Comcast is busy installing TiVo-equipped boxes here in the Boston area today. I’ve been waiting patiently since 11:30. It’s now a little after 1:30 and this screen’s been up for the past hour with no end in sight. Come on, TiVo! You can do it, buddy! → Read More
I’ll be damned, they’re actually doing it. Time Warner will be testing out a pay-for-what-you-use program for its high speed Internet service in Beaumont, Texas. This, based on findings that about 5 percent of the network’s users account for more than half the bandwidth. Here’s the problem, though. What happens when all the high-bandwidth users leave for the nearest… → Read More
Credit: Steve Garfield CC BY-NC-SA It’s been over two years since Comcast announced that its DVR boxen would be getting the TiVo treatment, with nothing materializing yet. That is, of course, unless your name is Steve Garfield, of the Boston area, in which case your DVR is now a TiVo. Garfield is apparently the first customer in the country to get the upgrade, and things are going about how… → Read More
So I finally buckled and added NFL Network to my cable package because I had, had, had to see the game last night. I realized two things. First, the Dallas Cowboys can pretty much score at will. They’re fast becoming the New York Yankees of football. I don’t care for Tony Romo’s boyish charm or his ability to see everything in 360 degrees. Secondly, I realized that the only real… → Read More
Kyle McSlarrow is the head of the National Cable and Telecommunications Association. He sees the FCC’s attempts at legislating the cable industry as hurtful to consumers, particularly the idea of offering us a la carte pricing which would basically allow you and me to subscribe only to the cable channels we actually watched. He says it would "fundamentally wreck business models and hurt… → Read More
This seems like a lot of work for a little money but a man "dressed in a Comcast uniform and driving a Comcast van" showed up at a woman’s house at 2:30 in the afternoon a few days ago, took her cable box and cable modem, gave her a receipt, and left. Comcast, of course, "had no record of the worker coming to her home" which begs the following question; is it possible… → Read More
Wow. This guy really doesn’t like Comcast. I’m certainly not going to be asking Comcast to the Prom anytime soon but this guy is planning on moving out of his apartment thanks to a notice sent to the tenants in his building saying that Comcast will be the only ISP available starting January 1st. → Read More
Thinking of buying a TiVo soon? You’ll enjoy discounted service rates if you make your purchase between now and February 2nd. Monthly dues have gone from $16.95 to $12.95, 1 year prepay has gone from $179 to $129, 2 year prepay has gone from $279 to $249, and 3 year prepay is staying the same at $299. Unfortunately, this offer only applies to new TiVo customers. Existing customers can… → Read More
The FCC is attempting to make way for a little competition in the cable industry by enforcing new rules banning exclusivity deals between apartment owners and companies like Time Warner and Comcast. This would, in effect, grant those of us who live in apartments the option of choosing from more than one cable company, which would, in turn, potentially lead to lower prices (as much as 30% lower)… → Read More
This week, I’m going to take a seat while the other eight gazillion people on the Web complain about Comcast. See, back in New Jersey and Philadelphia, I never had problems with Comcast. Maybe once a year something would happen where I needed to call and bitch at them for an hour before something was done. But overall, it was a fine experience and I’d have no problem going back to… → Read More
In the New England area (where I live) Comcast just started rolling out set-top DVRs equipped with TiVo software. It’s sure gonna be hard for me to say goodbye to Comcast’s awesome user interface. Pretty soon, I’ll have to use TiVo’s crappy, stupid interface instead. → Read More
What if you could plug your klunky, rented Comcast DVR box into your home network and stream its recorded and on-demand content to the computer in the other room? Well you’ll soon be able to do that thanks to a new standard called DTCP-IP. It’s hardly a revolutionary idea, but better late than never. → Read More
Since we got Time Warner Cable in our new apartment, I haven’t been the hugest fan of the service. I do enjoy the quick video-on-demand features that let me watch “Flight of the Conchords” anytime I want however and it looks like TWC will be improving the on-demand service. A new feature called “Start Over” could be available by years end and will allow the user to… → Read More
If you’re the kind of person who’s reading a blog like this one, chances are pretty decent you’ve gotten yourself a handy DVR. You know, like a TiVo or the new digital boxes Comcast hands out. And you’re not alone: according to the Carmel group, in just 3 years 50% of those with cable TV will also have a DVR, and that number is expected to rise in the future. Of course, we… → Read More
Comcast has treated me pretty decently to be honest. I can’t complain that much about its service and the programming lineup on TV has been enjoyable. I was hoping Comcast would add some more channels to its HD lineup and apparently my wish is coming true. The company is promising up to a total of 400 HD channels by the end of this year, with more to come. By 2008, Comcast says it will offer… → Read More
Remember how a few years ago you strutted into a Radio Shack and the 42-year-old dude who lives with his mom explained how by early 2009, every TV signal will be digital and analog will be history? Well I certainly do and now that we’re starting to approach that deadline, the government is starting to bug out a little. If you’re still rocking that old 1991 Sylvania 13-inch you got for… → Read More
Your cable modem is about to get speedier. A new report suggests that cable providers have figured out a way to resequence the data traveling through their network to increase available throughput to speeds rivaling the fiber connections to homes that are already being rolled out. Where’s all this new space coming from, a wise geek may ask? The soon-to-be-abandoned analog television… → Read More
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