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What router to get?
- Thread starter rlu929s
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You need something that supports dual band. You should give us more information like what exactly your requirements are as far as features, and how you are planning on using it. Without this information, it's hard to narrow down which router you should buy.
If I were buying a new router (which I am thinking about) I would get one that is compatible with one of the custom firmwares like DD-WRT or Tomato.
I'm sick of the crappy admin on my free router and it's not compatible with either of the aforementioned firmwares.
They allow you to tinker with the power output to get a better speed, troubleshoot signal problems, throttle certain processes with QoS etc.
I'm sick of the crappy admin on my free router and it's not compatible with either of the aforementioned firmwares.
They allow you to tinker with the power output to get a better speed, troubleshoot signal problems, throttle certain processes with QoS etc.
Just came from the Dual Band N Linksys and bought the Apple Router Dual Band N and could not be happier.
So far it works great. I instantly noticed that even my internet connection is much faster with the new router. Setup was a breeze.
I was scared at first as I was still having trouble playing movies on my ATV2. It was VERY sluggish.
I had forgotten that I was encoding some TV episodes on DVD with Handbrake though. I stopped it and it worked fine.
So, I guess the bottleneck was pulling to media off the drive. I have eSata using the 6GBps port disk though..not sure about that one.
I haven't tested, but am hoping that I can play movies at least on 2 devices at once now.
I was scared at first as I was still having trouble playing movies on my ATV2. It was VERY sluggish.
I had forgotten that I was encoding some TV episodes on DVD with Handbrake though. I stopped it and it worked fine.
So, I guess the bottleneck was pulling to media off the drive. I have eSata using the 6GBps port disk though..not sure about that one.
I haven't tested, but am hoping that I can play movies at least on 2 devices at once now.
Just picked up a new Airport Extreme last night to replace a failed, very old, Linksys WRTG54. WOW, I didn't know what I was missing in speed, stability, and ease of setup! $179 was a bit steep I think, but so far, well worth it. Streaming from my ATV, Netflix etc. etc. is much smoother, quicker too load, and well, just a more pleasant experience all around. 
I replaced my old D-Link Draft N router with a then-current generation simutlaneous dual-band Airport Extreme in February, and then I replaced my cable modem last month. I think that I went from about 10 MBps down and 1.5 MBps up with the old setup to about 15-20 MBps down and 3.5-5 MBps up, depend on traffic on my Comcast internet service, and I didn't even upgrade the plan. The 8-year old old Arris modem was locking up, which is why had to replace it.
Back on topic, probably just about any new router would be of help, but despite the price the AEBS is probably one of the easiest to setup.
Back on topic, probably just about any new router would be of help, but despite the price the AEBS is probably one of the easiest to setup.
I now have a small pile of DLink, Linksys, etc. routers.
All swapped out over the years for various networking or performance issues.
Swapped out a Netgear with N that could not stream consistently from a NAS, for a Refurb Airport Extreme.
Didn't use the NAS just plugged in a USB hard drive.
N speeds are great, the hard drive is fast enough to stream movies. Wifes HP G laptop and printer work fine also. iPad, iPhone, iTunes, all happy
External drive even works with Time Machine.
Even without any sort of external antenna has better range than all the other combined.
One of the best Apple products.
My wife and I still use the Linksys WRT54G and I love it. We haven't had issues since we bought it in 2006 or so. Purchased one for my son when we moved to an off campus house in college, too.
I'd have to agree with this post. I've had one forever and I'm only replacing it because I want a Time Machine. Hell, I'll probably sell it here on MR. If it weren't for me wanting strictly 'N' and a TM, I'd definitely keep it.
One thing to keep in mind about those older routers is that they have some pretty strong limitations on routing performance. Depending on your internet connection, you could be having some slowdowns strictly due to the limited performance of the router.
I owned several wrt54g's and they are really excellent products. It was the first router I owned that was stable, fast and reasonably priced. Still, when I replaced it with a DIR-655 there was a significant and noticeable increase in performance, both wired and wireless. I'm currently demo'ing a Airport Extreme as I'm trying to connect to a distant location and the 655 wasn't cutting it. So far the Airport is managing to get a signal there but its barely working.
I guess what I'm getting at is that if you buy a decent product you'll be happy. The Airport Extreme is good, but its not perfect. For the money, its completely fine though. You could do just as well with a less expensive router if you don't need to cover a large area.
I have had two of the link sys WRTG54 routers over the years and they have worked well. Last one has lasted me about 4 to 5 years maybe? Anyways it seems to lose connectivity more frequently and browsing has slowed on my computers to the point that my clear wire usb internet has been faster than my home cable internet.
Needless to say looking at the airport extreme or another wireless N router with USB ports. Wanted to take advantage of the Belkin N750 that has two usb ports with the 50% off coupon, but it is out of stock currently.
Needless to say looking at the airport extreme or another wireless N router with USB ports. Wanted to take advantage of the Belkin N750 that has two usb ports with the 50% off coupon, but it is out of stock currently.
The Airport Extreme works great "most" of the time. I have it and there is a known bug that it will lose internet connection at times, even though the green light remains on. The only way to fix is to reboot. Just google airport extreme loses internet connection and you will see a lot of threads and complaints. Most of the time it's no big issue, but if it happens while you are streaming a movie, it becomes quite annoying.