Rating :
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Pros:
reliable and big name
Crons:
outrageous billing!
Additional Comments:
For years I used Earthlink's dial-up service, until DSL was available in my area. I did not hesitate to switch over. I had this service for the better part of three years with no interruptions, or problems. I recently moved to the Northern Virginia area (from Boston) and brought my service with me. The installation went very smoothly, and I had a solid connection for months.
The real nightmare began when I was looking at my bill and wanted a breakdown of what the various costs were. I contacted the live online chat, and asked my questions. When asked to explain the bill, the online tech proceeded to offer me the exact same service I had, rather than answer my questions. He then proceeded to respond with all the various services that Earthlink had to offer.
Again, that was nowhere near what I asked for. I did happen to notice a plan for the 3MB/sec speed upgrade, though, and inquired about that. After hearing the details, I decided to opt into that service. I was told that it would take a few days for the change to take place, and I ended the chat session with the service rep.
The time they had said it would have taken came and went, and when I woke up the next day, my service was gone. I could not connect. I called them up, and did not get any immediate answers from the techs. They placed a trouble ticket, and sent me on my way, explaining that this was an issue with their vendor, not them. Told me I should call back the next day for an update.
The next day was yesterday. (A week has passed since my service went down) I called again, and they had absolutely no answers for me. Told me to call back tomorrow for an update, but not before the tech proceeded to start listing off the details of the pop-up blocker, as if I had actually asked for it. I decided that I had enough, so I called back and VERY politely asked to speak to a supervisor. The first person I talked to proceeded to get standoff-ish at my request, but transferred me...to the exact same support line, and another tech who refused to listen to me when I said that I was attempting to reach a supervisor.
This went on literally eight times, despite numerous requests to speak to a supervisor. I finally lost my nerve on the 8th call (TWO hours on the phone by this point) and decided that if I did not get any answers, I would leave this service.
I'd safely wager my calls later on will be no better than the ones I've had. I have no idea why a solid service suddenly stops and why nobody has so much as a clue as to what is happening.
As of right now, I am checking through this site for a better provider, who hopefully can offer competent help when something goes wrong.
It was infuriating to attempt to talk to someone who not only is not listening to you, but does not understand you. I regret not heeding the advice of many people I know who have dropped this service because of just that reason.
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