Still love Comcast

[Bruce]

Most everything that we watch is on-line, there was only one channel that my wife loves that kept us from becoming Cord Cutters...Food Network.

We were out shopping and I noticed that Wal-Mart had the Motorola Surfboard 6141 on clearance for $40, no more $10 a month modem rental and with that she finally said she could do without Food Network and become Cord Cutters.

Called up Comcast to make changes and after a little while this is what they offered and I took.

XFINITY Bundled Services
Blast! Plus Includes Blast! Internet and Digital Economy Service with Digital Converter and StreamPix Promotional Rate. Promotional Rate for 24 months $69.99
EcoBill Discount $-5.00
Disclaimer: If you have not enrolled in our EcoBill program, your $5.00 discount for EcoBill billing discount will end 30 days from the start of your promotion.

Additional XFINITY TV Services
HD Technology Fee Promotional Rate. Promotional Rate for 24 months $0.00
AnyRoom DVR Promotional Rate. Promotional Rate for 24 months $7.99
Additional Outlet Digital Adapter $2.99
Additional Outlet Digital Adapter - Basic $0.00
Additional XFINITY Internet Services
Speed Increase Extreme 105 Internet Promotional Rate. Promotional Rate for 24 months $0.00
Other Charges & Credits
Broadcast TV Fee $3.25
Taxes, Surcharges & Fees $2.69
Grand Total $81.91
.

Now my my wife still has her Food Network and we are still saving money.
The rate for Extreme105 by itself is $89 a month by itself

 

[maestro7]

If it works for you, it works for you!

For us, we're pretty die-hard on DirecTV for video programming, but then again, they have been our default provider for more than a decade.

I will say that Comcast HSI (the actual Internet service, per se) is still our only real and best option (1.5M DSL just would not cut it) at the moment, so I won't argue with that, at least not until AT&T and/or Google Fiber get their respective butts in gear in the Atlanta metro area.

 

[andy_horton]

Hell of a deal!! Just don't forget when you get to the end of your promo. Your bill would be astronomical!!

 

[Bruce]

Hell of a deal!! Just don't forget when you get to the end of your promo. Your bill would be astronomical!!

Then I would get a new promo, or I drop Cable TV and go broadband only, the only reason I have Cable TV now is this promo is $8 dollars less then Extreme 105 by itself.

At the end of these 2 years, Cable TV is going to look so different, with Apple wanting to sell a TV app service ( On Demand like the same TV channel apps on the iPad,and a few live channels like sports and news) and then everyone else will jump into it which is good for us.

 

[andy_horton]

Then I would get a new promo, or I drop Cable TV and go broadband only, the only reason I have Cable TV now is this promo is $8 dollars less then Extreme 105 by itself.

At the end of these 2 years, Cable TV is going to look so different, with Apple wanting to sell a TV app service ( On Demand like the same TV channel apps on the iPad,and a few live channels like sports and news) and then everyone else will jump into it which is good for us.

True. Cable Tv as we know it in 2 years is going to look incredibly different than it does now. Really different.

 

[kittyhas1000legs]

Then I would get a new promo, or I drop Cable TV and go broadband only, the only reason I have Cable TV now is this promo is $8 dollars less then Extreme 105 by itself.

At the end of these 2 years, Cable TV is going to look so different, with Apple wanting to sell a TV app service ( On Demand like the same TV channel apps on the iPad,and a few live channels like sports and news) and then everyone else will jump into it which is good for us.

That's what I hear from pretty much everyone I know. My wife and I upgraded to a package after the 25mb promo ended, to 60ish channels and 105mb for $10 less than the non-promo 25mb alone. It's been the same for all of our friends (30 & under crowd). Most of what we watch at anyone else's place is streamed via laptop, desktop to tv, apple tv, or game console. So long as there's that, people don't really want cable unless (a) they watch sports or (b) it's cheaper with the channels than without.

Here's how ours looks. $65.05/mo

• Credits($2.81)
  • CUSTOMER-OWNED EQUIPMENT - ADJUSTMENT($2.50)
  • CT GROSS RECEIPTS FEE($0.14)
  • STATE SALES TA$0.17)
• Recurring Charges$59.99
• One Time Charges$0.00
• Taxes & Fees$7.87
  • BROADCAST TV FEE$3.25
  • CT GROSS RECEIPTS FEE$1.74
  • FCC FEE$0.08
  • FRANCHISE RELATED COST$0.71
  • STATE SALES TAX$2.09

 

[Bruce]

Well, I was ready to go with the limited Blast Plus package but my family was not, too many channels missed, ScFy, TNT, FX, ESPN, FOX Sports Detroit, Big Ten, few others.

So made a call and as usual they were easy to deal with.

XFINITY Bundled Services
Starter Double Play Includes Digital Starter with HBO and Streampix with access to On Demand Programming and Blast! Internet Promotional Rate. Promotional Rate for 24 months $89.99
Term Agreement Applies 24 Month Term Agreement on account. Visit www.comcast.com/myaccount for details. Promotional Rate. Promotional Rate for 24 months $0.00
EcoBill Discount $-5.00
Disclaimer: If you have not enrolled in our EcoBill program, your $5.00 discount for EcoBill billing discount will end 30 days from the start of your promotion. If you would like to sign up for EcoBill, please visit www.comcast.com/ecobill.

Additional XFINITY TV Services
HD Technology Fee Promotional Rate. Promotional Rate for 24 months $0.00
AnyRoom DVR Promotional Rate. Promotional Rate for 24 months $7.99
Additional Outlet Digital Adapter $2.99
Additional XFINITY Internet Services
Speed Increase Extreme 105 Internet Promotional Rate. Promotional Rate for 24 months $0.00
Additional XFINITY Voice Services
Customer-Owned Modem $0.00
Other Charges & Credits
Broadcast TV Fee $3.25
Regional Sports Fee $1.00
Taxes, Surcharges & Fees
$3.97
Grand Total $104.19

 

[Bruce]

Well today I called to see how much it would cost to add Showtime because of Penny Dreadful starting back up, well they must love us or something, this is what I got.

XFINITY Bundled Services
Starter Double Play Includes Digital Starter with HBO and Streampix with access to On Demand Programming and Blast! Internet Promotional Rate. Promotional Rate for 24 months $89.99
EcoBill Discount $-5.00
Term Agreement Applies 24 Month Term Agreement on account.
Promotional Rate for 24 months $0.00
Additional XFINITY TV Services
Cinemax Promotional Rate. Promotional Rate for 24 months $1.00
Showtime Promotional Rate. Promotional Rate for 24 months $1.00
HD/DVR Converter Promotional Rate. Promotional Rate for 24 months $7.99
HD Technology Fee Promotional Rate. Promotional Rate for 24 months $0.00
Additional Outlet Digital Adapter $2.99
Additional XFINITY Internet Services
Speed Increase Extreme 105 Internet Promotional Rate. Promotional Rate for 24 months $0.00
Additional XFINITY Voice Services
Customer-Owned Modem $0.00
Other Charges & Credits
Broadcast TV Fee $3.25
Regional Sports Fee $1.00
Taxes, Surcharges & Fees $4.07
Grand Total $106.29

 

[Claude Greiner]

I was just going to say. Extreme 105 ain't worth the price unless you bundel as a double play.

 

[Claude Greiner]

I got a triple play with TV, 105 internet and home security for $129

 

[Bruce]

I was just going to say. Extreme 105 ain't worth the price unless you bundel as a double play.

It is worth it because with the extreme tier the data cap should be higher when they officially go to caps.

We stream a lot, we are always over 400gb a month, if, based on other areas, the caps are 300gb for blast and 500gb for extreme, then having extreme will save me money.

Also the month before buying and using my own modem, my data was right around 450gb in both Dec. and Jan. using the Comcast modem, last month (Feb.) using my 6141 it was 210gb and we watched just as much if not more because in Jan. we were gone for 6 days.

 

[Claude Greiner]

It is worth it because with the extreme tier the data cap should be higher when they officially go to caps.

We stream a lot, we are always over 400gb a month, if, based on other areas, the caps are 300gb for blast and 500gb for extreme, then having extreme will save me money.

Also the month before buying and using my own modem, my data was right around 450gb in both Dec. and Jan. using the Comcast modem, last month (Feb.) using my 6141 it was 210gb and we watched just as much if not more because in Jan. we were gone for 6 days.

I got extreme 150 at the office, extreme 105 at the house, and performance 25 as a backup at work.

As far as browsing, and streaming I see no difference. Downloads are significantly faster but I don't see that much of a difference as I don't download very much.

If you talk about data caps, then your 100% correct with 105

 

[jegrant]

I was offered over the phone:
$69.99
50 meg internet
Limited Basic
HBO
Showtime
Cinemax
2 year contract for all the above
And I took it. But Showtime never activated on my cable box and wasn't available online either.

So I went to an Xfinity retail store (a company store not a franchise) and they explained that the above package exists but only comes with Showtime *or* Cinemax not both. Of course, I only thought it was worth the money if it had all 3 premiums included. So the store downgraded me to this:
$49.99
25 meg internet
Limited Basic
HBO
No contract; promo rate expires in 12 months

Ultimately I was looking for a smaller package in the first place, so I'm happy where it ended up. I think the guy on the phone didn't want to offer me anything cheaper. He kept offering various options all of which were $75+. I will add Netflix to the package I got (already have Hulu+ and Amazon Prime) and that should give me plenty to watch.

 

[harshness]

Are you all figuring in the local channel, RSN and franchise fees into your pricing?

 

[klang]

Are you all figuring in the local channel, RSN and franchise fees into your pricing?

I'm on their Triple Play and taxes, fees, etc. amount to $6.60. No RSN charge identified.

 

[harshness]

I'm on their Triple Play and taxes, fees, etc. amount to $6.60. No RSN charge identified.

Just checking because if it raises the price by 10%, that's not negligible.

 

[klang]

Just checking because if it raises the price by 10%, that's not negligible.

I'm on the Premier Triple Play, which includes all the movie channels and Extreme 150 internet for $159. Not real noticeable for me but would have a bigger impact on less expensive packages. Part of that $6.60 is local taxes as well which will vary with location.

 

[harshness]

I'm on the Premier Triple Play, which includes all the movie channels and Extreme 150 internet for $159.

Relative to the $49.99 plan quoted to jegrant, it is a big deal.

 

[jegrant]

I'm not sure mine has shown up on a bill yet, but I expect no RSN charges because the only sports channel included is ESPN3, and that is only online access. There will probably be a local programming fee of approximately $2 give or take 50 cents. Franchise fees aren't significant in my area. Indiana deregulated TV/internet/phone a while back at the request of ATT U-Verse and as far as I know Comcast almost immediately filed paperwork to be regulated under the new system with much lower fees and fewer requirements (also fewer consumer protections).

 

[harshness]

I'm not sure mine has shown up on a bill yet, but I expect no RSN charges because the only sports channel included is ESPN3, and that is only online access.

Comcast doesn't offer you Fox Sports Indiana?