Best Way to choose wireless router?

[Monkey]

I have Comcast for internet so pretty decent. My linksys wrt54g is pretty old and constantly giving me problems now (DSN errors much more frequently, etc)


I will need it for:
PS3
Computer (iMac)
my iPhone5
in future may add wireless printer

The router is close to the PS3 and Computer so they can even be wired.

I'd love to pick it up from Frys.
http://www.frys.com/search?cat=-6984...099998%20Cisco

[Bodyslide]

I replaced my wrt54g back in Aug with this and have had no issues. I still haven't decided if Im going to put DDWRT on it, but it does work with it.


http://www.frys.com/product/6446962?...H:MAIN_RSLT_PG

[Monkey]

Originally Posted by Bodyslide

I replaced my wrt54g back in Aug with this and have had no issues. I still haven't decided if Im going to put DDWRT on it, but it does work with it.


http://www.frys.com/product/6446962?...H:MAIN_RSLT_PG

Thank you. I will check it out.

[tarvis]

Newegg and Amazon reviews! I went with this one.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16833166042

[Monkey]

Cool, thank you.

[tarvis]

Despite working both professionally and recreationally with computers my whole life, I hate them. Which is why I went with a relatively inexpensive router that works. And it's also tiny, which is important to me because I like to hide everything and concentrate on the television. So if you like to monitor and moderate your traffic, I can't say how good that router is.

[Monkey]

I just want it to work smoothly. My current one is crap at this point.

[SDG]

Cisco bought out Linksys. It was a good thing, Cisco quality and Linksys ease of use. I am now using the new Linksys E1200. It is easy to set up, cheap, you can manage each devices trafic priority, etc.. I am very happy with it.

[Goodintentions]

If you have a mac id recommend the airport extreme. Its what i use. Its fast and you can plug your printer right into it and anyone who has access to your wifi then has avcess to your printer as well

[MoulinBlu]

Originally Posted by Monkey

I have Comcast for internet so pretty decent. My linksys wrt54g is pretty old and constantly giving me problems now (DSN errors much more frequently, etc)


I will need it for:
PS3
Computer (iMac)
my iPhone5
in future may add wireless printer

The router is close to the PS3 and Computer so they can even be wired.

I'd love to pick it up from Frys.
http://www.frys.com/search?cat=-6984...099998%20Cisco

Do you ever reset your router? I've been advised in the past by both Linksys and our IP that a soft reset is recommended periodically, just like clearing the cache in your computer.

That said, I've always been told that a router/modem combo is more efficient, for gaming specifically. I can't say that I could tell any kind of noticable difference in speeds when we switched, but we were having a lot of latency problems in our area at the time, due to the customer base growing faster than the service. I can say that when it comes to trouble shooting connection problems, having both modem and router in one, supplied by your IP is a HUGE help: no more having to rule out the router myself before my IP will give it a serious look; now they handle everything, including replacing the modem/router combo for free, if it goes bad. My last linksys only lasted a couple years. Linksys said they could fix it over the phone, if the problem was related to use rather than component failure, but wanted nearly the cost of replacing the unit to do so. So I bought a 2wire from my IP and haven't regretted it in the least. They even installed it themselves for less than what I was looking to buy a new linksys for.

[nremdn]

Originally Posted by Goodintentions

If you have a mac id recommend the airport extreme. Its what i use. Its fast and you can plug your printer right into it and anyone who has access to your wifi then has avcess to your printer as well

You don't have to have a Mac to have an Airport Extreme. I would recommend one to PC owners as well. The only downside is that they are very pricey.

To the OP: As long as you aren't planning on having extremely long throws from your router, then just about any current router will do just fine for you. If you are looking for a quality piece, an Apple Airport Extreme is always an option, but it doesn't seem like you are in need of anything like that.

[Monkey]

Thank you everybody.

[awongus]

If online multiplayer is a priority, u may want to check these out too: Gaming Routers.

[Monkey]

Originally Posted by awongus

If online multiplayer is a priority, u may want to check these out too: Gaming Routers.

Thanks, probably overkill for me. I game online very little these days. I do stream movies and stuff and of course need to be able to download content.

[budious]

I'd recommend adding a dedicated Wireless Access Point to your existing router. Then you can disable the router's wireless transmitter which frees up computing resources for traffic management. Consumer routers are underpowered, so using all their features concurrently at maximum capacity usually causes them to lockup and need reseting.

I use a Netgear WG102, Netgear WG103 (successor), which may be overkill for your purposes, but cheaper access point options are available. Just plug in the AP to one of your router's LAN ports and configure it as you would the router's wireless, and disable the router's wireless. I use this setup with Linksys WRT54G and run terabytes of torrent traffic over the node without needing resets.

[Goodintentions]

Originally Posted by nremdn

You don't have to have a Mac to have an Airport Extreme. I would recommend one to PC owners as well. The only downside is that they are very pricey.

To the OP: As long as you aren't planning on having extremely long throws from your router, then just about any current router will do just fine for you. If you are looking for a quality piece, an Apple Airport Extreme is always an option, but it doesn't seem like you are in need of anything like that.

I know but pcs have to download the airport file and older window systems dont work/have issues with it. As does my old windows basedlapttop does so i generally dont recommend it for non mac users.

[Midnight Rambler]

Linksys E4200 if you can find one.

Surprisingly, Belkin makes some very decent routers too, though with them it's a little more hit and miss, ie. some of their models are good, others not so.


P.S. - You can buy a refurbed E4200 direct from Cisco/Linksys for about $70-80.

[The_Donster]

You might also go into a Comcast store(where you would go to pay your bill in person) and see if they'll provide you a wireless router? They did me at no extra charge and I have a Netgear Wirelss-N 150 Router, model # WNR 1000v2. Oh, and before I forget. Budious, how do you add a wireless access point for your router and do I need to do that for every device? I'm out of my grasp when it comes to this and wondering since I have my 360's, BD players, downstairs FP and computer hooked up through the router. I'm also wondering if it is time for a upgrade on my router?

[slick1ru2]

I have Comcast so let me tell you what I have got for a setup. First off, call Comcast and tell them to go into your modem and set the DMZ and have them give you that IP address. Even though Comcast routers appear to not have a firewall, even with firewall set to off, they still have one. The only way to get around it is to have them turn on the DMZ, assign it an IP address and give you that address. Once you have that address, you can tell your router to assign itself that address. You want all your ports open for your games. Now, whatever router you get, make sure you enable the firewall and assign a DMZ that you will use for your gaming consoles. That will protect your computers.

I have gone through about 5 Cisco/Linksys routers. They seem to only last about 3 years and then they have problems on the wireless side. So I finally tried a NetGear router with N protocol. I got the WNDR3700 a couple of years ago and it has never failed me. For the PS3s that I have wireless, I use a TRENDnet Wireless N Gaming Adapter TEW-647GA. N protocol transmits at higher speeds than G. I was getting high speeds, like 70mbps DL speeds from Comcast and G's upper limit is around 25, so the G wireless protocol was holding my connection speed back.

I have no issue with this setup and we have about 3 dozen devices including printers and iPhones and iPods and Dish receivers and laptops and smart TVs connected. The N protocol enables my daughter to watch a movie on NetFlix while I stream FIA GT1 races with lag issues. After getting this Netgear router, I don't plan on going back to Cisco. There are also newer, faster wireless protocols now than N, and my next router probably will be that protocol and I will have to buy adapters again for my devices.

[Omegaice]

Originally Posted by slick1ru2

I have Comcast so let me tell you what I have got for a setup. First off, call Comcast and tell them to go into your modem and set the DMZ and have them give you that IP address. Even though Comcast routers appear to not have a firewall, even with firewall set to off, they still have one. The only way to get around it is to have them turn on the DMZ, assign it an IP address and give you that address. Once you have that address, you can tell your router to assign itself that address. You want all your ports open for your games. Now, whatever router you get, make sure you enable the firewall and assign a DMZ that you will use for your gaming consoles. That will protect your computers.

I have Comcast as well but I have my own modem. Can I just go into the modem myself & put it into DMZ?