Product Reviews

There are times when losing your internet connection could be disastrous. If you're worried about the quality of your broadband connection, Billion's BiPAC 7300GX could be what you're looking for. As well as being a standard 802.11g wireless ADSL router, it has a CardBus slot, so you can install a 3G data card from T-Mobile or Vodafone as a backup.

You configure the router through its management webpage. There's no setup wizard to help you, but the status page has links to all the configuration pages you need (wireless, ADSL and 3G). You'll need your 3G provider's access point, username and password, but these

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are easy to find on Google.

The model we tested was an early sample, and we had to pick manually the broadband connection (3G or ADSL) we wanted to use. The final UK version will automatically switch from ADSL to 3G when there's a problem, and back when it's fixed.

The connection speed over 3G will depend on your service provider and the router's location, but we managed to get 443Kbit/s in an online speed test. This is plenty for sharing web browsing or email between a few PCs, but not so good for heavy file sharing.

The router's wireless performance was about average for 802.11g, although a throughput of 5.85Mbit/s at 25m shows that it provides a stable connection. The speeds that we got show that this router is ideal for internet connection sharing, but not for file sharing or streaming media.

Billion provides its usual range of in-depth features, including a packet filtering firewall and Quality of Service. Both options require a good deal of network knowledge, and beginners could struggle to understand them.

The 7300GX isn't an ideal general purpose router, but if you need a constant network connection or portable internet access, it's worth every penny.