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Friday September 19, 2008 4:59 pm
Verizon FiOS vs. Comcast: Feature-by-feature
Ten days ago, Verizon FiOS TV officially launched here in Washington state. I was actually invited to speak at the launch event that took place that day, alongside Verizon representatives, and local government officials. I was specifically chosen as a case study of just how good FiOS is, since I literally moved specifically because Comcast was way too slow for the things we expected out of our Internet connection here at Gear Live HQ. It was an event meant to talk up the advantages of FiOS over cable (specifically, Comcast, in this area). Obviously, with FiOS looming over their territory, Comcast went into damage control mode to combat Verizon’s claims that they were the best option for Internet and television services. We were sent both the FiOS press release and the Comcast press release, and we figured we would respond to the claims of each, point-by-point.
For some background, we’ve been Comcast customers for over six years, for both Internet and television services. When we moved for FiOS 15 months ago, Comcast was still our cable television provider. As of today, I am a FiOS customer for both Internet and television, and as of 10 days ago, am no longer a Comcast customer. Now, on with the comparisons.
To start, here are the points that Comcast wanted to get across. These are the reasons that they feel they are a better value to consumers than Verizon FiOS. Let’s take a look at each:
Comcast has been using Fiber-Optic technology for more than 10 years – Comcast’s reliable hybrid fiber-coaxial system contains more than 3,000 miles of fiber optic cables directly into each neighborhood we serve.
While this may be true, we fail to see how this makes Comcast a better alternative than FiOS. How do the 3,000 miles of fiber optic cable affect me? It is just the method used to deliver the signal to the node, that fiber doesn’t come all the way to my physical house, the way FiOS does. By the same token, how does the 10 year timeframe affect me? I could care less how long you’ve been doing it, especially if someone else hasn’t been doing it as long, and is doing it better.
Network reliability – A new state-of-the-art network monitoring center, located in Everett, ensures that network issues are identified and corrected well before they impact customers.
Well, that is a good thing. We know it is there, and know it’s purpose. But again, how does this help me, the consumer, when comparing Comcast to FiOS? Is Comcast trying to imply that Verizon doesn’t have a network monitoring center? I know for a fact that they do. It would be silly and irresponsible for either of them not to.
Local customer service – More than 3,000 local Washington state employees, including nearly 1,000 customer service representatives in call centers in Lynnwood, Everett and Fife, are available 24-7 to help customers. These employees ensure that nearly 100 percent of all calls made by Washington Comcast customers are answered by a Comcast Washington employee.
Now, this is something that I can see as a beneficial point. I live in Washington state, and it is just more convenient when I get a service representative on the phone who is from the same local area. I like that. The thing is, both times that I had to call Verizon for support in the past 15 months, I ended up on the phone with someone from Washington state. So this isn’t any better than what FiOS does. Oh, and when I was with Comcast for Internet, I was calling them way more than twice every 15 months. It was more like twice per month.
Comcast bundles – Comcast offers competitive pricing on similar bundles of video, voice and high-speed data services that include up to 16 Mbps down and up to 2 Mbps up.
I find that one to be amusing, seriously. Sure, the pricing on that bundle is competitive with the FiOS bundle of the same speed, but Comcast also was careful to point out their max speed of 16/2. Now, when I left Comcast Internet for FiOS Internet, Comcasts maximum speed was 8/0.768, so they have definitely improved a bit. However, my initial FiOS speed was 30/15. Today, I am on 50/20. There is just no comparison between FiOS at 50/20 and Comcast at 16/2. Comcast simply can’t touch FiOS.
Best value – Comcast’s high-speed Internet service includes more than $325 in free features such as McAfee Security Suite, PhotoShow Deluxe, Rhapsody Radio Plus and The Fan. In addition, an equivalent FiOS phone package can cost as much as $485 more per year than Comcast’s phone service.
Verizon offers similar software packages and gimmicks to make their service look more attractive. I call this one a wash. I personally haven’t used either of these “bonus” feature packages. When I buy service, it is for the service, not for the add-ons. The note about phone service is definitely true, if you were to only get phone service. Both companies offer Internet/TV/Voice packages for $99 a month.
More On Demand – Comcast customers can choose from more than 7,000 titles On Demand, including hundreds of programs in high definition with almost 75% of it being FREE content. Verizon offers significantly fewer titles On Demand and much less FREE content.
See, this one at surface level makes it appear that Comcast’s On Demand offering is better than FiOS TV’s. I just can’t agree with that. Now, this is obviously something that is purely based on a person’s entertainment tastes, but from where I sit, while Comcast had more On Demand content, FiOS TV has better On Demand content - including a bunch of stuff that Comcast doesn’t have, that I would have wished they did. Things like Blip.tv On Demand, where I can see great web content right from the DVR interface. By the way, look out for Gear Live’s video shows to be featured On Demand with FiOS TV soon. Let’s see if we can get on Comcast as well.
FiOS offers limited customer service – The Verizon FiOS call center is only available Monday-Friday, leaving customers without billing, sales and technical support on weekends.
Hands down, this is the first point on the list where I feel Comcast knocks it out of the park - until I realize there is a lie right in it! It is untrue that technical support is unavailable on weekends to FiOS customers. Tech support is the one thing you can get support-wise with FiOS at any time of day, any day of the week. However, it is true that you only get billing and sales support during business hours Monday-Friday. It sucks that Verizon is that way, here’s hoping they change it. For now, Comcast wins in the 24x7x365 support.
FiOS customers without contracts pay more – Verizon doesn’t require contracts, but they charge more if customers decide not to sign a contract. In addition, they charge for cancelling your contract. Comcast does not require contracts for service, and customers are free to cancel at any time without penalty.
Comcast is right on this one as well. They don’t require any contracts, but neither does Verizon. You can choose to enter into a contract with Verizon, and if you do, you get a further discount on services. Still, if we are calling a spade a spade, then Comcast is contract-free, and Verizon isn’t. Comcast wins here.
But you know what Comcast failed to mention? While they don’t have contracts, they will have Internet usage caps beginning next month. If you are a Comcast Internet subscriber, you will have a cap of 250GB usage per month. If you go above that, watch out. Seriously. With FiOS Internet, you can use as much as you want, and you aren’t sharing your connection with all your neighbors. It’s your line, coming directly into your home.
Comcast’s investment in new products and services – Comcast’s Washington market invests an average of $100 million a year to maintain and improve its network, with plans over the next six to 12 months to deliver dramatically faster Internet speeds and dozens more high definition channels.
While it’s nice to hear that Comcast is planning to improve their network, they are playing catch-up at this time. Verizon Internet speeds completely obliterate anything that Comcast offers. When it comes to HDTV, again, FiOS blows Comcast away (despite what those dishonest Comcast ads on television tell you). With Comcast, I had about 25 HD channels. The move to FiOS TV left me with 101 HD channels. That is a sizable difference.
So there you have it, that was Comcast’s entire list. That was their attempt at convincing consumers that they are the better choice when choosing between them and FiOS. I think it was a pretty poor showing, especially considering that they slipped in a blatant lie. Let’s move on to the FiOS data, provided by Verizon.
Again, breaking it down point-by-point:
Speed
- Only the Verizon FiOS network delivers America’s top-rated, fastest Internet up to 50 Mbps
- Verizon FiOS offers connection speeds up to 53 times faster than dial-up
- Fiber optic speeds up to 50 Mbps give you the power to upload/download photos, movies and user-generated content in a flash (e.g. 200 pictures in only 90 seconds)
Can’t argue with them here, although I do wonder why they compare their speeds to dial-up rather than cable.
Picture Quality
- FiOS offers an amazing picture quality up to five times clearer than regular TV
- Verizon FiOS offers 100 HD channels and 100% digital quality, crystal clear picture and studding sound on all channels
- Unlike many cable providers, FiOS TV Quality is not deteriorated by the recompression of video signals before they are passed on to customers
Again, spot on. While to me this seems like it’s mostly fluff, the one important piece here is that FiOS doesn’t recompress their video signals. That means significantly fewer compression artifacts when watching high definition programming. Seriously, this is like night and day when compared to the HD programming quality we got with Comcast.
Reliability & Performance
- Verizon FiOS is the top-rated broadband service in America
- FiOS Phone Service handles over a billion calls a day with 99.9% network reliability
- With a dedicated line from Verizon’s home office directly to each customer’s home, FiOS Internet performance does not slow down during peak times
Here, they are addressing me as a consumer specifically with stats, and then they give the information that the connection doesn’t slow down during peak times, which it most certainly does with cable, especially if you live in a densely-populated area.
Equipment
- Verizon FiOS makes entertainment easy with Home Media DVR
- Verizon FiOS is the only service to offer Multi-room DVR and Verizon Media Manager
- Verizon FiOS offers over 10,000 Video on Demand titles per month
What I like here are the specifics. Instead of using terms like “more”, the way Comcast did, Verizon lays it out there - they have over 10,000 VOD titles per month. That is obviously more than I will end up watching, if Comcast has more than that, then that is also more than I will end up watching. The thing is, it’s about the quality of the programming, not the quantity. Quality is where FiOS wins that battle.
The other thing of note here is the Home Media DVR. This is another thing that Comcast just can’t touch. I can stream audio and video content from my PC to my FiOS DVR to play on my television and through my speaker system. The FiOS IMG DVR software is far and away better than the slow, horrible, poor excuse for an interface that Comcast is currently using. Multi-room DVR allows me to watch content stored on one DVR on other DVRs in my home - again, something Comcast has never offered.
So there you have it, those are the details provided by both Comcast and Verizon as they pertain to their entertainment and Internet packages. If you have the choice between these two specific services in your area, feel free to use my thoughts above as a guide. Like I said, I was a Comcast customer for over 6 years, and I know their services very well. Once I went with FiOS Internet, I was blown away. My recent switch to FiOS TV was just as mind-blowing. The fact that you get your own line of fiber, directly to your home, to carry all your communications is amazing.
Do you agree? Are we way off base? Let us know your thoughts.
- Related Tags:
- adslice, bothell, broadband, cable, comcast, fiber, fiber optics, fios, fios tv, fios vs comcast, ftth, hdtv, high definition, home entertainment, internet, kirkland, lynnwood, press releases, seattle, sidefeatured, verizon fios, washington
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Comments:
I have Fios Media Manager and multiroom DVR and it does in fact stream video from the PC’s in your home. This is included in recent version of media manager available second half of 2009
motoring convictions dvla
1/26/10 11:14 am
This is a brilliant site, so glad i stumbelled across you!
bill
1/29/10 12:58 am
There are noticeable differences in speed between comcast and verizon’s FiOS (i have first had experience with both in my area—WA); comcast is notorious with its use of ‘boosting’ internet speeds; new connections run at or above your quoted speed for approximately 20 seconds and if your connections persist longer—they get throttled down abruptly. With FiOS I constantly received my quoted speed 24/7/365. Fully saturated month to month the line was stable and reliable. That was the biggest difference for me.
Don’t get me wrong comcast has been pretty solid. I had them for years. I rarely had any problems or outages, the speeds were predictable, and gaming online was great (low latency). But there were a few things that always left a bitter taste in my mouth:
1) price - it goes up and up and service really doesn’t change - rather I was upgraded for ‘free’ and they increased their rates for everyone shortly after. What was 45 a month for tv and internet is now over 100, add some basic hd channels and phone—you’re over 175. Granted FiOS is a newcomer, but it has yet to raise prices for my tier in 2 years, and the regular - READ NON-PROMOTIONAL - price month to month is 80 dollars lower than comcast’s equivalent service.
2) sandvine - comcast gained some recent attention everywhere for not just slowing certain types of traffic down to avoid network congestion, but actually committed network fraud by severing connections of specific protocols with forged connection reset requests; spoofing the addresses of the connecting parties and speaking (NO) for them. Naturally once the causes were identified, everyone went all Net Neutrality on them and they’ve since removed it after FCC investigations and public hearings (some of which were stuffed with bums who were paid off the street to take up space for would-be protesters). It was a whole terrible mess of deceit and greed from the top down. They’ve made amends and in the last year there has been a tremendous improvement in the overall experience they offer—Its what it always should have been, and it took no effort on their part but to be honest.
3) boost - life is good; if for only twenty seconds. You can get some great speed from comcast, usually much higher than your quoted / paid-for speed if you’re on the bottom tiers, but its short lived. You get some quick page loads but anything more demanding and you’re back down to reality. Those speed tests you take; guess how long most of them last; 20 seconds? The results are all inflated. Stream some netflix movies or download some larger files, you’ll see what you’re really getting. I don’t have a big gripe with it, after all it is a small bonus, but you always get this ‘its fake’ pretense.
4) Overselling - Its just like the insurance business; everyone pays a little so a few can get needed support, otherwise prohibitively costly, when they need it; knowing that not everyone will cash out; nothing is hidden about this fact. this. Except they pitch the service (sale) like everyone can have it all, most of the time. The reality is that only 10 percent of their customers (conservative estimate) at anyone one time can max their service out without degrading even casual usage for everyone else. Its a valid business model but its shady to pitch ‘comcastic’ speeds in all their advertising and ‘up to X mbps’ legalese. For many years they did not establish or maintain a baseline or guaranteed level of service, and they’re just breaking into it now. Conversely, FiOS gives you what you’re paying for all the time. FiOS’ bandwidth is not shared by everyone on a node, its a direct line. Regardless if your neighbor or entire neighborhood is downloading full speed all day long, your experience does not change with FiOS. When I was with comcast, it was noticeable when my neighbors got online and started their netflix, youtube, p2p, etc. Overselling cake to a market where everyone expects a slice doesn’t work. Go with a DSL provider or service like FiOS - direct lines are so much better.
5) compressing HD video (tv) - I know most of my post has been about internet services, but watching hd programming on comcast was always pixelated beyond the big prime time networks like abc/nbc/fox etc… I’m sure FiOS compresses their video too, but it is noticeably more clear across all channels, it has made the difference on my 1080p and 720p capable LCD TVs.
That’s mainly why I switched to FiOS 2 years ago and why I loved the service. Now that I’m living in Canada half the year (with Rogers aka the crappy Canadian version of comcast) I can’t wait to come home to ‘real’ internet/phone/tv. We still have a ways to go to catch up to Europe and Asia (notably Japan and HongKong, but this a good step in the right direction.
Now that I’ve gotten all preachy, I feel like I should go shower. Pardon the rant.
Kevin
2/13/10 6:48 pm
I think the article was well written. I liked the point by point approach.
What about recording limitations? Right now I record on one VCR and take the tape to any room I want to watch it. I’m told I cannot do this with Comcast. Also, Comcast told me I cannot record a show and watch another show at the same time on the same TV.
This is progress?
Doug
2/22/10 8:42 am
I was a Comcast customer for 13 years without any problems. My wife works from home and the internet started to go out a couple times a week.
They also must of been doing something at night (line testing maybe) since we would lose Internet connection at the same time frequently (2:33 AM) which would cause my home alarm to beep (and wake the family up) since it was interrupted. The phone depends on the internet.
I switched to Verizon and it is now a year later and I never had issues.
Home Media DVR is great with family since never know who wants to watch what and where.
I wonder if age of each companies network has an effect on reliability.
I also wondered about fiber to the house and then coax throughout the house and effect on quality of video signal. Would it be even better if you could get fiber directly to the box.
Since it is has been a year, comcast had a person come by on Sat with a deal to come back
89.99 for phone/tv/internet
no contract
$ 150 credit
fee HBO and Starz
free HD DVR
hopefully I can use above to decrease my FIOS costs
Jude7714
3/8/10 6:22 pm
Ok, some of these comments crack me up. You object to paying $30 for your boxes, but your overall bill would be cheaper. Soooo you’re paying less for superior service . . . people kill me. You’re losing out based on principle which gets you nowhere. So go for it: pay $95 for crappy service instead of paying $111 for great service because your “boxes” made it that high. I can’t believe it doesn’t bother you that Comcast is $95 WITHOUT the boxes!
I talked to a woman one day who cancelled her FIOS appointment because the better deals involved a home phone which she didn’t want. She said “Comcast gives me bundle discounts for my Internet and tv.” Yeah? Check again. They don’t offer them. Verizon does, you just don’t get as large a discount as you do with getting all 3 services. It’s the same with any company.
Next, anyone who says FIOS internet is giving them less than 3M either has to get a new computer or doesn’t know what they have - yes, the dsl service comes in 1M, 3M and 7M but FiOS’s slowest speed is 15M. I have 11M right now with Comcast (because FiOS isn’t in my area) and it feels like 1.5 because my laptop is so old. I’m willing to accept that. I know I need a new computer. But TRUST ME - there is NO WAY your 15M internet (minimum!) is only producing 1.5M because of the connection - you need a new computer. lol!
Also, the people with substandard equipment aren’t going to be able to appreciate FiOS for what it really is. We’re still in a world where people don’t mind their internet running slow, their picture being fuzzy, and their programming stuttering and blinking in and out on a regular basis. All they care about is that it costs less. When people start realizing that they’re paying for crap and it’s worth the extra $20-$30 to have something of quality, FiOS will gain more popularity. The comment about price mattering more than anything is a little upsetting. Why bother creating superior services if I can just send you crap on a converter box and charge you $20/mo. for it?
Finally, the guy who says he’s a “tech” for Verizon and that they do compress their signal is full of it. They do not - and I know that for a fact.
Jude7714
3/8/10 6:26 pm
Alice: “Since that Obama guy was elected, we had to put up with a lot of movies with Afro Americans in them on cable TV, even in their commercials. Now we can enjoy movies made for us.”
Alice, you disgust me. Watch your antenna tv. No company would want your business anyway.
tamworth administrative jobs
3/18/10 3:24 am
I agree, FiOS is just a much better option. Thanks for the interesting read.
fios
5/18/10 8:30 pm
Could you explain how they “melted” your house? Seems ridiculous. Their techs don’t use blow torches to drill
ShadowsOfKnight
9/17/10 10:11 pm
That’s great as long as it doesn’t cloud over at which point Dish Network ceases to function. And don’t tell me it doesn’t happen, because I have too many friends that go through it every time it storms.
ShadowsOfKnight
9/17/10 10:19 pm
Your experience with Comcast matches mine. Frequent outages, rarely resolved over the phone, and if you got someone in the next 24 hours, count your blessings. For me it was usually 3 days before they could schedule someone. I work from home and absolutely cannot live with this level of reliability. I honestly don’t know what the Verizon FIOS lead time is because I haven’t needed it in over a year. It just hasn’t gone down. I do occasionally have trouble with the DVR box and have to reset. I think it’s just the box. My Internet has never been unavailable since i moved to FIOS.
Allison
11/4/10 9:24 am
I am switching from comcast to fios because my bill is what I care about being a mother of two, a home business owner, and a full time student I can not afford comcast services especially when I called them 3 times to give me a lower rate of which they told me sorry you are already recieving promotional pricing and we can not go lower than what we are offering now at the price of 165 yet verizon gave me in writing a price of 120 per month saving me a total of 45 per month while allowing me to keep all the same services comcast was offering us and hooking up an additional box for my son. Seems like a better deal to me, not to mention all the frequent service calls that seemed almost weekly to fix my services that after comcast techs came out to fix still didn’t work. I’m sorry but as far as price and service comcast just didn’t meet expectations.
willim jon
1/31/11 8:06 am
Hi! handsome. most of the people are looking for a nice network TV satellite. Thanks for your nice info here. God bless you.
Bristol Classifieds
5/20/12 2:37 am
Fabulous, what a blog it is! This web site provides valuable data to us, keep it up.
Comments: Page 2 of 2 pages < 1 2
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