What router should I buy?

I need a new reliable, cost effective wireless router that will hopefully last me a while and will actually allow me to print shipping labels over wireless.

I'll probably buy one of the first recommendations I get. So yeah, give me your best shot.

 

Netgear WNDR3700
Linksys E4200 v1
Linksys E3000
Asus RT-N56U

Those are the ones i can think of at the top of my head. Aside any requirements, like 450mbps or 300mbps is fine?

 

D-link dir-825? Or the new one the dir-827.
I'm kind of a D-link fan.

@tijo; is there a Linksys E4200 v2 that I should know about?
And while you are in the Netgear you might check for the WNDR4500

 

The E4200 v2 uses a marvel chip instead of the broadcom one in the v1. The marvell has better performance with a usb drive hooked to the router, but poorer networking performance which is what matters. I'm pretty sure the netgear WNDR4500 has the same marvel chip, but don't quote me on that.

The v2 also theoretically does 450mbps on 2.4GHz, but unless you live in Kuujjuaq, you'll get too much interference so it is a pretty much useless feature.

Also, not a fan of D-Link, but i won't say not to go for one as i don't have any recent experience with D-Link, bad past experience though which is why i avoid them, but the same can be said for other manufacturers by other people.

 

Actually I'm going to take a few to try and diagnose my problems... Maybe I should start a new thread?

I can't print shipping labels over wireless. The connection times out, whether I go through the USPS website, Paypal or Ebay. There is maybe ONE other website I've found that times out. Everything works fine with ethernet plugged into the router.

Any ideas?

 

Cisco Linksys E4200 V2​

 

Can I print shipping labels with it??
...Or is my modem the problem? :/

 

if it times out in wireless but ok when you're wired then it could be your router or wlan card, does it also happen on a different laptop?

I was looking to buy the E4200 v2, could you guys elaborate some more why it's slower in terms of networking performance or why it's worse than the v1 ?

 

I'm confused as to what exactly you mean...

You need to print shipping labels... I get that.

Your printer is wireless, correct? And what exact type of printer and router do you have now?

 

Linksys are very good at making Broadcom based routers. They never made a good router based on any other chipset. When they made routers based on something else they usually made a mess of it.
E4200v2 is based on Marvell main chip that they have never used and in spite of the fact that it is roughly twice as powerful as Broadcom chip in v1 throughput is lower for v2.
It's not as much the throughput itself that it is important as it's surely faster than you connection anyway- but the fact that it probably means that firmware is a bit messy.
Also wireless range on 2.4GHz band is worse than it used to be and there's virtually no chance for 3rd party firmware support.

All in all v2 is more expensive, offers less throughput and wireless range and is something new for Linksys (you're the guinea pig).
It's a lot better if it's meant to be a mini-NAS. Thanks to its NAS-grade main chip it beats any router on the market when it comes to USB transfer speeds.
Other than this particular application it's worse and the price makes it even less appealing.

 

My printer is NOT wireless. It happens on about 8 different laptops.

Its the pitney bowes shipping service used on all websites that can print USPS labels that times out every time.

I have a linksys wrt54gx, the printer shouldn't matter.

 

I recently moved and the pre-existing router here has been a bit weak for years. I'm going to tinker with it and just see it it can be moved to improve its signal.. but I bought a NetGear for my mom's house and it's been perfect connection for all every since!

 

Our Netgear N is not cutting it. Looking for something to make better use of my Bigfoot Networks Killer™ Wireless-N 1103 (3x3) which is on order. Ideas? Thanks in advance.

 

Linksys E4200 v1

 

This is a goody one from my experience:

Amazon.com: Medialink - Wireless N Router - 802.11n - 150 Mbps - 2.4 Ghz - NEW Design w/ Internal Antenna: Electronics

 

Considering that this router only does 150mbps, i wouldn't consider it a bargain anymore regardless of how well it handles connections, might as well spend $10 more for a router that supports 300mbps.

 

For additional $4 over Medialink you can get a TP-LINK TL-WR1043ND which has Gigabit Ethernet, USB port, 300mbps Wi-Fi and 3rd party firmware support.

 

Does anyone have any feedback on the Asus router? I've tried the Netgear 3800 but I ran into issues when using 2.4ghz where max transfer speed had to be set at 54mbs for it to work. Then I went to Linksys e4200v2, but now it won't broadcast 5ghz...they are sending me a refurb replacement...but I'm thinking of checking the ASUS router out.

 

Are you not happy with Netgear or just need a router that supports 3x3? The new Netgear WNDR4500 supports 3x3 MIMO and is quite a bit faster than the WNDR3700. I currently use a WNDR3700 which I bought shortly after it was released. The stability, speed and range have been absolutely superb. Only problem is that the network card in my LG P330, an Asus G73JH and yet another Asus laptop that I can't remember the name of haven't been playing along nicely with it. I'll most likely buy the WNDR4700 (WNDR4500/N900 with an internal HDD slot) when it comes out.

 

Does the 4500 work well in crowded 2.4ghz wireless environments?

 

Their firmware is a little more flaky, but the RT-N56U is still a very good router in terms of range and throughput.

As well as any other higher end router would in a crowded 2.4GHz environment, that is reduced throughput, but it shouldn't drop connections unless you are in extreme conditions. Of course, for your computers, you should consider 5GHz capable adapters and enjoy using a rather deserted band.

@Convel: For some reasons quite a few routers don't play nice with the cheaper Atheros cards which is what Asus often uses.

 

Thanks, wasn't sure if the 3800's Clear Channel Selector which is not available on the 4500 was something that would be noticeable without it

 

Just run inSSIDer, find which channel out of 1, 6 and 11 is less crowded and set that channel as the one you'll use when you configure your router for the first time. You'll also see how crowded is your wireless environment. for example, in the pic below, i'd choose channel 11.

 

Thank you...looks like 4500 is what I will do!

 

According to C\NET, the E4200 V 2 made their #1 pick, and the E4200 V 1 is #3.

Wi-Fi Routers - YouTube

But what do they know?

DragonRider

 

In the review of the number 1 router he says:

"It actually rates slightly below the Asus I just talked about but that's because this guy is so new, the bar has been raised."

What the heck does that mean? It's not as good as the Asus, but it's better because it's new. ???