Is my router or modem going bad? or ISP just bad?

[JD Yang]

My ISP is with Charter cable internet and on a plan of the Spectrum internet of 60Mbs.
Just recently this pass monday there was a 2 hour blackout. After when the power came back on I checked the net and noticed it was kind of slow on my laptop and iPhone. I have a Linksys EA3500 router and a modem from charter. On Tuesday I've decided to test the speed on speedtest, the ping was fairly decent around 10-60 and the download was fluctuating from 0.65Mbs to 15Mbs(used to be 50Mbs - 63Mbs) and the upload was at 3-6Mbs which is normal for the upload.

I've done a power cycle of the charter modem and linksys router and everything returned to normal for about 30 min to 90 min then the speed just drops down.

I have a few devices that are connected wirelessly such as a laptop, ps3, iPhones, Andriods.
I have done all speed tests on them and its like described up there as the download is between .65 to 15 Mbs. I also have a desktop that is connected with a Cat5e to the Linksys router and is getting max download speed and upload speed, but once in a while it would drop down to 15Mbs. Now when I connect my Laptop with a Cat5e to the Linksys router it gets max download and upload speed.

So far I havent had any drops in connection its just that the download speed has dramatically dropped and once in a while such as 3 hours the browsing speed drops as well which takes a while to load like a webpage.
I haven't contacted Charter yet, but I will soon if I cant solve this. Does anyone have an idea of whats going on? Is it on charters end that is messed up or is it my Linksys router (Only had the router for 1 and a half year)?

Laptop is a Asus Vivobook S301LA 2.4ghz wifi card
iPhone 6 5ghz, 5c 2.4, Andriod Samsung Galaxy S5 5ghz, Ps3 super slim 2.4ghz
Desktop is a Gateway DX4200-09 Connected to router through ethernet.

 

[ronintexas]

The first test - remove the router and plug directly into the cable modem and test the modem. This will eliminate (or confirm) the problem being with the router. If the test works, the router is the problem. If it fails, the modem or Charter will be the issue.

If it is the modem and/or connection - I would suggest having Charter out to troubleshoot - there could be issues in their wiring or the modem.

If it is the router, try updating the firmware and resetting it to the factory defaults and re-test the router. If it fails then, you will need to replace the router.