Verizon FIOS 25/25 or RCN 330/20 for downloading games and streaming?

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rcald2000

rcald2000

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Nov 3, 2009
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I recently switched from RCN service to Verizon FIOS 25/25 down/up. I opted for their initial tier to try it out and I'm honestly not blown away. My old provider is offering 330/20 down/up for the same $50 per month. What service would you choose? I could upgrade my Verizon service to 50/50 for an additional $10 per month.

Right now I'm downloading Batman Arkham Knight and it's estimated to take four hours at 25 Mbps. It's gnawing at me to know that 330 Mbps is 13.2 times faster.
 
Solution
jimmysmitty
RCN is probably worried about FiOS more. FiOS may cost more but remember you are getting a single fiber connection that is going to more consistently give you the speeds.

Cable on the other hand is a single line spread out to multiple people. Now it has multi-channel bonding which gives higher speeds but for the most part are burst speeds and never consistent. The best I can get is a 150Mbps cable connection and the most consistent speed I get is about 100Mbps and sometimes, especially during peak hours, less.

Fiber cost more now but the prices will drop. I used to work for Verizon Landline call center and when FiOS first rolled out it was $150 for the 25/5 and the speed gone up consistently with the price dropping. When they get more...
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jimmysmitty

jimmysmitty

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What was your initial speed with RCN? If you went from 330 to 25 then of course you wont be blown away. Only if you go with the much faster FIOS would it blow you away, even at the same speeds as RCN. The reason being is that FIOS is FTTP so you get much more consistent speeds even at peak hours while cable tends to get bogged down during certain time periods.

I am honestly surprised they are offering such speeds for so cheap considering that the nearest equivalent FIOS is $185/month. But then again that is 300/300 with their top tier doing 500/500 and again more consistent speeds.

I would probably go for the RCN as it will just be faster due to the sheer amount of speed they are throwing at you even though I prefer a fiber based connection for the consistency in speed.
 
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USAFRet

USAFRet

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1. I have Verizon 50/50. Absolutely rock solid connection. Can't say the same for various cable co connections I've had.

2. How many active devices do you have connected?

3. Is that RCN price a short term promotion?

4. 25 down, 50 down, 300 down.....the other part that really matters is how fast the server can give it to you

5. 4 hours to download a large game, vs some speedier connection. Are you that impatient?
 
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rcald2000

rcald2000

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@jimmysmitty

RCN: I had just upgraded a few months ago from 50/10 to 110/15. I switched to FIOS and then the next month RCN offered their services for much cheaper. Perhaps they are worried about Google Fiber or net neutrality? FIOS pricing starts getting outrageous above the 75/75 tier:

150/150 = US$115 per month
300/300 = US$185 per month
500/500 = US$275 per month
 
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Math Geek

Math Geek

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i also have the verizon 50/50 and am happier than i have ever been with any other service. as others have stated, i get that 50/50 AT ALL TIMES!! cable can offer 100000/100000 but will only average 50/5 if you're lucky. unless your city is somehow unique, then this is always the case with the shared cable connection especially during peak prime time hours when all your neighbors are online as well.. notice the cable ad says "up to ____ speeds" where the fios says no such thing.

as much as i hate the prices of all the access available to me, for the money Fios takes the cake for consistency and better upload speeds overall.
 
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jimmysmitty

jimmysmitty

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Oct 5, 2007
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RCN is probably worried about FiOS more. FiOS may cost more but remember you are getting a single fiber connection that is going to more consistently give you the speeds.

Cable on the other hand is a single line spread out to multiple people. Now it has multi-channel bonding which gives higher speeds but for the most part are burst speeds and never consistent. The best I can get is a 150Mbps cable connection and the most consistent speed I get is about 100Mbps and sometimes, especially during peak hours, less.

Fiber cost more now but the prices will drop. I used to work for Verizon Landline call center and when FiOS first rolled out it was $150 for the 25/5 and the speed gone up consistently with the price dropping. When they get more subscribers and more fiber laid it drops quite a bit.
 
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Solution
rcald2000

rcald2000

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Nov 3, 2009
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@USAFRet

1. I have Verizon 50/50. Absolutely rock solid connection. Can't say the same for various cable co connections I've had.
ANS: Yes, I hate how the latency on cable increases at night time, when everyone else in the building is home.

2. How many active devices do you have connected?
ANS: bedroom Roku, living room Tivo, computer; they are all hard wired. I don't use wireless except for my phone. I have other devices connected to my switch, but I don't use them on a daily basis.

3. Is that RCN price a short term promotion?
ANS: No, 3 year price guarantee. No contract.

4. 25 down, 50 down, 300 down.....the other part that really matters is how fast the server can give it to you
ANS: Agreed, latency can be just as important as speed. Very strangely, I didn't appreciate a change when I switch from RCN to FIOS. I ran pings and trace routes. I have no explanation, but I found it hard to believe.

5. 4 hours to download a large game, vs some speedier connection. Are you that impatient?
ANS: Yes, I'm impatient, but I have no business justification for it. Example, I used to have 4 x Samsung 850 (250 GB) in RAID 0. Now I have 2 x PCIe SSD in RAID 0. I'm sure that speaks volumes, although I'm not proud of it. It just is, what it is.
 
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