i have just bought a Dell 802.11n adapter for my laptop and now want an 802.11n router but does anyone have any advice on what to get or what not to get, i quite like the simple Belkin N1 thing but my brother wants th flash one as it has a display on that will show you all sorts from connected computers to current tinterweb speeds and has gigabit but seeing as we currently have no gigabit devices connected its a bit of a waste i feel but hey knowing me we'll get one anyway

so what shouldn't i be buying?

802.11n wasn't ratified last i checked so everything out there is pre-N.

If it is still pre N then the only true choice IMHO is one by the same people that made your dongle for the dell.

Your neighbours will hate you for having N as it uses MIMO so will steal the only three completely separate channels to bond and get the higher speeds. At the same time you probably won't get the advertised speeds as interference from microwaves, dect phones, other wireless networks will stop the bonding from working properly :(

I use a Linksys WAG325N and as Mark says, it's not as quick as the advertised speeds (surprise surprise!). I get around 180mbps though it. I'm using a Linksys USB adaptor with it on my main system; other devices are still on 54G or using a cabled connection to the router.

Steve

Stay away from belkin

Yup go with a Netgear every time.

I personally have got an Apple Time capsule that works great as an N router but i only have it as i won a competition at work

OK I thought I made it clear, but obviously I didn't.

If N is still pre-N then there is no guarantee any two manufacturers kit will work together and it's quite documented that a lot don't always depending on driver/firmware versions.

On that note, if Dell made the adapter for your lappy get a dell router or one dell recommends as these will have been tested or you will at least have some come back.

I think the N standard has been finalised now, but alot of routers/nics are still "draft-N"

Nope still on draft as of March:

IEEE 802.11n Report

I went to a trade fair last week and discussed 802.11n with many vendors who were pushing their 802.11n draft compatible kit. Cisco claimed their design was the standard to which everyone else should be compatible, but did admit that any changes to the current draft before ratification of the standard would not be included in current models.

The Belkin N1 Vision does look like a neat bit of kit, but its big problem is the word Belkin. I've had so much trouble with them in past that i won't go near them again.

Belkin’s New N1 Vision is the First Wireless Router with an Interactive Network Display

Their get out clause statement says it all really:

"Although Belkin incorporates all mandatory elements of the IEEE 802.11n draft 2.0 specification and designs the software to be upgradeable once the standard is finalized, Belkin cannot guarantee upgradeability."

The register don't seem too impressed either!

Belkin out on a limb with 802.11n? | The Register

BTW - The trade fair was at Mercedes Benz World. I was driven round their test tracks in some of their higher spec cars, but they wouldn't let me drive.

Don't buy an ex demonstrator from them - I've experienced how much these cars have been ragged!

just to add some more detail:

we literally don't have any neighbours, so MIMO stealing any and all available channels simply isn't a problem.

bengie's laptop is pretty much the only wifi device we'll be using as the PS3/Xbox360 and the other PCs are wired

we've currently got a Belkin router and it's been faultless.

we've had a Linksys in the past, thinking that it would be a decent bit of kit and to be blunt, it was a piece of ****

as he says, linksys sucked balls and our belkin has been fualtless and super easy to use

our nearest neighbour is a good 3-400 yards away

Dell recommend and sell Belkin and D Link.

Dell recommend and sell Belkin and D Link.

In that case I'd say Belkin or D-Link

Both have their issues and you can talk to brick wall "technical support" staff on both hotlines.

never had to call the belkin tech support as they've never gone wrong

Don't tempt fate

I was a bit worried about saying my belkin router has worked fine ...unlike the netgear ones which failed one after the other .....but if Bengies is alright as well then go with it

Last time I spoke to D-Link their answer was so utterly useless I ended up reporting them for using GPL software (Linux/busybox) on one of their ADSL devices and not providing the source code so I could fix it myself.

Belkin on the other hand were just useless at accepting there might be the problem we mentioned without following the 400* suggestions on the card first.

*This may be a bit of an exaggeration.