Hello I've been a customer with Cox for over 12 years and I am not happy with their service. Fios just rolled out in my area and is offering me better services for a much cheaper price.

My question is: Who's better? Fios or Cox?
How is FIOS with port forwarding, billing, customer service, and torrenting?

And If I do switch over to FIOS from Cox...How does the process work? Do I call Cox to disconnect my service first? Do they come and take the boxes and unplug the wires? What happens?

Mr.Lorton Wrote:
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> ...is offering me better services for a much cheaper price.

Probably not.

Be sure to check time restraints on discount and what it blooms to afterward.

if you switch, do NOT disconnect first. the service has to be active for them to port over if you have phone service too.

fios is faster, but their billing is a scam. sooner or later (most likely sooner) you will find "mistakes" that are always in their favor. you can either pay the extra $$ or spend the rest of your life on hold with verizon reps to straighten it out. plan on being on hold for hours at a time, most likely monthly.

plus, when you finally decide to get rid of verizon, plan on having your credit fucked up, even if you pay everything you owe and close out the account properly. none of that stopped them from fucking up my credit and now i'm getting daily calls from collectors. collectors don't care that i have signed letters from the verizon general counsel stating that i don't now and never did owe anything i didn't pay.

verizon is a bunch of thugs. fios is the best service in town technically, but it's not worth it in my opinion.

Some ambulance chasers should bring suit against Verizon. Their over billing scams are so pervasive and rampant that its easy to see that it's intentional. I wouldn't be surprised if it's part of their strategic operating plan to pad numbers and goose bonuses. I don't even think Verizon apologists can pretend it hasn't permeated every service they offer.

Olde Farte, II Wrote:
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> Mr.Lorton Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > ...is offering me better services for a much
> cheaper price.
>
> Probably not.
>
> Be sure to check time restraints on discount and
> what it blooms to afterward.

this is what has held me back from switching also. I fear Fios is cheaper now but it is a teaser rate that will get jacked up later to make up the difference.

Olde Farte, II Wrote:
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> Mr.Lorton Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > ...is offering me better services for a much
> cheaper price.
>
> Probably not.
>
> Be sure to check time restraints on discount and
> what it blooms to afterward.

this is what has held me back from switching also. I fear Fios is cheaper now but it is a teaser rate that will get jacked up later to make up the difference.

Olde Farte, II Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Mr.Lorton Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > ...is offering me better services for a much
> cheaper price.
>
> Probably not.
>
> Be sure to check time restraints on discount and
> what it blooms to afterward.

this is what has held me back from switching also. I fear Fios is cheaper now but it is a teaser rate that will get jacked up later to make up the difference.

keep your internet and get a Roku3 streamer. that's what i did....happy as can be! profit!

How did they fuck your credit up?

Joey Wrote:
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> How did they fuck your credit up?


he loves the cox

Listen to the best advice I ever acted on myself. Your life will change for the better - guaranteed.

Deep six your Television subscription. Stop cold turkey. Tell Cox that you will only be taking their internet access. If they say no, tell them goodbye. You can get a FIOS internet-only plan from Verizon (as bad as they are as a company). Cox will probably say okay.

Within three months, you will be less stressed out and discover that you now have all the time to do the things you want to do.

You have the perfect time of year around here weather-wise to do this.

Curmudgeon Wrote:
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> > fios is faster, but their billing is a scam.

OR

idiots don't know what they're agreeeing to. When Verizon (or Cox or Comcast) say that their rate is good for the 90 days (or 6 months or year) and then they will increase to "X" amount that means that after 90 days (or 6 months or year) the rates will increase to "X" amount. Some people don't understand this.

I've had FIOS for six years and have had ZERO billing issues. But then again, I'm not an idiot that can't read.

Verizon just dug out our neighborhood for Fios. My regular DSL with Verizon is fine. No problems with billing. We pay the same each month. Is Fios worth the money? How much do you pay each month? Thanks!

Bartled()() Wrote:
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> keep your internet and get a Roku3 streamer.
> that's what i did....happy as can be! profit!


Roku players are great. I got a first generation when they came out, so I even have a YouTube channel on mine. Upgraded to a Roku 2 years later when the first one broke and it still let me keep that channel. So much stuff on Netflix streaming to watch, plus the 100's of free channels you can get. A much better deal than cable or FIOS.

I don't like stealing so is this legit?

Roku? Wrote:
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> I don't like stealing so is this legit?


Yes, it's the same as Apple TV ... its simply a wireless receiver that you connect to your TV and it picks up whatever signal your router sends to it.

It has nothing to do with a decision to stick with a current provider or switch to FIOS.

Bartled()() Wrote:
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> keep your internet and get a Roku3 streamer.
> that's what i did....happy as can be! profit!


... but it has has nothing to do with the topic

Roku? Wrote:
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> I don't like stealing so is this legit?


http://www.roku.com/

Wired has named the Roku 3 "King of All Media!"

http://www.wired.com/reviews/2013/04/roku-3/

Quote

idiots don't know what they're agreeeing to.

that was not the issue in my case, i can assure you. had nothing to do with the pricing. had to do with their failure to credit my account for the check they'd already cashed and applied to my account.

Then being told "you don't owe anything -- we'll take care of it."

Then being sent to collections.

Then being told the account would be withdrawn from collections because it was their screwup.

Then receiving calls every day for a year or so now from collectors.

Then being told that this can't possibly be happening because they wouldn't have done this to begin with.

Think I'm full of shit? I invite you to become or remain a Verizon customer. You'll see in time.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/24/2013 08:10PM by Curmudgeon.

We have FIOS and it is faster than Cox. It is also very expensive. And you can not get real tech support.
We have a TV Set Top Box that hasn't worked right for 8 months now. I have called and punched in numbers for 5 minutes to get an agent who transfers me to someone else where I am put on hold and eventually the line is dropped.
I eventually got someone to send me another box. It fails the same way. We will be watching TV and the sound will either start stuttering or the volume will double. This will last about 30 seconds then the FIOS box will turn itself and the TV off. Then it will turn back on and in about a minute everything resumes.

They can't fix it, even though it only happens on one box in the house and we have 3.
Don't fall for the 1 year teaser rates. They will eventually have you up above $300. And I don't believe they ever send out technicians except to install a new service.

In the related thread. Watch out when returning boxes. They have zero inventory control. They will likely back end mega charges. Never again!!!

Mr.Lorton Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Hello I've been a customer with Cox for over 12
> years and I am not happy with their service. Fios
> just rolled out in my area and is offering me
> better services for a much cheaper price.
>
> My question is: Who's better? Fios or Cox?
> How is FIOS with port forwarding, billing,
> customer service, and torrenting?
>
> And If I do switch over to FIOS from Cox...How
> does the process work? Do I call Cox to disconnect
> my service first? Do they come and take the boxes
> and unplug the wires? What happens?

i've had both. i think fios wins by a mile. better service for around the same or even lower price (although i've now had fios for several years, cox might have better prices now). only problem is cox had the tennis channel with the medium package, and with fios i'd have to buy the more expensive one. for one channel, not worth it. but that does suck for me.... other than that it's a no brainer.

My other choice was Comcast.

Comcast is too stupid to leave a happy subscriber alone. Their techs are overworked and overbooked - and very incompetent.

The only thing that works with them are threats. You don't have much leverage as a homeowner subscriber. I got tired of threatening to cancel and eventually canceled.

I compared pricing between them about a year ago. Whatever price Comcast puts on their advertisement is wrong. There is absolutely no way you can get that advertised service at that price. There are always rental fees or some other charge from Comcast before taxes are added.

My theory is that it is only a matter of time before your current provider pisses you off. Fios just pisses me off less often.

Life is great now Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Listen to the best advice I ever acted on myself.
> Your life will change for the better -
> guaranteed.
>
> Deep six your Television subscription. Stop cold
> turkey. Tell Cox that you will only be taking
> their internet access. If they say no, tell them
> goodbye. You can get a FIOS internet-only plan
> from Verizon (as bad as they are as a company).
> Cox will probably say okay.
>
> Within three months, you will be less stressed out
> and discover that you now have all the time to do
> the things you want to do.
>
> You have the perfect time of year around here
> weather-wise to do this.


I second this. Keeps everything simple with just internet. Had fios internet for a few years now and not a single billing issue. you wont miss TV for very long.

FIOS has superior speed and clarity compared to Cox for HD and web. You get what you pay for. I have never had any billing issues but Cox does cost far less. FIOS install service sucks! Bad install (made them re-install twice - installation was extremely sloppy so you need to keep an eye on that if you switch). Never needed a tech after install. If I recall Cox had better service but we have had FIOS for over 3 years. Moving in June, so will keep an eye out for billing mistakes and repost if a problem arises.

The introductory prices are good, but even with a two year contract they will still jack your prices up every six months. Once your two year agreement is over, your price will go up an additional 25%. They know Cox and Comcast suck, so they will not lower your price after your contract is up to keep you. Oh yeah, if they offer you a Visa Gift Card, it will take at least 90 days or longer for you to receive it, and you must pay each of the bills received during the 90 day period on time, or they will cancel the Visa Gift Card.

FIOS customer service is the worst. You will be on hold for at least 20 minutes every time you call. When your call is finally answered, you will be lucky to get someone who can help you on the first try.

My biggest complaint is getting the internet speed I am paying for and dealing with their idiots in Tech Support to resolve the issue. I am paying for 50Mbps download/25 Mbps upload. Based on tests using Speakeasy, Test My Broadband, and FIOS' own speed test I am barely getting 20Mbps down and 3Mbps up even when connected directly to the router with the other computers shut down. FIOS replaced the Router, both the interior and exterior boxes and switched our internet over to ethernet from the coaxial it was on. But it made no difference. According to Tech Support internet speeds are not guaranteed and there must be a problem with all four computers in my house! Yeah right so what the hell am I paying for?????

Cox service is horrid. Actually, calling it service is misleading.

And they keep raising rates, approximately 10% each year.

Nothing has really changed, though within the past month Fios Internet speeds are up some for me. However, problem seems to be with trunk lines not Verizon. In 2013 when you wrote, my speeds were double what they had been the past couple years.

LISTEN DICKHEAD

THEY ARE OLIGOPOLIES AND PRACTICE PRICE FIXING AND DON'T COMPETE WITH EACH OTHER

FAIRFAX COUNTY, VA HAS GIVEN THEM LICENSE TO BE OLIGOPOLY AND TAKES MONEY FROM THE TO KEEP PRICE FIXING CASES OUT OF COURT

SHUT THE FUCK UP ABOUT WHICH IS BETTER

in my experience, cox is better for tv. Fios is better for internet. I had the fios bundle at one time, but the tv sucked so when the 3 month introductory period ended, I switched the tv part of the package to Cox. The fios guy I talked with wouldn't take no for an answer. Conversely, the Cox customer service people were never high pressure.

It's cheaper to bundle but it sucks that neither has the best "total package."

phelpsmarc Wrote:
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> in my experience, cox is better for tv. Fios is
> better for internet. I had the fios bundle at one
> time, but the tv sucked so when the 3 month
> introductory period ended, I switched the tv part
> of the package to Cox.

Interesting. I've heard people (possibly here) say that they thought FiOS TV had better definition (less compression). Since I haven't compared them side-by-side (I've seen FiOS at friends' houses, but different TVs, etc., so can't really compare), I don't know. I wonder if this, like Internet speed, varies according to the headend in your neighborhood?