Anyone use it? What is your opinion? Comcast is pissing me off and I want to dump them. I need TV, phone and at least 10mb internet.
Anyone use it? What is your opinion? Comcast is pissing me off and I want to dump them. I need TV, phone and at least 10mb internet.
I have it, and like it better than any other service that I have had. Uverse has 12, 18, and 24mb, but you will have to see what they have available at your address. Speed has been reliable, and equipment has been easy to use.
The video quality is better than DirecTV by far, and so far, Uverse's customer support has been quite good, especially with the actual technicians (they have been outstanding and have gone beyond their duties).
An example: Lightning took out my Uverse box once just after 8:30pm. I called them around 9pm, and they had a technician at my house with a new box at 8:30am the next morning.
"Racing is life. Anything before or after is just waiting." - Steve McQueen
I've been reading reviews all morning, but couldnt find anything local so I figured I would ask here. AT&T CS always sucks, thats just a given and you wont find anything more than outliers (like your example) that point to anything else. After reading a lot of reviews though I have noticed 3 distinct things.
1. HD uses a TON of bandwith and has dropped some people from 12mb down to less than 3 just because they have a TV on.
2. CS and techs are unreliable.
3. As you get further from a hub, the HD quality drops significantly, even to the point of pixelating in extreme cases.
Is the contract with them a year? They arent real clear about it on their website.
AT&T Uverse CS is different than DSL or POTS CS. Different group, and better trained by far. I am extremely familiar with all of the levels and groups of AT&T CS.
The technicians that AT&T has for Uverse are not outside contractors, like DirecTV/DISH/Comcast uses. There is a huge difference in their eagerness to respond and address any issues/questions.
On your 3 items:
1) I don't find this statement to be true at all. I pretty much only watch HD channels, and I have constant downloading 24/7/365, and speeds stay up and fast regardless of if I am watching TV or not. I have 12mb, and see no degredation of service, and I have had it for 1.5 years now.
2) I have only had 1 unknowledgeable CS person, every other one has shown on time, been courteous, and was extremely skilled. Uverse CS has been much better than any other company - so far.
3) I am actually the very last house on a long run from the substation - literallym, the longest distance that you can physically be and still get DSL or Uverse. I have no pixelation issues at any time, and you are welcome to come and see it for yourself. You can't get a worse location that I have, and we have had zero complaints on video quality. It is noticeably better than my previous satellite system.
I would have to say that I have not found any of the above 3 points that you listed to be true, in fact, it is quite the opposite.
I already had DSL, and upgraded to Uverse, and did not pay attention to if new installations need a contract. You will need to check with AT&T on that.
"Racing is life. Anything before or after is just waiting." - Steve McQueen
uverse is good as far as internet speed and reliability goes. Much slower than comcast, but much more reliable.
I just started using Uverse for TV & Internet 2 months ago...girlfriend wanted to change. I previously was using DirecTV and Comcast. Better pricing is the only thing I can say is better. Uverse TV video quality is horrible compared to DirecTV along with their menus (guide & DVR). They are slow and feels like they are 10 years behind versus the more responsive & organized DirecTV menus. Internet is steady and dependable, but much slower than Comcast. I pay for the 12mb speed and sometimes I have a 1mb download speed. Only once have I tested it and be around 12mb. Honestly, my Clear Internet I use for the store is much faster and just as dependable.
The biggest complaint about Uverse is you can only stream 4 lines at one time. So say you have 3 TV's running at one time. You then can only record one item while the other 3 are running...to make 4 total. Once a second program kicks in to record, one of the TV's will be knocked off and told to delete one of the recordings to continue watching TV.
IMO, do not use Uverse. I am personally switching back to DirecTV and either Clear or Comcast for internet. It is more money, but well worth it.
I can't add to the opinions of Uverse, but I'm an 11 year subscriber to Dish and wouldn't think of going anywhere else. For DishHD, Starz, HBO, Encore and 250 other channels, I pay about $110 per month. Don't know how that compares, but that's where I am. I think I pay $80 for AT&T, but that also includes a land line. The internet is DSL Extreme at 3mbps. Doesn't take much to make me happy. Later, QD.
I saw MANY reviews that read almost verbatim to this one and it has me hesitant. There is a lot I do like about Uverse, especially the price, but all he reviews of CS and complaints about picture quality scare me. I may just cut off the cable and go back to directv. I despise them, but I despise Comcast also, so I guess it is a wash.
Last edited by BanginJimmy; 03-24-2012 at 07:03 PM.
I work for a different company, but on the AT&T account, but that has nothing to do with Uverse - that's residential, which I have never been with. I'm just a consumer on the residential side. My experience with Uverse is solely from a home user's viewpoint, no inside information unfortunately. My only advantage is that if I get a bad CS person, I can look them up, and send an email to their boss.
BTW - If anyone has any issues with ATT on any product/service, go to their forum, and find the emails of their forum CS guys, and turn the screws on them. It looks like it tends to get issues resolved. I haven't ahd to do that myself, but it looks like they have a couple of CS people dedicated to that. When I had DirecTV, their CS guys would just ignore complaints, so that tactic didn't work with them.
Last edited by David88vert; 03-24-2012 at 09:13 PM.
"Racing is life. Anything before or after is just waiting." - Steve McQueen
DirecTV's menus are better than Uverse definitely, and definitely faster. I fully agree on that.
Uverse is slower than Comcast on download speed, but you do not have to worry about the Comcast data cap (in case you download a lot), nor do you have the slow speeds during peak usage times. One of the other members on here has Comcast, and it's really fast at 3am, but at 6pm, he might as well be on dial-up. Since people are paired off at the node for cable, you have to share the speed with others on your node. On Uverse and DSL, you are running on paired lines, and are not sharing with other houses.
If you are having slow connections, you need to have ATT send out a technician to see what pair you are on (I.e. - they have you on pair 2 instead of pair 1). If it isn't right, you will get slow speed. Be aggressive and have them fix it. Don't take no for an answer, and make them tell you what they are changing (I am on pair 1 all the way through).
My DirecTV only let me watch one channel, while recording one other, so Uverse being able to record 4 channels was a step up for me. I've never needed more than 4 channels at one time.
If DirecTV worked better for you, then keep that as a ready option. Just don't let ATT off the hook - they should be out there trying to improve your service. You shouldn't see slow speeds, and you should demand that they make it right. BTW - have them transfer you to billing/retentions and give you promotional rates to lower your monthly costs until they fix your speed to be correct.
Last edited by David88vert; 03-24-2012 at 09:12 PM.
"Racing is life. Anything before or after is just waiting." - Steve McQueen
The price of Uverse isn't cheap. 12meg, U200, and phone is about $210/month after your promotional rates expire. They have hidden surcharges in there. I negotiate once a year to keep my charges to $160/month, and have them include one ala carte channel for my wife.
Honestly, if you like cable, and are getting good service, then use them. If you prefer DirecTV or Dish, then use them. Go with whoever seems to want your business the most, and is willing to get into a price range that you can live with. I used to hate ATT CS, and went away from them, but Uverse has been the best offering that I can find after dealing with all of the companies - but that is for me, and what I need. You have to find which company can fulfill your needs. I had DirecTV for years, and it gave me all but a couple of the channels that I wanted, and I liked it a lot better then my local cable. Out where you are, it might be a better choice for what you need. Only you can decide that.
I hope all of this info helps everyone. Ask me anything, and I'll try to help you find the right people to contact.
"Racing is life. Anything before or after is just waiting." - Steve McQueen
Some good info.
I've never had Uverse... But I had Comcast, or as I like to call them IHOPEYOUFUCKINGCHOKEONABIGFATCOCKANDDIE.
I have Dish, and while I will admit admit it is not as fast as Comcast, It's at least stable and reliable.
Not to mention a metric shit ton cheaper. I love Dish and as long as they remain as good to me as they have been, I will be a customer.
All this comes with a disclaimer... I have but one TV in my house, also I have one computer in my house... By choice. We kick it old school here, and the kids don't need a "babysitter" in their rooms thank you very much.
Glad I got free cable "wink wink"
AFA HOLLYWOOD PREMIER LEAGUE EST. 1998
Watching my UVERSE right now ! Ahhhh, it doesnt get better than this when it comes to watching tv.
The Answer to 1984 is 1776
-Alex Jones
Because they dont require a contract I only worry about the discounted price, which I priced out at 150+ undisclosed fees and taxes.
I have spent most of the day pricing out different plans and such and I think I know how I am going to work it.
Internet, Comcast performance starter - 50/mo Only 6mb and I wanted at least 10, but it will have to do
Voice, Comcast VOIP, about the same price as competitors and I already have it. 32/mo
TV Directv Choice Xtra 55/mo first 12 months 90 second 12 months.
137+ fees 12 months
172+ fees second 12 months. After a year, I have better services and still at the price I am currently.
"Racing is life. Anything before or after is just waiting." - Steve McQueen
Your uverse experience is just like any other DSL product.. the available speeds / concurrent streams is dependent on your distance from the DSLAM. IF youre close to the box, and they havent oversold the node, you'll probably have great speeds and no problem using up to 4 streams. if youre toward the end of the line.. good luck.
my gf has uverse and the audio sounds very compressed to me. the menus are very nice though and they seem to have a lot of on demand shows. the equipment they provide is straight trash, the residential gateway and tv boxes usually have to be unplugged once a week when they act up.the wifi on the gateway also drops a lot, i ended up disabling it and hooking a wrt54g/dd-wrt into one of the ethernet ports instead.
Which gateway do you have? Mine is the 3801HGV, and it stays up and fast 24/7/365. I have heard that the 3800 had issues, but I've never had that gateway. I have noticed that the 3801 does not like my HD2's WIFI at times though, and I've had to force it to connect to it.
I have had the Uverse TV box hang up on me 3 times though (over 1.5 years), and had to reboot it - manually by unplugging it.
Oh, and I am barely under 18,000 ft from the CO, with no remote in-between - last house on the line, literally. BTW - my DSL was ok, but the Uverse has been much more stable, and faster. My POTS service sucked royally for over a decade though, until I went with DSL, and I have seen continual improvements from AT&T since then. Before they sold Uverse here, they had to go and clean and reconnect every single line terminal on the street (we are still on poles here, not buried cable).
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I had no issues with DirecTV service, but their billing and CS departments were awful, so I left.
"Racing is life. Anything before or after is just waiting." - Steve McQueen
Uverse cable service are nothing compare to Directv..there HD channel are horrible..I get a alot of complaint about there CS..if you want reliable internet go with comcast, and Directv for TV..also if you want to be recording more then 4 different channel at a time you can get the new hmc server(hr34)..
I work in alot of country club in John creek, alpharetta, Roswell, and Milton area there are about 75% of the home are using Directv..I would say the Directv have the best quality hd picture out there..
I'm going to call Uverse tomorrow or Tuesday and look into phone and internet from them, see what kind of deals they are proposing and willing to give me. I do think I am going with Directv though for the TV. I have read through probably 500 reviews this weekend and about 75% reported some type of resolution problem with the TV. I am also going to call Comcast to see if they give me the intro rate on internet as I have been very happy with that. If Comcast gives in, I will likely stick with them.
Thanks everyone for your input.
I had UVERSE here in Charlotte and it was really good.
Brett (One of the true OG's, No really... ask anyone)
'15 Chevy SS
'16 K7 SXL SWP
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R.I.P Leisa, You are never forgotten - 10/7/08
if you get Directv you can bundal the service with ATT for the Internet...If I'm not wrong you can save about 10-20 dollar a month..
I had uverse for about all most a year and have no problem with it just I have to call them every 3 months. I have the tv and dsl only. So each time the promo is up ill call for a new one.
I did have a tech come out run some new lines, etc. Overall the internet is not bad...steady and dependable. It is not as fast as I am used too...like I said before my Clear internet is much faster.
Maybe you had older DirecTV equipment. I had 3 boxes, only one was DVR. All three TV's were able to be on along with record two programs. I almost want to say it would record 3 programs, but I can't remember 100% about that. So atleast 5 lines were running. Right now, my Uverse has 3 boxes...all 3 are DVR's and our TV's get kicked out a lot.
I tell you what i just got my first HDTV and wanted to move up finally. Then when i called Dish my provider for over 4 years they claim I dont meet requirements for an upgrade. I was pissed as a MOFO and told them either I get it or im swapping to Direct. They still say NO and claim i would never like Direct and how they are the worst ever. Well Ive always hated Direct also they are sorry as shit in all ways but most of all in service. I call them up and talk for almost 45min just to have my phone die. So i say ok i got some figures $$ in mind now so i may swap over and i call Dish back. My wife said maybe we can get it in her name and start a new contract since mine just ended last year. They can't help me or even consider checking her credit until I disconnects and the location is device free ....WTF!
So I talk to a supervisor and tell them how fucked up they are acting and treating a loyal customer. I then say im leaving and going to Direct BYE!
Now I call Direct back up and these SOBs lie to me and tell me all different stuff this time. Now i would need 4 HDDVR units in my house to be able to record or pause etc in each room. Before i was told i only needed 1 HDDVR and just 3 HD receivers but NOOO its all different now and cost about $40 more a month Fuck that !!
Well I get a phone call about 30min later from Dish offering me full upgrade FREE and HD for life FREE if ill agree to another 2 year contract.....LMAO
Guess they got scared of losing my service and finally Tomorrow I should have my HD packages...
Moral from all this is don't give in and push them and NEVER TRUST DIRECT TV![]()
Something doesn't sound right - picture quality from Uverse is definitely better than DirecTV - for me. My equipment was obviously older than my Uverse equipment. :-)
I had an oval dish, with 4 LMBs (normal round dishes had 3 LMBs). The DVR's accept 2 cables, and I had 90% signal or better on each line. Maximum recording on one DVR was 2 shows at a time. I can say this for DirecTV - I only lost signal in heavy storms, never did I have any other issues with it. Equipment was reliable, and service was predictable. Other than CS, they were great. I am not saying that DirecTV's picture quality was bad, just that Uverse is slightly noticably better for me. I could be fine with the picture quality of either service though.
If your picture quality is suffering from pixelation, or general bad quality, call CS and have them send out an outside line technician. Get him to verify which pair you are on, and that it is a solid pair all the way back. They will be able to tell from the service access box on the side of your house. Don't settle for mediocre, as you are paying for a premuim service. Tell them that you will go back to DirecTV if they do not get up to DTV's standards.
"Racing is life. Anything before or after is just waiting." - Steve McQueen
My Dish guy should be here soon but i had a question is it a huge difference between using HDMI for tv over regular Coaxial?
Good reading, guys.. I guess 'tis the season for TV service choices as most rates go up the first of the year. And yep, Comcast rates did go up so I am also looking around and looking at Uverse, though I was able to slash my current rate with Comcast back down by calling them and bitching....works most of the time...
I got free clear tails with my ride.....
I've been with DirecTV for about 2 yrs now and I've had no problems with them. I don't think I've had to call CS once, and I think I've only had signal drop 3-4 times in HEAVY storms. Picture quality is great, I've compared it to friends with Comcast and Dish and the HD quality to me is much better on DirecTV, I don't think you'll be disappointed with them.