Modem/Router All-In-One vs. Seperate Modem and Rounter

[jwk]

Hello,

Tried searching FAQ and old threads first. Apologies if this is a repetitive topic for this forum.

I am looking at getting my own modem and router so I can stop paying my ISP gobs of money to rent these devices. I am curious if there are benefits or downsides to purchasing an all-in-one device vs. purchasing a separate modem and router?

My ISP is Comcast and I live in a two bedroom apartment.

Thanks in advance!

[flopana]

Theres no point for a normal consumer to have modem and router seperate you should in terms of cost and ease of use just buy an all in one router.

[Nano Adam]

5 minutes ago, jwk said:

Hello,

Tried searching FAQ and old threads first. Apologies if this is a repetitive topic for this forum.

I am looking at getting my own modem and router so I can stop paying my ISP gobs of money to rent these devices. I am curious if there are benefits or downsides to purchasing an all-in-one device vs. purchasing a separate modem and router?

My ISP is Comcast and I live in a two bedroom apartment.

Thanks in advance!

Well then we are very alike in terms of ISP. 

 

I actually bought a Motorola MG7540 and I regret that decision since it had a Router + Modem Combo type. I just recently put that modem into bridge mode and bought a router to use. 

 

So, here is my suggestion, buy a Modem ONLY, then buy a separate router. 

[Electronics Wizardy]

Id get seprate, you normally get much better quality parts, and can change them out individually later.

[Donut417]

27 minutes ago, jwk said:

Hello,

Tried searching FAQ and old threads first. Apologies if this is a repetitive topic for this forum.

I am looking at getting my own modem and router so I can stop paying my ISP gobs of money to rent these devices. I am curious if there are benefits or downsides to purchasing an all-in-one device vs. purchasing a separate modem and router?

My ISP is Comcast and I live in a two bedroom apartment.

Thanks in advance!

Get separate. All in ones are a joke. 

[manikyath]

generally, the more devices combined into a single package, the more 'handicapped' every single feature will be.

 

in a different example, a dedicated microwave is usually better at microwaving, than a combo oven/microwave.

 

there's some exceptions to the rule (for example, my ISP actually provides quite capable combo units), but generally buying a combo unit is a "budget option", and buying split units is a "performance option".

 

that said... there's so few people buying seperate modems, that i'd dare say the seperate modem boxes are such a race to the bottom you're pretty much guaranteed to buy crap, whereas at least the combo units will have some competent router design, with a modem slapped on some free baord space.

[RMerlin]

Modem/router combos tend to provide very poor router implementations.  They rarely get proper security updates, and they provide very basic functionality.  I've seen some of these also have anemic CPUs, where just navigating the webui can take 30-60 seconds per page to load (I'm looking at you, Bell Canada's HomeHub 2000...).

 

Another reason not to get a modem/router combo: if you ever wanted to, say, upgrade the modem from DOCSIS 3.0 to 3.1 due to a service upgrade, or upgrade the router from Wifi 5 to Wifi 6.  Having both of them bundled together will seriously limit your ability to upgrade.

 

[jwk]

On 6/21/2020 at 1:46 PM, Nano Adam said:

Well then we are very alike in terms of ISP. 

 

I actually bought a Motorola MG7540 and I regret that decision since it had a Router + Modem Combo type. I just recently put that modem into bridge mode and bought a router to use. 

 

So, here is my suggestion, buy a Modem ONLY, then buy a separate router. 

Thanks for the advice!

[jwk]

On 6/21/2020 at 2:36 PM, manikyath said:

generally, the more devices combined into a single package, the more 'handicapped' every single feature will be.

 

in a different example, a dedicated microwave is usually better at microwaving, than a combo oven/microwave.

 

there's some exceptions to the rule (for example, my ISP actually provides quite capable combo units), but generally buying a combo unit is a "budget option", and buying split units is a "performance option".

 

that said... there's so few people buying seperate modems, that i'd dare say the seperate modem boxes are such a race to the bottom you're pretty much guaranteed to buy crap, whereas at least the combo units will have some competent router design, with a modem slapped on some free baord space.

Do you have any recommendations for stand alone modems that are of decent quality and not part of that race to the bottom as you described?

[jwk]

On 6/21/2020 at 10:57 PM, RMerlin said:

Modem/router combos tend to provide very poor router implementations.  They rarely get proper security updates, and they provide very basic functionality.  I've seen some of these also have anemic CPUs, where just navigating the webui can take 30-60 seconds per page to load (I'm looking at you, Bell Canada's HomeHub 2000...).

 

Another reason not to get a modem/router combo: if you ever wanted to, say, upgrade the modem from DOCSIS 3.0 to 3.1 due to a service upgrade, or upgrade the router from Wifi 5 to Wifi 6.  Having both of them bundled together will seriously limit your ability to upgrade.

 

Good forward thinking. Thank you!

[jwk]

Thank you all for your replies! Seems like separate is the way to go. I assume that the first step in shopping for these items is to find what will be compatible with my ISP, correct?

[Donut417]

1 minute ago, jwk said:

Do you have any recommendations for stand alone modems that are of decent quality and not part of that race to the bottom as you described?

SB6183, CM500, CM600 (these are the Docsis 3.0 modems I see suggested all over) any Docsis 3.1 modem. Stay away from any Docsis 3.0 32 channel modems, they have the Puma 6 chip and those are known to have issues. If you ever want to upgrade to a gigabit tier or are currently on a Gigabit tier of service then you will need a Docsis 3.1 modem. 

[jwk]

On 6/28/2020 at 4:17 PM, Donut417 said:

SB6183, CM500, CM600 (these are the Docsis 3.0 modems I see suggested all over) any Docsis 3.1 modem. Stay away from any Docsis 3.0 32 channel modems, they have the Puma 6 chip and those are known to have issues. If you ever want to upgrade to a gigabit tier or are currently on a Gigabit tier of service then you will need a Docsis 3.1 modem. 

Thank you so much for the advice!