A device used to connect a single computer or a network to a cable company's service for Internet access. The same physical cable coming into the house or office also provides TV and voice (VoIP) service.
Compared to analog dial-up, cable Internet dramatically increases the bandwidth between the user's computer and the Internet (see broadband). In order to prevent users with lower-cost cable access from hosting high-traffic Web servers, the upload speed is approximately five times slower than the download speed. Cable operators also routinely change IP addresses assigned to users to prevent Web hosting (see DDNS).
Connect Via Ethernet or USB
Cable modems typically connect to the computer or network router via an Ethernet port; however, some cable modems have a USB port for hookup to the computer but not the network.
Cable Internet is a shared service, and the individual user's speed will vary depending on how many customers are sending or receiving data on that cable segment at the same time. For example, when kids come home from school in the afternoon, many neighborhood users experience slower speeds. See DOCSIS, cable Internet, Internet appliance and MSN TV.
Internet packets are combined with standard TV programming in a cable modem system. The cable modem termination system (CMTS) is responsible for packet to RF conversion, routing, bridging, filtering and traffic shaping (see
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