routers

Home networking explained, Part 1: Here's the URL for you

Editors' note: This post is part of an ongoing series and was updated on February 13, 2013, to add information about hubs, switches, and the new 802.11ad Wi-Fi standard. For the other parts, check out the related stories.

As the guy who reviews networking products, I generally receive a couple of e-mails from readers a day, and most of them, in one way or another, are asking about the basics of networking (as in computer to computer, I am not talking about social networks here.)

Don't get me wrong, I appreciate e-mails because, at the very least, it gives me the impression that there are real people out there amid the sea of spam. But I'd rather not keep repeating myself. So instead of saying the same thing over and over again in individual e-mails, I'll talk all about home networking basics, in layman's terms, in this post.… Read more

Expert: Huawei routers are riddled with vulnerabilities

LAS VEGAS -- A German security researcher says he has uncovered several security holes in routers made by China-based Huawei that are used by many Internet service providers -- vulnerabilities that could allow attackers to take control of the devices and snoop on peoples' traffic.

Huawei routers are mostly used in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Because they're cheap, though, they're increasingly turning up in other parts of the world, the German researcher -- Felix Lindner, also known as "FX" -- said in an interview with CNET after his Defcon talk on Sunday.

The problem … Read more

WD joins networking with My Net router family

Once in a while there's a big change, and Western Digital is having one of its own.

The major storage vendor today unveiled not a new hard drive or NAS server, but its very first networking devices in the My Net family. There are five routers and one Gigabit Ethernet switch, enough to challenge other major home-networking vendors, such as Cisco, D-Link, Trendnet, and Netgear.

Unlike other networking vendors whose lineups tend to start with a budget single-band router, WD starts with the My Net N600, a true dual-band router that offers 300Mbps on both the 5GHz and 2.4GHz bands. The next step is the My Net N750, which also offers the 450Mbps speed on the 5GHz band, and finally there's the top-tier My Net N900, which offers the 450Mbps data rate on both bands. The My Net N900 also notably comes with seven Gigabit LAN ports (as opposed to the four ports found in most wireless routers). All of these routers work with any existing Wi-Fi clients.… Read more

Verizon's Jetpack 4G 890L mobile router review: Performance meets style

I am the type who generally cares more about functionality than style, but once in a while, I am intrigued by the look, too. Case in point: the Jetpack 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot 890L from Verizon Wireless.

This is a mobile router that gets attention, looking more like a beauty product for the ladies than something that would appeal to geeks. The good news is that it offers more than just looks.

The Jetpack 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot 890L comes with a very well-designed LCD screen that shows you all you need to know about the status of your wireless connections and even allows for changing many of its settings. It's the first I've seen that enables users to manage their mobile network without having to use a computer. … Read more

Top 5 IPv6-ready wireless routers

Today is the day when IPv6 is permanently enabled by home-networking equipment manufacturers and Web companies around the world. So what do you do to get ready?

First of all, there's really nothing you have to do right away. The transition to IPv6 will be a slow process, and in the meantime IPv4 devices will still work. In fact, there are IPv4-to-IPv6 transition protocols, known as "dual-stack" protocols, that make it possible to wrap IPv6 addresses within IPv4 packets to help legacy devices work during the transition. In the long term, it's better to make sure your network devices support IPv6 natively. Some of them can be upgraded to support IPv6 via firmware, but others you might have to replace with new devices.

Speaking of new devices, the most important networking device for your home or small office network is the router. The broadband modem is important, too, but most likely it's the responsibility of the service provider to upgrade that.

Following is the list of top 5 wireless routers that are IPv6-ready.… Read more

Verizon to ship new Jetpack 890L mobile router

Remember the cute, square Jetpack mobile router Verizon showed off at CES 2012?

Well, Verizon announced today that its new Jetpack 890L will be available on May 24.

This is the second router in the Jetpack line that the company introduced at the show, the first was the Jetpack 4620L that we reviewed just a few days ago.… Read more

5G Wi-Fi (802.11ac) explained: It's cool

Now that you can actually buy the first wireless networking products that use 802.11ac, Buffalo's router and media bridge, it's time you learned about the this new wireless standard. While the "ac" designation definitely does not mean "air conditioning," I can say for sure that 802.11ac is cool.

And by cool, I mean fast. That's the biggest difference about 802.11ac compared with previous wireless standards. But first let's see how similar it is.

802.11ac supplements 802.11n

802.11ac (aka 5G Wi-Fi) is the next step after 802.… Read more

Verizon Jetpack MiFi 4620L mobile hot-spot review: It's a Rocketeer

I can't count anymore how many mobile routers I have reviewed, but that also means that I know the Verizon Jetpack 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot MiFi 4620L by Novatel Wireless is different.

And it's not because of its crazy long name.

Instead, it's partly because of its craz,y long battery life. The router is the first I've seen that comes with two batteries. The standard one offers about 5.5 hours of continuous usage on a charge, and the second one offers about twice that. Combine the two, you have about two days' worth of charge, if you only use it during working hours that is.… Read more

Netgear demos Broadcom-based 802.11ac Wi-Fi devices

Netgear today teamed up with Broadcom to announce and demonstrate a new line of wireless networking products that use Broadcom's 802.11ac chips. These are the chips that Broadcom showed off in preparation for and during CES 2012.

These devices include two routers, the Netgear R6300 WiFi and the R6300 WiFi, and one USB adapter, the A6200 WiFi.

All of these devices are based on the new 802.11ac Wi-Fi standard (or 5G Wi-Fi, as Broadcom calls it). The Netgear R6300 is the top of the line and supports the three-stream 802.11ac standard that offers up to 1.… Read more