COX and their "higher speed"

[kk19115]

i've yet to "disrupt the space time continuum" with my "higher speed" cable internet. in fact, i constantly have to call tech support to complain of slow loading webpages. i know what i'm doing when it comes to computers and networking as that's my line of work, so i just call them up to give them a piece of my mind. they do attempt to help me but i've already done the things that they want me to do to troubleshoot. i just like to blow off steam and think i'm helping my situation by telling them how crappy their service is. i know all they're going to do is tell me they'll send a support tech out to my place only during the hours that i work or maybe find a time that i'm off but is 4 days from when i called. by then, everything will be working fine.

...sorry to any cox tech support employees that may be reading this. i go into rages when my internet isn't performing to my standards. :P

[mranderson]

The people that will be leasing my southside house want internet, so I ordered it yesterday.

Cox told me my current modem will not work correctly because it is too slow. They upgraded in October of last year. That may be your problem. The modem, although it will function, may be too slow for the current Cox speed. You might call and ask.

I am surprised tech support did not ask questions about your modem. If it is an "1100," it is too slow.

[BailJumper]

I hve Cox too and I complain all the time. And I'm really screwed when things go bad as I use them for TV, phone and Internet.

They've tried everything. Last time they put a signal booster in my house.

The only good thing is that my neighbor has high speed Internet too (wireless) and when mine goes out or is acting up I just log on to his. He has a wireless booster on his and I get 3 of 4 bars all the way inside my house.

[kk19115]

surfboard 5120

i dunno. they've seen my modem and if i needed to upgrade, i'm sure they would've interrupted my ranting to explain i need a new one.

[Todd]

I've called Cox myself not so much to complain about the service but when can we get the service. I live far north Edmond. In fact, its Guthrie schools but Edmond address and we can't get any type of high speed including DSL. My only option was to go with fixed wireless with speeds about 750kps. I've checked into a T1 but unless I want to burn about $400 a month that's my only option.

[Jack Wonder]

I'm so sick of Cox and their monopolistic tactics! :cmad:

All I have is Cable, and I've had to call and complain between TEN and FIFTEEN times...and I've only had their service for 4 MONTHS!?!?!??

As soon as I move into a house I'm going Direct TV all the way!

[sweetdaisy]

^^Agree, Jack Wonder! Ugh, Cox irritates the dog out of me sometimes!

I have Cox for phone, internet, and cable. Tried to upgrade to digital not long ago, but there was something wrong with the tap (?? - I think that's what they said??). Anyway, for me to get a good signal on digital would require them to change out some bad equipment which they don't want to do. I'm SOL. Guess this would explain why I don't get some cable channels and why my phone and internet connections are "sketchy" sometimes.

Wanted to change to AT&T, but they don't offer service in my area yet. Guess I'll deal with my sucky Cox service.

[writerranger]

^^Agree, Jack Wonder! Ugh, Cox irritates the dog out of me sometimes!

I have Cox for phone, internet, and cable. Tried to upgrade to digital not long ago, but there was something wrong with the tap (?? - I think that's what they said??). Anyway, for me to get a good signal on digital would require them to change out some bad equipment which they don't want to do. I'm SOL. Guess this would explain why I don't get some cable channels and why my phone and internet connections are "sketchy" sometimes.

Wanted to change to AT&T, but they don't offer service in my area yet. Guess I'll deal with my sucky Cox service.

Yep. Same problem here. Every time it gets below about 35 degrees my digital channels start pixelating and freezing up. One guy was honest enough to tell me it's a part that Cox doesn't want to invest in.

-------------

[Jack Wonder]

^ I've had service men over to my apartment from Cox on three seperate occasions!

I had purchased an HDTV and was having problems with my audio. The Cox repairman was finally honest enough to tell me that neither he nor any other employees are trained to deal with the looming HD problems, and Cox is in no way about to train them... His words!

They aren't prepared to deal with the HD switch, and the company's too cheap to do anything about it!

And cheap's a BIG problem with Cox!! That's why they dropped ABC HD from their service THE WEEK BEFORE OU/TEXAS?!?!??!

And they didn't even notify me! I heard about it from the employees at Ultimate Electronics!??!

[Easy180]

It is a bunch of crap they yanked the ABC HD off only 3 weeks into the football season...Haven't heard anything since so I'm sure they are still way off on negotiations...I'm afraid the other major stations are waiting on how this plays out and they will then follow suit

What kind of cruel world prevents me from watching OU football and Lost in HD

[ultimatesooner]

the people that own KOCO are to blame for you losing ABC HD - not Cox

[Easy180]

i don't care who is at fault..Cox is charging a premium for the HD channels and are paying ABC and the others zero for it...So KOCO does have a leg to stand on also

I just want them to agree on something and get it back on before Lost is back next year....Hard life I lead!!!

[Martin]

while i'm no big fan of cox, i pay no extra for hd programming than for standard digital cable.

while i'm here, i'll say that the service i receive from cox is actually pretty good. in three years, my phone has gone out on one occasion. my internet connection has been relatively glitch-free and whatever issues i had with digital cable were settled within my first year of service... but then again, maybe my experience has been atypical or maybe i just cut through the customer service bureacracy a bit better... who knows. -M

[PUGalicious]

i don't care who is at fault..Cox is charging a premium for the HD channels and are paying ABC and the others zero for it...So KOCO does have a leg to stand on also

I just want them to agree on something and get it back on before Lost is back next year....Hard life I lead!!!

I'm with mmm... I don't pay more for HD than I did for standard digital.

Also, I lay the entire blame on the ABC HD on Hearst-Argyle, the parent company of KOCO. Cox is doing KOCO a service by providing a quality signal to KOCO viewers at no charge to KOCO. KFOR, KWTV and OETA don't get any fees from Cox; why should KOCO/Hearst-Argyle?

KOCO says that you can get the HD signal free over-the-air; while that's true, their method of doing so as suggested on their website is asinine. I purchased an indoor antenna, mistakenly believing that I was close enough to the towers (since I live in Edmond) that I should be able to pick up a decent signal. I was wrong. Both KOCO and KOKH (Fox25) signals break up repeatedly during broadcasts, and it gets VERY annoying. I've drastically reduced my viewing of those two stations as a result.

I, for one, have repeatedly contacted KOCO's general manager as well as the corporate office to register my complaint. I've also let ABC know that their local affiliate is depriving ABC viewers of a quality HD signal. This dispute is about greed on the part of KOCO/Hearst-Argyle. They haven't been paid in the past for their signal being carried on Cox, either the standard analog signal or the HD signal. Like I said previously, it benefits KOCO when Cox carries their signal. It's more viewers for KOCO, which translates to higher ratings, which translates into more ad revenue. In this petty dispute, KOCO is losing more than Cox. And if it keeps up, they will lose everything they've gained in the last couple of years in the ratings war.

[sweetdaisy]

while i'm no big fan of cox, i pay no extra for hd programming than for standard digital cable.

while i'm here, i'll say that the service i receive from cox is actually pretty good. in three years, my phone has gone out on one occasion. my internet connection has been relatively glitch-free and whatever issues i had with digital cable were settled within my first year of service... but then again, maybe my experience has been atypical or maybe i just cut through the customer service bureacracy a bit better... who knows. -M

My major complaint is not being able to GET digital cable. HD doesn't make a difference to me (I don't have an HDTV anyway), but it's a bummer I can't get the extra channels offered through digital.

Overall, I've had great experiences with Cox customer service folks; they've been easy to work with and as helpful as they could be. Cox just won't fix the problem.

[Easy180]

I guess the dispute does make Argyle look bad...Cox only charges for the rental of the digital receiver, which makes sense cause those things aren't made for free

I wonder if there has been any advance on the dispute since it's been almost three months...Anyone heard anything new?

[PUGalicious]

From Cox's perspective, there's nothing more to negotiate with Hearst-Argyle. Their demands are little more than extortion and it's a no-brainer for Cox. This dispute hurts KOCO more than it hurts Cox. KOCO's general manager makes it sound like negotiations are ongoing, but from my understanding in talking with a few people familiar with the situation, there's little actually happening and little prospect it will be resolved anytime soon. It basically is entirely in Hearst-Argyle's court.

[SoonerDave]

FWIW, I've had Cox service before it was Cox - back when it was AtHome, and I've had very few problems with it. That said, I should point out that my service was part of a brand new neighborhood with completely new equipment.

The lone problem I had was about three years ago when things started slowing down, and I was able to get a tech to advise me that my outbound signal strength (from my modem) was too low, and that often indicated a modem that was in the midst of failing. I went down to BestBuy, picked up a new one, problem solved. kk19115, if you haven't already, see if you can get to a Level 2 tech and get them to test your modem for you. Your symptoms sound curiously similar to mine. Also, if you live in an older area (older relative to when your area was wired up for Cox and HSI), it could be that you're in a poorly configured distribution node that isn't allocating bandwidth properly. But I will grant you that tech support over the phone is a touchy issue.

For those of you thinking satellite TV is going to offer you some sort of superior Internet service, be careful. A friend of mine here at work pays out the ear for his setup and he doesn't get speeds even a fraction of mine; if he wants to upgrade to their higher speed service, his satellite provider requires him to buy the equipment from them (I think he told me it was on the order of $400), and it still isn't comparable to Cox.

As far as the Ch 5 HDTV/Cox Cable fiasco goes, KOCO wants everyone to believe the situation is Cox's fault, but THIS IS SIMPLY NOT TRUE. As someone else posted, Hearst-Argyle is trying to finance their own rollout of federally mandated HD equipment by extorting payment from local cable providers. When I bought an HDTV earlier this year, I traded in my regular digital cable box for an HD box, and my service bill DID NOT CHANGE - I pay about $5 for the converter box rental, and that converter is undeniably a higher-cost item. My digital service cost did not change, and don't let anyone from KOCO tell you otherwise.

I think it is pathetic that Hearst-Argyle is permitted to claim Cox is charging more for their HD service when they also have to know it flatly isn't true. They claim their signal isn't for Cox to benefit from; fine - so does that mean we can expect Hearst-Argyle to start going after Radio Shack and Wal Mart for selling "HD" labeled antennas? Won't that be profiting from "their" HD signal? That's the whole point - their argument is disingenuous.

I've also heard from other points that the negotiations have essentially broken off, and I've noticed that Cox has taken the 705 channel down completely. I happen to live in a part of OKC where I can't pick up Ch 5's HD OTA signal, so I'm out of luck. But if that inconvenience gives me the ability to stand up for a broader principle - in that Cox won't cave to Hearst - that's fine with me. I hope and want Hearst-Argyle to look just as foolish and stupid as they possibly can. And every time the local KOCO manager plops up one of his corporate recapitulations on their website, it just reminds me that they're the ones increasingly on the defensive. Good.

-SoonerDave

[PUGalicious]

Amen, SoonerDave!

[Lauri101]

I seem to be in the minority, but I really like Cox and their service.

Like SoonerDave, I've been a long-time Cox high-speed customer - going back to Roadrunner, AtHome, etc. I now have Digital HD/DVR TV, high-speed internet and telephone through Cox.

We've had few outages in the past several years and the service we've received has been excellent. FWIW, if I've having service problems, particularly with internet, I always ask for a level 2 Tech. The first contact techs are not going to tell me anything that I don't already know as I perform all of the preliminary checks and tests before calling.

Also - a hearty "amen,also" to SoonerDave re the ABC-HD fiasco.

[kk19115]

good lookin' out soonerdave!

[TomGirl]

I was one of the first to get cox internet, yes I've had this for more years than I can count and bundled everything about 2 years ago. I've never had my phone go out and any problems with my computer has been my computer geeking on me. I've never had any problems, even moving 3 times, but I've seen the prices during the pioneering days so that part is hard to swallow. I'm paying about 3 times what I was paying in the beginning.

[traxx]

I used to have Cox for my Internet and TV but I moved out of their area. When I had them my Internet, it was down often and my modem was continually confused to the point of having to unplug it for a minute or so to let it reset. I also have a friend who continues to have these problems with Cox.

I've never had Cox for my phone though I had a co-worker who had it and constantly had problems with it.

I now have SBC DSL for my Internet with a wireless modem so I can cruise on my laptop while I'm on the couch watching TV. I've had to reset the modem only once in a twelve month period. It's always up and fast.

As for problems with my phone, that's not even an issue.

I guess it's just on an individual basis though, some may have a horrible experience with a provider and another may have a great experience with the same provider.

[Jack Wonder]

It is a bunch of crap they yanked the ABC HD off only 3 weeks into the football season...Haven't heard anything since so I'm sure they are still way off on negotiations...I'm afraid the other major stations are waiting on how this plays out and they will then follow suit

What kind of cruel world prevents me from watching OU football and Lost in HD

I bought an HD antenna and I get EVERY network, including ABC, Fox, and the CW - ALL of which Cox DOESN"T offer!

The only downside is you can't DVR shows off the antenna unless your DVR is built into the TV.

[Martin]

so, jack... in what part of the city are you? i'm seriously thinking about getting an antenna for the fiesta bowl given that cox doesn't carry kokh on hd. it seems that quality of reception depends on where you're located. -M