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What is the best internet provider in Largo?

Spectrum's wide coverage map, low prices and simple service details make it CNET's pick for Largo's best internet service provider. Spectrum also tops CNET's list of best cable providers of 2024, meaning it's a reliable option for home broadband wherever you're located. WOW Internet and Rapid Systems are other ISPs that serve the Largo area, but it'll come down to what's available at your specific address.

Spectrum and WOW Internet are two of the cheapest providers in Largo, offering base plans for only $30 per month. Even though Spectrum's network is bigger than WOW's, Spectrum only offers 100 megabits per second compared to WOW's 300Mbps. If you're looking for the fastest service in Largo, Frontier Fiber offers 5 gigabits and 2 gigabits of symmetrical speed, costing $155 and $100, respectively.

Our methodology

CNET considers speeds, pricing, customer service and overall value to recommend the best internet service in Largo across several categories. Our evaluation includes referencing a proprietary database built over years of reviewing internet services. We validate that against provider information by spot-checking local addresses for service availability. We also do a close read of providers' terms and conditions and, when needed, will call ISPs to verify the details.

Despite our efforts to find the most recent and accurate information, our process has some limitations you should know about. Pricing and speed data are variable: Certain addresses may qualify for different service tiers, and monthly costs may vary, even within a city. The best way to identify your particular options is to plug your address into a provider's website.

Also, the prices, speed and other information listed above and in the provider cards below may differ from what we found in our research. The cards display the full range of a provider's pricing and speed across the US, according to our database of plan information provided directly by ISPs. At the same time, the text is specific to what's available in Largo. The prices referenced within this article's text come from our research and include applicable discounts for setting up automatic payments each month -- a standard industry offering. Discounts and promotions might also be available for signing a term contract or bundling multiple services.

To learn more about how we review internet providers, visit our full methodology page.

Best internet in Largo, Florida, in 2024

3 Internet providers

Best internet provider in Largo, FL

Our take - With availability to over 90% of Largo residents, according to the Federal Communications Commission, Spectrum offers some of the cheapest pricing for service in the area. You can choose between four plans, ranging in speed from 100 up to 1,000Mbps. Prices vary by location, but all plans include unlimited data, a free modem and no required contract.

Read full review

...

Check with Spectrum

Connection

Cable

Speed range

100 - 1,000 Mbps

Price range

$30- $90 per month

Show more details

Best cheap internet provider in Largo, FL

Our take - WOW Internet, also known as WideOpenWest, is the second-largest cable provider that serves Largo. Plans start at $30 for 300Mbps and go up to $95 for 1.2 gigabits, which is some of the most competitive pricing home broadband has to offer. Plus, WOW comes with no data caps, contracts or equipment fees.

Read full review

...

Check with WOW!

Connection

Cable

Speed range

100 - 1,200 Mbps

Price range

$20 - $95 per month

Show more details

Best rural internet provider in Largo, FL

Our take - Although its prices are high and speeds are slow, Rapid Systems is a great alternative for residential internet if Spectrum or Frontier Fiber are unavailable at your household. This fixed wireless provider offers speeds up to 25Mbps and doesn't enforce any data caps or contracts, but prices start at $79 per month.

...

Check with Rapid

Connection

Fixed wireless

Speed range

10 - 250 Mbps

Price range

Show more details

Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

How to find internet deals and promotions in Largo

The best internet deals and top promotions in Largo depend on what discounts are available during that period. Most deals are short-lived, but we look frequently for the latest offers.

Largo internet providers, such as Spectrum and WOW Internet, may offer lower introductory pricing or streaming add-ons for a limited time. Others, however, such as Frontier and Verizon, run the same standard pricing year-round.

For a more extensive list of promos, check out our guide on the best internet deals.

Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

What’s a good internet speed?

Most internet connection plans can now handle basic productivity and communication tasks. If you're looking for an internet plan that can accommodate videoconferencing, streaming video or gaming, you'll have a better experience with a more robust connection. Here's an overview of the recommended minimum download speeds for various applications, according to the FCC. Note that these are only guidelines -- and that internet speed, service and performance vary by connection type, provider and address.

For more information, refer to our guide on how much internet speed you really need.

How CNET chose the best internet providers in Largo

Internet service providers are numerous and regional. Unlike the latest smartphone, laptop, router or kitchen tool, it’s impractical to personally test every ISP in a given city. So what’s our approach? We start by researching the pricing, availability and speed information, drawing on our own historical ISP data, the provider sites and mapping information from FCC.gov.

But it doesn’t end there. We go to the FCC’s website to check our data and ensure we consider every ISP that provides service in an area. We also input local addresses on provider websites to find specific options for residents. We look at sources, including the American Customer Satisfaction Index and J.D. Power, to evaluate how happy customers are with an ISP’s service. ISP plans and prices are subject to frequent changes; all information provided is accurate as of publication.

Once we have this localized information, we ask three main questions:

While the answer to those questions is often layered and complex, the providers who come closest to “yes” on all three are the ones we recommend. When selecting the cheapest internet service, we look for the plans with the lowest monthly fee, though we also factor in things like price increases, equipment fees and contracts. Choosing the fastest internet service is relatively straightforward. We look at advertised upload and download speeds and also consider real-world speed data from sources like Ookla and FCC reports.

To explore our process in more depth, visit our how we test ISPs page.

New procedure performed at HCA Florida Largo Hospital for patient considered a risk for open-heart surgery.

By

Esther Whitley was under doctor’s orders to do physical therapy after a procedure on her knee, but even the mildest exercise left her out of breath and her heart racing.

A visit to her cardiologist revealed that the mitral valve in her heart was leaking, meaning blood was flowing in the wrong direction. Complicating her condition was the presence of a tumor on her heart.

Fixing the mitral valve can be done with a catheter but not with a tumor in the way. That would normally mean open-heart surgery was the only option, but doctors felt that was too risky for Whitley, who is 86 and already has a pacemaker.

Instead, Whitley was referred to HCA Florida Largo Hospital and recently became the first Florida patient to undergo a new procedure to remove tumors using a specially designed catheter, according to the hospital.

The operation was first performed in 2022 and is known as the SEATTLE procedure, an acronym for Simplified Extraction of Atrial Tumor With Targeted Loop Electricity. Whitley is the 10th patient to undergo the procedure, according to Saurabh Sanon, a structural interventional cardiologist who performed the surgery at the Largo hospital.

The special catheter, which was inserted into a vein near Whitley’s groin and pushed toward her heart, is equipped with two loops and a meshlike basket to catch the tumor.

During the almost three-hour surgery, Sanon hooked one loop over the tumor and sent an electrical current through it, cutting it from the heart wall and cauterizing behind it. The other loop was used to guide the tumor into the mesh basket.

“This is a very complex procedure,” he said. “Each step relies on multiple modalities to make sure it’s safe and controlled.”

The hand controls for the catheter give the surgeon some tactile response to help guide their movements, but Sanon relied on two different imaging systems to see what was happening inside Whitley’s heart.

A fluoroscopy monitor provided live X-ray images while Sanon also used ultrasound imaging from a probe inserted through Whitley’s esophagus into her stomach. The probe is made of a special type of polymer plastic resistant to stomach acid.

“The success of something like that depends (on) implanters’ ability to synthesize the images you’re seeing,” Sanon said. “In your mind, you create this 3D space in which you work.”

The valve in Whitley’s heart will be repaired through a second catheter intervention scheduled for Wednesday using special clips to fix the leak.

The SEATTLE procedure could herald a change in treatment for older patients whose heart tumors were often left untreated because there was no noninvasive surgical option, Sanon said.

“This is definitely a breakthrough in structural heart technique and in the field,” Sanon said. “This will allow us to treat so many patients that are living their lives with these tumors.”

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Whitley, who lives in New Tampa, has been isolating from her family so as not to risk infection before her next procedure.

A University of South Florida graduate, Whitley worked as a librarian in the Hillsborough County school district before she retired. A mother of four children, she has five grandchildren and three great-grandchildren, with two more arriving in the spring.

Her family has been ribbing her about the procedure making her famous, she said.

“I’ve never been in that position before; I’ve led an ordinary life,” she said. “My mother lived to be 99, so I figured I better take care of myself.”

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LARGO, FL — Florida’s first drive-through Wawa is set to open in Largo, according to Tampa Bay Newspapers.

The 2,036-square-foot drive-thru at 2530 E. Bay Drive — the site of a former drive-thru restaurant — is expected to open by the end of the year.

“Wawa is committed to testing and innovating new store formats to provide the greatest level of convenience for our customers,” Lori Bruce, Wawa’s senior manager of media relations, told TBN. “With this new Largo store, we plan to continue to test and learn from our drive-thru prototype while gathering feedback from our customers and associates.”

By the end of 2023, the convenience store chain said it plans to have 250 stores operating in Florida, according to the Miami Herald.

The gas station and convenience store favorite has 29 stores scheduled to open in spring, summer and fall of 2023, continuing to grow the brand's presence around the Sunshine State.

Find out what's happening in Largowith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Wawa launched its new drive-thru concept — inspired, in part, by the COVID-19 pandemic — at the end of 2020 with its first-ever location of this type opening in Westhampton, New Jersey, according to NJ.com.

So far, there are only two locations, the second in Morrisville, Pennsylvania.

The brand’s drive-thru locations offer a smaller, more limited menu with a focus on combo meals, much like a fast-food restaurant. The stand-alone Wawa also won’t sell gas.

"Wawa continues to test new store concepts with this latest drive thru format, providing an opportunity for our customers to experience and enjoy their favorite Wawa products while remaining inside their car," Terri Micklin, the company’s director of construction, said according to Convenience Store News. "Wawa is committed to increasing convenience and (providing) new options for service while keeping safety and comfort top of mind. Wawa hopes to learn from the layout, workflow and traffic flow at this location, as it continues to explore alternatives for longer term application to stores post-COVID-19."

Boaters stumbled across an unusual sight off the coast of the Florida Keys on Saturday: a pod of orcas.

Mike Slaughter and his friends found the orcas feasting on what appeared to be a shark.

“At one point, one of the orcas came out of the water and had a huge piece of meat in his mouth, you could smell it, it was really cool," Slaughter said.

A marine heat wave has been driving Florida water temperatures into the high 90s this summer, and orcas generally prefer colder waters — so how did they end up in the Keys?

A local marine biologist explains that it's not every day you see an orca in Florida — but it is possible.

"It's not like it never happens, but it's rare," Gerard Loisel said. "It's unusual for them to occur this far south."

It's even more unusual to see an entire pod of orcas, he said.

Miami-Dade County

"The cases I've heard of before, where there were orcas spotted in the Keys or off the coast here, those were, like, individual, you know, animals," Loisel explained.

Orcas can be spotted "pretty much anywhere in the ocean," he says, but finding an orca near the equator is relatively rare.

Recently, though, encounters between orcas and boats have occurred near the coasts of Portugal and Spain more frequently.

"There was an usually high number of those kinds of incidents recently," Loisel said.

The incidents have been described as attacks by some, Loisel explained, but others believe that the orcas were behaving playfully and did not intend to harm the boats.

If you do happen to be snorkeling or swimming and stumble upon an orca, "you should get out of the water," he added.

Orcas almost never come near the shore and are more often found in deeper waters.

Slaughter made the right decisions when it came to finding an orca, Loisel said. He stayed back and remained on the boat, did not pursue or follow the orca, and documented the once-in-a-lifetime sighting on his phone.

KEY LARGO, FLA.—Today, Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) announced the capture and detention of 20 undocumented arrivals who landed in Key Largo by boat. On October 22nd, FHP responded to Mile Marker 109 in Monroe County at the request of U.S. Border Patrol to set up a secure perimeter and to assist in the apprehension of the suspects.

The undocumented arrivals consisted of 17 subjects from China (11 adult males, six adult females) and three from Ecuador (all adult males).

“While the Biden Administration has completely failed at border security, our Florida Highway Patrol troopers stand ready to protect the U.S. border, whether in the southwestern United States or here off the coast of Florida,” said Executive Director Dave Kerner. “This detention of Chinese nationals shows how an open border allows individuals from enemy nations to enter our communities.”

On January 6, 2023, Governor Ron DeSantis issued Executive Order #23-03, saying in a press release, “As the negative impacts of Biden’s lawless immigration policies continue unabated, the burden of the Biden administration’s failure falls on local law enforcement who lack the resources to deal with the crisis. That is why I am activating the National Guard and directing state resources to help alleviate the strain on local resources. When Biden continues to ignore his legal responsibilities, we will step in to support our communities.”

Executive Order #23-03 otherwise known as Operation Vigilant Sentry, not only activates the Florida National Guard but also directs state law enforcement agencies to provide resources to support local governments responding to the increasing number of migrants landing in the Florida Keys.

After recovery, the U.S. Border Patrol took the individuals into custody to be processed.

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