Recommend a wireless router

Forums › LAN (ethernet/Wifi/routers/Bluetooth) › Recommend a wireless router

Bananabob

322 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

#185872 8-Dec-2015 16:16

I have just had my speed increased to 50Mbps on Vodafone's HFC and have discovered that I will need to get faster wi-fi.

What would be the best option for me?

I currently have a Linksys WRT54GL.

I need a router with some Ethernet ports.
What is the benefit of having the ability to plug in a hard drive or printer via USB?

yitz

1483 posts

Uber Geek

#1442910 8-Dec-2015 16:21

Going from 15 Mbps to 50 Mbps usually also means an upgrade from DOCSIS 2.0 to DOCSIS 3.0 modem. Have they installed the new modem already?

The newer Technicolor modem routers should have Wi-Fi built-in.

Krishant007

1403 posts

Uber Geek

#1442911 8-Dec-2015 16:24

Hm. having a faster modem router is always beneficial. The printer ports are helpful if your printer does not have wifi (lots of models these days do). Plugging in storage to wireless modems is a good concept, but beware that if you want to use it as a media server, your modem will need more processing power to handle all the file transfers as well as the network traffic.

In terms of models and what to look for, I would say definitely get something that is wireless AC compatible and dual band at least (2.4ghz + 5ghz). I would recommend DLink, Netgear (the R7000 is amazing), Linksys by Cisco and Asus. Asus makes pretty good models actually. Depends on your budget and your requirements.

I spend $250 on a DLink modem/router last year (decided to go for the 2 in 1 option rather than a separate modem and a separate router). Most would recommend going for separate, but that depends if your internal network traffic is a lot (eg lots of HD streaming, or game streaming etc). For most consumers, 2 in 1 should be fine.

I would recommend looking at AC1750 or AC1900 (those would be higher end ones). But I think you can pick up a few decent bargains for AC1750 type

Bananabob

322 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

#1442913 8-Dec-2015 16:26

yitz: Going from 15 Mbps to 50 Mbps usually also means an upgrade from DOCSIS 2.0 to DOCSIS 3.0 modem. Have they installed the new modem already?

The newer Technicolor modem routers should have Wi-Fi built-in.

They replaced the modem with a Cisco DPC3008 it is a DOCSIS 3.0 - no sign of Wi-fi

I get 50Mbps when connected via Ethernet but only 20Mbps on Wi-fi

littleheaven

2084 posts

Uber Geek

Subscriber

#1442967 8-Dec-2015 17:26

I have an Asus RT-AC68U and found it made a substantial difference to my wi-fi speeds over my Spark-supplied Technicolour modem. It's just a router, so is bridged to the modem. It has dual-band wi-fi and you can set up a dedicated 5Ghz-only wireless network using the guest network feature. Before, I was getting 35Mbps download via ethernet, but anywhere from 12-24Mbps via wi-fi on my VDSL connection using the Technicolour. I've recently been upgraded to the 998 bandplan and am getting 42/43Mbps via ethernet and 39-40Mbps via wi-fi using the Asus router.

Geek girl. Freelance copywriter and editor at Unmistakable.co.nz.

Currently using: Custom-built AMD Ryzen 7 3700X Desktop, HP M6-1017TX Laptop, iPad Pro, iPhone 7, iPhone XR, AppleTV4.

Sideface

6111 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#1443004 8-Dec-2015 18:09

Your old router only does wireless g.
I presume that you want (at least) wireless n.
Do you need wireless ac? If so, the Asus RT-AC68U, as recommended by littleheaven, is excellent.

It would be helpful to know what your house is like - how large? one-storey? wooden construction?

Sideface

Bananabob

322 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

#1443006 8-Dec-2015 18:11

Sideface: Your old router only does wireless g.
I presume that you want (at least) wireless n.
Do you need wireless ac? If so, the Asus RT-AC68U, as recommended by littleheaven, is excellent.

It would be helpful to know what your house is like - how large? one-storey? wooden construction?

It has only 2 bedrooms made of brick and the current wi-fi works well in all rooms.

I was thinking ac

sbiddle

29208 posts

Uber Geek

Moderator

Trusted

Biddle Corp

Lifetime subscriber

#1443029 8-Dec-2015 18:57

NF8AC is a great device.

Bananabob

322 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

#1505581 3-Mar-2016 16:13

OK it has taken a while but I have replaced my modem with a Linksys WRT1900AC, and am happy with it.

Thanks for all your help.