What is a TWC loop?

[sk1927]

I recently had some AT&T reps in my neighborhood going door to door promoting AT&T TV and Internet services.  Once I mentioned I was a TWC customer, the first thing they mentioned was 'did you know you are on a loop in your neighborhood?'

Is this a good thing or bad thing to have when it comes to Internet and Cable?

They also promoted their new fiber installation in the area where I live which is in West Allis (HWY 100 & Lincoln Av).  

Does any one know if switching to UVerse Internet and/or TV will be a big improvement over staying with TWC cable and internet service?

[LoadStar]

Does any one know if switching to UVerse Internet and/or TV will be a big improvement over staying with TWC cable and internet service?

IMO: Uverse is a net decrease compared to Time Warner Cable. Their internet speeds are slower, for one. Video quality is good, but slightly worse with Uverse than with Time Warner Cable. You're also limited in the number of video streams you can have coming into your premises.

And for me, the biggie: you can't use a TiVo with Uverse.

[klwillis45]

I switched to Uverse back before TWC had NFL Network & I still have no interest in returning.

TWC's terrible boxes & software drove me over the edge.

Uverse does have some limitations but they don't really affect me.

I can stream in HD & online game with no problem.

I don't watch TV live except for sports & there are a decent number of west coast feeds & a ton of cable show re-airs so the stream limit is rarely a problem.

HD picture quality seems good to me.

I check TWC every so often to see if they can recreate what I have with AT&T for a much better price. Nope. Their prices for their crappy hardware ruin all the "deals".

[techguy1975]

I recently had some AT&T reps in my neighborhood going door to door promoting AT&T TV and Internet services.  Once I mentioned I was a TWC customer, the first thing they mentioned was 'did you know you are on a loop in your neighborhood?'

Is this a good thing or bad thing to have when it comes to Internet and Cable?

The "loop" they are referring to is the node on TW's network.  All users in a given area are on a node, and share the speed available to that node.  While you may pay for a given speed, say 50/10, you are not guaranteed that speed.  It may be more, or may be less depending on other traffic on that node at that time.  

In my opinion, it's neither good nor a bad thing...It just is.  I believe Uverse actually uses a similar setup, since their service is fed out by area nodes as well.  If this is true, their claim is meaningless.

Now, if AT&T is doing Fiber to the Home, that is a game changer.  Google Fiber is coming to where I am in Nashville (as long as the city approves it, which looks like a done deal), AT&T has also talked about doing that.  Pretty hard to beat a 1gbps connection.

[sk1927]

Hi Bob, thanks for the info.  AT&T is NOT running fiber to the home in our location.  They will be running their standard copper phone wiring from the home to their 'Brown Box' where the fiber connections are.