[SOLVED] Buying cable modem

I moved into a new town and am switching Internet service from Suddenlink to probably Grande. Grande don't include modem rental in their fee, so I am considering buying one; usually they cost 10 bucks a month to rent from ISP which makes it a hell of an expensive modem (especially for what you get) after even a year of use.

I was just wondering if there are any practical differences between different models. The SB5100 seems to come up a lot, but it's been around for a while. I had a 5100 rental from Suddenlink and it was okay. Just wondering if there is anything that one should know when purchasing a cable modem.

You're getting Grande' Communications? You must live in Texas, since they're a regional provider.

We have Grande' at the apartment I live in and they provide the modem.

Regardless, here's a nice modem from Motorola: MOTOROLA SB6120 Up to 160 Mbps Downstream, up to 120 Mbps Upstream Ethernet Port Broadscape DOCSIS 3.0 Cable Modem

It's at Newegg for $89.99 w/free shipping


Here's another Motorola from Newegg for $52.99 w/free shipping. MOTOROLA SB5101U USB and Ethernet 10/100Base-T SURFboard Cable Modem

Although the SB5101 is a good modem, I would go for one that is DOCSIS 3 compatible to ensure it is future proof.

Got the SB6120 and am very happy with it.

That's great, glad to hear it all worked out.

Let us know if it improved your connection speeds and such.

Yes, it has. Downstream went up from 12 Mbps to 15.7 Mbps.

@Core

Just read this brief thread with interest. I'm currently waiting for my new PC to be shipped, so this will be my first experience with Win7.
I'm on DSL right now with ATT, but have decided to switch to Grande for internet svc.
I decided to buy the SB6120 based on reviews. I noticed you last posted on 8/4/10. How's the SB6120 working out? Also, if you don't mind me asking...what was your experience with Grande during the ordering process? Hope they didn't try to high pressure you into buying a bundle. All I want is internet, as I'm very happy with DishTv.
How did the install go? Anything I should know about, regarding connecting my Belkin N router to the 6120? Thanks!!

I, too, am using the SB6120 with a Belkin N Wireless router. I have not had any problems with it. The installation was simple, just plugged it in. Comes with a CD, but I didn't use it.

My experience with Grande has been equally trouble-free. I placed my order online and went with the highest tier. The confirmation said to expect a call from one of their CSRs to schedule the installation. It was the weekend, though, so I guess they only call on weekdays. I called them myself on the following Monday and scheduled an appointment. There was no pushing of services, unlike what I got all the time from Earthlink/TWC when I lived in San Antonio. I didn't want TV, just the Internet, and that's what I got.

I've been extremely happy with the whole thing thus far. One thing I've noticed is that I can use the full bandwidth speed available for downloading a torrent, and still stream clips on YouTube without issues. This was never an option either in San Antonio (with Earthlink) or Tyler (with Suddenlink). P2P always brought YouTube and regular HTTP connections to a damn crawl; I have not had that problem with this connection. I don't know whether it's because of Grande, or the SB6120, but I am certainly not complaining about it.

Yeah, I avoid using the provided CDs too. You don't need them. Windows knows what to do and when you don't use the CD, you don't install a bunch of useless stuff you don't need.

Yeah, like a product registration pop-up that re-appears on every reboot. That's one of my favourites.