mcbarker

We all need to be reminded of what's really important from time to time, and you did that admirably. Thank you.

It's probably a Comcast problem. I'm having similar speed issues, only both upload and download speeds are affected. After calling up to ask why my speeds hadn't been upgraded from 8 Mbps to 12 Mbps, they actually dropped to around 6 Mbps. Technician came out... did all of the usual stuff... no joy. He even swapped out my modem with one of their new DOCSIS 3 modems... no difference. He left without fixing the problem, saying that he would submit a line ticket. I'm guessing that it's related to the speed upgrade they did, and that some of us are going to get screwed for a while.

Comcast finally changed me over to their server today. Speed is back up to 4Mbps, although they told me that I would be on their 6Mbps plan, so it's still slower than it should be, but at least I can live with this speed. I did discover that Comcast tech support isn't that great. The guy I spoke to was a bit snotty, and told me I should call my modem's manufacturer (Motorola SB5100 Surfboard) if I had a problem with Internet speed. He apparently isn't impressed by sites like testmy.net, but wouldn't give me the Comcast counterpart address. Oh well, life's sometimes a bitch, and he certainly was.

Thanks for the support and sympathy guys. 

I usually try to keep my cool when dealing with tech support. Having once worked as a customer service rep myself, I know bad it can get for them when the company they work for isn't fulfilling its promises. The Adelphia tech did say "Thanks for being patient... our systems are a little slow today", to which I replied (jokingly) "I guess your system must be on an Adelphia account too, huh?". From the tone of his grunt, I could tell that he wasn't amused.

I'm in NE CT, and we're in the middle of the Adelphia to Comcast changeover. My download speed has dropped from around 4000Kbps to an average of 1400Kbps in the past couple of months. I'm getting tired of calling and getting shuffled back and forth between both companies tech support, often being hung up on multiple times during transfers.I've tried all of the tips I have found here, and my speed stays right where it is, and it's slowly getting worse. My last discussion with an Adelphia tech ended with him admitting that my speeds were slow, but that they didn't guarantee their advertised speeds, before being transferred back to Comcast, then hung up on one more time.

I spent a couple of hours doing the Comdephia shuffle before giving up... Here's the log.

Called tech support... on hold waiting for tech 10 mins... their end hung up.
Called tech support again... on hold waiting for tech 10 mins... their end hung up.
Called tech support again... on hold waiting for tech 10 mins... their end hung up.
Called tech support again... on hold waiting for tech 10 mins... their end hung up.
Called tech support again... on hold waiting for tech 10 mins... their end hung up.
Called tech support again... on hold waiting for tech 10 mins
Mark from Comcast answers. They have trouble finding my Adelphia account... on hold for 15 minutes. I'm finally transferred to an Adelphia tech, who tests my modem, admits that the speeds are very slow, but they don't guarantee advertised speeds. He transfers me back to a Comcast tech, who also tested my connection speed, and told me that they're slow (gosh golly... no kidding dude!), and suggests sending out a technician to check the outside wiring. He then takes my modem's MAC ID, puts me on hold, and hangs up after about ten minutes. At this point, I gave up.

I'll call another 2 times over the next month, taking as many details as possible, then report Comcast to the BBB for false advertising and horrible customer support. Then I think it'll be time to check out DSL services since I'm getting slower than DSL speeds now, but paying cable rates. To add insult to injury, I just received a letter informing me of Comcast's rate increases starting next month. Seems that maybe we should send a squad of pickpockets to Washington DC to try and rescue our elected representatives out of the communication companies pockets. We need these monopolies broken up, and allow multiple cable companies to do business in the same areas.