I took on Comcast and I won...so can you!

To start, I should state that I am an avowed tech geek. When we moved into our current home and neighborhood, Cambridge at The Glen, I had hoped to bring AT&T Uverse with us from the nearby military housing we were living in since we moved back to Glenview. No joy, our options were WOW or Comcast. Ugh. I have always heard good things about WOW but I needed Cable TV. I swallowed hard and signed up for Comcast AGAIN. I have had Comcast as a cable tv provider for years. It is a kind of on again off again relationship like I had during my college days with a certain lady, let’s call her Heather...because that is her name. It was easy to remember the good times, the bad times were the exception. Umm, no.

In August 2019 I saw a Comcast ad for 1 Gig speed. Ohhhh, I thought. That sounds good to me. My days of Compuserve and AOL dial up now long behind me...1 Gig...surely I will never ever need more the 1 Gig. I logged in to the Comcast website and signed up.

I installed an Eero (Pre-Amazon ownership) mesh system in my home years ago. With it I can monitor threats, track download and upload speeds and yes, shut down my daughters access when she is grounded. I have five Eeros throughout my home including one in the detached garage. 1 Gig speed was within my reach.

I have Eero+ which sends me a weekly report on the arseholes trying to hack my network. 1 Gig would surely make me the ‘King of my Domain’. Cheesey Seinfeld reference.

When I made my 1 Gig upgrade I did purchase my own DOCSIS 3.1 capable modem...which supports up to 10 Gigs. I will never need 10 Gigs. That echo sounded familiar.

During the week of 25 August 2019 I went from I went from 179 Mbps on my Eero at the Modem to 565 Mbps. I was on my way.

Except that I wasn’t. Week 2 I dropped to 439 Mbps then 369 Mbps in Week 3. This was the ‘fastest’ speed, not the average. In October I hit 818 Mbps, OK...here it is. My 1 Gig was close at hand, patience pays. Nope, for the next 4 weeks it dropped to a low of 108 Mbps for the fastest download. Uh oh.

For the last 52 weeks my ‘at modem’ speeds bounced between 500-700 Mbps at the highs. I called Comcast repeatedly asking where my 1 Gig speed could be found. A common Comcast question, are you experiencing any disruption? Well no, but that is not the point. I want what I am paying for. No matter how many times I would ask I got conflicting information.

Last Friday, November 13, 2020 I reached my tipping point. My wife ordered me, our daughter, and even our cute cat, Hamilton (loves iPad YouTube bird & squirrel videos), off the network. No Netflix, no Zoom, no birds, no nothing. Caryn had an important Zoom meeting with the University Chancellor, the network could not be disturbed. This was the straw that broke the camels back.

I called Comcast yet again. Same question, is your system disrupted, no...blah, blah, blah. Finally, I lied. Yes, my network is not working correctly. The technician verbally admitted that if you (me) are paying for 1 Gig then you should hit 90% (or 900 Mbps) minimum. Please send someone over. After an hour of back and forth, we will send a tech. Great, it was crickets.

I called Comcast on Monday (16th) asking about the tech visit time. This phone tech had no idea what I was talking about. Another hour spent explaining. Finally. An appointment set for 1-3pm on the 17th. Hallelujah. I received a half-dozen automated calls from Comcast confirming my appointment. Maybe they hoped to wear me down by calling and calling. Now, the moment had come.

The very impressive Alex A. from a Comcast Authorized Contractor arrived right on time. By the time Alex was done my network speed hit 933 Mbps. Here is what happened:

1) Don’t let Comcast push you around with a shrug of the shoulders. You need to advocate for yourself. Comcast has a Franchise Agreement with the Village of Glenview and if you are unhappy with their service you should complain to the Village (resollutioncenter@glenview.il.us) and to Comcast. (Note: Comcast first, via email, save a copy.)

3) When Alex looked at the Comcast pedestal there was a damaged connection, which he repaired. At the Demarc on the exterior of my home, he installed new connectors.

4) If you really want Gig speeds you need the right equipment. You must have either a purchased or rented (from Comcast) a DOCSIS 3.1 cable modem.

5) If you are connecting the Cable Modem to a Router (Eero, Orbi, etc.) you should use Cat 6 rated cables. Think, Cat 6 is a four-lane highway to Cat 5e two-lane highway.

6) If you want 1 Gig speeds over an Eero (or equivalent) it must be Wi-Fi 6 capable (Eero Pro 6). I am getting nearly 1 Gig speeds on my iPad (wirelessly) right now. Wow.

Listen, you can do it too. Be firm, be persistent and you will be rewarded.

Comcast works for us!

Email me at: Mike.korman@kormanllc.com if you want any advice.