Internet? I am moving and can only pick between AT&T and Comcast (Xfinity)
3I finally got into public low income housing (hope I don't get mugged as it is in a crap part of town) and have to buy internet since what employment I do have is online. Very old infrastructure there and my choices, unfortunately are limited. They are: AT&T at 3 mbps (currently I have this and get about 0.5-1.2 down and 0.3 to .05 up... um yeah dial up might be faster the spinning wheel of death happens about every 5 seconds on video) and Xfinity at 10-25 mbps (they do have faster but I can't afford it unless the good fairy drops a brinks truck in the back yard in the middle of a tornado or something. Knowing my luck it would be empty and go through the roof and land in my apt. LOL). Since Xfinity is faster that would be good, but I have heard such awful things about their service and customer service - what are people's experiences with that? I had also heard I'd be better off buying my modem rather than renting from them - if that is true then what should I buy? Also rules are no dish so those kinds are out. Suggestions?
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You really, really want Xfinity- unless you know people in the area who have had good experiences with the AT&T service, DSL is definitely a crapshoot (not to say cable internet isn't, but it doesn't usually come with the legacy baggage DSL carries).
The customer service is not terribly good, and you'll likely experience price increases, but you'll mostly be able to use the service, as opposed to the AT&T, which can never be as good as the cable even if everything is perfect.
They're both going to suck. As @dashcloud mentioned, DSL will likely suck more, but I've seen it go either way - especially at the low-cost Xfinity tier. Customer service will be terrible with either provider, if a tech has to come out in either case, that will probably be your saving grace.
Guess I'm really just agreeing with @dashcloud here. They're both going to be truly bad. Set your baseline expectation, and then drop it. Drop it some more. Whack it with a comically oversized mallet. Set fire to it. Now, realign your baseline with this version. If you can afford Xfinity, it will probably get you to the baseline you anticipated with AT&T.
@brhfl So what you are saying is that Xfinity is likely to be a smidgen better than AT&T as long as I take into consideration the continuum both are on is: one end of the continuum is anchored by sucks like a black hole sucks and the other end is anchored by only mehly sucks?
@Kidsandliz Right, it's less a question of 'which is better' and more 'which sucks less.'
@Kidsandliz Another point to consider is that only one of these connections would actually qualify as "broadband" under the FCC's definition (AT&T is so crappy it couldn't even clear the ridiculously low bar set by the old rule): http://arstechnica.com/business/2015/01/fcc-chair-broadband-must-be-25mbps-and-isps-are-failing-to-deliver/
@dashcloud both are better than what I am currently using (which sucks big time).
Can you get ATT fiber (Uverse?) Or just dsl?
Fwiw, ATT usually ties you to a contract dont they? Can you do Xfinity and skip the contract?
@f00l No uverse. Right now both have a deal for $15/mo plus all the padding that gets added on to bring the price way up. I can't remember (will have to go look again) about the contract or not. If there is one it is only 12 mo.
@Kidsandliz If they're both the same price (which you probably don't know because they probably won't tell you the fees unless you offer up your soul first), definitely go for Comcast. There's probably a terrible promo involved where your rates will rise in a year, be mindful and monitor that.
@brhfl Someone told me comcast business is better. I can't afford that but what is the difference - customer service? I can't imagine somehow consumers get B rated cables and businesses get A rated cables. Or maybe the modem is better? I was told by that same someone the modem they rent you sucks, buy one, but I have no clue what to buy.
@Kidsandliz I don't know, but it is entirely possible (and entirely plausible) that on their end they simply give bandwidth preference to business customers. So, to put it simply, assuming there's a pipe that holds 6GB of data, and a bunch of consumers and businesses are using it at once, they can say 'alright we have to give these peons some infrastructure, let's allot 1GB of this pipe to them, and 5GB to the cool dudes in the suits.' Oversimplification, and as stated, I don't really know — but I can see it playing out that way.
As to the modem issue, that's something the helpful forum folks can help you with once you make a service decision. But, generally speaking, there's a list of supported modems somewhere on the provider's site, then you do some hardcore Amazon/eBaying to find the cheapest one you can, and roll with it. Even if it explodes in a couple of months, it's still probably cheaper than the rental.
@Kidsandliz
Between Comcast and dsl i would pick comcast (just remember, lucifer is the nice member of the family.)
Check yr plan for overage limits.
They will prob try to fuck you on renewal prices at some point. Call them and tell the you're cancelling if you cant get decent pricing. Often they will come round.
If they won't, then quit it need be. Have a decent data plan on at least 1 cell phone to get you thru a dry spell (t-mobile promos). Then try signing up again w comcast on a good rate, or switch to ATT, they might have Uverse locally by then. Or maybe, by some miracle, google internet.
Are you getting combo tv/internet or just internet?
Congrats on housing upgrade! When you talked about your shed, i wasn't sure if it was real or humorous, and if real, whether it was a pioneering minimalist gesture or a necessity, given your circumstances. In any case, i hope you are in a good place now!
I have lived happily and perhaps bravely in difficult settings for long periods. Sometimes by choice, trying something out...sometimes because that was the option i had. That can all be great for the soul, and good for self-reliance and ingenuity....but it's really nice to switch to a home with normal amenities, a good roof, normal heat and air, and no need to cover up or excuse/explain your living situation. Nice to come home and relax instead or coming home to survive. Blessings on your new home.
@Kidsandliz
No specific comcast info, but in general, biz will get better service and cost more. The contracts may be different. Also they may limit you to biz or home depending on your address.
@f00l No TV. Will be using an antenna. Just internet. Too broke to get TV too. Shed is real and not by choice. Housing is public, low income apt in a crappy neighborhood but rent and utilities is 30% of your income which is a plus. 2 rooms, no heat or A/C in the bedroom, just the livingroom/kitchen (motel style A/C heating unit). Hopefully only a short stop here.
@Kidsandliz regarding business service...it is much more expensive than residential. i believe you have to have a commercial address so you wouldn't even qualify in an apartment/residential neighborhood. that said, business customer service is generally better than residential and the response time for a technician is sometimes within the hour or 2 following the call verses 3 days later.
@Kidsandliz
i've done sheds w no a/c. And warehouses, ditto. And once a farm w a broken down mobile home w no electricity. And sometimes it was what i could afford.
I used to try to get all Thoreau'd in my head and make it seem noble or romantic. Then when back to a normal dwelling, it would take me a while to think it was ok to have a normal bed instead or a cot.
I'm really glad you've got this new place. If your a/c isnt great, please get several good fans, huge diff if you know how to use them.
Old times, pre a/c, pre 1950's
All houses in the south were built w porches, shrubs, lots of windows, good airflow.
One great aunt's house had monster whole house fans, one in the attic, and one on the ground floor. They were so strong kids found it hard to walk up to them, but they made it feel cool, esp w a damp towel around your neck. They also had fans in each room.
Grandmother's house: cross ventilation windows in every room, when possible. In the afternoons someone would water the tops of the shrubs right by the windows, and fans would be set by each window, on one side to pull air in over the wet bushes, on the other side to pull air out, thru drawing the sir over the beds. The sheets would be misted. Everyone would take a nap. Then they would wake up, bathe, prep dinner, and stay up late drinking ice tea.
In summer you might consider shading or covering any window hit by afternoon sun. Your a/c might cool the whole place if you use fans, depending on the a/c unit and the layout. In a room i wish were cooler, i like 1 room fan, for circulation, and 1 fan pointed at me. Also iced tea. If really hot room, add dishtowels that have gotten soaked and wrung out. Put them around the back of your neck. Resoak them when they dry or get warm. (This will get your shirt damp.)
Perhaps you can add window units in bedrooms? Walmart, home depot, etc often have early season sales.
If you have a choice dont do a top floor apt unit - they can be cheaper, but the are hotter in summer, colder in winter, and utils are higher - and all those damned stairs.
Of course, this may all be kindergarten info for you. Im sure you've gotten ingenious and learned all sorts of adaptations.
Please let us know how it goes.
@jaybird You can get business service at residential locations (there are always business products using identical technology to the residential ones). The same services they offer to small/medium offices, not necessarily the $$$ business products that have dedicated and SLAs.
Usually the only difference is the service does not have download limits and you may have a different first tier support number (less time on hold). They usually send out the same techs for a truck roll.
Also, if you can spare the money, I highly recommend buying your own cable modem- it'll save you on the box rental fee (you'll have to deal with slightly more shit from customer service if there's a problem, because they may try to blame the modem, but as long as it's on the approved list, it's worth it).
You should also check if your area is graced with "bandwidth caps".
@dashcloud yes bandwidth caps and I have no clue how much I use or what is considered decent. What is a good able modem to buy (sounds like the consensus is basically comcast)? What happens when you exceed them? You get cut off for the month or they just slow you to a crawl? (Considering I already am at a crawl I probably will live).
@Kidsandliz depending on the area, overages on Comcast are around $10 every 50 GB over the cap, usually 300 GB. So if you use 300.1 GB you get hit by it once, and so on.
As for modem, you are looking for a DOCSIS 3.0 or 3.1 cable Modem, Motorola is the standard. SB6121 or SB6141, retail versions of these modems are not End of Life and don't let Comcast tell you otherwise. Around $60-70 when cheap on sale, rental fees are $10, so pays off in 6-7 months and you get to take it to your next place.
@Kidsandliz It looks like if you are in an area with caps, about 300 GB a month is the cap limit. It looks like they just bill you for any overages now ($10 per 50 GB block). You can opt in to unlimited for $30 extra per month.
Here's where I found that stuff: http://customer.xfinity.com/help-and-support/internet/common-questions-datapolicy
You should probably confirm this with a chat support person.
Here's where you can get info on the supported modems:
http://customer.xfinity.com/help-and-support/internet/list-of-approved-cable-modems/
And the SB6141 regularly goes for $30 on eBay, while SB6121 is around $15. Please don't hesitate to grab one used (or even brand new) at those prices.
@elgefe So how much bandwidth does a "normal" person use? I realize it depends on what you do online... I don't intend to stream movies but I do download student papers, check email a lot, surf, waste time on meh, play some youtube music and the occasional news story (and of course there are those stupid ads that play on pages)...
@Kidsandliz Unless you are watching a bunch of Twitch, I don't think you'll have a problem. When the first implemented the caps in my area I could make do with less than 300 GB. I eventually splurged for the $30 unlimited as I wanted to watch more Twitch, my usage jumped to over 1 TB, but not many people consume that much.
Definitely go for an SB 6141 on ebay if you can get it for $30 ish as Trisk linked.
I recommend Comcast. On their website, they list the modems that work. I went into Best Buy ( I know...) and told the salesperson what I wanted to do. They handed me one, it's saved me the cost several times over. When you're talking to Comcast, tell them you want a tier upgrade, because AT&T will give you one.
@OldCatLady this is a crap shoot, that has worked for me too, but if you have any issues at all they will blame your equipment first, it is in their nature.
Oh, and check to see where the nearest Comcast office/service center is. You can go in and talk to someone who has the power to pull up your records, perform magic upgrades and FIX problems. Very much worth the time.
@OldCatLady My local Comcast office has an elaborate arrangement of 2" thick lexan between the customers and the customer service representatives. My visits there lead me to believe this is to protect the customer service reps from being slapped, strangled, or otherwise assaulted for providing such wonderful service. Around here it's way better to handle as much as possible with their call center.
@OldCatLady @djslack Comcast seems to be in the process of upgrading their local CS offices. Ours was of the variety that @djslack mentioned for a long time. One human, a line that extended outside the (incredibly awkwardly placed) building and down the street, and hours and hours to just get told how many months it will take to get you a new remote. Now we have a… reasonable, decent place. It's not perfect, great, not even good. But it is reasonable.
Just concurring with everyone else. Comcast is better bandwidth for the money, and when it works, is great. When it doesn't, then their customer service kicks in and that's where they get most of their bad reputation.
Business is pretty much the same service (with some added options and a much higher cost) but you get better support. By better I mean that they just make you want to poke an icepick through your eardrum into your brain instead of making you want to stick your head in a chipper shredder.
One thing to watch for is slowdowns. When they near capacity in your neighborhood the Internet seems to slow to a crawl in the afternoon after school lets out. This depends on how many people in your neighborhood are using the service, though.
When you order they will try to upsell you on tv. Tell them you can't afford it and you might get into a $5 or so basic package they don't advertise. I did this (with Suddenlink, not Comcast though-we have Suddenlink here and Comcast across the river where I grew up and work) and after all was said and done got 80 channels on my tv. If you like tv and can afford the $5 this can be helpful.
Definitely buy a modem. They'll charge you $10 a month or more to rent one. You can get one on eBay or Craigslist for cheap (mine was $30 3 years ago). You can also inquire of the cable co if they sell used modems - when the tech came out to install my service the first time with that $30 Cisco modem, he thought it wouldn't work and told me that if he weren't out of them he'd sell me a used modem. I asked how much and he said a dollar--no wonder they were out! Again, that was Suddenlink, but Comcast may do something similar.
Don't worry too much about bandwidth caps. Unless you are streaming video all day long or are a hardcore BitTorrent pirate you shouldn't run into any trouble. We stream HD Netflix and Hulu for the majority of our TV watching and have never gotten hassled, and that uses way more data than actually working online or surfing the web. Bandwidth caps around here are in the 200-300GB/mo range which is quite a bit of data.
@djslack Yeah, don't automatically assume you shouldn't get TV. I wanted to get a plan from Time Warner Cable that had the TV package and internet speed I was already getting for $30/month less, and included phone service I didn't even care about. It was only offered to people with 0 or 1 line of service though. One sales rep who really wanted the commission transferred me to customer service so I could adjust my service level down to one service. Weirdly, it cost $20/month more to have just internet than it did to have internet and the basic local channels. I don't understand that; they have to pay retransmission fees for those channels so I would be costing them more money, but they would charge me less.
@djslack I've never had nor wanted to pay for (live) TV. When I lived in a more urban area than I do now, Comcast TV was an interesting proposition. Salesfolks would come door-to-door trying to sell you Comcast service. When you told them how few shits you gave about TV, the narrative changed dramatically. Because the most basic package just involves flipping a switch at the box, and can't really be traced. This switch was already on the entire time I lived at said apartment, though I didn't really use it. Anyway, due to that untraceable nature, Comcast salesperson can haggle the shit out of you and try to sell you a lifetime of basic cable for $5 upfront. It was a pretty fun game.
@jqubed Yeah, cable company fee structures are weird. A year after I got that service they raised my rates, so I called to cancel the TV. They had worked it some way that the TV I added for $5/mo would only save me $3/mo off my new bill, which was $15/mo higher than my old rate. All the while they were still advertising my old Internet rate for new customers, but I couldn't have it because I was an existing customer. That was frustrating.
@djslack The sales guy did tell me I would need to be on top of renewing my bundle at the end of the year, because while it's a bundle it counts as one service and I can get the deal again, but at the end of the term it converts to 3 services and I can't get the bundle anymore without cancelling everything again.
You should probably get the Motorola/ARRIS SB6141; I've had one for years and it's been great. I did have some internet problems last summer, but I think they were related to upgrades Time Warner Cable was doing in our area. My internet plan was upgraded to a faster speed as part of the upgrades (it's amazing what the threat of competition can do to companies with monopolies; Google Fiber is coming to the area) and I needed to upgrade the modem, so I don't know if the new modem fixed the problems or the upgrades being completed fixed the problems. That's the main reason I haven't tried selling the old modem.
Looks like the modem is currently $70 new on Amazon. If Comcast charges $5/month for a rental that pays for itself in a year and 2 months. If you can get it for less elsewhere, or used, it's even better.
here are some personal experiences. i currently have comcast. the speed is much better (we have uverse available too and tried it for about 8 months, but the cost was prohibitive after our promo ran out.)
tldr: Quality of service depends on where you live.
Customer service can be difficult with both companies.
Patience is needed when dealing with them.
There are ways to get good service if you are willing to play the 'game'.
we rent a modem from comcast. i've been told though that buying your own modem can be better because it usually has newer technology inside the box than the rentals and it can be more stable. in earlier years renting saved us a lot. it was cheaper then ($12/month now i believe), but i live in fl and have had many modems fried by lightning and other power issues. if that happens, i drive to the customer service center that's 15 minutes away and swap it, no questions asked. i realize not everyone has that convenience, but it is so worth it. with att, we had to go to the ups store to return equipment and had to wait for a technician or for them to ship us a replacement.
when calling comcast customer service, call during business hours and you have a better chance of getting someone in the US instead of SE Asia to speak with. I recommend that if you don't have a simple issue, which unfortunately no issue is simple anymore, ALWAYS select the option to cancel your service. That option routes your call to a retention agent (i've always gotten someone in the US.) That department can usually fix anything that is wrong and generally seems to have people with slightly higher common sense quotients working.
if stuck with ATT, try finding the phone number for Teir 2 support. It is a number that technicians call for account support when they are on a call (a tech gave me the number once). when they ask for an id number or whatever, i just explained that i was a customer and the tech gave me the number to call and said they could help me. It worked every time and i wasn't routed out of the country. You may need to verify this, but i understand now that you can also go into any att wireless store and speak with someone there for support with any att service, not just wireless.
The big problem i have with att is business practice. When a family member cancelled service because they were moving to an area not serviced by att, the rep said that the early termination would be waived. 8 months later the family member started receiving collections calls from two different agencies that att sold the termination fee account and they had a hit on their credit for non payment of the fee that was supposed to have been waived.
In conclusion, I'm extremely patient and bullheaded when calling for support. I generally know what the problem is before calling and don't let them give me the run around. I take notes while on the call and hold them accountable to what they've promised. It can be painful, but it is what it is.
@jaybird I concur with calling during business hours, and will go one step further. If I call and get someone whose first language isn't mine, I hang up and call back repeatedly until I get a match. I'm old and crochety, and although I can speak Spanish well enough to get by, I am not going to work through tech issues using it. Hindi, Portuguese and I never got along at all. I won't use chat any more, it's too easy for the CSR to stonewall, knowing that they get paid whether or not the customer is satisfied. I have saved many, many pages of unhelpful chats, but trying to get management to do something about it is useless.
@jaybird att got me with the collections gambit too. I was on a 'no contract' plan, but when I moved they wanted an early termination fee even though I was getting att service at my new address. I fought it and they said they would waive it, but they immediately sent it to collections instead. I was trying to buy a house so I had to pay it off. I canceled by new line and switched to a local cable company.
At my current apartment (another move), I have comcast. Every 6 months or so they auto upgrade me to a double or triple pay package with TV and/or phone service. They don't raise the rate for a month or two. When I call to complain and cancel the services I didn't sign up for they say "But you've had this service for months". I don't have a cable box or a home phone. Why would I pay for those services?
If I had any choice besides att or comcast, I would switch to it. But I don't, so comcast seems to be the lesser of two evils. At least their service is way faster (75mbps vs 1.5mbps)
Not that this is morally correct or guaranteed to work, but for informational purposes: I have seen the Ethernet port live and serving working Internet service on Comcast home phone boxes when the phone was the only service being subscribed to. The box is basically a combination cable modem, router, and VOIP endpoint in one unit.
I feel weird defending a faceless monolith that I still have issues with business-wise, but I've been an AT&T customer since moving to the Midwest two years ago and their customer support has far exceeded my expectations. I'm on U-Verse DSL (not fibre) and I tend to have more technically demanding problems.
It often does a while to get through when I ring them on the phone. I think the trick to avoid wasting a typical half hour on hold and more on transfers is messaging the U-Verse support account on the AT&T web forums. This streamlines getting technical issues to the right tier.
I usually get a reply from their community rep within a few hours and phone call from the right department shortly after. Interestingly, there is always a follow-up phone call (from 'the office of the president') the next day. Their techs and representatives will usually leave me a direct email address (though rarely an extension) as well.
I once had Comcast in another state and getting to qualified support required hours of playing phone tag. That was before the major customer backlash against their quality of service, so things may be quite different now.
Go with a contract free cable setup... that way if it's crap you can switch to at&t... but generally cable outperforms at&t in most markets (price/channels/speed wise).
In my experience At&t customer support seems helpful but does not follow through what is promised. I had a billing dispute I called on every month for 6 months and every time they promised credit. I asked for it in writing, "we do not do that". I tried to get them to say it in chat "I am sorry you need to call" I tried to get them to give me a ticket number "we do not use a ticket system" By the 6th month I had to explain to them how the numbers did not add up because they could not find it, they promised credit again and when I did not receive the credit I said fuck it. AT&T should burn to the ground, struggling to hang on to pre-internet days.
AT&T Verse seems like a different company that wants to stay in business ready to move forward. I had no issues with Xfinity, I braced myself when I had to deal with them but easy, fast, and helpful.
I think the actual Xfinity service is really good, especially if you can get the new X1 box w/voice remote. My kids love it. If you have to call customer service, then it's a real mess, but if things go OK, my guess is that you'll be happier than with AT&T
@Kidsandliz Here's what I did... Because I remember paying $25 for TV and $30 for "fast" internet from Comcast from 10 years ago... I searched their website (I know hard without connection to start...) I did end up with a "bundle" that the 1st year was $60 the 2nd year was $80, then it goes to market price ($110 I think) Where I live... I know they do regional pricing... I get Blast Plus internet (They claim up to 50 or 80 MB/Sec... I think I get about 30...) and Basic basic TV... I have my own cable modem, and my own Tivo box (yes Tivo has the subscription but I don't have to pay for Comcast boxes and can use Tivo mini's for additional TV's with no additional monthly charge.)
My mother has low income also, and had been on a plan that was Basic basic TV and Basic (5 MB I think) internet for something like $40/month... I'd call them see what they have, and check their site, sometimes deals are better on the site sometimes better by phone. However they like to try to tack on a $100 setup fee... so be careful about that, get them to tell you if there is a setup fee, and I'd record the phone conversation as there is a youtube video of someone recording that there was no setup fee, they got a setup fee, and had to play it back for a manager to get the fee waived...
Comcast is evil, and you'll be arguing with them yearly when they try to jack up your cable bill 25%. That said, it's still better than 3 MB DSL Internet from AT&T. Been there, done that. It sucked for streaming video.
@danoinct Yeah the AT&T at 3 is what I want to avoid and that is all they have where I am moving to from AT&T.
So I bit the bullet and called comcast to order. They have a $15, 45, 66, 99 and 215 or some such deal (might be off by a few dollars - this is from memory) and I was going to spring for the 45 since it was a bit faster. Over the phone someone in "english is not my language" country tried to tell me the only thing available was the $99 service. There is a local store I will go to tomorrow to try to order the $45 deal one. Not off to a good start. Sigh.
@Kidsandliz
Well, now you've met them. It's a start.
@Kidsandliz dealing with any "communications" company these days is a hair pulling experience... but I think the actual internet/video service from comcrap will perform better than the at&t service.
@thismyusername Yeah that was my conclusion after posting my questions... now if I can only manage to order what they say is available where I live before the deals run out on the 20th. Of course then how long does it take them to actually get you installed and turned on? Perhaps a year or two because after you ordered it they won't come unless you order the $100 variety of internet?
@Kidsandliz
hang in there :)
@Kidsandliz Good luck!
Always remember why you have so few choices ... that suck. This was created by Micheal Powell, et al in 2003 who decided to enrich a few providers by making competition impossible. They decided there should only be two internet, cable, and phone providers in every region. They decided to destroy Clinton's Federal Communication Act that made broadband possible, that defined net neutrality, and that resulted in so many free market competitors including Covad, PSInet, and Cavalier. Now that elimination of competition is done (after 10 plus years), then Comcast, AT&T, Verizon, etc are raising rates (ie padding costs with add-ons.
You have no choice due to extremists who subverted the free market to obtain more campaign contributions and other self servicing advantages (including a hate of Clinton).
How much do you pay for minuscule internet service? So America is now falling from the top ten for internet service. For example, average internet access in South Korea is 100 Mb for $20 per month. They did not have a Micheal Powell - who is now well paid as a chief lobbyist for the cable industry.
So I walked into a comcast customer service building today and ordered internet. For $10 cheaper than the second slowest internet (which was about the best I could afford) I am getting basic cable too with the same cable speed as the second slowest internet. That deal was not on the website. Now to be sure to remember to cancel right before the year is up so I don't pay through the teeth for the renewal.
I also now need to buy a modem as they want $10/mo. to rent one. I know someone posted a link in this thread for compatible ones. What ones on that list are the most reliable since if it breaks it is on me and not the cable company?
Thanks again everyone for all your help.
@Kidsandliz I've been using a Woot refurb Arris SB6121 with COX. It's been very steady and good for me. I'm on their moderately fast plan. Just now while watching NetFlix too I got 65M d/l speed. And you're in luck! They're on sale today! http://computers.woot.com/
@therealjrn OK so now I am confused. This isn't wireless - right? So then I have to buy something to make it wireless? That something is called a router? Does it matter the brand of router to connect to this (the price is certainly right for that Arris thing)?
@Kidsandliz Right. You'll need a router too if you want a wireless network. I actually prefer it that way. The combo modem/routers are more expensive and harder to maintain. The brand doesn't matter that much I suppose although some swear by different brands. I'm using a refurb Netgear WNR3500L-100NAS 802.11b/g/n RangeMax http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833122334 from Newegg. I was planning on redoing my network so I had time to wait for the sales. But I paid a couple of dollars more for the one from Newegg so today might be the day.
@Kidsandliz Heh, I came looking for this thread to tell you about the modem refurbs on sale. Yes, you need a router to get Wi-Fi, and any router will be compatible with this. You're probably interested in what The Wirecutter listed as it's best cheap router, although maybe if you can find a refurb somewhere one of their higher speed routers would be a little better.
Even the router Meh has sold a few times will work pretty well (I haven't read through the results from people who bought it, but on paper it seems decent enough).Scratch that, I read through some of the posts; it looks like that model has some vulnerabilities that it would probably be smarter to pass on.The important things once you get your router are:
If you get something with some sort of malware protection be sure to turn that on as well.
@Kidsandliz I'm sorry to be a contrarian, but I would recommend that you rent their modem (which doesn't include a router) for a few months. When they first come to your apartment and set you up, they will make sure everything works. Next you can install your own router and set up your network, and when you're comfortable with the network (and know your router's peculiarities), you can buy your own modem, plug it in, change your network to reflect your new modem, and return Comcast's to them (in person, and keep the receipt to make sure they take it off your bill).
@OldCatLady I had thought of that. I figured if I couldn't figure it out then I'd tell them I changed my mind, want to rent a modem, get everything squared away, then reconnect with the one I'd bought and stand in line to return theirs... Do you think that would work since there is a 30 day change your mind clause in the contract? The guy behind the counter convinced me it wasn't hard as long as the modem was on "the list". Maybe he lies? The lady next door told me the person in the apt before me had cable TV (comcast) so I figured the wiring there worked... Hopefully anyway.
@jqubed Thanks
@therealjrn thanks for those links...
@Kidsandliz I would go with my own modem myself, but... and I cannot stress this enough... they WILL charge you a rental for your own modem... so be sure to scan your bill and get that fixed asap.
Remember with service as fast and stable as the cable industry provides they can be really really really bad at customer care... and some exec really needs to make that bonus.
@Kidsandliz Two years ago, when I bought my own modem, I went into Best Buy and told the salesperson what I wanted to do. He led me to the shelf, showed me the screenshot of Comcast's site where they list the 'acceptable' modems, I picked the best-rated one from CNET's reviews, and when I got home, I just unscrewed the CC modem and put mine in its place. It wasn't all that common at that time, but now many more people are doing it. CC service calls to my house had been frequent, and they always asked accusingly if I was using my own modem, because then it wouldn't be their fault. I haven't had a single problem with my modem. (Turns out the problem was with the access point wiring, where the cable service hooks into my house, which was resolved and rewired shortly after a monster lightning storm fried a house nearby. Living in north Florida is so educational...) TL;DR- if your wiring has already been proven, you ought to be fine.
I would just wait for Zuckerberg, he's starting to fly balloons over the third world countries to beam Internet to hard to reach places!!!