"LOOK" ISP

[brockway]

I'm thinking of changing my Dial-uP ISP (lots of busy signals, disconnects by remote, etc,) and I'm thinking of LOOK (Toronto, Canada area).

You can bundle Internet with TV service to save money (I'm also p*ss*d at my cable company). This is a fairly new provider and this is all I know...

Downloads are by microwave antenna (1.5 MBytes/sec claimed) / uploads are by phone line. They have applied to CRTC to have 2-way microwave traffic.
The service is fairly new (they claim 35000 subscribers in southern Ontario since summer.

Can anyone comment on this service?
Anyone have something similar (wherever you are)? Comments?

[brockway]

Anyone?

How about general comments on this i.e. download by antenna and upload (i.e.Web Page requests)is by modem?
How much faster that normal dial-up should this be?

[wyvrn]

Your uploads will be maxed at 33.6, or roughly 4-6k depending on your phone lines. Your download can go much higher, depending on the microwave provider. Plus you will use the phone line for you upload requests (sending email, uploading files, requesting web pages, etc...). Satellite connectivity with Hughes (DirecTV and internet provider) offers a similar arrangement. Personally, depending on cost differences, I would go with the Satellite connection because Satelite TV is less succeptible to interference than land based communications, excepting major storms of course. If you use the connection mostly for browsing web pages, email, and downloads, then this is a great way to get broadband IMO. But if you want to upload files to freedrive or to email to someone, then it is going to be as slow as your regular modem.