Cellphones & Internet -New in Cuernavaca - Just moved from D.F.

[Vortexijah]

Greetings All!

I have moved to Cuernavaca. I like the slower pace and natural surroundings here in Cuernavaca. I like my new apartment very much.

I have never really had a good understanding of the cellphone situation here in Mexico. But now I find myself with a cellphone my wife gave me from D.F., and it costs a fortune to make calls with it here in Cuernavaca.

On top of that, in spite of my landlord´s promises about having wi-fi in the apartment, it just is not working out. I have to get a DSL line and modem into my apartment ASAP. This internet cafe stuff really doesn´t cut it for me.

Please can someone give me the low down on the best cellphone and best internet services here in Cuernavaca. I know there are bundles with cable TV, but the apartment already has Cablemas and it works fine. And I´ve heard to beware of these bundle deals . . . that the price shoots way up after the introductory 6 or 12 months.

Anyway, I am told I need to buy a new cellphone. Is that correct? And I was told that I need a Cuernavaca plan. I do make calls to the U.S. Maybe I call 5 times a month, no more, usually to talk to some customer service or something like that. I do not spend much time on the phone to the U.S. My main concern is to be able to maked and receive calls from people here in Cuernavaca, and to have the phone for emergencies.

The DSL service I am told is unpredictable. I am told that the companies say that their service is fast, but then when you actually check it, it is not that fast. I had that experience in D.F. But in my apartment I could directly hook up to the modem - I won´t need wifi. I spend most of my day on the computer, so I need a reliable and good company.

Thanks for all your help, time and suggestions with these issues.

All the best to everyone,
Vortexjiah

[RVGRINGO]

If you have TELCEL, for example, there are plans where you get a reduced rate for a certain number of 'amigos' and even three other friends for free, if the call is less than 5 minutes. You have to explore these options, probably in Spanish, and ask for them specifically; providing the appropriate numbers for your friends.
DSL can vary by area, and by provider; Telmex or the local cable company, etc. The USA is much slower than Europe or Asia and Mexico is even slower. You'll have to adapt.
For calls to the USA, etc. I suggest a VOIP service; definitely not a cell phone. However, Telmex does have a plan that includes national long distance as well as calls to the USA or Canada. If you make enough of those calls, it might justify the added monthly expense. Inquire at the Telmex office.

[TundraGreen]

Originally Posted by Vortexijah

··· Please can someone give me the low down on the best cellphone and best internet services here in Cuernavaca. ···

You can buy a sim card for the phone that will give you a Cuernavaca number and local cell service in Cuernavaca. For calls to the US, I suggest using Skype or another voice-over-internet-protocol (VOIP). Regarding, DSL, I am not in Cuernavaca, but in Guadalajara, the cable system, MegaCable, provides faster internet service. I saw an article dated about a year ago stating that Telmex is spending money to upgrade its service to be more competitive with MegaCable. A downside of either system is that you always seem to have to pay for services you may not want. I pay for cable TV along with my internet connection, even though I don't own a TV.

[Isla Verde]

Originally Posted by TundraGreen

. . . Telmex is spending money to upgrade its service to be more competitive with MegaCable. A downside of either system is that you always seem to have to pay for services you may not want. I pay for cable TV along with my internet connection, even though I don't own a TV.

Not true for me in Mexico City. My Telmex plan covers my internet service and landline phone only, which is great since, like TundraGreen, I don't own a TV.

[TundraGreen]

Originally Posted by Isla Verde

Not true for me in Mexico City. My Telmex plan covers my internet service and landline phone only, which is great since, like TundraGreen, I don't own a TV.

On the contrary, you are confirming what I said. I don't believe you can subscribe to internet from Telmex without paying for a phone line as well. You may want both, but it is not possible for someone to only get internet, at least as far as I know.

[Isla Verde]

Originally Posted by TundraGreen

On the contrary, you are confirming what I said. I don't believe you can subscribe to internet from Telmex without paying for a phone line as well. You may want both, but it is not possible for someone to only get internet, at least as far as I know.

That's possible, but since I already had a phone line in my apartment, that wasn't an issue for me. In the post of yours that I was referring to, you just mentioned paying for a cable connection that you didn't need since you don't have a TV. You said nothing about needing to pay for a phone line in order to get cable.

[joaquinx]

Originally Posted by TundraGreen

A downside of either system is that you always seem to have to pay for services you may not want. I pay for cable TV along with my internet connection, even though I don't own a TV.

Since the Internet and TV service comes on the same cable, there is no way to segregate the services. TV service doesn't require a modem while the Internet service does. You can order TV service and not get Internet, but not the reverse. Years ago, you could buy Internet service from MegaCable and get TV service free. They know better now.

[TundraGreen]

Originally Posted by joaquinx

Since the Internet and TV service comes on the same cable, there is no way to segregate the services. TV service doesn't require a modem while the Internet service does. You can order TV service and not get Internet, but not the reverse. Years ago, you could buy Internet service from MegaCable and get TV service free. They know better now.

I am missing something. Are you saying that they don't have control over what comes over the cable. They control which channels you receive so why can't they set you up so you receive no channels. I suspect it is some combination of lack of demand for internet only or a marketing decision. I was in the same situation with Comcast in the US. I had to pay for basic cable even though I didn't own a TV set. Maybe the system was designed so there is no way to shut off basic cable. Again probably because 99.9% of the customers want TV.

[joaquinx]

Originally Posted by TundraGreen

I am missing something. Are you saying that they don't have control over what comes over the cable.

MegaCable and other providers (US too) offer a Basic TV service that doesn't require a modem. You just plug the cable into the TV and you have service. You can split the cable and run a line to you neighbor if you wish. Internet service and Premium TV service requires a modem to decode the signal. They can cut you off buy sending a signal to the modem to disable it. Bottom line, Basic TV service is on the cable and the only way to cut you off is to remove the cable.

[TundraGreen]

Originally Posted by joaquinx

MegaCable and other providers (US too) offer a Basic TV service that doesn't require a modem. You just plug the cable into the TV and you have service. You can split the cable and run a line to you neighbor if you wish. Internet service and Premium TV service requires a modem to decode the signal. They can cut you off buy sending a signal to the modem to disable it. Bottom line, Basic TV service is on the cable and the only way to cut you off is to remove the cable.

Ah, now it all becomes clear. I didn't know there was a difference in the equipment between basic cable and premium service. Thanks. The last time I had a TV it had a rabbit ears antenna.