DC Access

Five well-​deserved stars. The access has been consistent since I signed up five months ago. When we had an issue during the big January 2016 blizzard, one of the owners trudged through two feet of snow to come to our house to rectify the problem. A terrific, neighborhood company!

The absolute worst. We switched to this company to avoid Comcast a few months ago — what a mistake. We are in the process of switching back to Comcast. Our house on Capitol Hill frequently loses internet connection. We try to call but they are not open on weekends and therefore cannot help us. My roommate recently has had to hold conference calls at coffee shops or stays late at work because he is worried he will not have internet at home. I often need to leave the house and go to Starbucks to finish work on my computer, especially when it rains. We live in Washington, DC in 2015! We should have internet even when it rains! We have spoken to them several times about this problem and they tell us our house it just too big (it is a typical DC row house). We installed a second router but still lose internet a couple times per day. Perhaps their internet would work in a small apartment in a city where it never rains but otherwise I would avoid them at all costs!

They aren’t Comcast! That is definitely the best feature. The people on the phone are nice and knowledgeable, the installation was relatively easy, and the technician was very nice and flexible with our busy schedules (and actually showed up when he said he would!). We have had DC Access internet service for about two months, and there have probably been 2 – 3 evenings when it didn’t work as well as you would want, which happened much more frequently when we had Comcast. Definitely a step up!

This company has great customer service but I’m seeing spotty performance at times. I work at home as a web developer, so I’m online constantly. In other words, I notice every problem that occurs, and these problems occur a little more frequently than I’d like — slow downloads, or inability to upload and download simultaneously. On the plus side, when you call them, you get right through, and problems are resolved quickly.

DC Access is a wonderful local company with truly unbeatable customer service. I have had two connectivity issues during my two years with DC Access but both were promptly dealt with by a home visit from a technician. I have communicated with Martha and her team mostly through email but also over the phone. Everyone I have ever worked with is friendly and helpful. If you’re in the range of DC Access and don’t want/​need cable, seriously consider switching over!

I really wanted to liked DC access. They’re a local business and who really wants to use Comcast or Verizon? That said, these guys just aren’t reliable enough. The costumer service is great but the connection issues are seriously lacking. Streaming in the evening has increasingly been a serious issue– spotty and it will wind up taking 2 hours to watch 45 minutes of program. I am sad to say we are likely back to comcast or Verizon. Maybe these guys will be a viable alternative in a few years.

I can’t say enough great things about this company! From day #1 they have been extremely responsive, courteous, and helpful. The phone has never rang more than twice before I got an ‘actual person’ on the line to speak to. In addition, the technicians are always EXACTLY on time (no more 8am-​5pm windows offered by Comcast) and they are very helpful as well. I had no problems with service itself either, steady connection and tested speeds as advertised.
I recently had to cancel their service because I’ll be on travels, but even that was a refreshing experience. Within 35 seconds of calling, they had cancelled my service, and scheduled a tech to pickup the equipment at the exact time I requested… no headaches!
Trust me — if you have a choice between Comcast/​Verizon and DC Access… choose DC Access! The headaches you’ll save from not being on hold for hours on end is worth it alone!

So much better quality and service than the other national DC cable provider we once had on Capitol Hill. Real personal service and an excellent group to work with. We have used DC Access for more years than we can remember. Found them while in Boston reading an article in USAToday years ago and it was the greatest find. Very consistent and no better service around this area.

I tried out DC Access for a day, hoping it might be a viable alternative to the Comcast/​Verizon duopoly. The internet service worked well for the first six hours, then was unavailable for the next six, for a total uptime of about fifty percent – not good. (Note: I live in the Dupont Circle area. So I cannot comment on the service in the Capital Hill neighborhood.)

Probably the best experience we’ve ever had with a company. They provide an excellent community service, and are just great people. Martha, Matt, and Tony, our hats are off to you. If only every business could be run with your ethical standards, competence, and warmth.

A wonderful local business. They’ll only take your money and business if they can serve you.
They came out to see if service made sense at my location. I’m on in the NE part of H Street. But, they found a group of trees on 14^th Street, NE blocked my ability to get connection and advised me against the service. The provider told me that they plan to install new equipment in the future that would allow me to access their internet. I plan to be one of their fist customers when it happens!

I didn’t end up going with DC Access for some reasons outside of their control, but in my research and early interactions, I found the firm to be very responsive and helpful and I echo the other positive comments here. Absolutely worth calling if you’re looking for a great alternative to the ISP giants.

Five stars isn’t enough. That’s a metric that someone (theoretically, and I doubt it) could apply to cyber-​behemoths like Verizon, Comcast, Sprint, whoever provides your internet access.
DS Access is in a class of its own among ISPs (if they’re still called that). Small. Privately owned. Top-​shelf technology.
And get this … they answer the phone. In person. The boss or his partner or someone who acts the same way: helpful to the max. No icy-​cold, forever-​on-​hold, then wrong-​extension-​start-​over nonsense. Nope. Personal, friendly, fast service. First or second ring-​a-​ding.
Remarkable in this day and age, where the dominant players are nothing more than a vortex that sucks you under, deeper and deeper. Don’t go elsewhere, and if you’re elsewhere now, get outta that big-​boss company town and settle down here in peace. As Jim Morrison put it, «Out here on the perimeter, we is stone immaculate.»

I wish I had made the switch sooner. I lived with the hell which is Comcast internet for three years on the far edges of the hill– I got used to little signal, no connection anytime it rained, and don’t even dream of trying to stream something. Finally, I had enough, and switched to DC Access. I wish I had done it sooner.
I’ve had DC Access now for three months– and everything has been terrific. They came out to install the system when they said they would, I know, how novel! And the internet has been consistent. Pages load quickly and I can actually use my Apple TV now. Netflix, Hulu, HBO GO, all load consistently and the video is not chopping.
Sometimes with HD movies on iTunes, it takes about 30 minutes to load, but that is due to file-​size and not a DC Access issue. Before with Comcast, I could be waiting two days for something to load, if it loaded at all.
We are a 3 laptop, 1 iPad, 2 apple tvs, and3 iPhone household and so far, no problems. And I truly believe the staff at DC Access who told us that if we did have problems to let us know and they would be out and address them. With three years of comcast– numerous calls, even to the executive office and numerous routers, it is nice to have, and expect good internet service.
To give that business to a local business is the icing on the cake. We are on their mid-​priced plan about $ 54 bucks a month.
Definitely try them out– I wish I had done it much sooner. They are great. Fantastic DC company.

Simply awesome. I’ve been anxious for years to sign up with this ISP and dump crappy Verizon and finally got my chance once they installed a new transmitter near my house on Capitol Hill. Everything about the experience from scheduling to installation (by tech Tony) to the actual Internet provisioning is simply a cut way above all the big companies. If you live in their service area I would not hesitate to become one of their customers immediately!

We had internet service with DC Access for almost 3 years and would highly recommend them to anyone in the Capitol Hill area. Our service was great, and the few times we had issues Matt would come by himself to re-​jigger the router or fix whatever needed fixing. They are responsive, timely, and friendly — it is obvious that they have a vested interest in helping their neighbors consistently receive great service (compare that to Comcast workers, whom I found to be generally disinterested, after all you were one of many chumps who had no choice but to go with them). Not to mention that DC Access’ rates are competitive and don’t escalate over time!
We recently had to relocate outside of Washington, DC and even the de-​installation was a breeze. They arrived on time and finished within 20 minutes. No more long lines at the Comcast collection office! Because of our great experience with them we’ve now given our business to another small local internet company and hope that they will meet the high quality and customer friendly standards at DC Access.

I’ve been a resident of Capitol Hill and a customer of DC Access for almost a year.
DC Access is the best internet service provider I’ve ever used. The
connection is great, the price is very affordable and the customer service that Matt and Martha provide are unparalleled.

I had internet service through DC Access for a few years when I lived on the Hill. Then I moved to Logan. The thing I miss most about Capitol Hill is DC Access!
The service was reliable and affordable and the personal attention was top notch! I also loved that I was supporting a good local business.
I keep hoping that DC Access will expand to my area of the city so that I can stop spending my money supporting big, soulless Verizon!

We’ve had DC Access for about a month now and I love it. Fabulous service, fast internet, local small business.
Installation was easy, and as andrew h. noted in his review, Matt came out and climbed our roof to upgrade our service once already (free).
It’s already a million times better than our Verizon DSL, both the service and the product. (for the same price, btw)

I’ve been a Capitol Hill customer of DC Access since July, 2009. We use their service for personal wireless internet and I rely on it for my home-​based business, too.
I’ve found them to not only be reliable, but they are also fantastic to work with. We’d used Comcast and Verizon before and it was impossible to get an adequate response when there were problems. Matt, on the other hand, came back several times to switch out my router and rework the channel scan because it turns out that I live in a particularly congested area when it comes to bandwidth. Of course, that’s something Comcast and Verizon were never able to tell me.
They are great with customer service and always responsive. I also like supporting a local business, with owners that are visible and active in the community.