Reliability: 3 ½ Stars
The reliability category was rated the highest by our readers, with Time Warner Cable earning 3 1/2 (3.37) stars out of five. Many folks praised the company's reliability. The majority who scored it three stars or higher noted better-than-advertised bandwidth and minimal downtime as primary factors for their high rating.
"I've seldom had problems, and when I [had problems] they were resolved promptly," said one of our participants who rated performance, reliability and support at four stars, yet scored pricing at three. "I have very reliable Internet service, and if I see two minutes of downtime a month, I am surprised," said another who gave reliability five stars.
Despite the mostly-positive feedback from our community in the reliability category, a 2014 study called Measuring Broadband America showed Time Warner Cable skimping out on maximum bandwidth.
| Advertised Speeds (Available Time Warner Data Rates From 2013) | Actual Sustained Download Speed | Actual Speed/Advertised Speed Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 3 Mb/s | 3.03 Mb/s | 101% |
| Up to 15 Mb/s | 14.63 Mb/s | 98% |
| Up to 20Mb/s | 18.88 Mb/s | 94% |
| Up to 30 Mb/s | 29.41 Mb/s | 98% |
| Up to 50 Mb/s | 48.69 Mb/s | 97% |
It is probable that the information (derived from data collected in 2013) is a poor reflection of current Time Warner Cable services, and therefore not a great comparison for current reliability and performance experiences. However, this data supports claims of lower-than-advertised speeds, especially if Time Warner Cable hasn’t improved since then.
The company now offers up to 100, 200 and 300 Mb/s Internet connections, and our readers expressed overall satisfaction with the service's reliability and performance. Ultimately, these two categories were the highest-scoring, yet least important factors as rated by our community.
The few participants who rated reliability lower than three stars cited lower-than-advertised speeds, connection issues and slow remediation as primary detractors. "I have constant slowdowns and DNS issues," said a reader who rated reliability at just one star.
Let the score show that Time Warner Cable earned a respectable 3 1/2 stars for its reliability, with the company taking the lead in our ISP survey review series. Most readers seem to be under the belief that TWC offers above-average reliability with better-than-advertised speeds and solid up-time.