Comcast combined internet/cable/phone service

[JDeRouen]

Does anyone have the Comcast combined internet/cable/phone service? My mother, of all people, is considering getting that, and asked me questions about it, to which I have no answers.

like...

* If your cable goes out, does the phone stop working?

* do incoming calls show up on your monthly bill? (dunno who is calling her that she doesn't want to show up? Or maybe she does want them to show up, I have no clue.)

* Is it really a major savings?

You guys always seem willing to jump in and give advice, so, after searching the web and not really finding anything, I thought I'd post it here.

Thanks!
Joe

[GAFan]

I don't have comcast, but a similar company with the same service. One of the major drawbacks that I've found is with the phone. If you don't get the battery backup and the power goes out, you lose the phone. Not a big deal with cellphones, but very annoying. You can't just plug into the wall like we used to. As for when the cable goes out, it depends. If the line outside has a problem, then you lose all three. If it's on the cable companies end, you could still have the other 2.

My bill doesn't itemize the incoming calls.

Finally, it is a savings with that company. But I've been looking around. With cellphones so common, I'm tempted to get rid of the land line, and find a cheaper service provider. Then cable by itself would be alot cheaper

[Mikey]

I don't have Comcast ......
I have Blue Ridge Communications ... but I have the all in one package like you mentioned.

If your cable goes out, does the phone stop working?

Not always ....
There's times everything goes out --- and other times where one or two things go out ...
Example: My phone went out a few days ago, but my internet and cable was on.

do incoming calls show up on your monthly bill? (dunno who is calling her that she doesn't want to show up? Or maybe she does want them to show up, I have no clue.)

Not on mine ... The bill shows no phone calls ... it's just a flat fee for everything.

Is it really a major savings?

For me, it is because living out in the boonies, my phone bill was usually like $80.00 a month --- because almost everything was long distance for me.
This package has unlimited local and long distance ...
Only drawback --- when I want to call out -- even locally, I have to dial the complete 11 digit phone number i'm calling ... even if the person is next door.

My cable bill was about $55.00
My internet was $36.95

I pay $120.00 a month now for everything....
So for me, it's a big savings.

Also,
Check to see if Comcast is running a special.
Blue Ridge's first year special was $99.00

[noelani72]

I do have Comcast for it all. Phone, cable and broadband internet.
Bout $130 a month and no phone calls are listed...just as Mike said, the flat rate.
Also as Mike said, not everything goes out in the event of an outage. Typically, the tv is the ONLY thing that has not went out.
Since we had phone service added, they supplied a battery-backup modem, so we have 911 access. The phone service has only went out one time in the year we've had it. TV, never. Internet....6-8 times easy.
they've replaced my modem twice, re-ran cable everywhere to get it up to Cat6.
With a linksys wrt54g sitting on the inside, i am getting about 27megabit download speeds, which rocks. At the school district, with Comcast, we just upgraded to 50megabit to the internet...whoa mama.

One thing to note- when our Internet would go out, and I would call em up...I would use the house phone. Duh right? well, those suckers, after you've explained 6 ways to Sunday that the internet is down...they typically say "Well, it's your end, we can see your modem". Then...they reset the modem and kill the phone call. Obviously, Internet will still be down and you have to call back and go thru it all AGAIN...had to get to where I used a cell phone to call em that way I don't let em off the hook. They're first level phone support sucks and totally insults my intelligence when they read that darn script word for word.

[mitchedwards]

Comcast internet is great. However, I have heard bad stories about Comcast setting up your phone.

One lady I work with had her phone service down for over a month while Comcast fumbled around trying to figure it out.

I have Vonage for my home phone and love it. Onl problem is if the power goes out I have no home phone

[blastphemey]

i used to have it and had problems with the internet and the phone goeing out but it coiuld have just been my area that i lived at.

[JDeRouen]

I personally am leery of putting all my eggs in one basket, which is what I told my mother, but...

[toys2cool]

i used to have it and had problems with the internet and the phone goeing out but it coiuld have just been my area that i lived at.

Same here,but when it worked..the internet was the best and fastest I've ever had

[sauce]

i have avoided digital phone because of the battery backup problem. they could not give me enough information that would make me trust that the battery on the phone would work for enough days if there were a disaster

[JPkempo]

I have it basicly it made the phone free. The phone part has a battery backup so you don't loose the phone. No long distance charges that could be nice.