Internet Service in State College / Penn State Area

Internet Service in State College
Recently we had to switch internet service providers (ISP) so I decided to write up whatever research I had done on the issue. Here it is, plunge in and enjoy. Happy browsing eventually!

• The internet options are listed by groupings for 1-2 persons and 3-4 person units.
• Some price recommendations based on prices in mid July 2009 are also made here.
• The order in which the companies are provided is alphabetical, not based on quality/experience.

MAIN POINTS

• It is clear the VERIZON and D&E require contracts. It is not clear if Comcast requires a contract or if one can go month to month. If you can go month to month with Comcast, then the 42.95/mo deal is a good for groups of 3-4 ppl. Similarly the 24.95 plan with comcast also would be a good deal for the month to month.
• Verizon makes you do at least a 1 yr contact but you will get price fixed at 19.99 or 29.99 or 42.99 depending on the speed. I would be cautious about 2 year contracts, it is a pain and net prices would only go down in the future most likely. Also note, D&E gets expensive after 3 months so see if you can persuade them on phone to match other companies's offers.
  

1. Comcast (used extensively for over 1 year)
Has 3 major plans (link)

(i) $ 19.95/month for 6 months, $43 thereafter [requires Cable or Phone - so it will be quite high, cable is usually 30/month with Comcast]. See fine print images here...

(ii) $24.95/month = basic speed, Internet only option - good for 1-2 people moderate browsing.

(iii) $ 42.95/month - decent speed, 3-4 people with moderate browsing can do ok (with a wireless router and self set up).
(iv) They have other plans listed here which are more expensive but are higher bandwidth, speed plans. [Link]

[Experience with Comcast: 1 year as (shared) user, 0 as customer ]

2. D and E Communications
State College Area (residential) [Prices as of July 19 2009 from this link]

Monthly Payment Plan
Get unlimited access to the Internet:

Speed Download/Upload	Promotional Rate	Rate after 3 months
7.0M/1.0M	$19.95/mo.	$39.95/mo.
10.0M/2.0M	$29.95/mo.	$49.95/mo.

* They also charge $50 for self installation of networks with a wireless router. However I would probably test a wireless router on the network directly before paying any $50 fees. They also charge $125 for installation of home wireless network. They also "rent" out a router for $10 per month, but this is similar to telephone companies renting you a landline instrument monthly. Say NO and buy your own Router from Amazon etc.
[Experience with D&E: brief (used while staying at friend's house for 10 days)]

3. Earthlink (never used, just heard about)
In 16801 area they only have premium dialup (landline needed!!) (internet cost $10 to 12.50/mo) or satellite at 60/mo.

4. Verizon DSL

They have three plans
Starter 19.99/ mo 1 yr contract - compares to Comcast basic, better than D&E

Power Plan 29.99 /mo 1 yr contract

Turbo - $ 42.95/mo for 1 yr contract compares to Comcast high speed plans.

[Experience with Verizon: 2 years in 2005-6] DSL connections have their own issues as experienced in 2006. We do not know current status. However other friends of ours have used DSL with no issues.

5. AT&T (never used)
Dialups and laptop connect cards only. EXPENSIVE.

6. Free/Shared Wifi/ PennState Wifi

This is a controversial suggestion, but sometimes if you can detect secure or unsecure wifi in your area, you could try casually finding out from the neighbors if they are willing to share wifi for a small fee. Hey, it might work! But the quality/reliability etc are issues to be kept in mind, not to mention the perception of privacy which some people might want to live in.
If you can connect to Penn State Wireless network, you live close to enough to campus and you are in great shape then.

7. Hughes Satellite etc. (please google it)
Enter zipcode and see pricing.
16801 (State college) it starts at 59.95/month.
Equipment purchase cost $ 200 or lease costs $99 +10/month.
EXPENSIVE!!

Comcast Screen Shots

Electric Cars at Penn State July 17 09

Electric cars coming to town

Penn State alumnus is roadster engineer

Today two sports cars will roar into the Nittany Valley — but the only sound of their passing will be the noise of tires on pavement and the steady hum of their electric motors.

Tesla Roadster. On Friday, from 10 a.m. to noon, the twin roadsters will be on display at Penn State’s Morningstar solar home off of Park Avenue — free and open to the public.

Tesla Roadsters will appear in a display in State College today as part of a nationwide tour to promote electric vehicles.

* Tesla Motors to open seven sales, service centers this summer

With a zero-to-60 mph acceleration of 3.9 seconds and a top speed of 125 mph, the Tesla Roadster is hardly the stereotypical all-electric car — normally considered slow vehicles with a short driving range.

By contrast, the roadsters are fast and can travel more than 200 miles between charges — no small feat compared to the electric vehicles of yore that normally topped out at a 60-mile range.

Of course, all that performance comes at a cost — the 2009 Tesla Roadster starts at a base price of about $100,000. The company is working to develop a family-sized model with a price tag of around $50,000.

When the Teslas roll into State College today as part of a nationwide tour to raise interest in renewable energy and electric vehicles, they will not only be displaying some of the latest evolutions in alternative vehicles, but also technology developed in part at Penn State. One of Tesla’s research and development engineers is Jamie Clark, who received his master’s degree from Penn State in 2008.

Also on display as part of the Renew America Roadtrip’s stop will be a Nissan Hybrid Altima, touring with the Teslas; Penn State’s Chevy Equinox hybrid and the Hi-Lion fuel cell vehicle — a stock 1997 GM EV1 that was converted to hydrogen fuel cell operations by the Penn State students.

In addition to the public display, one of the purposes of the visit to Penn State is for a pit stop — a recharge overnight Thursday before roaring off to Pittsburgh on Friday afternoon — minus the roaring engine noise, of course.

(Copied from Penn State L-Sustainability Mailing List)