Current Events > Getting the internet installed in my new place is a nightmare, holy shit

(+) Yeah! (+)

Each major ISP (going off their websites) can service my apartment but I need to know if my building is only wired for one in particular. The landlord takes days to respond to any call/text and going off a conversation Ive had with a neighbor who moved out the same day I moved in, the super is rarely seen, if ever.

On top of that, I cant determine what service was previously used in my apartment as theres an ungodly mess of coax cables and before I moved in they did such a shitty job cleaning the place that a lot of the cabling was painted over and solidified to the wall.

And on top of THAT, the service technician needs access to some sort of utility room, but only the super has access to it, and the super is allegedly nowhere to be found.

And on top of THAT, the same neighbor I talked to complained that the internet was slow as molasses and he ended up just using his phone for everything.

Sounds like you're getting T-Mobile home Internet for $50/mo

Agonized_rufous posted...

Sounds like you're getting T-Mobile home Internet for $50/mo

i had that for a little while between places
it was actually pretty good

*edit: removing the "for what it was" because it makes it sound not as good as it actually was, it was actually pretty good

Check your closets and you may find a wiring panel that will lead to a demarc. That will have a company emblem or logo and then you call them up to verify if additional wiring is needed.

if it's that bad you might just want to get hotspot on your phone and just use that instead. assuming your plan is unlimited hotspot.

Trumpo posted...

Check your closets and you may find a wiring panel that will lead to a demarc. That will have a company emblem or logo and then you call them up to verify if additional wiring is needed.

I havent seen anything like that in my apartment outside of really old, loose electrical wiring coming out of one closets ceiling.

I cant imagine that the previous tenant just didnt have the internet/cable. There are coax cables in two rooms. But theyre just standard cables.

creativeme posted...

if it's that bad you might just want to get hotspot on your phone and just use that instead. assuming your plan is unlimited hotspot.

My phone service has unlimited data and hotspot usage but download speeds are slow and you cant stream above 480p

CRON posted...

I havent seen anything like that in my apartment outside of really old, loose electrical wiring coming out of one closets ceiling.

I cant imagine that the previous tenant just didnt have the internet/cable. There are coax cables in two rooms. But theyre just standard cables.

Is your rent 200 a month

Axiom posted...

Is your rent 200 a month

Way too damn much. In my area its so bad that the shittiest single homes and duplexes for rent are now going for upwards of $2400+

Update: The landlord somehow completely misread my text and responded with The building doesnt supply the internet to tenants and hasnt responded since.

Still have no idea what particular ISP services the building and whether the super can come out to give any technician access to a utility/communications closet.

Can you get a fixed wireless connection? (4G or 5G as a dedicated home broadband connection, rather than hotspotting off a phone plan)

I've used that at the last few places I've lived and it's been pretty good. No wiring needed. Latency is comparable to VDSL, bandwidth varies between areas but highest I've seen is around 80mbit - but that's on 4G, not 5G.

Agonized_rufous posted...

Sounds like you're getting T-Mobile home Internet for $50/mo

yep. Hotspots are the only way around this BS.

Trumble posted...

Can you get a fixed wireless connection? (4G or 5G as a dedicated home broadband connection, rather than hotspotting off a phone plan)

I've used that at the last few places I've lived and it's been pretty good. No wiring needed. Latency is comparable to VDSL, bandwidth varies between areas but highest I've seen is around 80mbit - but that's on 4G, not 5G.

The T-Mobile is 5G and gets you 300, it was just fine for streaming, browsing, etc. i don't really game online much but it would probably have been just fine there too. and for the price you really aren't beating it

Another update: Because my credit went to shit, my ISP is requiring a ridiculous deposit. Makes sense, but I let them know that I was a customer for years with no issues before my recent housing issue but that was irrelevant to them.

Nothing is easy.

This is why I won't deal with a rentals owned by "private landlords" again. My friend is dealing with a new rental house owner who wants his motorcycle gone because "he doesn't like them."