Another broadband internet option: NorthfieldWiFi

Northfield residents and businesses are lucky to have a multiplicity of choices for getting broadband access to the internet.

We’d been using Charter at home for a few years but I wanted faster upload speeds at an affordable rate. So when we were getting ready to move, I ordered the 6.0 MBps down/3.0 MBps up basic residential service from NorthfieldWiFi ($49.99/mo). When Peter Seebach (who purchased our house) heard about the faster options, he also ordered it. I took the photos below a few weeks ago as we were getting ready to move. Click to enlarge.

Nate and Tabitha Lyon NorthfieldWiFi installation NorthfieldWiFi installation NorthfieldWiFi installation NorthfieldWiFi installation NorthfieldWiFi installation

Nate Lyon is the owner of NorthfieldWiFi. He and his wife Tabitha Lyon (both on ladder in left photo) moved to town a couple years ago when she was transferred to the local Target store. They bought a house (we’re now neighbors across the pond) and Nate started his business. He now has hundreds of residential and business customers.

The photos above show how unobtrusive the installation is. A small dish on the roof, a black cable tucked out of sight whenever possible, a small ‘modem’ inside the premise.

What the photos don’t show is the great service. The installation on our former house was tricky since the roof is high and steep. In a mixup with Peter over the meaning of the phrase “install in Griff’s office,” Nate cheerfully did a complete reinstall a week later to move the location of the cable coming into the house from the second floor to the first floor. And on the townhouse where we’re living, a squirrel chewed through the cable in the first week and he did a rerouting/repair of our connection. Through it all, he’s been extremely quick to respond via both phone and email. No full disclosure needed, as he’s not a blogger (yet!) and hasn’t told me of any IPO planned.

5 Comments

  1. It was actually “the” office, thus the confusion. I think one of my messages specified the room.

    I think it’s funny that I now have better ping time to the WoW servers than I did when I had a dedicated T1. (You gotta have your priorities, right?)

    October 18, 2007
  2. Griff Wigley said:

    WoW. Ping time. T1. Is this a great town for Geek-speak or what?!

    October 18, 2007
  3. Dan Callahan said:

    I’m concerned about the security of customer data with Northfield Wifi. Note that their payment page, http://www.northfieldwifi.com/index-5.html , is not secured. This means that customer card and contact data is transmitted in the clear across the air. Anyone with a laptop can pluck that information right out of the air, as wireless signals broadcast indescriminately.

    This would be bad for any business, but it’s an egregious problem for a wireless ISP.

    Secondly, I’m concerned about the quoted connection speeds. There is a real and significant difference between speeds quoted as MBps (Nfldwifi) and Mbps (most ISPs). 1 MBps = 8Mbps. And I somehow doubt that Northfield Wifi’s entry level plan (1.5 MBps * 8 = 12 Mbps) is nearly twice as fast as Qwest’s most expensive (7 Mbps).

    Sure, it may be ignorance, but it is misleading customers into thinking that they’re getting a connection that is eight times faster than it actually is.

    October 18, 2007
  4. I’m a Nfld WiFi customer, and I love the service. Though I don’t have the data at hand right now, my up & down speeds are much faster than my Qwest service had been, and more reliable. Nate’s great at customer service, too. When there is an IPO, I’ll be at the brokers’ office, cash in hand.

    October 18, 2007
  5. Nate Lyon said:

    Dan,

    If you feel uncomfortable about our online payment option, I would urge you not to use it. We are currently revamping our web site and will have a secure SSL payment option soon. WE just didn’t have the money up front to initially afford it. I realize there are other ways to go about it, but right now that is our online option. As always, my customers can call me and make payments at any time. Or, they can pay the traditional way via snail mail.

    The MBps VS Mbps is an over site that myself and my web designer missed. I’ll have them change is ASAP. Understandably so I’ve been a busy guy. 😉

    Thanks for the heads up on that.

    In terms of other security concerns, no one can see my signal. It’s a proprietary send and receive method, which in return you need my equipment to see and numerous passwords and etc in order to make them work. All customers VS my equipment are all on their own VLAN which means that would keep un-prying eyes out of where they shouldn’t be. 😉

    I urge you to put your skepticism to the test, take the NorthfieldWiFi challenge. I can assure you that you won’t be disappointed in the service.

    Thank you everyone for your continued support. I look forward to serving you in the future.

    October 18, 2007

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