[Volvo-brickster]

So the router i have is old. Back from 2002.

Its a D link DI-624.

The last year or so performance has gone down signfigantly.

Router is in the basement and laptops on the top floor used to have perfect connection but now I am lucky to get 2 bars of strength and quite often the router doesn't put out a signal ( undetectable ) and I have to reboot.

No new electronics have been added in the house, i've tried moving the router without success. Im thinking its just time to upgrade.

Whats a decent wireless router that is good out there?

TIA

[CRS]

DIR 655

[Jmac]

x2

D-Link DIR-655 ... Goes on sale for $80-$100

I've also heard good things about Netgear's new N routers, but haven't used them.

Just don't get Linksys ... Their new routers suck balls ...

[SkinnyPupp]

I just got an N from Asus, and it's great. It has no problem streaming 1080p, while G can barely manage 720p content.

[unit]

^which model? im looking for a fairly cheap N router i dont need advanced features.
i had a linksys wrt54g and a dlink dir-625 N router and both of them keep disconnecting me from the net. i think it has something to do with my bittorrent client (utorrent) but theres no good solution available on the net.. funny this thread comes up i was just talking to my coworker about trying an asus router for a change

[Jmac]

The WRT54G has shitty memory management (at least without 3rd party firmware and, even then, it's only OK ... I had a Rev. 2 w/ 8 MB of memory and a 250 MHz CPU and, even with DD-WRT or Tomato, I had to power cycle the thing every week or two).

Depending on which revision you have of the DIR-625, you may have 4 MB or 16 MB of onboard memory and early firmwares didn't really have great memory management. Upgrading the firmware certainly would help and, if you turn off the auto-detect connection speed feature (manually set your connection type and speed), it will probably run for weeks, if not months (if you have the 16 MB model), without a power cycle, even with heavy bittorrent use.

[CRS]

x2

D-Link DIR-655 ... Goes on sale for $80-$100

I've also heard good things about Netgear's new N routers, but haven't used them.

Just don't get Linksys ... Their new routers suck balls ...

Whaaaaat?! $80?! No way! Cheap is at $100

If you can find me one for $80, I'd be shitty balls.

[CRS]

The WRT54G has shitty memory management (at least without 3rd party firmware and, even then, it's only OK ... I had a Rev. 2 w/ 8 MB of memory and a 250 MHz CPU and, even with DD-WRT or Tomato, I had to power cycle the thing every week or two).

Depending on which revision you have of the DIR-625, you may have 4 MB or 16 MB of onboard memory and early firmwares didn't really have great memory management. Upgrading the firmware certainly would help and, if you turn off the auto-detect connection speed feature (manually set your connection type and speed), it will probably run for weeks, if not months (if you have the 16 MB model), without a power cycle, even with heavy bittorrent use.

Can you expand on that more?

I'm actually rather interested in comparing the 54G(L) vs. the DIR 655.

[SkinnyPupp]

Asus WL500W, picked it up for $500 HKD ($75-80). Definitely a great router for the price! Keep in mind that most WiFi hardware use the same controllers, so D-Link, Linksys, Buffalo, etc, are all have the same basic capabilities. I went with the Asus because it was very cheap for an N router, and yet still has some advanced features. USB ports, you can attach a USB hard drive to it and use it as NAS (it even functions as an FTP server, and you can download files directly to it, including torrent), and it Supports WPA/WPA2 TKIP + AES

[Cman333]

I'd go with DIR-655 as recommended by most ppl on RS.

I had a WBR-2310 and tried the new WRT-54G2

Both caused me a little issues and the range was kinda crappy. I had to upgrade the firmware on the 54G2. The signal kept dropping. The 655 has been problem free and didn't need to upgrade firmware.

I got mine during a bestbuy sale, was 20% off all computer accessories. I think was around $95 + taxes

[Jet]

Asus WL500W, picked it up for $500 HKD ($75-80). Definitely a great router for the price! Keep in mind that most WiFi hardware use the same controllers, so D-Link, Linksys, Buffalo, etc, are all have the same basic capabilities. I went with the Asus because it was very cheap for an N router, and yet still has some advanced features. USB ports, you can attach a USB hard drive to it and use it as NAS (it even functions as an FTP server, and you can download files directly to it, including torrent), and it Supports WPA/WPA2 TKIP + AES

That Asus looks pretty stacked with features but what I don't like about it is that its only a 10/100 wired connection but if you got a GIGE switch anyways then its no problem ...

[Jmac]

Whaaaaat?! $80?! No way! Cheap is at $100

If you can find me one for $80, I'd be shitty balls. http://pricecanada.com/p.php/Dlink-Xtreme-N-Wireless-Router-DIR-655-DIR655-464772/price-history/

All-time low = $79.99 @ NCIX

I'm not saying it happens frequently, I'm just saying it happens ... occassionally.

I've seen it go on sale for as low as $89.95 @ Staples.

[CRS]

http://pricecanada.com/p.php/Dlink-Xtreme-N-Wireless-Router-DIR-655-DIR655-464772/price-history/

All-time low = $79.99 @ NCIX

I'm not saying it happens frequently, I'm just saying it happens ... occassionally.

I've seen it go on sale for as low as $89.95 @ Staples.

FML. hahaha

[Cman333]

I never even noticed a price history button on there before.

Nice feature

[Hondaracer]

i got my DIR655 for $85 on a christmas sale

personally the speeds are alright, but the range fucking SUCKS

if i go 2 rooms over i get like 45% signal.

[unit]

doh! didnt realize my router was firmware 1.08 and the latest is 1.09
updated and so far so good... true test will be if the connection doesnt d/c by tomorrow

usually it cuts out in like 20m so this is pretty good been about an hour now

too bad that solution didnt work for my old wrt54g

[hotjoint]

I have the dir 625, works fine for me. If I ever need to upgrade then i'll get the dir 655 :)

[!Aznboi128]

i have aiport extreme 2 works well
and in my gf's house I got them DIR-655 and a WRT 160 as piggy back

dir 655 seems to have the best range and the WRT-160 has to be restarted every now and then

[.Renn.Sport]

i got my DIR655 for $85 on a christmas sale

personally the speeds are alright, but the range fucking SUCKS

if i go 2 rooms over i get like 45% signal.

just go buy stronger antennas

i'm using the stock antennas and it goes thru pretty well in my concrete building

[Hondaracer]

for a $150 router i shouldnt have to buy stronger antenna's.

my WRT300N used to get at least 50% signal in my home theatre room which is upstairs and 2 rooms over, with my DIR655 i cant even get 15%

[!LittleDragon]

I returned my DIR-655 after a day cuz of the crappy range compared to my old Netgear WPN824 and it didn't let me add enough devices to the mac filter. Opted to just get a gigabit switch and keeping my Netgear as the wireless access point. I only use wireless for my laptops and I only browse the net with them anyways.

[Jmac]

for a $150 router i shouldnt have to buy stronger antenna's.

my WRT300N used to get at least 50% signal in my home theatre room which is upstairs and 2 rooms over, with my DIR655 i cant even get 15% It's all situational ...

For example, my DIR-655 got the 2nd best range of the 4 routers I tried before settling on it (WRT54G, Apple Airport Extreme, Linksys WRT300N, DIR-655) where the DIR-655 gets a nearly 80% signal 2 houses away (The Airport Extreme got the best range, but it was the biggest pain in the ass and most expensive router, so I returned it). The DIR-655 outperformed my old WRT54G in spite of the face that the WRT54G had the transmission power boosted WELL beyond factory spec; even then, it could only manage 1-2 bars (20-40%)). The WRT300N got no signal whatsoever.

On the flip side, my friend replaced his old WRT54G w/ a DIR-655 and he only got about 40-60% signal 2 rooms over. Some fiddling with the settings and antenna positions got that up to a consistent 80%, but he used to get 100% w/ the WRT54G all the time (stock Linksys firmware). He kept it because 80% @ 300 Mbps > 100 % @ 54 Mbps, plus he doesn't need to reboot it all the time.

[Cman333]

$99.99 at NCIX
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=21730&promoid=1042

If you care to, you could go to Best Buy to price beat.

[rageguy]

It's all situational ...

For example, my DIR-655 got the 2nd best range of the 4 routers I tried before settling on it (WRT54G, Apple Airport Extreme, Linksys WRT300N, DIR-655) where the DIR-655 gets a nearly 80% signal 2 houses away (The Airport Extreme got the best range, but it was the biggest pain in the ass and most expensive router, so I returned it). The DIR-655 outperformed my old WRT54G in spite of the face that the WRT54G had the transmission power boosted WELL beyond factory spec; even then, it could only manage 1-2 bars (20-40%)). The WRT300N got no signal whatsoever.

really? the airport extreme got the best range compared to dir-655? that's surprising given that the dir-655 uses 3 external antennas, and that the airport uses an internal looping antenna. its hard to believe that the airport got a better range!

[Jmac]

It did ... it was also the best looking, too :P

Of course, unless you ONLY have Macs, it's such a pain in the ass for PCs that it's not even worth considering. The biggest flaw is that it doesn't support uPNP (It allows programs to tell the router which ports they need open so they can communicate online), so you have to manually set the ports for each program. Apple uses NAT-PMP, which operates in a slightly different fashion, but very few Windows programs support it and, the only one that I use that does (uTorrent) still didn't work. On top of that, every time you add a new computer or port to the list, it forces you to restart the router, which takes about 2 minutes and it would often loses DHCP settings from the Shaw modem, forcing a reboot of the modem as well (another minute).

Then there's the fact that it's the only router I can think of that doesn't have a web-based configuration utility, so you have to install Apple's bullshit software on your computer. Oh, but not just the MAIN computer, oh no. If you want to, say, share printers or files over the network, you have to install the Bonjour service on the computers hooked up to your network because the router won't let them communicate with each other without it. Then there's Apple Update ... Every time you open the router software, it opens Apple Update and automatically downloads and installs updates ... And not just ones for the router, either (the only ones that are actually CHECKED), but also Quicktime and iTunes and Safari. Yay !

I fucking hate Apple ...

[VR6GTI]

picked up the dir 655 this weekend, thanks for the info.

[Volvo-brickster]

picked up the DIR 655 for $109, wasn't impressed

got the same crappy reception with my old router, bandwidth was just as slow

2 laptops and my cell phone connect just fine, but i have an older laptop with a dlink netcard that connects, but can't access the internet

call D-link, they said my router was fine, but the issue was with the network card.

The card is an end of life product, so i gotta pay to talk to someone to have them diagnose it over the phone.

so i packed the sucker up and am returning it tomorrow

i can live with a disconnecting router for the time being. maybe i will get booster antennas instead

[SkinnyPupp]

Should have bought the Asus ;)

[Good_KarMa]

Bump! on the market for one, any recommendations?
100-200$

1pc , 2 laptops and 2 iphones if that matters ?_?

Currently using Linksys Cisco WRT400N. First few months were great; streaming 1080p videos on youtube from my laptop and ps3, signal strength stretched to my garage, which was great. Even with current firmware, this thing diconnects frequently. Been having to power cycle the router just to get it working for a few hours before it disconnects.

D-link? Asus?

Thanks in advanced for any input!

[rageguy]

been using asus rtn16 for the past 4 months, flashed with tomato fw, and upgraded the 3 antenna to ebay "17" dbi. so far so good, rock solid. i do a lot of torrents daily, and every night there are at least 6 wireless devices in my house actively using it.

[ninjai123]

Powerline adapter is on sale at ncix go get that if you guys are heavy streamer on your media room if not a linksys wrt600n or the wrt610N should do the job! :D

[VK79]

Picked up a Netgear WNDR3700 this evening as it was on sale at FS.

http://www.futureshop.ca/en-CA/product/netgear-netgear-rangemax-dual-band-wireless-n-router-wndr3700-100pas-wndr3700-100pas/10146017.aspx?path=a147ba8d41a97b24671b8f3cd4ed7cc 5en02&lid=fp-10146017-netgearnetgearrangemaxdualband-en

Very happy with the result so far. Did not play with any settings, just plugged it in and reset my modem.

went from (on a lucky day)

http://www.speedtest.net/result/962631037.png

to

http://www.speedtest.net/result/1024493263.png

Getting very good results for all my other toys too.

IP4 avg 12-14mbps

mbp/ipad avg 23-24mbps on N 5ghz

itouch 3g avg 5-6mbps

Streamed a 1080p bluray rip from pc to mac no problems at all, instant playback even when I scrubbed it constantly.

Gonna try with the other gadgets/game machines tomorrow but so far highly recommended. Never expected my old router to be stifling my net that much!

[Fuhrër-Z]

I got a WRT54g, disconnects a lot, just installing Tomato right now to rectify that issue. Before this, I had Telus's 2wire modem/router...which was dope, never disconnected and had the easiest setup I've ever gone through for wireless. Also got the Apple airport Express...Fucking turd. Anyone wanna buy it :D it's pretty??

[vl_86]

Can anyone recommend a router for gaming?

The problem with the router I have right now, is that everytime my brother or dad surfs the net it lags the crap outta my gaming, I tried setting up the qos on my router to no avail, and i think i just bricked it by installing the wrong firmware, so it's time to upgrade

[dj bally]

Can anyone recommend a router for gaming?

The problem with the router I have right now, is that everytime my brother or dad surfs the net it lags the crap outta my gaming, I tried setting up the qos on my router to no avail, and i think i just bricked it by installing the wrong firmware, so it's time to upgrade

your router is most likely perfectly fine...u need to upgrade your internet most people have high speed lite and think its the same as high speed, high speed lite will not handle online gaming when other people are also surfing the net...also turn off any torrent programs because people are constantly uploading from you and that will also affect your gaming.

[mrks]

Had the same experience when I picked up the Netgear WNR3500L.

After I installed the custom DD-WRT mod by Kong from www.myopenrouter.com, my router was even faster than the stock firmware.


Picked up a Netgear WNDR3700 this evening as it was on sale at FS.

http://www.futureshop.ca/en-CA/product/netgear-netgear-rangemax-dual-band-wireless-n-router-wndr3700-100pas-wndr3700-100pas/10146017.aspx?path=a147ba8d41a97b24671b8f3cd4ed7cc 5en02&lid=fp-10146017-netgearnetgearrangemaxdualband-en

Very happy with the result so far. Did not play with any settings, just plugged it in and reset my modem.

went from (on a lucky day)

http://www.speedtest.net/result/962631037.png

to

http://www.speedtest.net/result/1024493263.png

Getting very good results for all my other toys too.

IP4 avg 12-14mbps

mbp/ipad avg 23-24mbps on N 5ghz

itouch 3g avg 5-6mbps

Streamed a 1080p bluray rip from pc to mac no problems at all, instant playback even when I scrubbed it constantly.

Gonna try with the other gadgets/game machines tomorrow but so far highly recommended. Never expected my old router to be stifling my net that much!