Can I Get Time Warner Internet Without Getting Cable?

by John Costa, Demand Media

Time Warner Cable offers customers a range of entertainment and communication packages, including cable television, Internet, voice communication and mobile phone services. The company's Road Runner high-speed Internet service offers plans that suit various types of Internet users and budgets. The company's Internet service can be purchased on a stand-alone basis or bundled with one or more other Time Warner Cable services.

Plans

Time Warner Cable offers a range of monthly high-speed Internet plans. Specific plans and download speeds vary depending on a customer's location. Road Runner Broadband's standard download speed is up to seven megabytes per second. The Road Runner Lite plan is recommended for light Internet use, such as emailing, doing online banking and surfing the web, while the Road Runner Basic plan covers those uses as well as visiting media-rich sites. For sharing photos and downloading music and movies, the Road Runner Broadband with PowerBoost is recommended, while the higher speeds with the Road Runner Broadband Turbo plan are ideal for online gaming, streaming videos and online conferencing, as well as for households with two or more users.

Standard Features

The Road Runner service includes an Internet security software suite with firewall, parental controls and antivirus protection. Users can also register up to 10 email accounts. Access to a backup dial-up account is also included with some Internet plans. Customers subscribed to a broadband plan also have access to the PowerBoost feature, which temporarily increases download speeds when users are downloading large movie, picture and music files.

Online Content

Subscribers have access to a range of online content with their monthly subscription. Customers can access radio stations online with Rhapsody RadioPLUS. Subscribers also receive access to online content, including races and post-race content with the NASCAR TrackPass and up to 30 new videos each day with the CNN News Pass. Customers also have access to additional online content through RoadRunner.com, including online movies and music for purchase, free online storage space, free gaming center, an online photo center and up to 52 commercial radio stations.

Equipment

A standard computer modem connected to a phone line is not required to access the Road Runner broadband service. Instead, customers are provided with a high-speed cable modem that links their computer to Time Warner Cable's fiber-optic/coaxial network. The Road Runner service is compatible with both PC and Macintosh-based systems; however, the security suite is available only to PC users.

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References

  • Time Warner Cable: Road Runner Broadband Fulfills Your Need for Speed
  • Time Warner Cable: Road Runner Broadband
  • Time Warner Cable: Speed Levels
  • Time Warner Cable: Roadrunner.com

About the Author

John Costa covers travel, public policy and consumer issues for various online publications. He has also worked as a government adviser since 2005, developing policies and programs. Costa holds a B.A. in history and political science from the University of Toronto, as well as an M.A. in comparative politics from the University of York in England.