Wireless Router Suggestion for 8-10 Computers

[KiLLaZ]

My friends are moving into a new house/apt together and they want to get a new wireless router. The old one they've been using (a Linksys 802.11b) would start acting really slow if more than 6 people were on it at once. It wasn't the cable internet connection, because when they clock that without the router it was plenty fast, even divided by 8. What would you guys suggest for a router that can support 8-10 computers simultaneously at decent speeds? Most of them do have 802.11g cards in their computers because they have upgraded since that old router. THANKS!

 

[Frito]

The only downside to G is the range. If the house is small with thin walls it would work just fine for you guys. Just don't get a Linksys WRT54G, it has a huge security hole.

You can also try getting an omnidirectional antennae for the G-router. They're becoming more and more common.

What shops do you have nearby that carry wireless gear?

 

[KiLLaZ]

Range shouldn't be a big deal because it's a pretty small house, but I thought G had better range than B? There are a bunch of stores by us -- Best Buy, CompUSA, Circuit City, Staples...

 

[8ballcoupe]

Originally posted by: Frito
The only downside to G is the range. If the house is small with thin walls it would work just fine for you guys. Just don't get a Linksys WRT54G, it has a huge security hole.

I thought G and B had the same range. They work in the same frequency range, and G is compatible with B equipment. Only basic differences would be speed and ability to support WPA (for some), AFAIK.

What's this about the Linksys WRT54G. Give us a link to solid information, please. A friend purchased one of those along with a Linksys USB-connected wireless client without asking me about it. I set them up for him. If there's a problem, I want to know exactly what it is. I have his set up with SSID broadcast turned off, using MAC filtering, and WPA / TKIP pre-shared. Seems to be working great.

Ernie

PS: Never mind linking me to info on the WRT54G. I saw a thread posted on this just after I first posted this message. Thanks for the heads up on that. Of course, I already had a strong password set on the management page. But now that I know about this I'll forward 80 and 443 for the temporary workaround. As someone in the other thread said -- don't they test this stuff any more? Geez!

 

[KiLLaZ]

Can anyone else lend their insight? All the information I find ranks routers on how fast the are at a certain distance on ONE machine. I'm looking for how well a certain router can handle 8-10 without massive slowdown... THANKS!!

 

[JackMDS]

May be this can Help: Wireless What Should I Get?

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