Arris has joined a small but growing list of cable modem vendors to gain DOCSIS 3.1 certification when a product tagged for retail distribution gained CableLabs approval following testing wave 117.
Arris introduced the retail-focused SB8200 model last fall alongside the Touchstone CM8200, a similar D3.1-based cable modem product tailored for direct distribution to cable operators. Both models that support up to 5 Gbps downstream and up to 2 Gbps upstream.
Arris said it will share retail pricing on the SB8200 closer to launch.
Though cable operators are still in the early deployment and field testing phases with DOCSIS 3.1, a next-gen IP platform for HFC networks, the current crop of D3.1 modems are hybrids in the sense that they can support both DOCSIS 3.1- and DOCSIS 3.0-based traffic.
Other vendors that have notched D3.1 certification – an interoperability achievement required for retail distribution – include Askey, CastleNet, Netgear, Sagemcom, Technicolor and Ubee Interactive.
Arris, meanwhile, used the recent INTX show in Boston to trot out two DOCSIS 3.1-based gateway products – the Touchstone TG3462 and Touchstone TG3472.
Most consumers lease modems from MSOs. On the retail side, Arris crossed swords with vendors such as Netgear, Zoom Telephonics (which now offers models under the Motorola brand), and Linksys, which recently reentered the retail cable modem market.
