Hi Speed Internet: Why do you pay and what do you get?

[Cleo]

One of these days we will get reliable fast service where I live. In the mean time I pay a lot for not so great not so reliable service.

Main internet when it's working is Comcast cable. I pay $76 a month, I don't have cable TV (I use DirecTV for TV) so pay a premium for cable internet without cable TV. It is suppose to be 12Mbps down and 768Kbps up but it is more like 5 Mbps down and 500 Kbps when it is actually working.

For when Comcast isn't working, at least a few times a week and not for months at a time after a hurricane I have Earthlink ADSL, $36 a month, with is 1.5Mbps down and 128Kbps up. I've tried to get faster ADSL but everything is too old in my neighborhood. I also have to play ATT $23 a month for a line to carry the ADSL since I don't have a phone line for voice (I use Vonage for a land line) but this line is also used for my alarm system.

Since all the poles and lines in my neighborhood are very slooooowly being replaced some days I don't have internet at all. It's days like this that I'm very happy that I have an iPhone so at least I can still check my email and surf without having to grab a laptop and visit a wifi hotspot.