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As part of a larger survey of connection options I talked to our current ISP, ISOMEDIA, asking what we could do. They immediately let us know that we could save about $2000 a month by simply going from a fixed bandwidth purchase to a variable plan where we only paid for what we used. Without any change to our service level, ISOMEDIA had already saved us $24,000 a year. We ended up deciding on the Qwest Metropolitan Optical Ethernet (QMOE). This is basically just your standard ethernet connection sent over a fiber line. We went with the 10Mbit line, but the technology scales all the way up to 100Mbit in both directions. The cost/Mbit is a little higher than some of the other options, but I really liked the scalability and wanted to say with our current ISP to minimize friction in the transition. This was actually ISOMEDIA's first QMOE installation. A brand new fiber optic line had to be laid in the ground so it took a little bit. ISOMEDIA handled all of the communication between Qwest and our building owner to get the connection to the demarc and then sent their own guys out to run a CAT5 line from the demarc to our server closet. Once all of the equipment was in place we scheduled the switch over from the DS3 to the QMOE. We were able to schedule it for after hours and the ISOMEDIA tech worked from home to do the switch. Unfortunately the first night we had problems. After about 5 minutes of working fine the new QMOE line would just stop sending data. We identified the problem to be the speed/duplex negotiation between our router and the QWEST Cisco switch. Once we hard coded the settings it worked fine. It was an unforseen problem that you sometimes have to expect when moving to a new technology. One small gripe I have is that I wish they had a tech support line just for business customers. During the transition we started having problems with our DS3 and I had to call ISOMEDIA to see if they could help. The level 1 tech that I talked to was in over his head. He actually asked me if I had a router or if the "modem" was plugged directly into my PC. I had to explain to him that a DS3 doesn't have a modem. Once I got through to the professionals the situation was handled well, but it was a bit of a stumbling block when the entire office's internet connection was down and minutes really matter. Overall I was very impressed with ISOMEDIA's level of service and attentiveness. They worked as hard as they possibly could have for us, even though they are probably losing money on the deal. I would highly recommend them for any business customer. Followup comments:
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Dry line DSL 3.0/768k, Static IP, PPPoE, Business plan ORDERING: 3/15/07 The Isomedia website is quite bare, and their support reps told me that they keep it that way to encourage personal contact with the customers. Reps are very friendly, and knowledgeable about options available. They were able to assist me quickly. INSTALLATION: 3/28/07 Some small quirks came up during the install process: * First my request for an appointment in the PM was somehow forgotten, when I called again they were able to make the fix without delaying the installation. * Covad tech arrived on time, and was able to get the service activated smoothly. However the line was configured for 3.0/384, not the 3.0/768 that I ordered. He suggested I contact Isomedia for a fix, which I did - am currently waiting to hear from them. * Per the Covad tech I was supposed to supply my own modem, and he was not going to bring me one - I had to call isomedia (3 times, before I got to the right person) who spoke to the tech and "authorized" him to leave me a modem (Broadxent 8120). SERVICE Speed is very good! 2487/325 kbps - hopefully the upload speed will rise once the provisioning is fixed. UPDATE 4/5/07 Isomedia reconfigured my line to the correct speed, and the upload speed has improved, as expected. So far everything is working very well and I am happy with the service, but it is still too early to tell. I am going to purchase a new modem - Broadxent does not perform well in high-traffic situations when playing multiple roles (DHCP, NAT, DNS, PPPoE). UPDATE 7/10/07 Problems continue in high-traffic situations. Per tech support I've had to limit my sustained Down/Up speeds to 120KBps and 30KBps, respectively. Not sure if this is a problem with the modem or the line, but I have to conclude that the service is not living up to my expectations, will likely move to a different ISP once this contract is over. Followup comments:
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praise for their helpful technical support and service. My primary email is 'techno-man...,' because I'm NOT! And, therefore, I have had a number of questions/issues over the years and have consistently been VERY VERY pleased with their prompt and helpful information/answer to my questions. I have recommended their service to several friends and, truly, have nothing but positive things to say about them. In fact, when I was finally able to switch to DSL (I live in a very rural area), I thought I would have to be connected to a different company. However, when I learned that I could stay with ISOMEDIA - I immediately switched right back to ISOMEDIA and continue to be very happy with their company. Al Coupeville, Wa. -- -- Followup comments:
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I had another DSL line through Verizon with them and switched to the COVAD line after talking with their sales rep who told me I could get better performance for less money! Always nice to have someone sell you more for less! Even during a recent power outage while all my friends with cable modems waited for up to two WEEKS to get their internet portion of the cable back up, ISOMedia never went offline for us. When they have scheduled or emergency service on their system scheuled a nice email stating when it will happen and what affect you may see is sent out. When you have an issue you get someone on the phone right away who is not only ale and willin to help you but they will stay with you and check back to make sure it is fixed either on the phone or through email. Basically these guys ROCK! My home business requires that I run a WWW and email server from home, and with ISOMedia I have no worries that I'll have random connection issues. Recently I had a speed issue (which I was pretty sure was an upstream issue) and ISOMEdia's tech support answered the phone right away, the tech called the problem, had me test to be sure I was having an issue, fixed the problem and confirmed that it was fixed, all within about 30 minutes from the first call. That included me calling back and several emails to ensure that the issue was re-provisioning my line. And that is the very first problem I have had in 2 years! If you're looking for a serious ISP with some hefty tech support mojo I reccomend these folks whole heartedly. The only reason I gave the median score to them on install coordination was that COVAD messed up and while not ISOMedia's fault directly, I have to rate the entire experience fairly. I was told by the COVADinstaller that my connection was non-standard and required a router normally put into businesses, unusual line for a house I guess, but I this is also my place of business. Followup comments:
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the recent windstorm. As a result many appliances had to be replaced (yes, there were surge protectors on them, but not quite strong enough to absorb the 220 surge) along with a hard drive, copier and etc even though everything was turned off. As result we needed to completely "set up" again. Now to a youngster who is familiar with computers and the "new" language that would not be a problem, but to seniors who have been out of the work force for some time, this is a challenge. Until we realized, the Isomdia staff have helped us the in past, let's call again. Help us they did -- everyone we talked to from the sales staff to the tech staff were WONDERFUL and extremely patient. They understand that seniors came into computers during the gap! The gap when someone sets up the computer and gets it running to the time computers are taught in pre/grade school. So on behalf of our family a very special THANK YOU to ISOMEDIA, we sincerely appreciate you. Followup comments:
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single tech problem. Cannot say the same about other servers and I've heard and witnessed some horrible Internet scenarios. I never hesitate to recommend Isomedia. They've provided me with prompt, excellent DSL service in both New York City, Los Angeles and Seattle. Wherever I am, I can rely on them right away. Hotels & On Location, whereever...DSL or national dialup. These guys are so good, they don't have to have 24 hour tech service! Customer Service, Sales and Accounting department always think of the customer first. They once told me - "you stick with us, we'll stick with you." 'Nuff said. Rock On Isomedia! -Christopher Bryant MC23, INC. / ITA Project Director Followup comments:
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I recently called them to ask about getting a higher speed connection -- thanks to Verizon (the carrier in my area) I was limited to 768/128 which seems pretty slow these days. I was directed to Sterling in Isomedia sales who pulled some strings at Verizon and actually got Verizon to upgrade some hardware on their end so that I could get 3M/768 service at the same price! Sterling provided an upgraded DSL modem and the cut-over was very well coordinated with Verizon so that I received notice mid-day as soon as it was completed. When I got home and went to start things up, I did have a connection problem which was eventually traced to my own router which had decided to fail at this very time. Nonetheless, the Isomedia service folks tirelessly worked through this with me even after validating that the line and modem were ok. This support was way beyond what I would expect since we had already validated the purely DSL part of the connection as being fine. Bottom line: the service from pre-sales to support is exemplary and I would highly recommend them. Followup comments:
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ISOMEDIA
Sammamish,King,WA
$2342 per month (24 month contract)
about 53 days
"Great pre-sales support and all around communication"
"Process took a while and minor technical glitch right at the end"
"Affordable, scalable connection with great support"
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Qwest
