Cox Communications is beginning work to bring its gigabyte broadband service to Maricopa.
The communications giant is expanding internet service, telephone, TV and security services to Maricopa this year, and has begun initial engineering, construction design and necessary permitting for its fiber-based network. The company is working with local HOAs to obtain individual community approvals.
“We are thrilled to come to Maricopa and will make every effort to minimize the construction impact where and when we can,” said Susan Anable, vice president of government and public affairs for Cox Southwest. “Our aim is to efficiently and quickly provide Cox services. Our teams will be providing notices to homeowners and will be communicating via HOA newsletters and communications channels. We appreciate and thank the City of Maricopa for the partnership as we begin our work.”
Cox projects serving up to 7,000 customers by fall. The company will add more than 225 miles of new fiber to the Cox footprint in Arizona, and as part of that growth, some Maricopa residents will soon see work beginning in their streets and neighborhoods.
“We are in the planning/permitting stage…so as soon and as fast as that happens, we will begin construction,” said Andrea Katsenes Pappas, director of media and public relations for Cox in Arizona. “I don’t have a specific date just yet.”
As Cox begins to run the cable it may have to perform work done on some customers’ properties. While it will not need access in any homes, Cox said it will have to access the exterior pedestal to replace the existing cable lines with new fiber optic cable. The company says it typically completes the switchover within 48 hours of an order.
Maricopa residents will soon be able to visit a website to obtain status updates and express interest in Cox services. According to Katsenes Pappas, the company is “hoping it will go live within the week.”
Cox said its new fiberoptic gig service will be faster than most 5G service and allow for equally fast upload and download speeds, known as symmetrical service. The company’s expansion in Pinal County is part of a multi-billion-dollar Cox commitment over the next several years to build a 10G-capable, fiber-based network.
The rollout of expanded fiber to homes will be combined with enhancements to cable’s broadband DOCSIS 4.0 technology.
“Connectivity is at the heart of everything we do,” said Percy Kirk, Southwest regional manager and senior vice president of Cox. “Our Arizona team has been focused on providing the most powerful high-speed internet, TV, phone, and home security and automation services, as well as growing business offerings. We are excited to bring these important services to the residents of Maricopa and hope this latest expansion will help Cox continue to meet customers’ needs in Arizona.”
This article befuddles some of the technical terminology, so I hope I can offer some clarifications here.
– Cox will be offering gigabit internet with speeds up to 1Gbps, which is about 1000Mbps. Top speeds currently available in Maricopa from Orbitel are 200Mbps, so this is at least five times faster than the service you have now.
– 1Gbps fiber broadband or a 10Gbps capable fiber-based network should not be compared to 5G cellular broadband. The G doesn’t even stand for the same thing. 5G is the 5th GENERATION of cellular broadband technology and the G has no relation to the speed of service. While 5G is technically capable of achieving gigabit speeds, in reality most cellular carriers are only providing speeds of 50-70Mbps over their 5G networks, which is dramatically slower than fiber broadband.
– This new fiber broadband comes with a new DOCSIS 4.0 standard. This means you will need to buy a new cable modem to use with this service, you won’t be able to use a modem you might already have from a previous broadband service provider.
– The mention of “symmetrical service” with equally fast upload and download speeds is a big deal, if this is part of the standard residential package. Most broadband providers offer significantly reduced upload speeds compared to their download speeds. Orbitel’s 200Mbps service for example only actually provides 10Mbps of upload speed. Having 1000Mbps upload speed would be a boon for small online businesses in Maricopa, making it feasible to host servers or operate online services out of your own home. This would also be a blessing for any streamers or content creators. However I expect as more details are revealed, this symmetrical service will come at extra cost or exist as a business grade option – the reason most internet service providers throttle upload speeds is to curb piracy and make it harder for you to share downloadable copies of the latest Disney+ shows online.