Please school me on DOCSIS 3.0

Susquehannock

Susquehannock

Supreme [H]ardness
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Jul 26, 2005
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My internet provider (xfinity/comcast) has been very persistent & insistent that I need to upgrade my cable modem to DOCSIS 3.0.

What does this mean? Will my old wireless 'G' router need upgrading too?

Have only internet ... no cable TV or phone service.

Thanks
 
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It's laid out in their wiki page. IP v6 compatibility, bigger data rate pipes, adn that's about it.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DOCSIS

I went to best buy and picked up a new Surfboard modem that was docsis 3.0 compatiable, plugged it in, plugged in my existing network, and was off and going.

End of the day - upgrade it.
 
Good old Wiki. Should have known to look there.
Obvious they want the larger address space IPv6 provides.
 
Susquehannock said:
Good old Wiki. Should have known to look there.
Obvious they want the larger address space IPv6 provides.
Click to expand...

3.0 seems to be a lot more efficient in it's use of frequency bandwidth. Many people have stated that their speeds went up after just replacing their old modems. There isn't any real reason NOT to, at this point.
 
Ruoh said:
3.0 seems to be a lot more efficient in it's use of frequency bandwidth. Many people have stated that their speeds went up after just replacing their old modems. There isn't any real reason NOT to, at this point.
Click to expand...
cept for, ya know, the cost of the modem
 
For most people, the issue will be speed and compatibility. Eventually, all DOCSIS 2.0 modems will not be able to connect to your ISP. DOCSIS 2.0 is capped at about 40Mbps, while the highest-end DOCSIS 3.0 modems can achieve up to 1.2Gbps download. The main feature that allows for the faster speed is bonded Internet channels. DOCSIS 2.0 and previous only used one channel for Internet accesss. DOCSIS 3.0 allows for up to 32 channels for download, and, if I remember correctly, 8 channels for upload. It is a common practice for the cable company to only provide about half the available bandwidth per channel, using more channels for speed rather than maxing out what the channels can do. If you want anything faster than 25Mbps, you will need a DOCSIS 3.0 modem.

The before mentioned SB6121 is an early DOCSIS 3.0 device, and only uses 4 channels for the download, and is often capped at 50Mbps service by the cable company. If you are going to purchase a new modem, you really want to go with a model that uses 8 or more channels for download.
 
Paying for 25mbps but regularly test in the 29 range. Tech on the phone said they will be deactivating all non 3.0 modems soon.

Ended up buying a new TP-Link # tc7610 for $40. It is indeed an earlier device and on Comcast's approved device list. Should be adequate for my meager needs.
 
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