Wireless Networks for 20mbps internet?

[Schmutz]

I'm upgrading from wired to wireless network * My budget is £50-100

I'll use it to network my downstairs and upstairs PC's, and the games consoles (xbox 360 & Playstation 3)

I don't know much about wireless networks so it would be great if you guys could recommend any particular bundles/setups (I want to use ebuyer.co.uk)

Candidates:

NETGEAR DG834GT 108 Mbps Super G Wireless ADSL Router £61.99

Netgear DG834PN ADSL2+ RangeMax MIMO-G Wireless Modem Router £71.02

Belkin 125Mbps Wireless ADSL2+ Router £59.99

Netgear WGT624 Wireless 108mbps Firewall Router 802.11g £49.99

Will I need to buy wireless adapters also? I'm sure I need to get one for the xbox 360, but do you get any with the wireless routers?

* In my current setup I am using multiple network cards in my PC serving all the games consoles and the other PC, so there are ethernet cables all around. The ends seem to snap often too which is a pain. Also, my network cards are 10mbps, while my internet is 20mbps, so I'm losing speed on the other devices which is really unnecessary...

 

[grimesy69]

Hi Schmutz,

I would go with Belkin 125Mbps Wireless ADSL2+ Router £59.99

Only because i am not a fan of the Netgear range of routers.

Infact i installed this Belkin only last weekend and i was very surprised at how easy the interface was to navigate compared to other routers.

It's easily as good as the other candidates and it's the 2nd Cheapest.

As for wireless adapters none of the above state they come with wireless adapters. IF they don't then you will obviously need to purchase one for each machine you would like to connect. And one for the 360.

Possibly look at the below

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/136494 - comes with a wireless adapter

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/133706 - very cheap and comes with a wireless adapter.

Let me know what you think.

 

[tipstir]

I'm upgrading from wired to wireless network * My budget is £50-100

I'll use it to network my downstairs and upstairs PC's, and the games consoles (xbox 360 & Playstation 3)

I don't know much about wireless networks so it would be great if you guys could recommend any particular bundles/setups (I want to use ebuyer.co.uk)

Candidates:

NETGEAR DG834GT 108 Mbps Super G Wireless ADSL Router £61.99

Netgear DG834PN ADSL2+ RangeMax MIMO-G Wireless Modem Router £71.02

Belkin 125Mbps Wireless ADSL2+ Router £59.99

Netgear WGT624 Wireless 108mbps Firewall Router 802.11g £49.99

Will I need to buy wireless adapters also? I'm sure I need to get one for the xbox 360, but do you get any with the wireless routers?

* In my current setup I am using multiple network cards in my PC serving all the games consoles and the other PC, so there are ethernet cables all around. The ends seem to snap often too which is a pain. Also, my network cards are 10mbps, while my internet is 20mbps, so I'm losing speed on the other devices which is really unnecessary...

Play it smart... Keep the wired router as the main router then use only one port from the wired into a netgear 8 port switch. From that switch you go to a wireless access point. This way the main router is taking care of the DHCP routing and the switch is managing the traffic and the wireless access point is only used for all wireless devices.

Laptops should have wireless features already? If not then you need to get PCMICA Wireless Cards for them

XBOX360 wired...Unless you move that box around the dwelling, better off using wired connection.

 

[DelJo63]

also don't get fixated re 20mb vs 10mb. The limiting factors in thruput are
not the adapter on the PC nor the router. Most wired NICs are 10/100 and
never get anywhere near the rated speeds.

the practical limit on any TCP connection (wired or otherwise) is ~70% of the
slowest adapter in the chain from A connected to the other end B. As there
are many in the path, the issue is beyond our control.

 

[Schmutz]

thankyou guys.

grimesy69, I can't see why but the Belkin Router + Adapter isn't compatible with my ISP/virgin media ? Thats a shame because it looks ideal. I wonder if that means the Belkin router I mentioned isn't compatible too?? If it is compatible I could consider that and buying some Adapters separately

@tipster, I'm not using a wired router at the moment, I am using two network cards in a host PC with Internet connection sharing/bridged connections to enable internet on all devices, but because these network cards are only 10mbps they cannot provide full speed

I don't know why you've recommended I keep the xbox 360 on a wired connection? I would really like to get wireless there because I've replaced many 20 Meter ethernet cables because the ends snap and they become lose. It'll also be nice to say goodbye to the massive cables running through the house and up the stairs

jobeard, I think setup I'll get 20mbps internet speed on all machines with a wireless setup, and fast file transfer rates too. If I do a speedtest on my Host PC (connected directly to my router) I get between 17,000kbps - 20,000kbps but on my networked PC's I get only 4-5000kbps, and I can only imagine I get this speed on the xbox 360 also. Upload speed is always 768kbps (which is maximum - horrible upload speeds in UK...)

Also, transferring files over the network is incredibly slow, and I again believe the ethernet cards are the bottleneck, if I use my 1gbps built in network on both pc's I will get FAR greater speeds transferring files

 

[DelJo63]

fyi: wireless will always be slower than a cabled connection using today's technology.

unless you see your system-to-system copies running at 70% X NIC rated speeds,
your cards are not the limiting factor in the copy. There's a lot of work going on
to copy a file on both ends and that will limit the transfer rate.

 

[tipstir]

thankyou guys.


@tipster, I'm not using a wired router at the moment, I am using two network cards in a host PC with Internet connection sharing/bridged connections to enable internet on all devices, but because these network cards are only 10mbps they cannot provide full speed

I don't know why you've recommended I keep the xbox 360 on a wired connection? I would really like to get wireless there because I've replaced many 20 Meter ethernet cables because the ends snap and they become lose. It'll also be nice to say goodbye to the massive cables running through the house and up the stairs

Oh you don't have a regular router you have one of those with two nic cards inside. Okay you don't have the XBOX 360 in one location like on entertainement center. Then wireless is the way to go then.

make sure you get a heavy duty wireless router dlink DGL-4500 which is made for gaming is okay but very expensive.

 

[tipstir]

File transfers from one PC to another PC on the home network using 10/100 and setting both PCs to 100TX Full Duplex.

Transfering a 300MB file should take on avg 40 secs..

1GB file 2 minutes..

Setting NiC to 100TX Full avg speed is 60mbps
Setting NIc to 1000TX Full avg speed is 600mbps

 

[Schmutz]

the dlink looks great but doesn't seem to be available here in UK, I have found this: Belkin N1 Vision Wireless Cable/DSL Router £92 (roughly $180) - 4 gigabit ports, 300mbps... and this also: http://www.ebuyer.com/product/128049 - D-Link DIR-655 £92

unless you see your system-to-system copies running at 70% X NIC rated speeds,
your cards are not the limiting factor in the copy. There's a lot of work going on
to copy a file on both ends and that will limit the transfer rate.

When I connect both machines with their built in Gigabit LAN I can copy files extremely fast but when I use 10/100mbps pci network cards the copying is extremely slow, this is a difference of around 25mbps or 0.6mbps if my memory serves me correct so I'm sure the ancient network cards are the limiting factor!

I'll be very grateful if people can continue to throw some suggestions/opinions to make the decision easier because I don't know much at all about networking/features to look for

I will also buy a wireless adapter for the xbox 360. On my second PC I have a built in wireless receiver (motherboard is ASUS P5K-E) Can anybody answer whether I'll be able to use that rather than buy a separate wireless adapter for it? I assume its ok

thankyou!

 

[grimesy69]

If the motherboard has a built in wireless chip and comes with a free arial then you will not need to buy anything for that machine.

 

[rmdl51]

Hello Schmutz,
I have the same Motherboard (ASUS-P5K wi fi) and the on board wireless is pretty good, nothing spectacular but good enough to save a few bucks on another wireless adapter, the PS3 have 802.11g and you don't need anything extra to get online, for the 360 indeed need the wireless adapter but I'm not sure if it must be the microsoft one which here on US runs for $99, I'm not sure if you can use a different one (cheaper one).

If you are buying a router avoid the regular 54mbps unless you have your gaming consoles very close to the router, I have a range problem which keep kicking me out of online games very ofter but I just bought a Belkin G+ MIMO 108Mpbs and problem is solved, well I have use it for a day without problems but so far is working very good, so the same I got suggested I will suggest to you to get a G+ Router with MIMO. Good luck

 

[Schmutz]

Well my wireless connection will need to travel just one story to where my consoles are. I can't find the belkin model you've mentioned on ebuyer, can you recommmend any other 108Mbps routers?

 

[Schmutz]

Well I'm quite convinced that the Linksys SpeedBooster Wireless-G CableDSL Router is the one I'll go with, http://www.ebuyer.com/product/63763 -£35 (around $70)

I will be using it to share my 20Mb internet connection with The PC's, laptop and game consoles. I have been talking with grimesy69 who also uses it and plays games online. Although I did not expect this to be so cheap at all, I was very glad to spend around £100 on a reliable router. I've read a lot about wireless routers dying/ poor signals / slow connections and really hope that this router will be reliable and last for a long time. Will the router I've mentioned support all of this??? Yes, I'm being extremely paranoid :approve: this is the first time I have invested in a wireless router and I know squat (well, just a little over...)

 

[Didou]

I've used that router for a long time (& still do occasionally) & it works quite well. One thing to remember though is that the SpeedBooster feature can only be used when you're using SpeedBooster capable Linksys devices on each device, the Xbox for example won't be able to use that as it's WiFi dongle is not SpeedBooster capable.

 

[Schmutz]

I've used that router for a long time (& still do occasionally) & it works quite well. One thing to remember though is that the SpeedBooster feature can only be used when you're using SpeedBooster capable Linksys devices on each device, the Xbox for example won't be able to use that as it's WiFi dongle is not SpeedBooster capable.

Thanks Didou. I have however now bought Buffalo AirStation High Power Wireless Cable/DSL Smart Router after long discussions with the folks at the ebuyer.com forums. My research/support I've collected over the past few weeks has concluded that the Linksys router is fit for the job, but the Buffalo Airstation offers even better range and more stability