Is there a difference between external cable modems. I don't use wireless. With so many manufacturers out there selling cable modems, who or which is the best to use?
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
External Cable Modems
- Thread starter seabass069
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
iDM
macrumors 6502a
Well I'm not sure of your location or how your ISP does it, but I know when we first got digital cable at my parents home there was a rental fee per month(3 to 5 USD) that we paid because we were not sure how soon we'd be switching providers. Now at my apartment at school we got digital cable/internet(the works) and we have a "external" cable modem that we only had to pay an installation fee, however we did not buy it and don't rent it either, so in my case I did not see the need to ask about buying one.
I think you maybe refering to something different however because as i understand you can't and would not wanna put a cable modem inside your desktop, they get hot and well......bottom line I've never heard of one existing, maybe i'm wrong however.
I think you maybe refering to something different however because as i understand you can't and would not wanna put a cable modem inside your desktop, they get hot and well......bottom line I've never heard of one existing, maybe i'm wrong however.
grapes911
Moderator emeritu
Oh, they have them and they work just fine. They are PCI and only require a coaxial cable making wires less messy. The problem is that they require drivers and are not able to connect many computers unless you set up some type of internet sharing. Let me see if I can find one...iDM said:
EDIT: I love google. It makes things easy to find:
http://broadband.motorola.com/noflash/sb4000.html
I have Wave Broadband as my isp. I rent an external modem through them. I just noticed when walking through best buy that there are many different manufacturers of external modems. Mine works fine, but it's now 1 1/2 years old. I am not sure if the technology in the modems change or if it's like a NIC card, which hasn't changed in years.
wPod
macrumors 68000
i dont think it really matters. all cable modems have a max speed that is limited to the theoretical badwidth of cable itself. the only issue that may arise is if the specific modem works with your cable provider. but, at my last apt when they cable guy came and installed the cable (dumbest thing ever all they do is connect a cable from their box to your apt, like literally just plug in one thing, then charge you an arm and a leg for it) so anyway, i asked if my cable modem would work b/c it wasnt listed on their website and he said that it would probably work and that he has never seen one that didnt work. so i pluged it in and sure enough it worked! there is a good chance whatever modem you get will work, and all the cable company will need is the MAC address from it and they should hook you up!
grapes911
Moderator emeritu
The modem must be hooked up to one and only one computer. Also, the modem cannot be used with a router. However, you can hook a router or another computer to the main computer and setup internet sharing. Not the best way to do things.iDM said:
But...If you only have one computer and don't know too much about routers, modems, and networks in general, internal modems are a good fit.