[SLL] OT - T1 Providers

[Derek Simkowiak]

/1.544 Mbps, that really was not going to be enough/


    I last used a T1 back in the late nineties.  Then DSL and cablemodem 
became much cheaper and much faster.  Even my home Comcast setup gives 
me ~8Mbit, and if I upgrade to business comcast it would be ~16Mbit.  
Soon they'll be rolling out 50Mbit, and Verizon FiOS (fiber optic) is 
already at 50Mbit down and 20Mbit up for ~$150/mo.  Why pay the premium 
T1 price for a measly 1.5Mbit?

    I know that connection reliability is a concern, but having used T1, 
ADSL, SDSL, cablemodem, and 2.4GHz microwave radios, at several 
different locations, they are all "reasonably reliable".  The only 
technology that sucked enough to be mostly useless was dual ISDN.

    The big providers had some major growth pains when they first 
launched, but it seems like they've optimized their support processes 
now.  In the old days, it was me: "I'm getting 10% packet loss, can you 
fix that?"  Covad: "Have you rebooted your Windows computer?" but now 
they escalate more readily, especially if you're a "business" customer.

    Of course, busy Internet servers in a data center (with 99.9% uptime 
requirements) are a different story.  But if you're looking at servers, 
I think you'd be shopping for 10Mbit with 100MBit burstable (or bigger), 
and not a small T1.

    So... why do people still use T1s?  Have the prices come down enough 
to compete with 3Mbit DSL for $35/month?


--Derek

Paul A. Franz, P.E. wrote:
> On Tue, July 22, 2008 11:27 am, Eric Kahklen wrote:
>   
>> Sorry for the OT post, but we are shopping for a new T1 and thought I'd
>> get some feedback and suggestions for others on the list regarding their
>> experience with tech support, price, and reliability.  I am looking for
>> feedback from fellow geeks, so if your a lurking sales person please do
>> not apply :-)
>>     
>
> I had a need for more bandwidth than a single cable modem connection and since a T1 is
> 1.544 Mbps, that really was not going to be enough. The location is downtown Kirkland.
> I called several providers and inquired about price and lead time for installation. I
> also called Comcast, not expecting anything but as it turns out, they were both the
> lowest cost and installation was scheduled the next business day. It is a fiber
> connection.
>
> So far, so good, just two weeks and no problems.
>
>
>