Quick Links
Summary
DOCSIS is the cable modem communication standard.
What Is DOCSIS?
It’s no hyperbole to say that DOCSIS is the heart of the modern cable broadband experience.
Corbin Davenport / How-To Geek
What’s the Difference Between DOCSIS Versions?
Here’s a quick overview of the progression from DOCSIS 1.0 to the present.
What Is DOCSIS 1.0/1.1?
This dependable and popular option from the Arris Surfboard lineup is perfect for cable internet subscribers with any subscription tier at or below 800 Mbps, which is the majority of cable broadband users in the United States.
DOCSIS 1.0 supported a theoretical maximum download speed of 40 Mbps, and an upload speed of 10 Mbps.
Two years later, in 1999, DOCSIS 1.1 was released as a relatively minor update to DOCSIS 1.0.
What Is DOCSIS 2.0?
Perfect for a gigabit cable package today, and an upgrade to a multi-gigabit package next year.
DOCSIS 2.0, released in 2001, was a significant upgrade over the two prior iterations.
While the maximum download rate stayed at 40 Mbps, the upload rate was boosted to 30 Mbps.
This allowed for applications that benefited from symmetric connections like VoIP telephony.
While DOCSIS 2.0 offered improved upload speeds, it still retained the single-channel architecture of DOCSIS 1.0.
What Is DOCSIS 3.0?
DOCSIS 3.0 theoretical maximum download is 1 Gbps with a 200 Mbps upload capacity.
What Is DOCSIS 3.1?
Introduced in 2013,DOCSIS 3.1continued to build on the improvements of the prior DOCSIS iterations.
The update included improved power management and algorithms that reduce latency and connection jitter.
What Is DOCSIS 4.0?
Originally branded as “DOCSIS 3.1 Full Duplex,“DOCSIS 4.0was released in 2017.
What DOCSIS Version Do I Need?
The DOCSIS 1.0/1.1 and DOCSIS 2.0 modems from our version list above are historical footnotes.
That’s enough to cover all your upload speed but only around a third of your download speed.
Perfect for a gigabit cable package today, and an upgrade to a multi-gigabit package next year.
The prices of the just-good-enough-for-gigabit modems aren’t far off from the multi-gig-capable modems.
If your Wi-Fi router isover three years old, it’s time for a replacement.
