On Switching from FIOS to Comcast

[OldiesButGoodies]

I just completed this change after about a decade with FIOS. 

A few notes that were not clear to me before the switch and would have helped me make the change faster,  in case you are considering doing so:

• The video quality is superior.  On the XFINITY HD boxes you can set the display to 1080p at 60 FPS.  If I would have known this, I would done the swap a long time ago.
• The  voice recognition works fine on the X1 box,  and the user interface for search in general is friendlier in all the boxes
• Internet speed (with the 'Blast' tier) is much faster than FIOS 75/75 on download (I am getting 108/12,  which is more than enough IMO - but could be affected if all my neighbors suddenly decide to go XFINITY)
• The boxes are tiny by comparison to the old Motorolas,  a plus.  No clock though - just a light
• To my ears,  sound quality is on par with Verizon
• I am saving $20/month compared to FIOS and getting The Weather Channel

So altogether a recommended move.

OBG

[Sir Thrift-a-Lot]

Agreed with the caveat that I don't know if new FIOS customers are getting new boxes with more toys and better quality.   Once they've got you, they really don't give a ...

[Sir Thrift-a-Lot]

BTW, mine does have a clock on the face.   Might you have it turned off in the settings?

[Jim Pittsburgh]

Funny...  just the opposite experience at my house... I don't have "Blast" though; picture quality is worse, internet is slower and varies wildly, sound / dolby digital is definitely much worse and we all hate the interface ( we don't use voice) and reliability is not nearly as good... At the time I saved $50 / month by switching to Comcast. Would switch back in a minute if I could do so for the same price or even a few dollars premium... might just be the signal etc in our neighborhood, but everyone here feels pretty much the same way.

Tried to switch back just a few weeks ago and the closest I could get price wise was $42/ month premium since I wanted a multi room DVR and have 4 TVs... and require HD;  the NHL, NFL, BBC, History Channel, SYFi, PBS, GET or Decades, Oxygen (Artful Detective) and a few others in my house.. and I'd sincerely miss Bill Maher if I didn't have HBO!

[OldiesButGoodies]

Jim -

You may need to do some tweaking to the settings and to the config in your account to ensure you have everything right.

Note the following tips, in case you had not considered them:

• Make sure you have the X1 OS box,  if not request it.
• Go to device settings in the menu and select 1080P,  assuming your TV can handle it.  The improved picture is beyond questioning,  even my wife was drooling over the improvement and she rarely cares.
• Make sure you have audio set to "surround" in device settings
• Request blast internet - they can upgrade you remotely (they are just changing the 'cap' on your throughput in the modem,  I suspect)
• The wi-fi that Comcast provides is a poor excuse for a wi-fi hub. I ignore it and wire a second wi-fi hub in bridge mode to the Comcast (I use an old Apple Airport Express and it kicks the new Comcast in the nuts,  even though it is 4 years old - much better internet speeds).   You may want to try this before switching to a higher tier.

If any of the above is confusing,  I offer to help you next time I drop by. 

My 2 cents...

Pepe

[Bunni]

Comcast is constantly upgrading also, and many people may still be using docsis 2.0 modems.  You won't see the improved speeds unless you have a docsis 3.0 compliant modem.  We have Blast as well, and a recent boost has us at 150/10.  We only have basic cable to get the discount on the internet service, and we don't have anything capable of taking advantage of other offerings TV wise.  We rarely watch any TV, other than what we stream from Netflix or Hulu. 

We have a wifi & wired network we set up ourselves.  You don't need to subscribe to wifi anything from Comcast, all you need is a wireless router.  They charge you for something you can do yourself.  It's not like it's a separate service, unless you're renting all your equipment from them including the router, and then they've got ya.

I also don't rent a modem from Comcast.  I've always bought my own.  Since they have been regularly upgrading I have future proofed a bit with an Arris/Motorola SB6183.  Your router needs to be capable of some speed as well.  We're currently using an Asus RT-AC68P. 

A feature of the router is the ability to directly plug in an external drive, and so I'm thinking of getting one to put all our digital music on. 

[OldiesButGoodies]

Those are great points Bunni - I am going to look into the possibility of buying the cable modem myself.

My rented modem+wifi router is docsis 3 compliant,  not sure what Jim has;  will check the next time I pop over his place.  If it is not,   he needs to replace that too. 

OBG

[Bunni]

I'm not sure if they do it here or not, but another good reason to buy your equipment, especially a router is because when Comcast sets up your wifi they make you a hot spot for other customers, potentially reducing your bandwidth.  Lots of customers are not happy with that arrangement.  But if you have your own, they can't really mess with it. 

Also routers come with predetermined user name and password.  You want to be sure and change that at your first opportunity.  Most people don't and wonder why they get hacked.

[OldiesButGoodies]

I changed everything about my router the day I got it,  security wise. Turned off the wifi, among other things.  Thanks!

 

[treos33]

As far as the 1080p setting goes, I don't think any channels broadcast in 1080p. Most are 1080i and some are still 720p. You probably only get 1080p when watching on-demand content, the rest is being upscaled by the box.

[OldiesButGoodies]

Basing my comments on observation.  the 1080p setting does a hell of a lot better job than 1080i or 720p on most HC channels.  Some of the channels may streamed 1080p, some may not.  But the upconverter/scaler does one hell of  a good job up-converting.   With a 115" screen it is hard to ignore the improvement. 

OBG

[Comten]

Arise dead thread! 

We switched from an X1 Infinity environ to FIOS about a month ago... Aside from the easy $50.00 month savings and improved internet, we miss the X1 interface. Remotes and guides, etc were far easier to use than what we found in FIOS - so far.  Its a learning curve.

[Sir Thrift-a-Lot]

I agree.   I like the FIOS internet better and the Comcast TV better.

[OldiesButGoodies]

Arise dead thread! 

We switched from an X1 Infinity environ to FIOS about a month ago... Aside from the easy $50.00 month savings and improved internet, we miss the X1 interface. Remotes and guides, etc were far easier to use than what we found in FIOS - so far.  Its a learning curve.

Yes - the X1 platform has a better UI by far.

In my case I have eliminated cable service altogether,   I get a very high-speed connection and watch live TV from apps on the Amazon Firestick and the Apple TV.  My base app is from a subscription to DirectTV now - those credentials open the door to many other apps (History channel etc.). It DVRs to the cloud. Cord cutting is not so bad once you get the hang of it (after a period of "regular cable user interface" detox that lasts about 3 weeks.  Way cheaper than cable.   

[Sir Thrift-a-Lot]

Way cheaper than cable.

The problem in Penn Hills is that the b*&tards sell stand alone internet for almost as much as the whole bundle.   I'd LOVE to get high speed alone for the $50 a month or so that it should cost.   I've been dying to cut the cable.