Buy vs lease cable modem?
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lithium630
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Buy vs lease cable modem?
Is there any benefit or downside (aside from monetary) to buying a cable modem? I noticed Comcrap is charging $7 a month now to lease. Modems aren't that expensive.
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lithium630
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I haven't picked one out yet. I would like a modem only, no built in wifi router. I probably won't bother unless there will be a noticeable difference in performance.
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makryger
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I bought my own modem. It works great. It saved me $5 a month for about 6 months. But then my cable company RCN decided they would start bundling modems "free" with packages. (and charging the user $5 more). While they still allow Buy-your-own-modem, there is absolutely no benefit to using it with my company. As of December, comcast took the rental fee off when you used your own modem, so there is still a benefit for you, assuming that policy has not changed. But you'll also have to figure out whether its worth it in case your modem breaks, and you end up needing a $50 truck-roll to get a new rental modem from comcast.
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richard1980
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I say buy. $7 doesn't sound like much, but that's $84 per year. You can buy your own modem for that, and it'll last longer than a year.
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newfiend
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I agree.. If you think you will be using the modem for over a years time its worth a purchase instead of renting one. I bought my Motorola Cable modem 8 years ago and its still going strong. Can you imagine 8 years of rental fees?richard1980 wrote:I say buy. $7 doesn't sound like much, but that's $84 per year. You can buy your own modem for that, and it'll last longer than a year.
That would have been a lot of wasted money...
newfiend
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StumpyBloke
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From what you guys are saying, am I right in thinking that in the US/Canada you dont get a modem as part of your new package for free?
Rich
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Jameseh
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Depends on the provider.StumpyBloke wrote:From what you guys are saying, am I right in thinking that in the US/Canada you dont get a modem as part of your new package for free?
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Wolfshadw
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@Stonethecrows -
As a Comcast subscriber, I seem to recall the cable modem fee detailed as equipment rentals. Since Comcast "simplified" their statements, you don't see the details on your monthly statements anymore. About six months after moving into my new place, my Comcast provided cable modem died on me. I happened to have an older, re-certified one that I picked up from the local Radio Shack for $10. I contacted Comcast and asked if I could use that instead. They stated that so long as it met with their standards (Docsis?), I could. I've been using that cable modem ever since and been saving $6 on each bill ever since (almost three years).
-Wolf sends
As a Comcast subscriber, I seem to recall the cable modem fee detailed as equipment rentals. Since Comcast "simplified" their statements, you don't see the details on your monthly statements anymore. About six months after moving into my new place, my Comcast provided cable modem died on me. I happened to have an older, re-certified one that I picked up from the local Radio Shack for $10. I contacted Comcast and asked if I could use that instead. They stated that so long as it met with their standards (Docsis?), I could. I've been using that cable modem ever since and been saving $6 on each bill ever since (almost three years).
-Wolf sends
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STC
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Hi Wolf,
Unfortunately I cannot supply or buy the modem. I live in a rural location, and my Cable Co. is small. They have their own unique set of rules.
Unfortunately I cannot supply or buy the modem. I live in a rural location, and my Cable Co. is small. They have their own unique set of rules.
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TheOsburnFamil
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Grr... I had a nice long reply here telling the history of my cable modem ownership going back to 1999 but my wireless crapped out & I lost the post! LOL
Long story short-- back in 1999 I bough a Motorola Surfboard 4100 for $80 bucks off the internet (even way back then).
I used it until I sold my house about 2.5 years ago. At that time we were in a temp place so I gave that cable modem to my dad & he's still using it to this day-- saving him $5.00 a month.
When we bought our house 2 years ago, I bought a new Mot 5200 on Amazon for $50 and that's been rocking for me ever since. So a combined $130 has saved around $1000 over the years.
I'm a big fan of buying your own cablemodem. They just work.
Long story short-- back in 1999 I bough a Motorola Surfboard 4100 for $80 bucks off the internet (even way back then).
I used it until I sold my house about 2.5 years ago. At that time we were in a temp place so I gave that cable modem to my dad & he's still using it to this day-- saving him $5.00 a month.
When we bought our house 2 years ago, I bought a new Mot 5200 on Amazon for $50 and that's been rocking for me ever since. So a combined $130 has saved around $1000 over the years.
I'm a big fan of buying your own cablemodem. They just work.
Matt O. ...tivo what? ...dish dvr--uh... huh? ...cable dvr fees--you're kidding, right?
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Venom51
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On days like today it would have been better to lease. The second modem in 2 months to get hit by lighting from the cable company side. Killed a port on my Cisco 2811 again. But previous to that it would not have paid since the last Docsis 2.0 modem I had worked unfettered for 7 years.
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TheOsburnFamil
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Man that sucks! I'm sure I'm screwing myself here; but, in all the years, I've never lost electronics due to lightning!
Matt O. ...tivo what? ...dish dvr--uh... huh? ...cable dvr fees--you're kidding, right?
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richard1980
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I hear a thunderstorm brewing...
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Venom51
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Aggrivating but a minor issue. I keep spares on hand and I'll just order another 1FE-TX module. On the good side I was able to fil a claim with Comcast and since this has happened twice in less than 2 months they will be reimbursing me for the cost of the modems and the replacement router I bought previously.
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makryger
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Another suggestion: Surge Protection!
My Channel Logos XL: Get your Guide looking good! ~~~~ TunerSalad: Increase the 4-tuner limit in 7MC
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Venom51
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Everything is backed by UPS electrically so no issues there. I put some suppression on the incoming line last night. We'll see how well it works.makryger wrote:Another suggestion: Surge Protection!