5 ms·

The best thing anyone can do is swap out the junky cable modem + WiFi router combos they rent to you. They're horrible under standard usage, bad when lots of cl

The best thing anyone can do is swap out the junky cable modem + WiFi router combos they rent to you. They're horrible under standard usage, bad when lots of clients are connected, bad wifi range, low memory, require frequent reboots, etc. For about $70 (about 5mos of rental charges) you can get a Surfboard barebones Docsis 3 modem that will vastly outperform whatever junk they rent out. After that you could get a TP-Link Archer C7 for sub $80 that will have good range and performance for that price point. So within about the first year you've broken even with vastly superior components and you'll be able to take them with you to any cable provider you wind up using in the future. I get why most people don't do this, they don't even know it's possible, but I'm amazed when colleagues in the industry are still running the company hardware.

throwaway6556 10y ago
TP-Link is Chinese crap, please stop recommending it. Thanks. Ubiquiti is fine, and Debian-based, to boot.
- dogecoinbase 10y ago
  Ubnt doesn't respond to security reports, violates the GPL, abandons product lines without warning while continuing to sell them, and sells underpowered devices that don't support basic functionality. But they are really cheap!
  - shimo5037 10y ago
    I believe the reason they continue selling them is so that companies with existing deployments can expand them with the same gear that already works for them. It's the same for most enterprise-oriented hardware. What would you suggest instead?
- noonespecial 10y ago
  Really? I've found the opposite. TP-Link has managed to match recent Ubiquiti's on performance and beaten them on price, but hasn't tried to ram a bunch of useless cloud crap down my throat when all I want is a simple AP.
- wernercd 10y ago
  The TP-Link "crap" I've bought has been bottom priced and dependable. Why by expensive routers, repeaters, etc when you can get a TP-Link for $20 that lasts for years and if it breaks... you spend another $20 to get the newest version... AND you've still spent less than the alternatives? I do spend the extra where warranted... but TP-Link is top notch "crap" in my book.
  - flyinghamster 10y ago
    I like their 16-port dumb gigabit switches... they work quite well and they don't cost a fortune.
- manyxcxi 10y ago
  TP-Link actually really isn't that crappy for the price point. Which was the gist of my entire statement. For sub-$100 you can get Routers that will keep up with (in most metrics) $200+ routers. Yes, these are generally pretty cheap and they may crap out sooner than some other brands but if you compare them to the same routers in the same price class I would be shocked if they were not considered at the top of their class. That all being said, my entire home network is Ubiquiti. So we don't disagree on which is better of the two brands.
shams93 10y ago
Yeah I own my own modem/router forced Comcast to setup my own stuff rather than rent from them but I made sure it was a Comcast compatible modem.
recursive 10y ago
This is a thing I would kind of want to do, but I've never bothered to figure out how. Like how will I know if it's a compatible modem, or better than what's there? How do you configure it? So those are my reasons.
- gnopgnip 10y ago
  http://mynewmodem.comcast.net/ http://mynewmodem.comcast.net/ Lists most of the modems you can purchase from amazon. They have a slightly larger list of supported modems but many of them are noy sold to the public like some Cisco models.
- erichurkman 10y ago
  https://mydeviceinfo.xfinity.com/ https://mydeviceinfo.xfinity.com/ will walk you through finding which devices your local service + speed work with. Spoiler: most DOCSIS 3.0 modems are compatible. Buy it, unplug your existing modem, plug the new one in, and call Comcast. I had mine out of the box and up and running in all of 15 minutes (most of that was spent on hold and waiting for the modem to reboot).
- harryh 10y ago
  http://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-cable-modem/ http://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-cable-modem/ You can figure this sort of thing out with less than 1 hour of effort.
- nommm-nommm 10y ago
  https://www.xfinity.com/support/internet/list-of-approved-cable-modems/ https://www.xfinity.com/support/internet/list-of-approved-ca... To configure it, you just plug it in. I think you may have to call them after you plugged it in and then activate it on their end.
- manyxcxi 10y ago
  The beauty is that (as far as my experience for the last ten years with Comcast for home and business in Seattle and Portland) I've never once had to do any configuration other than plugging it in while on the phone with support and reading off the various IDs. The only thing I've ever needed was the serial numbers and such that are printed on the bottom of my modem. Pro tip, the chat is much faster, tether to your phone for internet and do it via their web chat.
rickdale 10y ago
Changing my router was the best thing I have done to my internet connection, but somehow it never occurred to me to change my modem until I just read your comment. Er, duh! Ordering one now. Any recommendations from this list?: http://www.spectrum.net/support/internet/compliant-modems-charter-network/ http://www.spectrum.net/support/internet/compliant-modems-ch...
- sokoloff 10y ago
  I've always used Arris (sometimes branded as Motorola) and had consistently good results. Today, from that list, I'd buy the Woot SB6183 ($51.09 on Amazon-ASIN B018IS1S4C) as that's what I've been running at home for 13 months without issue. (I upgrade about every 6-9 years. You caught me "just" after the latest one.) It's a 16x4 modem, though when I use it on Comcast, Comcast operates it as a 16x3 (16 channels down, 3 channels up)
- manyxcxi 10y ago
  The Arris/Motorola Surfboard series have always been great for me. I think the biggest difference between the cheapest model and the most expensive one is that the most expensive one is capable of a theoretical max that is multiples of what Comcast even offers. So, it's technically more future proof. I've had the cheapest one forever and never had issues with it being slower than my pipe could deliver.
- zeta0134 10y ago
  I've been using a Zoom modem for years now with no issues at all. The Surfboard series is also pretty well recommended by my friends in the industry. I still prefer to avoid combo modems though, I find that the Wi-fi tech upgrades at a faster pace, and prefer to keep the devices separate rather than combined into one box. YMMV, do what makes sense for your setup.
newman314 10y ago
Protip: buy used off of craigslist. I've done this multiple times over the years and saved a bundle.
scarface74 10y ago
I hate that I've become an AT&T fanboy, but I have their Gigabit fiber service and use their router. The modem/router they gave me -- and don't charge an extra fee for it -- is in the worse possible place in my two story house. It's in a guest bedroom closet downstairs attached to the smart panel. When I'm right under it, I can get 400Mbps u/d from my iPhone and my laptops. In the worse location in the house I get 120/120. My house is wired for gig-e throughout but I with that kind of wireless speed, I didn't bother about getting the more expensive Roku boxes with 10/100 Ethernet connections. Of course I usually get 900+ u/d wired.
amluto 10y ago
As of a couple weeks ago, you can buy a DOCSIS 3.1 modem. Supposedly they have AQM (i.e. bufferbloat mitigation). I don't know for sure, but I expect that the upstream AQM will work even if the ISP hasn't switched to DOCSIS 3.1 in your area.

throwaway6556 10y ago

TP-Link is Chinese crap, please stop recommending it. Thanks. Ubiquiti is fine, and Debian-based, to boot.

dogecoinbase 10y ago
Ubnt doesn't respond to security reports, violates the GPL, abandons product lines without warning while continuing to sell them, and sells underpowered devices that don't support basic functionality. But they are really cheap!
- shimo5037 10y ago
  I believe the reason they continue selling them is so that companies with existing deployments can expand them with the same gear that already works for them. It's the same for most enterprise-oriented hardware. What would you suggest instead?
noonespecial 10y ago
Really? I've found the opposite. TP-Link has managed to match recent Ubiquiti's on performance and beaten them on price, but hasn't tried to ram a bunch of useless cloud crap down my throat when all I want is a simple AP.
wernercd 10y ago
The TP-Link "crap" I've bought has been bottom priced and dependable. Why by expensive routers, repeaters, etc when you can get a TP-Link for $20 that lasts for years and if it breaks... you spend another $20 to get the newest version... AND you've still spent less than the alternatives? I do spend the extra where warranted... but TP-Link is top notch "crap" in my book.
- flyinghamster 10y ago
  I like their 16-port dumb gigabit switches... they work quite well and they don't cost a fortune.
manyxcxi 10y ago
TP-Link actually really isn't that crappy for the price point. Which was the gist of my entire statement. For sub-$100 you can get Routers that will keep up with (in most metrics) $200+ routers. Yes, these are generally pretty cheap and they may crap out sooner than some other brands but if you compare them to the same routers in the same price class I would be shocked if they were not considered at the top of their class. That all being said, my entire home network is Ubiquiti. So we don't disagree on which is better of the two brands.

shams93 10y ago

Yeah I own my own modem/router forced Comcast to setup my own stuff rather than rent from them but I made sure it was a Comcast compatible modem.

recursive 10y ago

This is a thing I would kind of want to do, but I've never bothered to figure out how. Like how will I know if it's a compatible modem, or better than what's there? How do you configure it? So those are my reasons.

gnopgnip 10y ago
http://mynewmodem.comcast.net/ http://mynewmodem.comcast.net/ Lists most of the modems you can purchase from amazon. They have a slightly larger list of supported modems but many of them are noy sold to the public like some Cisco models.
erichurkman 10y ago
https://mydeviceinfo.xfinity.com/ https://mydeviceinfo.xfinity.com/ will walk you through finding which devices your local service + speed work with. Spoiler: most DOCSIS 3.0 modems are compatible. Buy it, unplug your existing modem, plug the new one in, and call Comcast. I had mine out of the box and up and running in all of 15 minutes (most of that was spent on hold and waiting for the modem to reboot).
harryh 10y ago
http://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-cable-modem/ http://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-cable-modem/ You can figure this sort of thing out with less than 1 hour of effort.
nommm-nommm 10y ago
https://www.xfinity.com/support/internet/list-of-approved-cable-modems/ https://www.xfinity.com/support/internet/list-of-approved-ca... To configure it, you just plug it in. I think you may have to call them after you plugged it in and then activate it on their end.
manyxcxi 10y ago
The beauty is that (as far as my experience for the last ten years with Comcast for home and business in Seattle and Portland) I've never once had to do any configuration other than plugging it in while on the phone with support and reading off the various IDs. The only thing I've ever needed was the serial numbers and such that are printed on the bottom of my modem. Pro tip, the chat is much faster, tether to your phone for internet and do it via their web chat.

rickdale 10y ago

Changing my router was the best thing I have done to my internet connection, but somehow it never occurred to me to change my modem until I just read your comment. Er, duh! Ordering one now. Any recommendations from this list?: http://www.spectrum.net/support/internet/compliant-modems-charter-network/ http://www.spectrum.net/support/internet/compliant-modems-ch...

sokoloff 10y ago
I've always used Arris (sometimes branded as Motorola) and had consistently good results. Today, from that list, I'd buy the Woot SB6183 ($51.09 on Amazon-ASIN B018IS1S4C) as that's what I've been running at home for 13 months without issue. (I upgrade about every 6-9 years. You caught me "just" after the latest one.) It's a 16x4 modem, though when I use it on Comcast, Comcast operates it as a 16x3 (16 channels down, 3 channels up)
manyxcxi 10y ago
The Arris/Motorola Surfboard series have always been great for me. I think the biggest difference between the cheapest model and the most expensive one is that the most expensive one is capable of a theoretical max that is multiples of what Comcast even offers. So, it's technically more future proof. I've had the cheapest one forever and never had issues with it being slower than my pipe could deliver.
zeta0134 10y ago
I've been using a Zoom modem for years now with no issues at all. The Surfboard series is also pretty well recommended by my friends in the industry. I still prefer to avoid combo modems though, I find that the Wi-fi tech upgrades at a faster pace, and prefer to keep the devices separate rather than combined into one box. YMMV, do what makes sense for your setup.

newman314 10y ago

Protip: buy used off of craigslist. I've done this multiple times over the years and saved a bundle.

scarface74 10y ago

I hate that I've become an AT&T fanboy, but I have their Gigabit fiber service and use their router. The modem/router they gave me -- and don't charge an extra fee for it -- is in the worse possible place in my two story house. It's in a guest bedroom closet downstairs attached to the smart panel. When I'm right under it, I can get 400Mbps u/d from my iPhone and my laptops. In the worse location in the house I get 120/120. My house is wired for gig-e throughout but I with that kind of wireless speed, I didn't bother about getting the more expensive Roku boxes with 10/100 Ethernet connections. Of course I usually get 900+ u/d wired.

amluto 10y ago

As of a couple weeks ago, you can buy a DOCSIS 3.1 modem. Supposedly they have AQM (i.e. bufferbloat mitigation). I don't know for sure, but I expect that the upstream AQM will work even if the ISP hasn't switched to DOCSIS 3.1 in your area.