Slashdot Mirror
The Hidden Cost of Your New Xfinity Router
An anonymous reader writes "The battle over Comcast's public WiFi network that is hosted on your cable modem continues. Comcast responded to Speedify's earlier power measurements by rushing them a new Cisco cable modem. The new modem proved to be more power hungry than the last, and also introduced some tricky IPv6 problems that caused major headaches for the team."
It's not a router comparison. You don't need an Xfinity public-facing WiFi router, so this is energy usage in addition to what you would otherwise need for your own purposes.
Uh, they already have all the power over your connection. What are you talking about?
Just buy your own DOCSIS 3.0 modem (e.g. Motorola SB6121 or Zoom 5341). I mean, you realize they're charging you $3-5 per month for their crappy one, right? It pays for itself in a year or so.
"[Regarding the 'cloud,'] ownership was what made America different than Russia." -- Woz
They charge you eight bucks a month for the privilege of using their modem. You can buy your own from Amazon for less than you'll pay Comcast for a year's rental - and that's for a DOCSIS 3 modem that handles IPv6 just fine, even with Comcast.
Here's the one I bought - it's $68. It doesn't include wifi, so you'll have to bring your own wifi base - but those can be had cheaply as well. Plus you don't have to replace both functions just because one or the other craps out...
#DeleteChrome
why is this being modded up? you have to login to xfinitywifi access points which gives them tracability.
this entire post is FUD
It is not a public and open WIFI hotspot.
"The likes of Facebook and WhatsApp are free to those whose privacy is of zero value."
Yes, I can confirm this. To use the "public wifi", you must first be a Comcast customer. When you connect to an AP, you are required to login with your comcast credentials to get connected to the net.