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The Xfinity Prosumer: Internet Price and Performance

We all read the ads and have seen "reviews" about Internet service provider costs and performance, but it is 99.99% advertising and affiliate link disinformation.

The Speed You Need

Most people think they need a gigabit download performance for great Internet performance.  This is nonsense.  Most people are restricted by upload speeds, not download speeds. Why?  Because upload speed is almost always the bottleneck.

Some examples of where upload speed is critical:

  • Zoom and other video calling technology
  • VoIP telephone calling
  • Online real-time gaming

Some examples where download speed is just not important

  • The number of devices you own
  • Streaming video 
  • Streaming audio

All these technologies have a need for timely packet delivery, and with upload speeds being relatively slow, this is where nearly 100% of bottlenecks occur.  If your video call or game isn't behaving well, you've almost certainly saturated your Upload performance.

So let's take a look at the Comcast Xfinity plans from the most important perspective of Upload performance:

  • 10 Mbit/sec: Connect, Connect More, Fast
  • 20 Mbit/sec: SuperFast, Gigabit
  • 35 Mbit/sec: Gigabit Extra

So as you can see, there are really only three upload speed plans.

My advice is to start with the cheapest plan, which is the least expensive at $65*** per month.  If that doesn't work, go to Superfast at $107*** per month.  

Great Bundles and Deals!

Be aware that bundles that include Cable TV or Telephone services frequently have extraordinarily expensive hidden "fees" that do not appear in the special price. These hidden expenses can easily exceed $600 dollars per year.  Once you calculate your real out of pocket costs, it becomes obvious that these "special deals" are a slimy way to do business.  Are they legal?  Yes, they have teams of lawyers and lobbyists that are payed millions to make this legal.  Blame the dummy members of Congress for allowing this trashy way to run a business.

A stern warning about Xfinity's special bundles

NEVER SIGN UP FOR A BUNDLE UNLESS YOU CONSIDER ALL OF THE HIDDEN FEES.

On my sibling's "Super+ special bundle for $149.99", Gigabit Internet + TV, here is the actual cost:

  • Discount Plan Marking Price: $149.99
  • The Fee portion of "Taxes and Fees": $53.52
  • The Tax portion of "Taxes and Fees": $0.05

Yes, this plan costs 136% of the advertised price! For what?  The fees are for things like "installing wires on the street for service" and "paying employees to do their job" and "paying for programming" and "a single TV cable tuner"... but they use buzzwords to hide these very sad realities. 

The actual cost for the "$149.99" plan: $203.56.

But what's worse than a plan that costs 136% of the advertised price?

The customer is under contract and cannot leave without more fees.  The costs are due to go up by $40.00 a month once the "bundle special" expires.  And the plans and fees increase significantly at least once per year.

Could it get more scammy than this?  YES!  Although your new contract may permit you to cancel service within 30 days, your full bill may not show your all your the monthly charges until after 30 days of service. Many thanks again to the dummies you elected to Congress.

*** = These so-called monthly plan fees do not include rental equipment fees or other fees that Comcast reserves the right to add at their discretion, and may increase your costs by 35% or more.


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