Cox to eliminate traditional copper phone and replace with VOIP.. BAD NEWS

LynnL999 said:

Did you see an Arris? How big is it compared to the apparently huge Cisco?

It's a little smaller than the Cisco unit. I think why the Cisco is big is so that it can accommodate the internal battery. The Cisco unit doesn't seem quite as big as I had expected, but it's taller (or thicker) than other comparable devices. According to Arris (http://www.arris.com/products/touchstone-tm3402-emta/), the unit is "7.6”x 2.2” x 6.2”- excluding F-connector"

LynnL999 said:

Did you get a price from AT&T for a POTS line?

All I want is a landline I can plug into the wall without additional equipment in my house.  I don't understand why this is so unreasonable considering they've been available for about 90 years now.

You can find AT&T's pricing here: https://www.att.com/home-phone/landline.html

Be aware there are other taxes and fees. The AT&T person told me they would likely be similar to what's on my Cox bill. He said they typically ranged from $5-20/month, depending on your location. 

If you order an AT&T landline, you may need to talk to a human to ensure you're ordering copper and not U-Verse. I know AT&T is lobbying to no longer be required to provide traditional telephone service (and abandon a lot of people, including rural customers who have no other options). I live in California where they haven't yet succeeded, although I think in other states they have succeeded and no longer offer POTS. The AT&T person I spoke with said if I had POTS, I would probably be grandfathered in if they discontinued it (but for how long, I don't know).

Also, if you're in California, it looks like AT&T still has this Zone 1, Zone 2, and Zone 3 system. Zone 3 calls aren't local and aren't long distance and you may pay extra for those. Cox includes Zone 3 in its phone system.

AT&T doesn't have fiber in my area (which is surprising, considering I live a couple of blocks from the CO and the utilities are mostly above ground and it's a fairly wealthy area). Maybe Cox stole all their business years ago. I still remember the AT&T person who told me years ago when I complained about their DSL rates going up (and Cox's were low to attract customers): "There's competition and if you don't like our prices, then you're free to go elsewhere." So, that's what I did.

Overall, I think Cox's landline rate is cheaper than AT&T, but if it turns out it doesn't work for me anymore, I may go back to AT&T.

If you're just looking for an alarm system setup, you could consider going cellular. My alarm company wants $10/mo extra for monitoring cellular (+ equipment purchase). Based on what I've seen online, that's somewhat of a standard extra monthly fee for cellular monitoring.

We use our landline and another VOIP line for most of our calls. My wife and I really don't like the cost and the typically bad connections of many cell phone calls. We just have a pay-as-you-go mobile plan and probably pay less for a year of service than most people pay for a month of service.

Arris TM3402A eMTA - Router Question?

If I upgrade to the Arris TM3402A am I forced to use this as my Router ?

Or can the Router be bypassed in configuration? so I can continue to use my own Router?

Thanks

I currently have the Cisco DPQ3212, which is only 8x4, but I would like the additional bonding channels.

bryaninphx said:

Arris TM3402A eMTA - Router Question?

If I upgrade to the Arris TM3402A am I forced to use this as my Router ?

Or can the Router be bypassed in configuration? so I can continue to use my own Router?

I'm not Cox, but from what I've heard, you can have the option of using the Cox phone modem as your internet router, or keeping your existing router. I imagine they'd just put in a splitter and connect both devices to cable.

I'm currently contemplating the pros and cons of each approach. One pro is that the routers can be reset individually. Therefore, if your internet is out and you need to reset the router, it doesn't take out your phone, and vice-versa. 

From my experience, I end up power cycling my cable modem many times a year to get the internet to work, and fewer times a year I need to use the automated Cox reset thing. In contrast, my current Cornerstone NIU landline unit never ever has problems and the phone service rarely ever goes out. This is why I cringe to think of moving to Cox's new system: will it be constant resetting of the phone modem to keep my landline running? Much as I'd prefer to have less equipment, I'm leaning toward separate modems for phone and internet in the hopes that the phone system might be more reliable. I just have to figure out where to put yet another piece of equipment (and rewire my house to support the new location...thanks Cox).

 EvaFam:

Thanks for the link to the Arris TM3402 on the Cox web-site. On the first page of that link it says "For Gigablast or Ultimate Only", so apparently that would not be available to customers on lower levels . I am on the "Preferred" level.

keddy said:

Thanks for the link to the Arris TM3402 on the Cox web-site. On the first page of that link it says "For Gigablast or Ultimate Only", so apparently that would not be available to customers on lower levels . I am on the "Preferred" level.

The person at the Cox Solutions Store told me that they're now giving the Arris box to everyone, regardless of the level of internet they have. I don't know if that's a local decision (I'm in California) or a national decision. Someone else mentioned (on this thread or another) that the Cisco box has been discontinued by Cisco, so that may have something to do with the decision, if that's a true statement. I suggest you check with your local Cox people to find out what they're doing. I need to make more phone calls about the Arris box, but I haven't had time to do so yet.

bryaninphx,

The TM3402 model is a stand alone modem for customers with phone and giga or ultimate service. The requirements can change from time to time and the best source to reference for our modems is our website. Here's a link to get you started. 

https://www.cox.com/residential/support/cox-certified-cable-modems.html

EvaFam said:

I'm not Cox, but from what I've heard, you can have the option of using the Cox phone modem as your internet router, or keeping your existing router. I imagine they'd just put in a splitter and connect both devices to cable.

I'm currently contemplating the pros and cons of each approach. One pro is that the routers can be reset individually. Therefore, if your internet is out and you need to reset the router, it doesn't take out your phone, and vice-versa. 

From my experience, I end up power cycling my cable modem many times a year to get the internet to work, and fewer times a year I need to use the automated Cox reset thing. In contrast, my current Cornerstone NIU landline unit never ever has problems and the phone service rarely ever goes out. This is why I cringe to think of moving to Cox's new system: will it be constant resetting of the phone modem to keep my landline running? Much as I'd prefer to have less equipment, I'm leaning toward separate modems for phone and internet in the hopes that the phone system might be more reliable. I just have to figure out where to put yet another piece of equipment (and rewire my house to support the new location...thanks Cox).

I have never had an Issue with my Cisco DPQ3212 eMTA, I rarely have to reboot it, and that is usually for Internet related issues not phone issues.  I switched from the outdoor ARRIS NIU to the indoor eMTA several years ago.  My entire home-office is on a Tripp Lite 1500VA 900W UPS Battery Back Up this UPS will keep me up for 45mins w/ the PC running (~125W) or several hours with the PC in sleep mode.

I already have 5 active Coax outlets, with marginal signals often in the summer, so splitting the Coax again between the eMTA and a separate cable modem is not something I what to do. I could probably get down to 4 active outlets or add an Amp, but that is not my first choice.

If the ARRIS TM3402A eMTA can be used as a WAN port, not using it as a router, that would be a different story.

My question still has not been answered, regarding this, however I don't believe it can be used as a Stand Alone modem, bypassing its router function, someone but please correct me if I am wrong.

EDIT: Comcast will bypass the router function:
Looks like Cox could put the ARRIS TM3402A in to FULL bridge mode.Then you would use LAN / Ethernet port # 1 to connect your own router.  Not sure if Cox is willing to do this or not.

I was informed today by a Cox DOCSIS Engineer in Atlanta that the ARRIS TM3402A eMTA is a standalone device and does NOT have any router capabilities.  The customer can and does need to use their own router with this device.

Hello Bryaninphx,

The Arris TM3402 emta is a standalone internet and telephone modem. That's correct for a wifi connection a router would be needed. Thanks

bryaninphx said:

I have never had an Issue with my Cisco DPQ3212 eMTA, I rarely have to reboot it, and that is usually for Internet related issues not phone issues.  I switched from the outdoor ARRIS NIU to the indoor eMTA several years ago.  My entire home-office is on a Tripp Lite 1500VA 900W UPS Battery Back Up this UPS will keep me up for 45mins w/ the PC running (~125W) or several hours with the PC in sleep mode.

Looks like Cox could put the ARRIS TM3402A in to FULL bridge mode.Then you would use LAN / Ethernet port # 1 to connect your own router.  Not sure if Cox is willing to do this or not.

Thank you bryaninphx for your report on converting from the Arris Cornerstone NIU. It's comforting to hear from someone and that it's working well.

My understanding is that if you want to use the TM3402 as your cable modem, you can do so. Although it has 4 ethernet ports on it, only port #1 works, so you need to plug it into a router unless you only have one device.