Ok, They're a Monopoly, but They're a *Nice* Monopoly.
Written: Mar 06 '01 (Updated Mar 10 '01)
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Pros: Two words: Digital Cable
Cons: None, really
The Bottom Line: I would recommend Cox to anyone who desires a high-quality cable service, especially if that person is a fan of foreign/indie movies or enjoys nature and science documentaries.
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| imbrium's Full Review: Cox |
San Diego is a town divided - divided by two local cable monopolies: Southwestern Cable and Cox Cable. They split San Diego roughly down the middle. You don't have a choice of local cable providers, unless you feel like moving. In my area, there were basically three choices: Cox, satellite or rabbit ears. I went with Cox and was quickly impressed by their service and features. I am now quite happy that I live in their service area.
When I first signed up for Cox several years ago, I had just visited a cousin who had a very nice satellite setup. I was looking for an equivalent package, so I had a pretty picky set of requirements when I signed up for Cox:
1. Foreign/Indie film channels
2. On-screen guide
3. Good assortment of news channels
4. Tons of nature shows and art-related channels
My four requirements were met and exceeded.
So, what do you get for $50 a month?
I have the full digital cable package with the full lineup of regular and digital cable channels. I'll point out a few highlights for those who are debating about signing up for Cox:
1. Independent Film Channel and Sundance Channel (yay!). My cousin with the satellite dish practically cried with jealousy when she learned these two channels are included in my digital cable package.
2. An excellent on-screen guide that shows the schedule for the next seven days. It also gives a short plot summary . For movies, it gives a quality rating (0-4 stars), the year of release and the names the two main actors.
3. "VCR Commander" uses your VCR to record programs selected from the channel guide. It even turns your VCR on and off.
4. A nice selection of nature/science related channels, including several topic-specific Discovery channels (Discovery Wings, Discovery Health, Discovery Kids, Discovery Civilization and Discovery Science). I also get Animal Planet, the Learning Channel and the History Channel.
5. BBC America - it does have commercials, unfortunately, but they show many good British comedies - Fawlty Towers, Red Dwarf and so on. Also has the British news which I find to be a good source of hard news with a different slant than most American news channels.
6. Multiple premium movie channels - HBO (9 channels), Showtime (6 channels), Cinemax (6 channels) and Starz (6 channels). These cost extra, of course.
7. Topic-specific Encore channels, including Encore Westerns, Encore Love Stories, Encore Action, Encore True Stories and Encore Mysteries. These come with the digital cable movie package.
8. Lots of sports channels. I don't believe I've ever once watched any of these channels, but I'm sure they would appeal to sports fans.
9. Digital pay-per-view - I can order a movie with a couple of button pushes on the remote.
Customer Service: I've had nothing but positive interactions with Cox employees. Everyone I've dealt with at Cox has been very prompt, friendly and customer-service oriented.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 50/month
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Epinions.com ID:
imbrium
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Member: Deborah Flores
Location: San Diego, CA
Reviews written: 14
Trusted by: 2 members
About Me:
I love reading, languages and zoology. So many interests, so little time.
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