AT&T's U-verse has arrived in my neighborhood. Should I try it?
8:35 AM -- AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T)'s U-verse has arrived in my neighborhood to challenge my local cable kingpin, Charter Communications Inc. . What should I do?
{survey 435}
Both AT&T and Charter have ramped up marketing lately and I've taken a quick look at all the mailers, phone bill inserts, etc. I've dutifully called each company's sales lines to make sure I understand what's what. Frankly, it's a coin flip:
Table 1: Cable vs. U-verse: A Simplistic Guide
AT&T's U-verse | Charter Cable | Advantage | |
DVR hardware | Can record up to 4 standard def. channels. Slick user-interface (UI) on the channel guide. Easy-to-use remote. Can search programming by topic, actor, etc. | Can record up to two channels at a time. Has a 1970s-era User-interface (UI) on the channel guide. Crowded IR remote has too many buttons and no range. Channel guide has no search capability at all. | AT&T |
HD choices | Has Food Network & NFL Network in HD. All premium channels like HBO are available in HD. | Doesn't carry the NFL Network. Offers one HD channel per premium network. | AT&T |
Extra features | Can program DVR from a PC or mobile phone. Free login for AT&T hotspots. | None. | AT&T |
Mobile discount | Combined billing available plus $4 a month off AT&T cellular bill. | None. | AT&T |
Hassle factor | Looking at a half-day, roughly, for system installation. | None. Already have the service. | Charter |
Top Internet speed | Up to 10 Mbit/s | Up to 16 Mbit/s | Charter |
Phone service | Not available via U-verse in my area. Basic AT&T phone line, after tax, runs about $50 a month. | Easy to add to existing Charter account. Costs $30 a month for unlimited local and long-distance. | Charter |
HD capacity | Can watch or record one HD program at a time. | Can record two HD streams at a time while watching a third. | Charter |
Commitment | No contract. | No contract. | Even |
Big offer | Gives $100 to $200 cash back on any order; Gives one month of TV service free. | Gives a $50 gas card when ordering two services; Intro price for top-tier TV package is $99 per month for 6 months. | Even |
List price | $149 per month for top-tier TV and 6 Mbit/s Internet package. | $132.98 per month for top-tier TV and 5 Mbit/s Internet | Even |
VOD choices | "Same as cable", according to customer service reps. | Hundreds of free programs and movies, in addition to a healthy selection of standard-def, paid movie choices. | Even |
Spouse's opinion | Hates changing providers. Hates having to learn new gadgets. | Hates the remote, UI, and DVR. Loves the Internet speed. | Even |
Source: AT&T and Charter customer service reps. Assorted direct mail pieces. |
I am curious to see how good the AT&T service really is, even though, like Charter's service, the U-verse variant offered around here lacks a whole-home DVR, which I think is a killer feature.
Also disappointing is that AT&T is selling U-verse around here absent the ability to bundle the U-verse phone service. Still, I'm tempted to try it out to see if the picture quality claims check out in a real world (old house) scenario.
What would you do if you were me? Take the poll before 5:00 p.m. on Friday, May 23, and I'll let the results weigh heavily on my decision.
— Phil Harvey, The Editor, Light Reading
About the Author(s)
You May Also Like