Verizon's Fios Service Moves US Internet Beyond a Snail's Pace...

[Darkman]

Verizon's Fios Service Moves US Internet Beyond a Snail's Pace

September 15, 2005

High-speed Internet connections have finally gone mainstream in the U.S. But there's a problem: What passes for high speed in this country is pathetically slow compared with Internet service in some other countries.

For instance, Verizon's entry-level DSL service, at 768 kilobits per second for downloads and 128 kilobits per second for uploads, is considered high-speed here. But in Japan and Korea, families can buy moderately priced Internet service measured in the tens of megabits per second. They get a race car, while Americans are stuck with a bicycle.

A megabit per second (mbps) connection moves about 1,000 times as much data every second as a kilobit per second (kbps) connection. A service running at 10 megabits per second is more than 13 times as fast as Verizon's base DSL service. All such services have two modes: downstream, for downloading Web pages, email and files; and upstream, for uploading email or files. Generally, Internet providers offer much faster downstream speeds than upstream speeds.

Even the faster common U.S. broadband offerings, like Comcast's $42.95 a month basic cable-modem service, which delivers 6 mbps downstream and 384 kbps upstream, are ridiculously slow compared with the Asian offerings.

But now, Verizon is offering Americans in certain parts of the country a new, much faster Internet service for only a little more than Comcast charges for its basic service. This new product, called Fios, offers 15 mbps downstream and 2 mbps upstream for $50 a month, or $45 a month if you use Verizon for your telephone service.

There are also two other Fios plans: 5 mbps downstream and 2 mbps upstream for $40 a month; and 30 mbps downstream and 5 mbps upstream for $200 a month. Both also are discounted if you also use Verizon phone service....

( Full article can be found at the following Source: http://online.wsj.com/public/article/0,,SB112673750976441038-0HPDAqkgTXwdLetEnf99m9ogT_8_20060915,00.html?mod=t ff_main_tff_top )

[cdru]

Thanks to Verizon's FIOS offerings, there is a bandwidth battle going on in New York or so I heard. DSLR reported a few days ago IIRC that CableVision (OOL) will have 50 and 100mbit packages available in select areas. Nevermind the fact that the lines have bandwidth caps, the network uplink can't support very many customers at that speed, and that it also requires new proprietary equipment at both ends of the connection...but competition is always good.

[AllieVi]

An article I read a while back stated that 20% of Japanese households have access to 100 Mb/s broadband...

[DonLandis]

There are some restrictive policy rules with FIOS by Verizon. Unfortunately these restrictions may prevent me from using it here.

You MUST use Verizon supplied routers in your network. They charge $75 per computer to connect them to their router. You are required to have one computer be Cat 5 wired and the rest can be wireless802.11g. Again they supply the router.

They must be using restricted MAC addressing so they can control the number of computers you connect and what they charge you.

Currently, my address is not available even though I have fiber bundles running 30 ft. in front of my house.

They do not do domain name hosting.

I'd love to get it but these restrictions are too much to handle so it looks like that 2mbs upload will have to wait for Comcast to feel the competition and get competitive.


Some other restrictions they have that don't currently affect me would be streaming video and server hosting. I see this in my future but don't do them yet.

[AllieVi]

There are some restrictive policy rules with FIOS by Verizon. Unfortunately these restrictions may prevent me from using it here.

You MUST use Verizon supplied routers in your network. They charge $75 per computer to connect them to their router. You are required to have one computer be Cat 5 wired and the rest can be wireless802.11g. Again they supply the router.

They must be using restricted MAC addressing so they can control the number of computers you connect and what they charge you.

Currently, my address is not available even though I have fiber bundles running 30 ft. in front of my house.

They do not do domain name hosting.

I'd love to get it but these restrictions are too much to handle so it looks like that 2mbs upload will have to wait for Comcast to feel the competition and get competitive.


Some other restrictions they have that don't currently affect me would be streaming video and server hosting. I see this in my future but don't do them yet.Verizon FiOS was installed here on July 15 replacing my former service from Comcast, so I have some experience.

The router thing is not really a big issue. Neither of my computers is directly wired to it. I plugged my Linksys WRT54G wireless router into one of the ports and everything works fine. My two notebooks work wirelessly via my WRT54G just as they always did, except that the speed is better.

One computer did have to be wired to their router for the initial setup, of course, but once their tech left, I plugged my router into one of their router's ports and haven't directly used theirs since then. Both routers are in a central location in the house, away from my computers.

My second computer (the one that wasn't used for the installation) doesn't know anything has changed. It just sees the Internet connection on my WRT54G and uses it. My brother visits and plugs his notebook into a port on my WRT54G and uses the it just as he always did.

[MikeSoltis]

The big problem with FIOS is the fact that it will be years before it is available to most folks here in the US.
Verizon is moving at a snail's pace installing and making this available. Even here in SW FLa, initially we were told sometime in 05, now it's more like maybe 07. And this is a rather densely populated area with many houselholds easily having the financial wherewithal to afford such toys (heck if you can afford a house down here :)

[cdru]

You MUST use Verizon supplied routers in your network.Incorrect. They only SUPPORT their router. You are free to use any router you want. It will need to support PPPoE though. Note that many routers may not be able to keep up with a 15/2 PPPoE let alone the 30/5 plan. The 5/2 plan shouldn't be a problem. Verizon's router has a custom firmware that has been tested and the 3 packages and works at those speeds. Let them do their install using their router, then just unplug it and use your own.

They charge $75 per computer to connect them to their router.That $75 is mainly a labor charge for running the network line. You can run it yourself and save the $75 as it's basically plug and play into the router. It's not a whole lot different then a DBS installer charging for extra outlets. If you already have a network setup running DHCP, it should be just be plug in the network cable and go. Configuring 1 PC is officially included but I bet if all the work is already done, most techs could check a few other PCs without additional charge. Even if only 1 is set up and they don't look at the others, the (usually) friendly people at DSLReports.com in the VOL FiOS forum will help you if you have problems with the others.

You are required to have one computer be Cat 5 wired and the rest can be wireless802.11g. Again they supply the router.Incorrect. They recommend 1 computer be wired (or at least can easily be connected via a cable [e.g. laptop]) but it isn't required. See here (http://www22.verizon.com/FiOSforhome/channels/FiOS/root/faq.asp#req_q3)

They must be using restricted MAC addressing so they can control the number of computers you connect and what they charge you.What makes you say that? Wireless cards also have MAC addresses. Besides, only the router is seen by their network. They would never see your PC MAC addresses. With PPPoE, only 1 computer (router in this case) can be "logged in" at a time anyways, so MAC addressing isn't necessary. They may still utilize it but it doesn't matter as it's the router that dishes out your private internal addresses. There isn't any problem hooking up 1, 2, or 10 PCs inside your house/office.

Currently, my address is not available even though I have fiber bundles running 30 ft. in front of my house.But is it FIOS fiber? My town has long had fiber ran through multiple neighborhoods, but it was never configured for the BPON FiOS network. If it is for FiOS, be patient. It just hasn't been lit yet. Wiring neighborhoods is just one piece of the complete puzzle. A lot of other things also have to fall into place. I've had FiOS fiber in my backyard since March patiently waiting until December for it to become officially available.

They do not do domain name hosting.Can't help you there really. Business FiOS may have static addressing and you can use a 3rd party for domain name hosting if the business account doesn't come with it.

Some other restrictions they have that don't currently affect me would be streaming video and server hosting. I see this in my future but don't do them yet.It sounds like you need it more for business then residental. The push is currently for residental. I'm not sure if the Business FiOS is officially available although I've heard some rumors about it. Ports 25 (SMTP) and 80 (HTTP) are blocked, but you can run a webserver on other ports although you will be breaking the residental TOS.

[Mark Holtz]

Moved from the Potpourri forum to the Computer Talk forum where it is more appropriate. - Holtz

One question that I have is the distance limitation. Is the FIOS system still limited to 15,000 feet, or can it go further out?

[cdru]

No. It's much further. With copper connections, the signal attenuation drops to a point where the signal becomes useless. With FiOS, the distance limitation I've heard is around 14 miles before the signal has to be regenerated. Most everyone in urban or suburban areas should be able to have a CO within 14 miles of them.

[DonLandis]

Thanks, cdru- You should go teach Verizon reps how there system works as It appears you know more about it than they do. Not surprised! :) I'm glad to hear that none of the stuff their rep told me is true. Thanks for setting the record straight. Allie VI also confirmed some of what you said.

I'm mainly interested in better upload speeds for my business. Currently at 768 kbps. It would be nice to have 3x that speed. And the fiber is what Comcast uses. That's about all I know about it.

[cdru]

Thanks, cdru- You should go teach Verizon reps how there system works as It appears you know more about it than they do. Not surprised! :)And the funny thing is that I don't even have it.... Everything that I've learned has just been from hanging out in the Verizon DSL and FiOS forms at DSLReports.com

I'm mainly interested in better upload speeds for my business. Currently at 768 kbps. It would be nice to have 3x that speed. And the fiber is what Comcast uses. That's about all I know about it.If you are uploading to other servers, the the 15/2 "residential" package will suit you well (you work out of your home, don't you?). In some markets, currently only in the NYC markets where OOL is the competition, the 30/5 package has been lowered to around $50 so there's hope that you may even be able to go faster. If you want to do occasional hosting, you can do what I do. Get a DynDNS account and just run your service on a different port if the primary port is blocked. While officially on the "no-no" list, Verizon historically hasn't cared if you run a minor server with occasional use. I've had a ssh server running for 2 years without a peep from VOL.

[AllieVi]

The big problem with FIOS is the fact that it will be years before it is available to most folks here in the US.
Verizon is moving at a snail's pace installing and making this available. Even here in SW FLa, initially we were told sometime in 05, now it's more like maybe 07. And this is a rather densely populated area with many houselholds easily having the financial wherewithal to afford such toys (heck if you can afford a house down here :)Keep in mind that Verizon is spending a fortune across the U.S. digging up streets where necessary to install conduits and the fiber. The full roll-out will take a while.

My community actually worked with Verizon to make the transition easier. I don't know all the details, but I expect the city made the permitting process easier than it would otherwise be in order to lure Verizon into the area. We're essentially a growing bedroom community for San Diego and Los Angeles with few businesses. The city wants to bring in business and prior to FiOS, we were not in the fast lane.

I suspect that some communities look at the installation as a way to collect fees for city coffers. If so, those communities may not be the first to see the light.

[deraz]

There is an article on Verizon's FiOS service in today's money section of USAToday:

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/telecom/2005-09-22-verizon-tv_x.htm

[lee635]

We won't get fios for years out here in rural Oregon.

I can't complain though, Verizon just upgraded me to 1.5 mb down and provided a new router for free that has wired and wireless connectivity. I'm going to sell my 6 month old wireless router on ebay. And they lowered the price from $32.95 down to $21.95 since I can't get their 3 mb service (and went with the annual plan). Was paying $50 a month for 256kb dsl from Qwest about 5 years ago....