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Cable Modem: A Good Second Choice

Cable modem is terrific--if you can't get DSL. There, I said it and wasn't struck by a cable modem outage. I've had a hot-and-cold affair with cable modem. When I first tried having it installed, I was told the wait was nearly a year. By the time the cable company got around to my street, two years had passed. Cable-modem downsides? Your connection may get sluggish as more and more people in your area subscribe, unexpected outages may occur, and technical support can be poor.

If you're not quite sure whether cable modem service is available in your area, check the Cable Modem Help.

Don't get me wrong, cable modem has many advantages over DSL. Installation is generally easier, and the speed can be higher. MediaOne Road Runner, for example, provides 1.5 mbps downstream and 300 kbps upstream. My service from Charter Communications, on the other hand, isn't terrific: 384 kbps down and 128 kbps up.

Rates and fees are on a par with DSL: Monthly cable charges run from $35 to $55, with installation fees another $100 to $150. My advice? If you're in no rush, wait for the cable company to call you, or watch the newspapers for ads--providers regularly offer free installation.

Some providers will stick you with a $10 surcharge if you don't also subscribe to their television service. Unfortunately, most cable modem providers have a local monopoly, so switching to another cable service usually isn't an option.

When I was finally given an appointment, the technician arrived right on time. Installation took under an hour and was painless. The installer connected the cable modem to my PC, changed the network settings, and spent time explaining what he was doing. He even told me about a few ways to increase my connection's throughput.

For a few cable modem speed tweaks, try the TamoSoft.

You can make some requests when you have your cable modem installed. Even if you already have cable in your home, the line may be old and brittle, and it could break if you move the modem later. I recommend that you ask for the installation of new cable--but the job may require rewiring from the outside cable source.

To ensure you don't lose bandwidth from line interference, have the installer put filters on all the cable lines, especially if you are also getting television service. If the line needs to be split to reach both the television and the computer, pay the extra money and let the cable company use its equipment to ensure that lines meet the required specifications. For more troubleshooting tips and tricks plus help with setting up your cable modem, check out ShieldsUp

While most cable modem users seem happy with the installation, many are distressed with the support when there are problems. "Installation was a snap," says A. Berger, a Time Warner Cable/Road Runner user in North Carolina. "But the toll-free first-level support personnel, though courteous, often are clueless, with advice that sounds scripted. The local support staff, once I discovered their phone number, were very knowledgeable."

You may see a drop in performance during evening or other peak hours because you're sharing the line with your neighbors. The first six months of my cable-modem service saw wild swings in speed from line sharing. You can find out how many of your neighbors share your bandwidth by running the CommView network sniffer, available at both FileWorld and Tim Higgins's CommView monitors your PC's network activity, including IP statistics and network connections.

It's inevitable that cable access will slow down during high-traffic periods, but you needn't sit still when it happens. Ivan Taylor, a cable modem user in Los Angeles, has a handy tip: "Whenever I see a prolonged period of slowness, I call my cable company and insist that their technicians--not the phone support people--check the settings for my account. Sometimes their system has experienced a minor outage and accounts get reset incorrectly."

You can also file a complaint with the state agency that regulates cable operators. In most states, that agency will be the Public Utilities Commission.

Cable companies may try to blame their problems on your equipment. "After a couple of [outages], I now just tell them to evaluate their own systems first before I spend an hour on the phone doing their tests (on my hardware)," says Rob Frais, an AT&T @Home cable user in Canton, Connecticut.