Felisa Yang,
Associate Editor
March 1, 2007
With the release of the first draft of the 802.11n specification by the IEEE came a flurry of product releases from the major networking vendors. Each company put its own spin on the new routers, from hidden antennas to paddle antennas to user-friendly network-display panels. With so many choices, how can you tell which is right for you? That's a tough question to answer. All of these products' throughput numbers looked stellar when compared to the throughput of standard 802.11g routers, but they all fell short of the promised speed improvement of 802.11n (according to the spec, the max throughput is 270Mbps). And there is a slight chance (unlikely, but not impossible) that some major change in the final 802.11n spec could render these product nonupgradable. Our advice dovetails with that of industry analysts: if you already have a wireless home network, keep using it until the spec has been finalized (expected to be around mid-2007) to see how the final performances stack up.
If you absolutely can't wait and need to have one of these routers now, we liked the D-Link N 650 for its fast performance and wealth of features and the Belkin N1 router for its unparalleled user-friendliness.
Also, don't forget to check these routers' companion wireless notebook adapters.
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| Price | $76.30 to $139.99 | Check Prices | Check Prices | $89.99 to $151.58 | $69.99 to $119.99 | $51.67 to $95.95 |
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| Review date | June 19, 2006 | July 20, 2006 | July 28, 2006 | April 24, 2006 | May 03, 2006 | October 13, 2006 |
| The Bottom Line | With its easy-to-grasp status icons, up-to-date security options, and stellar support, the Belkin N1 router is on the path to 802.11n wireless networking stardom, but like other Draft N devices, its performance fails to impress. | Though inconsistent, the D-Link N 650 router performed admirably overall compared to its Draft N competition. Still, we are unimpressed with how it measures up to the promise of 802.11n. Pass on this for now; in fact, pass on all Draft N routers until the spec is finalized. | Although the Buffalo Nfiniti router performed admirably in its somewhat limited mixed-mode operation, like every other Draft N router we've tested, it fails to deliver on the promise of 802.11n. | Though it offers good maximum throughput, the Linksys WRT300N ultimately fails to do the new Draft N standard proud in both mixed-mode and long-range tests. Wait to see how the rest of the Draft N products fare. | Though its maximum throughput is solid and its speed at long range is respectable, the Netgear WNR834B's mixed-mode speed is not. Save your cash until more Draft N routers make it through CNET Labs. | The Trendnet TEW-631BRP's throughput scores led the pack of Draft N routers, but hold your horses and wait to see how the 802.11n spec pans out. |
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| Features | ||||||
| Form factor |
External |
External |
External |
External |
External |
External |
| Device Type |
Wireless router |
Wireless router |
Wireless router |
Wireless router |
Wireless router |
Wireless router |
| Product Description |
Belkin N1 Wireless Router - Wireless router |
D-Link RangeBooster N 650 Router DIR-635 - Wireless router |
Buffalo AirStation Nfiniti WZR-G300N Wireless-N Router & Access Point - Wireless router |
Linksys Wireless-N Broadband Router WRT300N - Wireless router |
NETGEAR RangeMax Next Wireless Router WNR834B - Wireless router |
TRENDnet TEW 631BRP - Wireless router |
| System Requirements |
Microsoft Windows 98/ME/NT/2000/XP Linux Apple MacOS 9.x Apple MacOS 8.x Apple MacOS X 10.x |
Info unavailable |
Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition Microsoft Windows XP Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition Microsoft Windows 2000 |
Microsoft Windows 2000 / XP |
Microsoft Windows 98/ME/2000/XP Apple MacOS Novell NetWare Linux UNIX |
Microsoft Windows NT Microsoft Windows XP Microsoft Windows 95 Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Apple MacOS Linux Microsoft Windows 2000 Microsoft Windows 98 |
| Features |
Firewall protection Access Point operational mode MAC address filtering MIMO technology Firmware upgradable DHCP support Dynamic DNS server VPN passthrough Stateful Packet Inspection (SPI) NAT support |
Auto-uplink (auto MDI/MDI-X) URL filtering Firewall protection Content filtering DHCP support Auto-sensing per device Quality of Service (QoS) VPN passthrough Dynamic IP address assignment NAT support Auto-negotiation Dynamic DNS server Stateful Packet Inspection (SPI) Syslog support |
Auto-uplink (auto MDI/MDI-X) Firewall protection Stateful Packet Inspection (SPI) NAT support |
DMZ port Firewall protection MDI/MDI-X switch MAC address filtering Firmware upgradable DHCP support VPN passthrough NAT support Full duplex capability Access Point operational mode MIMO technology 256-bit encryption Stateful Packet Inspection (SPI) |
Intrusion Detection System (IDS) Firewall protection URL filtering DoS attack prevention MIMO technology Stateful Packet Inspection (SPI) NAT support |
DMZ port Firewall protection URL filtering DoS attack prevention MAC address filtering Firmware upgradable Dynamic DNS server VPN passthrough Stateful Packet Inspection (SPI) NAPT support NAT support |
| Form Factor |
External |
External |
External |
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