Any Wireless-N routers worth their weight yet?

[Pneumothorax]

I'm currently using a ddwrt WRT54G router currently and would like more range and speed of a Wireless N router. I have a Macbookpro and a dell 1330 with wireless N. So far, almost all the N routers on amazon and newegg have bad marks. Are there any decent ones at all? Thanks!

 

[Tarrant64]

I think all the Wireless N routers right now are still draft anyways, that's why I haven't moved to them. I heard good things about some D-link ones though.

 

[fwei]

I've heard the linksys wrt600 series and a dlink gaming series are good. Dual band, and apparently very stable. I'm also pretty sure that those will get full N certification once it's finalized.

 

[Tarrant64]

Originally posted by: fwei
I've heard the linksys wrt600 series and a dlink gaming series are good. Dual band, and apparently very stable. I'm also pretty sure that those will get full N certification once it's finalized.

Who knows when that will be.

 

[shempf]

Trendnet 633GR is nice. Phenomenal range and I like the more config options.

Better than the Apple Time Capsule.....which is/isn't saying much.

 

[mc866]

Did a ton of reading on this last week because my G router died for a few days... but returned to life. To summarize my findings I would say that there are a few options out there that will for sure provide significantly greater wireless bandwidth and throughput than the current G offerings but I believe many of the reviews I read stated that there isn't much increase in wireless range and in some cases it's worse.

Along with the un-certified N standard is the option to run on the 5Ghz range rather than the "crowded" 2.4Ghz band which is also supposed to assist in increased bandwidth because you are using a channel not widely used by other devices but I don't believe 5Ghz allowed greater range either. The trouble with the devices that support 5Ghz is that they are more expensive than the standard N and you need a 5Ghz supported device on all of your end points which can be very costly.

If you are in a situation where you have G working and just need increased range I would look into possibly doing another DD-WRT device for cheap and run it in AP or wireless bridge mode. Personally I was glad that my G router came back to life because I didn't have to invest in technology that hasn't officially been ratified just yet and for some reason doesn't seem "complete" just yet.

That being said if you feel you need the increased bandwidth offered by N devices I believe the consensus was that the DIR-655 and the Trendnet TEW-633GR both provided great and affordable single band N performance, supposedly the internal parts on these two are very similar, both can be had for less than $100 now.

I found the reviews and wireless charts at the site below very helpful:

SmallNetBuilder

 

[JackMDS]

For close range with No special demands.

El Cheap

TRENDnet TEW-432BRP IEEE 802.3/3u, IEEE 802.11b/g Wireless Firewall Router - Retail $25

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16833156038

For Medium Range with a lot of Features.

ASUS WL-520gU IEEE 802.3/3u/3x, IEEE 802.11b/g Wireless Router. $45 ($35 after rebate).

Very Good choice for 802.11g (Excellent when flashed with DD-WRT).

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16833320023

For long range get more than one of the Asus and set a WDS system (http://www.ezlan.net/Wireless_Modes.html ).

If One is in a dire need to increase Bandwidth due to the HD Wireless streaming, this might Help (YMMV).

TRENDnet TEW-633GR 802.11n (draft 2.0) Wireless Router. $85

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16833156226


Note: Some people think that having a Dual band Router that provides also 802.11a at 5GHz is a Magic solution to Wireless trouble.

802.11a actually provides less coverage than 802.11g, however since it is working at 5Ghz its Signal to Noise ratio (SNR) is better in some cases than the 802.11g at a specific environment ( http://www.ezlan.net/wbar.html ).

If measures show that your 802.11g suffers from disturbing environmental noise then 802.11a might help. Otherwise it is a waste of money to buy Dual Band.