Warning about UVERSE

[jeslevine]

Currently, I have Dish and Comcast. During an Inquiry with UVERSE, they told me I could NOT keep my current Dish and Comcast service if I wanted UVERSE installed.

Dan: To clarify, you will need to disconnect your existing services when you switch to AT&T U verse.
you: So you are telling me that I cannot have parallel services
Dan: That is right.
you: OK, then I will hold off for now until UVERSE has been around longer
you: Thanks for your your help though

Here is the full online chat I had with their representative:

Dan: I will be happy to answer your questions regarding AT&T U-verse products. To start, could you please tell me what state you are in?
you: California
Dan: Thank you for considering AT&T U-verse Services.
Dan: Have you been able to check availability for AT&T U-verse at your location today?
you: Yes, it is available
you: I have a couple of questions
Dan: I would be happy to answer your questions.
you: 1. For internet, what specifications are supported, i.e. b,g, N?
you: for 801.2
you: wireless
Dan: It will be G type.
Dan: We have not heard from you in a while. Do you wish to continue this chat?
you: OK, thanks. Currently I have dishnetwork for Satellite, and Comcast for internet. I do not wish to disconnect the existing service until I am sure UVERSE provides the internet speed and television quality. Is there trial period where I can determine that?
Dan: The difference between AT&T U-verse High Speed Internet and other DSL service is that AT&T’s Internet is delivered through our fiber optic network. AT&T U-verse High Speed Internet also provides faster upstream speeds of up to 1 Mbps compared to traditional high speed Internet at up to 384 Kbps. Wireless home networking is included with AT&T U-verse at no additional charge and you will receive our AT&T Wi-Fi Basic service.
Dan: Which AT&T U-verse package you are referring to in order to better understand your desired services?
you: What I am looking for is 4 receivers, and 10 Mbps. Assuming the U300 package, what would my monthly cost be excluding any promotionals?
Dan: Great Choice! AT&T U-verse U-300 comes with Up to 290 channels, Local channels, One HD-ready receiver with DVR, 48 Digital Music Channels, Video on Demand Library, The Movie Package (This package has more than 30 channels of Starz, Encore, SHOWTIME, The Movie Channel, and Flix).
Dan: AT&T U-verse U-300 will cost you $79 a month for TV.
Dan: It is necessary to have a separate receiver for each TV.
Dan: All the receivers are HD-ready.
Dan: The first receiver comes free with DVR capability, and the additional receivers are $7 per month.
Dan: With AT&T U-verse Max Plan, you will get Up to 10.0 Mbps downstream and up to 1.5 Mbps upstream Starting at $55/month.
Dan: Due to the complex nature of taxes, fees, and surcharges that vary by state and local laws, a billing specialist will have to calculate that total. A fair estimate is to say your bill may increase by approximately $15.
Dan: For ordering AT&T U-verse U-200 or above plans online, you will receive $200 Cash back and free professional installation up to 3 TVs and 1 computer.
Dan: How does that sound to you?
you: give me a minute please
Dan: Not a problem. You can take your time.
Dan: Let's go ahead and place your order today so that you can take advantage of our limited time offers.
you: about 156 excluding taxes. Is HD included, and if not how much more for that?
Dan: $10 HD fee is per month for AT&T U-verse service. The HD fee $10 is not per receiver and on top of it if you wish to add HD premium tier that you will be charged $5 per month additional.
Dan: Excessive charges could be applied to your monthly cost if you are hosting servers or websites from your home. These types of usage patterns would be grounds for possible excessive usage charges.
Dan:
you: That is about what I am paying now. I am going to need to think about this
Dan: You can see the cost for your services recapped on the order summarypage. You will not be charged or committed to any of your selections until you submit the order.
Dan: AT&T U-verse TV offers a differentiated viewing experience with crystal-clear all digital picture and sharp, all-digital channels, and super fast channel changing. Also, enjoy picture-in-picture browsing via the interactive AT&T U-verse TV channel guide.
Dan: The advantage of fiber optic technology is speed. With fiber optics AT&T U-verse only transmits the channels you are watching, so it requires a low amount of bandwidth and makes AT&T U-verse capable of delivering your programming content at a very high speed.
Dan: Each company is different. AT&T believes that we can provide our customers with an excellent alternative for watching TV for these reasons: * Only AT&T U-verse allows you to record up to four shows at once with an included DVR * Only AT&T U-verse lets you program your DVR remotely from any web-connected computer and wireless phone from AT&T * AT&T also provides a free HD-ready DVR receiver, and can support as many as eight receivers.
Dan: We have not heard from you in a while. Do you wish to continue this chat?
you: The one feature I really like is the DVR recording from any room, which is definitely cool. My hesitation is that I was a long time AT&T DSL customer, and a year ago the DSL started droping out constantly. No problem with the phone. When the tech came over he said my house had to be rewired, which made me drop AT&T DSL and go to comcast. Price wise it is definitely in the ball park with some great features. I need to read some current customer reviews before I decide, I you have been very helpful in pricing it for me, i.e. TV and internet
Dan: Your Internet speeds will not drop even when moire subscribers are online.
Dan: Your existing cable wiring will be used at the time of installation.
Dan: Let's go ahead and place your order today so that you can take advantage of our limited time offers.
Dan: Have you had the chance to begin the ordering process today?
you: What if I pay extra for them NOT use the existing cable? The reason is, I do not want to disconnect my existing service until I am sure about the service
Dan: To clarify, you will need to disconnect your existing services when you switch to AT&T U verse.
you: So you are telling me that I cannot have parallel services
Dan: That is right.
you: OK, then I will hold off for now until UVERSE has been around longer
you: Thanks for your your help though

That is a deal breaker to me, and there is NO way I would disconnect my existing service until I was sure UVERSE was working properly.

 

[dck]

Well, I can tell you that I have Dish and had Charter. Uverse was installed and coexisted with Dish and Charter until I had Charter disconnected. I still have Dish and Uverse.

 

[efbrune]

There is no legal or technical way that AT&T can stop anyone from subscribing to U-verse and any other TV or internet service at the same time.

 

[jeslevine]

AT&T better train some of their customer representatives better or they will lose business

 

[fsds]

I had Uverse installed back in July 2008, when I signed up no mention of other services as a problem. I had DirecTv at the time and kept it for over a month. There is no way they can prevent you from keeping the existing service that you have this is America. I would call and ask for a supervisor or contact the Better Business Bureau I have had excellent results using them, corporations do not like the BBB contacting them. Good Luck

 

[paja]

I dumped DISH for U-verse. However, I left my DISH active until U-Verse was up and running then waited a few days to terminate service with DISH. I had no problem doing that.

 

[FitzAusTex]

I suspect that as long as you're using separate wiring there would be no issue with having both comcast and u-verse.

 

[lern4483]

The wrong csr..thats all.

There is no legal or technical way that AT&T can stop anyone from subscribing to U-verse and any other TV or internet service at the same time.

The rep was giving you bad info.

I have dish, direc and Att..

If they dared to say ''that'' to me I would never have signed Att on..

Thats foolish on their part.

New service needs to be tested out first.

I just think you got the wrong rep..thats all. Id call back and get someone else.

Im still not sold on the fact that ATT is better than the sat cos.. Jury is still out.
Plus thier dvrs are very tempermental to say the least.
Spotty service. Each day is a new surprise.

Sorry, im telling it like it is.

As mush as I hate dish. the company. I adore their equipment.

Just just cant seem to say goodbye. Its that good. VIP722.

 

[jeslevine]

Thanks lern, you expressed my sentiments exactly

and in fact I am very much in the same boat as you are, i.e. equipment and service

I will try it again

 

[lern4483]

Uverse needs to mature-Not ready for prime time.

and in fact I am very much in the same boat as you are, i.e. equipment and service

I will try it again

No problem...Let me know if you need any more assistance.

Since I have had the service for roughly 6 months I think I have a good grasp on Att Uverse.
Plus I have the internet service. Which I might say is fantastic! Very happy with it.

Currently im on my 6th dvr. issues again are occuring. Screen goes to black every
10 minutes.

Im on the fence..Standard picture is the best out of all services. HD picture ranks
right next to the sat cos. Maybe slightly better.

But, they limit you to four HD streams. I could never make it my main system.
You cant record multiple shows and watch at the same time.

Also, only one dvr per house.
Yes, the have whole home dvr...so from other tvs you can watch recorded shows.
But you can only record from the main dvr.

Ive seen Comcast. Its not available in my area. However, comparing the two id say Comcast beats Uverse.

Plus Comcast video on demand is vastly superior.

You can take a chance on Uverse. No cantract. But id say wait until the service is more mature. It has to many kinks that need to be worked out.

Just my take.

 

[wase4711]

You should have just hung up and gotten a different Cs person..there is no way they can make you dump your existing providers, unless they can't run new wires where needed. They want to use existing wiring whenever possible, so, thats why they try to get you to disconnect your existing services.

I've had Uverse for 5 months now, and my experience is similar to Lern's, except I am only on my second DVR..Internet blows away Comcrap for consistent speeds, day or night, and I also have their phone service, which is a bit different that most other VOIP in that it is run on their own closed network, so you are less exposed to all the "general" internet traffic out there, plus they give you a nice battery back up for the system when you get the VOIP service.
SD picture is the best of ANY provider, for sure, and the HD picture seems to vary from channel to channel..some are wonderful, some are just fair, but all in all, they are all very watchable.
As far as the limitations, the good thing about UVerse is that they are CONSTANTLY updating, and upgrading things, so, things and features that aren't here today, may just be here next week..and, the MOST HD channels, by far, of any provider...The VOD is a joke though, so if thats important to you, you wont be happy with the current offerings. But, they keep changing it and improving it as well, so we will see.
Their music channels are the pits, so, if thats important to you, you will not be happy with the service.
Its nice that you can program and control every aspect of your DVR programming from a web browser or cell phone, and the changes you make show up in seconds.

No contract, great deals on packages, and free install make it hard to not at least try them out..
I save about 60 bucks a month from my previous Comcrap/Dish combo that I had in my house, so, that is a beautiful thing.
Finally, try to make sure that you live less than 2000 ft from the VRAD, to ensure you get best signal and the max amount of HD streams that are available...Rumor is they are upgrading things this weekend, so, we will see..

 

[jeslevine]

That is impressive if their internet blows away Comcast. For that alone I need to at least try it. My experience with comcast is OK, much better than AT&T DSL.

I also like the idea of no contract

Their web site is down this weekend, so when it comes back on Monday, I will try it again, only online

As I said in a previous post I don't mind paying for the installation, especially if they don't use my existing coax, and use Cat5/6 instead.

I would hope I could get 4 video HD streams, and like you said if the VRAD is within 2000 feet I shouldn't have a problem

Thanks again for the information

 

[wase4711]

just so you know, its currently 2 hd streams inbound, NOT 4...
We are hoping for 3 soon, but as of now, only 2 inbound hd streams...

 

[jeslevine]

Thanks wase

 

[Claude Greiner]

I got U-verse internet 3 months ago and still have Comcast internet and DISH Network Television Service. I really need to cancel comcast internet, I just have not got around to calling them..

Legally they cannot force you to disconnect from the other services, but at the same time they reserve the right not to provide service to you.

The reason why they tell you this is because they do not want competing providers in the same household.

I have been in this business for over 10 years, and I have done installations in houses where the customer insisted they keep Directv or cable active in their home. I tried reasoning with the customer that it makes no sense to keep both service and pay for the same channels twice, but after the customer tells me its none of my business and its their right to pay 2 bills every month I went ahead and completed their installation.

Guaranteed 2-4 months later, the customer would try to do several things...

A) Not pay their Dish bill and let the service go into non-pay disconnect.

B) Call me and tell me that all they really wanted was a trial, and they decided they are keeping the other provider and to come and pick up my equipment.

C) Call Dish Network up and trying to subscribe to one specific service such as international programming, a specialty sports package while keeping Cable for their basic servies. The customer only wanted that one specific service in the beginning, but thought they could not only subscribe to that package, or maybe the install was more money to only get that one specific service so they decided to take basic service. Now that nobody is holding their hand during the sale and install process, they think that nobody will notice if they go behind everyones back and call in and drop their basic services.

D) Remove additional receivers from the account and keep only 1 television.

After being burned about 10 times on these types of deals, I finally made the decision to walk away from these installations when a customer refused to disconnect the competing service when we came out to install the DISH Network.

As far as the information from the sales rep you spoke with, weather they can legally require you to disconnect your old service from the other provider or not before they install U-verse makes no difference. There are people out there who are stupid enough to actually believe this, and do disconnect their old service where as they would have kept them around for a few months so they could try out U-verse first.

The biggest key in keeping customers sometimes is making it very difficult for them to switch back to what they had before. You put 2 boxes on the customers Tv and make it as simple as changing remote controls and video imputs on the TV, your customer is more likely to cancel because nobody likes change. Although customers origionally may not be used to the new system, making it difficult for them to change back will make them get used to the new system until they feel confortable with it like they where with the old system.

 

[jeslevine]

Claude, there are two main reasons why I do not want them to disconnect my existing service:

1. I want to make sure that UVERSE service is at least as good as I currently have before disconnecting them.

2. I do not them to use the existing cable, but use Cat5 or Cat6, since everything I read that provides the best throughput

I also have no problem paying the installer for the installation costs

If UVERSE turns out to be good for me, without hesitation I would drop my Comcast internet and likely downgrade my Dish TV service to a minimum.

If UVERSE turns out not to be suitable, during the 30 day trial period, I would drop them, being out the cost of the installation

 

[jcalton88]

Recently signed on for Uverse

I recently got Uverse in place of my Direc-TV and Verizon internet. Because of where I live I had two choices for Highspeed internet before now, Direcway or an aircard from a wireless service provider.

First off, when the guy installed my services, he did an incomplete installation. When he left one of my three TV's did not have service, one wasn't set up for HD, and the internet was not active.

On top of this he wanted to pull the coaxial cables from my satellite across my yard to where it was "convenient" to install the AT&T switch box. Had I not been supervising him this is what he would have done. I told him to either run a new wire or dig up the existing one and reroute it.

His excuse for one of the tvs not working, and he said this as he was walking out the front door, was that the coaxial had power on it and that was why it wouldn't work. After he left I checked out the cable and come to find out he had added about 5 foot to the existing cable so it would reach the convenient location for him to hook up the receiver, and the extension he used looks like it had been slammed in his truck door a few times. I removed this and the TV came up with no problem.

After calling and complaining about this installer I was told by an AT&T rep that they have had this problem with a few installers, to the point some were going in peoples houses, dropping off the receivers and gateway, and leaving.

With all this being said, I am extremely happy with the service so far. HD is leagues better than DirecTV IMO... Bummer with the HD streams but I can live with that, and the internet is very consistent.

I'd say all in all I recommend the service, just be aware of what the installer is doing, as they WILL try to cut corners.

 

[wase4711]

its hard to believe your installer did such a piss poor job.. I would make sure you contact their customer service department and have that fool fired, to make sure that he doesnt continue to do things like that to other customers..
I would make them come out and re-install, since using spliced wires will eventually lead to problems..
Glad to hear it works ok now though!

 

[RAYH4444]

Marvellously illuminating forums with special commendation to WASE4711.
I am on the cusp of signing up for AT&T Uverse and currently have AT&T home/cell phone service, Directv,a standby basic Comcast service and EarthLink DSL. I was informed by AT&T that I absolutly had to disconnect the EarthLink DSL prior to them installing Uverse in my home;they stressed that EarthLink is the only DSL provider that they require this from. Can anyone verify this,please, as I would prefer not to be without the internet for several days.

Also and most importantly,I have a query about pure picture quality. I had to switch to Directv when Dish dropped my favorite channel GOLTV and when I switched to Directv, the picture quality was noticably inferior,especially in the HDef department; I was able to compare the quality fairly as I still had both sat services for a short while before having to reluctantly drop Dish. If Uverse is anywhere close to Dish`s picture quality I will be satisfied. Any input is greatly appreciated.

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

You would need to discontinue the Earthlink DSL service, that is 100% true, since the UVERSE service itself is VDSL service.

You can't have two DSL services on the same wire.