CaptMans1 OP t1_irloz7d wrote on October 9, 2022 at 5:36 AM

Reply to comment by HealthLawyer123 in Best Internet Service Provider? by CaptMans1

It's actually usable? Fios was available where we've been living but it was an utter joke. Like, DSL slow, $100+/mo for basic service, and a ton of their crappy specialty equipment.

luxliquidus t1_irm87f8 wrote on October 9, 2022 at 9:50 AM

Probably depends on where you live. I had Gigabit Fios at an apartment in Ballston and it was fantastic. Stupidly fast. No problems while I had them, so I can't speak to their customer support.

Xfinity has been a nightmare -- partly because their upload speeds are garbage, partly because they use some godawful broken throttling algorithm, and partly because their customer service strategy boils down to "beat up the customer with bots and phone trees until they go away".

If you have the option, go with Fios. If you get stuck with Xfinity, start at the gigabit plan. Anything less is unusable because of how bad their upload speeds and network mismanagement are.

SimpleObserver1025 t1_irmn32d wrote on October 9, 2022 at 12:52 PM

I had the opposite experience. FIOS was maybe double the speed of Comcast. Pricing was near identical.

OneWayTraveler t1_irnxoav wrote on October 9, 2022 at 6:25 PM

I recently upgraded my Verizon Fios equipment and plan. The new stuff covers the entire house very well including the doorbell. We pay about $70 a month for 500 Mb. I'm very happy. Their customer service was good too.

CaptMans1 OP t1_iro98ol wrote on October 9, 2022 at 7:41 PM

Does Fios strictly require you to use their equipment or can you at least use your own router/access points? If they require their own equipment, do they charge any type of rental fees?

MACKAWICIOUS t1_irp9whg wrote on October 10, 2022 at 12:10 AM

My fiancé refuses to live anywhere without FiOS. It's been great anywhere we've been in the DMV. We use our own equipment. I think they've sent us equipment but he calls and says we're using our own - sometimes they send out a tech to fiddle with the ports of something so we can use our own and just return theirs. Someone will probably correct me on the specifics about the ports. This is not remotely in my home responsibilities. Lol

OneWayTraveler t1_irpfluk wrote on October 10, 2022 at 12:56 AM

AFAIK, Verizon leases the equipment or you can purchase it outright from them. They will spread the purchase price over three months. I don't know if you can use other routers. They supplied one box that connects to the fiber and another, WiFi access point that conne to that.

Buzzspotted t1_irq15to wrote on October 10, 2022 at 3:58 AM

I have only internet and use my own equipment plugged into FiOS Optical Network Terminal. In the past I’ve used my own cable tuner (TiVo) by renting a cablecard from them. FiOS has been pretty solid for working from home throughout the past couple years.