Armstrong Internet → Fiber going live: more progress made on the Boardman system

Well once I'm able to, I'm switching to AT&T. Even their cable internet prices are going up.

Me too, unfortunately, Armstrong really hit a sweet spot by allowing 1gbps at just under $70/month, now they won't do it. I get it, but as a consumer I'll be switching to AT&T for better pricing and peering. If you have existing AT&T mobile or sign-up for it, you get $20 off fiber plans per month. Rack rate $80 for 1 gig, $60 with mobile.

I would also argue that since AT&T's Corning PFPs are shared at a smaller scale (about 230 connections) and then backhauled to the CO, there's likely an advantage there as well as opposed to the stations Armstrong uses and shares with more customers probably in the thousands or even tens of thousands. Armstrong is still doing a lot of conversions from HFC, so we may not be noticing what may become a capacity conflict. I feel like issues may arise as such since this was such a rapid buildout.

I know enough to not care if I get "local" support or someone overseas, I don't need support unless I determine a tech roll is necessary such as when I had RF issues on HFC. In fact, Armstrong has cut back on their technicians and rely on 3rd party technicians, since they're not CWA. I've heard stories about these folks, often come in smelling like smoke, getting someone sick, or some other slop. I was lucky and had a younger kid who seemed to really take his job seriously, presented himself well, and cared to make a clean install. This is luck of the draw though. Armstrong had to come around and redo a solid 50% of the originally buried drops in our development. CWA rules actually force AT&T to send out a CWA technician. I like being able to plug the ONT directly to my router, but the AT&T gateway bypass is easy.

Edit to include new postcard. Screams please, don't leave me, look at all I've done for you lol. I am also trying to see if I can get some sort of map generated so we can better track the Boardman deployment. I'd almost like to get AT&T's as well to track and compare deployment in the area. The broadband now map is terribly behind.

Yep I got that post card the other day too. Was hoping it was to sign up for fiber but nope.

We just moved our homeowner's association pool/clubhouse from Armstrong to the local fiber provider. With Armstrong, it was a commercial account, more expensive for similar speeds to residential, and an automatically renewing 3-year contract (unless written cancellation notice provided 60 days prior to it renewing).

More speed, less money, and no contract? Armstrong really thinks that their crap doesn't stink.

Glad to hear that things are still moving in Y-town. Competition is a good thing (for us at least )!

I was in your neck of the woods Saturday. Passed through on way to Brunswick. Took kids to Scene 75. Checked out the infrastructure and noticed the Medina fiber right along with Armstrong, it's definitely refreshing to see.

Scene 75. Good time for the kids and parents..... (except for the wallet)

The last year or two it has been very busy in the Medina area with respect to fiber installation. I work in Wadsworth and this past summer most of the roads between Wadsworth and Medina were getting conduit installed. I think they are offering service in various spots there now. The local fiber provider has been very busy.....

I'm seeing a ton of new construction along 224 and Mahoning Ave. They dug the trench near my house and the conduit is in, but nothing has been done there for over a month.

Is that the blue and orange conduit? I believe that is high capacity long haul for AT&T. It appears they are burying this along main routes in the area. I am also seeing it near the AT&T building on Phelps St. by YSU which leads me to that suspicion. I notice what you're seeing on Mahoning Ave. It also continues up 46 through Austintown, Weathersfield, and into Niles. I have seen this running through downtown, 422, Belmont Ave, and a few others. Seems to be AT&T linking new high capacity fiber from downtown to COs, this work looks to be done by Team Fishel. I did see an AT&T engineering crew working with them on 46 a few months back. This may be the next phase in AT&T's construction to gradually get the rest of the area turned over to fiber.

I have Armstrong fiber here in McDonald. I just have their $34.95 plan though, I don't need any more speed than the basic and I do work from home. Some McDonald residents have AT&T fiber already, I'll probably switch when I can get it.

We are practically neighbors. I'm just off 4 mile and county line in country meadows. It is literally all around us in surrounding developments, just waiting for another pfp i guess. I've got relatives on Wildwood by you that have had att fiber longer than Armstrong fiber. They switched in November of 2022 when they were still on Docsis.

Yeah it's the orange and blue. Hoping to see more activity soon on Shields.

This is what we've been seeing. This picture is outside the Att building on Phelps. There was a wave of this early 2022 and another wave that started in December. Armstrong is a bit ahead at this time, I wonder if a second att wave will hit after this. Time will tell, still trying to figure out a map to visualize all of this. There's outlying Armstrong areas that are still underway. It is a continued race. Many areas get Armstrong turned up before Att and vice versa.

That's cool. I'm sure we will see more construction as the weather gets nicer as well. I haven't seen Armstrong out my way yet. Although I'm not sure who they are using as a contractor.

It's the typical battle of the lowest bidder, I have seen it rotate around over the course of these 2 years using the 811 app. Copy paste the URL into your favorite web browser, get coordinates for Google maps to get a better scope n the area, the app is limited to like a mile.

Right now For Armstrong, it appears to be Jay's underground services. For AT&T, it is Custom Ulticom and South Shore. Fishel seems to be handling whatever the buried backhaul is, presumably AT&T but again I don't have official confirmation on that. The only curveball would be if it's for the Eastgate project, but again I have seen AT&T engineers working with this crew and seems to tie in with the main AT&T building on Phelps.

One thing with Armstrong I found interesting, the closer I drive to the North Lima office the least upgrade I see. I had to take a trip down to Western Reserve rd on Wednesday and I noticed down Tippecanoe it's still plain old coax between 224 and Western Reserve road. 224 is also looking behind. Almost like they're working furthest out reach southward starting with Weathersfield township (Mineral Ridge and McDonald), down to Austintown, and finally down to the areas around the headend.

Armstrong playing dirty in this area, "we haven't raised our internet rate in years" but in reality, we baited everyone with a promo last year and now it's going up to rack rate a solid $20-$30 more. We rotate promos so we can raise rates without raising rates.

Armstrong, At&t, and Comcast are all at war putting in fiber in Poland. That is insane. This is Comcast coming into my sister's development.

How can you tell which ISP is which? I'm seeing a bunch of coiled up line around my area too.

811 ticket. Also, if you look closely, it's on its own section of the pole. It's also coming up out of the south up 170 from New Middletown in that angle. That is at the corner of their development which outlets to 170. Comcast is expanding north from New Middletown and Columbiana into Poland, Boardman, and North Lima. Expansion planned from Poland into Struthers as well.

Armstrong overlays their coax as does Att overlay their existing cable pairs (black cables just underneath the armstrong coax), unless there is not existing infrastructure on the pole, which Armstrong and Att already has a presence in this picture. The existing fiber midway up is a Corning splice for att reels. Bad picture with the raindrops sorry. For fiber, Armstrong uses a red pole marker, fades to kind of an orange after weathering, att uses white. Not sure what Comcast will be. Also Everstream uses green, they are not a residential provider though.

»www.wkbn.com/news/local- ··· -valley/

That's awesome. I'm glad StrongArm is going to finally have competition in this area.

StrongArm could be facing some tough times. Rapid fiber investment with att competition and then blindsided by a brother in the cable industry on top of it.

Haven't seen much else going on here lately. Hopefully as the weather breaks I'll see more work being done.

I actually watched Armstrong splice in the development right next to us today when I stopped home for lunch. They are certainly still working on it.

That's good. I've also been seeing AT&T trucks driving around too.

Looks like about 75% of glenwood Ave is marked up and ready for construction right now as well.

Nice. I am out at camp stambaugh with my son this weekend. I am surprised at the lack of progress over this side of Canfield.

I'm very familiar with Camp Stambaugh. My boys are in scouts as well. They're cub scouts currently one is a wolf and the other is a bear. Back on topic, yeah, I've been workin on the far side of Canfield at Amron lanes all year and it looks like the progress on 224 stopped around where the high school is.

Mine just started, he's a Lion. There seems to be a ton of focus in Austintown and points north along 46 on both fronts.

Can confirm. I live in Austintown near Cornersburg and just got flipped over to fiber a few days ago. They've been in my neighborhood for months. I don't know much about fiber but instantly saw about 500 down and ~400up. My download was in the 300's before but it's a huge increase in the upload. Curious to see how stable it is after more customers get turned up.

Just drove past Austintown side of Tippecanoe and they have it all trenched with conduit. So it is moving my way finally. Might be a few more months before I see any construction on my street.

I haven't been down that way in a while. Have you looked it up on 811 to confirm the comtractor? I know Team Fishel has been working in that area as well for AT&T. If it is Armstrong, my timeline went like this:

January 2023 Conduit laid
Fiber pushed Spring 2023
Splicing August 2023
Service turned up mid September 2023

Comcast literally has xfinity trucks in my sister's development sunday of memorial day weekend.