I have become unsatisfied with Sonic as a service provider, but can't stomach the alternatives....
Posted: Thu Dec 29, 2016 2:34 pm
I'm not trying to be a contrarian or anything here.... I'm just trying to think through my options and maybe someone here has already been through this thought process.
I pay ~$56/month after everything with sonic for the fusion X1 (up to 10mb/s) service, which consistently tests at 6mb/s down and 1mb/s up. Over the last few years, as the streaming demand in my household has gone up, my bandwidth is now proving to be insufficient.
Doubling my sonic to the X2 is +$20/month plus $99 installation. So let's call that $76/month. Getting a bit steep for still likely pretty poor internet speeds (but let's blame that on the bay area and not sonic directly).
Now, the only two other providers that really are options are ATT and Comcast. ATT offers me the following plans for my address:
- up to 6mb/s for $30/month, 1TB ceiling, 1 yr agreement
- up to 18mb/s for $40/month, 1TB ceiling, 1 yr agreement
Comcast:
- up to 25mb/s for $39.99/month
- up to 100mb/s for $49.99/month
Obviously I don't know exactly what the random junk charges will be from those 2 companies, so the final bill will be considerably higher than the listed prices. But let's say they're similar to the 40% difference between claimed price and actual bill from Sonic.
My understanding was always that sonic was using ATT lines, and that one couldn't expect different speeds between Sonic and ATT. So should I consider the ATT and Sonic plans to be basically equivalent in expected speed? And if so, why does the Sonic 20mb/s plan cost so much more than the ATT 18mb/s plan?
Obviously the comcast plans are practically off the charts when compared to the DSL plans here.
I've had significant experience as both a Comcast and ATT customer in other areas of the country, and I will say that at one point I decided that I would never, ever be a comcast customer again, no matter the circumstances. Now, I have a wife who is pretty dissatisfied with her ability to watch TV and movies, who is in my ear to just take the speed.
So, I guess the question is this: it seems like in every scenario, I'm paying sonic considerably more for slower or at best equivalent speeds. I've always justified my sonic subscription from an idealistic internet freedom point of view, but is that worth such a large premium? What am I missing here and why should I continue being a sonic customer instead of switching to something that's more efficient with my money in one way or another?
PS I will add that the lack of ESPN streaming in Sonic effectively makes it even more expensive for me, as I consider it a huge negative of the service. Since I understand that cost to be included in the other services, it's even more perplexing what I'm paying such a high price for with Sonic.
I pay ~$56/month after everything with sonic for the fusion X1 (up to 10mb/s) service, which consistently tests at 6mb/s down and 1mb/s up. Over the last few years, as the streaming demand in my household has gone up, my bandwidth is now proving to be insufficient.
Doubling my sonic to the X2 is +$20/month plus $99 installation. So let's call that $76/month. Getting a bit steep for still likely pretty poor internet speeds (but let's blame that on the bay area and not sonic directly).
Now, the only two other providers that really are options are ATT and Comcast. ATT offers me the following plans for my address:
- up to 6mb/s for $30/month, 1TB ceiling, 1 yr agreement
- up to 18mb/s for $40/month, 1TB ceiling, 1 yr agreement
Comcast:
- up to 25mb/s for $39.99/month
- up to 100mb/s for $49.99/month
Obviously I don't know exactly what the random junk charges will be from those 2 companies, so the final bill will be considerably higher than the listed prices. But let's say they're similar to the 40% difference between claimed price and actual bill from Sonic.
My understanding was always that sonic was using ATT lines, and that one couldn't expect different speeds between Sonic and ATT. So should I consider the ATT and Sonic plans to be basically equivalent in expected speed? And if so, why does the Sonic 20mb/s plan cost so much more than the ATT 18mb/s plan?
Obviously the comcast plans are practically off the charts when compared to the DSL plans here.
I've had significant experience as both a Comcast and ATT customer in other areas of the country, and I will say that at one point I decided that I would never, ever be a comcast customer again, no matter the circumstances. Now, I have a wife who is pretty dissatisfied with her ability to watch TV and movies, who is in my ear to just take the speed.
So, I guess the question is this: it seems like in every scenario, I'm paying sonic considerably more for slower or at best equivalent speeds. I've always justified my sonic subscription from an idealistic internet freedom point of view, but is that worth such a large premium? What am I missing here and why should I continue being a sonic customer instead of switching to something that's more efficient with my money in one way or another?
PS I will add that the lack of ESPN streaming in Sonic effectively makes it even more expensive for me, as I consider it a huge negative of the service. Since I understand that cost to be included in the other services, it's even more perplexing what I'm paying such a high price for with Sonic.