# New Comcast modem/router



## Edd (Dec 6, 2018)

Comcast just sent us one of these unsolicited. I have one of their older modems with my own router. Plenty of speed and it’s been a shockingly reliable setup. Can anyone think of a good reason to switch? They say no extra charge. I like new gear but I’m not motivated to mess with a perfectly functioning network.


----------



## speden (Dec 6, 2018)

I got one of these a couple weeks ago when my wireless router suddenly died. I traded in my rental cable modem and got the new combined cable modem and wireless router instead of buying a new wireless router. I think it's going to be the same monthly cost as I was paying for just the cable modem.

One thing that's nice with the xFi router is there's a mobile phone app where you can manage all your devices and assign them to family members. So I can see how much bandwidth each family member and device is using. You can also disable a device or set a schedule for young kids where their devices will stop working (like during dinner or at night if you want).

Downside so far is the wireless range isn't quite as good as my old wireless router. My son can't get a good signal up in his room anymore. Apparently there are plug in range extenders you can get, so I'm planning to get a couple of those. I've also had some reliability problems with it. A couple times it seemed to lose the internet connection and the telephone stopped working and I had to reboot the router to get it working again.

My internet service from Comcast has never been very reliable though. I think there is some signal problem on my street. I'm supposed to get 150 MBS speed, but I rarely get that and sometimes it drops down to about 5 MBS, which sucks. I see that Verizon fios is now offering gigabit service in my area, so I'm thinking of switching to that. Hopefully Comcast will boost their speed to keep up with the competition.


----------



## Glenn (Dec 7, 2018)

I used their provided modem for about a month before switching and getting my own. It's a fairly painless process. It paid for itself in a few months since we no longer had to pay that ridiculous equipment "rental" fee. 

For me, I like having a separate router and modem. That way, if one component goes bad, you just replace one and not the entire thing. Or if something isn't right, it's easier to isolate. 

We upgrated to a Nighthawk router a few months ago and it's been a good choice. Better speed and coverage throughout the house.


----------



## benski (Dec 7, 2018)

Some incite I have on your problem from experience, 2.4 gigahertz Wifi has better range than 5 gigahertz WiFi. Most routes have both. Unless you live in a small apartment use 2.4 gigahertz. This does mean you can’t use the latest technology but it does not seam to make a difference up close unless you can use the crazy fast speeds the latest routers offer up close and at a distance the signal will be better so it will be faster. 

From me experience extenders are not seamless unless you buy a mesh network. The extender is a separate WiFi network that connects to the other network and you will have to manually switch between the two. Somehow Apple can’t figure out how to do this automatically before you completely lose signal.


----------



## Nick (Dec 7, 2018)

I'm not a fan of the router / modem combos. I like having control over my network so I try to keep my modem separate. I've never had an issue with this.


----------



## Glenn (Dec 7, 2018)

benski said:


> Some incite I have on your problem from experience, 2.4 gigahertz Wifi has better range than 5 gigahertz WiFi. Most routes have both. Unless you live in a small apartment use 2.4 gigahertz. This does mean you can’t use the latest technology but it does not seam to make a difference up close unless you can use the crazy fast speeds the latest routers offer up close and at a distance the signal will be better so it will be faster.
> 
> From me experience extenders are not seamless unless you buy a mesh network. The extender is a separate WiFi network that connects to the other network and you will have to manually switch between the two. Somehow Apple can’t figure out how to do this automatically before you completely lose signal.




Thanks a really good point. 2.4 does have a better range. In fact, Sonos uses the 2.4 band vs the 5 for that exact reason. I believe other connected devices do as well.


----------



## benski (Dec 7, 2018)

Glenn said:


> Thanks a really good point. 2.4 does have a better range. In fact, Sonos uses the 2.4 band vs the 5 for that exact reason. I believe other connected devices do as well.



You are correct, Microwaves, Bluetooth, and Some cordless phones use this bandwidth. It is possible to have too many devices on this bandwidth, so unplug the cordless phone. The spammers can be ignored.


----------



## Glenn (Dec 9, 2018)

We had that exact issue with an older cordless phone we started using again. It was knocking my wireless IP cams offline. Land line is gone now so no problems there. 

I did notice my iPhone 6 doesn't like to stay connected to ATT wifi when using 5g on the router. Really strange. Put it back on the 2.4 band it's been fairly solid since.


----------



## Edd (Dec 9, 2018)

I have a pair of excellent Sennheiser wireless TV headphones. The range is great but interference can occur on them with activity on my 2.4 network. Also if I’m standing on the wrong side of our microwave when running. 

I try to always use my 5.0 network for the wireless devices because my understanding is that it tends to be less crowded. Where I live, there are a handful of networks in range. 


Sent from my iPhone using AlpineZone


----------



## Glenn (Dec 9, 2018)

I use an app on my old school first gen Amazon Fire tablet that allows me to see networks close to me and what channel they are on. Helps with making sure I set our router to a channel none of the neighbors are on. You'd be surprised how many people just leave things on the factory settings for channels.


----------



## Funky_Catskills (Dec 19, 2018)

performance...  Security...


----------



## Edd (Dec 19, 2018)

Words....randomly....


What I like to do is string words together to form ideas. Try it out.


----------



## Funky_Catskills (Dec 20, 2018)

Edd said:


> Words....randomly....
> What I like to do is string words together to form ideas. Try it out.



You asked...


Edd said:


> Can anyone think of a good reason to switch?



I answered..   


Funky_Catskills said:


> performance...  Security...



I don't know why I actually care.. But that was my answer smart ass..


----------



## Edd (Dec 20, 2018)

Funky_Catskills said:


> You asked...
> 
> 
> I answered..
> ...



That actually came off dickier than I meant it so my apologies. In our case I doubt the performance could improve perceptibly. I can’t speak to the security.


----------



## Funky_Catskills (Dec 20, 2018)

Edd said:


> That actually came off dickier than I meant it so my apologies. In our case I doubt the performance could improve perceptibly. I can’t speak to the security.



whatever... I hope you don't get hacked..


----------



## benski (Jan 2, 2019)

I think I found out why Comcast is downgrading your Wifi. They let all there users connect to any WIFI network. This has led to a problem of phones connecting to the network as they drive by, using your WiFi for a moment then losing internet for long enough to drop calls and audio streams. To solve this Comcast is reducing there WiFis range to eliminate the gap between losing internet and losing the network. This is only a problem for cell phones due to there small WiFi chip so this will cause problems for your laptop.


----------



## Edd (Jan 2, 2019)

I sent the new router back, perhaps unwisely from a security perspective, but I don’t want to rock a perfectly functional boat. 


Sent from my iPhone using AlpineZone


----------



## Funky_Catskills (Jan 3, 2019)

benski said:


> I think I found out why Comcast is downgrading your Wifi. They let all there users connect to any WIFI network. This has led to a problem of phones connecting to the network as they drive by, using your WiFi for a moment then losing internet for long enough to drop calls and audio streams. To solve this Comcast is reducing there WiFis range to eliminate the gap between losing internet and losing the network. This is only a problem for cell phones due to there small WiFi chip so this will cause problems for your laptop.



You can disable that.


----------



## AdamWess (Feb 6, 2019)

Can anyone recommend me the best product from the list mentioned in this site. https://wirelessster.com/best-wireless-routers/


----------



## kiran varanasi (Sep 3, 2019)

yes it works perfectly


----------

