Lab

Wireless routers

A home network is a brilliant way of sharing resources such as files, a broadband internet connection or storage devices between multiple computers. A wireless router provides everything you need to set this up. The main attraction of a wireless network is that it enables you to use a notebook to browse the internet from your sofa, your kitchen or even the garden. If you don't want to run cables all over your home, buying a suitable wireless adaptor means you can connect without wires wherever you are.

Wireless routers also have wired network ports, so you can use cables to connect network-attached storage (NAS) devices, for example. With tools built into Windows, you can share files and even your printer over a network.

This month we've tested nine wireless routers. Three are 54Mbit/s 802.11g ADSL routers and are good for simple internet sharing, while the six fast Draft-N routers (four standard, two ADSL) offer improved transfer speeds for fast file sharing. We've tested each for performance and features, so you can find the right router for you.

The type of internet connection you have will dictate your choice of wireless router. If you have an ADSL connection that links to your computer through a USB modem, you'll need an ADSL router. These come with the necessary modem built in, and your phone line plugs directly into the device. We have five suitable models, each with ADSL2+ modems, for use with the fastest broadband connections.

If you have cable internet from a company such as Virgin Media that connects to your PC by Ethernet, you'll need a regular non-ADSL router. These are generally cheaper than ADSL routers, as they don't have a built-in modem. We've got six suitable models.

Speed trap

Once you know which type of wireless router you need, the choices become slightly more complicated. Your router is the heart of your network and links your wired and wireless devices together, so it's essential that you get the features you need.

The first decision to make is the type of wireless standard you want to use. The fastest official standard is currently 802.11g, which runs at a maximum of 54Mbit/s and has a high level of compatibility with existing wireless devices, including backwards compatibility with 11Mbit/s 802.11b devices. Typically, this standard offers throughputs that are good enough for web browsing and light file sharing. Transferring large files is slow and tedious, and not recommended.

Some manufacturers also offer technologies that increase these throughputs, but you'll need a matching network adaptor from the same company to take advantage of them. Channel-bonding (as used by Netgear's RangeMax Wireless Modem Router) uses two wireless channels to double potential throughputs to 108Mbit/s, but interference can become a problem. Frame bursting (as used by Buffalo's WBMR-G125) reduces the time delay between sending packets of information, potentially increasing throughputs to 125Mbit/s. This technology is preferable to channel bonding as it uses a single wireless channel, so interference is less of a problem. Our table tells you which technology a manufacturer has used, as well as the router's maximum throughput.

For increased range and stability, some routers also use Multiple In Multiple Out (MIMO) technology. This uses several antennas at the same time to improve signal reception and transmission. The result is faster throughputs and a wider range. Again, to take full advantage of the technology, you'll need a matching network adaptor. Our table on page 96 tells you which routers use MIMO.

The ratification of a faster standard, 802.11n, has been going on for a few years now, but you can buy routers based on an early draft of this standard, called Draft-N routers. Our table tells you which routers use this.

Draft-N routers use a combination of new and old techniques, including MIMO and channel-bonding, to increase throughputs to a maximum of 300Mbit/s when used with a matching network adaptor. They're also compatible with 802.11g and 802.11b devices.

Draft-N routers are particularly attractive if you want to share files or stream media around your house. The graphs on page 94 show how each of the routers performed in our tests, so you can get one that's fast enough for your needs. The downside is that as these routers use a draft standard there's no guarantee that you'll be able to upgrade them to the full standard when it's ratified later this year.

If you want to use wired devices, you should consider the type of network ports on offer. Most of the routers here have four 10/100 Ethernet ports. These provide faster transfer rates than any wireless connection and are great for sharing files. However, if you're planning to use network storage and will be transferring a lot of large files, look for a router with Gigabit Ethernet ports. These are ten times quicker than 10/100 ports operating at 1,000Mbit/s. Both Netgear's RangeMax Next Wireless-N Router Gigabit Edition and Linksys's Wireless-N Gigabit Router with Storage Link provide this fast wired networking standard.

Secure it

Security is absolutely essential on all wireless routers, and wireless networks should be encrypted. The oldest standard you can use is Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP). This is often difficult to configure, as it requires the use of long hexadecimal phrases. It's also insecure and has been cracked. WiFi Protected Access (WPA) is a newer and preferred standard that's more secure and is easier to use as you can assign a regular password for access. All the routers here, except TrendNet's TEW-435BRM, also support the even newer WPA2.

Every router has a built-in firewall, which blocks incoming traffic to your network to stop hacker attacks. The downside is that certain applications, including games and video calls, require incoming connections. This is where Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) support, which is available on every router here, can help. When you connect a UPnP-compatible device - such as an Xbox 360 games console, Slingbox TV streamer and MSN Messenger - to your network, it can automatically configure the firewall to allow the communication it needs.

If you want to run a specific service or server that doesn't use UPnP, such as your own web server, you need to configure port forwarding (also referred to as virtual servers). This passes traffic on a given port (such as port 80 for web traffic) to a designated PC on your network. See www.portforward.com for more information and detailed instructions on how to configure your router.

If you use port forwarding, you should also use your router's dynamic DNS option. This automatically updates your URL, for example myhouse.dyndns.org, so that it refers to your current home IP address. If your ISP then changes your IP address, as many of them do if you switch off your router or disconnect from the internet, the URL updates so that it points to the new address. Each router here except Buffalo's Wireless-N Nfiniti Broadband Router has this feature.

Quality of life

If you use a lot of time-sensitive applications, such as VoIP and video streaming, Quality of Service (QoS) is important. This lets you configure your router so that these applications have priority over others, such as web browsing. This way you can make sure that a large file download doesn't ruin an important phone call. Our reviews tell you if a router has QoS, and how easy it is to configure.