drnick5 t1_iuo4wvh wrote
While it is cool to have access to high speeds, it's mainly because the 1 cable company in the state is pushing everyone to upgrade to docsis 3.1 modems and gigabit plans. At a higher cost of course..... The article also conveniently calls it "internet speeds". While the download is good, unless you have FIOS your upload speeds are awful.
Half the state (maybe more) has Cox as it's only option.
boulevardofdef t1_iuocdrp wrote
I legitimately don't understand why anyone would have Cox when Fios is available. Cox just sent me mail last week to tell me I could have a third of the download speed I have with Fios for only $10 a month more than I pay now. And that's before we even get to the upload speed. I know that many people don't have Fios as an option, but still, how do they stay in business?
LateToSapphos t1_iuoj4r5 wrote
Because… that’s the only option. If you’re only two choices are no internet or cox then obvi cox gonna stay in business cause no one else want to supply.
PM_ME_YOUR_LUKEWARM t1_iuvm3su wrote
Starlink is an option too, no?
drnick5 t1_iuojerc wrote
Cox stays in business because many have literally no other option. If I didn't game and care about ping, or upload large files, I'd consider a 5g hotspot from T-Mobile or something, but it's not an option for me.
If tomorrow Cox said "we're doubling our prices and giving you half the speed" there is literally nothing I could do about it.
I'm hopeful that fiber eventually comes down this way (not likely) or that starlink or some other wireless internet becomes a viable option.
Vo_Mimbre t1_iup7ptb wrote
I3 is not an option for you?
Asking seriously because I know what lock in feels like so am hoping i3 can be for you. I switched on 2020 and not only was the service actually real, the download speed was triple. Upload wasn’t great at first but what it lacked in speed it had in consistency, and in the last two years uploads gotten way better.
boulevardofdef t1_iupcnwz wrote
I believe i3 is East Bay only.
Vo_Mimbre t1_iutudpg wrote
Oh maybe. There’s i3 here and in Illinois, but I thought it was RI in general not just this side of the city…
drnick5 t1_iupd4rc wrote
It's not, i3 is only Warren and parts of Bristol I believe. I'm a few towns away from Bristol
jxs74 t1_iupq5vn wrote
i3 is in Barrington too, but limited to East Bay. I've been happy with in the past 2.5 years. Prior to this I lived in Silicon Valley and avoided cable internet and took 50Mb xDSL. Hence trying non-Cox here.
I don't recall if it is 3.0 or 3.1. Upload has been good, although most of my use may be limited by VPN.
drnick5 t1_iupsepg wrote
Yeah most VPNs will limit your speed (some more than others) Don't get me wrong, Cox in general is ok (could be worse.... We could have Xfinity) but I just wish we had some competition. I'd kill for FIOS
Silentjosh37 t1_iuoxwbc wrote
If I can ask where(generally speaking) are you? Might be able to get you some info about services that might help.
PM_ME_YOUR_LUKEWARM t1_iuvm8oj wrote
Isn't starlink already available here?
I think I tried adding it to my card a couple years ago and it worked for my location.
drnick5 t1_iuw18an wrote
It is available yes, but it's not any cheaper than Cox, and the speeds are slower and ping is higher.
Rickshmitt t1_iuol4yb wrote
Fios goes literally around my road. Id buy two plans if they let me have it
abaum525 t1_iup23bj wrote
Cox was the only option where we moved, but it's not been that bad. Download and upload speeds have been fine for our usage. People talk about Cox likes it's the worst service ever but I've had far less dependability with providers like Comcast and Verizon.
Silentjosh37 t1_iuowntf wrote
Moving everyone off the older DOCSIS 3.0 modems and to the newer 3.1 and 4.0(only in test labs at the moment) modems providers (Cox and i3broadband) will allow for higher upload speeds as they are able to reclaim signal by using the more efficient OFDM channels for traffic. It is a limitation of RF networks that have to be reworked and that takes time and money.
Some providers are upgrading the modems at no cost actually giving a free rental modem to get people off the older modems. It is hard to get people to upgrade their technology because they don't understand that their "brand new"(9 years old) modem is very out of date and 8 docsis channels just doesn't cut it and they are dragging down the rest of the herd.
The majority of people don't need to worry about upload speeds, yes there are some people that need higher upload speeds but most people won't notice a difference. Yeah its great to see symetrical up and down but the majority of people need more down than up.
You would be surprised how little bandwidth people use in a day. Streaming 4k video can be done with as little as 15mbps and yes as you add more devices youll need more bandwidth, but simply dropping down to 1080p and 6 will do you just fine most times.
Higher speeds are coming but it takes time to do things like mid band and high band splits as well as for the technology to catch up.
drnick5 t1_iupczet wrote
Oh I understand fully why they're moving everyone to docsis 3.1. I used to run into old modems all the time (talking docsis 2) and I'd tell them to order a new one off Amazon and call Cox to activate it. in some cases they were paying for faster speeds (100/10) but still on a modem that couldn't get anywhere close to those sleeds.
As you said, most people don't need Gigabit or even anywhere close. But I've had friends and clients call for internet and are told something along the lines of "You can pay $X for 25 down/5 up" or very slightly more for Gigabit (I can't remember the speeds exactly so 25/5 could be a slight exaggeration. But it was so drastic that it made sense to go to gigabit.) In my case it was literally $5 more a month to go from 200 to gigabit. But every year I have to call and play the game and get a new promo.
Never let Cox give you a "free" modem. They did that to me at my business years ago and I found out a year later they started charging me for it at one of my renewals. This went on for almost 3 years. Thing is.. 2 years prior it died, so I replaced it with my own 3.1 modem (I keep a few in stock at work) and sent back their broken one. they were literally charging me for my own equipment.
At any rate. While "higher speeds are coming" we won't see that til docsis 4 which is guess is years and years down the road.
Tortankum t1_iupu4xw wrote
The average person has absolutely no need for high upload speeds. It’s a complete waste of money
degggendorf t1_iur4egn wrote
> The average person has absolutely no need for high upload speeds.
I think you may be a bit out of date. The average person these days is absolutely backing up data in the cloud. Whether it's iCloud or Google One (I think that's what they call it) to back up everything, or just backing up media like through Google Photos, a lot of people are uploading a lot of data now.
drnick5 t1_iupvok7 wrote
I'm confused by the whole statement. I never said "everyone needs fast upload" more so.. how is it a "complete waste of money"?
If you are get FIOS, you get the same speed upload or download. (100/100, 500/500, etc) You aren't paying more for faster upload. In some cases, you're paying less than what Cox charges
Tortankum t1_iupx307 wrote
Your original comment clearly makes it seem like have having low upload speeds is a big deal, or that cox is being deceptive.
Its a waste of money in that, hypothetically, I would never pay extra for higher upload speeds.
drnick5 t1_iupzk1n wrote
It's a big deal to me, yes. For the average person, it doesn't matter. Just because you think it's personally a "waste of money" for higher upload speeds for yourself doesn't mean that it is for everyone else. Even "hypothetically", as I don't believe any internet provider has plans that give you higher upload without also getting higher download. (with all cable companies, they give you 10% of your download as upload, but it caps at around 35mb. So 100/10, 200/20, 500/35, 1000/35).
I don't believe I ever said Cox is being deceptive, the issue is with docsis 3.1 itself. Since it goes over coax, it has a limit of about 50mb. (Cox keeps that at about 35 believe) if we had, Xfinity, spectrum, etc. Doesn't mattter, it's the same limit as they all use coax.
Overall I've been reasonably happy with Cox, but I'd love faster upload speeds which they can't provide. And as I said, if they decided to start price gouging, there is literally nothing I can do.
Just
Rhodysurf t1_iusb6es wrote
That’s just not true anymore. Your video on video chat looks like shit with bad upload speeds
PM_ME_YOUR_LUKEWARM t1_iuvm1h0 wrote
What is docsis 3.1? I've never heard of it on the FiOS forums, is it specific to cox?
drnick5 t1_iuw104h wrote
It's specific to cable internet. Since FIOS doesn't use coax anywhere, they don't use Docsis modems. Fiber is bright directly to your house and they'll typically use an ONT instead of a modern with FIOS
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