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Review by Clodas 
Posted: 302 days ago
member for 318 days, 36 visits, last login: 49 days ago
 Boston,Suffolk,MA
 $136 per month (12 month contract)
 "Great HD Lineup and good Cable Packages"
 "Internet is slower than DSL even with the 20Mbps service"
 "Great for HD Cable, but Terrible internet speeds"
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In theory it all sounds amazing, great price for a ton of HD Channels and 20Mbps Internet Service. I am very disappointed with the internet speeds I get at peak times. I get near 20 Mbps during the day when everyone is out at work, but then drops to less than 1Mbps from 7pm to 1am. I am extremely aggravated by the fact that I am paying for 20Mbps and only receiving 5% of it. I am getting robbed!!! If they fix their Internet situation, then I would give their service 5 stars from me. I am not the only one complaining about their speed either, they currently have a serious problem at hand.
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Review by geapi
Posted: 309 days ago
member for 4.7 years, 161 visits, last login: 4 days ago
Bethesda,Montgomery,MD
$35 per month (month by month)
 about 2 days
"pretty reliable service, constant high download rate"
"upspeed varies"
"good value for price"
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I switched to RCN after having nighmares with comcast, I called them and ask for service in my new home and the asked if they could come the next day, wow, what a start.
The service guy hooked up only one outlet in the house and killed the other cable outlets, so I had to rewire, but I wasn't home to tell him to do it differently. The download speed is constantly what they advertise while the up speed usually varies, a lot! Customer service is so/so I had good and bad experiences after they "had" me as a customer, before they signed me up they were all super friendly. The billing department is tricky, they forgot to sent me a bill, so I din't pay, since I didn't have it, on the next bill they just added $5 late fees, without a single email or anything asking/reminding that I hadn't paid. Overall: more reliable service than I experienced with comcast, customer service, not so much better.
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Review by clock
UPDATED: 311 days ago
member for 2.5 years, 428 visits, last login: 3 days ago
Roslindale,Suffolk,MA
$140 per month (24 month contract)
about 3 days
"Fast Internet, Decent HD Selection"
"On Demand selection nowhere near Comast's offerings, tech support needs some work"
"Delivers on all services"
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Update: 1/20/09
RCN has just crushed all of the analog channels in my area. While the HD channel selection has improved greatly, it means that every TV has to have a cable box hooked up to get any sort of programming aside from the local SD channels available on ClearQAM. There are now around 80 HD channels and the quality is superb. Looking forward them to add more in the future. Internet and phone remain rock solid.
Update: 5/27/08
*RCN now offers almost 40 HD channels and an upgraded Aptiv guide with their cable service. This has improved the TV viewing experience significantly. The are preparing to launch HD VOD as well.RCN sales called a couple of days ago and offered to drop my package from $179 to $129 ($140 including all boxes). I had to sign a 2 year contract to do so, but i've been satisfied with the service, so why not? I don't see FiOS happening in my neck of the woods for sometime, and that's all I would switch to.*
RCN has been an excellent company to work with since day 1. I went from Verizon DSL, which was inconsistent to Comcast, which worked but was never close to the speeds that they advertised. I paid for the "performance" tier and that didn't make much of a difference.
I found out that RCN had just ran lines on my street from a neighbor, so I called RCN, and scheduled an install and 3 days later they were at my door on time. The installation was done properly with minimal wire showing. I ordered the Mach 20 cable modem service with 2 digital cable boxes, digital vision plus, and HBO. With the phone service it comes to about $179/mo with taxes. It beats the $220 I was paying for Comcrap.
The speeds have been very consistent, above and beyond what comcast was giving me. It never dips below about 16mbps during prime time. Cable is fine, but On Demand can be improved. It takes between 2-5 minutes to load and the selection isnt as good as Comcast. I don't consider it to big a big issue since i do not use on demand too often. I'm happy i got to kick Comcast to the curb, and it was worth it.
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Review by abrody
UPDATED: 314 days ago
member for 9.3 years, 270 visits, last login: 28 days ago
Silver Spring,Montgomery,MD
$96 per month (month by month)
about 4 days
"High speed even during peak holiday times. Relatively good reliability"
"Joint phone/cable/cable internet service all over electric lines. Customer service loses points for no weekend hours."
"Customer service still needs improvement but overall a good price, and a good competition"
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January 17, 2009 after numerous letters and calls, I finally managed to get my rate decreased by $10 a month without their telling me they would do that. So in the end, they made the right choice.
December 15, 2008 while I have temporarily managed to stave off the higher fees due to the digital switchover , they have also also managed to not offer me any
good way of regaining the HD stations I lost due to the digital switchover. I have a QAM tuner HDTV, but I can't receive the HD stations I was able to receive before the digital switchover. Now they require you to either rent an HD box by going to their inconvenient service center, or spend $50 to have someone come out with the box, and then rent the box to get the same stations, and wait for them to come out
and they may not even show up. I've repeatedly ask their support department to consider FEDexing or UPSing it, but to no effect. They won't budge on that. Unfortunately the only other options, Comcast require service installation that might not show on time, or Verizon that costs $150 for installation and potential damage to my walls because other wires would have to be installed. Not exactly an appealing situation. Anyway, if a choice did come that actually had a "customer service" I'd pick it up in a jiffy. Unfortunately I'm in a place that doesn't receive satellite either.
September 19, 2008 After about dozens of e-mails they finally confirm the digital switchover is happening October 1st. And no mail regarding this at all.
Secondly, I'm going to be forced to remove my wall mounted TV to reconnect it to a digital box. Third I'm going to have to get two digital boxes, renting one so I can have TV in my bedroom. Fourth I'm going to be forced to use multiple remotes since RCN's box is not possible to program to work with universal remotes.
This is a real pain.
July 2, 2008: After e-mailing RCN I discovered that come March 2009, all stations on their cable service will be digital, necessitating a digital box on their end to receive any stations on their service. That just blows. I'm sure Comcast and Fios are going to be the same.
March 23, 2007: RCN has a major outage. Initially when I called and checked
their automated system to find out if there was an issue in my area, they said there was none. So I asked to be transferred to tech support. Upon being transferred to the tech support hold system, they mention the major outage, and expecting it to be out for 8 hours. Called a bit later, they changed it till midnight. Within an hour I was getting 10% of my DNSes were resolving, but slow as 56k. Finally by 11 PM everything started going lickety split. They need to get their announcements of service outages in sync on all their phone systems, and not just one.
April 2, 2006: that 7 Mbps upgrade was only a temporary thing. Turns out they introduced a 10 Mbps service, and in order to get the same rate as I was getting before I had to drop to 5 Mbps. Not bad, but still holding out for FIOS. Currently monthly cost listed includes both Cable TV and Internet.
February 7, 2006, service still going strong. Calling them a month ago, I got 7 Mbps upgrade for free. Very nice.
June 15, 2005: First outage since returned. I called, and their tape recording immediately notified me of the problems. They said hold times to speak were over 10 minutes, but I got to speak to someone in two minutes! They told me the problem was even so evident that the people in their own support office weren't able to get on the internet. 2 hours later everything was up and running. An interesting side note is that within half an hour I had temporary service restored in being able to instant message, but not send e-mail or browse the web! Troublesome they weren't able to give me an ETA on when the service would be restored, but it looks like it was something minor since it only lasted two hours.
March 20th, 2005: Found that customer support is not available on weekends, only technical support is. However after much haggling I got through to a manager who was able to notate on my account that the billing was in error. I am on autopay with them, and they failed to process my March bill because my credit card's expiration date update was not notated to the right place. By Tuesday all should be cleared. But honestly, billing issues with a national company should not have to require calling back only during bankers hours on internet service providers. I'm glad I finally did get through to a manager and he provided me with his extension if I should have further difficulty. Hopefully RCN/Starpower will take my feedback and make improvements in their customer service line.
March 11th, 2005: Starpower upgrades my modem speed for 4300/600 according to Megapath in New Jersey. Was only 1200/400 before. Wasn't told of the upgrade, but should see what happens to the bill shortly. Very nice speed.
February 19th, 2005, returned to Starpower after my DSL provider kept on dropping my connection speed to the point they told me they couldn't offer me a higher speed. Starpower's re-emergence from bankruptcy has given me new hope that I can use them for internet. Intriguingly, customer service did not do their job today when the installation happened, as they never called me to tell me the installer would be late. I called twice, once at 1 PM, and once at 2 PM, when my install window was 11 AM to 2 PM. Apparently the installer knew he was going to be late, and had called the office to tell them at 11:30 AM that he would be. He finally did show up at 2:30, but the fact that they weren't able to tell me anything about his being late when I called at 1 PM shows they have a communication problem in the customer service office which needs to be resolved. I did log a complaint, but I'm glad I waited, and the install went relatively smoothly. The installer found that his first modem was bad, and the second one worked great. This time, I'm actually not going to use them for phone access as I get more services with my phone carrier I switched to back in July, Cavalier Telephone. Price in review includes cable internet and TV.
July 2004 I left RCN internet and phone after hearing about their Chapter 11 bankruptcy. What amazes me is that they still offer 6 months of free membership to new members even under bankruptcy protection. How do you think they will reorganize if they don't charge for their services? This is like deficit spending. No wonder they are bankrupt!
»RCN Bankruptcy Protection
I only wish they could have offered what they did and still manage to stay healthy financially. As it is, I have switched to Cavalier phone and DSL.
February 1st 2003 I ordered the service to be installed on February 8th, and the service technician never came during the entire 4 hour window. February 15th the service technician finally did come, albeit 2.5 hours late into the 3 hour window even though I was told my request for the first service call was made. The technician told me that he had to get equipment even though he was only 10 miles away in Burtonsville. In anycase, for the most part the service has been solid. There have been a few occasions where I had to pull the power to the modem as customer service does not recommend using the on/off or reset switch to reset the modem. Even so, the service speeds have been more than Comcast ever was, and if anything have improved over the past several months. One case I was 3 hours without service due to some outage, and of course during Hurricane Isabel without electricity I couldn't get my Cable modem working. What surprised me though was that the phone line which supposedly went over the electric lines with Starpower went out 6 hours after the electric. Thus I suspect they have different nodes for cable, internet and phone. Still I was not informed when I signed up that the service was over the electric lines, I was told it was over the same cable lines as Comcast, and that RCN owned the lines and leased them to Comcast, hence the higher cost for Comcast. Later a neighbor told me it was the electric lines, and I verified this was the case with several posts here at DSL Reports. Local phone service area also differs from Verizon. Some 703 area code numbers are not reachable with the free local calling that are with Verizon, what's worse they charged me long distance on those calls even though I didn't dial a one first, and I had to complain about that. The good thing is, I don't have to make that many phonecalls, so the overall service doesn't cost more than if I paid Verizon separately from Starpower, and costs probably about $10 less. And $20 less than if I did Comcast and Verizon.
Tech support doesn't always know when there is an outage, but on occasion they have known and put a message on the hold tape recording so I didn't have to wait to find out why my service was out. Most outages last less than half an hour, and there has been maybe one every month and a half. The only time the phone service went out was during Isabel, though at times the phone line has been noisy. I have had the service continuously since February, and added the phone service in June. Like they said, you keep your same phonenumber.
The good thing is their service has never denied my sent e-mail, unlike Comcast which did that numerous times.
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Review by wrb24
Posted: 318 days ago
member for 2.5 years, 17 visits, last login: 170 days ago
Washington,District Of Columbia,DC
$30 per month
about 2 days
"Fast installation."
"Intermittent, slow."
"I'm shopping around."
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I ordered a 5mbps package. I found it very difficult to get any rates or information on RCNs website, but had a very motivated salesman who really took care of things.
Billing was a problem, with an unwieldy online system, but after a couple of cycles, they figured out the auto-pay that I repeated requested.
About six months in, our building was "upgraded" to digital. I say 'upgraded' because I still get MTV2 on channel 74 (or such). At the same time that this change occurred, my service dropped to about 500kbps, and my monthly fee went up. I haven't been able to get in touch with technical ops to figure out why. It's not a huge problem with the way that I use the internet, but I've noticed that it leads to more timeouts and an occasional stall at the modem.
I'm considering switching to Comcast, but frankly, it doesn't really seem worth the effort to spite Dumb with Dumber.
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Review by fhaber
UPDATED: 327 days ago
member for 10 years, 849 visits, last login: 31 days ago
New York,New York,NY
$50 per month
about 11 days
"Fast"
"Pricey"
"Satisfied"
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(posted 2001)
...at the six-month mark, a DSL refugee reports:
Same IP for months. Must call if you change computers or add a NATbox. I like this.
No servers on 80. Your subnet (neighbors) is blocked. I like this, too.
News: binaries retention just milliseconds. Completeness F-G. Text groups fine. (*News is now an outsourced, 128kbps service, but it's still there, which is remarkable.)
Mail: pretty damn reliable. They have Webmail.
Occasional DNS clots. Occasional routing clots. (*Much less frequent)
I like 'em. (*Still do)
==========
(update, 2009-01, comments above, with "*" added just now)
Pros: Still good service. Tier 1-2 support now in the Phillipines, but everyone is outsourcing. Response time to problems (with phone, broadband, or TV) is good. Good representation here on the RCN board (a BIG plus for me). 20GB service really IS that in my neck of the woods. More importantly, 750 up lets you use it, if needed.
cons: a bit pricey. But I'm in NYC, so what's new? My own Tosh cablemodem couldn't make Mach 20; had to go back to renting (a Surfboard).
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Review by joeaiello
Posted: 333 days ago
member for 8.1 years, 25 visits, last login: 328 days ago
Roslindale,Suffolk,MA
$109 per month (12 month contract)
about 5 days
"Great value, fast 20Mb ISP, nice HD lineup"
"Comcast will out-spend them to force them out, unfairly."
"The best cable co I've had out of 4. Badly need word-of-mouth business."
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I've had RCN in Boston since they moved in. I dumped Cablevision / Comcast simply because they dropped their prices heavily when competition moved in. If they charged me fairly all along, I would've stayed.
I found RCN to be better than average for service. The one exception is telling me I could pickup a Cablecard for my Tivo at an office, but they needed to come out...
I saw my speed increase from 5Mb to 10, and I'm finally on a 20Mb/s connection, and I get over 10Mb in real world downloads from the big sites. Tests are frequently over 10Mb too.
I also like how RCN pulls a pair of copper for phone service. I like the redundancy.
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Review by waiting1234
Posted: 340 days ago
member for 340 days, 2 visits, last login: 335 days ago
New York,New York,NY
$120 per month
"it usually works"
"usually is not ideal"
"you can do better"
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When RCN first wired my building, I was ecstatic: good-bye Time Warner monopoly, better prices, faster service, yadda yadda yadda. Over the years, the prices have gone up, the reliability and the speed have gone down, and I suspect that the tech support has been reduced to skeletal levels. The other day, when my TV would only show snow, it took three phone calls, a useless visit to their office, and two weeks to get back in business. Well, if they come with the digital converter when they said they will, ha ha, it will be two weeks. Not holding my breath. I have already arranged to switch.
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Review by (hidden by request)
Posted: 340 days ago
(review was emailed from domain fazakas.net)
Bethlehem,Northampton,PA
$105 per month (12 month contract)
"Fairly reasonable price"
"HD channels are lacking for the basic package and HD DVR too expensive-outdated"
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I'm hoping that in the somewhat near future RCN will start adding some more
meaningful HD channels to the basic lineup. Currently Blue Ridge
cable(local company from the Slatington area) carries twice the HD
channels on its basic cable as does RCN.. Also, when is RCN going to invest in some
MODERN technology for their DVR. I had Dish Tv (satellite) for about 2 years
before I got hooked up with RCN and I was really impressed with their dual
tuner DVR and hated to give it up. It had twice the hard drive space as
RCN's and you could use the 1 Dual tuner DVR in 2 separate rooms while
watching or recording 2 different channels. AND, you ONLY had to pay for 1
DVR. I've been with RCN about 3 years now and really disappointed in their
lack of technological improvements. I also heard that once they switch us
(sometime in the spring of 2009) from their analog crush in the lehigh
valley, that we will need a RCN converter box for EVERY tv (with ONLY 1 free
box). Any extra boxes will cost extra. I heard anywhere from $2.99 to 5.99
each per month. What a rip!!!!
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Review by awbishop
UPDATED: 343 days ago
member for 5.2 years, 971 visits, last login: 1 days ago
Chicago,Cook,IL
$190 per month
"Cable modem once they get the kinks out"
"If you expect solid CATV performance and VOD or a responsive Tech department stay away"
"Your better off with Comcast or Satellite"
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I have had RCN for a year now (they are the only provider that services my building in Chicago). For the first 3 months I had continuous cable modem speed issues. Finally, they resolved those issues and the CATV nightmare started. Pixelation, sound dropping out and inconsistent VOD are the norm for RCN. Calls to their tech support go unresolved for extended periods of time. If they put in an 'action memo', don't expect a return call. I have finally reported them to the franchising authority and am keeping notes now on who I talk to along with reference numbers they provide when you call. If RCN is your only choice, I would recommend everyone do the same.
Update: After having RCN for 2 years, I can say that if you have a technical issue, you will be ready to pull your hair out before the issue gets resolved. The TV service is decent, though not nearly the bargain it was a year ago (yes I am on a promo). They have started charging $10 a month for HD channels that a few months ago were included in part of the 'regular' lineup.
For well over a month, they have either had technical issues with the node that I am on OR they have oversold a node. Connection speeds during peak hours for 20M/2M service are routinely below 2M downstream. Several calls to RCN have failed to get the issue resolved. Latency on this connection is often erratic and RCN does nothing to resolve the issue. In a competitive market like Chicago, one would expect better service out of a company that wants to remain in business in the current economic environment.
Followup comments:  aceshi
join:2007-05-02
Danville, PA
| RCN Cable As an ex-employee, this is typical. We were told that anything over 80% speed was acceptable. Regarding tech support, look at it this way. They just told 300 employees from there PA location bye bye, we are sending all support jobs to South Carolina and somewhere else. Think the are going to care what type of support they give there customers? RCN should probably at this point talk to Comcast and take there best offer, as they have no loyalty to there employees, much less there customers. | |
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