First off, I want to say that I like the apartment that I'm living in but this review is only regarding their cable and internet:

You cannot get any third-party cable provider (WOW, Comcast, etc.) because they have their own cable company, ACR. There are no digital channels, no pay-per-view and no HD channels. The only HD channels I get are the local OTA channels through my antenna. I cannot believe that this expensive complex is not up to speed with current technology. Not even digital channels'!' That's just terrible. If you need a DVR then you'll have to spend at least 250 dollars on a Tivo. They tell me that no one has really complained about the cable here, which to me is hard to believe. If you REALLY want HD channels, then you can get satellite which will cost you 500 bucks for the deposit, which is extremely steep. 200-250 I can understand, but 500 dollars' Seems like they really want you to use their crap cable. This is what their website states:

"ACR provides crystal clear analog and digital cable to all the homes in our apartment community. We have local and nationwide channels along with many Pay-Per-View options." Crystal clear...false...the picture and sound on some of the channels is not good at all, even by analog standards. Digital...False. No digital options yet, but I'm curious to see how they'll handle the 2009 change. Pay-Per-View options...as far as I know there is no pay-per-view here. I'm assuming they're talking about the premium channels (HBO, Showtime, etc.)

Now let's move on to the high-speed internet. As with the cable tv, you cannot have any third-party provider. It's basically a T1 line that runs through each apartment in each building. I've done speed tests here and the highest download speed I've gotten is 1.5mbps, at 4am. You can get the same speed with much cheaper DSL. A lot of times when I download a file, the speed will drop to below 56kbps, which just boggles the mind. Downloading a one-hour show from Tivo can take around 5 hours sometimes. If I download an HD movie on my Xbox 360, it'll take anywhere from 18-36 hours.

All of us residents that want digital cable, HD and faster internet need to take a stand and let management know that giving us bad quality cable and slow internet is not acceptable. The FCC just recently passed a bill that does not allow apartment complexes to have exclusive deals with specific cable companies. I hope that they realize this.

User Responses
From: Anonymous	Date: 08/23/2008
I've just moved in a while ago. And I can agree with this review, the cable internet needs much improvement. I moved from the countryside where my internet was 5x faster than what they have here. And this is the city! I'm sure everyone in Beacon Hill is ready for an improvement in cable internet and TV.
From: Anonymous	Date: 08/26/2008
Comcast flags still there! I'm crossing my fingers!
From: kcotton586	Date: 02/04/2009
I agree with this review I just recently moved here and I am very disappointed in the Cable and internet services. Their cable company is horrible I really regret moving here because of this I am going to have to pay a deposit for diect tv or dish to have the services that I want.
From: familyguy74	Date: 03/21/2009
I fully agree with this post. THe Cable and INternet is the worst that I have experienced. I had to call the Cable guys almost every month to resolve some or the other issue. Have to restart the modem every now and then. Download speed is absolutely slow. Bought a HD tV but cant experience it as these guys dont transmit HD.

Your thoughts? Post a response to this review. Display my response: with my username anonymously Responses appear below reviews and one response per user is permitted.

   Free estimates on moving trucks      Find apartment share/roommates