The average modern household typically
contains several devices that can access the Internet. It isn’t just PCs that
need an internet connection. Mobile phones, games consoles, and even OVO
players can access the Internet to expand their capabilities. That’s why a good
router, capable of sharing your internet connection between multiple devices,
is practically a household necessity. But what should a good router do? And
what features should you Look for when buying one. In this guide, we’ll examine
a range of devices to help you answer these questions and more and help you
select the right router for you.
what
should a good router do?
The function of a router is to connect two
networks. In most cases, this means your home network, which can consist of
anything from a single, stand-alone PC to a variety of different
network-enabled devices - and the Internet. Almost all consumer routers contain
a switch - the device that allows you to create a network of multiple devices -
so you don’t have to buy a router and a switch separately.
Your home network is known as a LAN (Local
Area Network), because all of the devices are in the same building, connected
to one another as part of a single closed system. By comparison, the internet
is a WAN (Wide Area Network). Routers, then, have two main kinds of ports: LAN,
and WAN ports. The former tells you how many devices can be connected locally
(by physical cables, at least) and the latter tells you how many modems (or
other routers) can be connected - usually just one.
That said, not all routers have the same
features. Some have four LAN ports, others have eight, and some have none at
all. Some come with a modem built in, some don’t. Most modern routers have
wireless capabilities, but not all, and you may find one, two, or even four
wireless antennas depending on the cost and quality of a router.
This matters because routers with multiple
antennas tend to have a better range, support more simultaneous devices, and
offer more bandwidth per device, leading to improved performance (for example,
lower ping when several people are playing games online). Although the number
of computers that can connect to a single router is limited, an average,
single-antenna model will comfortably support simultaneous connections from at
least eight networked devices without any trouble.
NetGear DG8334G v5
Price: $69.9
Antennas: One
LAN: 4 x 10/100Mbit Ethernet
Wireless: Wireless G
Modem: ADSL2+
The DG834G has shown incredible staying
power over the years, enduring for the best part of a decade with only minor
product revisions. It’s currently on version 5, which convincingly maintains
the device’s reputation for reliability and simplicity. If you believe
NetGear’s website, it’s the most popular router in the UK. Looking at this
model, it’s not hard to see why.
NetGear
DG8334G v5
The popularity of the DG834G is, no doubt,
its straightforward nature. It combines an ADSL modem, a router and a switch
into a single device, giving you all you need to get multiple devices onto the
internet in a single purchase. Although there are variants available (such as
the DG834, which has no built-in wireless) the G is the most popular of those,
partly due to its features and price, although it also has the advantage of
looking simple and stylish, and is discreet enough to fit in any room.
Feature-wise, there’s not a huge amount to
go on, but it is reliably consistent if not impressive in any more overt ways.
It doesn’t noticeably struggle if there are multiple heavy connections, and
it’s unlikely to hang or spontaneously reboot like most cheap models will if
you put them under stress. Although it runs wireless G, which has a shorter
range and slower speeds than the latest wireless specifications, the quality of
its connections make up for that: performance is strong anywhere within the
ten-metre range.
There are signs that it’s not quite keeping
up with the times, of course. Not only is the wireless slow, the Ethernet ports
aren’t even gigabit. It struggles to stream data fast enough for high-
definition video without stuttering or buffering, and network transfers of
large files will leave you wondering why you don’t just burn it to DVD and walk
into the next room, while garners are unlikely to be satisfied with the fairly
high ping.
Still, it’s accessible and simple to use,
with easy- to-configure settings, good security features and a comprehensive
set of networking abilities. Whether you’re a newcomer to routers or someone
with more advanced needs, it should fit the bill. You can get better, but not
at this price.
TP-Link TD-W8961ND
Details
Price: $54.3
Antennas: two
LAN: 4 x 10/100Mbit Ethernet
Wireless: Wireless N 2.4GHZ
Modem: ADSL2+
TP-Link is the largest small/home office
networking provider in China (by market share) and a comparatively recent entry
to the international scene, having started branching out in 2005. Still, in
this time it’s managed to establish its name as a provider of budget networking
solutions. How does the TD-W8961 ND compare?
TP-Link
TD-W8961ND
On the surface, it’s a fairly standard
package: a router, switch and ADSL modem combined, with wireless functionality
- in this case, wireless N, which runs at a maximum of 300M bps compared to
wireless G’s 54Mbps. As a home router, it ticks all the boxes, and it’s cheaper
than NetGear’s more expensive, substantially slower competitor. What could be
wrong?
Well, for a start, its performance is
substantially worse than the specifications suggest. With two antennas and
wireless N support, you might expect 300Mbps connections to be a lock. In fact,
benchmarks show it maxing out just below 150Mbps - although not even
consistently, as transfer speeds fluctuated wildly even at short ranges. Worst
of all, they were sometimes so bad that the broadband connection was faster,
and the last thing you want out of a router is for it to be a bandwidth
bottleneck!
That said, the actual ADSL link is fine, as
is wired performance. Set up is easily accomplished thanks to a setup wizard
that incorporates the basic settings for a selection of ISPs, UK providers
included. Unfortunately, the interface is poorly built, slow to respond and
badly laid out, so if you want to change settings without the wizard, prepare
for a bit of a headache.
Design-wise it has some attractive
features, including a power button, which is useful for performing quick
hard-resets. It’s nice that it attempts to hold the hands of novices, but none
of that matters a great deal, because the performance is inexplicably poor.
Novices would be better served by a device that didn’t manifest problems even
when they’ve put the correct information in. Anyone who requires even slightly
more advanced features would be better off elsewhere. The price is attractive,
but ultimately it’s not hard to see where the corners have been cut.
