FIOS Review

A few months ago I switched from Comcast cable to Verizon FIOS.
Comcast service was not bad, but their prices kept rising as various promotional periods expired. At the end it was $151 for phone, Internet, and premium TV, no pay channels.
What put it over for me was when I found out they were supporters of the Heartland Institute, who said, "[Ted Kaczynski, the Unibomber] believes in global warming. Do you?" I don't have a problem with people who disagree with me until they start acting like that.
About that time, a door-to-door rep from Verizon came around. I knew that the pricing he gave me was the same as online, so I signed up. I am sure he got a commission out of it. I don't remember the details of the price quote. The deal was different if you want a no-contract plan. They give you some free installation and a little off each month if you commit to 2 years. That is fair enough when you look at the equipment they put in.
The Price
But beware the monthly price quote: It does not include the DVR, but just a simple set-top box. It also is based on a basic set of channels, and you will have to pay for the Premium package. My bill is now $134. It is cheaper but not by much.
The Service
Internet speed is somewhat faster according to tests but I don't see much difference on web pages loading. Maybe I got used to it, but mostly I think the delays are on the server end, especially with ads loading. Maybe it is my aging computers. I do see better performance on streaming video, but I don't do that often.
    TV reception is much better. I used to have DirecTV, and I would lose reception five minutes before a bad storm, as the first heavy rain blocked the signal. It usually cleared up as the storm arrived. With Comcast, I would lose quality of signal at random times, usually at the punch line of a joke. It happened almost every day, for a minute or two. I could have called for service, but it would have been ok when they came. With FIOS, I never have a bad signal.
    Phone service is odd. There is a delay when you pick up the phone to dial, and you must always dial the area code, even for local calls.  They brag about their sound quality, but I guess you have to be talking to another FIOS user, because I have not heard any change. I only have it because the bundle price makes it cheaper to have it than not have it. The phone is unplugged from the election season.
Installation
Verizon called and texted to confirm the appointment, and he arrived on time. It took less time than planned, and he did more than I expected. He added an outlet upstairs. I had to pay for installation but the set-top box is free. It can play shows recorded on the DVR. He tied in the phone service to the home phone wiring. (With Comcast, I had to plug the phone into their box.)
He attached a box to the outside of the house. He drilled a hole and installed a box on the inside. That box is plugged into an AC outlet. It has a backup battery for short outages.

Outside FIOS box

Inside FIOS box

    He laid the fiber optic cable on the ground to the pole, and he said they would come out to bury it "next week."
     Later that week, someone came and checked for buried utilities, and marked the ground with spray paint. The contractor that buried the cable came a little over a week later, and they did install a cable in the ground. The machine cuts a groove and puts the cable in it. They ran the cable through my neighbor's yard at the back, and left pieces of root sticking up. I could have called, but it took less time to fix it than to wait on hold. The path of the cable is no longer visible.
    They did not connect the new cable, and the original fiber optic cable was still on the ground for another week.  I called and the next day a supervisor came out and took care of it. He also (at my request) removed the old land-line phone wire that ran across my yard. It was a very long run, and it was attached to a tree. This will make it easier to trim branches.
Altogether it was more trouble than cable or satellite, but not that bad.
A DirecTV sales guy in Best Buy suggested another way to save money: Just get Internet from cable or FIOS, and get TV from them. Skip the phone and use the cell. I may do that later.