How to Swap Out a Time Warner Modem With Your Own Faster One

http://techblog.troyweb.com/index.php/2012/12/swap-out-time-warner-cable-modem-with-your-own/

by samirmenon • 13 years ago

41 28 13 years ago

techblog.troyweb.com

jffry• 13 years ago

At $50/yr to lease a modem from Time Warner, and replacement modems at $50-$100, then leasing a modem from TWC would only be cheaper if Time Warner upgrades their network more than once every 1-2 years (which I'm betting they don't)

aeturnum• 13 years ago

I took a look a DOCSIS 3.0 modems available on Amazon when I last got a cable subscription. At the time they were really expensive, so I decided to go with renting one from my provider. That was a long time ago, and they are now available for cheap, but people should always consider how they expect costs to go down in the future. In hindsight, going with the company's modem was the right choice.

jusben1369• 13 years ago

I think the motto of this story, at least here on HN, is thanks for a) highlighting this rate hike which many may not have noticed and b) highlighting that TWC is ok with you buying your own and prepared to easily let you add your MAC address with a single call.

doorhammer• 13 years ago

I agree. Depending on the context (another commenter related prices being higher previously), it's not always the optimal choice, but having all the info to make the best choice is good news.

wmf2• 13 years ago

OTOH, rented modems get bursting and owned modems don't, so you may see lower speeds. In general, getting the speed you pay for is an orthogonal issue from renting vs. buying the modem. If you're on a high-end plan (as it appears the author is) TWC should have given you a 3.0 modem already. If not, it should be free to swap modems.

johne20• 13 years ago

Where did you read/hear that? And is that a TWC specific issue or does it apply to Comcast as well?

wmf2• 13 years ago

I've only paid attention to TWC since I use them. It's been semi-officially confirmed on DSLReports and I noticed it myself.

dfc• 13 years ago

rented modems get bursting and owned modems don't

Can you elaborate? I went out and bought a TWC approved modem instead of renting from TWC. I always thought the service I received would be the the same. Is this a firmware thing?

I was actually writing a munin plugin for my SB6141 when I saw this.

newman3144• 13 years ago

FWIW, this applies to Comcast too.

Protip: buy a used modem say SB6120/SB6121 off of craigslist for about $30-40 and never have to pay that silly $7 fee that Comcast has been sticking to customers forever.

deefour• 13 years ago

My Comcast modem died on me on a Thursday afternoon. Comcast couldn't have a tech out until the next Tuesday to give me a new modem and said if I tried to bring it to the local Comcast branch to swap it for a new one I'd be refused service.

After my frustration subsided I spent a little time researching [1], made use of my Amazon Prime subscription and had a brand new, well reviewed, compatible modem [2] at my house Saturday morning.

The modem Comcast gave me retailed for $28. I paid $7/mo for over 4 years. That's well over $300 for a $28 piece of garbage, just because I didn't know I had the option to use my own hardware. I canceled my monthly rental, had a tech come out to pick the broken modem up at no charge, and have been happy since.

Invest in a modem like you do your other hardware. It will be better for your wallet and have the added benefit of _not_ lining the pockets of a company many people despise.

[1] http://mydeviceinfo.comcast.net/ [2] http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007IMPMW4

newman3144• 13 years ago

Well, if you are going to fork money out for a modem, make sure it's DOCSIS 3.x compatible.

Bonus: free speed boost.

One can look for a DOCSIS 3 compatible device here: http://mydeviceinfo.comcast.net/

rbritton• 13 years ago

Any idea if this works on a Comcast business account? I have one of those and a spare modem lying around, but I haven't tried it.

newman3144• 13 years ago

Sorry, no idea. Please report back if you do try this.

markkanof• 13 years ago

Yes, I did this with a Comcast business account. The initial tech person I spoke to on the phone was very willing to help me but seemed confused about what number he needed from the new modem. He said someone would call me back to continue working on it. To my surprise I got a call the next morning saying it should be all set, and sure enough it was. Works great now, and I typically get faster speeds than I pay for.

bnycum• 13 years ago

Same situation with Comcast, except they started charging for theirs years ago. It started at $3, but was $8 / month by the time I bought my own modem 2 years ago. Best Buy will constantly run a sale on the Motorola SB6121 for around $50. Was a simple decision, plus I dumped that DOCSIS 2 modem for a 3 and gained some speed.

matsur2• 13 years ago

Comcast fleeces you on the rental fee. However, if you cancel your modem rental but refuse to return their device, they charge you just $53 for it. Easily the lowest friction way into rolling from renting into owning your own modem.

zenocon2• 13 years ago

Did you do that, and were you able to get it re-activated... or did they not disconnect, but just charged you the $53 ?

windexh8er• 13 years ago

This article is ripe with inaccurate data. Having worked on the first deployed DOCSIS 3 network in the US I know a few things about HFC networks.

First, any modem that is on the approved list of modems the ISP lists (either via public website or by calling) will be fully supported by latest and greatest firmware. The way it works is that there is generally a private overlay network that has access from the provisioning system to upload the firmware the ISP wants to have deployed. However this is often less likely than you think and any DOCSIS 3 capable modem you buy today will generally work out of the box. The difference between 2 and 3 is most generically up and down steam channel bonding. This is basically taking a QAM and running it over RF space on the cable. There is a finite about, just like over the air (although rather wide and compressed QAM, 64 QAM vs 256 QAM puts more data within the same time frame sent).

Back to provisioning... If you buy a Motorola Surfboard that is on the ISP approved list the provisioning system will send the same updates to your modem that would be to a leased modem.

I could go on, but TL;DR: this article is not a good reference to understand how HFC networks operate - or how to make your Internet faster.

That, and damn TWC is slow on D3. I helped roll it out in 2010. They must be running Arris CMTS.

ericcumbee• 13 years ago

I think the smaller cable companies have been charging a rental fee for a while now. There was a cable modem in my apartment when I moved in. The cable company set it up no questions asked. 2 weeks later they call me saying that it belonged to them and that I either had to agree to rent their modem or have my service turned off in 24 hours. I ended up replacing it with my own modem. There was no trouble getting the one I bought from amazon setup, just called to register the mac.

Interestingly enough that old modem is still sitting in my closet and they have not shown much interest in coming to pick it up.

agersant• 13 years ago

I had no idea TWC was charging me ($4.99 a month here!) for that subpar modem. I've just ordered one, thanks for the eye-opening article.

jeffmcjunkin• 13 years ago

It looks like Newegg has a great deal on an 802.11ac wireless router (which DD-WRT seems to support, and likely other firmwares) and a free DOCSIS 3.0 modem (Motorola SURFboard SB6121): http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833122.... Granted, the modem itself is considerably cheaper on its own, but having a good wireless router is a luxury most members here can afford.

(Not an affiliate link, just a PSA)

jasomill• 13 years ago

FYI, this modem, unlike the otherwise similar SB6141, doesn't support 8-channel bonding, so it might not be supported by some ISPs' highest service tiers.

chadyj• 13 years ago

Also see: How to Beat Time Warner's Bullsh*t Modem Rental Fee http://gizmodo.com/5948616/how-to-beat-time-warners-bullsht-...

zenocon2• 13 years ago

So glad to hear this can also be done with Comcast. The better half pays the bills and I wasn't paying attention. I had no idea they were raping me for $8/mo for a cable modem. Turns out I have an Arris TM822 -- which doesn't look too bad, and is DOCSIS 3 capable. Another comment in here mentioned that the easiest thing to do is call and tell them you no longer want to rent the equipment, and then when you don't return it, they'll charge you $53 to own it. Sounds like a plan.

toadi• 13 years ago

Lucky they at least give you the choice. In Belgium we are obliged to use the modem from the provider. We don't need to pay for it (but I assume it's paid inside the monthly subscription I pay).

Befoe this was not a problem. I connected my own router behind it and everything was still ok. But now they provide their own router/wifi combo in the modem (and free hotspot). I can disable the wifi and hotspot but not the router functionality. Which means I have to NAT behind it. This gives other problems like vpn into my own network and such.

keithpeter• 13 years ago

UK ADSL over copper: Most ISPs provide a modem/router when you first join, there is no ongoing monthly cost however. Some provide the box 'free' others show a one off charge.

I use my own modem/router, I simply declined the free box when subscribing (7 or 8 years ago now). No special set up, just standard ADSL stuff. Firmware is special to UK though.

How to Swap Out a Time Warner Modem With Your Own Faster One

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