Cablevision To Offer 101 Mbps Down, No Caps 375
nandemoari alerts us to news over at DSLReports that Cablevision will be offering subscribers 101-Mbps download service, a new US record. That's fast enough to download an HD movie in less than 10 minutes. The package, known as "Ultra," will launch on May 11 and will cost $99.95 a month. Upload speed is 15 Mbps and there are no monthly limits. Cablevision is also doubling the speed of its Wi-Fi service, which is available free to subscribers using hotspots across the Northeast. "...the company will be launching a new 'Ultra' tier on May 11. The new tier features speeds of 101Mbps downstream and 15Mbps upstream for $99.95 a month. That's an unprecedented amount of speed at an unprecedented price, suggesting that Cablevision just took the gloves off in their fight against Verizon FiOS. ... Cablevision spokesman Jim Maiella confirmed for me that the $99.95 price is unbundled, and the new tier does not come with any kind of a usage cap or overage fees."
DOCSIS 3.0 (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Starting to pack my things... (Score:5, Informative)
I had my card in hand, looking for the local number to switch here in Dallas, but the story doesn't point out that they're only located in the Tri-State (NJ-NY-CT) area. Bummer. Cablevision, do you hear me?
Re:The explicitly avoided topic... (Score:3, Informative)
Yeah. Cablevision is notorious for some shady "stealth capping" policies, or at least was back in 2003-2004.
If you used too much of your upload bandwith (with "too much" being undocumented to the customer), you would have your upstream cap lowered to 150 kilobits/sec (from something like 1.5 Mbits) without any notice.
Re:DOCSIS 3.0 (Score:5, Informative)
Not likely. In areas where there is no competition for broadband (like RTP for example), the cable companies have no incentive to increase bandwidth, and have shown over the last 10+ years that they will keep bandwidth at a minimum. Time Warner is really the only option here in Raleigh, NC. There are a few pockets that can get DSL, but there is no FTTH. The fastest DSL here, if you can get it, is 6Mbps, so Time Warner offers 7Mbps down/384 up for $50 a month. I don't see that increasing until there's some competition. Time Warner is currently trying to push a bill through in NC that makes it so cities can't even provide their own broadband to compete with them.
Re:The explicitly avoided topic... (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Great for botnets (Score:1, Informative)
That blinking may not mean much. Mine blinks (quite furiously) with no network plugged into it...
HD movie in less than 10 minutes?? (Score:1, Informative)
HD movie in less than 10 minutes?? That isn't a true statement. 10 minutes at 101 Mbps is only 7.5 gigs, which is the size of a DVD. Blue Ray (HD) is many times that size. 101 Mbps / 8 = 12.625 megs / sec. This times 600 seconds (10 minutes) is only 7575 MB (or 7.5 GB)
Re:Funny how behind the US is (Score:5, Informative)
I suspect this offer from Cablevision won't last long, and $99 is ridiculously overpriced for something that ought to be nearly free like air and water.
Water isn't free. You pay for clean water via your taxes and/or water bill. Or you buy it bottled.
Re:Starting to pack my things... (Score:2, Informative)
I have had 100Mbps for years now... That single megabit won't make any difference.
large bandwidth != high speed (Score:1, Informative)
Re:Starting to pack my things... (Score:4, Informative)
I live in central jersey and I pay an extra $10 a month for their 30/5 plan right now. I can tell you that anytime I run a speed test I come in right around 27-30/5 regardless of when I run it. Cablevision's normal plan is 15/2 and most of the people who's houses I have been to can always hit that speed regardless when it is.
Re:Starting to pack my things... (Score:5, Informative)
I live in Cablevision territory, and will explain just how good the service is. Now, I am out on the east end of Long Island, NY in a fairly normal residential neighborhood. What I see here is around 12 megabit down, 384k up. This is with the theoretical maximum of 15 megabit down on the normal Optimum Online service.
From what I have gathered by talking to Cablevision techs, the "Boost" package basically doubles the speeds, so you get a 30 megabit down with no caps, not sure on the upload speed. They also run the Boost service on a different frequency, so if you have a lot of people in the neighborhood with the regular service and they are sucking up the bandwidth, Boost customers will not get slowed down. Cablevision, at least out here, has plenty of bandwidth to handle providing the bandwidth. In addition to this, Cablevision has also been offering fiber optic connections up closer to New York City called Lightpath. While it is a business class offering, the fact that they have the bandwidth to offer it shows they can handle the data demand.
A big part of a new offering like this is the number of customers in an area that they expect will be using the service, but also if they are doing equipment upgrades. Fiber cables are fiber cables(for the most part), but the equipment used to push the data through those fiber cables is the limiting factor. If they upgrade that equipment, they could in theory have a jump in the bandwidth for a fairly low amount of labor.
Things in different areas COULD be different, but for the entire eastern half of Suffolk County, I have NEVER seen customers getting less than 8 megabit down with their Optimum Online service, except when there is a wiring issue in the house or neighborhood(which repair service can often fix in a few days).
Re:101mpbs impossible. (Score:4, Informative)
The cable modem they're using has a gigabit port.
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/prod/collateral/video/ps8611/ps8675/ps8676/ps8678/product_data_sheet0900aecd8072a168.pdf [cisco.com]
Re:Starting to pack my things... (Score:4, Informative)
Troll does not mean unfunny.
Why people complain about it. (Score:4, Informative)
We complain about it because people in other countries are getting far higher internet speeds for the money we currently pay for much lower internet speeds.
It's like complaining about the price of a Cadillac or Viper, and then finding out in Europe they can buy them for the price of a Honda.