thank you all for the replies! ill go through them all

In reply to a post by MHC:

First question: What service are you on? ADSLx or VDSL2 (Infinity or similar)?

How many other devices will you connect to this router?

Do you need the ultrafast wireless connection?


Buying from Amazon.de may mean you get a device localised to Germany which will be supplied with a German power adapter that will need a UK/De plug adapter. You may also find that it is set up for Germany which has some restrictions on te use of the 5GHZ band and with some manufacturers it is almost impossible to change.

i'll be on ADSL (this is for a new place I'm moving into). I'd definitely upgrade to fibre or cable or whatever, as soon as possible, but I'm pretty sure that the phone line in my place runs directly to the exchange, not through a cabinet, so fibre doesn't seem likely in the immediate future. but having a router that could handle that would be good as then I could just keep it for the long-term

I'll have one desktop connected by ethernet, up to 3 laptops connected by wifi simultaneously, 2 smartphones, and a tablet. that's probably the upper limit. most of the time it'll just be a desktop, a laptop, and a phone.

I don't think I need the ultrafast wireless connection. I mean I can't see my ADSL being more than 20 Mbps anyway. I mean it'd probably be nice, maybe for when I get fibre, but it's not a necessity. (I'm assuming that 'ultrafast wireless' is the 900 Mbps it mentions on the amazon product page)

Thanks for the headsup about the germany thing. It goes at £130 on ebay which is probably still out of my budget (unless you think it's necessary for my needs)

Does your ISP provide a router?

In reply to a post by MUD_Wizard:

It totally depends what your requirements are, feature wise. There are pros and cons with every router. You choose what's good for you.

The Netgear R6300 is a top router, comparable in performance (according to the reviews) to the Asus RT-AC66U:

http://www.pcworld.com/article/262185/netgear_r6300_...

Speeds are blindingly fast IF you use the right adapter/network card:
http://kb.netgear.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/19668/...

So to make the most of this router you should use either an 802.11ac or dual-band 802.11n wifi adapter/card.

Most laptops are fitted with cheaper wifi cards that support 300mbps or less and most that do support 802.11n are not dual-band, so cannot use the 5ghz band for better speed and reduced interference.

I recently bought the Intel Ultimate-N 6300 wifi card that is used in some of the review tests. Got it off amazon for £20 new. This card is a three-stream (450mb/s) card so would work well with the R6300. To get the max performance out of the R6300 you'd need an AC adapter though.

I have a 120mb/s Virgin broadband connection and like that I get my full wired speed over wifi.

Wow! sounds good. Well with my desktop it would be an Ethernet connection, so I guess the 802.11n/etc thing doesn't apply to that right. My laptop will be the sony vaio pro 13 (once I get it delivered in a couple of weeks!) which is 802.11n if I'm right, although I'm not sure whether it's dual band or not.

like I mentioned above, my connection will only be 20Mbps ADSL to start, but if fibre does become available for me I'd upgrade in a heartbeat.

You can see some speed tests here with different adapters and how much difference it makes:
http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/wireless/wireless-rev...
http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/wireless/wireless-rev...

If you have a LARGE house, 100mb+ broadband, multiple devices that use wifi with adapters that can support the higher speeds (such as AC or 5ghz 802.11n adapters) and want the best of the best then I'm sure it'll be a good fit for you.

Some more general reviews:

http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/wireless/wireless-rev...

http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/networking-a...

Thanks - I'll check out the reviews, but if getting it from the german amazon is a bad idea then I have to pay £130ish for it, in which case it's probably not ideal for me. Also I'll be living in a 2bed flat which isn't really that big, and the main heavy use of the internet (where really fast speeds are needed) will be over ethernet on my desktop. on all other devices, having like 8Mbps would be more than enough. so I don't know if I need the power of this router now!

Most high-end routers have gigabit ports for ethernet, so as long as your computer has a gigabit network card (10/100/1000) you'll have no problems there. Just make sure your cable is at least cat5e or cat6, so that it supports gigabit speeds.

Ah I see, just saw this bit, then yeah I'm not sure this one is for me, seems a bit too high end.

In reply to a post by MUD_Wizard:

An alternative, if you don't absolutely need the performance that an AC class router provides is to go for the top router in the N class, the Asus RT-N66U.

Pretty much everyone raves about this router. It's very reliable. Proven. Easy to use. High performance and best in its class.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2028227/asus-rt-n66u-...

http://uk.asus.com/Networks/Wireless_Routers/RTN66U/
http://www.amazon.co.uk/ASUS-RT-N66U-Wireless-stream...

As you can see here, performance is still very fast, though being an N class router it's not in the AC league obviously:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/262149/asus_rt_ac66u_...

For a first time router you'll never regret it.

I don't think I need an AC class router since my laptop doesnt have an ac card and I won't replace it for at least 2 years, and my desktop will use ethernet. so doesnt seem necessary right now. the router you linked looks pretty good too, and I could just about stretch my budget to fit it in! The first review mentions that I can just plug my phone into the router to tether, which is great because that's what I'll be doing until internet is setup in my new place.

that reviewer also used it with BT infinity so I'm assuming it can handle fibre and all. so is the main feature difference between this Asus one and the Netgear one I linked before the lack of a/c?

edit: found it for under 100, http://compare.ebay.co.uk/like/161050761558?var=gv&l...

Edited by deleted (Tue 02-Jul-13 21:19:50)

In reply to a post by BatBoy:

Does your ISP provide a router?

nope.

In reply to a post by nish81:

In reply to a post by BatBoy:

Does your ISP provide a router?

nope.

So don't you need a modem?

The R6300 is only a router and only suited for VDSL. If you are on ADSL then you will need a modem and the D6300 is the equivalent but more expensive.

In reply to a post by BatBoy:

In reply to a post by nish81:

In reply to a post by BatBoy:

Does your ISP provide a router?

nope.

So don't you need a modem?

Having just looked into this I feel like an idiot now. i'll have to call my ISP tomorrow and double check with them exactly what I need to get. I'm assuming that neither the netgear r6300 or the asus n66u are hybrid router/modem all-in-ones?

My ISP will be Aquiss, incase anyone here is aware of what they do and dont provide. but I'll ring them up just to confirm it all with them. the email I got specifically said that they dont provide any 'router hardware'

In reply to a post by nish81:

My ISP will be Aquiss

Jeez. Good luck

In reply to a post by MHC:

The R6300 is only a router and only suited for VDSL. If you are on ADSL then you will need a modem and the D6300 is the equivalent but more expensive.

I see. it's only £5 more on the UK amazon tbh and if I do need a modem too then it migth be a good buy.

do you know if the D6300 is as good as the asus rt-n66u in terms of wifi signal/coverage and reliability? the D6300 seems to have some pretty bad reviews on amazon. would it be better to combine the asus with a modem? or is there some other hybrid router/modem that's the 'gold standard' of hybrid units in the same way that the asus is the gold standard of routers?

thanks again for all this advice, i'd probably have made some expensive mistakes without you guys