I have used LMi for over 10 years now. Of the 3 ISP's i've used, they stand head and shoulders above the others. Problems are very rare, but when I have one I really appreciate the access I have to their capable and persistent tech support people. Over the years, they have figured out how to fix each problem I've had and gotten me back to work - almost always within one phone call. Furthermore, even though I am not myself a "techie" I have always been treated with respect and received appropriate, efficient help. I have not been greeted with overwhelming detail, with impatience, or with put-downs. Beyond the tech support people, I have found everyone else I have dealt with at LMi to be on top of the situation, as well as being willing and able to work out solutions to problems, rather than leaving me in bureaucratic Never Never Land. I originally signed up for LMI's services after dealing with two of the BIG 4 or 5 companies - and NEVER getting successfully connected to the internet. I chose LMi because it was local and live. It has proved to be all I was hoping it would be. When I call LMi with a problem the tech person almost always remembers me - and more importantly the nature of the last problem they were helping me with - in considerable detail. Of course, they do have notes to consult. (The notes never helped the other ISP's, though.) In contrast to the BIG companies I have used, LMI has a completely CAN DO attitude. They have helped me with problems I had even when they were partly with my equipment - which was not covered in the service contract. When it takes more than a phone call LMi has always been willing to go the extra mile. They have never just left me stuck with a problem. They even once made a house call. I feel that the money I have paid to LMi has been well spent. I certainly get the benefit of the money I pay. I also look at it as a worthwhile investment in sustaining a system that works. With the other companies I have had, my money went straight down the drain as soon as a problem developed. I am happy to support LMi, and I feel that this attitude is mutual. In addition, I want LMi to survive and prosper so there will always be an alternative to the big bureaucracies, giving me an exit from their nightmare. I also like to think supporting LMI is keeping the big companies at least a little competitive (if not equal) in pricing and services. From the beginning, LMi earned my loyalty, and they keep earning it again year after year. read more

I've been with them since the early 90s when it was dial up with com settings on a modem and hours of fun getting things going. You know a little before all those floppies showed up in your mail box from AOL. I've never used any of the big tel services. I stayed through the time when somebody bought them out and then when they bought themselves back. Over time I've had a few times when I couldn't connect. Once was my DSL modem (when I got the new one from them they remarked that my old one was built like a tank. It probably weighed about 2 lbs. The replacement weighed maybe 4 oz. Almost always the failures have been due to phone line connections beyond their control, but they were fixed quickly -- I can't imagine the phone company responding to an internal (their switching office) wiring problem as fast for me, an individual, as they do for them. Julio has been particularly helpful on those last few occasions (and we're talking years apart here). I'm in San Leandro which means I don't have access to their fiber roll out, but I am line-of-sight to Jack London Square so one of these days I'm going to have their dish mounted on my roof to speed things up -- so many of the news "services" seem to think I want some video of a person reading what I can read myself below. And some are dropping the text altogether -- idiots. I also use Roku a little and some movies have to stop and buffer more than I like to put up with. On the brighter side, since it's "free" commercial TV I use with Roku, some of the ads begin to buffer and then just mystically go away while the thing is buffering something else (I guess the movie I'm watching). So anyway, even though I'm too far away to get their latest and greatest offerings as I assume SF, Berkeley, and such can. I still find them the best option for me. Price increases over the last 25-30 years have been reasonable, few, and far between. Not like the offers I get from AT&T, Comcast, and such where they say it's so-much for the first year without even telling you how much it's going to be after that. That's a sleazy business practice and one you won't find at Lanminds (whoops, I guess I mean to type LMI. read more

Actually Gary I did call you back twice towards the end of May, when I finally had a time in the middle of the day to get hold of you. We work from 8-5, often in areas without cell reception, and have been swamped with work and hiring a new employee. But you didn't return my call after that. To respond to your comments, I never said "you should know" about having an answering machine. Throughout the first couple weeks of this process none of your employees asked me that question about having one. At the very beginning I was told there was a short on the line. I was here two different times when LMI came to check the outside box and they did not ask to come in to see the set up inside. Then Garrett (?) came out and checked everything and said I was set to go. But the next day I still couldn't get my messages. I had several phone calls with Julio (in the middle of my working with a client) and one time he was quite rude, which he later apologized to me for. He also said that I would be given credit for all the time I had lost messages and had no access. This was from the 11th to the 29th. Then I see you gave me $20 credit. Seriously? As I said in the previous write-up, in years past I was happy with your service. But the mixed messages and time that I spent on this was very frustrating. As I said, no one asked me at the beginning if I had an answering machine on my phone. I have never used it since I always had service with you. I also have internet service with you, but am sad that it is so slow and you say you won't get to my street to run the lines that would make it faster. . Someone in the LMI office said that Sonic would get me faster speed. But then I talked to a Sonic guy working on the street and he told me the story of how LMI goes through Sonic and Sonic can't give me faster service either. So again, confusing messages from your staff. read more

Seriously unbelievable experience. TL;DR Do it now - they're amazing. Internet is fast, reliable, inexpensive, & haven't needed support in the 2 years I've been with LMI (besides initial setup). For more detail - a small, local business providing internet for faster and cheaper than giant, annoying, expensive Comcast. Ummm... yes, please! $25 installation fee. Prices listed on website, no BS, no gimmicks. This rad dad showed up in his Prius with a child seat in the back. He was in and out in like 20 mins. or something. Prices are the same as 2 years ago when I signed up. I do the PHLO+ Residential for $39.95/month. I changed my mind on renting modem/router to buying, they emailed back 3 hours later and knocked off the $6 difference from the one month rental when I bought it! It's not about the $6... it's about the human touch and thoughtfulness behind it. After CA/Oakland/Fed taxes, $52.83 every single month. After one year increase (since I bought modem) it only went to $54.86/mo. I sit out on the far corner of large, shared patio when I work from home and have spreadsheets, power points, email, and Slack going while on a video call and no connection issues. Literally have nothing mediocre nor negative to say about this company. They sent an email 2 weeks after I signed up just to see how it was going!! Okay, if you don't get it by now I don't know what else to tell you. Go sign up with slow, expensive Comcast and waste hours on the phone with someone who asks you annoying questions to troubleshoot issues like, "Okay, is it turned on?". I believe LMI sends someone to fix your issues actually, but wouldn't know because I haven't had any! read more

LMi provides the services I want at a cost I can afford, without any fuss or muss. Although the cost is somewhat higher than the special introductory contracts provided by other companies their cost is well below the cost that those companies charge when the special offers expire. Which means I don't have to deal with the hassle of finding a new provider every year and/or getting caught with sky-hi costs if I miss a deadline. And it's a month-to-month arrangement, so if I ever want or need to switch providers I can do so at will, without penalty. But best of all is the customer service. Everyone at LMi is either a native English speaker, or as near to so as to make no difference. And they all know how to THINK! As opposed to working off a script. If a tech doesn't know an answer immediately s/he finds it or figures it out! This is a refreshing time and aggravation saver. And lastly, although it should go without saying, I will note here that everyone is polite, friendly, and respectful. Plus they're local. I recently got a new phone and was having trouble getting email to work with it. So I walked over there, and the tech sorted it out pronto. And when there was a problem with my router I brought it by there and exchanged it for a replacement. On the spot. You can't beat that! read more

If you enjoy pushing a bunch of numbers to reach tech support, then hanging tight for 20 minutes listening to Kenny G's haunting clarinet, this probably isn't the company for you. On the other hand, if reaching a real human is your goal, I highly recommend Lanminds. As others have said, their customer service is exemplary. I can't even remember when I opened an account with them - probably sometime in the late '90s. I was one of the customers sold to Earthlink in 2001, then rescued when Lanminds restructured. If I were to amortize the amount of time tech support has devoted to various computer issues (not always Internet-access related, I might add), they've more than made up for any unhappy memories. I love that I can call and ask for someone by name. I have had connectivity issues twice - once when I upgraded Beta version software (duh) and the other when AT&T did some local line work. Lanmind's tech support patiently helped resolve both issues and I was never made to feel like an idiot for not being fluent in Geek. Billing is seamless and their (very) occasional newsletters are quirky and informative. Oh, and they're also green for those of you who love your Mother. Lanminds - highly recommended. read more

LOL at Gia L. who thinks that her internet service should be free. What business are you in Gia that provides everything for free? Shame on you for attempting to sully the reputation of one of Berkeley's finest local business because you are too inept to execute a simple contract for services. Remember, when you point a finger there are three more pointing back at you. My personal experience with LMI.net has been great. I've gotten to know the people who work there and I am happy to know the true recipients of my hard earned money. I have had nothing but problems with the competitors when I have used them in the past. There is nothing like talking to 6 different people about a problem, none of who has any idea that you spoke with someone earlier or any idea what you spoke about. That is AT&T in a nutshell. LMI.net is Nicole, Brian, Gary, Jackie, etc. You can know exactly who you are dealing with and get excellent competent service from them. They do their best to go the extra mile and have done an amazing job in this world of corporate communications to give us a grass roots alternative. I wholeheartedly endorse this company. read more

LMi has been my ISP since 1999. The quality of the high speed connection is excellent, they provide a variety of additional services including landline VOIP, web hosting, computer repairs and until recently they even sold a limited number of models of Dell computers, at a bit higher price, but fully set up and configured. Unfortunately recently they stopped doing computer sales. I really like the fact that one can always speak with a live person on the phone or just drop in at their office to discuss computer related matters and receive good advice and no pressure to buy. About a year ago they suggested that I switch to a "bundled plan" for internet service including phone including almost free international calling to most countries. Well it's not completely free but only pennies per minute. The bundle pricing reduced the total cost by over $150 per month. The quality of the Phone connection is excllent. You can't go wrong with LMi. read more

Berkeley's locally-owned, solar-powered internet service is completely wonderful. Their support team is soooo responsive and down-to-Earth and helpful - I have never had a problem they couldn't solve within a few short minutes and rarely even a problem at all! Definitely better, more reliable high speed service than any other carrier I've ever been with. Totally reasonable rates, fantastic service and you can feel good about supporting people who care about what they're doing. Very easy to work with, did I mention very accessible support?! I also use them as my landline phone carrier - sometimes the phone service is a little spotty next to what I had with AT&T but I *love* the feature that lets me download voicemail messages straight to my computer so I can keep hearing the voices of those I love forever and ever. Thank you, LMI, for doing such a great job! read more

Lmi has been our internet service provider for over a decade. They helped us get AT&T to listen and stop the service a former roommate had signed up for: we did not want to use AT&T and were not going to pay them, but they would not let LMI use the line when we asked. Then when LMI got the wifi from the hills we were able to drop AT&T altogether and got a voip phone for the house. The service has be fine for that. The service is prompt and helpful, the answers clear. They even fixed our router when it got garbled and I brought it in. The only time someone does not answer the phone promptly is when they have a lot of calls, which generally answers my question: is a blockage on my side or on theirs. Local business, solar powered, they're doing things right. read more

I have been using DSL and voice telephone services from LMI now for about 1 month. The service is excellent. After years of frustration from Ma Bell I am pleased to say that everything went just as promised. LMI transferred my telephone numbers from "the other" telephone company without a hitch. My costs are dramatically lower, my service is improved, and I can talk to a real person when I do need help. My internet speed is very fast, and reliable. My telephone service is also very clear and reliable, and I have better feature set than the other company. I looked at the cable company as an alternative, but found them to be woefully lacking in knowledge and priced much higher. Just about as good as it gets with voice telephone and internet service. read more

Bless a company that gives me what I want and and a human-scale organization. I've been a LMI customer for over ten years, and they give me the product I need with little fuss. If I had to rely on one of those behemoths for my email and web-site, I'd be periodically cursing about them the way I always rant about banks, airlines and telephone companies. LMI has humans working for customer service, and you can reach them on the phone (not that I have needed to more than a few times in those ten years). They have humans in their billing department, and you can reach them on the phone too (which I've had to do more frequently to update my payment information). Priced well, good value, reliable. What more can you ask for? read more

Are you kidding!? Going with anyone other than this local company is asking for agony. Had it with waiting on the phone for some anonymous idjit to treat you like a digit? People at LMI know you, serve you and know what they're doing. They've solved so many problems for me I cannot tell you. And you are a person to them. They offer many services including web design, tech assistance with your very own computer. I know this sounds like an ad but no one is paying me to say this. In this same household, one of us goes through Comcast and oh I so pity her every time some bizarre connection snafu alights on her life and he has to trudge over to the phone to call Comcast. Poor dear. read more

Our business is saving a lot of money with LMI in comparison to what we were paying for AT&T. And the customer services is SOOO much better. I can't tell you how much trouble I had with AT&T. With LMI, I just call or e-mail, and if someone doesn't answer the phone right away, someone calls back very shortly after. They have walked me through setting up my voicemail system over the phone, gone through the extra effort of researching a reconfiguration for our fax machine which didn't initially work after we switched to fiber, and they have visited us in person as needed. Great phone and internet service. Great customer service. read more

LMI is the best! I was a customer there for 15 years and they were consistently easy to work with and went out of their way to help me troubleshoot any issues that ever came up. They actually pick up the phone when you call! I live in Mendocino now and I have Comcast, and I really really miss LMI. If you are in their service range you should count yourself lucky. Btw, the other great thing about them is that they have a small office so you can call back the same person who was helping you previously and you don't have to explain your issue over and over like you do with Comcast. It saves so much time and frustration. read more

I've been a customer of LMI since 1996. Prior to signing up with them I paid a visit to their offices to talk with someone there and see what they were about. The openness of the guy I talked with and the empty pizza box on top of the server sold me, so I became a customer. Since then I have been extremely happy with their services. As technology has become cheaper, my access fees have actually decreased, which is quite unusual in the world today. They have always been willing to do a little bit extra to help me the few times that has been needed. I would recommend LMI to anyone who wants internet access. read more

LMI.net and Authorized Computer Repair are the best! Local businesses with real people answering technical questions, including patience for the computer challenged. If your computer is ill this the place to go. I have been a LMI customer since 2001. I have a colocated server. My internet connection is always working (unless electrical power is out) and FAST. I have both ethernet and wireless. Puzzled by those who prefer a Bulgarian hosting company (ICDSoft) vs right here in Berkeley,CA. www.lmi.net and www.authorizedcomputers.com are THE place to shop for your computer needs. read more

Over two decades a LMI customer -- they've hosted my Klein bottle website since the late 1990's. Speedy and competent tech support, and when there's trouble (rarely!), they're on top of it immediately. It's especially nice to just bike over & visit LMI in Berkeley: I can see where my bits and bytes are going! One of the best businesses in the east bay -- this very local, very "How Berkeley Can You Be"internet provider. They're the exact opposite of comcast, att, & verizon: understandable service, no-gouging pricing, and easy to get along with people. read more

II've been a very happy customer, starting with an email account in 1998 when the company was called LanMinds. In 2000 they began hosting my website. They changed their name to LMI because people kept calling the company LANDMines. Everyone from the sales staff to the technical support customer relations staff have been terrific. They are courteous, professional, knowledgeable and very helpful, with every question I've posed to them. I have recommended LMI to many people and organizations in the Berkeley area and will keep doing so! Plus--they have solar. read more