Sonic fiber in San Francisco

[dane]

So as expected, there is no issue with my utility poles. I watched Wave string a brand-new cable from Van Ness Ave. (where Sonic has fiber) to my house this morning to deliver their gigabit service to my house. Why was Wave able to use these utility poles literally the morning after I ordered service, while Sonic needs 9 months to string a fiber 100 feet from a building that already has it?

Because they've already got cables on those poles, so they can add a new service drop immediately. Sonic must engineer and place a new strand, the steel "messenger" wire, which the cables are then lashed to. This takes six to nine months, typically.

Note also that Wave's ability to add a drop doesn't say anything about the current engineering load with the poles; they could be overloaded and we could be disallowed from attaching, while a current user can still add drop cables to homes they pass with existing plant. (But I've got no indication of any issues with these poles, they're not marked bad in our data, we just overlooked them and now have to circle back to include them in our build.)

Anyway, I'm sad to cancel my Sonic service. I'll certainly miss my 8 static IP addresses, the fax service, the phone service, and the generally non-patronizing attitude of your support staff--all of which were worth way more to me than the $30/month I'll be saving on wave. I look forward to switching back in 6-9 months as soon as you can bring fiber to my street.

Sounds good!

[dane]

Hi Dane,

I see that you guys have a permit (17TOC-3453) for 18th street in the Mission. I'm on 18th between Valencia and Dorland across from the Woman's building. Any rough sense of when Sonic Fiber will be available there?

Cheers,
MD

You can check your address at http://sonic.com/availability - but if we are not providing info there, it may be too early in the construction process.

Sonic members will get notice from us just as soon as we're ready to upgrade them from copper to Fiber!

[dane]

I'm a bit confused about the "availability" results. I'm in the Castro (Sanchez St between 15th and 16th) but apparently no gigabit coming to my location, because the availability check does not have a pre-order option. So there are blocks in the Castro/mission area that will be skipped?

Yes, the coverage is viable, by block and even individual building. This is due to a number of factors: overhead utilities are required, because San Francisco doesn't permit new trenchless underground construction which would be necessary for new utilities like Sonic. Also, where aerial facilities do exist, they can be isolated by underground segments upstream. We also encounter lots of utility poles which are currently overloaded, so we cannot attach any new cables to them until they are reinforced or replaced, and there is a long backlog in that process. Finally, we've got some apartment buildings where we haven't yet gotten approval to enter, despite both local code and state law which allows for tenant choice in telecommunications service.

So, wide array of potential challenges, which lead to uneven coverage. We are working on many fronts to expand our reach and get beyond these barriers!

[kyle.depasquale]

I'm lucky enough to be scheduled to get fiber sometime in September - I'm on 29th street in Noe Valley near Sanchez st. Is there any information that you can provide as to whether it will be early or late september that my block might be ready for service? I can see fiber loops hanging on the poles at each end of my street, but nothing yet has been brought up to my block just yet.

[dane]

I'm lucky enough to be scheduled to get fiber sometime in September - I'm on 29th street in Noe Valley near Sanchez st. Is there any information that you can provide as to whether it will be early or late september that my block might be ready for service? I can see fiber loops hanging on the poles at each end of my street, but nothing yet has been brought up to my block just yet.

No, I'm afraid we couldn't provide anything more specific. But the work you see happening nearby is certainly a great indication that things are coming along there, so keep an eye out for notification about your drop and installation scheduling soon!

[pguthrie]

Well, Sonic's fiber just went up onto the pole outside my house today on Sanchez St at Alvarado. Customer support says I must wait until at least October to even order (existing customer for Fusion). So close but yet so far away. Any idea why the delay between the fiber being installed to the pole and actually making it into the house? Also, can someone with fiber already installed tell me what equipment must be purchased or is provided by Sonic to terminate the fiber into the house?

[cdrayson]

Well, Sonic's fiber just went up onto the pole outside my house today on Sanchez St at Alvarado. Customer support says I must wait until at least October to even order (existing customer for Fusion). So close but yet so far away. Any idea why the delay between the fiber being installed to the pole and actually making it into the house? Also, can someone with fiber already installed tell me what equipment must be purchased or is provided by Sonic to terminate the fiber into the house?

Installation is a multi stage process with lots of stuff to do. I recall being frustrated with the delay. There is no required equipment purchase, assuming you want to use Sonic's router. If you want to use your own, you may need to upgrade to something faster. I think they're recommending customers buy an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) so the phone will still work during a power outage, but it isn't required.

[dane]

A UPS for utility power backup is available for $99, If you want one it'd be installed during the initial deployment. Note that it backs up the whole ONT, so voice and data are both kept online for 8-12 hours.

The residential gateway (firewall and router with Wifi) is not backed up, so you would need to supply a UPS for this if you want to keep WiFi up during a power outage.

[noeandmarket]

How difficult would it be to wire Market St., by Noe & Market (Upper Market)? Any plans to do so?

Thanks :)

[simx]

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