U-verse does some things very nicely, and I hope to give credit where it is due. It also has some serious bugs and glitches, particularly in the Internet service, that have me thinking about going back to Time-Warner Cable. But I enjoy a challenge, especially when it involves working around Internet brain damage. (Someday my epitaph will probably read "I know I can do this, just give me a minute!")
Knowing how U-verse works, in particular that it is based on Internet Protocol TV, I know that it has a lot of potential that I would like to see fully realized. It is in this constructive spirit that I make these comments.
For the most part, U-verse video and voice (based on Voice Over IP) work pretty well, and those who can tolerate the mandatory NAT that's part of its standard Internet service will probably find it acceptable.
But those who cannot tolerate a NAT, e.g., because they run servers or have applications incompatible with NAT, should avoid U-verse for the time being. Although optional static IP address blocks are available from AT&T for U-verse at very reasonable prices, the U-verse Residential Gateway has serious bugs in how it handles them - and its use is mandatory.
Although the U-verse Residential Gateway is actually a 2WIRE product, I'm still quite surprised that AT&T, a company I used to work for, would put their name on something so poorly designed and so badly broken. People who just want the damn thing to work -- as opposed to taking it as a challenge as I do -- will probably not find it worth the hassle right now.
This list of notes is not in any sort of priority order at the moment.