# Using Comcast/Xfinity with Bolt - HD and Service Plans



## jwhite.tc (May 27, 2009)

I'm a Comcast/Xfinity customer in the SF Bay area; I've long been annoyed with Xfinity X1 (terrible interface) and am considering the Tivo Bolt. I was an original 1999 and DirecTivo user (and forum member, though I can't find my old login), and dream of an interface that good.

I've read about the process of getting a CableCard (M-card for the Bolt family) but wanted to poll the community on exactly what plan they're getting from Comcast. I'd think there'd be an easy way to pick all SD and/or HD content, premium bundles, etc, but nope! I'm currently on the "Preferred Double Play" at $147/mo. What's in it? No way on the web site to figure that out! Seriously! My X1 tells me I don't have HD every time I want to watch on-demand HD content. How do I buy that (I'd certainly want HD with a Bolt)? No way to tell!!!

It doesn't look like I'm paying for the box, but I might be on a higher-priced X1 plan that I could do-away with if I were on a Bolt. 

Any ideas from Comcast/Xfinity + Bolt customers?


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## Cochis3 (Dec 15, 2016)

I'm in the SF Bay Area and just took the plunge with Comcast Cable this week. I signed up with Comcast Cable after using them for internet access for the past 2 years. My 150Mbps internet was $65/month w/ Comcast including taxes and HBO, which I streamed with my Roku. Actually, I should clarify ... I only wanted the internet access, but I signed up for a basic Double Play plan because by storing their basic box in my garage, it was cheaper.

Last week, I tried to renegotiate a new DirecTV DVR and 2 year contract, but after they were purchased by AT&T, they don't seem willing to budge on the price at all like in all the past years. My wife had been a continuous customer for 18 years, btw.

With Comcast, they sent out installers who ran the coax from my modem underneath my house to my living room connection and spliced into the existing in-wall connections from DirecTV. All in all, they were here for about an hour and a half and I paid $39 for the install. They had a cable card in their truck and set that up in my Tivo and made sure everything worked perfectly. Comcast also sent a cable card and it's supposed to arrive tomorrow ... which I'll need to return to them at some point.

For a plan, I looked at their website and channel lineup page. If you can't find it through Google, here's the link: http://www.xfinity.com/Channel Lineup/Channel Lineup Print View.aspx

I chose the X1 Starter Double Play @ $89 and added HBO for $10. All in after taxes, my internet and TV is $101/month. Tivo does cost more ... I bought a 500gb Bolt for $160 + tax and replaced the HD with a 3tb drive. The monthly Tivo service is costing me $15/month.

I think that because I signed up for a 1-year contract, it's slightly cheaper ($10?).

I hope this helps


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## hooper (Sep 22, 2007)

Cochis3 said:


> I'm in the SF Bay Area and just took the plunge with Comcast Cable this week. I signed up with Comcast Cable after using them for internet access for the past 2 years. My 150Mbps internet was $65/month w/ Comcast including taxes and HBO, which I streamed with my Roku. Actually, I should clarify ... I only wanted the internet access, but I signed up for a basic Double Play plan because by storing their basic box in my garage, it was cheaper.
> 
> Last week, I tried to renegotiate a new DirecTV DVR and 2 year contract, but after they were purchased by AT&T, they don't seem willing to budge on the price at all like in all the past years. My wife had been a continuous customer for 18 years, btw.
> 
> ...


$89 double play can't only be $101 after taxes with HBO. 7.50 for broadcast fee and 3 or so for RSN fee is $10 alone before taxes.

Sorry to call this out but it drives me crazy that those fees went from essentially nothing to $10 in 2 years.

Main reason I am ditching Comcast soon. I have $99 digital preferred with blast and hbo contract. It started at $103 all in and is now $114 in year 2 of my supposed fixed price contact.

Comcast TV is so awesome. 2 hd hbo channels. Nick jr, Sundance and many other channels are sd only and you can't use the TV anywhere logins for so many channels on so many devices.... Including hbo on TiVo.


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## alexb (Jan 4, 2003)

The Comcast website tells you exactky what you line up is if you logon and got to lineup in settings, it will launch app if you are on iOS and you can filter by HD. Also the X1 has setting to default to HD.

That said I just bought a bolt+ happy so far, wife seems to be ok with it so far. If we get to 30 days the X1 is going back!


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## jwhite.tc (May 27, 2009)

alexb said:


> The Comcast website tells you exactky what you line up is if you logon and got to lineup in settings, it will launch app if you are on iOS and you can filter by HD. Also the X1 has setting to default to HD.


Interesting. I've got the Preferred Double-Play, which the channel lineup says has HD. It looks like what I don't have is the HD box for an additional $10/month. 



> That said I just bought a bolt+ happy so far, wife seems to be ok with it so far. If we get to 30 days the X1 is going back!


Nice! I'm on the edge. If there really was a discount the other day, I would have jumped on it. But it doesn't look like it was real.


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## alexb (Jan 4, 2003)

jwhite.tc said:


> Interesting. I've got the Preferred Double-Play, which the channel lineup says has HD.


Another way to see the lineup is look in the ipad 'TV' app from xfinity. I filter the 'all listings' page to show only HD. Made it really easy for me to work out what SD channels to exclude on the tivo 



jwhite.tc said:


> But it doesn't look like it was real.


In terms of Bolt+ discounts only a few got the special offer (to makeup for them running out of roamio pro+ allin on cyber monday), so don't give up hope and keep watching...


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