Good for smaller homes NETGEAR RangeMax WNR1000 Wireless Router

The setup wizard does not work on Mac or Linux, so be prepared to conduct a manual setup. The setup URL is inaccurate, so be prepared to do a search to figure out how to get to the setup screen. Once you get there, setup is really straightforward, but getting there is more of a pain than it should be. I’ve had the router for a day now, and it works just great.

I bought this router a week ago and it is running great. It seems to be in the middle of g and n routers as far as speed goes. I had to manually set this up because the included software only supported 32 bit Vista and I have 64. I had to log into the router itself to change settings and setup the security, it wasn’t that difficult. My house is 60 feet long and the signal covers that with no problem, upstairs and down. My daughter thinks her friends router is a little faster but it was double the price. So far I’ve had no problems and the price was reasonable.

Every few years, it seems my wireless router stops working reliably. I’m hoping my latest purchase solves this issue. Out of the box this device was very easy to configure and setup. I even purchased an range extender and USB device that were extremely easy to configure as I just had to hit a button on both devices and they auto-configured. The range is very good and seems to penetrate walls (drywall and wood) better than other devices I have had. I also like the guest network feature so that I can give access to my people so they can use the internet, but aren’t on my internal network.

Reliable product, good range, Linksys E1200 Wireless-N300 Router

After using an earlier linksys model for many years, it started to fail occasionally. Based on the good experience with the earlier model I opted for the latest Linksys router that is right for a family house. The setup was a bit more complicated than I expected, but it was straightforward. I made the mistake of naming the wifi the same as before and provided the same password, hoping that all the laptops will connect to it. DON’T DO THIS. It was a real pain to make the windows machines forget about the previous connection so they can connect to the new one. Even the macs struggled a bit. I guess this was not the router’s fault. Choosing a new wifi name is the way to go. The guest wifi is nice, but it took a while to find the password in the setup software. Since the setup it works well.

I was tempted to buy it due to the price and name of the company. However, after the installation, I was not able to achieve the speed via Wi-Fi compared to the same via Ethernet cable. So I had to call customer service which provided me prompt and nice service in troubleshooting the issue. I had to upgrade the firmware and select the different channel to get the max speed. The other drawback I noticed is I have to reboot the router once every month don’t know why. It suddenly stops sending Wi-Fi signals. Anyway, it does the job that’s all I need.

Upgraded from Verizon-furnished DSL wireless router/modem. Inexperienced with wireless setup, this wasn’t quite as smooth to install as anticipated. Print/CD instructions could have been clearer, more detail-specific, but product eventually successfully installed. I chose this product largely due various on-line reviews as well as economic reasons. This has almost entirely eliminated the internet dropoffs heretofore experienced. I don’t do much in the way of uploads, streaming, videos, buffering et al. In any case, this product works quite well for me.

Feature-rich home router ASUS RT-N66U Dual-Band Wireless-N900 Gigabit Router

In setting this router up out of the box, I could not get the clunky stock firmware to work. I’m a software engineer and have set up dozens of routers in the past and this is the only time where I’ve set up everything properly, double and triple checked all settings, and only one of the devices on my wireless network would connect. I use WEP 64 bit for my security due to using a lot of legacy devices on my network, so I don’t know if this router has a problem with that setup or what, but I didn’t waste any time dumping the stock firmware and installing the 20979 dd-wrt firmware. Once I installed the dd-wrt firmware, everything works beautifully and this is by far the best piece of hardware I’ve owned WRT routers. Great range, very fast, and no problems at all running the dd-wrt firmware. That said, it’s my conclusion that the included firmware is junk however, and you’re going to have to take the 30-45 minutes to install dd-wrt to make this router run like it should.

I’m a Verizon FIOS customer. The default FIOS wireless router ActionTec has terrible coverage. This router is set up in AP mode and hardwired to the FIOS router. The coverage has been fantastic. The dual band mode is definitely useful since my newer Macs and Xbox 360 with N adapter can connect to 5Ghz network instead of 2.4Ghz one. For those who don’t know, your wireless network speed is limited if you have any older devices b/g running on it. For example, if your wireless b compatible device is connected to your network, then your speed for ALL wireless devices will be reduced to b. This is where dual-band helps out since all older devices can run on 2.4Ghz network, but only newer deviced (iPhone 5, apple TV 3rd Gen, iPad 3/4) can discover and connect to the 5Ghz network. The only downside of this router is that it runs warm/slightly hot compared to some other competing routers. It’s not a big deal, but it is noticeably hotter.

I purchased this router primarily for the speed and also for the detachable antennas. I plan to use this to extend my coverage and have done a tentative test with good results. I have not as yet installed it at the location for intended use so still not sure if it will do the job for me. Will update as I complete the project.

D-Link DIR-655 Great Wireless N Router!

D-Link DIR-655

I have owned this product for 1 year. I have been pleased with its wireless range. The router sits in the basement and most of the mobile devices are on the second story on the opposite side of the house. The wireless devices receive at least 3 out of 5 bars at that distance. I do have to reset the router every so often because it will lose its ability to print using the USB port. Since I have been pleased with the rouer I just purchased it for my parents.

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I have owned this product for more than one year – so far so good. Solid connections, very reliable, blue lights are bright – but they do not bother me, just cover them or turned them around. Heat is not a problem on my device – keep all sides of the device and you will not get it hot as other reviewers mentioned. Will buy again.

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The product installed as easily as it could be, requring only the most basic of reading capability or prior knowledge. I’ve got transfer speeds of 5 Megabytes (60 megabits) from my desktop to a laptop, so the only problem would occur if you’re using fibre optic speeds. Strong signal works throughout the house, 3x faster than my previous router so that’s good.

Easy Setup and Works Great! D-Link DIR-601

D-Link DIR-601

I have been using this router now for over a year, and I have to say that I am extremely satisfied and pleasantly surprised with it’s performance. I didn’t think it would work as well as it is working because it was pretty inexpensive, but I was wrong. For set up, I used the CD that was provided with the router and it was a breeze for me, since it gives you step by step instructions on what to do.

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Overall this is a good router for the price. Setup is easy if it’s the only router on your network. Mine is utilized as a wireless access point, so setup was a bit harder, but that’s no fault of the unit – just my lack of knowledge as this is my first wireless product. However, it does lack the option of putting a higher gain antenna on the unit. The antenna is NOT removable. I mounted mine in the attic, about 8 foot up to get the best signal to distance ratio. I was surprised that when I fired up the laptop, I didn’t have full strength while in certain areas of the house (small house, single story). I lose one bar in the corner rooms of the house, even worse outside in the yard at 20 feet and beyond the foundation. I had a friend link using a smart phone, just as a test, same result – poor signal strength just like the laptop. I was hoping for better range with the chosen location and I’m left with no option to add a higher gain antenna that won’t void the warranty. Guess I’ll just wait a year and then start hacking with different firmware and opening the unit up to add my own high gain antenna. Gave it 4 stars for the average user, but really it’s a 3 star for someone that wants high performance and options.

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While the D-Link DIR-601 does not have a lot of modern features (n implementation is fairly slow, no gigabit ports), it is an excellent entry level N router. I have had zero issues with dropped connections, a constant problem of my Linksys this router replaced. The stock firmware is pretty solid and if you require more, it is DD-WRT compatible. The range is decent, but you shouldn’t expect too much from it. Driver installation was a bit problematic if you follow the included setup cd. I manually installed everything which went much smoother. One issue I did have was with mixed mode G&N producing some network stability issues. If you have only Wireless-G or N devices it should be no problem.