HughesNet Sucks (Still)

From now on, I will never buy a product or service that has not
A. Been used before by myself or someone I know
B. Been highly recommended to me by someone I know and trust
C. or been thoroughly researched on my own.

After spending nearly a half hour on hold on Friday (after speaking to a recording--which I absolutely despise!), and hearing several messages that they are experiencing a "high volume of calls and customer service is also available online" (it's not), I finally got through to HughesNet to change my payment method.

It should have come as no surprise that the person who took my call barely spoke English. Once I had finally given her all the information and whatnot and finally hung up, I wasn't entirely sure she had the information correct. Now I'm kind of hoping and praying she screwed up and they won't be able to charge me.

I started doing research online and OH MY GOD the things I've read that I wish I had read back in October. Complaints from people saying that HughesNet has essentially stolen money from their bank accounts, refuses to refund money for any purpose, and several have had my experience--totally unaware of the extremely low data allowance.

I can't remember if I've mentioned this, but I eventually just canceled my Netflix because I'd occasionally be able to get through one episode before my internet slowed down so much that it was impossible to watch (or do anything else even).

I figured even though Netflix is pretty cheap, it's stupid to pay for something that I can't use because my internet is entirely too slow. I'm still trying to come up with other ways to get internet so I don't have to go through HughesNet anymore. The main problem is that, from what I've read, it's not easy to get out of a contract with them (whether you try to pay a fee and break early or wait until the 2 years is up). Again, a lot of people have reported having money stolen from their accounts, even after they've paid the fees (which are a ridiculous $400 or more) and had the contract and services canceled. They also will not send anyone to remove the equipment--you have to do it yourself, no matter how dangerous, and then send it back to them. Some people have reported that even after sending the equipment back (and receiving confirmation from UPS that it was delivered), they were still charged and HughesNet said they never got it.

I don't care where you're living. If you absolutely need internet, find another way--any other way--than going with HughesNet. They are overpriced, offer extremely shitty service (which some people have compared to dial-up), and apparently will steal your money (hopefully I don't have to experience that). Right now we're looking into getting an iPad with an extra data plan (which isn't nearly enough for Netflix, but it would work for doing research and stuff) or we're going to look into getting one of those wireless cards. I don't know anything about those, but I think maybe next weekend I'll head over to AT&T and see what my options are. I know going the iPad/data route won't be a lot cheaper than what we're doing now, but the service will be better and more consistent.

If you know anything about wireless cards (or any other options) please let me know. I'd appreciate any help/advice!