Who Says An AC Router Needs Gigabit Ports?

[sfx2000]

At the end of the day - who cares?

This product was developed by a group of engineers to a set of constraints by Product Planners/Business-Market managers to hit a certain price point.

It's not one-size fits all - but on the shelf - it's got all the right badges that people look for in the 30 seconds it takes for Joe-SixPack to make a buying decision.

It may not be optimal, but at the price it works - and the margin vs. BOM/Conversion Costs makes it work. And they're going to make a fair deal of money - otherwise you wouldn't see this device in the market place.

If this isn't your solution - don't buy it, find another solution.

But at the same time - streaming from your WiFi laptop with 802.11ac to your set-top box at 802.11ac - this box is going to do the job - and do it quite well...

just my two cents...

 

[arias]

I think a more appropriate byline and bullet points for this article would appropriately be:

If you don't understand networking, then you really might not need gigE ports on your 11ac router.

• You might just be using your router as an AP, meaning you're not even using the gigE ports anyway.

• N Routers with 10/100 still outsell gigE 2to1, so if you get a router that still putts along at 10/100 too you don't have to feel so bad.

• It's cheap not to.

• If you're too clueless to know that the other wireless devices on your network don't also use 11ac you're still going to limiting yourself to rates the older technology is capable of.

IOW, if you're a tech ignorant consumer who is thinking about upgrading but can't fathom basic networking OR you're all about the bargain basement and refuse to spend more on a router than you would a tank of gas, then sticking with 10/100 on your upgraded 11ac wifi might not be missing out on as much as you think. So score one for the Netgear guy because they've got great cheap routers.

I really don't see how site regulars here would find those types of arguments compelling though.

Hey Tim, could you provide some clarity into your final concluding insight? "You're better off with a standalone Gigabit switch if you need one anyway, to keep its additional heat load out of the router." How much does the server load of an onboard gigE switch affect wifi performance and functionality?

 

[thiggins]

Hey Tim, could you provide some clarity into your final concluding insight? "You're better off with a standalone Gigabit switch if you need one anyway, to keep its additional heat load out of the router." How much does the server load of an onboard gigE switch affect wifi performance and functionality?

It's not CPU load, it's heat. The less heat in the box, the better.

 

[stevech]

gigE switches are cheap. Like $25 or less for 5 ports.

Just go that way. It's less expensive.

 

[arias]

It's not CPU load, it's heat. The less heat in the box, the better.

Right. That's what I meant. How much can a busy router traffic on the LAN affect the heat of the onboard gigE chip such that it affects the performance of the router?

 

[Nerre]

Not the performance, the durability.

 

[ttran55]

I have a NAS and couple wired PCs so I don't need to say more about it ad many have pointed out.
I found many new routers have dual bands and that the factor that drives the cost up. How many users really need 5ghz ? There are not many clients support 5ghz and the range is so bad that It is practically useless.
My wnhde1111 bridge just died so I enabled 5ghz radio on my router and used the other wnhde111 as the bridge. its too slow to stream movie even there is no other wireless clients are on.
I ended up getting a wnhdb3004 kit and I am back to the business. The load is now on the dedicated wnhdb3004 kit although the signal is still average.
My point is adding the second 5ghz wireless is useless and it cost much more to design, test, firmware, EMI .. than adding Gb ports. I actually want a decent router with 8 ports and need 4 GbE ports out of 8.
Thang

 

[thiggins]

Well, you aren't going to want any 802.11ac products then, since they all will be dual band. 11ac provides its higher throughput in 5 GHz only.

 

[ttran55]

I didn't realized the new AC is all about 5Ghz. I need to visit this site again.
I would have a second thought about my current setup if I knew about the new AC router . However, the WNHDB3004 works well since it has 4 ports.

Tim, have you ever tested the ac router by streaming both bands simultaneously?
I am just wondering if it can handle streaming netflix to a tablet using 2.4Ghz and wireless video streaming from a NAS using 5Ghz at the same time?
Thang.

 

[stevech]

I'd think you need to wait for then buy 11ac clients with support for speed OPTIONS thare actually benefit you. Else 11ac router is just the latest up-sell in a saturated market.

 

[thiggins]

Tim, have you ever tested the ac router by streaming both bands simultaneously?
I am just wondering if it can handle streaming netflix to a tablet using 2.4Ghz and wireless video streaming from a NAS using 5Ghz at the same time?
Thang.

I have run "stress tests" on a few AC routers.
There is some interaction due to the shared processor that most all routers have. But whether you'll actually see the effects in real life depends on many factors (distance between router and client, wireless environment, content bitrate).

 

[stevech]

Netflix streaming is relatively low rate.