WiFi
Sonic
Sonic Quick Reference. 1-855-757-6111, sonic.com/coming. PEG Sonic referral link, Sonic referral program rules. Check status tool for updates. Sonic speed test.
Sonic DNS 50.0.1.1 and 50.0.2.2. Sonic WAN on Asus router 157.131.205.25; 10.3.1.1; bobsroom. Netgear Nighthawk router (downstream AP) 10.3.1.100; router8.
Fusion Fiber, up to 10 Gigabits, symmetrical, $49.99 per month for residential without phone, $59.99 plus taxes per month for residential with phone; first two months free. Fusion Fiber for Business is ~$115 per month ($109.99 per month less 10% discount plus equipment rental plus taxes and fees for phone service).
Pre-ordered Fusion Fiber for Business service 2023/10/31 from Diego, 707-522-1000. He quoted $109.99 per month (including equipment rental) plus city tax, first month free, and said that the service included static IP addresses. (2024/04/02 call to Edith at Tech Support determined that static IP is only included with the much more expensive Enterprise Fiber service. Provided recommendations for third party static IPs.) Build out in Alameda West End is in process; already live near Estuary.
Nam performed the installation 2024/03/24.
Comcast
Comcast Xfinity business service month to month; March 2024 $157.95 with autopay. Cancelled service 2024/03/26 by calling 800-391-3000, requesting service cancellation, and then by signing the VDR via DocuSign. Comcast charged for 30 days after the date of cancellation – $189.
Internet Comparison
Business vs. residential plans – business costs more but (usually) offers better support, service guarantees (unless it’s Comcast), and static IP.
- Sonic, Sonic Fiber Internet: 10 Gbits for $49.99/mon residential, 1Gbps for $99.99/mon business; unlimited, uncapped symmetric speeds, no contract, free installation; new fiber customers get 3 months free and free WiFi equipment; EFF Privacy Protection Score of 5 (5 highest). Review 1. Review 2.
- Comcast: download 87.5Mbps, upload 9.6Mbps; EFF Privacy Protection Score of 1 (5 highest).
- AT&T, AT&T Fiber, ActiveArmor, All-Fi: 300Mbps for $55/mon; EFF Privacy Protection Score of 1 (5 highest).
Router and WiFi Notes
10G fiber needs high speed switch and an upstream router (Router mode) that’s at least 802.11ax (WiFi-6) capable. The downstream routers (AP mode) can be slower, 802.11n (WiFi-4). On each router the 2.4 and 5GHz SSIDs should be different. (If the SSIDs are the same on a router, then the router assigns a wireless connection to the appropriate speed wireless. However, this means that a non-stationary device like a smartphone may cycle between the two speeds of wireless. Also, the performance of faster devices is improved if the IoT devices such as the Arlo porch camera and the Flume water flow meter are fixed to the 2.4GHz wireless. The 5GHz is faster and less subject to interference from devices such as the LG microwave (even when a 2.4GHz is set to channel 11 (at the top of the 2.4GHz channel range) devices connecting through that wireless drop when near a running microwave), but the 2.4GHz has greater range and is less impacted by building structures. The DMZ gateway IP Address, DHCP server, and PAT reside on the upstream router.
Netgear AX5400 Nighthawk (RAX50) vs Asus RT-N66U.
Tri-band vs quad-band and data on various levels of performance based on protocol and antennas.
Phone
- Ooma VoIP and connected to old landlines with answering machine (Ooma console) for 510-769-7252.
- PEG Verizon for iPhone.
- Bob AT&T for cell phones and two hotspots.
Hosting
DreamCompute billing. Dream Host uses SFTP and MySQL. A .com domain name is $17.99 annually.