SURFboard G34

Docsis 3.1, divides network into 3 adjustable categories, (no phone service on this model) (4) tier security options. 2.5+ gig max speed. 32 channels. great value for more control of home network traffic via RJ45 and wifi. so far, I'd buy again. gave me 2 megs more upload speed than service provided cable modem, and, 10 megs more download speed that service provided cable modem. *mobile ph set-up app didn't work with my Optimum...had to ph in to activate. (not a problem) Ama. shipping sent opened product, gave discount if I kept it, I did. worked fine.

This is, by far, the worst Arris experience I have ever had. The modem part (Arris's real expertise) is fine but the router part is junk. The app & customer support are beyond bizarre. I regret this purchase. 1) The smart phone app is a disaster. It hangs up in the middle of installation, it somehow can't find connection to the service. Once installed, it continues to regularly drop connection to the network when everything else on your network remains connected. It makes configuring and setting up your router a nightmare. 2) Phone support for installation support is beyond bizarre. I was connected to what sounded like an artifical intelligence robot with a very thick Latin American accent. While the AI robot-sounding humanoid did finally get me basically connected, the end of the call was just him sending me back into that nightmare app to finish setup. That went well. (/s) 3) The router is a joke. It supposedly can satisfy a 4500 sft home but the signal cannot even acceptably travel 9 feet through traditional plaster walls. No setup or configuration instructions come with the equipment and what the company provides online is minimal and incomprehensible. The band sharing management features between 2.5 and 5 ghz don't work. And I have received the slowest wifi speeds I have EVER seen. While the signal is blazing fast in the room where the modem is (4 feet away), I was literally seeing 2.1 mbps upload and .5 download 9 feet away. Once you configure a feature (such as band sharing) in the app it is next to impossible to turn it back off due to the constant "lost network connections." Configuration, again, is a nightmare. This is just about the worst installation experience of any kind I've had in the past 20 years purchasing from a reputable company. Arris doesn't know squat about bringing routers or smart phone apps to consumers and it shows with this poor product. Whoever within the company brought this to market deserves to be stripped of all dignity and walk in shame a la Game of Thrones. At least that's how I felt yesterday. So now I have a (very expensive) modem and will have to buy a mesh router system to pair with it. Do not go into this purchase expecting the router to be adequate or easy in the least. Buy something else.

This review is for the Arris Surfboard G34. I purchased this combo modem/router to replace my old one. When using Cox, note that you can't just plugin the new device and start using it -- you always need to call their technical support team to have them unregister your old device and register your new one. The setup process was easy and straight forward. The most difficult party was getting through to Cox technical support. My previous modem/router used DOCSIS 3.0 technology, so this upgrade gave me a 45% increase in download speed and a 366% increase in upload speed; all without changing my service plan. I saw lots of negative reviews for this device regarding the intermittent internet connections or the failure to connect to the internet. I have not personally experienced either of these issues. For buys who have this concern, if possible, I recommend retaining your old hardware for at least 30 days just in case you need to revert back. The product offers an optional mobile app to manage the network. The mobile app has very bad reviews. My recommendation is to configure your wireless network using your web browser first, then configure your mobile app after. Most of the negative reviews appeared to be from users attempting to perform the initial configuration using the mobile app. PROS: - Easy to install. - Fast wireless speeds. - Optional mobile app. - Modem and wireless router combined into a single hardware device. CONS: - The single LED status light makes it difficult to determine the state of the modem (see below). - When you rename a device using the web interface, those names do not carry through on the mobile app. FEATURES NOT ADVERTISED: - Free mobile app called 'SURFboard Central.' The mobile app allows you to see what devices are connected to your network, assess your network health, test your Wi-Fi speed, and even rename connected devices. The app was easy for me to use, despite the negative reviews. - You can setup a primary home network, a secondary home network, and a guest network. Each network includes a 2.4GHz and 5.0GHz SSID. COLOR CODES: - Solid Green LED: Indicates the Online status is in DOCSIS 3.0 mode. - Solid Blue LED: Indicates the Online status is in DOCSIS 3.1 mode. *This is the color you want to see. - Blinking Green LED: Indicates downstream and upstream channel search. - Solid Amber LED: Indicates the unit is powered on. - Blinking Amber LED: Indicates the firmware download is in progress. - Blinking Blue and Green LED: Indicates error mode in sequence. - Solid Light Blue LED: Indicates the WAN is selected over the Ethernet mode.

Below is my original review. Arris made good on replacing the Surfboard G34 DOCSIS 3.1 Gigabit Cable Modem & Wi-Fi 6 Router (AX3000). I had spent time with Sparklight support confirming that the original one had stopped working. I reached out to Arris Tech Support and after 3 calls they were convinced it was a faulty device. I re-installed an older modem I had and sent back the original one (after getting the RMA and shipping label from Arris). The process went well and within a couple of weeks I received the replacement. Went through the setup and got everything setup. I'll see how long this one lasts. I thought it fair that I update my review since they did replace it. ----------- Original Review below ------------------------ Easy to install. Worked with my carrier Sparklight. Upgraded after finding that I had paid for upgraded service for several months but since I owned the previous modem, they didn't bother to tell me the older modem wasn't compatible with the service I was paying for. I purchased this modem/router for the upgraded service and the install was pretty straight forward. It worked pretty well for about 5 and a half months. I then had problems with the router. Did a factory reset but I couldn't rename my router to what I had setup all my "smart home" accessories to access, so I purchased a new router. Everything worked really well for about 2 weeks and then the modem started not connecting all the time. It finally got to the point that it wouldn't connect at all. Called Sparklight and they confirmed the internet service was working and the modem was not connecting. Supposedly this was the third Arris G34 modem with an issue for the day. Said it might be a firmware update. Unfortunately I rely on my internet connection for work so I'll be going to my nearest Sparklight location to pickup a rental modem. Funny how the cable companies end up getting you in the end. I feel like I wasted $200 on this Arris G34.

Briefly: this Arris G34 works! As my main concern was about activating it- this review is about activation process only. Activation with xfinity app was eeeeasyyy!!!! ( just online with their xfinity app for cellphone) no tel calls, no technicians were needed. And for technologically clueless senior it took about half an our maximum. I found all info I needed through my personal “best friend” - google :) After the modem connected and appeared in the list of local WiFi’s ( with names which are on the label of modem - 2 actually, one for each band- 2,4 and 5), so I first connected the cellphone from which I was activating( entered p/w) , for each bandwidth, then other family cell phones, then computers, then tv. Connections were soo easy. And everything seems to work just fine( better and easier than with our original old modem) I decided not to bother and just to have 2 different networks ( names) for each bandwidth , rather then unite them under one name, as it automatically chooses best frequency bandwidth) and I can see then which one is working ) Though I should really mention in this review that during 2 last days I had been prepared and trained well already for the activation of this Arris modem. Because my first attempt was an incredibly stressful experience with Motorola 8702 modem combo refurbished in mint condition( also bought on Amazon here).( which I happily returned today(the return window is very reasonable) It took unbelievable amount of time and energy, for hours chatting with xfinity assistant, tel calls to and from xfinity, finally appointment with technician, and all that circus was just to find out that this refurbished Motorola modem was just plain defective. We certainly could not sit without internet ( at this point our old Motorola modem and refurbished newer Motorola both did not connect) So, I just rushed to look on Amazon for a really new modem combo compatible with xfinity, ( and with fastest delivery !) ( and I was checking release dates for all modems - to have a fresh one) Found out that ArrisG34 was released not that far ago. That is how I chose new Arris G34 here. If I ordered this Arris modem combo as a first choice, I would not even know what other people can go through , and why some reviews are so negative. Though in my case - I consider it as a valuable experience, and I certainly acquired some useful skills through the difficult first attempt of activating refurbished Motorola modem. But how glad I am that it is done, and I certainly can relate to good reviews , when people bought good new product from their first attempt and therefore activation process was as it is supposed to be - easy and not long at all, though it took some patience and anticipation, when the light on Arris was blinking different colors , but finally stabilized in stable blue. Xfinity app is leading through all steps of activating , and half an hour max - actually for me it was a breeze. Oh, and I read that if you want to change the name of your WiFi network for something more fancy, better to do it by reaching xfinity , so that they do it, as their app does not give this option ( which did not bother me) Also I am glad that I did not install arris surfboard smth. app( did reading that it is useless and not needed, only could confuse) In my case it was really not needed. I used plainly only Xfinity app for activation, nothing else. So, that was review about activation process and initial impressions. I hope that our new modem combo Arris G34 will work reliably ! ( if not, I will most probably update this review)

Xfinity is Horrible.. I pay for 400 Mb upload and 400 Mb download bandwidth, I get only 80 Mb download and 11 Mb upload. I have my own brand new(6 months old) Arris Surfboard G34 DOCSIS 3.1 Gigabit Cable Modem at home right from beginning of this service. When I signed up for this plan, I got 400 MB speed for a month and everything was excellent. Later on Xfinity did some upgrade in my area, which made my internet speed drop to 80 MB. I have a Xfinity technician friend, he confirmed it, he said if I call Xfinity they will send technician home and complain it's the issue with Modem and not their network. Charge me Technician visit charges. He had a device, showed me why they would say my Modem is bad and he explain which upgrade made my service bad too. He said, if I want to stay with Xfinity and get 400 MB speed, spend another 300$'s get another modem and keep doing this for every 2-3 years. He said, Xfinity knows this pretty well, they will pretend as they don't know the issue and they will send technician home, get ready to pay technician visit charges. I still tried to talk to Xfinity Operator about internet speed issue, I get to speak to offshore representative, she try to play innocent, give me repetitive explanations. They offered sending technician home. By now, I know where I am going with this. Right now, I don't have any other internet service provider option in my area to switch. I have to bite it, I have to pay for 400 MB and get 80 MB i.e., with wired connection. Wireless is even horrible its just 11MB download and upload of 3.4 MB. If I bring down my service package to 100 MB, I get 20MB or even less. Every thing will be alright if I take the Modem from Xfinity and pay 15$'s extra a month. I would say stay away from Xfinity, I feel like I am getting cheated and I cannot do anything about it

Comcast kept telling me I needed to upgrade my modem to take advantage of my 'blazing' 400mbps speed that I am overpaying for. I bought this combo as I have always found Arris to be reliable, it was towards the top of their compatible list, and had great reviews. It is a nice sleek looking unit and being a combo takes up a lot less room. First off you HAVE to use the comcast app to even get it connected which would be fine except I live in the country where there is no cell service. The last Arris installed a lot easier. An hour later and 2 trips to town, I finally get it to work. First disappointment, not enough signal strength to watch tv in my bedroom - I live in a 900sq ft house!! I had to buy a wifi extender so I might as well have just paid more for a better unit. Second disappointment, the wifi speed actually dropped from the old unit speed! I speed tested before removing my old SB6183 Arris surfboard, and I was getting 200mpbs. Well with the brand new G4, my speed has dropped to less than 45mbps which is beyond ridiculous. The whole point of upgrading was so I could take advantage of the 400mbps I am paying for. Comcast said their signal is fine so it is my equipment. So I was getting 200mbps on the old modem and now I spent over $200 to 'upgrade', and now get less than 45mbps. Its half that in my bedroom too since I still have to use an extender. I am beyond disappointed with my purchase and if it wasn't such a hassle I would return it. Edit- after 2 weeks it is even worse than before. It drops offline multiple times a day and requires a hard reset. That makes my whole house security cameras drop off for hours every day while I'm at work and I rely on them to make sure my dogs are ok. After 20 years of using ARRIS products this is the last one I will ever buy.

I love the look of this modem/router combo as well as the convenience of having one unit instead of two. The reviews for this were so mixed but I had purchased one for my daughter in the fall so I went ahead and ordered again. She has said that she's experienced internet skips but mostly impacting phone calls - she uses wifi calling because, you know, verizon. Anyway, connecting this unit for her was pretty simple even though there were some compatibility issues with ring cameras. Based on the reviews I did not use the Arris app - I used the website which was super basic. Got everything set up, had a solid blue light but no internet. Called comast/xfinity (which always gives me pause since my past experiences w/ them have rarely been easy or short) and they were unable to get a signal the new unit - we tried unplugging several times which was the extent of the action items on my end. They wanted to send a tech to my house for $100 within a few days. I was not open to that solution so I asked for tier 2 tech support - got customer retention - asked again for tier 2 tech support - got tier 1 - went through all of the steps I had done with initial rep. After an hour (yes, an hour), I ended the call, called back for customer retention (if you ever have an issue with them, this is the best prompt to get you a person who can help), asked for tier 2 tech support and went right back to tier 1. At that point (after waiting on hold for a while) I had already re-installed my previous set up so I just asked the rep to activate my old modem (Arris SB6190) which they were able to do no problem. So, it seems that there is an issue between the G34 and comcast/xfinity. I would not recommend chancing it and having to deal with the hassle. Couple things to note: I did call Arris to reset the modem prior to sending it back. Because I didn't have it wired I couldn't access the dashboard online. I was able to reset using a paper clip in the side of the unit. With regard to setting up new equipment with comcast/xfinity: the customer retention rep shared that I could have done this in the xfinity app. I had no idea of that - and even when I was able to download the app (after getting my internet back, because, you know, verizon, that info is buried way down on the home page. Plus, the xfinity app is not really a true app. It is an interface to the comcast/xfinity website. If you have any security on your default brower (I use safari and prefer not to be tracked, get pops up etc) then it will not connect. I have learned to toggle on the 'request desktop website', toggle off other protections, etc for one off connections to get apps to work (ie gmail) but with the xfinity app one time is not enough - the app will not load without full permission from your default browser. Just want to put this out there because it is super inconvenient. Lastly, I ended up ordering a TP Link Deco mesh system. Can't wait to see if that works - I will update this review with that info. UPDATE: The TP Link Deco mesh system is working great. A few install issues that required calls to support but once they were resolved we were online. Highly recommend choosing this option.

Katastrophe, was dem Kunden hier verkauft wird. Das Surfboard ist für dem US Markt bestimmt, wird aber über Amazon DE verkauft. Das Gerät hat somit kein EU Stecker und lässt sich auch nicht bei den deutschen Providern registrieren.