Internet

Setting up Internet at our new apartment couldn't have been easier. Based on what we'd heard from other people, Time Warner Cable pretty much has a monopoly in the area when it comes to providing Internet service, so that was easy, no research required.

I literally called up the 24hr toll-free number (1-888-892-2253) the day before we were supposed to move in, gave them our address, phone number, credit card, and they booked the installation for our move-in day. You get to pick from a few 4-hour windows, they call a half hour before they arrive to make sure you are there, they show up, it takes about an hour and a half, and ta-da, you are online. Easy as pie.

Here's the pricing breakdown:

• $50 deposit (because we don't have social security numbers/credit history in the US) which will be returned to us when we leave TWC;
• $50 installation fee (which if you just tell them you want to check their competitor, they will waive pretty happily);
• $39.99/month for their "Standard" service (up to 10Mbps) which is the most popular package they offer and basically all we need (if you do a lot of movie streaming or downloading and whatnot, you might need to upgrade). Also if you sign up for 12 months or more it goes down to $29.99/month;
• $2.50/month to rent the modem.

Anything above the "Standard" service also gives you free access all over L.A. to TWC WiFi hotspots. There's a hotspot finder app and then you just put in your TWC email address and password through your browser and you're good to go.