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Incompatibility of cable modem and wireless router? intermittent drops
I have a small home network (3-4 wired connections, 2 wireless, one of the wireless connections is a "Win7 Home premium" HP laptop).
My router of 6+ years is a Netgear WPN824 (802.11g/b, MIMO, max 108 mbps in theory).
I just switched from DSL to cable for internet (Comcast, modem is DPC3000). The cable internet service has been running for 1 day.
Q: Will an older router have problems with the switch to 1 mbps DSL to 12 mbps cable internet?
I'm noticing frequent router dropouts that seem to be connected to my Win7 laptop using its wireless connection. Then again, I'm not sure if it's just my router flaking out. When it drops out, *all* the wireless and wired connections lose their LAN connections. I can't ping any machines, etc. If I switch back to using my DSL, I don't see this problem.
If I'm using a "DOCSIS 3.0 cable modem" (DPC3000), do I need to upgrade my router (802.11n)?
If so, will any 802.11N router be reasonable, or do I need to look for certain specs?
If I *do* upgrade my router, do I also need to buy wireless NIC's of the same vendor/type in order to achieve decent wireless speed, or will my built-in wireless in my HP Win7 laptop suffice?
Thanks,
Fran Maurais
fmaurais@comcast.net