Posted this as a reply to the "iPowerWeb Hosting Stinks" thread but it probably should have a topic of it's own. My review of iPowerWeb:
The Bad
They crammed over 1,800+ accounts on ONE server (my server, specifically). There was frequent downtime and sometimes the MySQL server would get overloaded for -hours- (receiving the mysql:too_many_connections message). When I contacted iPowerWeb customer support they told me that it had been up for 5 days and closed the ticket. Yes, up but overloaded
.
If you want to host multiple domains, you must pay an extra $10 per domain to add it to your account, AND the domain would not have e-mail capability. Subdomains are also priced at $10 each.
Phone support is there, but expect a 20 minute on-hold wait (and hey, I called at 11pm at night).
The Good
Polite and curteous. Their e-mail support is fast, yet a bit impersonal, I never got the same person twice. These guys are SERIOUS about their customers and will bend over backwards for you.
Example 1:
I accidentally deleted a very important database, after cussing at myself for 10 minutes I e-mailed iPowerWeb asking if they could restore the db. iPowerWeb replied that they were sorry but they could not help. I replied again, telling them that it was indeed the main portion of my site and that they better prove to me that they in fact did have tape back-ups. iPowerWeb promptly replied that the database has been restored. Props for that.
Example 2:
Pondering the possibility of switching hosts, I opened a support ticket about their cancellation policy. The ticket was closed with no reply (which I was a bit surprised at), but that afternoon I received a phonecall from 'Mike'. Mike was polite and professional and inquired about my intentions and whether iPowerWeb could do anything to keep my as a customer. I said that I was -thinking- about cancelling. Mike then decided to politely 'bribe' me, offering free priority technical support and a whole bunch of other goodies. He also left me his phone number and extension if I ever wanted to contact me directly.
I was mightily impressed and stuck with iPowerWeb for a few more months.
The Conclusion
When the downtime finally got to me, I requested that my account is cancelled. That same Mike replied, one last valiant attempt to save them a customer. I was offered a $25 credit at Overture and a free month of hosting. I politely declined. iPowerWeb told me that my account was cancelled, yet no refund has been issued (which I suppose is their right since I signed up for a full-year contract) and my account is still active, Cpanel and all.
Overall, great customer support, but they seriously need to work on their technical issues. In the end, what is truly admirable is how far they will go for just one customer.
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