I linked to this topic this morning, but given all the interest around here surrounding Google Fiber a while back, I realized we should probably give a dedicated thread to the news that Comcast will double Google Fiber’s speeds in select areas around Atlanta .
As Daren notes, Atlanta seems to have found itself “in the middle of a fiber war.”
Here are some interesting bits from Comcast’s press release…
Comcast today announced it will offer residential multi-gigabit broadband service to more than 1.5 million customers in Atlanta starting next month. Gigabit Pro is a symmetrical, 2 Gigabit-per-second (Gbps) service that will be delivered via a fiber-to-the-home solution. Service will be offered broadly across the Atlanta metro area and will be the fastest residential Internet speed in the country.
…Gigabit Pro will be available to any home within close proximity of Comcast’s fiber network and will require an installation of professional-grade equipment.
And also this from a related Comcast statement…
Gigabit Pro isn’t the only way we plan to bring gigabit speeds to customers’ homes. We are currently testing DOCSIS 3.1, a scalable, national, next generation 1 Gbps technology solution. We hope to begin rolling out DOCSIS 3.1 in early 2016, and when fully deployed, it will mean almost every customer in our footprint will be able to receive gigabit speeds over our existing network (a combination of both fiber and coax).
Photo by JeepersMedia via Flickr
I could have sworn this would have been posted yesterday. Sounds way too good to be true, and given that the devil is always in the details (installation fee, monthly cost, last mile hiccups, equipment upgrade costs or even worse equipment RENTAL, etc.), and none of those are yet addressed, he probably still is.
Worst companies in American history? Let’s see. Monsanto. Union Banking Corporation. Comcast.
Yeah, those are on my list.
The only thing I trust Comcast to do is maximize their profit. That said, Google’s terms are not quite concrete, but it doesn’t take much to know what they’ll be. Comcast is going to have to match that or do better, or get their butts kicked. In fact, I’d probably pay $10-$15 more a month just to dump Comcast.
+1 googol.
I’m with you. No problem paying a little more to not have the devil of Comcast.
Pay a little more to whom? An unknown vapor promise?
You are assuming that Google will even build Decatur. And that they will build your neighborhood? That is a big assumption given their track record so far. Very little rubber on the road. Let’s see how you feel this time next year when you are still waiting for Google to do something, but your neighbors are screaming along at higher speeds that you imagined.
The market will take care of the pricing. Go check out Phoenix!
I’d be delighted to have two 1+ Gig choices, or even two 100 Mb/S choices- but I just don’t see Google really taking the plunge given the infrastructure costs/issues. In East Cobb they used to have 2 CATV choices, but there was no Internet then and then Comcast started gobbling up the little guys.
The 1Gig is going to be the proverbial “game changer”. It won’t be like it is now.
Fixed the headline for you:
“Comcast To Offer Residential Internet Service Twice as Fast as Google Fiber, with Half the Customer Service, in Atlanta”
That’s generous.
Sign me up. I will take a mid-level option of like 500mbps vs. the 2 gigs if they offer it for a good price per month.
It’s still ComCast reliability, customer service, and endless incremental rate creep.
I don’t need more than 1Gbps, I need ComCast and ATT out of my life.
fwiw, I’ve been very happy with Uverse since I switched from Comcast a few years ago. Comcast’s internet is faster overall, but with the number of times it goes down, what’s the point if you can’t use it? Uverse has been down, I think, twice, since we got it in Nov of 2011.
I just love the fact that google coming in increases competition, which should be a win for consumers.
I had more problems with Uverse . I have never had an issue with Xfinity except six months on I cannot figure out the damn channels.
I have a groupie. Cool. 🙂
As I predicted they would.. what, a month or so ago?
Cable company , no matter how much you hate them, ALREADY has the rights of way on poles, in the ground, and elsewhere to do this. Google does NOT. Cable company already serves most homes in Decatur whether or not you are currently subscribing. Google does NOT. If you want to see how fast this can happen, research the cable company in Phoenix (hint- they are headquartered in Atlanta but do not serve it due to FCC restrictions). Just to save you the trouble: They are barely a year from the announcement and tons of customers already . I think it is about $80.00 per month.
Comcast can certainly deliver on this and quickly. And that’s fiber. Remember I also told you about DOCSIS 3.1? Same as the Comcast dude in the article above mentioned? It can run into your home over your coaxial cable as soon as Comcast wants to turn it on. And Google will still be talking about if they have enough users prepaid to make a “fiberhood”.
Anti-Google, no I’m not! They make a h#$% of a great search engine and boy are they good at mining and selling data. That is their business. They aren’t much of an ISP though.
So my newest prediction, don’t hold your breath to get 1 Gig service at your house from Google, but get ready to sign up from Comcast. But still I can’t even see why MOST people even need 100 Mb/S. Much less 1000 Mb/S. I doubt Google will build even half of the cities in Atlanta they announced.
We will see if they lower the price – right now, Google’s prices are around 20 times cheaper. It’s great that they may have 2 gig internet…but I bet you’re looking at data caps and a price over $200/month, which pretty much makes it a fig leaf of an offering.
If they have to use their existing topology and infrastructure then their service will be just as unreliable and throttled as it is now. You’ll need 1000Mb/s just to consistently get 100Mb/s. And it’ll still be Comcast customer service and business practices.
TWO groupies! Suddenly, I feel less alone.
Meanwhile, current Comcast cable seems to be getting slower and slower–maybe it’s a plot to force us into upgrading?
Last Comcast contract #1: It took over six months for them to refund significant overcharges after I cancelled the service. Coupled with this, stood in line for 30 minutes to return equipment which was later not credited.
Last Comcast contract #2: For months they billed for 5 business lines, even though the bill clearly listed 4. Numerous requests could not rectify this.
I have been told that their MO is to keep their teeth in you at all costs once you sign a contract. I would love more bandwidth, but staying with Uverse.
Translation: “Come back, Baby! I can CHANGE…”