Best bang for the buck router under $50

Hello folks,

I am looking for a wireless router under $50. There are tons of them and my knowledge in this department is a BIG zero.

I found Belkin that fits in my budget and have heard this brand to be good but not too sure.
Could you guys please suggest me router that gives best bang for my buck spent? Please be specific about the model (and the store if possible)

Thanks in advance.

 

You want G or N ? Belkin is not a brand I would recommend , linksys , netgear or Asus would be my choices . Best to look around and buy when they are on special . I picked up an Asus rt n-16 for $80.00 at amazon , pick a model you want and shop around , buy when you find it at a good price . asus and linksys on this page are good

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=2050410145%204026%201140021051&name=1%20x%2010%2f100%2f1000M%20WAN%3b%204%20x%2010%2f100%2f1000M%20LAN

 

For $50, you can pretty much forget, if you get one, it won't be worth anything. Even good G products are limited for that much.

Check Ebay for a Linksys Wrt54GL, you can get one for about $50.
No "s" or "2", just a GL, then install DD-WRT, Open Wrt or Tomato firmware.

This is one of best wireless routers ever made. If you find one with no L, just a G, pass on it unless you want to do lots of research on which versions are good. The cheap ones aren't. Linksys sold these in several variations.

 

Thanks folks,

I am know I am trying to be cheap but found few more options.

D-link DIR-615 N Router
Netgear WGR614
ASUS WL-520gU

Any of the above sound better?

@ jerry66,
I don't know the difference between G & N. All I care is, I should get wireless access to internet throughout my 3 rooms apartment. If g specifications serves that purpose, thats enough for me.

@leslieann,
You sound like a geek and I am no geek at all. Your comment about Tomato firmware and 'L' thing is beyond my understanding. Thanks for the comment though.

Thanks for any help in advance.

 

You can run tomato on Asus Wl520Gu as well..and it's better on Asus WL520Gu because it has USB support for printers and NAS. Asus WL520Gu is also cheaper.

 

I bought an ZyXEL P-660HN-F1Z, N router for £34.99 delivered, and it works great to replace my Netgear DG834GT that is having connection problems on my ADSL line.

 

Asus WL520GU is a very good router, even with stock firmware.

 

That Asus is quite good.
Very similar to a Wrt54gl if I recall.

As for the s and g and such.
Linksys makes about a dozen wrt54g routers.
Almost all have a number or letter after the g at the end signifying changes to the design, some do not. Certain ones are really really good routers, some are just good.

Dd-Wrt and Tomato are replacement software that runs on it. Sort of like being able to run Windows or Linux on your computer.

 

You should make your own with a rubbish old computer and modem.

 

Honestly, that is more effort than it is worth for wireless. You can't use just any wireless card as an access point. How much is your time worth to make it all work?

Plus, the electrical draw is about 100x more.

 

Totally agreed, plus we being no geek, we don't want to expose ourselves to any hacking attempts. At the same time, we have a toddler at home and working with wired laptops all the time is not a good idea. That is the sole reason why I am going wireless.

Here, the bottom line is, I should have a wireless internet access. I don't want any fancy thing.

From all of your comments, I think I will go for Asus WL-520gU, unless anyone responds within 2 days with any better hardware.
Thanks a lot folks for your quick responses.