AT&T's U-verse has arrived in my neighborhood. Should I try it?

Phil Harvey, Editor-in-Chief

May 18, 2008

3 Min Read
Should I Switch to U-verse?

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)

Phil Harvey

Editor-in-Chief, Light Reading

Phil Harvey has been a Light Reading writer and editor for more than 18 years combined. He began his second tour as the site's chief editor in April 2020.

His interest in speed and scale means he often covers optical networking and the foundational technologies powering the modern Internet.

Harvey covered networking, Internet infrastructure and dot-com mania in the late 90s for Silicon Valley magazines like UPSIDE and Red Herring before joining Light Reading (for the first time) in late 2000.

After moving to the Republic of Texas, Harvey spent eight years as a contributing tech writer for D CEO magazine, producing columns about tech advances in everything from supercomputing to cellphone recycling.

Harvey is an avid photographer and camera collector – if you accept that compulsive shopping and "collecting" are the same.

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