Need an expert to tell me which router to get!!

Thanks to all who helped me in my quest for the right laptop! Now I'm asking for help with the right wireless router.

My priorities are speed and security; range is not so important. (I'm not interested in sharing with the neighbors!) I plan to set up a home network, so I'd like one with WAP and 4 ports. My desktop has a SiS 900 PCI Fast Ethernet adapter.

If I need an adapter, say for a Speedbooster (or whatever Linksys' version is called), can I just get the adapter for the laptop, and use the desktop wired into the router? Would that adversely affect the speed of the laptop's connection?

I really liked what I heard about the RangeMax 240, until I read that there are compatibility problems with the 3945ABG. Also, the RangeMax is not upgradable, so when the N standard is established, I'd probably want to get a new one anyway, right? The Linksys SRX series looks pretty good, but they seem to be geared toward range, rather than speed. A lot of folks seem to like the Linkysys WRT54GS. It has good security, but is it fast for shorter range? Of the ones listed in this link, what's my best bet?
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=33878

So, do I go cheap now, and then spend more when N is ready? Or do I spend a little more now to get the features I want, then let N take care of itself later?

Here are some of the laptop specs:

Intel(R) Core(TM) 2 Duo processor T5600 (1.83 GHz)
17.0" WSXGA+ BrightView Widescreen (1680x1050)
256MB NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) Go 7600
1.25GB DDR2 SDRAM
100 GB 5400 RPM SATA Hard Drive
Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 3945ABG Network w/Bluetooth
Windows XP Home

Thanks in advance!

 

Whoops, forgot to mention, it's an HP dv9000t. Long day.

 

http://www.draytek.com/product/index.php

You can always spend less. But this is one of those "set it and forget it" ones - iin fact it basically sets itself up for you. Rock solid in operations, properly ventilated, never overheats, a far cry from Netgear and all that. You do get what you pay for.

 

I highly recommend the Netgear WGT624 or any Netgear Wireless router. I paid $145 for the Linksys with Speedbooster and it was horrible they overcharge ridiculously. It also didn't work after spending 4 hours trying to set it up appropriately. So I then went into (Bestbuy) for $35 I got the Netgear WGT624 V3 and it took 10 minutes to setup. Needless to say it's worked perfectly ever since on my little brothers desktop and my (2) dv6000 notebooks.

You can't beat it espescially for the price, the range is too far in my opinion so I had to enable WPA/WEP so the two schools near me didn't use it

 

WPA then, Airman. If the school has any computer enthusiasts, they'll be passing around the WEP cracking software.

 

Thanks for the input so far. I'll take a look, and probably be back with more questions! )

 

Good point

 

Hey, thanks for the additional advice. So, you think the Netgear would work OK with my wireless card? I've seen that others have had trouble using Netgear with the 3945ABG, but it looks like Airman has done OK. Maybe it's just the RangeMax 240 that has the problem.

The access point that you just bought, zx10guy, sounds great. It's not a router, is it?
I like the looks of the Draytek, also, but I was really hoping to be able to buy locally, so I could be up and running soon. I'll check back later with some of the options I'm looking at.
Oh, BTW, why is Linksys so iffy, when it's made by Cisco?