Gigabit Service

For Verizon customers, 1-gigabit service for $70 per month sounds so good. But it may not be the service of your dreams. There’s a lot going on here, so let’s try to sort it out.

First, the initial offer is for new customers only. That shouldn’t surprise any consumers for anything we buy. Businesses routinely offer deep discounts to get new customers in the fold, and it can have one of two effects: 1.) it can upset existing customers and encourage them to churn through all their service providers, and 2.) it can be an attractive sample to get customers addicted to a certain level of service and immune to steep price increases later on.

For new customers looking to sign up, it’s not simply a matter of paying your $70 and getting a fast internet connection. There may be additional fees and required equipment upgrades (we’ll get to those shortly) on top of the initial fee, and there is a lot of confusion about how long you can keep the introductory rate before you get a big price increase. Verizon may be offering 1-gig service to existing customers as you read this newsletter, but we haven’t seen a clear description of prices for various packages as we write it.

Second, do you need that big a pipeline? Most of us don’t. Large online stores that sell lots of things through ecommerce are likely to need it. Businesses that send massive amounts of data through business applications, such as enterprise systems for huge, highly automated manufacturing systems, need it. Big, upscale hotels that offer streaming capability for their guests need it. Smaller businesses that push less data through their applications and home users who stream movies and TV programming probably don’t need it. Netflix, for example, recommends the following download speed in megabits per second (MBPS) per stream for playing TV shows and movies through its service:

  • 0.5 required broadband connection speed
  • 1.5 recommended broadband connection speed
  • 3.0 recommended for SD quality
  • 5.0 recommended for HD quality
  • 25 recommended for Ultra HD quality

Do your own math for what you need.

Third, do you have a wired network in place to use all that speed? Only a wired network can do it, and that’s why we recommend wiring office and commercial space for business. We also recommend it for new residential construction, and we recommend it if you are building a theater in your home for a big Ultra HD system. If you have devices connected to your gateway or router, you’ll get the connection speed. Any devices connected through Wi-Fi will get a slower speed, which can still be adequate based on Netflix’s recommendations.

Fourth, you won’t get gig-per-gig speed from the source. If Netflix recommends 25 MBPS for Ultra HD quality, they’re not pushing it out at 1 gig. The big businesses that need to get their data pushed out at that high a speed take advantage of a limited number of pipelines, and they pay for it.

Finally, how will you match your service to the router and cable boxes from your internet service provider (ISP), whether it’s Verizon or Comcast, and what are you willing to pay? Streaming aside, you can pay a hefty monthly fee for cable boxes capable of delivering programming and recorded shows to multiple TVs in your home. You can reduce your monthly outlay by replacing the cable boxes with a cable card that can work with four or six TVs, depending on the card. You’ll give up On Demand programming and on-screen caller ID (if you have a landline through your provider), but that may better fit your needs.

We can review your internet-connection needs for business or home and help you match equipment options to fit your budget. We can do the installation and setup – or walk you through the process and then use remote technology to help you with the setup. Call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us for an appointment.

Home Router Vulnerability

Your home router is easily your most essential device for connecting businesses and family members to the world. It’s also the most vulnerable opening for hackers. How vulnerable is your router? One good place to look is Port 7547. If it’s closed on your router, it’s safe – for now. If it’s open, you’re vulnerable.

You can test your router by visiting a blog post from Wordfence, which makes a firewall and malware scanner that protects over 2 million WordPress websites. They also monitor attacks on those sites to determine which IPs are attacking them and blocks them in real-time through a blacklist. They recently published a post showing that 6.7 percent of the hacks they see on WordPress sites comes from hacked home routers. Hacking gives them access to workstations, mobile devices, Wi-Fi cameras, Wi-Fi climate control and any other devices that use the home Wi-Fi network. From there, they can implant malware or viruses in your system, which can lead to all sorts of problems.

Hacking through an open Port 7547 is known as the “misfortune cookie,” or MC. ISPs (internet service providers) use the port to manage home routers, and they should configure their network to prevent access by outsiders. But many do not block the port, leaving you vulnerable. By clicking the Scan Me button on the post, you can find out if it’s open or closed.

If it’s closed, your OK for now. You should check back periodically, however, because your ISP could open it for some reason and then forget to re-block it. If it’s open, Wordfence suggests you immediately reboot your router, which may flush out malware. You can also run a virus scan on all computers and devices in your home and update your operating systems. Almost anyone can take these steps.

You may be able to take the more advanced step of upgrading your router firmware, but in most cases, you can’t. In all cases, you can contact your ISP and let them know there’s a security vulnerability in your home router and ask them to help you fix it. You can specifically mention Port 7547.

If you are unable to take all the steps mentioned above, call us immediately at 973-433-6676. We can help you reboot your router and may be able to help you close the port or upgrade the firmware. Just have your router name and model number handy to help us serve you better. If necessary, we can coach you in dealing with your ISP to resolve this important security issue.

If you want to take preventive action on Port 7547 vulnerabilities, call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us to schedule an appointment. Remember, you are your router’s first line of defense.

Death of the Smartphone?

While we all wait for the next versions of iPhones and Galaxies, are they “dead men walking?” Technology changes – fast. Where could the smartphone go?

To use an analogy for most of you, it could go the way of the VCR. That technology is commercially dead, but its function lives on through DVR capabilities, and it’s more robust than ever by allowing you to record multiple programs and play them back on any TV that’s part of your in-home cable setup or any device that’s connected to your TV provider’s app.

The iPhone, the world’s first smartphone, is 10 years old. In dog years, that’s well into senior citizenry. In tech years, it’s older than dirt. In its time, it revolutionized how we interface with the world. Besides being a telephone, it’s a handheld computer and an ever-improving still/video camera that gets better only because engineers in a competitive market find new tweaks.

Smartphones have crossed several major thresholds in the way we live:

  • We can communicate by voice, text message or email with anyone at any time.
  • We can search for and buy almost any product imaginable from any place in the world that has an internet connection (make sure it’s secure).
  • We can buy tickets for a local theater production or an around-the-world trip.
  • With ability to broadcast videos over social media, we have changed forever the ways in which government agencies and businesses deal with us a citizens or customers.

What’s next? We have some glimpses, and here are some thoughts – in no particular order.

  • Wearables: They come in all forms, sizes and shapes, and I could foresee parts of smartphones in all of them. For example, you could have a telephone in a headset or small earpiece, and that could connect to eyeglasses and/or a wristwatch. We have a lot of the individual pieces now, and Bluetooth to connect them. In the short term, we can refine them to make them easy for the masses to use and make them as affordable as a smartphone.
  • Augmented Reality: This can create safety issues while driving or walking, but AR tied to your glasses can replace the smartphone screen. You’ll be able to read documents or view pictures and videos with part of your visual field – and it could be made adjustable depending on where you are and what you’re doing. You might use it for Google Maps walking directions, and maybe your AR glasses could project a heads-up display on your windshield for driving directions.
  • Artificial Intelligence: When combined with a wearable, it might ask you questions based on your activity – like “do you want directions to the supermarket?” – and automatically connect you to an app to get you there. It might ask you if you want to count steps and take your pulse or blood pressure.

Some futurists think our species will become cyborg-like over the years, combining our humanity with biomechanical advances to improve our motor skills. Add in AI, and we could just become “walking smartphones.” Speculation aside, technology always advances to help us do things better and develop new ways of doing things. It’s the way of the world, and it happens faster than we can usually imagine.

As you adapt new technologies for your everyday life, we can help you integrate them across all platforms and help you look at how new developments can affect the way you live, work and play. Always feel free to contact us by phone – 973-433-6676 – or email for assistance or answers to your questions.