Buffalo v Asus v Netgear Router (or something completely different?)

[aroundincircles]

I need a new router, or at least I think I do.

I've been dropping net connections lately, and although Comcast has been out and repaired my in-home line, it continues. If I reboot my crappy Belkin, the issue is fixed, so I can only surmise that the problem lies with this cheap, old Black Friday special. (No shame, it has lasted years.)

I've over studied the options. While I am a semi-technical person, I don't know if I would be able to flash an Asus with Tomato, so I'm not sure this would work for me. On the other hand, I can follow instructions and am no stranger to trouble-shooting.

The uses are: a home office network with wireless needs, VOIP, and Skype. Games are played at times, and streaming video is necessary, too. I'd love a print server, but can get by without one for the sake of a better router.

I know Buffalo has been around for a long time. The WZR-HP-G300NH seems to do everything, so this is a model I'm considering. How is their support?

I've seen here that Asus has been recommended, and Netgear was recommended to me by someone else. Newegg shows the Linksys WRT54GL highest rated, though.

So, what say you?

Thanks in advance for any/all replies.

 

[beginner99]

If it is for home office I would actually consider cabling your office/house because that is much more reliable than wireless and also offers alot more bandwith (gigabit). But maybe that is not possible.

I have a netgear wndr3700 and it is stable. Running 24/7 for months without needing to restart. However my flatmate has problems with her laptop losing connecting after hibernation (need to restart), I have no issue with my netbook. So it might also depend on your wireless card, room setup, environment (eg other routers in the same band) or luck. Generally speaking any of the mentioned products might work but no one can give you any guarantee hence cabling.

 

[aroundincircles]

Beginner,

You bring up a good point. I didn't think to mention that the PCs that are dropping are wired into the current router, which is why I believe the box is the culprit.

I do have wireless needs, and I was trying to get away with not having to buy two routers.

Thanks!

 

[Kanalua]

I've got a Buffalo WHR-G125 flashed with dd-wrt. Rock solid, never drops wireless connection. Any of those choices that you feel comfortable flashing to a better fireware is probably the best choice. Both the linksys and buffalo router you mention are flashable...and so are some Asus routers.

 

[Jeff7181]

I have the Asus WL-520GU and it's a disaster of a product. I absolutely hate it. At my old house with a Linksys WRT54G everything worked perfectly... I was getting 2.5 MBps via wireless to my WHS... with the Asus I get 1 MBps. It took me hours... literally hours... of rebooting the damn thing, rebooting my cable modem etc. etc. to get it to pick up a DHCP lease from my ISP. I have Comcast, so when powerboost kicked in I was gettin 16-18 Mbps on my wired connections... with no powerboost it always stayed pegged at 6 Mbps. With the Asus, I never see powerboost speeds and I'm lucky to get 3 Mbps... usually it's around 1. If I plug my laptop directly into the cable modem it goes back to what I'm used to up to 18 Mbps with powerboost and stays pegged at 6 Mbps without.

I'm going to try to flash the firmware and hope that helps... if I end up bricking it, screw it, I'll go to Best Buy and pick up a Linksys.

 

[darkewaffle]

Picked up an Asus RT-N12 a month or two ago on a shellshocker I think, replaced my parent's very aging Belkin (Dear god I will never buy a Belkin product ever ever ever) and it's been doing great for them. Flashed it to DDWRT with no trouble at all and I've experienced significantly better wireless performance and uptime. No complaints at all. Well, the bright white case kind of clashes with the room, but what can you do

 

[Destiny]

It depends on your budget and usage:

If it is for basic internet usage: WRT54G is fine (I have one for almost 7 years) You can get one for $25-$60... but keep in mind this router is only Wireless G and works with B & A too.

If it is for streaming media, file sharing and media players then I recommend the NETGEAR WNDR3700 - it has two connection access points one at 2.4GHz and one at 5GHz and they can operate at the same time! It retails for around $150...I had the Linksys E3000 but returned it after 3 weeks of headaches & the Linksys E1000 was my first attempt to uprade to a WiFi N network but I returned it back in May...Both linksys is good for normal usage... but I do a lot of file transfers and streaming media to my media players and computers...