802.11n routers compared

Rich Brown, Senior Editor April 6, 2009

Router manufacturers haven't let the fact that 802.11n is still not an officially approved wireless standard stop them from making products. You shouldn't let it slow you down either. The truth is that 802.11n wireless routers are indeed faster and have a longer reach than older wireless products, and they're for the most part backwards-compatible. Prices have also dropped to around the $100 mark. Even if you don't need to transmit an HD video stream from one end of your house to the other, 802.11n is hard to pass up.

Of the routers on this list we found the SMC Barricade the most well-rounded due to its simple set-up, smart design, decent speed, and at an affordable price. The D-Link DGL-4500 offers some impressive configurability, and the Asus WL-500W boasts a very strong signal. On the Apple side of the house (which is also Windows-compatible) the Airport Extreme Base Station remains a great little router in its recently updated 802.11n incarnation, especially if you want to stream iTunes across your network. And while we were a bit underwhelmed by the overall performance of Apple's Time Capsure, its built-in hard drive links up neatly with the Time Machine automated back up software in Apple's Leopard operating system.

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