Personally I would just go for the internet and scrap cable. You can download/stream most of the stuff you wanna watch.

BTW it might be a good idea to downgrade your internet plan to a 60GB limit. Take a look at this link: http://www.cogeco.ca/cable/on/en/res...ackages.htm l

It says that max overuse charge you will receive is $30 compared to the $50 on the 125GB plan. I'm not sure if they start to throttle you after you hit $30 though....

Your hydro bill is wayyy too high. And yes its every 2 months not 3.
How many fridges are you running? Is someone running separate college fridges or freezers? They suck alot of energy for their size. Definitely only have one fridge going, maybe two full size ones if needed for 7 people (4 to one, 3 + overload to the other). Do you have on-site laundry with a gas drier? That's the only reason I can see you having huge gas bills unless you are cranking the furnace all winter... Cable you are overpaying, I pay 80 for extended cable and top tier internet through Cogeco. But how many connections are you paying for? Because you could get up that high if say each bedroom had a connection that was done legitimately instead of just tapping off the main service yourself... I would say make sure you have one central feed and a wireless router, eliminate atleast the extended cable and go to the lower speed of internet. That should reduce your bills significantly for cable.
Turn the lights off when you leave the room (duh) and don't leave appliances like TV's or stereos (real stereos, don't worry about dinky ipod speakers) running aimlessly. Don't do excessive laundry, its not cheap. You are paying elec for the washer and gas for the drier, or elec for the drier. In the summer keep your place like 20 degrees or more, don't go for the 16 degree air conditioner blasts.
The other reason you probably have so high a bill for hydro is cooking. You have seven people, which are probably cooking for themselves. That means seven times the microwave or oven usage that a normal person would have. That's not cheap either. Why not cook meals together if you don't already? You'll save on groceries, time and bills...

Anyway good luck.

Originally Posted by khaotic

Personally I would just go for the internet and scrap cable. You can download/stream most of the stuff you wanna watch.

BTW it might be a good idea to downgrade your internet plan to a 60GB limit. Take a look at this link: http://www.cogeco.ca/cable/on/en/res...ackages.htm l

It says that max overuse charge you will receive is $30 compared to the $50 on the 125GB plan. I'm not sure if they start to throttle you after you hit $30 though....

That's what we do. I don't notice if they throttle us at all. It saves money in the summer too. Of course though you have to deal with a monthly call from cogeco asking you if you want to upgrade.

Eh, I have Cogeco, and it's annoying as hell.

I have the 60 GB/month - such an annoying cap. But the other ones are way too expensive for mainly one guy using the internet.
Internet in general is annoyingly expensive in Canada, so unless you want a relatively low or average speed you're going to be paying a somewhat large amount monthly.

But I would definitely say the cable is useless.

Acanac is terrible. No not recommend them at all. Customer Service and problem resolution is (n)

Sucks to hear. My Acanac has been running without problems (knock on wood) since last summer. Let's hope it stays that way...

Originally Posted by kldv

Note dry-loop (no phone) is another $8, plus taxes (about $1.75)
Still the cheapest at: ~$35

Acanac: $35 (including static-ip [for those wanting to access a server at home])
Velcom: $41 ($2 for static-ip)
TekSaavy: $41 ($3 for static-ip and 200GB limit)


How is the customer service with Acanac?
Do they do any throttling?
Also: "the promo is only available for the first year."
After the first year the cost for Acanac rises to $39.95 a month plus dry-loop cost, plus tax
Velcom and TekSaavy has a set price.

What does "Dry-loop" mean? What is it for? Why would I want it?
And what about static IP versus dynamic IP, why is one better?
Thanks

Dry-loop means you don't have an existing phone line. It costs more because the company has to activate it in order to provide internet. So if you don't have an active phone line you will need to get dry-loop.

As for static IP versus dynamic IP, static means you always use the same IP where as dynamic IP means that when you reconnect you will probably be using a different IP. (I think that's what it means anyways). I'm not certaint of the advantages, but I don't think you need a static IP unless you are a business.

Originally Posted by Melanieee

What does "Dry-loop" mean? What is it for? Why would I want it?
And what about static IP versus dynamic IP, why is one better?
Thanks

Originally Posted by jhan523

Dry-loop means you don't have an existing phone line. It costs more because the company has to activate it in order to provide internet. So if you don't have an active phone line you will need to get dry-loop.

As for static IP versus dynamic IP, static means you always use the same IP where as dynamic IP means that when you reconnect you will probably be using a different IP. (I think that's what it means anyways). I'm not certaint of the advantages, but I don't think you need a static IP unless you are a business.

Thanks!
But I'm not sure I understand that dry-loop thing. My housemates and I were planning on NOT getting a landline housephone and just using our own cellphones instead. But Im sure the house is physically set up to have a house phone, we just wont be ordering a service for it. Does that still mean I need a dry-loop?
For Teksavvy's 29.95 dry loop package it says "+ Band Rate" that doesn't sound like any fun at all.

In that case, you would need dry-loop.

Originally Posted by temptingf8

In that case, you would need dry-loop.

Yep, also you can figure out how much bandrate you have to pay by calling. I forgot the reason for the bandrate but you can also ask that.

With 6 people, each who likes to download movies, isn't 5Mbps a little slow? IF everyone is downloading, or even if one person is downloading, the others are going to be annoyed with the slow internet.

The other question is, in Westdale, isn't Cogeco the only option? I called TekSavvy a while back and they said they aren't available in the area. Specifically on Newton.

Originally Posted by blackdragon

Acanac is terrible. No not recommend them at all. Customer Service and problem resolution is (n)

Hmm, my friends all used them when I was living around Mac. They loved them and had no problems, said service was good and the speed was consistent. Maybe it's cause of where you live? Not sure.

I personally used Cogeco when we were living in our student house. They definitelly throddle your bandwidth... my household downloaded and played games, and all of a sudden we go from amazing fast service to painfully slow service. I call them up and complain, and then the lady on the phone goes ok.. try now.. and almost a minute later it's back fast again. Whats up with that? Clearly at the press of a button we're back up and running. Coinsidence? I think not. They also increase the cost of our TV and Internet bills over time without any warning... just magically they go up like $2-5 and we're all having to pitch in more money. They claimed it was a promotional deal we signed at the start, but then why was it incrementally increasing every few months? Should have only increased once this 'promo' ended. Anyways... </rant>

Know why cogeco sucks?
Cuz they're related to bell. :(

Get out of the 7 person house if you don't want to pay high bills. Hydro and gas have different prices for the amounts you use. I was in a 7 person house and the bills were getting ridiculous. I ended up getting a apartment, the rent was a little more but it ended out being cheaper than living in the house once you factored in the utilities. Plus you get your own space!