, just odd.
****I had my digital cable for less than a week before it mysteriously disappeared. An appointment was set up (not immediately of course) and when the tech arrived two days later (Again, three hours early!) he explained that Comcast had "accidentally shut off service" due to a neighbor canceling her service with Comcast. So no worries. But then as soon as he left, the set with only basic cable went out! So I had not had continuous service on BOTH TVs for even a week. Yet another appointment, yet another cable man in the house, yet another apology that the tech who had come on the previous visit to fix the digital had "not done his job correctly". Okie doke. Three visits from three Comcast cable employees in a little over a week.
It continues
I was credited a whopping $17 for my troubles. As a new customer, polite and patient with the customer service reps, I wondered what was in store next. Well, another outage!
This time I had continuous service for a little over a month. Another shut down for mysterious reasons--one the reps could not fix over the phone. This time they wanted me to wait five days for an appointment and so I finally put my foot down. They scrambled to send someone out sooner, but as mysteriously as service disappeared, it magically turned back on about three days later, right before the cable person could come and 'fix' it. I was told I would see a credit on my next bill, but my bill reflected nothing. After two separate calls (I have to save my ticket order numbers to 'prove' I've made an order request) I was told my ticket number was useless to the billing department. They showed no record of it. They took my word for it and I was told to call back in three business days to request my new balance. Hmm. I was presented a $7.00 discount and, like the slave I am, mailed their check promptly.
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What Comcast provides in cable and options when you're actually receiving a picture
If after reading this and your options still force you to Comcast, here's what they offer:
WEBSITE
A website to pay your bill online and check account status is provided. I've only recently signed up so I cannot vouch to the reliability or ease of use for the Comcast Website.
PPV
Due to what I believe are rather steep monthly charges, I have ordered only one PPV movie. Ordering is a breeze, one thing Comcast obviously wants to make easy. My mother has Comcast in the Vancouver, WA market and pays considerably less for a higher tier of service...and is also given one free movie a month. Perhaps Comcast only sucks if you live in Dallas. But I find that hard to believe
ON AIR GUIDE
The menu and on air cable guides are preferred my boyfriend to those SBC offered. He likes that you can watch one station and view what's available on another station without losing the program you were initially watching. I'm not sold, and miss an option I was used to with SBC: being able to list at least ten programs in your reminder list. With this option, one can tell the TV to automatically tune to any given station on given day. Perfect for never missing a show. If you want Monday nights at 8PM for channel 11, just set the guide to tune to that station. Not exactly Tivo, but it is a feature that's sorely missed. Comcast also does not provide a feature that allows you to eliminate channels that are not included in your package. So I scroll away, spending a lot of time trying to ignore stations that are pointless for me. It’s a waste of time and makes scrolling through the on air guide a frustrating experience.
EQUIPMENT
The cable box that was provided me appears brand new and is pretty typical in every way. I've received equipment from cable companies before that is not in good shape. But I'm not ready to sing the praises of Comcast just for giving me a remote that isn't sticky. The remote, even after an incriminating number of hours watching TV, still is not comfortable in my hand. In the dark I still must search away, looking for the button that scrolls, adjusts volume, etc. Not a user-friendly remote.
PICTURE QUALITY
One word: Unimpressive. On my digital service the picture is not consistent. Usually it looks OK, but some stations are terribly fuzzy. Simply not impressed. I just wrote a very positive review of a TV I just purchased, so I know it's no fault of my set. When things tune in correctly the picture looks lovely. But again, certain stations look so unwatchable that I opt to just skip the programming all together. What am I to do? Call Comcast every time the picture quality fades? I haven't the time.
CUSTOMER SERVICE
At some point along the way I refused to call customer service for any reason other than to handle billing. I make my boyfriend place service calls because he's nearly sheepish when making a request...I don't trust myself to remain courteous much longer after as many outages as I've experienced. The reps are sometimes nice, sometimes very unprofessional, sometimes fast talkers. The last rep I called was giggling when she answered my call, told me the computers were down and said she'd transfer me. Well, if hanging up on me means being 'transferred', it really is like talking to the phone company. Immediately calling back, I found an operator whose computer wasn't 'down'. Oh well. He wasn't helpful...but he didn't hang up on me! This is pretty standard fare now for most consumers. So I suck it up.
CHANNEL SELECTION
The channels provided are adequate. Most everything you expect to be there is there. I was surprised to see that Sundance Channel was only recently added as a non-premium channel. There are a few other stations that the Silver Plan does not allow me access to and occasionally it's surprising. I won't list all the stations I don't get, but just do your homework to make sure all your favorites are there. AND, if you are a Public Access junkie, your dreams will come true with Comcast. There are dozens and dozens of them. Many repeat on multiple channels and it's a little off-putting to scroll through so many. On the set with the A/B switch, the 'B' side is nearly entirely Public Access, then tunes to a few cable news stations and other oddly placed networks. Ahh, the world of the B side. I don't feel like getting up to switch between local news and cable news. Not ideal.
TV GUIDE
No paper cable guide is presented to you with Comcast. Other than giving you a tiny list of the channels you receive, a paper TV guide is not provided. Again, my mother receives one paper guide each month with Comcast, but Dallasites are out of luck.
In conclusion. Yes, it's almost over
If you, like me, have no other choices for cable TV than Comcast, I sincerely hope your experience is a more positive one. If your wallet and view of the sky allow, I'd beg you to consider opting for an alternative.
Comcast is so big and so greedy, that they really don't care if I am not happy with their service. Nor will their bottom line be too adversely affected if I tell a handful of my friends to avoid them like the plague. I think that's what upsets me so much about the cable monopolies. We're pretty much stuck.
Recommended:
No
Amount Paid (US$): 80.00
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Epinions.com ID:
bostonlover
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Location: Dallas, TX USA
Reviews written: 31
Trusted by: 0 members
About Me:
Mother to two spoiled rotten Boston Terriers
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