[Cialug] Requesting Router Recommendations

[Matthew Nuzum]

The new AC routers are pretty sweet. That was the reason for me going with
the Linksys that I mentioned in last week's post. When I'm on 5GHz I get
speeds of near 1Gbps. It's great for nightly backups and streaming my DVD
collection from a local NAS. My only complaint with it is that it's too
simple to set up. I wanted more knobs and buttons. That said, the only
thing it doesn't do that I wish is allow IPv6 tunnel broker. Everything
else is fine.

By the way, Mediacom isn't bad in my experience. I switched out their DNS
service with OpenDNS and get great results. Once in a while I accidentally
switch back to Mediacom and I see funny things happen, for example I get
their search page when I mistype a domain.

On Thu, Dec 18, 2014 at 3:23 PM, Matt <matt at itwannabe.com> wrote:
>
> I would suggest finding a list of routers that cover the speeds and (if
> you want WiFi included) the WiFi bands your devices support (2.4 vs
> 5.0GHz... 5GHz is less crowded, which might be important in an apartment
> complex, but only the newest devices seem to support it).  Once you have
> that list, drop any that have reviews that convince you that the hardware
> is defective.  After you've gotten to that point, see if anything that's
> left is supported by dd-wrt (a really nice "aftermarket" firmware that
> runs solid and gives your router all the features you could ever want from
> a router).  If nothing that's left can run dd-wrt, then you have to go back
> to the reviews to get the best set of features vs. the least horrible user
> interface.
>
> One thing to consider, though, is that having a lot of features might end
> up pushing you beyond your network knowledge comfort zone.  I have a D-Link
> DIR-825, on which I installed dd-wrt, and it has served me well for years,
> now.  Unfortunately, I doubt it is still in production.  If I was going to
> buy a new "AC" WiFi router, I would lean towards the Buffalo brand, since
> they actually support the dd-wrt firmware out of the box, and may even come
> with it pre-installed.
>
> -- Matt (N0BOX)
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jeffrey Ollie <jeff at ocjtech.us>
> To: Central Iowa Linux Users Group <cialug at cialug.org>
> Sent: Thu, 18 Dec 2014 14:13
> Subject: Re: [Cialug] Requesting Router Recommendations
>
> FWIW, The Wire Cutter has some great reviews:
>
>
> http://thewirecutter.com/reviews/the-best-cable-modem-is-the-motorola-sb6141/
>
> On Thu, Dec 18, 2014 at 2:06 PM, c <cbpurcell at gmail.com> wrote:
> > Looks like I might have to go with mediacom and I need to buy a router. I
> > have no idea where to start looking other than seeing what has good
> > customer reviews on newegg. I do some programming and I only have basic
> > networking knowledge (took a course about 10 years ago, so please be newb
> > friendly)
> >
> >
> > I have a 650 sq. foot apartment in a building with 22 other apartments.
> >
> > Devices which will connect to the router:
> >
> > - Laptop running ubuntu
> > - Desktop running ubuntu
> > - 3DS
> > - phone
> > - whatever laptops or gaming machines my friends bring over
> >
> > Any suggestions and/or info would be greatly appreciated.
> >
> >
> > Thanks,
> > Purcell
> > _______________________________________________
> > Cialug mailing list
> > Cialug at cialug.org
> > http://cialug.org/mailman/listinfo/cialug
>
>
>
> --
> Jeff Ollie
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>


-- 
Matthew Nuzum
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