Friday, August 12, 2011

So you need a router….


The quick no nonsense answer is...

Buy this one. 

It doesnt do everything, but what it does, provide basic wireless N (the most modern WiFi standard) it does very well.
Yes it will work with PC, MAC, iOS, Android and everything else.
One annoyance, in order to set it up easily you need a DVD drive on one of your computers. (setup runs on a supplied CD)
I also personally own this one, and can attest to... it working great, easy setup, not having any weird issues. I have not tested range as right now my computer sits right next to it. You can set it up completely wirelessly which is nice. I think it looks cool too, which as we all know, is very important.

If you have questions, go here.
And here


Belkin has this little guy.. Which might be worth it but I have yet to find a review of the device.


There are expensive dual band routers that could be recommended as well. However, right now I feel it is in the consumer’s best interest to get a cheaper basic N router such as this one and wait for dual band gigabit routers to become cheaper (and undoubtable better)
If you need one of those, (plan to do lots of wireless video streaming for example) Linksys, netgear, and apple have some high end models that are recommended. 

In fact, apple recently updated their airport extreme, which if used with any sandy bridge equipped mac you will get quite epic speed boosts.
http://www.macrumors.com/2011/08/08/latest-airport-extremes-bring-improved-range-and-performance/



Quick Note

If you feel you know better than i and are going to not listen to this, at least do this...
Do not, for my sanity's sake, ever buy any router labeled something like "N150"

this includes this one...
http://www.amazon.com/Belkin-Wireless-Router-Latest-Generation/dp/B004N6259G/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1313202762&sr=1-1

and this one
http://www.amazon.com/NETGEAR-RangeMax-150-Wireless-Router/dp/B001UI4RTG/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1313202890&sr=1-3

Here's why...

those routers, and anything "n150" are actually not certified with the WiFi standard "wireless N" Essentially they are Wireless G routers with some added stuff to make them work a bit faster and more reliable, usually using MIMO tech (Multiple In Multiple Out antennas. this is standard on certified N products.) Here's the catch, in order to get that added benefit your adapter must be specially designed (usually meaning its the same brand of the router) to take any of these advantages. Since most people use devices with integrated wifi devices this never happens. So basically you're just getting a Wireless G router.

Whats wrong with that they're cheap, you may ask?

Well, first of all they are lying to you. (by calling it "n150" it sounds like its certified, and also i guess they avoid being sued for not actually meeting the standard.) And that is something that really bothers me. They should just call them G routers, then i might not rant so much. 
I believe we as consumers actually have a lot of power over companies by what we chose to buy, and i don't want to encourage this behavior.

Secondly, Wireless G is ok, sorta kinda, 3 years ago. Compared to N, which has much better speed, range, and reliability, G is not worth you spending money on. Even if your needs are simple, trust me, you will be much happier spending $50 for the router i recommended than $30 for any of these.

Finally, these routers often use the cheapest components used by companies, so they are more likely to fail. You are better off getting an older high quality MIMO G router used than one of these.

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