Should I rent a wireless router, modem, or gateway from Optimum… or buy it myself?
In order to install and activate your plan with Optimum internet service you will need a modem and a router.
When you take out a new account, you will usually receive one or two pieces of equipment. These are referred to as the modem and the router. If you get a single piece of equipment, that’s called a combination, or wireless gateway, which just means it has both technology for the modem and the router in a single housing. They do serve two different purposes however. The modem is responsible for connecting your home network to the internet while the router is responsible for connecting all of the different devices on your home network so that they can talk to one another. You do need both.
It is assumed that when you sign up for a new service with Optimum, you will rent the equipment you need from them. It comes standard with their designated modem, router, and corresponding cables. Internet providers like Optimum make it very easy for you to get internet by supplying the equipment you need and renting it to you at a monthly cost. When you are done or you close your account with Optimum, you simply send the equipment back to them. (But make sure you don’t get mischarged for it!)
Optimum typically charges $10 per month for your rental fees.
Based on what Optimum will charge if you lose them, your equipment is marked at $100 for the modem, $80 for the router, and $25 for the digital antenna. This means $205 for the entire combination. At $10 per month, you would pay that entire amount in 20.5 months. So, if you plan to stick with Optimum for more than that—or to make use of the equipment after—it starts making fiscal sense to save that $10 each month.
When you open an account, you will automatically be sent equipment from the company unless you choose not to. This equipment is something that you rent which means you have to pay for it every month, and no matter how long you have paid for it, when your contract ends, you don’t get to keep it. You are however able to save yourself the monthly rental fee by investing in your own equipment, and declining the company’s equipment. You can choose to use something that is compatible, and then have Optimum reduce your monthly fee by removing the rental cost.
You can purchase a modem or a router separately or you can invest in a combination. It’s recommended that you purchase them separately if you are buying your own because chances are you will upgrade your router much more frequently than your modem because modem technology is pretty stagnant and reliable whereas router technology will change as you get new internet plans or upgrades.
You need to make sure firstly that the modem you buy is compatible. If you are buying a modem, you’ll have to find the device specs and navigate compatibility on your own. If you are lucky, customer service will help you, but they are under no obligation to do so. Anything you rent from the company has already been certified as compatible with their Network.
You will be responsible for keeping your router and modem safe whether you rent it or not but if you own it it’s especially important that you change the default passwords that come with it. Default passwords are those things that are printed on a label usually underneath your device, and regularly changing your passwords reduces the risk that someone will use your internet to infiltrate all of the devices connected to it and leave behind a nasty virus. If something does go wrong with property that you purchase, tech support and customer service won’t be able to help you with that. You will be on your own.
Rental costs can add up each month no matter how low the equipment fee is. So if you want more information on different equipment, and different modems and routers you can invest in personally, it’s up to you to compare different products side-by-side. Read reviews and see which equipment or combinations work well given the speed you will enjoy with your current package, and the compatibility with your internet provider.
If you are having issues returning your equipment, you want to start with customer service. They should be able to walk you through the precise steps you have to follow to return your equipment the right way. Optimum asks that you return your equipment a specific way, and that you do so within 30 days. But of course, big companies always look for ways to make a little more profit so they might find a way to slap your account with bogus equipment return fees. If so, we can help.
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