The best out there - But....
Written: Nov 22 '06 (Updated Nov 22 '06)
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Pros: The best throughput, good prices, Extremely easy setup
Cons: Standardized 802.11N is around the corner.
The Bottom Line: This is by far the best for throughput performance, design and price. But by mid-2007 the standardized 802.11N should be even better. But for today - Belkin N1 rules !!!
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| avaneesh's Full Review: Belkin (S5882519) Wireless Router |
Belkin N1 Router
Pre-N and Draft-N:
With the new IEEE draft on 802.11N, the Pre-N has become old technology (very quickly) and the draft-N has taken its place. This has been the path for the wireless technology – 802.11a – b – g – PreN – DraftN and in the future to be 802.11N. Both the PreN & the DraftN devices are all pre-802.11N based technologies trying to cash-in on the advantages of the 802.11N, which supports higher speeds of data transfer and longer range. Though all Pre-N devices work with Draft-N, there are still some issues of inter-operability between products from different companies. That’s where the standardization comes in place. Once the 802.11N becomes a standard (most likely to happen in mid 2007), each company can make their own 802.11N products which should most likely work with each other. When the 802.11 N gets standardized, a simple firmware upgrade should get these Pre-N & draft-N to the 802.11N standard…. Unless of course, some drastic changes are to happen from now to then. With the N1, Belkin has entered the draft-N router along with D-Link DIR-635 (http://www.epinions.com/content_281845730948 ) , Linksys WRT300N and netgear WNR834B.
Comparing the Belkin Pre-N and Belkin N1 Routers:
The older Belkin Pre-N router had a dull slate-grey plastic body with 3 antennae. The body was sleeker than the new N1. It was a strong per performer with a range of upto 1500 ft. The newer Belkin N1 has a slick new design and has a silver-black body. The black top is shiny. The effective range is lesser than the pre-N at 1200 ft, but the throughput is where the difference lies. The LEDs used on the Belkin is the first in class & look cool. The prices of the Pre-N have dropped since the N1 was launched. Now the N1 costs around the $140 mark and is bound to drop. The price is less than the other Draft-N devices on the market.
Design & Physical attributes:
The belkin N1 is a total new design. The body is silver-grey unlike any of the other models from Belkin. The black is shiny giving it a modern look. The antennae are the same dulled black like all the older models. Like the Pre-N it has 3 antennae. The Status LEDs are the first in class – the LEDs actually light up an icon of the network device it represents – for instance, the status of wireless devices is represented by a lit up laptop image and the wired devices with a lit up PC image and so on. Also there is a lit up lock image representing the security enabled. That’s a nice touch. No other wireless router has this, making the others look bland and distasteful compared to the N1. The LEDs are Blue, giving it a cool look. These LEDs will be used for all future Belkin devices. The Antennae are placed at the rear – one each on the edges & one in the middle (pretty much standard). The rear has the usual ports, a 4 port 10/100 switch, WAN port, Power jack and a pinhole reset button. The N1 looks a bit more bulkier than the older Pre-N router, but the cool new design makes it look more attractive. The quick setup guide comes stuck on to the router, which can be removed. The box includes the
1. Belkin N1 router
2. Power adapter
3. User manual
4. Quick setup guide
Installation and Setup:
The wire connection is pretty much straightforward like any other wireless router, the quick start guide gives the diagrammatic representation of the connections. Once connected the next step is setting up the router and if you used Belkin routers earlier like the older 802.11g Belkin (F5D7231-4) http://www.epinions.com/content_226314915460 ) , you would know that Belkin has the best and easiest configuration tool. The configuration is very simple and the wizard configures all the aspects with minimum intervention. There is loads of info about the each option in the wizard for each option for better selecting the options. The whole setup can be completed in just under 10 to 15 mts even for a novice. The call it the idiot-proof setup… cant go wrong there (you wouldn’t want to be called an idiot). Well, even if you mess up, there is no harm, Belkin offers 24/7 customer support and the friendly representative is always there to help you.
Security:
Belkin offers WEP and WPA-PSK encryption, SPI firewall, NAT firewalls, DMZ, VPN pass-through and MAC address blocking are the standard security features just like those on the Belkin Pre-N model. The included ZoneAlarm Internet Security Suite offers parental controls. Nice !!
Performance:
Very surprisingly the Belkin N1 does not support N-only or G-only modes, instead supports only mixed mode. Technically performance in a mixed mode is lower than N-only mode since it has to cater to the g-network which supports lower speeds and lesser range. But here is a surprise… it actually outperformed the Netgear WNR834B and the Linksys WRT300N. Actually the Linksys WRT300N has a big professional looking antenna and inspite of that the the Belkin N1 just as good in max. throughput at short range (10 ft). nearly double that of the Netgear model. That’s amazing. In long range tests (200 ft), the max throughput was nearly double the Linksys and better than the Netgear by a notch. What is even more impressive is the fact that both Netgear & Linksys routers were operating in N-only mode and the Belkin was in the mixed mode. Is that impressive or what !!! The max range for the Belkin N1 was 1200 ft, while the Netgear & Linksys was over 1500 ft.
The overall throughput of the Belkin is pretty impressive, but it still falls short of the promised 300 Mbps for 802.11N networks. The Belkin topped off at 54 Mbps at short range. The fact is that no one expects the speeds to reach the 300 Mbps (considered to be the max. burst speed), and Belkin had the best figures, but still falls very short of the 300Mbps mark. Future models will definitely be faster and havr a wider range, but as of now, the Belkin N1 is the best out there.
Pricing:
The Belkin N1 is priced at $149 and the network cards for laptops and desktops are priced between $100 to $120. Though the prices might seem steep, they are actually better than Draft-N routers in the market. You can expect a complete upgrade to N network to cost you $260. This price is very high compared to the “g” network equipment, but then, even “g” equipment was just as expensive when they were initially launched.
Nice to know:
1. To take advantage of the Draft-N, the wireless router and the network card for your PC or Laptop should be Draft-N certified – AND – both components should be of the same brand. At this time inter-operability between devices between different brands is non existence because 802.11N is not yet standardized (expect the standardization in mid 2007)
2. All Pre-N and Draft-N devices should work with the standardized 802.11N devices and might just need a firmware update. But if there is a drastic change between now and the final standardization, there is a possibility they will be incompatible.
Pros:
1. Best performance
2. Fairly lower prices (will fall further with time)
3. Extremely easy setup. The most easiest setup process.
4. Industry first stand-out design feature – Icon based LEDs
Cons:
1. Standardized 802.11N is around the corner
2. Though it has the best throughput speeds – it is still very less compared to the promised value.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 120
Driver Availability: Windows and Linux
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Epinions.com ID:
avaneesh
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Location: Milwaukee, WI
Reviews written: 46
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