Author: Joseph Moran
A recent survey from JD Power found a majority of Internet access customers (41 percent) get it from a cable modem. (In case you're curious, 30 percent use DSL and 25 percent still use dial-up connections.) If you're one of that 41 percent, changes are afoot that may soon come to a cable modem near you.
Almost all cable systems provide Internet access through a standardized technology called DOCSIS (Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification), and most of these systems currently employ a relatively old version of the standard called DOCSIS 1.1.
Lately, however, many cable companies have begun updating their systems to support the most recent 3.0 version of DOCSIS. Among other enhancements, DOCSIS 3.0 offers the potential for much speedier Internet connections (as fast as 160 Mb/sec for downloads and 120 Mb/sec for uploads, although real-life connection speeds aren't nearly that high). DOCSIS 3.0 achieves its higher speeds by combining bandwidth from multiple channels (known as channel-bonding, but commonly referred to as wideband) into a single connection. In contrast, prior versions of DOCSIS can use only a single channel at a time.
Coming Soon?
So when can you expect to DOCSIS 3.0 to be available in your neck of the woods? If you get your cable modem service from one of the larger cable companies like Cablevision, Comcast, Cox, or Time Warner, it may be just over the horizon. That's especially true in areas that have or about to receive-superfast fiber-based services like Verizon's FiOS or AT&T's U-Verse, which generally offer far better performance than typical cable modem connections.
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