NETGEAR Nighthawk Cable Modem and WiFi 6 Router Combo (CAX80) - Compatible with All Major Cable Providers incl. Xfinity, Spectrum, Cox - Cable Plans up to 6Gbps - AX6000 WiFi 6 Speed - DOCSIS 3.1

I originally had the Xfinity gateway with three of the Xfinity 'mesh' extender pods and yet I was getting inadequate WiFi coverage (not even close to my available 1.2Gbps connection). As a complete home networking rookie, I finally managed to do something about it after some basic self education. I was specifically looking for gateways (modem+router in one) due to limited physical space in my living room for two separate devices.The CAX80 was expensive compared to Xfinity-compatible Arris or Motorola gateways. However, the theoretical specs seemed superior and it is likely 'future proof' (provided it will last 3+ years). Setting up the CAX80 router was easy enough with the Nighthawk app on my phone. Right off the bat, I noticed an increase in throughput with a wireless connection to my gaming laptop located about 30 feet away from the router (from 300-500Mbps to 600-900 Mbps averaged through the day).I live in a two-level 2700 sq ft condo with thickly insulated walls. Previously (with Xfinity gateway), I got zero signal at the furthest end of the house from the router. After adding three 'daisy chained' Xfinity X-Fi mesh pods, I was getting 20-60 Mbps throughput with frequent loss of signal through the day. After switching to just the CAX80 router, I was getting a weak but consistent signal at the far end of the house with 3-10 Mbps throughput. I then connected a Netgear EX15 extender halfway between these points (again, setup was easy with the phone app). I decided to extend only the 2.4GHz frequency (saving 5GHz for working and gaming laptops in proximity to the router). I am now getting 110-130 Mbps throughput at the far end of the house consistently which is adequate for what I needed here (TV box, 3-4 phones/tablets, doorbell, smart lock, thermostat etc).Overall, I am happy (and proud of my first such set up) with nearly $600 worth (yikes) of hardware upgrade (CAX80 and EAX15) for what I needed my home network to do. Of note, saving $15 in monthly rental fees for the Xfinity modem should make up for this upgrade in about 3.5 years lolCouple of issues to be mindful of if you have Xfinity internet and TV:These may be related to my own naivete or my home's wiring rather than misleading specifications from the manufacturer. I had a main TV box (connected by a split coaxial cable) and an additional wireless (WiFi) TV box. After changing from the Xfinity gateway to the CAX80, the wired TV box stopped working while the wireless one worked after a reboot. Comcast auto-assistant was unable to rectify and sent a technician over who diagnosed the following issue: CAX80 is not MoCA compatible and the simplest fix would be to get a wireless main TV box.I ordered such a box via Comcast (local store is easier and quicker than online). Now, both TV boxes (Xi-6 via ethernet cable and Xi-5 via WiFi) are functional albeit with a delay in displaying my channels after powering on (anywhere from 5 to 30 seconds). May be this delay is from something I overlooked during the connections or whatever but it is a minor gripe at this stage (after nearly 96 hours of toiling to get all of the above done) and I will figure out a fix someday soon.Hope this helps the next amateur in a similar situation as I was.Happy networking!

Overall, it’s been a solid upgrade from the equipment I rented from my internet provider.Setup:The setup was relatively smooth using the Nighthawk app.Performance:Speeds have been fast, and the WiFi 6 helps with multiple devices. Streaming, video calls, and general browsing are all snappy. I haven’t noticed any major slowdowns, even during peak hours. That said, it doesn't magically fix weak signals in very distant corners of the house—you may still need a mesh system if you’ve got a large home.Design & Features:The design is clean. Just 4 Ethernet ports and USB connectivity are great for those who still like hardwired options. The built-in DOCSIS 3.1 modem has been reliable so far.Overall:This is a good all-in-one solution for people looking to stop renting a modem and step into newer WiFi tech. While it may not be the cheapest option, it offers strong performance and a noticeable upgrade in speed and reliability.

I had a lot of hopes for this device. I paid top dollar for it seemed great at first, but I've now given up and bought a different router.The best thing I can say about the router is it has great performance. The download speeds are fantastic for both wired and wireless, and the wireless range is fantastic. If it ended there, I'd be a happy customer, but there are also a bunch of negatives.The firmware is absolutely terrible. It's buggy and has broken implementations of the functionality you find standard in other routers. If you are a basic user that turns on the modem and never needs to configure anything, then this might work for you. Making config changes is painful because saving a simple option causes a full reboot, which takes about 5 minutes since this also needs to reestablish the cable modem connection. I need static DHCP reservation and port mapping, and somehow they completely bungled this. I was able to find a clumsy workaround after several hours, but I'm still very unsatisfied with the end result. The firmware also forces you to trial their Netgear Armor security service, which I found was blocking legitimate connections and causing me problems. Fortunately, you can disable it.After about 2 months of operation, the modem began to experience a bunch of problems. I log in to the firmware and try to make a few changes, and find out the changes will no longer save. I try several times to factory reset the device, which only clears half of the changes. The flash memory on the device has likely failed, and the device can no longer function properly.I try to open a ticket on Netgear's support website. The website starts giving me a bunch of errors about not being able to create a ticket. I later find out this is because their website can't handle a description that has multiple lines, so you have to submit it as one big line with no paragraph breaks. Sometimes the messages in the ticket are displayed out of chronological order. Completely ridiculous. 🤦‍♂️Their support staff responds 3 days later with the standard troubleshooting questions. I respond immediately. It takes them another 2 weeks to respond with more questions even though the device is obviously broken. A week goes by with no answer. I try to follow up. No answer. It's now been a month and this broken piece of junk is still just sitting there because their support staff is probably completely overwhelmed with other people stuck in the same situation.I gave up and bought a modem from a different brand.

With multiple people taking zoom calls, multiple WiFi connected speakers, and devices in the house, this Modem/Router significantly brought up our overall speed and can handle the 15 devices all attached to the internet. Super impressed by the easy setup and this Modem/Router can do it all!