[Hampshire] Choice of home wireless network set-up
I have looked at the thread last year about which router people recommended, but would be grateful if people felt able to comment on these - or add any others that I ought to have included. I would be grateful for both favourable and unfavourable feedback. I am particularly interested in reliability and reach. Netgear DG834G¹ I have this myself and am very pleased with it. But our house is on only two floors and has thin walls. How does it perform where penetration is more difficult, with three floors and thick walls? I have read the reviews and they are mixed, with some adverse comments on reliability. Netgear-DG834PN-RangeMax-MIMO-G-Wireless² This sounds ideal. But I would like a bit of feedback if anyone has had experience of it. It may not match what is claimed for it. Zyxel P660HW³ Recommended last year by Tim and John Cooper. Any further comments? Has the ZyXEL Prestige 660HW-T1 enough of an advantage over the P660HW to justify the higher price? And has anyone any experience of either the Solwise HomePlug AV /11n Router, or the Solwise HomePlug ADSL Modem Router + Solwise HomePlug Ethernet/Wireless combination?(4) Or of similar set-ups? TIA. Lisi 1) http://www.amazon.co.uk/Netgear-DG834G-54Mbps-Wireless-Firewall/dp/BTZ8Z8/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top 2) http://www.amazon.co.uk/Netgear-DG834PN-RangeMax-MIMO-G-Wireless/dp/B000BRYOQ8/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1239636390&sr=8-8 3) http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_ss_ce?url=search-alias%3Delectronics&field-keywords=Zyxel+P660HW%0D%0A&x=13&y=17 4) http://www.solwise.co.uk/net-powerline.htm -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Choice of home wireless network set-up
2009/4/13 Lisi : > I have looked at the thread last year about which router people recommended, > but would be grateful if people felt able to comment on these - or add any > others that I ought to have included. I would be grateful for both > favourable and unfavourable feedback. I am particularly interested in > reliability and reach. > > Netgear DG834G¹ > I have this myself and am very pleased with it. But our house is on only two > floors and has thin walls. How does it perform where penetration is more > difficult, with three floors and thick walls? I have read the reviews and > they are mixed, with some adverse comments on reliability. I have one of these. It is the sky tv provided one. It seems to work well, without too many problems. > > Netgear-DG834PN-RangeMax-MIMO-G-Wireless² > This sounds ideal. But I would like a bit of feedback if anyone has had > experience of it. It may not match what is claimed for it. I have one of these. Very similar to teh DG834G for a web ui perspective. It seems quite good. But, if I was purchasing one now, I would go for one that supports the N standard as that should be even better. As a general rule, no wireless tech gets through thick walls at all. I find that just installing more wireless access points around the house is better. I just put them in the attic and trail cat5e between them. NetworkManager seems to be able to automatically switch between the APs depending on where I sit in the house. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Choice of home wireless network set-up
At 23:04 13/04/2009, you wrote: >I have looked at the thread last year about which router people recommended, >but would be grateful if people felt able to comment on these - or add any >others that I ought to have included. I would be grateful for both >favourable and unfavourable feedback. I am particularly interested in >reliability and reach. > >Netgear DG834G¹ >I have this myself and am very pleased with it. But our house is on only two >floors and has thin walls. How does it perform where penetration is more >difficult, with three floors and thick walls? I have read the reviews and >they are mixed, with some adverse comments on reliability. > >Netgear-DG834PN-RangeMax-MIMO-G-Wireless² >This sounds ideal. But I would like a bit of feedback if anyone has had >experience of it. It may not match what is claimed for it. > >Zyxel P660HW³ >Recommended last year by Tim and John Cooper. Any further comments? Has the >ZyXEL Prestige 660HW-T1 enough of an advantage over the P660HW to justify the >higher price? > >And has anyone any experience of either the Solwise HomePlug AV /11n Router, >or the Solwise HomePlug ADSL Modem Router + Solwise HomePlug >Ethernet/Wireless combination?(4) Or of similar set-ups? While i Haven bought a "homeplug" ethernet combination it would be what i would buy based on what i have heard about them. The speed would be consistent and be faster than wireless at a distance from the router as the data goes over the mains cable. ie the drop off is faster for wireless over distance. Theres no problem with people hacking your wireless network either since its a physical connection. Martin N Co-Moderator of MiniDisc and amithlonopen yahoo groups. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Choice of home wireless network set-up
On Monday 13 April 2009 23:04:10 Lisi wrote: > I have looked at the thread last year about which router people > recommended, but would be grateful if people felt able to comment on these > - or add any others that I ought to have included. I would be grateful for > both favourable and unfavourable feedback. I am particularly interested in > reliability and reach. > > Netgear DG834G¹ > I have this myself and am very pleased with it. But our house is on only > two floors and has thin walls. How does it perform where penetration is > more difficult, with three floors and thick walls? I have read the reviews > and they are mixed, with some adverse comments on reliability. > > Netgear-DG834PN-RangeMax-MIMO-G-Wireless² > This sounds ideal. But I would like a bit of feedback if anyone has had > experience of it. It may not match what is claimed for it. > > Zyxel P660HW³ > Recommended last year by Tim and John Cooper. Any further comments? Has > the ZyXEL Prestige 660HW-T1 enough of an advantage over the P660HW to > justify the higher price? > > And has anyone any experience of either the Solwise HomePlug AV /11n > Router, or the Solwise HomePlug ADSL Modem Router + Solwise HomePlug > Ethernet/Wireless combination?(4) Or of similar set-ups? > > TIA. > Lisi > > > > 1) > http://www.amazon.co.uk/Netgear-DG834G-54Mbps-Wireless-Firewall/dp/BTZ8 >Z8/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top > > 2) > http://www.amazon.co.uk/Netgear-DG834PN-RangeMax-MIMO-G-Wireless/dp/B000BRY >OQ8/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1239636390&sr=8-8 > > 3) > http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_ss_ce?url=search-alias%3Delectronics&field >-keywords=Zyxel+P660HW%0D%0A&x=13&y=17 > > 4) http://www.solwise.co.uk/net-powerline.htm I have used these homeplug[1] type ethernet adaptors in the past where a wireless unit would not work due to old house, thick walls and distance. As for Zyxel, here the one I recommend [2], they normally come with a wireless usb dongle although you can get a router and home plug kit [1] http://www.wifi-antennas.co.uk/index.php?target=products&product_id=34 [2] http://www.zyxel.co.uk/web/product_family_detail.php?PC1indexflag=20040812093058&CategoryGroupNo=AC5783AE-9475-41AD-BDA5-0997187F44AA Hope it helps Tim FREE 3D EARTH SCREENSAVER - Watch the Earth right on your desktop! Check it out at http://www.inbox.com/earth -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Choice of home wireless network set-up
> I have used these homeplug[1] type ethernet adaptors in the past where a > wireless unit would not work due to old house, thick walls and distance. > > As for Zyxel, here the one I recommend [2], they normally come with a > wireless > usb dongle although you can get a router and home plug kit > > [1] http://www.wifi-antennas.co.uk/index.php?target=products&product_id=34 > > [2] > http://www.zyxel.co.uk/web/product_family_detail.php?PC1indexflag=20040812093058&CategoryGroupNo=AC5783AE-9475-41AD-BDA5-0997187F44AA > I know several people here recommend zyxel but I've had nothing but problems with mine, and a friend who has the same router (P660H) has also had similar problems. The main issue I have with it is randomly rebooting, which gets worse over time (depending on how many of the features of the router, such as upnp, syslogging etc. are turned on, as a result I don't use any of the "power" features any more, which was half the reason for buying it!) until eventually I have to do a factory reset and then reconfigure. My friends version also consistently connected at a lower speed than the netgear he has now bought to replace it. I wouldn't buy one again, but maybe I've just seen 2 bad cases :). As for homeplug. Do remember that it is not a switched technology, it essentially is the same technology as wireless but turns all the wires in your house into the "air". But as with wireless this is a hub rather than a switch style solution, each transfer will eat into the total available bandwidth. I have also seen various issues similar to wireless where depending on your cabling etc. you will probably not get the quoted speeds. There is quite an overhead, similar to wireless, and you rarely get the full throughput. A guy I worked with looked at supposedly 100meg homeplug adapters but in reality they could not provide enough bandwidth to stream high def video over (which was the whole reason for buying them) despite in theory there being enough headroom to do so. I would say homeplug is a good replacement for wireless, but not a good replacement for ethernet cables and a switch. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Choice of home wireless network set-up
On Wed, 15 Apr 2009 at 09:13:29AM +0100, Stephen Rowles wrote: > I have also seen various issues similar to wireless where depending on > your cabling etc. you will probably not get the quoted speeds. There is > quite an overhead, similar to wireless, and you rarely get the full > throughput. A guy I worked with looked at supposedly 100meg homeplug > adapters but in reality they could not provide enough bandwidth to stream > high def video over (which was the whole reason for buying them) despite > in theory there being enough headroom to do so. > > I would say homeplug is a good replacement for wireless, but not a good > replacement for ethernet cables and a switch. I'd have to agree. HomePlug 200AV is decent technology and fine for simple point to point use, e.g. browsing and email. It is more reliable than WiFi but it is not a replacment for decent Gig Ethernet over proper CAT6 cable. -- Adam Trickett Overton, HANTS, UK A feature is a bug with seniority. -- anon -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Choice of home wireless network set-up
Dr A. J. Trickett wrote: > On Wed, 15 Apr 2009 at 09:13:29AM +0100, Stephen Rowles wrote: > > >> I have also seen various issues similar to wireless where depending on >> your cabling etc. you will probably not get the quoted speeds. There is >> quite an overhead, similar to wireless, and you rarely get the full >> throughput. A guy I worked with looked at supposedly 100meg homeplug >> adapters but in reality they could not provide enough bandwidth to stream >> high def video over (which was the whole reason for buying them) despite >> in theory there being enough headroom to do so. >> >> I would say homeplug is a good replacement for wireless, but not a good >> replacement for ethernet cables and a switch. > > I'd have to agree. HomePlug 200AV is decent technology and fine > for simple point to point use, e.g. browsing and email. It is more > reliable than WiFi but it is not a replacment for decent Gig > Ethernet over proper CAT6 cable. > I've just switched the other way because WiFi was proving to be more reliable than homeplug. I have appliances that reduce the bandwidth of the homeplug to 500kbps, and one gives packet loss of 70% (treadmill). Since I use VoIP I had to switch to WiFi to maintain call quality, which has since proved very reliable (using two Linksys Wireless-G access points). Simon C. -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
Re: [Hampshire] Choice of home wireless network set-up
On Wednesday 15 April 2009 09:13:29 Stephen Rowles wrote: > > I have used these homeplug[1] type ethernet adaptors in the past where a > > wireless unit would not work due to old house, thick walls and distance. > > > > As for Zyxel, here the one I recommend [2], they normally come with a > > wireless > > usb dongle although you can get a router and home plug kit > > > > [1] > > http://www.wifi-antennas.co.uk/index.php?target=products&product_id=34 > > > > [2] > > http://www.zyxel.co.uk/web/product_family_detail.php?PC1indexflag=2004081 > >2093058&CategoryGroupNo=AC5783AE-9475-41AD-BDA5-0997187F44AA > > I know several people here recommend zyxel but I've had nothing but > problems with mine, and a friend who has the same router (P660H) has also > had similar problems. The main issue I have with it is randomly rebooting, > which gets worse over time (depending on how many of the features of the > router, such as upnp, syslogging etc. are turned on, as a result I don't > use any of the "power" features any more, which was half the reason for > buying it!) until eventually I have to do a factory reset and then > reconfigure. My friends version also consistently connected at a lower > speed than the netgear he has now bought to replace it. I wouldn't buy one > again, but maybe I've just seen 2 bad cases :). > > As for homeplug. Do remember that it is not a switched technology, it > essentially is the same technology as wireless but turns all the wires in > your house into the "air". But as with wireless this is a hub rather than > a switch style solution, each transfer will eat into the total available > bandwidth. > > I have also seen various issues similar to wireless where depending on > your cabling etc. you will probably not get the quoted speeds. There is > quite an overhead, similar to wireless, and you rarely get the full > throughput. A guy I worked with looked at supposedly 100meg homeplug > adapters but in reality they could not provide enough bandwidth to stream > high def video over (which was the whole reason for buying them) despite > in theory there being enough headroom to do so. > > I would say homeplug is a good replacement for wireless, but not a good > replacement for ethernet cables and a switch. Home plug system is quite susceptible to bad (house) wiring and noisy appliances on the same circuit. But when used in a good environment they work well, it just unfortunately that you won't know the environment you have until you have purchased them. As for the Zyxel, I have 7 P660HW in use currently and I don't have a problem with them. I can't comment if the bandwidth is more or less with another router as all these ADSL were setup with the Zyxel. I have only had one fail and that was the older dark grey version (as opposed to the newer white one). Tim FREE 3D MARINE AQUARIUM SCREENSAVER - Watch dolphins, sharks & orcas on your desktop! Check it out at http://www.inbox.com/marineaquarium -- Please post to: Hampshire@mailman.lug.org.uk Web Interface: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/hampshire LUG URL: http://www.hantslug.org.uk --
