New WiFi Router

[alldodge]

One of my routers went belly up, it was a Linksys E2500. Need to get another and wonder if anyone has recommendations. Don't do gaming, and top bandwidth is 5MB in this part of the country. The last one worked well until I think the last power on/off.

 

[dingbat]

Depends on your network components and capabilities.

im supporting 2 smart tv, 2 Roku sticks, 4 cel l phones, a Sonos system, 3 laptops and a desk top with 100/100 service. My old router just couldnt keep up.

Went with a Netgear Nighthawk AC1900. Problem solved

 

[alldodge]

1 Roku hard wired to first router
3 wifi computers but not normally used all at one time (shop, home account and laptop) Laptop is used most often by me doing important Iboat stuff
1 smart phone
Next to no streaming and no games what so ever

and only 5MB

 

[alldodge]

Toms guide list the netgear R6220

 

[dingbat]

1 Roku hard wired to first router
3 wifi computers but not normally used all at one time (shop, home account and laptop) Laptop is used most often by me doing important Iboat stuff
1 smart phone
Next to no streaming and no games what so ever and only 5MB

Two collage kids and all their devices....lots and lots of video streaming and data transfers...

The Nighthawk has all sorts of tools and useful features. Guest accounts. Data storage, etc. With only 5mb the ability to prioritize data usage by device might be helpful

 

[alldodge]

Two collage kids and all their devices....lots and lots of video streaming and data transfers...

The Nighthawk has all sorts of tools and useful features. Guest accounts. Data storage, etc. With only 5mb the ability to prioritize data usage by device might be helpful

Sounds like you need top end stuff, its just me and the wife, so no issues
I don't need fast just look for something that will work. Would like it built like a tank but can find none with that kind of parameters

Guess I'll go with the netgear since nothing else is coming up

 

[southkogs]

I'm a little late to the game, but if it's of any benefit: I've been using an Apple Airport for a wireless router. I've been real pleased with it.

I had a Netgear router before, and when it started to give out I bought the Apple unit used to save a couple of bucks (and I was really trying it out). It's been running for us for several years now. I keep a pretty solid pipeline through the cable company, but I've got 3 adults and 3 kids in their teens/early 20s linking up every device conceivable linking up to it and it does great.

 

[dingbat]

Sounds like you need top end stuff, its just me and the wife, so no issues
I don't need fast just look for something that will work. Would like it built like a tank but can find none with that kind of parameters

Guess I'll go with the netgear since nothing else is coming up

The issue you run into with the “tank” models is the tech changes so quickly they’re obsolete in no time.

The other thing to look at is range. I now get WiFi out in the shop where I had to use an extender before. Moved the extender to the shop and now have full coverage at the pool area

 

[alldodge]

Haven't bought anything yet, probably get something ordered today. Thanks for the Apple airport tip.

Largest problem around here is the dang power company. They say the split periodic on/off is caused by something like a squirrel, or other suck thing. They came through the entire area cutting trees an clearing things and we still get the same thing.

I think they switch from one supplier to another and this is the switch over. Its hard on electronics. One time it went on/off 3 times real quick. Have 3 UPS and really need one on the house

 

[dolluper]

Did you check your ac -DC adapter for being dead . "Coil" bad

 

[sam am I]

I run one cable modem/wire/less router and two wire/less range extenders/access points here at home each having their own UPS............If I may suggest Dodge, run your modem/routers to have their own UPS's that'll condition and spike protect each. As a bonus, as little power as they use, even the $40 450VA units will give a 0.5A router something like 6-8 hrs of off line power.

 

[alldodge]

Good thought thanks

 

[fishrdan]

If you're losing electronics (dead PC, now router...) and have bad power, look at getting a line conditioner to protect your equipment. A line conditioner will condition the power 24x7, unlike a UPS that only kicks in when the power is out, or outside it's threshold (bad power in = bad power out under normal conditions). APC Line-R or Tripplite, can be had for as little as $50

outlet-----line conditioner-----UPS-----electronics

I've been running them for 10+ years , along with UPS's, and haven't lost anything due to power spikes, brownouts, outages. We have a substation a block away that blows a transformer at least once a year and power bumps a couple times a month. so not the cleanest power...

I don't have suggestions on a wireless router, I have to use the ISP's bonded DSL modem, which has decent WIFI built in.

 

[sam am I]

unlike a UPS that only kicks in when the power is out, or outside it's threshold

Not sure at what level or speed of surge is beyond the design of these, I'm sure there is a limit, they don't spec it per-se but, these do claim to protect against surges etc........


Keep your Wi-Fi up and running, even if the power goes out. Stay available and connected by powering critical devices (home network, mobile devices, computers, security systems) during a blackout.
When the power goes out, get instant battery power to your critical electronics and stay connected with the APC BN450M Back-UPS. It features surge and lightning protection for connected devices to ensure your investments are safe from potentially irreversible damage. The BN450M offers six surge-protected outlets with four outlets having UPS battery backup. Lastly, it features a power output capacity of 450VA at 255W.


Just wasn't sure if you had saw their spec on this or not......I don't have this exact one but, do use all APC and they all (the 3 or 4 different types I own) claim to (actively?passively?) protect against surges/strikes by of course conditioning the input voltage as well as providing backups for drop/brown outs.....I'm sure there are bigger and better though.

 

[fishrdan]

Not sure at what level or speed of surge is beyond the design of these, I'm sure there is a limit, they don't spec it per-se but, these do claim to protect against surges etc........

UPS's do have surge suppression built into them, it goes along with the quality of the UPS as surge suppression isn't their primary purpose. Consumer grade UPS, I wouldn't bank on much, much less surge suppression than a good quality "surge suppressor" power strip.

A line condition is a different animal (missed this in my first post) as they filter out noise from the incoming power and boost/cut/regulate voltage, where as a UPS would just send that dirty fluctuating power through itself - if it's seeing the incoming voltage within it's threshold. A line conditioner isn't going to resolve really bad (noisy) power, but they do a great job of cleaning up marginally bad power. They also have surge suppression, like a UPS.

APC Back-UPS 650 (consumer grade) = 340 joules surge suppression
APC Smart-UPS 750 (server grade) = 540 joules surge suppression
APC LC1200 line conditioner = 680 joules surge suppression
APC Surge Arrest 11 power strip - 3040 joules surge suppression

I have repaired too much computer equipment due to bad power, so I protect my stuff the best I can (afford).

 

[alldodge]

Currently have 3 UPS's and had one on the computer that the hard drive crashed. Its an old XP machine which I kept asking the Admiral if I could wipe and reinstall Win 7, but she kept saying not now. So now its to late. The Router was not connected to the UPS but was connected to a surge suppressor.

 

[sam am I]

where as a UPS would just send that dirty fluctuating power through itself - if it's seeing the incoming voltage within it's threshold

So do realize that most switching power supplies (non- linear) which probably now make up for 99.9% households electronics power supplies these days, which have included wall mounts power supplies for our routers/modems and the like, internal desk top power supplies, TV's power supplies and even little plug in USB power chargers etc. etc., are all spec'd to regulate their outputs to probably at less then 1% deviation with line inputs voltage variances as great as 90VAC up to 240VC..........

I personally, in the household especially (and even significant in commercial as well), wouldn't spend a lot of $$ conditioning due to/for the passing through of line fluctuation/s within UPS thresholds limits concerns these days as much, huge window to work in and still stay in spec. Spikes/Strikes/Transients protection clamp schema with high'ish energy dissipation rates (as you've listed) and power backup offline times when outages (e.g. below 90VAC thresholds) occur is of highest order.......IMO.

 

[fishrdan]

I personally, in the household especially (and even significant in commercial as well), wouldn't spend a lot of $$ conditioning due to/for the passing through of line fluctuation/s within UPS thresholds limits concerns these days as much, huge window to work in and still stay in spec.

I've run power analyzers on the input and output of UPS's, for sites with suspect bad power, to see if the UPS was cleaning up power disturbances: spikes, transients, harmonics, sags, etc.. Server grade UPS's cleaned it up OK, not perfect, but consumer grade UPS's let a significant amount (if not all) of the incoming noise straight through the UPS. Connect a line conditioner to the same power source and the power analyzer saw a significant reduction in noise, if not entirely cleaned up the power problem, and resolved the gremlins, lockups and components going bad. (I've also seen power so bad a line conditioner wouldn't resolve the issue, with the power company basically saying "Are the lights on - well, you have power!", not concerned about the quality of power they deliver...)

I know I don't absolutely need a line conditioner to run my electronics and that most people don't, but for the $150 I spent on them, it's money well spent to protect $8-10,000 of electronics. It's not like you can see bad power, usually, so you can either protect against it or deal with the consequences.

I do agree most people will be perfectly fine with just a UPS, but AllDodge mentioned bad power, so.....