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There’s no fee I despise more than the $10 per month cable company modem rental. I know they’re ripping me off. They know they’re ripping me off. Unless you’ve signed up for a special bundle that mandates using the provided modem from Comcast or whoever serves up your internet, you’re almost always better off buying your own modem and skipping that monthly fee—especially when you can get a deal like this one.
A discount cable modem isn’t as sexy as the best Prime Day PC gaming deals (opens in new tab), but it’s the kind of deal I always look for on Black Friday or Prime Day: something I know I need, and would eventually end up paying more for. The Motorola MB8611 is about as future-proof as you can get with a cable modem today, supporting DOCSIS 3.1 and multi-gig networking. That means it has a 2.5 gig Ethernet port, so if you’re on the fastest service from a cable service like Xfinity or Cox or Spectrum, you’ll still have some headroom to spare.
Keep in mind that this is just a modem, with no built-in wi-fi router. That might sound like a negative if you currently use your cable provider’s combo modem + router, but trust me: a separate modem and router, each dedicated to a single job, will always give you better performance and reliability than one device trying to do both at the same time. We have some advice on the best gaming routers (opens in new tab) if you need one.
If you’re interested in really upping your network setup, consider pairing a 2.5 gig Ethernet cable modem like this with a router you build yourself, or a mini PC running the open source router software pfSense (opens in new tab). I wrote a guide on how I converted an old PC into my own super router (opens in new tab).
It’s easier than it sounds, and is the surest way to get every ounce of speed you can from a high-end internet connection.
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