@Sonic: Options for maintaining access to VPN & Labs?

[pdessart]

@Sonic_staff -
Well, after being a Sonic customer for over a dozen years, the time has come to port out my phones and move to cable broadband.

Sonic is stringing fiber all around me, but my block is one of a handful in our neighborhood which has been undergrounded and I am told that Sonic will not be pulling fiber to my house. Even if this were to change, I'm no longer in a position to wait.

Now to the heart of my question: I have seen discussion of email-only accounts as well as accounts with email plus additional services available to customers giving up Sonic connections.

I have no need for email, as I have had a non-Sonic solution for this all along. However, I occasionally use the Fax send and Faxline functionality from the Labs as well as the Sonic VPN.

Is it possible (and at what cost) to retain access to these features without keeping an email account?

Thanks,
Peter

[virtualmike]

Your best bet is to contact Support and explain your needs. There are some options, but they may be changing, and I wouldn't want to give you false hope.

[pdessart]

Thanks virtualmike. I was actually hoping to hear from Sonic staff on this (have edited my post to clarify).

I have had good experiences in the past posting my questions and hearing back from Sonic (sometimes Dane himself) as to what my options might be so I can be ready to pursue a specific path once I do contact them directly.

[jerrielm]

Hello!

Sadly, you will not be able to keep using these services once cancel your account. if you would like to keep using these services then I would suggest keeping your email.

Best Wishes!

[dane]

While email-only ($6) won't provide access to VPN, a "Basic" account ($18.95 if memory serves) would. Jerriel, will you check with the team and see if that's still available?

[pdessart]

Thanks for the reply, Dane.

I'm sorry to be leaving Sonic, in no small part because of your direct involvement with the customer community.

Given that Sonic is wiring (do we need a new verb - "fibering"?) the blocks adjacent to me, but not mine & the other handful around me which have been undergrounded (and I'm very disinclined to subscribe to AT&T even if resold) the time has come to move on.

If my Sonic email address were in circulation, I might keep an account but all I really use is VPN occasionally and Fax Send even more occasionally.

I do understand that this pricing reflects how far from Sonic's core business these services are, but I can unbundle those for significantly less than $19 a month.

Thanks again,
Peter

[dane]

Yep, certainly understood. And really, there are better VPN services than ours, which for example provide the ability to obtain VNP out of different countries when needed. Because yes, our focus is on last-mile access, not accessory services.

Regarding the underground service in your neighborhood, if you're interested in fiber, do let your City leadership know. We're seeking cities that will work with us and allow both directional boring and microtrenching for new underground build-out. We've received pretty limited interest (or even outright denial) from many communities.