Internet is mostly Xfinity. I haven’t had issues with them but it’s largely dependent on location and infrastructure, but they generally cover the entire city. You can in some places find other services, dependent on address so look for coverage maps.

Verizon 5G home internet has a coverage map here: https://www.verizon.com/coverage-map/

Which lets you zoom down to street level. If you’re next to a tower, it’s purportedly fast af. If not, it might be subpar to Xfinity.

So far as vibe, I have lived here 2 years and I love it! No one seems to care about one’s orientations, afaik, at least no one cares about mine, and there are some local LGBTQ+ communities and organizations, though likely less than in NOVA/DC. There’s a few less things to do, but a LOT more that’s walkable. A mile walk (about 20 mins or so) from where I live in the Highlandtown neighborhood and I can access literally hundreds of restaurants, coffee shops, and bars, some nice parks, 3-4 breweries, several smaller grocery stores, at least three libraries, and a wonderful set of art galleries, a creativity center, etc. and as such, a quick Uber to any of those places is pretty cheap. Anything else I want is a short drive away.

We have great Asian fusion, though not much for traditional Chinese. Great Indian and middle eastern, south/central Asian food, good (and sometimes amazing) Latin food. And pizza and wings literally everywhere. Some of my favorites are Tandav, Indoviet, Bambao, Ekiben, Francesca’s, Lighthouse (for wings!! And great beer) and (my opinion) Fillipo’s.

Oh, and that 1 mile also includes at least one game shop with an amazing selection given its small size, and a playroom in the back, and there’s a few more in town that I haven’t been to yet. Did I mention, Baltimore also hosts Astronomy on Tap? Who doesn’t want to drink a pint while watching astronomers who are also drinking while talking about space??

The housing costs a lot less, even in safer neighborhoods. Lots of great townhomes in the $350-500k range in these areas, though parking may or may not be present.

If you’re looking for charming, slightly gritty urban vibes, this is it. If you’re looking for modern, chic, new, vibes of expensive apartments on top of high end shopping centers like in Reston, Tyson’s, or Arlington, well there’s a little of that too, though less developed and a bit less upscale (McHenry Row, Brewer’s Hill, and a few others come to mind). Baltimore shines for those who like more historic homes (that might need some lovin) and walking around to dive bars and neighborhood coffee roasters.