That doesn’t look like it will happen anytime soon, however. The most annoying part of the process may be returning your existing router, and phoning in your new router’s MAC address to ensure it can be identified by your cable provider.Įventually, of course, any new cable modem you purchase will itself become obsolete. (Here’s the PCWorld roundup of the best 802.11ac routers of 2013.) Simply buy Comcast’s low-end recommended modem and attach your own router to it-either one you already own, or a new model. It’s fairly certain the third-party gateways on the Comcast site won’t suddenly sprout Xfinity WiFi capabilities. You can also pay more, if you wish, to buy a true gateway with integrated router capabilities, including the most recent 802.11ac technology for higher-bandwidth wireless streaming and MoCA capability for using your existing coax runs as wired networking cables. One great alternative to the Comcast Xfinity gateway is this simple, inexpensive cable modem from Arris and Motorola. The $90 Arris SB6141 downloads up to 343 Mbits/s at a time. But if you’re thinking of upgrading to the Extreme 150 tier, for example, that might be pushing it a bit. That’s more than enough for most small families, especially if your service is only rated at, say, 16 Mbits/s. (On the low end, of course, you’ll need to supply a separate router.) Have a look at the specs, too: the SB6121 can transfer 172 Mbits/s down and upload up to 131 Mbits/s. On the Comcast site, you’ll find prices as low as $70 (new from Amazon) for the Arris/Motorola SB6121 bare-bones modem. ( Cox has its own list of compatible modems, as does Time Warner Cable.) Proceed to Comcast’s dedicated site to buy a new cable modem. An older modem may be hobbling your premium-broadband service. To its credit, Comcast makes the process simple from its end as well.įirst, check Comcast’s site to see whether your existing cable modem is expiring, as Comcast may not tell you. PCWorld contributor Eric Geier gets into the nuts and bolts. The easiest way, of course, is to simply ditch Comcast’s modem entirely. The answer: buy an approved third-party router
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