I'm writing my experience with switching from E* to Cablevision triple play. This may give some new signups some expectations and what to possibly expect.
Order:
Central NJ. Signed up for triple play (already had cable modem service). I ordered 1 HD DVR, 1 regular DVR, 1 regular box.
Installation:
Appointment window was 11am - 2pm. They called at 1:45 and told me they would be late and when I asked when they would arrive I heard some guy in the background bark "A while!". Then the dispatcher complained that C* sets up 2-3 appointments in the same time slot. I wasn't happy as I had to get permission to work from home so I could have the install done. They showed up around 3pm I think.
The guy was really nice and seemed genuinely interested in getting me hooked up right. He looked at the old hookups and then we agreed he would run new (better) cables - one directly to my cable modem, one separate one to my HDTV and another to my two downstairs TVs.
While he was doing this the other guy showed up with the equipment. Well, 2/3 of my order. This is the order I confirmed twice with them before they even showed up. The work order showed on HD DVR and one standard box - missing the other DVR. I wasn't happy and asked when they could get the DVR to me - he said maybe tomorrow.
The first cable modem they hooked up did not work. For some reason the guy had to call the regular consumer help line to get support and they told him just to use a new modem. Luckily he had another one. That one worked. The switchover from my verizon phone number was immediate.
My wife was itching to leave the house but we had to wait several hours for everything to be hooked up. Everything they did had at least on minor hiccup. Both guys were cool though and most issues were not thier fault. Finally they finished and I was promised a DVR the next day (no time window). The guy showed up the next morning and set up the DVR. I tried to record a show after he left and got a screen mentioning the hard drive was messed up. So, I called and they said they could send somebody out with a new one and it could be any time from 9am to 8pm. Surprisingly somebody showed up 1/2 hour later, set it up, and confirmed it worked.
Aftermath:
It seems like my cable modem connection is faster - probably because they ran a wire direct to it.
HDTV is nice and setting up is simple enough. Still lacking content but YESHD is good. One issue I have is the HDTV box is in my bedroom. When I go to sleep all I can hear is the hard drive loudly being written to every second even when I turn it off. Why the hard drive writes every second when there is no activity is beyond me. I end up turning the surge protector off because it's too annoying. I'm a light sleeper - at least when I'm first trying to get to sleep.
DVR interface is less intuitive than E* but still not too hard to use.
Grades:
Installation: C - too many issues but the guys tried their best. Messing up the work order is inexcusable since they claim a DVR is a special order item they don't carry extras of.
Service: B+ - I haven't used the TV much yet but I'm happy so far. Always want more HD content but since local HD is free it's a definite upgrade over E*. Cable modem and VOIP seem to work well so far. Voicemail has many things you can configure and do so easily via web interface. I like this feature.
Conclusion::up
Order:
Central NJ. Signed up for triple play (already had cable modem service). I ordered 1 HD DVR, 1 regular DVR, 1 regular box.
Installation:
Appointment window was 11am - 2pm. They called at 1:45 and told me they would be late and when I asked when they would arrive I heard some guy in the background bark "A while!". Then the dispatcher complained that C* sets up 2-3 appointments in the same time slot. I wasn't happy as I had to get permission to work from home so I could have the install done. They showed up around 3pm I think.
The guy was really nice and seemed genuinely interested in getting me hooked up right. He looked at the old hookups and then we agreed he would run new (better) cables - one directly to my cable modem, one separate one to my HDTV and another to my two downstairs TVs.
While he was doing this the other guy showed up with the equipment. Well, 2/3 of my order. This is the order I confirmed twice with them before they even showed up. The work order showed on HD DVR and one standard box - missing the other DVR. I wasn't happy and asked when they could get the DVR to me - he said maybe tomorrow.
The first cable modem they hooked up did not work. For some reason the guy had to call the regular consumer help line to get support and they told him just to use a new modem. Luckily he had another one. That one worked. The switchover from my verizon phone number was immediate.
My wife was itching to leave the house but we had to wait several hours for everything to be hooked up. Everything they did had at least on minor hiccup. Both guys were cool though and most issues were not thier fault. Finally they finished and I was promised a DVR the next day (no time window). The guy showed up the next morning and set up the DVR. I tried to record a show after he left and got a screen mentioning the hard drive was messed up. So, I called and they said they could send somebody out with a new one and it could be any time from 9am to 8pm. Surprisingly somebody showed up 1/2 hour later, set it up, and confirmed it worked.
Aftermath:
It seems like my cable modem connection is faster - probably because they ran a wire direct to it.
HDTV is nice and setting up is simple enough. Still lacking content but YESHD is good. One issue I have is the HDTV box is in my bedroom. When I go to sleep all I can hear is the hard drive loudly being written to every second even when I turn it off. Why the hard drive writes every second when there is no activity is beyond me. I end up turning the surge protector off because it's too annoying. I'm a light sleeper - at least when I'm first trying to get to sleep.
DVR interface is less intuitive than E* but still not too hard to use.
Grades:
Installation: C - too many issues but the guys tried their best. Messing up the work order is inexcusable since they claim a DVR is a special order item they don't carry extras of.
Service: B+ - I haven't used the TV much yet but I'm happy so far. Always want more HD content but since local HD is free it's a definite upgrade over E*. Cable modem and VOIP seem to work well so far. Voicemail has many things you can configure and do so easily via web interface. I like this feature.
Conclusion::up
