Full disclosure: I’ve owned Verizon stock since 2007. It was one of the original stocks I bought in my self-directed IRA after moving my 401k retirement balance from NSB.
A trend in market research is asking the question, “From 0 (unlikely) to 10 (likely), how likely are you to recommend Verizon FIOS to others?” My answer is 8. More on the significance of that answer later. The details of my experience follow:
When FIOS came to Stafford County in the early 2000s, I was one of the early adopters in my house in Hampton Oaks. My previous configuration was through Comcast for TV and a cable internet modem. For the six months I lived in Fredericksburg, I kept FIOS. Finally, in 2010, I moved to my current residence in South Stafford. With only 13 houses on my isolated street, I was surprised that FIOS was an option. I assume the main trunk runs down the railroad tracks across the creek from me. So, it was an easy jump-off.
Over time, the size of FIOS equipment has become smaller. Originally, there were large inside panels. Those devices were reduced in size to an outdoor interface with a large inside battery backup. Now, the outside interface is smaller, and the inside is compressed to a power supply. My current equipment dates to at least 2017.
My landline (what?) phone hooks to the outside interface through two-wire copper. Coax went from the outside interface to my router and TV set-top boxes. For 14 years, all was good.
Last October, I received a warning message on my TV. My current set-top boxes and maybe my router will be retired at the end of the year. I needed to call Verizon for replacements.
I called to find out when I needed the work done and if I could transfer the recorded programs on my DVR to the new devices. Since I did not own the recordings, a transfer was not possible.
At that point, I had over 100 episodes of The Simpsons that I had not watched. The oldest was pre-COVID 2020. I had recordings for three UVA sports championships. And I had a few other shows I had not watched.
I started going through The Simpsons, reliving COVID through the commercials. Toward the end of the year, the message changed to a specific end-of-April 2025 date for conversion. By February 20, I had finished viewing the last recording. On February 21, I called Verizon to find out what I needed to do. That day, the wait queue was 50 minutes. They allowed me to schedule a time for a 10:30 am call back the following day.
I received a call from Tasha on time. My request was to have the same configuration and programming. That is two standard-definition TVs, one with a DVR service that allows me to record two programs simultaneously. My programming includes basic stations and sports channels. I wanted to keep my landline. That’s where all the spam calls go. I had two hard-connected computers to my router and four wi-fi devices.
Our call lasted an hour. I had a triple-play option that no longer exists. Cable programming and landlines are a bit old-school. Tasha provided a new configuration with the same features at a reduced price. We scheduled the installation at 9 am on March 7. A tech was required for the installation as my outside unit might need to be replaced. He was expected to be on-site for 2 hours. As part of the installation, the tech was to take back all of the existing devices,
I use Verizon Wireless for my cell phone. Until my call with Tasha, I had two separate accounts on myverizon.com. We combined those into one account, and I received a discount.
I declined the autopay discount but jumped on the paperless billing option.
On February 23, I received a call from my contractor that they would start building my deck that week, expecting it to be completed in five days. That project is almost finished, so I’ll write their review for a March 22 posting. One last piece was the installation of a GFI receptacle. The electrician was scheduled to do that work at 8 am on March 7.
On the Verizon work estimate, there was a $99 technician charge. Tasha said, “Since we require the change, it will be waived.” I’m not holding my breath.
I was up and ready for the 8 am electrician, who was nowhere in sight. Around 8:15 am, I received a text from Verizon asking if the tech could arrive early. With no electrician in sight, I responded in the affirmative.
Around 8:45 am, the electrician arrived. We moved some furniture, and he got to work. The Verizon tech, Brian, arrived around 8:55 am.
I thought the Verizon changes included two new set-top boxes, a new router, and a modified outside unit. I didn’t envision any cabling changes. I was wrong.
I showed Brian my current configuration, and the first issue arrived. My router location was not convenient. The new router requires an ethernet cable from the outside unit. That ethernet cable would need to go through my crawl space, and Brian doesn’t do crawl spaces.
Next, the interface cable from the set-top boxes to the TVs is HDMI. The development of HDMI started in 2002, and its first commercial release was in 2003. I bought my 36-inch Sony tube TV in 2000. I purchased my second TV in 2006. The devices were incompatible. And Tasha only indicated one TV box on my order.
Brian had an extra set-top box and extender on his van. He could not tell me how much that would add to my bill. So, my monthly charge may no longer be reduced. We’ll find out.
In my mind, a simple box swap project turned into buying two new monitors. All programming is now high-def only. It may play on my TV, But it may not be great. Worse, the 36-inch Sony weighs 200 pounds. I would need to pay somebody to dispose of the devices, assuming they could be disposed of. Already cash-tight from my deck construction, I gave it an Oh well, I’ll figure it out.
My oldest daughter is the Director of Sustainability at Collegiate School in Richmond. Perhaps that is a good class project, “What to do with tube TVs?” If mine work, don’t throw them out. I still have my 1978 working Sony and three other tube devices in my garage. She’ll have to figure that out sometime in the future.
Brian confirmed the tightness of my crawl space, and we devised a configuration. The outside unit did not need to be changed. Below the power supply hole, we would run an ethernet cable from the outside unit to a router next to my main TV. An output from the router connects via wi-fi to my TV locations and via coax to a router extender next to my hard-wired computers. He also had adapters to convert HDMI cables to AB cable connectors.
My landline phone cable did not need to change as it’s connected directly to the outside box.
Another component in the configuration is a Video Media Server (VMS), the DVR piece. This device is connected to the router via coax.
It all sounded good. Brian went to his van to get all the parts. The electrician had completed his work. I moved the furniture back into place and the stuff out of the way for Brian.
We disconnected my old configuration devices, and Brian drilled the hole for the ethernet cable. Brian asked if Verizon had sent me boxes to return my devices. He wasn’t pleased when I told him that Tasha told me he would take them with him.
We installed the router first, then each TV, and finally the extender. The TV remotes use Bluetooth to control the set-top boxes and the TVs. Brian had to program each remote after connecting to a TV. As typical, each device required a software update that took time during the installation. That is the norm with our current tech: ship a version and look to the internet for updates.
While Brian was finishing up the extender installation, I connected my laptops, tablet, and cell phone to the new wi-fi network. The final piece was testing my desktops. The video quality on my TVs was acceptable. Some programs that used to have black bars at the top and bottom now use the entire video display, a feature of the new system logic.
Brian put all my old equipment in his bags. As he was leaving at 11:15, I asked if there was a channel with videos on how to use the equipment and remotes. There is no longer a channel. All of the user instructions are on myverizon.com. I wished he would have given me a card with a QR code for a specific URL.
I read a few emails, then made lunch in time for my daily noon online poker league game.
I played well. All my value bets were being called, and others were folding to my bluffs. Midway through the game, I surfed to myverizon.com to learn how to use my TV remotes.
The two current versions of Verizon cable are FIOS TV One and FIOS TV+. Nowhere on the order summary did it indicate which version I had installed. It took a while to determine it was FIOS TV+.
All the while, I was still in the poker tournament, and my deck contractor showed up to install step lights. I missed a few hands while talking with him. I thought he would have called for a final inspection for that afternoon. It’s not until Monday. He asked if I wanted to give him my final payment. I told him not until the county inspection is complete.
Down to the luck portion of the tournament, around 2:30, I went out in third place. The interruptions had me folding more hands than usual.
With fewer distractions, I went through the FIOS TV+ user documentation and putzed some with my main TV remote.
FIOS TV One is the current bleeding edge. I wonder when I will need to switch to that equipment.
A good result of the update is that the VMS can record five programs simultaneously. I can also access the content on the VMS from both TVs.
The remote does not have apparent pause, fast forward, or reverse buttons. I figured out the location of the latter two functions. I’m used to pausing the current program I’m watching. I’ve had this feature since my first TIVO in 2001. The workaround is to record the program I’m watching. Then, replay the recording. As part of the replay, going to live TV pauses the replay to resume later.
Another function I can’t repeat is manual recording. I’m used to specifying times, dates, channels, and repeat frequency. This method allows me to record an old show repeats but not all times of that show on any channel or time.
Later, I tried to use my Wi-Fi-based laser printer. It took a little work to finish that setup.
I’m still trying to find out if I can access FIOS TV+ and VMS on my desktop and laptop computers. That would be cool. It may be an app.
With the current marketing question, any 0, 1, 9, or 10 responses are ignored. The idea is nobody can be that perfect or crappy. The high and low numbers show a response bias. Thus, the best average score a company can get is 8.0. Most companies are happy when their score starts with a 7.
I still don’t know what my new monthly charge is. It was a $30 savings. I can see that going away.
Over the last year, I’ve received a call from Comcast asking me to change to Xfinity. It took at least three times for me to tell them I own Verizon stock, So it doesn’t make sense to jump ship.