A "VRAD" (Video Ready Access Device) is what AT&T uses to provide U-Verse high speed internet and high definition television service to homes. In the past, there have been attempts to map out, unofficially, the locations of VRAD in order to figure out where AT&T is offering U-Verse (AT&T won't disclose this information for competitive reasons).
We did a lot of driving around downtown and midtown Sacramento over the past few days and managed to find 3 of them. I'm sure there are more, but they don't jump out at you. Below is a short video clip of what they look like. Telltale signs are a dedicated power meter and an actual address on the box (do they take pizza deliveries?). You'll notice too that they make a slight humming noise.
The VRAD is where AT&T brings in fiber optic lines. The digital signal from these lines is converted from optical to electrical and then sent to homes through a neighboring box called a "cross connect."
An article earlier this year suggested that AT&T is winding down its U-Verse expansion, which is bad news for Sacramento, but we did find one location where they were actually installing a new VRAD, so perhaps it's not over yet.
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